Today, David and Rhonda from Swan, Ken from Drifter, and I rented a car to drive in to Loreto.  We wanted to do a little banking, sightseeing, provision, and get some fuel.  Oh, and we had to stop at Taqueria el Rey on Suarez.  Amazing, phenomenal, gustatory, satisfying, flavorful, fresh and whatever other adjective you can find to describe the best fish tacos on the planet.  It’s a small, whitewashed building, very clean, with two rows of plastic picnic tables and chairs, seating at a short bar in front of the cooks, and a serving shelf with all of the homemade condiments on it.  Very simple.  A husband and wife own and operate it, with the husband doing the cooking, and his wife serving and cleaning.  They are very friendly and pleasant, and just want you to enjoy their food.  No problem there!  At times, when not in school, their 8 year old son very efficiently buses tables and brings you your just squeezed orange juice or lemonade.  He’s got a huge smile for everyone.  The line is out the door come lunchtime, and it’s filled with locals.  You know it’s gotta be good!  I had three, count ’em, three huge tacos with fresh caught parrotfish as the fish of the day.  Finish that off with a sweet, fresh glass of cold orange juice, and my eyes about rolled back in my lil’ head.  We all just kept looking at each other and shaking our heads.  It was good….

These are all from El Mision Loreto

We walked through town and visited the mission Fr. Junipero Serra built in the 1600’s.  The construction was impressive.  The walls were about 3.5′ thick and of hand-hewn stone.  The ceiling beams were of beautiful 12×12 logs adzed to get the right shape and cut.  There was an ancient confessional that was hand built.  Looking at all of this, we were amazed at the labor, design, and craftsmanship that went into something like this, in the 17th century!  There was tilework stating that this was the beginning of the El Camino Real in Loreto.  The whole area was simply beautiful.

Rhonda and I went into a curio shop near the mission, and spoke with Marisol and her husband for a bit.  Marisol had a huge smile for us, and we asked questions and ooohed and aahed at the items for sale.  After spending about 30 minutes in the shop, Marisol offers us a shot of tequila.  This is shopping!  Dave came in and enjoyed a bit, also.  They really got a kick out of the crazy gringos, and we did buy a few things.  Pretty fun.

After that, we got down to business of provisioning for the next few weeks.  First stop was El Mercado Pescadores, and it was clean and very nicely stocked.  We probably spent an hour there, crossing things off our lists in order to try and sink our boats again with food.  After, we stopped off at the well, kinda like Grand Central Market in Downtown LA, but really not.  I wasn’t too impressed, especially after a cockroach that could kick Makani’s butt crawled out of the fresh eggs for sale.  It wasn’t too pretty.  I bought some chicken and tortillas, and that was good enough for me.  We stopped at the bank, and made our way back to Puerto Escondido to offload and then reload onto our respective boats.

Tomorrow, Tuesday, I’ll top off the diesel, do a last load of laundry, a last internet check in, and depart Wednesday morning.  I’m not sure where, but I’d really like to explore the nearby islands of Loreto.  I hope everyone is enjoying this almost last week of spring and getting ready for summer!  Congratulations to my sister, Missy, and her husband, Andrew, for tying the knot on the top of Half Dome this last weekend!  Adventure runs in the family!  I’m so happy for you both, and Andrew, what a way to begin Birthday Week!  Take care, Everyone, and know how much I love and miss you!  It may be 4-6 weeks before I hit the internet again, so know all is well, and there are no problems associated with the computer silence.  Much love…

Old Architecture of La Casa Grande, Tembabiche

I’m sitting at the bar at the Villa del Palmar Resort in Puerto Escondido.  There’s free wifi here (as long as you eat or drink, but that’s not a bad thing…).  I come in during the morning so I’m only paddling against 10 knots of air and have 15-20 knots at my back when it’s time to go back to Willow.  I am really loving the SUP, the ease of getting it aboard when it’s blowing extra hard or for a short passage, or, for deflating and stowing.  It’s serving its purpose very nicely, and I get to pretend I’m paddling with my friends from Hokuloa…  Great time…

I’m trying to take advantage of the internet access while I have it.  The past few weeks without it have been a bit sublime, but I need to qualify that.  It has been heavenly to be anchored in a secluded spot, just observing the wildlife, playing in the water, fishing, and working on Willow.  I love the convenience of being able to contact you all through the super mysterious medium that is the internet, but when I’m away from it, I’m reminded of years’ past.  The first time I was down here was in the late 80s on a ketch called Seramin.  We left La Paz for Cabo, and there weren’t even payphones!  You had to go to a small building with a bank of rotary phones, talk with an operator who didn’t speak english, and make either a collect call, or a credit card call.  Frankly, it just added to the adventure.  On the boat, there was a sextant and tables for navigation, and a satnav unit.  We had a SSB receiver only for weather.  The satnav worked twice a day, and you had to make sure it was on and tuned, at the right time, in order to get a position.  We couldn’t use the sextant yet, as the sun was passing over land, and not the horizon of the water.  Unless you had a HAM or SSB license, you weren’t communicating with home, unless there was an emergency.  Now, we have access to satphones, email aboard, satellite email, TV and internet access.  You can make a satphone call to the router who will tell you what direction to steer your boat in order to avoid weather, ships, pirates, or other trouble.  What’s the fun in that?

