The Cruising Guide to Central and Southern California: Golden Gate to Ensenada, Mexico, Including the Offshore Islands

Great source of information. Check your weather before you go.

I *thought* I knew about the Channel Islands and the different weather systems around Southern California. I've sailed here for a few years, and have gone up into the Channel Islands. Heck, I was married on Catalina.Starting to read Fagan's book, it became quickly evident that I didn't know anything about this rich area. Fagan breaks down multi micro climates into detailed and descriptive blocks, highlighting which routes will show off what type of weather in different parts of the year. If you already know what the weather will be like in Santa Cruz Channel in October, or when Cuyler Harbor turns into a dangerous lee shore (and what conditions to watch for in advance), then I suppose you don't need this book.If you're going to be harbor hopping along the mainland, you can probably get by without it. But if you're going to be heading off the grid into the fringes of the no-kidding Pacific, you'd be foolish to read Fagan's book first. Ask anyone who's done a lot of sailing in the Channel Islands, and you'll hear "Fagan's book" pop up in discussion within a few minutes. Charlie's Charts, although useful in other areas (primarily down in Mexico) do not cut the mustard against Fagan.Highly recommended, and if you only have sailing book related to Southern California this should easily be it.

If you ever needed to take shelter in a storm, this book has several anchorages available to protect you and your boat.

This seems to be the standard reference book for California cruising. It contains essential information for yachtsmen sailing the California coast and offshore islands. It has many useful simplified charts and photos of approaches to harbors and anchorages. It also has a useful chapter on local weather forecasting. Although California weather is mostly pretty benign, it can also make life very difficult to any sailor who is unprepared for bad weather, and Fagan provides plenty of good advice on how to predict it, and how to deal with it.

This is a MUST for any central or Southern California sailor or powerboater. Lots of great tips -, as always, trust but verify. Some information is outdated. But not enough to keep this from being a go-to guide for Channel Islands hopping.

Cruised up and down the coast of SoCal and the Channel Islands using the information in this book. It has great details, suggestions and pictures. There isnt another book out there for SoCal as good as this one. I think without the book, you would miss out on some real gems.

a nice book, I would have expected more cartography, maps, and picture with higher printing resolution

This is a good book for those interested in cruising the west coast, you can always get something out of the book if you plan to make that trip up the coast, lots of good information to research and make plans from.