Making Friends and Connections at the Baja Ha-Ha Fall Crew List Party

People started showing up at 3 p.m. for last night’s Baja Ha-Ha Mexico Cruising Seminar and Latitude 38 Fall Crew List Party at Spaulding Marine Center in Sausalito, and the night couldn’t have been better. The traditional, cool Sausalito fog had backed off, leaving bright blue skies and comfortable temperatures, making the indoor/outdoor boatyard venue an ideal setting for this annual fall gathering of sailors. Close to 300 sailors, cruisers, boat owners and crew came to connect to sail the Bay or over the horizon to Mexico and beyond.

The 4-5:30 seminar covered lots of ground, including all the tips on TIPS and Mexico cruising do’s and don’ts as cruisers took notes for their sail south this year, though some were preparing for next year. Hands were raised on communications, with people split on Iridium GO! and inReach, and Patsy Verhoeven admitting to now being a big fan of Starlink. Some said they’re planning to mail postcards home.

It was a full house at the classic boatyard, with many walking in saying, “Wow, I love this place!” Spaulding Marine Center is a piece of Bay Area waterfront history that serves as a foundation for teaching skills to apprentice craftsmen looking for future employment in the marine industry. In the off hours Latitude 38 was happy to return so folks on our Crew List have a chance to meet in person, swap tales, swap contact information, and find that ride or crew for the next race or cruise. Also on hand were volunteers from the Island Yacht Club, Sailing Science Center, Douglas Samp from the US Coast Guard and Baja Ha-Ha sponsors Downwind Marine and Marina Riviera Nayarit.

Latitude 38‘s Crew List Party has a tradition of connecting thousands of sailors for thousands of miles of sailing for over 45 years. It’s been more difficult to hold a party this past couple of years, but the online crew list now has over 1,000 entries of captains and crews looking to connect for sailing. The Crew Liat Party has usually served as a “First Date” of this online sailing crew service, which started in print in the magazine and went all digital in the early 2000s. If you didn’t make the party you can still have a good time sailing by signing up for the crew list here. We’ll hope the world allows us to resurrect our Spring Crew List Party in 2023.

Great to see everyone last night, and we look forward to seeing you on the Bay or in Mexico and hearing your new sailing adventures.