Brad
08/06/2010, San Diego

We have arrived safely in San Diego. It was a good trip. We felt several times the dreaded bash, and the difficulty of making forward progress. But we found ourselves in a weather window. Ideally, I would have enjoyed sailing more, but we had light winds and mysteriously calm seas. We accepted these conditions gratefully. We had days and days of gloriously flat seas undulating in a private dance. The skies stayed overcast, and I think I understood "No Line on the Horizon".

We travelled 816 nautical miles in 8 days and 7 hours. We stopped overnight 3 times at Mag bay, Turtle bay, and Ensenada. Now to boat repair and cleaning...

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Brad
31/05/2010, Cab San Lucas, Mexico

I hated the crazyness of Cabo when we stopped over at the beginning of our trip so many months ago. Now, being here preparing for the trip back, I have actually come to enjoy it. Some of it is taking in the culture knowing that my days here are numbered. Some of it is the stark beauty of the place, even with the overdevelopment for the tourist industry. Some of it is romantic illusions of pirates and adventurers seeing some of the same beauty here hundreds of years ago.
Yesterday was a great day. I was quoted over $100 US for a taxi to the airport in San Jose and it would have really deteriorated as the Westjet flight from Canada was over an hour late. It took some gymnastics on my part, but I found a way to the airport and back on the local bus. My total fare was just under $6, and I had several hours to enjoy the more quaint seaside town of San Jose del Cabo. There, I found myself in a Spanish speaking church, it was an amazing experience and the people really extended love to me.
I feel as ready as I need to be and now have crew to assist. He will have a steep learning curve, but he is eager. Today is his Birthday. He reminds me of somebody else very special, who long ago also liked to get into boats...

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Brad
28/05/2010, Cabo

I headed for Cabo San Lucas for two things. I will await a weather window to head North. It appears that there may be good conditions early next week. I will also await the arrival of a friend from Canada who will help me make the journey. He decided very last minute, actually after the deadline, but the timing is good and he should arrive on Sunday. I was looking forward to making the trip alone, but it will be much better with help, and company.

I caught 2 Yellowfin Tuna today, 32 and 27 inches long. The bigger one was a workout for me and my Penn reel. We will eat well now. The taste of this fresh fish is beyond amazing. That reminds me, I made a giant bowl of ceviche out of the speared fish I caught - that was good too.

Our friends Jeff and Nancy on S.V. "Oblivion" gave me their SPOT gps tracker for the bash home. When I push a button on this device, Lisa gets an email of my position. Internet will get pretty sparse from here and since that is my only source of communication outside of the 50 mile range of the VHF, the SPOT device will give Lisa a lot of comfort that I am making progress. If anyone else cares to follow my progress, it can be seen on Oblivian's website on the bottom left of their homepage. Browse around a little too, they are fabulous writers. I will post a link to www.sailingtooblivion.com on the right side 'links' section of our sailblog. It opens a map that is interactive. You may need to push the go button to see where Tenacious Grace is. Oh, please know that I will be updating the spot position rather randomly and if I am not moving I may be waiting for a weather change. Thankyou Jeff and Nancy for your thoughtfulness and generosity...

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Brad
27/05/2010, Los Frailles

I goofed off a little today travelling from Muertos to Frailles. The winds were very light, 5-8 knots, so I thot it would be interesting that since I had the whole day, why not just sail. It would be a great exercise in patience. So for most of the day, I travelled at 1.5 to 3.5 knots. That was fine, except the afternoon winds that I was expecting never came, until evening, and of course, as a sailor would say, on the nose. There was some current against me too. So I got a little beat up at the end. I got in around 21:00, in the afterglow of dusk, but the full moon was helpful for anchoring.

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Brad
26/05/2010, Los Muertos

I have a few days to get to Cabo so I am day sailing and pausing to enjoy the anchorages if the mood is right. I was going to leave today but it was so nice to slow down and relax. I just stayed. I snorkelled for a couple of hours in the afternoon and speared 4 small fish for supper - they sure looked big under water.
Evening decended slowly and I was almost ecstatic taking in the beauty around me. A gentle surf crashed rhythmically on the beach. I poured a glass of Madiera and then swayed in the hamock enjoying the setting sun and the purple hues on the ocean. I light breeze caressed my salty skin, and I relaxed. Soon the light of the full moon was reflecting off of the wavelets, and I felt at peace. Completely.
During that magical hour, even my lonliness vanished.

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Brad
25/05/2010, Cerralvo Channel

My first journey alone on the boat went very well. I felt ready to leave La Paz and head down the California Sur peninsula. After helping someone on the dock with a loose refrigeration compressor belt, I headed out a little late. I had mostly good wind and really enjoyed the day.
I fished along the way and caught 2 skipjack. The second one was a little bigger and I struggled to get it to the boat as I was unable to do much to slow the boat down while under sail. While unhooking the fish some blood landed on a stern step and made it very slippery. I imagined slipping off the boat. I knew that I could swim the mile to shore, and the water was quite warm. But where would the boat stop, sails up and autopilot steering a straight heading south? Twas a good reminder to always be cautious. I pulled into Bahia de los Meurtos at dusk and anchored for the night. It is a little easier with help.

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