Safe Harbor

My favorite place to live as a child was by the ocean. I still love to go there. I am living in one of the hottest, driest places in California (the Central Valley) and I remember fondly the cold breezes and fog coming off the water. Not that we don't have fog here, but somehow it isn't the same. At least once per year, my husband's pool association has a big event in Monterey at the Monterey Convention Center which is next to Fisherman's Wharf, and we usually go. While we are there we sometimes take advantage of the free time to travel up the coast to Morro Bay. This photo was taken from the side of the Rock away from all the shops. I understand that it is less expensive to moor your boat out here where you have to reach it by rowboat than using the Marina docking which has walkways.
I have always found boats and ships fascinating. When I was a child, we lived in the Pismo area and I spend many days with my father on the Pismo Pier or on the shore. I have always loved watching the boats move in and out. Monterey Bay has a long history of being a safe haven for ships. As early as 1602, ships carrying elegant goods from the Manilla islands used the harbor. In 1870, a commercial wharf was built for regular passenger and freight service. Around 1913, commercial fishing industries began using it. It is now the largest marine sanctuary in the world and provides access to a variety of recreational activities.
A private or public Marina however is very different from a commercial Port, although both are usually located in a harbor. Harbors are bodies of water where ships, boats and barges can seek shelter from stormy weather, or are stored for future use. Natural harbors are usually found in bays, estuaries, and river mouths. A good harbor occurs where land and water come together and protect ships from wind and waves as they enter and dock. Harbors can also be built from jetties and causeways as well. Harbors can be natural or artificial. An artificial harbor usually has intentionally fashioned breakwaters, sea walls, or jetties, or they can be made by dredging.
Harbors include entry channels and inner channels (to allow movement to areas and support features for refueling and repair. Harbors can be found on the coast or on inland lakes. A natural harbor occurs where a part of a body of water is protected and deep enough to anchor a ship. Natural harbors are of immense tactical and financial significance. Many of the world’s great cities began on natural harbors.
Harbors and Ports are often mixed up with each other. A port is a facility for loading and unloading boats and ships. While ports are often found in harbors not every harbor has a port. A port is a manufactured coastal or lake or river area where boats and ships load and unload passengers and cargo. It may contain quays, wharfs, jetties, piers, and slipways with cranes or ramps. A port usually has buildings or warehouses for storing goods and a transportation system to move those goods inland or out to other countries. Ports are a place where rail, truck, barge, ship, and other transport methods meet.
A Marina is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina contrasts from a port because a marina usually doesn’t handle large passenger ships or cargo from freighters although many small (the word is relative) boats do take passengers out for local tours or fishing trips. The word marina is also used for inland wharves on rivers and canals used exclusively by non-industrial pleasure craft. In a Marina, Boats are generally moored on buoys, or fixed or floating walkways tied to an anchoring piling (floating docks and pontoons). Buoys are cheaper to rent but less convenient than docks allowing an owner to walk from land to boat. Harbor shuttles and water taxis may shuttle people between the shore and boats moored on buoys. Marinas may be owned and operated by a private club, such as a, but also as private enterprises or municipal facilities.