Fog Creeping Into Bahia Candelero

At least for me, I prefer to take responsibility for my course, my own weather routing, my own work, and my own safety.  That’s all part of the adventure, mystery, fun and success.  Granted, it won’t be all those things all the time, but when it’s not, I can only look in the mirror, and point my big fat finger at myself.  Hah!

Company in the Anchorage…

Another Ventura-based sailor, Ken, and his Baba 30, has joined us over the past few days.  His fine boat is finely outfitted, and provisioned!  He’s cooked some amazing meals!  I must qualify that with the fact he has a vehicle in La Paz, and goes to Costco in Cabo when the whim strikes him.  Ribeye for dinner a few nights back…

Goats on the Bluff.  If you look below the cactus, you can just spot the sheepdog!

Oh, and I have to tell you about the goats!  In Agua Verde, there are about 3 dozen goats roaming the village, and in the afternoon, the surrounding bluffs.  One day it was so hot in the afternoon, the herding dog took the goats to some rocks on the beach that were in the shade.  One smart puppy!  These goats are fat, happy, colorful and vocal.  One or two of them wear bells around their necks, so it’s easy to see and hear where they’re wandering.  I loved watching their scamperings on a daily basis.  The goat cheese, homemade, was pretty dang good, too!

Well, that’s about all I’ve got for today.  The computer’s battery is just about to die.  Have a great day, and Go, Hokuloa, Go, for their race today.

I miss and love you all.

Makani Guarding the Booty…

I’m comfortably tucked into the cove in San Evaristo, about 55 nm out of La Paz.  It’s Friday afternoon (May 24), and I just sailed the longest 9 nm I think I ever have.  I left the cove at Isla San Francisco at about 0930 this morning, and arrived here at around 1430.  That’s less than 2 nm an hour, and boy, do I know it.  The prevailing breeze is now out of the south for the rest of the spring and summer, and I tested that today.  I ghosted out of San Francisco with the self-made pact that I wouldn’t turn on the engine unless I was traveling under 1 knot for more than 5 minutes.  Don’t you know, I was averaging 1.1 knots for hours.  Finally, the very light breeze filled in, and I was able to sail DDW (dead downwind) for the remaining 6 nm.  That means keeping an eye on the wind indicator at the top of the mast and your sail trim, adjusting the sail trim or your course, as the very light breeze would shift through a 30 degree arc.  Can you say chiropractor??  Finally, I was able to gybe around and beam reach to the little cove that is San Evaristo.  I’m anchored in 7′ of water, Willow’s tidied up for the night, and I’m enjoying an adult beverage.

I left La Paz Tuesday morning (May 21) and traveled a whopping 4 nm to Playa Pichilingue, where I anchored in front of a small marina and hotel.  There, I tucked into shallow water to protect myself from the nightly coromuels that blow out of the southwest, sometimes gusting to 30 knots.  These winds originate from the Pacific side of the Baja, and move to the lower pressure side, La Paz Bay.  If the Pacific is feeling her oats, she shares them with us over here on the other side of the Baja.  I left Pichilingue Wednesday morning (May 22), headed to my favorite spot of Ensenada Grande about 22 nm away.  There was a robust southeasterly blowing, and after reefing main and the jib, I was flying toward my destination.  I arrived about 1530 and tucked Willow in for the evening.  The coromuel reached us there that night, but it was a good thing for Willow, as the wind generator topped off her (new) batteries.  Yippee!

Thursday morning (May 23), I left for  Isla San Francisco and enjoyed a nice sail for half the journey.  After 10 nm, the breeze shut down, and the engine did the trick for the rest of the way.  When I pulled in, there was one other boat, and I was stoked!  Short-lived, 3 maxi-yachts pulled in towing their jetskis, other PWCs, and generators.  I was glad I wasn’t spending more time there.  The highlight of San Francisco was when I watched the full moon rise just above the mountain.  I’m thinking I got a nice shot.

Isla San Francisco Sunsets

Tonight, I’ll paddle the SUP over to Swan, Dave and Rhonda’s boat, for dinner and a surprise birthday present for Rhonda.  It should be a fun time…

San Evaristo Sunrise (Casa, cow, truck and outhouse…)

It’s a few days later, and I’m a few miles further up the coast.  I’m anchored in a place called Tembabiche, and it’s absolutely inspiring.  The geography around here is so different.  I’m reminded of the Grand Canyon, Utah and Wyoming.  It’s very apparent this place used to be underwater as the different water level lines are so obvious.  Right where I’m at, the hills look yellow to me when compared to the pinks, browns, and beiges of the hills and mountains surrounding the area.  I’m in a small bay that’s open to the south and southeast, but the wind’s blowing from the southwest, or shore, so there’s no fetch.  The breeze is most welcome.  My thermometer topped 100 degrees today, and that’s in the shade and breeze!  It’s warming up!

