Punta de Mita to Isla Isabel

We were up well before dawn on Saturday, March 26th, the day the Honcho made its final departure from Punta de Mita. We got underway just in time to see one last spectacular sunrise over the bay, before we headed north to another storied bay, Bahia Mantanchen. Sailing conditions were excellent and we made good time, getting the anchor down in Mantanchen Bay in mid afternoon. This bay is famous for its great surf and its Jejenes, otherwise known as noseeums, nonos,  or sand fleas. All of those appellations are often preceded by a rather forceful adjective because of their ability to inflict an itching, bleeding, scratching kind of misery on everyone they come in contact with. We were well prepared, with fine mesh bug screens on the hatches, DEET laced sunscreen and bug repellent, and a take-no-prisoners attitude. We passed a peaceful and bug free night and got the anchor up early to head for our next destination, Isla Isabel.

Punta de Mita Sunrise

Isla Isabel has been described as the Galapagos of Mexico because of its remoteness and isolation. Consequently it is the nesting and breeding ground for vast numbers of sea birds, particularly blue-footed boobies and the magnificent frigate birds. The island is a Mexican National Park and a World Heritage Site, so its unique flora and fauna are well protected. It was truly a spectacular place to visit.

We anchored on the east side of the island, just south of Isleo Mona Menor, about a hundred yards off the beach. Eager to explore the place, we pumped up the inflatable kayak and paddled ashore. There we were confronted by a couple of Mexican naturalists who informed us that it was illegal to land there and advised us to go around to the south side of the island and land at the fish camp that was located there. It was too far for our flimsy kayak so we went back to the boat and launched the dinghy and motored around to the spot we were supposed to land. Our entire experience there was fascinating, but instead of trying to put it all in words, Ill let the photos do most of the talking.

The Honcho at Anchor, Isleo Mona Menor in the background

Fish camp on the south side of the island, our dinghy is at left. Notice the hundreds of birds above the hill.

Booby chick on the beach. There were thousands of these babies on the beaches of Isla Isabel. Below, an adult blue footed booby

These birds will grow up to be incredible flyers and fishermen. The boobies appeared to nest mostly on the beaches and rocks, while the frigates built their nests in the trees or grassy areas inland.

Frigate nest in a tree. Notice the chick. These birds showed no fear of humans, we were literally within an arms length of this mother and chick. Below, a frigate chick stares back at the camera

Isla Isabel is an extinct volcano and therefore has a crater lake in the middle of it.  With very little impact from man, it looks wild and primitive, and beautiful in an eerie way,

The following day we got the anchor up and, punching into a 15 knot headwind, the Honcho began the long beat to Mazatlan, 85 miles distant.

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La Paz to Bahia de Concepcion

Ensenada Grande with mainland Baja in the background.

On Saturday, April 13^th we went grocery shopping at the local Mega, took a long swim in the pool and had dinner at Steinbecks. The next morning we checked out of Costa Baja and headed north to Isla Partida. In the Sea of Cortez the wind generally blows up the sea or down the sea. Today it was blowing down the sea so we motor-sailed directly into a 15 knot headwind and lumpy, choppy seas as we passed up the west side of Isla Espiritu Santo toward our destination of Ensenada Grande on the west side of Isla Partida, arriving in the late afternoon. There were a few other boats in the anchorage, but it’s a big enough bay that we were able to anchor in a fairly secluded spot close to some bluffs on the south side of the bay. The water was clear enough that I could see the anchor send up a cloud of sand as it hit the bottom 22 feet below the surface. This made the snorkeling great, and we saw lots of tropical fish and healthy looking coral. Later we took the dinghy around the southern end of the bay, past Punta Tijeretas and into the tiny cove of Las Cuevitas where there is a blue footed booby rookery. It’s not the nesting season now, but there were still a lot of boobies around. That night I set my alarm to wake up at 0200 so we could watch a total eclipse of the moon. There is something awesome about seeing a lunar eclipse from the deck of a sailboat where there is no light pollution from any nearby civilization.

Sunset is a perfect time for a paddle in Ensenada Grande.

I have no idea how these unusual rocks were formed but they are fascinating to explore.

