A fine Siesta

John Blaich, Special to the Pilot

The large wooden motor yacht Siesta was home ported at Balboa from

1924 to 1937. She was designed and built by the George Lawley shipyard at

New York in 1910.

Siesta was 76 feet long with a beam of 15 feet and a draft of 3 feet,

6 inches. She was powered with two gasoline engines driving twin

propellers.

William C. Warmington, father of our local sailor, Ed Warmington,

purchased Siesta in the East and had her delivered to Balboa.

Warmington, a member of Newport Harbor Yacht Club, moored Siesta just

east of the present clubhouse on an offshore mooring with a long line to

a post or dead man on the beach. A full-time “paid hand” was employed by

Warmington to keep Siesta in mint condition.

Siesta made many trips to Catalina with young Ed Warmington and family

on board. One extensive voyage took Siesta to San Francisco and back.

D.E. Wheeler, also a Newport Harbor Yacht Club member, was a close

friend of Warmington. He usually went along on these cruises. About 1926,

he purchased Siesta. She was then moved to a permanent fore and aft

mooring off the Balboa Peninsula just west of the Balboa Ferry Landing.

The task of navigating a 76-foot yacht through the very narrow channel

from Newport Harbor Yacht Club to the main bay took time and skill. This

probably could only be done at high tide. At this new location, Siesta

could enter and leave Newport Harbor at will.

Wheeler loved his yacht. He enjoyed spending time on board Siesta when

she was moored in Newport Harbor. The good doctor passed on about 1935.

His estate sold Siesta, and she left Newport Harbor in 1937.

This will probably be our last story on “The Yachts of Newport

Harbor.” In January, we plan to start a series of articles titled “Ship

Wrecks at Balboa and Newport.” Our January article will be the story of

the Four Masted Schooner Muriel.

Happy holidays.

* EDITOR’S NOTE: John Blaich, a volunteer at the Newport Harbor

Nautical Museum, is a Corona del Mar sailor who chronicles the history of

the yachts and boats that have graced Newport Harbor. His contributions

appear on an occasional basis.