I arrived here yesterday afternoon after a windless run.  There’s been a bunch of kelp in the channel, so I was continuously reeling in my jigs and clearing them of the weed.  About 5 nm from my destination, I was reeling my Rapala minnow in when I watched as a young dorado followed the jig and took a chomp.  He had alot of spunk for a youngster, but after 15 minutes of letting him tire, I was able to land him.  After bleeding him, I put him back in the water, tied to Willow by his tail, to stay cool until I could get to cleaning.  I was close to Tembabiche, and just wanted to get the hook down.  My cleaning technique has improved immensely, and soon I had some lovely fillets cooling in the icebox.  I was able to clean the cockpit of fish stuff, put my sail covers on, and relax with a beverage.  As I was doing so, a panga came up alongside, and I met Jaime and his young son, Angel, who had some of my least favorite food crawling around their boat.  Yup, I had lobster last night for dinner, and again for breakfast this morning.  YUM!  I felt very decadent.

Today, I’m waiting for Dave and Rhonda of Swan to catch the breeze and make their way up here.  I need to clean my prop, but the bottom’s been doing well.  Batteries are charged, water tanks are full, and life is good.  This is a spectacular spot…

It’s the last day of May, and what a month.  Right now, I’m anchored in the south lobe of Agua Verde, and it’s utterly calm.  Just after 10 PM, the gazillions of stars are out, no moon, and no air movement.  The past few evenings have found me as the lil’ social butterfly of the fleet.  I’m just not used to this!  Dave just rowed Rhonda and I back to our respective boats after Friday Night Pizza and a Movie.  You know Friday nights, right?  Well, it seems there’s a tradition aboard a few of the boats for a movie night.  And Chicgaila and Roy Wood of Sea Note added a bonus pizza to Friday night movie night.  Plus, plus, plus!  Chicgaila made us a pizza to die for, with some lobster and macaroni salad, and some beautiful wine.  Rhonda made a chocolate pudding dessert, and it was time for a movie.  No Captain Ron for us, rather, Roy Disney’s “Morning Light.”  It was a really good movie about some kids who were given the keys to a TP52 to race the TransPac on.  Pretty amazing.

As we were being rowed back, we all were humbled by the stars, the still air, still water, with phytoplankton showing us pools of green light as a response to some unknown stimuli.  It was beautiful.  This afternoon, I was reading in the cockpit after all my chores were done when I heard a bell tinkling.  What the?  Yup, a herd of goats was wandering by on the bluff just above Willow.  I don’t have a good close up lens, but I tried to catch some photos.  All in all, a beautiful day.  I’ll talk about the sailing to here tomorrow.  Night, all…

Cleanest Boat Around…

As I think I’ve said before, La Paz is a beautiful town with incredible people and breathtaking vistas.  But, it’s time for me to go.  I came back here to put new batteries in Willow six weeks ago.  That was accomplished the first week, and I added a couple of items to enhance the power control issue.  I ordered a battery monitor, more comprehensive than a mere voltmeter; a desulfator, a cleaning kit for the watermaker, and some pump spares for it, too.  Then, my phone went dead.  Okay, it didn’t just go dead, I killed it by testing it’s water repellency…  I didn’t do it on purpose, but discovered it with a bead of water running down the back and no power.  It did dry out and I was able to power it up, but the phone aspect won’t work.  I lost my photos but was able to recover my music.  So, I had a replacement phone added to the mix.

As I wait for this gear to arrive ‘tomorrow,’ I’ve been working in and on Willow.  I’ve pulled anything made of fabric off the boat and laundered it.  I took dental tools to the head (bathroom), cleaning all the nooks and crannies.  I pulled the oil diaper from the engine sump and de-greased and cleaned that area.  The engine looks brand new.  I cleaned, de-greased, and then oiled it as needed to retard corrosion.  Oil and filter change has been done, all the standing rigging inspected and cleaned, all sheets and halyards inspected and cleaned, all sails inspected and cleaned, spares locker cleaned out and organized, lazarette locker cleaned out and purged.  I stay onboard in case today is that ‘tomorrow,’ and my gear arrives.  That way, I can stow the gear, pay up, and take off.

Today, I had to get off the boat.  I took the laptop and walked into town.  I decided to get a cheeseburger and a soda at a SUP rental/bar and use their wireless access.  The music is loud, view incredible, service good, and burger okay.  It’s warm out but not hot.  We usually don’t really heat up until the late afternoon, and we’re lucky to have some high wispy clouds taking the edge off the sun.   The remnants of tropical depression Alvin passed through yesterday giving us a tropical edge to the end of the day.  We really shouldn’t see much action in the way of bad storms until August or so.  The bay is very flat with various hues of blue and green.  The deeper channel is clearly visible as the tide races out.  Everything else is very settled.  Alot of the boats have been put to bed for the summer, it’s owners travelling back to wherever they came from via bus, plane or car.  Some of the boats were hauled out of the water, packaged up tight to protect from the drying heat, hungry animals and creepy crawlies.    The rest were stored in their slip, still sealed tight against the same elements.  It looks like rodents are everythere, and I’m very fortunate to have my own personal rodent preventive devices…

I think I’ll people-watch for a bit longer and then head back to the boat.  I wish everyone all my best.  I’ll finish off the day by washing Willow, again…  Take care!