While there, we hiked up the hills behind the bay and explored the strange rock formations that line the north side of the bay. When we got restless we sailed north again toward the fishing village of San Evaristo on the mainland of Baja.

With a nice breeze out of the southeast, we had a pleasant sail for about twenty miles then about six miles from the anchorage, the wind died and we began to motor. We had been trolling all day without a bite, but about four miles out, the reel lit up and we caught a 20 pound dorado.  This was our first fish of this kind and as soon as we got the anchor down in Evaristo I had the BBQ out and we had a fine meal of grilled dorado, wild rice and a fine bottle of pinot grigio, supplied by my friends at C1. Thanks guys!  We spent a couple of days in Evaristo then departed for Puerto Los Gatos, about thirty miles up the Baja coast.

We caught him just in time for dinner.

A dorados beautiful colors quickly fade when they die. After giving him a couple of shots of rum this fellow relaxed and died peacefully.

It was a beautiful starboard tack reach, with about 12 knots of wind out of the east under a hazy, somewhat overcast sky. I like the overcast because it provides some relief from the sun, which can be brutal here in the Sea. We approached Los Gatos from the southeast and saw a boat anchored in the far northern part of the bay, which is about half a mile wide. We anchored in the southern part of the bay, about as far from the other boat as we could get and were looking forward to a beautiful, quiet evening.  But within an hour three other boats came into the bay and anchored close enough that we could hear them talking as they enjoyed their sundowners.  A couple of them left early the next morning so we were able to explore this beautiful bay pretty much in peace and solitude. Different voyages have different flavors. The last time we were here, three years ago, we were delighted to have lots of friends from other boats around. This time, we have been inclined to seek the solitude of empty bays and quiet nights. 

Our dinghy is a speck on the beach at Los Gatos.

On Saturday, April 19^th we got the anchor up early and headed for Bahia Agua Verde, about 13 miles north. With three knots of wind out of the southeast, there was no point in trying to sail, so we fired up the diesel and a couple hours later we anchored about a hundred yards off the beach in Agua Verde. Since it was the day before Easter Sunday, the beaches in the fairly large bay were crowded with Mexican vacationers here to celebrate the holiday. The next morning we hiked into the country behind the little settlement. Aside from fishing, the locals raise goats, pigs and a few cattle. There is a school and church, along with a couple of small tiendas and a restaurant or two, so Agua Verde, though it has no cell phone or internet service is fairly cosmopolitan compared to most other places in this part of Baja California.

Later in the day we raised the anchor and continued north 22 miles to Puerto Escondido.  We arrived around 1700 and passed through the narrow channel into the lagoon that makes this place an excellent all weather port of refuge. The lagoon is over a mile long and half a mile wide and until recently had over a hundred moorings. Now there are only a few moorings left, and they don’t look well maintained. Ashore, things have declined from the last time we were here. There is still a boatyard with a Travelift and a floating dock and a few boats hauled out here, but the place is pretty desolate. The restaurant has closed down and so has the little tienda. Puerto Escondido should be a thriving community, but apparently there has been a lot of disagreement within the local business community and with the government which has had a bad effect on the village. We had hoped to stock up on fresh food and use the Internet here, but instead we spent one night in the lagoon tied to an iffy looking mooring and left the next morning for the town of Loreto, about 14 miles up the coast.

Puerto Escondido sunrise. Regardless of the business situation in the village, the scenery remains awe inspiring. 

There is a tiny harbor at Loreto but it is for the exclusive use of the local fishermen, so we anchored outside and took the dinghy into town where we had a nice meal at the Hotel La Mision, checked email and wandered around the town a bit before heading back out to the boat. While ashore we visited a unique museum of sorts, with the skeletons of whales and dolphins on display.  Back aboard Finisterra, we spent a peaceful night anchored outside the harbor, then left early the next morning for Caleta San Juanico.   

 The distance from Loreto to San Juanico is about 27 miles and with scant wind, we motorsailed the entire distance, arriving in the early afternoon. There were four or five boats anchored in the north end of the bay and a couple more at the south end, so we chose a nice spot just off the beach in the middle part of the bay, anchoring in about 15 feet of water. With a light breeze coming out of the southeast and crystal clear water, the swimming was delightful. Later we grilled the last of the dorado I caught a week ago for dinner. The next morning we were underway early for the 50 mile passage to Bahia de Concepcion.

