Glen Cove Marina
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
One review for Glen Cove Marina
1 review in English
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Review from Robert C.
San Jose, CA
11/7/2009
So it had been a hectic trip up the Sacramento Delta on my dads 24' Islander Bahama. The two guys going with me decided they wanted to cut 8 hours off their time by not cruising from Oakland to Martinez. I got stuck in the mud in Martinez Marina because the harbormaster failed to tell me the guest berth had such a shallow draft at low tide.
So after a late start I started powering back towards Oakland where our home slip is. After passing the Antioch bridge my motor started making a funny noise. After passing the Carquinez strait bridge, a part flew out the back spraying oil everywhere, the starter rope stopped working, and I was dead in the water. I quickly jumped up on deck to raise the sail so I could have some degree of control over the boat.
Turned out a screw had worked its way loose from fuel pump on the outboard. I floated underneath the Carquinez bridge for a while while trying to find a replacement screw. Then I heard a "PHRURP PHRURP PHRURP!" I went back above, and there was a Sheriff boat there.
Sheriff, "YOU ALRIGHT?"
Me, "YA, BUT MY OUTBOARD IS SHOT, A SCREW FELL OUT AND THE FUEL PUMP FELL OFF"
Sheriff, "YOU GOTTA GET OUT OF HERE, A CONTAINER SHIP IS COMING THROUGH!"
Me, "CAN YOU GIVE ME A TOW TO THE NEXT MARINA?"
Sheriff, "WE'RE NOT A TOW SERVICE, CALL VESSEL ASSIST"
Bastards! I turned my ship around and started going back the way I came. It wasn't hard, downwind is always easy.
I looked at the entrance to Glen Cove. No way I was gonna be able to maneuver that with no power. There was another cove just east of the Marina. I figured I could anchor there for the night, out of the way of passing container ships. When I got there I found a family on a sailboat with a couple of Jet ski's buzzing around. I explained my situation to them and the Jet ski's towed my boat into Glen Cove.
Overall it was an awesome experience. One of the maintenance guys at Glenn Cove dug around a box to find me a replacement screw. The bathrooms were very clean. My only complaint is there was no restaurants anywhere near the marina that I could see. Then again the Marina sits in a cove surrounded by hills, and I wasn't really in the mood to climb to the top.
They had free wifi which was great! My GPS chart plotter is my netbook, so I tuned into a Beatles internet radio station while working on the motor, and watched TV shows on Hulu. It kind of helped melt the stress away.
I stayed there one emergency night, and one extra night because I loved the place. I know they recently dredged it out, so it's gotten even better. If it wasn't so far away, I'd love to have this as my home berth.