Hi Everyone!  I hope you’re enjoying this beautiful spring, and looking forward to summer…  I am!

The last time I had my haircut was 3 months ago when I took a quick visit home.  My hair is still short, but as it grows out of the short cut, it becomes quite shaggy and unkempt, driving me crazy and shedding all that extra hair all over the boat.  And I thought the cats were bad…  I asked one of my dockmates, Jeanne, where she suggested getting a haircut, as she lives here full-time and has a pretty nice short cut.  Jeanne told me she was going to Dulce’s that day and I could tag along if I wanted.  Perfect!

We drove way out to the outskirts of town to Dulce’s salon.  It was a small, one room rental that she had recently taken over in order to open for business.  Jeanne and her husband, Tom, had helped Dulce spruce the place up with better lighting and some creative painting.  The small salon has two stations and one shampoo sink, along with a neat waiting area, counter, and rack of donated clothes for sale to benefit the local women’s and children’s homeless shelter.  This beautiful little shop was nothing like what you’re used to in the States, but I think I loved it even more.  The enthusiasm, creativity, and hard work that Dulce shows in order to make this small business successful was beautiful to see.  And even better, she does a great cut!

Dulce first asked me what I liked and wanted out of the cut.  Then she told me she has “magic hands” and would take good care of me.  She wasn’t lying.  In about 20 minutes, I had a really nice cut evidenced by the smooth way my hair laid when I ran my fingers through it.  Then, I got a shampoo.  This is kinda a fun process, with a little information thrown in.  In La Paz, the residents and small businesses get water from the city every other day, from sunrise until about 1400.  And sometimes, depending on infrastructure issues, the water only comes every three days.  This is for everything, including toilets.  That’s why as you are travelling through Mexico, you’ll see the small houses with huge barrels on the roofs.  This is a cistern, and the water is then gravity fed down to the structure upon demand.  Okay, explanations aside, Dulce has another 55 gallon drum of fresh water inside the bathroom of the salon so she can always be able to shampoo a client’s hair.  But, this was done with bucketsful of water carried from the bathroom to the shampoo station.  Jeanne and Tom to the rescue!  They took one of their non-essential water pumps from the cabin of their boat and wired it in on a board above the drum of water, and now Dulce has plumbed freshwater to her shampoo station!  She still has to dump the grey water from the station, as the water drains into a bucket.  But, this water she uses to mop up the sidewalk outside or water down the dust when it’s really hot.  She’s found a use for everything!  I got a great cut for 100 pesos ($8 US), and a fun opportunity to learn some new Spanish words.  It was really a fun afternoon!  (Sorry there are no photos.  I need to take my camera with me to more places!)

Responsible for her own kids, grandchildren, and nieces and nephews, Dulce’s a hardworking woman who, after all is said and done, still finds a way to donate time and funds to the shelter.  The next time someone disparages a culture as “dirty or lazy,” please consider the source and, the individuality of the statement.  There are always exceptions, but again, all of the stereotypes I have been exposed to here have been shot down.  I have met beautiful people and consider myself so fortunate to have had the opportunity to do so.

Peace!

Up the Stick Without a Paddle…

I’ve been here in La Paz for a month now, and never planned on being here so long.  When I arrived, I needed new batteries, and I was quick to replace them.  I was advised to get a battery monitor, one that shows with great detail my charging efforts, battery use, what gets put in,  what I take out, and overall health of the system at any given time.  At the moment, I have only a voltmeter which gives general information.  In order to prevent the drastic discharges that led to the early death of my old batteries,  understanding what happens with my batteries can only help.   A boat neighbor offered to bring down the monitor and needed wire in order to save me the $200 mark up for importing at the local chandlery.  In return, while he was away, I’d arrange to have the bottom of his boat cleaned.  Very fair trade.

Additionally, another item for battery health, a desulfator, I ordered from a local boater/ electrician who, after explaining its workings, suggested it for my system.  It works by intermittently sending a high current of electricity through the batteries, preventing sulfur buildup on the plates.  I still need to equalize monthly, but this should cut down on the time it takes for this process.  This item was to be expected around the 21st of April, and the monitor in the last week of April.

This is Mexico, a place where manana (manyana) doesn’t really mean tomorrow.  “Sometime soon” is more accurate, and once you get that through your brain, you will not worry about the ETA of stuff.  The desulfator is now due sometime this week, and the monitor due around the weekend.  I’ve stopped worrying about the “when,” and have just gotten things ready for a quick install whenever the “when” arrives.  People go to alot of trouble getting things here, and if they are kind enough to volunteer for the effort, I am happy.

I have spent the time here, apart from the batteries and their upkeep, doing boat chores that’ll only keep Willow healthy and happy.  I spent 2 days up the rig in the bosun’s chair, inspecting and cleaning the standing rigging and all its parts.  I noted my downwind pole to be frozen on the mast fitting, and today will see me back up the mast trying to unfreeze those parts.  I’ve changed the engine oil and all filters, topped off the tank with well-filtered fuel, filled up my spare jugs with fuel, tuned up the watermaker, cleaned out all clothes and food lockers, waxed the cabin and topsides (actually, Richard Rodriguez did that beautifully), and checked out the windvane.  I wired in a small light to shine on the wind indicator at night, and cleaned all cushion fabric.

