We were headed to a wedding in Santa Barbara and decided to take a slight detour to visit some friends on their gorgeous yacht, Bella Luna.
They’re located in the Channel Islands Harbor and host guests for day excursions for fishing, whale watching, and up close and personal tours of the beautiful Channel Islands.
While the Bella Luna typically hosts guests for day trips, we were lucky enough to get to sleep aboard for a few nights. What a treat!
It was particularly foggy during our visit, and after a quick early morning fishing session with Moose, Bella Luna’s ridiculously cute and funny pooch, we headed to IHOP for chocolate chip pancakes!
Getting to Bella Luna is easy with a short walk to the parking lot at the end of the dock.
Then we took the dinghy out for a delicious Mexican lunch. The dinghy doesn’t yet have a name, but I’m keen on Crescent. 🙂 When we were headed home, a GIANT seal swam past and under us. 
The upper deck is a perfect spot for any special occasion. It’s sunny, has plenty of seating, and provides spectacular 360 views.
We tried to go whale watching in the afternoon, but as you can see, the fog was thick just past the harbor and we opted to turn around due to low visibility. But we did see seals all around us in the harbor. Here’s Luna keeping close tabs on one swimming near us.
And here’s Big A looking out for whales while we were docked! 🙂 He’s also the kid that swears he saw a swordfish when we were snorkeling in 10′ of water a few months ago! 
Despite not seeing any whales on our foggy visit, Bella Luna went out the next day for a few hours and spotted some spectacular humpbacks. This humpback tail shot was from a trip in Iceland a few years ago.
Tail fin of the mighty humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) seen from the boat near Husavik, Iceland
And dolphin are everywhere, swimming alongside the boat.
On our second night aboard Bella Luna, the kids fished while we were making dinner. Literally 30 seconds after I walked into the galley, I heard “Mom! We’re tangled!” with a lot of bickering and blaming between my kids.
Standard.
I spent about 2 minutes trying to untangle the mess when suddenly one of the lines went zipping out…FAST! Being the non-fisherwoman that I am, I called for help! We weren’t sure what was on the other end, but it certainly felt big. Turns out it was a sting ray, and luckily for me, Rob came to the rescue with his gloves, headlamp and pliers. He was able to free the stingray and save me from tossing the entire rod into the water!
Until next time, Bella Luna!!
To book a day trip, visit Bella Luna or call +1 805-754-7703
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