Dave wrote:
We just had a walk around town and saw several internet cafes so I was able to use WiFi. We did a bit of shopping in town. Rudy insisted on finding unrefrigerated cabbage since he says it keeps better. No-one could question his knowledge of meat and produce. His meals are simple and nutritious - just what is needed on a boat.

Aleta encouraged us to have a couple of beers since she claims there is an electrolyte in beer that counteracts the effects of dehydration, so we consider our trip to the bar as needed therapy.

A local named Miguel rowed out in his little dinghy and latched on to us. He took our trash and laundry and guided us to the stores, money changer and the internet outlets.

We heard there is a party in town tonight but the big deal is the pot-luck on the beach tomorrow.

We bought local shrimp from a boat and Stig and Aleta are going to cook them for dinner.

There is still some wind in the bay but it's hard to tell what it is like outside. We heard the wind and sea conditions are going to last until Saturday. Boats are still coming in, some took the cautious route and went back to San Diego.
At roll call this morning we were one of the first boats to report "in Turtle Bay" to which the host replied, "you guys must be riding a rocket ship!"

Aleta wrote:
Today was a terrific day. We spent half of it walking along the dusty streets of Bahia Tortuga, in grid-search style, helping Rudy find the perfect head of cabbage...must be the correct size and not refrigerated so it would survive longer without refrigeration. We checked every store in town...really...all three of them. After successfully achieving our mission we quenched our thirst with cerveza at the palapa on the beach near the dinghy landing. Actually we had had two each by then, and fish tacos, at another palapa to fuel the search.

The trip to this point has been both exhilarating and exhausting. We sailed hard for three full days and two long nights. We learned that some sailors had left the race early because of the high winds (25-30+ knots) and choppy seas and swells to 15 feet (and one boat sunk after a whale snuggled up to it. Darned exciting!) We had several beautiful whales swimming along side after leaving San Diego but they kept a respectful distance of 30 feet. The high winds and large swells to this point in the trip have provided Michael and I with a rare chance to drive downwind in very difficult conditions.

In addition to seeing whales we've had the good fortune to see lots of dolphins, porpoise, flying fish and seabirds. We even had gulls flying out from the mainland thirty miles away to check on us...perhaps they thought we were fishing...or they may just have been enticed by the aroma of Rudy's delicious chocolate chip oatmeal cookies coming out of the oven. No lie. He was baking cookies at 7am yesterday in heavy seas and strong winds after two nights with little sleep. As you might guess we are eating quite well and will all have to trim down when we get home.