Willow’s almost ready to go, and I am more than ready.  I’ve been blessed with helpful expertise from Glenn on Beach Access and Tom on Eagle, and for that, I’m very thankful.  I’ll get Willow finished up as soon as I can so I can hit the water running.  I’d like to explore Islas Partida and Espiritu Santo more, and then move up to the islands off Loreto.  I haven’t been there yet.

I’m sending everyone my love and good wishes.  For those of you in Ventura County, I hope you are able to take a full breath of clean air soon.  Thanks to the firefighters up there, and good work!  Take care, Everyone, enjoy this spring, and best of luck to my Hokuloans as they hit the water for the first race of the season this weekend!  Best Fishes, All!

Willow is a small boat.  Very capable, but small.  I’ve lived aboard her since I got her in 1997.  After 16 years, I’ve accumulated stuff, and I tried my hardest before I left to rid myself of said stuff, but I had a long way to go.  I cleaned out locker after locker, trying to think of ways I’d use that spare widget, the extra torsion fortenator or rare but oh, so necessary knibbling pin.  I purged clothes, shoes, books and even jewelry in order to make Willow neat, self-contained, light(er), and seaworthy.  I didn’t come close.

When provisioning, I try to practice stocking up for at least a month, except for fresh food.  There are some great finds down here, including highly pastuerized milk that doesn’t need refrigeration until the carton is opened.  There are Sam’s Clubs, City Clubs, Costcos, and large supermarkets that don’t require a membership.  The few hard to find items, for me at least, are good coffee, good paper towels, quality cat food, and cat litter.  I’m trying to cut down on my paper towel use, but it’s so convenient to have.  The fresh foods available are abundant, with chicken, beef, pork, cheeses and fruit and vegetables obtainable everywhere.  As a gringo, I LOVE my really sour sourdough, but that’s just not to be found down here.  Soon, I’ll try making my own starter for this bread and begin experimenting.  Lucky for me, I really love tortillas, and use them just as bread, except for french toast.  They don’t work real well in that recipe…

As you can see, obtaining all of this isn’t really a problem.  The problem is, where to put this stuff?

Jeanne on Eagle is working with a women’s and children’s homeless shelter here in La Paz.  She gladly takes anything offered to this shelter, and they are very happy to receive.  I cleaned out my refer, food lockers and clothes locker, and brought her 5 trash bags full of food and clothing.  How did I get all of this on this boat in the first place?  With the food and clothing lockers cleaned out, I could now clear off my bunk.  The past few months found me sleeping with: gallon jug of olive oil, gallon cans of whole, peeled tomatoes, heads of lettuce, bags of beans, cans of coffee, flour, evaporated milk, paper towel, a ShopVac and two cats.  The cats get to stay, but I found a safe, tidy spot for those foodstuffs.  Under the table in the salon sits my Honda generator and a last bag of cat litter.  All of the paper towels, litter, ShopVac and laundry detergent have been nicely stowed.  I can even get my feet under the table now. Willow’s opened up a bit, looks and feels more comfortable, and I’m without extra stuff I just didn’t need.  The next storage lockers to tackle are my boat spares locker, garage, and lazarette locker in the cockpit.  I know I can find more things to donate away.

I hope you all are enjoying this beautiful, beautiful weather, being safe, doing good things, having fun, and above all, paddling hard!  I miss you!

East End of the Mangrove at Amortajada

Wednesday morning, I was up early and preparing to head out of the anchorage at my favorite spot, Ensenada Grande.  I was leaving Brian and Elizabeth of Autumn Wind to catch up with their friends aboard Flibbertigibbet II while I headed up to my next favorite spot.  After 20 nm or so and another (!) lost jig, I made the large bay and dropped the hook in about 13′ of water.  It was lovely!  I took a swim to check on my anchor and the hull of Willow.  Oh, the water felt sooo good.  A few of the boats already there invited me ashore for sunset conversation, so I paddled the SUP in.  We had a gorgeous sunset framed by fun stories as we all got to know who and what everyone was doing.  Real fun.

The next morning, I was listening to one of the nets on my SSB, and I heard Mike and Kelly of Maluhia really well.  As it was a HAM net and I’m not certified, I can listen but not transmit.  A little later in the morning, Elaine and Jamie from the beautiful Tardis came over and said Maluhia should arrive in our bay later in the evening.  Yay!  The evening showed us some wind and lump out of the southwest, and the shape of the bay just rebounded the lump throughout.  It was still my favorite spot!

