March 1, 2014

Puerto Ballandra is located on the west side of Isla Carmen just across the Sea from Loreto. We stopped here on the way up to Bahia Concepcion and on the way back and both times we were delighted to see whales. They seem to hang around Isla Carmen. Or maybe they were just passing by and our timing was right.

The cove is almost a complete circle with an opening that faces east. There is a deep canyon that runs through the center that shoals quickly close to shore. This makes it kind of tricky when anchoring. We had to drop the anchor closer into shore than we would have liked for fear of anchoring on the edge of the cliff, which, should a strong wind arise, could cause us to drag.

All went well, except for a little drama the night before heading south to Puerto Escondido. Just as the sun went down, our boat neighbor called the fleet in the bay and asked if anyone knew the weather. Jay got on the VHF and they started a dialogue. He was uncomfortable with the way his anchor was set and he was debating about moving. He thought he might be too close to that ledge and was worried he would drag. Jay turned on our spreader lights and our running lights, stayed on the VHF and talked him through it.

Two hours later, in the pitch black night, and after three tries, he got his anchor set right. Jay and I decided it might be prudent to sleep in the cockpit that night. Fortunately, no one dragged.

Isla Carmen has many other anchorages but even with a month, we just couldn't see them all. Maybe next time. I have a feeling we will be back here again.