03/20/2010, La Paz, Mexico
We're back in La Paz after being gone since January 10.
We spent the night of the 17 in Ensenada De la Raza(24 28.363N 110 22.802W) out in the islands as the only person in the bay. A bit open for our tastes but at least we had it to ourselves. Well sort of. We were nailed by LOTS of BoBos. These are little flies that buzz you and try and get all over you if they can. Thank God they don't bite plus they are not the fastest flies in the world. Not to hard to kill two or three in one swat.
I put on my scuba gear and took a look at Zephyr's bottom. Not too bad all in all. A bit of growth in a few areas that I got knocked off and cleaned up. I didn't have the proper amount of weights on my belt so it was hard to stay down. I had Tracy hand me down an extra weight to add to my belt. With it just in my hand, I sank nicely to the bottom(15 feet or so). I wasn't the smartest guy in the world as when I took the belt off to add the new one, up I went. I kept the belt in my hand so I was floating upside down. I pulled my self back down and sat on the bottom with the belt in my lap until I could get the weight added and then I was fine. Interesting feeling floating upside down.
We watched boats heading North and South all afternoon. It's a major pathway to the islands with lots of pangas passing and sail and power boats looking for a place to drop their anchor for the night.
We headed into La Paz on Thursday morning. Of course, there was little wind and what there was was from the South so we had to motor all the way in. I guess you can't always have good sailing winds though we have enjoyed them on our trip South from Bahia Concepcion over the last few months.
We're now at 24 10.952N 110 18.226 W if you are Google Earthing us. I'm sure there are lots of pictures of the area. With luck, I'll get many of our up in the next few days.
Yesterday was spent running or at least walking errands. Tracy spent the day at the laundry getting our mounds of dirty clothes and sheets washed. I took off in the 0900 shuttle for down town. Lopez Marine the first stop. We'd made a list and I had lots of things I needed to get. The hardest to find was small thin bungie cord to fix the DuoGen. It holds the pin to the body of the unit so it won't fall off as you change out the wind prop for the water prop. After a year, it had finally broken. I got lucky and found some at Home Depot here.
I hit at least 8 store in my trek and was smart enough to take the "Collectivo" buses around when I had bigger distances to cover. The one I took from Walmart went all over town before finally getting somewhat close to the marina where I could get off and walk the rest of the way. There is really no formal bus system here, just a bunch(lots) of guys traveling around town in small vans or buses picking up people for 8 pesos(really cheap) and you get off when you want. Not so bad as long as you get lucky and get on the right bus. If you don't, you could end up way out of your way.
We had our last steak from Costco last night for dinner. Ah--the joys of a fine piece of red meat. Add in a nice baked potato and a bottle of wine and it was a nice dinner. We had our last lobster the night before. Don't cry for us, we're bearing up as well as we can. We will probably be off for the local "City Club"(like Costco) this afternoon. But first, it's time to rip out the stern holding tank for the head and see what is going on back there. It's just not doing it's job right. You have to take the good with the bad I guess.
It was into the low 90's on Thursday when we got in. That's the hottest we have been in a long time. Last time we were here, everyone was wearing their Winter coats(in the mid 60"s). We put tarps over Zephyr to keep it a bit cooler inside. The furr people aren't taking the heat that well.
Well, it's time to get back to work.
Responses to comments and questions:
George and Celeste--Shadow is still moving right along. He has come back to decent health since his set back back in early February. We're just taking each day as a gift having him here with us.
Dave--you asked about Pilot House boats. Not so many though they have their uses. It would keep you out of the elements. We've seen far more ketch rigged boats than we expected. Two masts keep the sails smaller and easier to handle. Not to many "new" boats though.
As to the comments I made earlier about the restaurant in Escondido, I was just telling what I had been told by some people that had been there. Nothing personal. We really enjoyed Escondido and Loreto and the folks we met there. We only ate there once, the day we arrived.
If you have nay question, feel free to ask. I have access to the internet so I can at least see your responses.
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03/17/2010, El Cardoncito, Isla Partida
After yesterdays winds(20+ knots) we decided to move a bit farther South from Ensenada Grande. We'd explored it enough and wanted to see more before our move to La Paz on Thursday. So we upped the anchor and took off for somewhere South of where we were. We were looking for a nice secluded and small cove to spend a day or so in. The first one we came to that would fill the bill, won. Just 3.8 miles South of Ensenada Grande was the small cove of El Cardoncito, still on Isla Pardita. As we neared it, we were surprised to 's find it empty. It's small enough, the cruise guides say it is good for just one or two boats. A cute little cove with a nice sandy beach at its head.