Mike, Mickey (A Crux) and Denny (Sea Raven) went out the next morning to free dive for some dinner, while Kelly, Justine (Sea Raven) and I took a hike ashore.  In the lowlands, it’s obvious either storms or very high tides flood the area with seawater, as the bare ground was covered with a crust of very salty sand.  The other side of the island was beautiful, and we checked out the anchorage there.  Nope, we all were very happy in our much less rolly favorite spots.  We all met aboard the 40-50′ ex-charter cat, Sea Raven, and found it to be the perfect party or gathering platform!  They’ve really done a great job converting her from a passenger carrying cat from San Francisco to their new home, soon to have a baby onboard, too!   We ate some sublimely prepared yellowtail, salad, rice and coleslaw.  The conversation topics ranged from free diving to boat building, to navigation, fishing and sleep.  It’d have been great if we could’ve solved some other more pertinent problems, but we just shared what we could…

We all decided to head up towards San Evaristo, a small fishing village in a nice little bay about 9 nm or so across the San Jose Channel.  I left first, and enjoyed the remnants of the light southerly wind.  Deciding to anchor in the empty portion of the bay, I was enclosed by tall cliffs close around.  Soon, Maluhia joined me, while Tardis and Sea Raven anchored in the middle of the bay.  Jamie (Tardis) had arranged for us all to have dinner ashore in one of the palapas recently built in the village.  One of the local families prepared a great meal of sierra and snapper, with rice, beans, a salad and homemade tortillas.  There is something about homemade tortillas!  We included a really nice guy named John who had been riding his motorcycle all down the Baja for a couple of months.  He’d just stop in small villages and ask for permission to camp out.  He improved his spanish and helped the locals with their english, and said he was having the time of his life!  His wife was to join him shortly for the remainder of the trip to Cabo.

Abandoned Salt Mine Building                                       Salt Flat at Punta La Salina

Deteriorating Salt Mine Structure                                 Anyone Need a New (Very Old) Truck?

The following day, we all sailed over to Punta La Salina in a pleasant north breeze.  I had a great time, and Willow performed beautifully.  Once at the Punta, the wind was shooting around it at 18-20 knots or so, but we all anchored snugly.  Punta La Salina used to be the home of a working salt mine.  There were large fields that would be flooded with seawater, and the miners would harvest the salt once the seawater had evaporated.  The various minerals in the land would leech into the saltwater and color it, resulting in pink or red salt.  There were hand-built buildings that had so far withstood the test of time, but all windows, if there were any, were long gone, as were any items inside the buidlings.  We found evidence of a recently killed and skinned goat, a couple of leftover bowls, and skeletons of many different types of animals.  There was the rusted out hulk of a pickup truck, but the reported farm equipment was long gone.

Strange Sea Creature?  Bizarre Land Animal?  Nope, Just a Beautiful Seed Pod on the Beach.

We beachcombed for a few miles looking for sea glass and paper nautilus.  We found the former but not the latter; it’s a rare find.  A paper nautilus is the ‘chrysalis’ an octopus emerges from, a lightweight, almost paper-like curl.  It does resemble a nautilus shell.  After our walking and exploring, we all sailed down 4 nm to Amortajada and its mangrove.  It was something we all wanted to see.  Arriving just before an amazing sunset, I dropped the hook in 9′ of crystal blue water, showered, and went to bed.

Sunset at Amortajada

The following morning, we all (Maluhia, Tardis and Sea Raven) headed to the mangrove on the high tide.  We crossed a pretty shallow sandbar and were in.  I have always wanted to know what the heck a mangrove was, and here I was!  The ibis, egrets, herons and ospreys were magnificent.  We saw hundreds of rays, some needlefish, eels, sea bass, and a fish resembling a bonefish from the South.  The shoreline held thick bushy trees that have the ability to get their nourishment from salt water instead of only fresh.  The bird sounds were awesome, and we just didn’t know which direction to look as there was neat stuff to see high, low, above water and below.  I was riding with Elaine and Jamie from Tardis, and had a blast.

Mangrove Entrance                                      Thick, Green Mangrove Trees

Dead End!

After our three hour tour, we all headed back to our respective boats, and not wanting to be the main course again for the mosquitos of Amortajada, we sailed straight across the channel back to the Baja and a spot called Cabeza de Mechudo.  This was named after a successful pearl diver who long ago ultimately succumbed during a dive to retrieve an especially large pearl.  Or so the story goes.  I sailed off the anchor, had a light and pleasant sail across the channel and dropped the hook, again under sail.  It was pretty fun.  Unfortunately, I was eaten alive that night and actually chewed my fingernails down to the quick to keep me from ripping the skin off my bones!

The next morning, I left the group who was heading back south toward La Paz and instead, headed north toward Agua Verde.  There wasn’t much wind at all, and that was good, as the motoring allowed me to charge my batteries and run the watermaker to fill my tank, plus a couple of jerry jugs.  The sun was bright, and I trolled the whole trip, but no luck.  The seas were flat, allowing me a quick motor up the 50 nm or so coast.  I know I must sound like a broken record, but the scenery was amazing.  There are such layers to the Sierras de la Giganta, so many different shades of red, sage and brown.  With the clear blue water as a foreground, how can there be a bad picture?  Or vista?  Just amazing…

Beautiful Vistas Along the Coast

I arrived at the anchorage on the back side of Punta San Marcial just after sunset, and anchored among two other boats.  It was just too dark to explore Agua Verde and look for a nice spot to become my next favorite.  After the long day on the water, a nice salad and a shower, I was ready for a good night of sleep.  In the morning, I listened to the weather forecast, and it being pretty benign, I weighed anchor and explored Bahia Agua Verde.  The anchor spots in the southwest portion of the bay were filled with large motor yachts.  I had forgotten.  It was Semana Santa, the week before Easter when a large faithful population head to their favorite vacation spot.  But this was my favorite spot, too!  I can share!  Campers in colorful tents lined the shore, and Agua Verde was no longert the quaint and quiet anchorage I had remembered.  Everyone was having such a good time, swimming, cooking, laughing, singing and playing music; how could I help but join them?