Caleta San Juanico is dotted with rocky islets.

 The wind blew out of the northwest, exactly the direction we wanted to go, so we motored toward Punta Concepcion until we were a few miles out. Then the wind shifted to northeast and piped up to about 20 knots and we had a fast sail around the point and about six miles down the bay. Then we furled the sails and picked our way through the pass between Punta Piedrita and tiny Isla Pitihaya, toward Playa Santispac. There were several boats already at anchor there, so we bore away toward the little cove at Posada de Conception where we anchored in about 20 feet of water in the lee of some tall bluffs which offered good protection from the strong northerlies that sometimes blow down the Sea of Cortez. Finisterra was to remain at anchor here for the next nine days. 

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Barra de Navidad

The Honcho sailed from Tenacatita on Thursday, February 3rd, bound for Barra de Navidad, about 14 miles down the coast. For this short hop we didnt hoist any sails. Instead we motored along the coast, looking in on a couple of coves where we might like to anchor in the future. As we approached the entrance to the lagoon at Barra, the wind piped up to about 20 knots and the sea grew lumpy and confused. The lagoon where we planned to anchor is up a narrow channel with shoals on both sides. Using waypoints taken from Shawn Breeding and Heather Bansmers "Pacific Mexico, A Cruisers Guidebook", I programmed the GPS with our route into the anchorage, and we got in around 1400 without mishap. We got the hook down in about 10 feet of murky water and sat back to enjoy the view while the wind whistled in the rigging.

The next day we joined some friends for a bus ride to Melaque, a seaside town on the northern side of Bahia de Navidad. Not a particularly picturesque place, Melaque does boast a bank and the excellent Hawaiian Market. We stocked up on food and beverages at the market, and pesos at the bank, then had lunch in a seaside restaurant before heading back to the boat.

A word on cruising guides. The Honcho left California with copies of "Charlies Charts" by Charles and Margo Wood, and "Mexico Boating Guide" by Pat Rains. In Puerto Vallarta we picked up a copy of the Pacific Mexico Guide. Charlies Charts, originally published in 1982 and periodically updated has been the most widely used guidebook for this area. The Rains guidebook was first published more recently and offers better maps and charts as well as some photographs. The Pacific Mexico book, published in 2010, is illustrated with accurate charts and maps using satellite photos and GPS technology. It is a significant improvement over the other guides in terms of providing accurate navigational information. Since acquiring this book, the others have, for the most part, stayed in the bookshelf. I highly recommend the Pacific Mexico Cruising Guide, as well as Shawn and Heathers other book, Sea of Cortez Cruising Guide.

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Blue Clipper Van de Stadt Legend 34

To kick off 1001 Boats I’ve chosen Blue Clipper a Van de Stadt designed Legend 34, built in 1970 by Tylers a famous UK yard.

E.G . Van de Stadt has a reputation for designing fast and sea worthy yachts and Blue Clipper was no exception, she was easily driven, close winded and comfortable. It’s only many years after she was sold and with the experience sailing many other boats that I realise how good and forgiving a boat she was.



What made her special is that in 1997/8 she carried Erica and I safely for ten thousand miles, sailing from Portsmouth, England, across the Bay of Biscay to Spain and Portugal, out into the Atlantic to Madeira and the Canary Islands, then south again to The Gambia in West Africa before crossing the Atlantic to arrive in Barbados. Our cruise in the “islands,” took us south to Trinidad and then north visiting most of the Antilles; the Windward and Leeward Islands, before returning back across the Atlantic, stopping at the Azores and finally returning to England.

Blue Clipper was a bit small, certainly compared to a modern 34 yachts, but she coped with light winds, huge ocean swells, what might have been pirates, gales and a frisky whale. She took us out of our comfort zone, stretched us as sailors and individuals, she will always have a place in our hearts.

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Bahia de Concepcion

The days are rolling by ever so quickly and we have many miles to go, and many places to see before we say adios to Mexico. So we have hurried along on our voyage, reaching Bahia de Concepcion on May 17^th. Our route from San Evaristo took us to Bahia Agua Verde for a night, then to Puerto Escondido for a couple of days. From there we went to Caleta San Juanico, where we anchored again for just a night.  We then anchored in Bahia de Concepcion in a small cove between Playa Santispac and Posada Concepcion.