In we went and down went the anchor. We didn't bother with a way point on our chart plotter as it is so small. We dropped the anchor (in 15 feet of water)and pulled back on the chain to set it in the sand on the bottom. Nope, it dragged and would not dig in. It just bounced along the bottom hitting stones. Up came the anchor and we tried a different place. Down went the anchor. Same thing--it just bounced along the bottom. Up it came and over we went to try a different place. Same thing. We just kept shifting our location looking for a nice piece of sand for our poor anchor. At the fourth try, it finally set in the sand on the bottom. A whopping depth of 13 feet of water. We were at high tide(a 5 foot range) so we would end up with 8 whole feet under the keel. Still a good depth for us. We had left Ensenada Grande at 0900 and with the anchor problems, we were not settled in till 1020. We were thrilled to get the place to ourselves. When we had come North, there had been another boat in the anchorage and we had passed it by in the belief that it would only handle one boat(safely). Suddenly, on the horizon was another sailboat. He was coming in!!!! Rats!!! Spoiled again!!! He came in and tried to drop his anchor in the same place we had. Hey, guess what? His didn't set either. Up it came and down it went. Sorry, no go. Up it came and down it went. Nope, only this time, he snagged a big hunk of coral and brought it up. The two boys at the bow, knocked it off and they tried again. They asked if we had had problems as they pulled up their anchor and I told them it had taken us four tries to get ours to stick and hold. Each time, they move closer and closer to poor Zephyr. On his fourth try, he finally got his anchor to dig in. He's about 80 feet from our starboard side. If we both swing in opposite directions, we might hit each other. All part of the fun of cruising--right?
While he was getting anchored, we plopped Puff in the water for a nice trip to shore. With Dragon on the stern, in we went. This small cove shoals out quickly so we had to use the oars to get the final distance to shore. I don't want to ruin the poor prop on Dragon by hitting some rock on the bottom. There is a well on shore that was dug by 8 fishermen back in the 1940's to provide fresh water for any fishermen that stopped by. A beautiful piece of stone work as all the sides are covered in dry stacked stone. No concrete was used. I knew the Mexicans were good with stone work, but this was amazing. It's a good 20 feet from the top of the well to the bottom of the water. Someone even left a line next to the well so you can see how deep it is. It's marked out with knots at each foot. The water is about 8 feet deep. Once we had explored the shore and beach, we returned to Zephyr.
The folks(parents and two teenage boys) on the other boat had settled in and jumped into the water to explore the shoreline where there are lots of fish. They took along their spear to catch some fish for bait for later fishing. After they returned to their boat, suddenly, on the horizon came a 40 foot catamaran from the Moorings Charter Company. They were coming in to join our group. They just knew there would be room for them in our little cove. Just after we dropped our anchor, the winds had started piping up and were now blowing in the high teens to low twenties from the head of the cove. The two of us were already swinging around our anchors quite nicely in the wind. In came the catamaran, passing in front of the other boat and pulling right in front of us--up wind!!! OH C--P!! Just what we didn't need. A Mooring boat right in front of us and up wind with the forecast for these 20+ knot winds to last the rest of the day. If their anchor slipped and dragged, they would come right back on us!! Tracy just stared at them. OK, glared would be a better call for what she gave them. I looked at the other boat(already at anchor) and remarked "Well, at least they have good insurance. They are normally amateurs at best" They asked if we thought that they were too close to us. Having anchored in the Pacific Northwest where people anchor close enough to you that you can spit on each others boats, they were fine even though 80 feet for down here is quite close. I assured them that they were just fine though we kept a close vigil on the positions of both of our boats and their relationship.
There were seven people on board the catamaran all lounging on decks with one person at the wheel. In they came and stopped right in front of us just as the wend had stopped. They didn't drop their anchor but just sat and stared at the cove trying to decide if they wanted to stay. Suddenly, a big gust of wind rips through the cove. They swung to the right with the man who had been at the wheel, rushing to get back to it. He had gone to the bow to see what they had under their boat. Once under control, he returned to the bow. Boom--along comes another big gust and they started swinging to the left and dropping back on us. OK, they had had enough and took off out of the cove and headed for the next cove North(Ensenada el Cardonal). Once they were gone, we had no more visitors. The winds continued till just about 2000 and then slowed up a good bit as the lands around us cooled in the evening once the Sun went down.
Tomorrow, off again to see another cove South of here, slowly making our way closer and closer to La Paz. The Marina Palmira confirmed our reservation this morning so we are all set to arrive day after tomorrow. Back to civilization!
