-- a guest article by Tony Conboy III
STOCKTON, CA - There is nothing to bring families or a group closer better than spending time on the water houseboating.
Not having to drive to a remote location for the houseboat experience makes it even better. Conveniently located within minutes of Stockton and even Interstate 5, boating on the California Delta allows the houseboater to experience some of the thousands of miles of navigable waterways that traverse California's fertile San Joaquin Valley.
The Houseboat and Amenities
The 47' foot Summit houseboat we rented from the Seven Crowns Resort's Paradise Point Marina was nicely equipped. It slept 10 comfortably, included a complete kitchen with dishes, flatware, pots/pans, drinking glasses and more. Other modern conveniences included a refrigerator, microwave, blender, gas barbeque and freshwater hot showers. All that a boat renter needs to bring is their own food, drinks, towels and bed linens - other than that the boat is virtually fully stocked. (Pets are also permitted on the houseboats.)
Getting Started
Checking out the boat from the marina is easy. After quickly going through the necessities, which included an explanation from the marina's staff of how to operate the boat as well as its many amenities, we were underway on the water within two hours.
The types of waters you will encounter varies from major rivers (San Joaquin and Sacramento) to the manmade canals called sloughs, which are bordered by levees made of stone. All along the trip we saw houseboats, pleasure boats and ski boats enjoying what the Delta has to offer - fishing, skiing and exploring the water around some of the Delta's 55 manmade islands.
For the anglers, striped bass, sturgeon and catfish are all the targets of choice. For water skiers, it's literally miles and miles of nearly flat calm water to ski.
Seeing some of the islands in the Delta; however, won't come quickly on your houseboat adventure. Remember, houseboats only average 5-10 MPH, so this is the type of experience that rewards those who value the trip, not just the destination.
Operating a large houseboat on the relatively narrow waterways was at times a little daunting, but following the basic rules of boating made it safe and enjoyable. With Mount Diablo (elevation 3,849 feet) always looming over the Delta, you'll see some of nature's best as well as unique manmade sights. There are small bridges that are off limits to most houseboats, if you want to keep you boat unscathed, and a very unique car ferry.
Near Disappointment Slough, connecting King Island with the Empire land tract was where we crossed paths with the car ferry. The ferry is tethered to a submerged cable that stretches from one side of the shore to the other. As neophyte Delta house boaters, we couldn't determine where we should cross so that we didn't hit the submerged cable that guides the incredibly small ferry for shore to shore. (The warning signs for the ferry only confused us and raised our anxiety levels.)
After watching the ferry pass in front of us, we navigated ourselves out of the ferry crossing predicament without any harm coming to our boat and shortly thereafter settled on an anchorage near Devil's Isle in White's Slough. As I mentioned, operating the boat is relatively easy, finding a place to anchor and actually anchoring is another story. To properly anchor you must ensure both your bow and stern anchors are properly set, which is often harder than it sounds.
The peaceful cove we chose meant that we were out of the main boat channel and that there wouldn't be another boat around us for miles as we slept at anchor in the cove. We were free to swim, relax, eat and enjoy all the Delta had to offer.
For more information on houseboating on the California Delta, visit www.sevencrown.com or call 800.752.9669. Costs vary with time of year, but typically a three-day houseboat rental runs from $1100 to $1500. or call 800.752.9669.