At Puerto Escondido there is a large and very well protected lagoon with at least a hundred moorings, a fuel dock, tienda and other amenities including internet access, which is rare in this part of the world. We took advantage of all of these as well as the fine restaurant there.

Dawn in Puerto Escondido

After a couple of days at Puerto Escondido, we continued north another forty miles to Caleta San Juanico. Arriving there around 1600, we got the hook down in about 30 feet of water and had a nice swim before dinner. At roughly 26 degrees north latitude, San Juanico is far enough north that there is a bit of coolness in the air in the evenings, which is a refreshing change from the dry heat of La Paz.

San Juanico sunrise

 Our next destination, Playa Santispac, about 55 miles from San Juanico, is located inside of the large Bahia de Concepcion. The Honcho got an early start, motorsailing into a building breeze. By noon the wind and seas had built to the point where we were getting spray over the dodger, with the promise of more to come as we approached Punta de Concepcion, which lies at the entrance to the bay.  Fortunately our course was northwest and the wind and seas were from NNE, so we weren’t too uncomfortable as we worked up the coast.  Around 1600, just as we cleared Punta Concepcion, the reel lit up and we caught a nice 6 pound yellowtail, which we’ll barbecue for dinner.

The Honcho trolling with a Mexican lure. Its called a Mexican because it is red, green and yellow; The same colors as the Mexican flag. Weve had the most luck with this lure, hooking innumerable Jacks, yellowfin, even a striped marlin.

 Bahia de Concepcion is open to the north, so after clearing the entrance the Honcho bore off and had a quick downwind run in 20 knots of wind toward Playa Santispac. As we approached Santispac we could see the north wind raking through the anchorage so we continued a bit further to a small cove just east of Posada de Conception and dropped the anchor in 20 feet of water, about 60 yards from shore.  With steep hills to our north coming right down to the water’s edge, we are well protected from the wind. 

An eighteen foot whale shark glides past the boat in Santispac. The fin to the left is the dorsal, to the right is the tail.

Bahia de Concepcion is about 20 miles long and roughly 4 miles wide. It is dotted with many small islands and is home to a wide range of birds and marine life.  After a nice dinner ashore and a good night’s rest, we were up early the next morning, cleaning accumulated salt off the boat and rigging. Suddenly we were distracted by a slight commotion in the water and discovered a couple of whale sharks lazily feeding next to the boat. We watched and photographed them for a while then donned mask and fins and joined them for a swim. Whale sharks feed on plankton and other small sea life and don’t pose a predatory threat to humans.  We dove under water and could see the massive fins and gaping mouths of these animals as they passed by close enough to touch. Predatory or not, swimming that close to such a large animal was exciting!

Kayaker stalks a big one

This shark is about 18 feet long and has a wingspan of about eight feet, near as I could estimate. Whale sharks feed at or near the surface of the water, drawing large gulps of seawater, then expelling it out through their large gills, which have filtering elements that strain out the plankton and other small sea life. The water in Bahia de Concepcion is full of nutrients, which makes underwater visibility not nearly as good as at places like Isla San Francisco.

Playa Santispac is pretty much the boonies and there are no services here…no taxis, internet, cell phones, or gas stations. In need of diesel fuel, we took a couple of jerry cans and wandered up the beach, trusting that somehow we’d find a way to get to the nearest gas station, thirteen miles up the road. Sure enough, before long we’d hitched a ride on an old beat up water truck that took us all the way to the Hotel Serenidad where we had a fine lunch of fish tacos, guacamole and ice cold beer. We then got the fuel and a ride back to the beach in Santispac, where we’d left our dinghy. From there it was a short mile back to the boat.  

The next day we were again visited by the whale sharks, but didn’t swim with them as we had plans to visit the town of Mulege, where we spent most of the day touring this flood ravaged town and socializing. Mulege suffered a direct hit by Hurricane Jimena a couple of years ago. Much of the town was damaged or destroyed by the storm, which caused the Rio Mulege to overflow its banks, washing a good portion of the town into the sea. There are still many signs of destruction in this pleasant little village.