I was doing some work on the deck of Willow when a boy swam over and asked if he could borrow my SUP and paddle.  Of course!  His aunt swam up to Willow and asked me if I wanted to join them around 3 in the afternoon for lunch.  They were camping around the bend on the beach.  I asked what I could bring, and was told absolutely nothing!  I kept on working, and Costa enjoyed the SUP.  Later in the afternoon, I paddled over to the beach and was introduced to two of the nicest families.  Costa’s family was from Los Cabos, and Magdalena and her husband were from Mexico City.  The children aged from young adult on down, and all were so, so pleasant, polite, and kind.  There was mischief throughout, as one kid splashed two others on a kayak, then another upended the one on the SUP.  A beautiful perico was caught earlier in the day and a tasteful ceviche was served with tortillas, a warm pork dish, some condiments, cookies and a nice red wine.  We traded stories, opinions, and a shared fondness of Agua Verde.  I took one of the girls back to Willow since she wanted to see what the inside of a sailboat looked like.  It was such a fun afternoon that melded into evening.  I suddenly saw that I needed to paddle home to make sure I got home!  It was pretty dark out!

The next morning, I went up the mast to re-attach one of the lines on my radar reflector and to run another flag halyard.  I saw a couple of things that needed some not-too-far-in-the-future attention, and made a list.  I cleaned out all of my food lockers, noting what I had in store for the next week.  My fresh fruit and veggies were gone, as were any fish or chicken.  Good thing I love tuna fish sammiches made on tortillas!  I did my engine checks I do once a week (some of that FD stuff stuck) and also checked my batteries.  I was feeling that with the sunshine and evening breezes, the batteries should be topping off.  I told myself I’d keep a closer eye on them.

Saturday dawned a bright and shiny day, and I felt the urge to head out, so I did.  I aimed my bows toward Puerto Escondido, about 25 nm away.  I had a light southerly for about half of the trip, and wound up motoring the rest.  Arriving around 1330, I dropped the hook in 10′ of blue-green water and just sat.  It was quiet, lovely, hot, and the fish were a-jumping.  I paddled the SUP around the large inner harbor and chatted with a couple of people.  Easter Sunday, I paddled in to the office and brought my laptop in case there was internet access.  After registering and paying to anchor, which I wasn’t used to doing for anchoring, I sat and caught up with family.

Monday found me doing laundry and other chores on Willow.  I walked up the main drag toward the highway and found a Modelorama, kinda like a well-stocked 7/11.  I bought some fresh tortillas, a couple of chicken breasts, an onion and some orange juice.  Since laundry was such a big bag, I’d inflated the dinghy and just rowed on in.  Now I could bring a few groceries back to Willow and not worry about them getting wet on the SUP.

Tuesday, I hitched a ride into Loreto with Terry and Dawn from the Manta.  Terry’s an ex-SEAL and a terrific diver.  He invents, adapts, tests and plays with all sorts of dive gear.  He’s quite the photographer, too.  Dawn told me of sailing adventures she’d done on her own boat before she met up with Terry.  We toured the various grocery stores in Loreto, sating our appetite in an amazing taco stand on the main drag.  Now if I could remember the name of this best-in-Baja favorite, I’d tell you, but here in Mexico, something is happening to my memory…

Wednesday, I checked my batteries once again and found them drained.  After running the engine, they still wouldn’t accept a charge.  Instead of futzing with them some more, I decided to head straight for La Paz for replacements.  And to pay my taxes.  I made Willow ready for travel, weighed anchor, and made my way to Manta to thank Dawn and Terry once again for the previous days’ field trip.  The 115 nm trip should take me just about 24 or more hours, so I hit the ocean.

A Beautiful Night With a Bright Moon

My trip back down the coast was pretty uneventful but lovely.  If I could move like that for days on end, I don’t know if I’d ever stop!  A few hours out of Puerto Escondido found me sailing nicely, but once night fell, so did the breeze.  As the night wore on, I made my way through the San Jose Channel, down past Isla San Francisco, and Islas Partida and Espiritu Santo.  I pulled into La Paz around 1100 Thursday morning, registered Willow at Marina Palmira, and went to bed!

