San Diego is such a big Navy port, there is all kinds of activity involving the big gray ships that is it best to stay far away from.

When I sailed in San Francisco Bay, I would have my VHF radio on most all the time, for entertainment as much as any other reason.  I am pretty sure I was the exception to the rule among small boats.  It was pretty rare that a radio hail to a boat on SF Bay got an answer back. Here in San Diego it is a different story.  It seems most everybody has their radio on and most hails to boats are answered quickly.

You realize why there might be a different radio culture here when you hear a radio announcement like this:

Hello all stations, Hello all stations, Hello all stations.  This is

The Somerset, “Warship 25”

Warship 25 at location 33 degrees 10 minutes North, 118 Degrees 21 minutes West.  For the next hour we are conducting live fire exercises and request all vessels to stay 5000 yards clear.  We will be monitoring Channels 16 and 13.  Warship 25 Out.

Kind of an important announcement you might not want to miss because you had your radio turned off! Some version of this happens most every day here.  I am pretty sure wandering into a Navy live fire range could ruin your whole day…