Bahia de Concepcion is as far north as we will get on this voyage. So when we weighed anchor Saturday morning, May 21^st, we were southbound, headed back toward San Juanico, where we spent a couple of days.  It was a delightful sail during which we were able to fly the spinnaker for a few miles before the wind shifted to the southeast and we were forced to set the trusty jib for the last twenty miles.  Along the way we caught an 8 pound yellowtail, which we barbecued with friends from the sailing vessels Stray Cat and Capriccio in Caleta San Juanico. San Juanico is a fairly large bay, with good protection from northerly and southerly winds, but is open to the southeast, which is where the wind has been for the last couple of days, forcing us to shift to a snug anchorage in the lee of some large rocks in the northern reach of the bay. There are dramatic rock formations here, a beautiful freshwater lagoon and a kind of shrine or monument where passing yatistas put up plaques and inscriptions made of anything from old sandals to beautifully carved wood, usually with a boat and crew names and dates. It was interesting to see the names of many boats we’ve come to know hanging in the tree that makes up the shrine.  This passage is the first of the truly homeward bound portion of our voyage. We’ll continue south to Cabo San Lucas, stopping at various places along the way, where we’ll provision and secure the boat for the last long leg of our voyage, the long windward passage up the west coast of Baja to our home port of Long Beach. 

The volcanic rocks in San Juanico. Fantastic colors and shapes

It was surprising to see this sparkling freshwater lagoon just a short walk from the beach in an otherwise torrid desert landscape.

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Jean Marie Finots Ecume De Mer

In 1967 Jean-Marie Finot, who had recently married, decided to give up the idea of becoming a yacht designer so that he could concentrate on earning a reasonable living. As he is now one of the top half-dozen yacht designers in the world, this was very nearly the biggest mistake of his life.

As a sailing instructor at the Iles de Glénan school - “the only place in France you could really learn to sail, at the time” according to Finot - he got to know Philippe Harlé, the chief instructor, who was leaving to set up a yacht design practice. Jean-Marie, too. wanted to learn about yacht design, so he took a lowly position as Harlé s assistant in order to pick up some experience.

The apprentice Finot did actually design a couple of boats for the Harlé practice, but as a recently married man he wanted a career that would support a family, so he gave up his yacht design ambitions and left Harlé . However, as a favour to a friend, he agreed to design one last boat, Ecume De Mer, a small cruiser/racer of which it was intended only two would ever be built – one for the friend and one for Jean-Marie himself. This would be, he decided, his last design.

The pair looked around for a French yard to build the hard-chine plywood boats, but none seemed interested. Finally a Dutch builder, Walter Huisman, heard of their project and, impressed by the young designer, offered to build one boat at a reasonable price, provided they would campaign it in a number of races, including the International Quarter Ton Cup competition. Although this entailed modifying the plans to create a slightly larger boat, agreement was reached.

In the Spring of 1968 Huisman delivered a bare painted hull. Finot and his friend went to Holland, and spent some time fitting her out with deck gear and rigging, before launching just in time to enter, as agreed, the Quarter Ton Cup. (photo: Huisman prototype Ecume De Mer in hard chine plywood) With such a lack of preparation and tuning they couldnt hope to win there, but later, with a fully sorted boat, they won the important Delta Race. Their success attracted an Australian, Eric Bradley, who took home modified designs for the boat with slightly reduced freeboard and a coachroof, retaining however the plywood hard chine hull. Several were built in Australia to this specification.

The following season, back in France the prototype boat won race after race, and even returned briefly to Holland to win the Delta race again. Soon this phenomenon caught the attention of the French boatbuilder, Mallard, who contracted to build a series of boats to the design, in GRP. Once again the drawings were modified. Away went the chines to be replaced by a rounded hull shape. The stepped sheerline and flush deck were replaced by a conventional sheer and a short coachroof. Though the efficient racing deck layout was retained, with halyards and controls led aft to the cockpit, on the inside the accomodation was re-designed for comfort in harbour rather than racing. There would now be standing headroom, a dinette, a toilet, and a separate forecabin.