At 0830, I left the slip at Marina Palmira.  Free at last!  I checked out with the Port Captain of La Paz utilizing my well-honed spanglish.  I hear the chuckle in his voice when I apologize for my espanol.  I’m headed toward Bahia San Gabriel, about 18 nm out of La Paz.  I sent some photos and verbage about that spot on my last post.  It was absolutely beautiful, and my favorite spot, until I moved to Caleta Partida, about 9 nm up the coast of Isla Espiritu Santo.  There is a suggested anchorage on the northeast side of the cove, but I opted for the other, less crowded spot at the east side of the cove.  There, I was near the fish camp and National Parks building.  (Now don’t get excited.  This ‘building’ literally was plywood with a tin roof, just enough to house the Rangers for their 3 day shifts.)  A coromuel was always a possibility, so I thought tucking in on the easterly side would at least give me a little shelter.  Well, for two nights it blew up to 30 knots, making my spot windy but without fetch, there were no wind waves.  The Catalina 34, Autumn Wind, with Brian and Elizabeth aboard, joined the party.  We hiked on the island, and the fun part was the “Z” shaped channel leading from west, to the east side of the island. The fishermen had the luxury, in a small panga, to get to the other side by traveling through this little channel instead of going ‘all the way around.’  The flora and fauna are stark, amazing and beautiful, as are the different colors of rock, mountain and soil.

View from the Arroyo, Ensenada Grande

After 2 nights here, Elizabeth, Brian and I decided to go up-island to Ensenada Grande.  Now THIS is my favorite spot.  So far.  This cove was a whopping 4 nm miles from Caleta Partida, but it was such a difference.  The first night it again blew stink, and again, I was in the good spot as to not have any fetch (if you have a lot of fetch, the wind over the water has a chance to make waves, and this is not a good thing when you’re lookin’ to sleep or cook).  But I did get wind.  Sheesh!  Fortunately, it shut down early, and I was able to get a few hours worth of sleep.  The next morning, we all decided to go for a hike ashore.  I’ve been trying to use my SUP as my dinghy, and when conditions allow, I do.  I paddled in, and Brian and Elizabeth took the dink.  Our hike was supposed to take us up to the fisherman’s cross, up at the top of the bluff overlooking our boats lying at anchor.  There’s a guidepost at the trailhead, and it says it’s 2.4 miles up to the cross.  4.8 mile hike?  Not too bad.  We packed cameras and water and were off.  This trail (I just noted I had typed ‘trial.’  It is in fact very appropriate.) was up the arroyo, and entailed climbing boulders, finding your own way, watching out for clusters of wasps, vultures and other fun things.  I had packed my camera and water in a dry bag since I paddled in, and found myself banging it on rocks or getting it caught on the thorny bushes prevalent here.  I decided to ditch the bag after a good swallow of water.  I placed it in an easy to find spot for the way down.  As 1100 rolled around, Elizabeth was leading the rock-hopping way, with Brian next, and of course me bringing up the rear.  After another few minutes, I got thirsty, my knees were tired, and I figured if I kept going, someone was going to have to carry me down.  I’m so glad I turned around.  I made my way carefully down the arroyo, finding snakes, gobs of lizards, and some vultures guaranteed a great meal if I hadn’t turned around.  Back at the trailhead, I noted the scale for this hike to be ‘difficult,’ and didn’t feel so bad.  Back in the day, I used-to-could hop right on up that arroyo.  I’ll keep that memory…

Hungry Vulture A-lookin’ at Me

I got back to Willow, changed into a swimsuit, and decided to go for a paddle.  I took the SUP all around the immediate bay, and swam (planned) in the turquoise colored shallows.  After getting back on the boat, I showered and changed, and noted a fisherman in a panga slowly making his way through the anchorage.  He waved, and I wave at everyone, so I waved back.  He came up to Willow, and we talked fish.  He said he had a nice bonita, but I asked for my favorite, yellowtail.  He held up a 2 1/2 foot long fish, and I nodded.  Brian and Elizabeth had been talking about having fresh fish, so I decided to make some for them after their strenuous hike.  The panguero asked how much I would pay for the fish, and not having any idea of the local value, and not wanting to insult him, I said 200 pesos ($16).  He agreed, and passed over the fish.  As is a good thing to do, I asked Arnulfo if he wanted something to drink and he nodded gratefully.  When I turned back from the icebox, I found him aboard and sitting in the throne.  He smiled sheepishly and said, “Necesito companera.  Tu solita?”  (I’m lonely.  Are you alone?)  Well, I had a hard time not busting up, but after Arnulfo heard my response to being single he said, “Pobrecita.  Yo me gusto.” (Poor baby.  I like you.)  We traded spanglish for another 10 minutes, I gave him a jaqueta (jacket), and told him “Gracias y adios!”  We shook hands, then he kissed my hand, and then he pointed hopefully to his cheek.  I smiled, then shook my head.  He told me if I was ever staying at Caleta Partida to look him up.  It was pretty funny.  All I can say is, Dudes dig me!!!!!  Needless to say, the yellowtail was awesome, and I had a few leftovers…

Makani’s Favorite Spot When It’s Too Hot…

I hope you are all well, and enjoying Spring.  Keep doing good things, take care of each other and have fun.  I miss you all…  There’ll be a few more posts while I’m here.  I’ll use the internet while I have the chance!