06/14/2012, From 1/2 Chain to 3/4 Nylon
After a few years of seeing 1/2 inch anchor chain hanging from the bow of the boat, it sure gives an uneasy feeling to see what looks like a string of dental floss coming from our bow. I have learned something in the process of anchoring with 3/4 inch nylon rode for the last few weeks, which is why people without an electric anchor windlass prefer to anchor with nylon. Dealing with nylon anchor rode is just SO MUCH easier than chain! In our time here in Mexico, I can easily count on both hands without even needing my toes the number of boats I've seen out at anchor on nylon rode. The questions of cruising with or without a water maker, solar panels, a wind generator, or what dingy and outboard to buy don't have a clear consensus by looking at the real word evidence of what people are doing; however, the question of Nylon vs Chain anchor rode appears to be settled, and chain with its higher costs and weight in the bow is the clear hands down winner for a cruising boat. Sure there are exceptions to everything and no doubt a "Nylon-er" will comment on how much weight they took out of their bow or how they have sailed around the world on nylon and I'm just showing my rode bigotry, but folks I don't worry about my chain chafing on a rock during a blow or about my chain chafing through on the bow roller. In other words, on a boat that continually has the forces of mother nature trying to make her rest comfortably on the ocean bottom, having chain vs nylon rode gives you one less thing to worry about.
It's known as the La Paz Waltz, where wind and current can often have boats riding forward on their anchors and the above photo shows just how dramatic it can be. Our 100lb anchor is somewhere off our stern as the estuary current pushes us forward into the 10kt wind. The photo shows our dental floss nylon rode, but the same would happen with our chain. Positive thinking will let me believe that, the nylon rode rubbing against our hull and keel will scrap away the barnacles. But perhaps I should think more negative and imagine a big red barnacle slowly chewing through the nylon rode while I'm off the boat at a burger or taco stand. Maybe that sound of chain scraping against our hull is comforting after all.
| 4th Yr. 2012 Cruising Season |
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06/13/2012, Going through one to get another
On our recent failed attempt to cross the Sea of Cortez, both Lori and Cortez were passed out from the exhaustion of bashing into the wind and sea. Cortez always heads for Lori's lap while up in the cockpit and in this case he stretched out on her while she was out cold.
All that bashing makes you hungry and I'm sure I lost a few pounds on the way to La Paz from Barra, but it sure didn't take the crew of THIRD DAY long to get back into the La Paz Food Scene! A famous Gina Burger is lovingly prepared by starting out by toasting a type of sweet bread sponge dough burger bun. When the burger patty and cheese are ready, that's when the real love begins. We typically order "con toto" or with everything which includes: lettuce, grilled onions, tomato, avocado, mustard, ketchup, and the kicker....Media Crema or cream. Yes that's right, heavy cream is squirted atop the veggies from a squeeze bottle in an almost obscene display of caloric abandonment and Mexican decadence.
It's fair to say that in my life of travel, around the US for work and now Mexico, I've had my share of burgers. I know there are many styles of burgers and it's hard to sometimes compare one to another, but I can honestly say that I think a Gina Burger here in La Paz could be the best burger I've had. It could be the street card atmosphere of sitting on plastic patio chairs set up in the drive way of a house, it could be the fact that they cost $28 pesos ($2US), or perhaps it could be the generous application of cream as the finishing touch on the burger. But whatever it is, I love it and so do Amy and Jason.
Now that I think about it, everyone I have ever taken to Gina Burgers is impressed and gets addicted to them. I have Patrick on Just a Minute to blame for my addiction as he first took me to this sacred spot of Burger Paradise and I'm happy to spread the addiction throughout the cruising fleet here in La Paz.
| 4th Yr. 2012 Cruising Season |
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06/10/2012, Where Size does matter
For all the talk of "Sailing" there is sure a lot of diesel being used here in the Sea of Cortez. That's not to say we don't sail every chance we get or that some cruisers rarely if ever motor from point A to point B, but the truth is most cruisers in the Sea of Cortez spend the majority of their time either motoring or motor sailing. (at least the truth as I see it, but I' could be blind and bumb) The wind of course is free, if you don't count the sail maintenance, but even with the cheaper diesel prices in Mexico, motoring costs Money, Pesos, Dollars, or as I like to measure it, Tacos.
The laws of Physics come into play where a heavier boat burns more diesel to plow it through the water. Our 15,000lb Pearson 365 would motor at 4kts burning about 0.5 gallons of diesel per hour, but our 55,000lb Hudson Force 50 burns just under 1.0 gallons of diesel per hour while motoring at 5kts. So some quick math tells us that with diesel in Mexico costing $2.91/gallon, it costs is $2.80/hr to motor. When I look at this from a standpoint I can relate to, that's a little bit more than the $28Peso Gina Burger here in La Paz!
Being a numbers guy, if we motor at 5kts from La Paz to San Diego the 1000nm trip will take us 200 hours, or cost us $560 in Diesel. The only problem is that when we go to fill up the boat in San Diego or Port San Luis, diesel won't cost $2.91/gallon but closer to $4.50/gallon. So that means we will be filling up our tanks in Turtle Bay along with all of our fuel cans and empty milk jugs we can find aboard! Besides when we install our diesel boat heater to survive the cold in Port San Luis, we will need all the cheap Mexican Diesel we can carry. Just the thought of needing a heater to stay warm is hard for me to wrap my head around as I sit here in a 89-deg boat cabin with a 12v fan blowing on me.
| 4th Yr. 2012 Cruising Season |
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