The production Ecume De Mer (colour photo from Mallard 1969 brochure) was a sales success from the start and remained in production, unchanged until 1975 . A 100% standard production boat won the Quarter Ton Cup in 1970 against strong international competition, and a modified, but nevertheless series-produced regatta version with a flush deck won again in 1972. Hundreds of owners had countless successes in offshore and club racing, while hundreds more enjoyed family cruising in a robust and capable boat.

Further modifications were made to re-style accommodation and coachroof, giving more headroom in the heads in 1975. This version won the 1977 Boat of the Year title and was chosen for the 1978 "Tour De France" race. It continued in production until 1980.

Eventually 1385 boats were built to the Ecume De Mer design. Examples of this fine boat, that was supposed to be Finots farewell to yacht design and of which there should only ever have been two, can still be seen in almost any marina in France as well as in many other parts of the world. This great boat - that launched a lasting career for its designer - has itself lasted pretty well.

Ecume De Mer (Mallard, 1969 version)

LOA: 7.90 m
Beam: 2.65 m
Draft: 1.25 m
Ballast: 720 kg
Displacement: 1.800 kg
Max Headroom 1.72 m

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De Keeled!

Ive been away much of the last month preparing for and traveling in China to unite with our newly adopted daughter. We are back home and starting to readjust. Getting back to work has been a challenge. But we got the keel off of Frolic! My brother-in-law, Hank Osborn, is a get-it-done kind of guy, which is just what I needed to jump back into the projects. We have a blog for Frolic at:

www.flyingfifteenfrolic.blogspot.com.

Frolic is a 1950 vintage Flying Fifteen under restoration at Clint Chase Boatbuilder. It is co-owned with a family member and will be restored and sailing by summer. Shell join the family fleet of ffs in Gouldsboro, Maine.

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Bahia de Concepcion to La Paz

Bahia de Concepcion is dotted with rocks like this. 

On our way north, we were headed directly into the wind for nearly all of the distance between San Juanico and Concepcion, so I had hoped that wed have a fair wind for the southbound passage back to San Juanico. But it was not to be. We rounded Punta Concepcion and headed southeast toward our destination only to find the wind dead on the nose again. I needed to run the watermaker anyway so we motorsailed and over the next few hours refilled our water tanks. By noon the wind had backed around so we could sail and we arrived at Caleta San Juanico around 1700, anchoring just off the beach in the far southeast part of the bay. Earlier in the day we had picked up something on the prop and it vibrated a little when I put the engine in gear. The anchor had barely hit the bottom before Lisa jumped in the water and pulled a clump of seaweed off the prop.

The next day we were up early and cleared the rocks that lie off the southern end of San Juanico at 0900. Naturally the wind was out of the southeast, exactly the direction we were headed. So we motorsailed most of the way to Puerto Escondido, slowing down a bit as we passed the town of Loreto to grab some Internet time. This would be our last chance to download weather until we get to La Paz several days hence.

We arrived in Puerto Escondido in mid-afternoon and anchored in the lagoon. Loreto Fest was in full swing when we arrived so we went ashore to give it a look. It is hosted by the Hidden Port Yacht Club and some local businesses. Its a cruisers event with a few seminars,  bocce ball tournament and a few other games. There was a silent auction and swap meet, a band and plenty of beer and margaritas. It looked like the event was geared toward the permanent or semi-permanent denizens of the Sea of Cortez. Anyway, it didnt appeal to us and we were out of Puerto Escondido at 0700 the next morning, bound for Puerto Los Gatos.

Its always fun to explore the rocks of Los Gatos

With a 2-3 knot headwind, we motored all the way and were anchored in the north side of the bay around 1300. Los Gatos is a beautiful bay, about a mile long in the northeast-southwest direction and a bit less than half a mile deep. The high bluffs to the north offer good protection from winds from that direction but the bay is wide open to southerly and east winds. There is nothing here except pristine beaches, fantastic rock formations and crystal clear water. There was only one other boat anchored way over in the other side of the bay so we were all set to have a quiet evening aboard. But just about dusk I noticed that the other boat was under way. At first I thought he was heading out of the bay but then he turned toward us. Okay, I thought, he just wants to swing by and say "Hi" before heading out to sea. But no, he came right past us and anchored about halfway between us and the beach, his bow not fifty yards from our stern. Im not sure why.