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03/11/2010, Ensenada Grande
Yesterday, the wind shifted and came out of the South, right into the bay causing all the boats anchored here to rock and roll a good bit in the swells that came in. By afternoon, it had shifted back around and started coming out of the North again. We're protected from all but South winds and waves in this little bay. Mother Nature just wanted to play with us again.
We woke up to the rhythmic sound of thunk, thunk, thunk, over and over again as something moved inside Zephyr. A sound every now and then is ok, but over and over is not. As Zephyr moved at anchor in the swells, the sound just kept on thunking. If you have followed our blog for a while, you know we have had problems with our steering ever since we started sailing Zephyr. The bracket that controls the rudder post keeps coming loose. We lost steering the first time as we fought 40 knot winds and 20 foot seas on our way North from Newport Oregon in July of 2008. I had to crawl under the mattress in the stern(getting thrown all over the place) and get down into the bilge and tighten the clamps. I had stainless steel shims made to make the fit tighter between the bracket and the rudder post. Unfortunately, as we sail, these little buggers shift and that is what it had done. The thunking we heard was the rudder post moving back and forth inside the bracket(again). Up came the mattress and in I went with two wrenches and apart came the bolts and in went the shims(one had popped out the top of the bracket) and once tightened, the thunking stopped. Once we get back to civilization, I think I will try and find a better solution for this problem. I figured that having applied "Lock-Tite" to the threads of the bolt would have solved the problem. Guess not since the shims moved.
I grabbed my needle and thread and stitched up a seam on one of the pockets on the dodger(covers the cockpit). The thread had come undone and it needed to be redone before it got worse. It's better to tackle these projects as soon as they crop up so they don't get out of hand.
Other than that, we practiced our Spanish(computer program) and sat and read the rest of the day. The winds were picking up and we just decided to stay aboard for a change. Lots more boats came and went as the day progressed with pangas full of tour folks coming to visit the middle cove here. A large power boat dropped their anchor in the middle cove and pulled out their toys. A jet ski and their water skis plus a big dingy with a big motor. Their kids spent the afternoon buzzing around the bay making as much wake as they could. All three kids took turns at the wheel of the dingy zipping between all the other boats at anchor. Heaven forbid they should go out where there are no boats and do it there.
The winds came back over night and we are now set with 20+ knot winds from the North and they're forecast to continue through Tuesday. I've emailed Marina Palmira in La Paz for a reservation to stay there as of this Thursday for a week. We will see how long it takes to get all our jobs done and get ready for the leap to the mainland. Heaven help my credit cards.
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03/11/2010, Ensenada Grande
The past two days here at Ensenada Grande have been spent basically exploring and playing games. Oh, and watching boats come and go. We took off in Puff with Dragon on Friday morning exploring the different coves here. The cruise book for the neighborhood each tell a different story of the three coves. Which is good for which weather. The North cove(where we are) is supposed to be better for the North winds as they would zip right over us where we are tucked in while the South cove would get more swells from the North as they came around the North point of the bay. Well, since it was still blowing at 20-25 knots, we thought we should investigate and see if any of them were better in the wind we were having..
We were getting good winds(as far as the DuoGen was concerned) as they flowed over the bluffs to the North that protect this cove and while the swell wasn't bad, it was still a howler in the rigging. The middle cove is open yet a beautiful beach to play on. We found that when we went ashore, the winds were just about gone along the beach. They by passed this cove(at least the beach). During the day, dozens of tourist in big boats and small pangas come and flock to this beach, many returning from a trip to Los Islotes where they can snorkel with sea lions. One of the CruiseWest.com boats(he took off sometime early Friday morning) was already anchored there when we showed up on Thursday afternoon. They'd set up umbrellas, tents and chairs for all their customers. We had been surprised that so many went ashore in the winds we had been experiencing. Now we knew why the beach was so popular. While the others got lots of wind, this one didn't. As we putt putted around to the South cove, we were hit again by the winds from the North blowing over the bluffs and valley. The cove there is quite shallow near the back and I jumped out of Puff a good 150 yards from shore and the water only came up to just above my knees. I pulled Puff to shore and we walked the beach. Behind the beach is a small lagoon full of fish (small) and crabs(small) all set up in their own little eco system. At the back of the cove is a trail heading for the other side of the island. We headed back to Zephyr, picked up our frizbee and headed back to the middle cove and got some exercise. Along the way in, we stopped for a few minutes and chatted with the folks aboard the Mooring boat that had anchored there. They had come in about an hour before. I don't think the daughter(mid 20s) liked the sailing experience. As they sat in the cockpit having lunch, she still had her life jacket on. Once we left the beach, the folks aboard the Mooring boat came ashore. We returned to Zephyr and the winds in the North cove.
