Castle in the Bay, Kayak Fisherman, Salt and Zorba

Several years back I worked in Chula Vista near the bay and off J street. There is a nice park there near the Chula Vista Marina and off shore there is "the castle." Everyone seems to know about it existing but not one person I've talked with is exactly sure what it is. If it's a home it's very large or a business (how do people get there). I've heard rumors of gambling, drug lords, house of feline persuasion all these predicated on how impossible it would be to pull a surprise raid. Of course that's all silly rumor because as anyone who spends June in San Diego knows about fog and the June gloom. At any rate that's it out on the water straight ahead.


The park had this cool work of municipal art. It's metal wind direction gauges lined in an arc and yes they do move and point into the wind, in this case from the West North West.


On the beach was a not so ordinarily rigged Kayak. Yes, there are 3 rods and a fish finder onboard as well as GPS and an emergency radio.


It seemed pretty small to be hanging out with these larger boats all around including a military landing craft. Note downtown San Diego in the background and the Coronado Bridge.


But there it was big (oops! I mean small as) day - paddle and all.


I never found out why these gulls were all around unless the kayak owner had dumped bait.


So I asked the owner Chauncy and no it wasn't him. He told me about a Thrasher Shark 250 pounds that had pulled a kayak fisher man from LaJolla to the Mexican border not long ago and although he looked like an "old salt" he just took up the sport in October.


About that time what looked like a ferry for very small cars drove by and in the distant background that's Point Loma where we visited the lighthouse the other day.


And going back in the other direction were two twin engine Coast Guard vessels headed toward "the castle" with black plastic covered 50 caliber guns on the bow. I wondered if all those rumors were true and the raid was on but nothing happened and they drove right by.


I got a better picture of the WWII landing craft later.


One thing I remembered just south of the Marina park was a salt production facility where salt water is evaporated over time and salt crystals are formed and scooped into piles for processing. The hills in the background are in Mexico and the radio towers you see are some of the more powerful radio signals short of NASA.


Not sure what this plant is but it's big and right on the bay.


North Island and Coronado are not quite an Island there is a road that goes to Coronado from Imperial Beach. The narrow strip of road is called "The Strand" and now there are condos and expensive residences on the strand. It is also, in parts on the ocean side where Navy Seals train. But wait what is that in the lower porting of the picture. It's a cat!! I speculated it escaped from the Castle lending credence to the ugly rumors.


First I needed to make sure this furry omen didn't cross my path then got this picture. I guess it makes sense though that a cat near water and FISH would look so healthy.


Well picture taking was almost done except for this Handicapped Parking sign at Zorba's, a Greek all you can eat on Broadway in North Chula Vista.


No Scrabble - Again

Quote of the Day

"I must go down to the seas again,
for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call
that may not be denied;"

~ John Masefield (1878-1967). Excerpt from the poem Sea Fever. Poet laureate of Great Britain from 1930 until his death, John Masefield was only 22 years old when he wrote the simple and moving lines in his poem 'Sea Fever'.