Colonial Expeditions to the Interior of California Central Valley, 1800-1820Cook, Sherburne Friend
History
Colonial Expeditions to the Interior of California Central Valley, 1800-1820
Cook, Sherburne Friend
California -- Discovery and exploration; California -- History -- To 1846 -- Sources; Central Valley (Calif.)
We started out, then, on the 13th day of the present month, between
eleven and twelve o'clock in the morning and traveled to the north for
twenty-one miles. We anchored for the night at Point San Pablo at eight
o'clock. After an hour the launch "Josefina" of our convoy joined us,
carrying the Reverend Fathers Fray Ramón Abella and Fray Narciso Duran.
The following day, the 14th, we set sail at six o'clock in the morning
to the north and after going through Carquinez Strait we pointed east,
one quarter northeast. The wind freshened considerably as the sun went
down and the launch "Josefina" of our convoy fell behind so that it
became necessary for me to shorten sail. Since even this did not permit
them to catch up, we had to anchor at the strait which separates the
bays of Suisun and of the Ompines and wait until the launch "Josefina"
came up much later. As soon as it joined us we set out again. I ordered
sail shortened as much as I could, but the wind freshened considerably
so that soon the other launch fell behind again. Our launch suddenly ran
aground on a shoal half a mile distant from the mainland on the side of
Mission San José. However, we started again soon and by sounding we came
upon the channel, which had sufficient water and which followed closely
the same shore. While engaged in this operation, we were joined again by
the "Josefina" which, according to the signs they made, had been heading
toward the shore. We followed along the shore and by dark we saw that
the launch "San José" had again fallen far behind. The night fell and
the wind was quite strong, with consequently considerable swell. I held
closer to the shore in order to search for some kind of shelter. This
we found and anchored at half-past eight in the evening. Immediately I
caused signals to be made to the other launch so that it might join us
but without success. So, without much regard to comfort, I maintained my
position until three o'clock in the morning of the following day. In
this day we traveled sixty miles.[36]
At three o'clock in the morning of the 15th, as I have said, in spite of
the strong wind I made arrangements to start out in search of the launch
"San José" and, after we had traveled toward the north with a quite
strong southwesterly gale and in a heavy sea, a gust of wind came so
strong that it broke off the mainmast. It carried the sail and all the
gear into the water. At the same time the sheets of the foremast were
lost. However, by a sharp maneuver we made fast the sheets of the
foremast and recovered the mainsail, which had gone into the water with
a piece of the mast. We continued navigating with the foremast alone
toward the north. There was no other misfortune than that just described
of a broken mainmast, and [the loss of] the hat of a soldier which in
the flurry fell into the water and could not be recovered on account of
the high wind and waves.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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