Earlier in the afternoon a two fishermen came by in a panga and offered us a couple of live lobsters so we had an excellent grilled lobster dinner. The next morning they brought us three more bugs. Were living like kings out here in the boonies! During the day we hiked the shores of the bay.

The rock formations here are incredible. As far as I can tell, no one has ever lived here, and the land seems to be untouched by humans.

And yet, Nature toys with our imaginations. As the sun moved westward the shadows shifted to reveal a man and woman that have been sunbathing here for ages.

Finisterra in peaceful Los Gatos. The Sierra de la Giganta Mountains are in the background.

We departed Los Gatos early in the morning on May 5th, bound for Isla San Francisco. Our course was southeast so naturally the wind, what little there was of it, was coming straight out of the southeast so we puttered along all day and anchored in the beautiful cove called The Hook, on the southwest side of the island at 1600. The water was crystal clear and 80 degrees. Perfect for a swim. It was also about time to scrub Finisterras bottom so we got masks, fins, snorkels and cleaning utensils and gave her a good scrubbing. There were quite a few small barnacles that popped off with a plastic putty knife.

Another view of the majestic Sierra de la Giganta Mountains

Isla San Francisco is a popular place and there were half a dozen boats already anchored there when we arrived. Then around sunset the Safari Voyager came into the bay. Its a small cruise ship with a capacity of 64 eco-tourists. We were thinking it was going to be mighty crowded on the beach tomorrow morning but the ship left at dawn and we thought wed seen the last of them. So we got up early and went hiking, thinking we had the island pretty much to ourselves. But as we set off across the low isthmus that bisects the north and south parts of the island we spotted a line of tourists trekking across our path. The Voyager had simply gone around to the other side of the island, where there was less of a swell for the tourists as they came ashore in a pair of large inflatable boats.

Safari Voyager

Eco-tourists on the march. This is the view we were greeted with when we topped the first rise on the west side of the isthmus.

We spent a couple of days at Isla San Francisco then with a northwest breeze in the forecast we headed south to La Paz where we plan to stay for a couple of weeks. Once outside the bay, I was all set to hoist the mainsail when the wind suddenly turned around and blew out of the south against the prevailing northerly swell which made for a bumpy ride to La Paz. On the way we spotted "Venus", the mega yacht that was built for Steve Jobs anchored just outside the harbor.

Venus is 256 long and the interior styling was done by Philippe Starck, who also did the interior on our last boat, Honcho. Venus is reputed to have cost $100 million Euros.

As we approached the harbor entrance I radioed the harbor master at Marina Palmira that we were a few minutes out. She gave me our slip number and some other info and signed off. So were coming down the narrow channel at the marina entrance with a fifteen knot tailwind and a dinghy in tow when we noticed a man on the jetty waving to us. Lisa is the sociable one among us so she waved back. Then he started waving harder and she said "I think hes trying to tell us something", but we couldnt make it out, so she went up to the bow to try and get a better understanding of what he was yelling and then suddenly noticed a 15" dredge pipe laying all the way across the channel. So she started waving and yelling at me to "Stop! Back er down! Your gonna hit a pipe!". So I slammed the engine into reverse and managed to keep from hitting the pipe, but with fifteen knots up the bum and a dinghy in tow, we were in danger of getting sideways in the channel, which would have been a bad thing since we had rocks on one side and big motor yachts on the other. But I managed to keep the boat lined up in the channel and they moved the dredger enough that we could squeeze by it with three or four feet of clearance on either side.

After we got the boat in the slip, we went up to the office to check in. While we were waiting another boat radioed that they were coming in. I could hear their entire conversation and the nice lady told the skipper what his slip number would be, gave directions on how to get there and signed off without ever mentioning the dredger blocking his way. I told her it would be a good idea to advise the unsuspecting sailor that the channel was blocked. She agreed and made a halfhearted attempted to hail him on the radio, but by then he was most likely in the midst of trying to keep his boat from slamming into the dredge pipe and he didnt answer. You never know when sailing in Mexico is going to become an adventure!

Anyway, were enjoying la Paz and expect to be here for a couple of weeks. We plan to take in the sights, maybe catch a glimpse of the Mexico 1000 off-road race and tour the East Cape. 

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