With Friday being so windy, few boats came into any of the three anchorages as most don't like going out in this weather(chicken). I think only three boats showed up all day. The forecast for Saturday was for more winds out of the North to Northwest, back in the 20-25 knot range. What did we get---maybe 10 knots all day. It was the perfect day for sailing up the coast and many boats did just that. I decided to walk the trail that lead off the back of the South cove that took you to the other side of the island. I made it ashore by 1000. We had pulled Puff aboard the previous night as the winds were howling past her as we had just pulled her up to sit along side Zephyr but out of the water on our hoist. We normally jut hoist her up and let her dangle through the night in a sling made for inflatable boats. This time, the wind was so strong, that we decided to just pull her all the way back on board rather than have her flop around beside Zephyr. We'd already taken Dragon(our outboard) off and stowed it on the railing at the stern. It's much safer and quieter that way(and less strain on the rigging).
I packed some bottles of cold water and some crackers and cookies(along with a VHF radio just in case) and took off for the South cove. The sign at the base of the trail said it was a difficult hike and was 2.5 miles and would take 4.5 hours. Man, what was I getting myself into? Off I went on the trail(what I could find of it) for the first 200 yards. After that, you really had to search for any kind of path. I finally decided to just stay in the arroyo and climb over the rock and boulders that had been deposited there over the last thousands of years. Up I went, rock after rock, boulder after boulder. Every once in a while, I would see some sign in the dirt(what there was of it) that someone had been there before me but who knows how long ago. It rarely rains here and that would be the only thing that would erase the foot prints. As I set out, I saw lots of lizards, most not afraid of me, and lots of small squirrels(about the size of large mice) and one lone rabbit with big ears. Luckily no rattlesnakes. I found stacked rocks along the arroyo marking where someone else had climbed. I added a rock to the top of the stacks every time I found a set. I finally arrived at the top of the canyon about 1130 after an hour and and half climb. I ended up on a 450 foot cliff at the top of a box canyon over looking the eastern shoreline. Waves were crashing onto the rocks below me. It was an incredible view and not a boat to be seen. I plunked myself down and has some water(lemonade flavored) and the small package of cookies(for a completed hike). I could use the fluids and the sugar. I started the decent about 1150 and again, stepped from rock to rock all the way down. I know my legs will be telling me something(OW!) later tonight. When I arrived at the beach, there was a nice canopy all set up on shore with a nice Mexican family having a picnic. A dingy was bringing food and drinks ashore from their large yacht anchored just off the cove. It's rare that you see any one from Mexico traveling their own waters, especially in their own boat. We have found that there are more Canadians than Americans down here. I had a nice chat with a gentleman from Switzerland that was about to start the same climb I had made. They had charted a boat from the Moorings(even had a captain on board to skipper the boat). His wife really didn't like the water and sailing that much, he told me. I stopped at the Moorings boat as I headed out and had a nice chat with the Captain. He takes the folks where ever they want to go. I know the charter is expensive, but adding a Captain to the package and it really goes off the chart, money wise. As I rounded the point off the cove, there was another Moorings boat in the middle anchorage. It was the same boat that had been there the night before that had blown a block as they had come South. I had watched them leave the cove earlier(headed North) in the day as I had headed over to the South cove for my hike. Apparently, they had come back. Another boat had joined us in the North anchorage. We now had 7 boats in the bay.
As the day continued, more boats came in, mostly from the South as they made their way up the Sea of Cortez. The yacht from Mexico left in the late afternoon and a bigger one(lots bigger) came in just as they were leaving. Another boat joined the Moorings boat in the middle cove and several joined the group in the South cove. About 1600, the Mooring boat in the middle cove took off again. As they headed out, they hoisted their sails(amazing) and headed North. A half hour later, they showed up heading South. Leaving that late, God only knows where they were headed to.
It continued to be a lovely day for a sail for the rest of the day with beautiful sunshine and gentle winds. We will see what tomorrow brings
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03/11/2010, Ensenada Grande
Yesterday afternoon, I took Puff ashore and went for a walk along the sandy/rocky beach for a while and to get a bit of exercise. A few more boats came to the anchorage with them dropping their hooks all over the place. Some on the Northwest side with us and some on the Southeast side. One even dropped his out in the middle of the bay in relatively deep water(don't have a cue as to why). A tour boat full of Chinese showed up late in the afternoon and several boat loads of them went snorkeling along the South side of the cove. I'd say at least 10 tourists and 3 Mexican guides were on board. I can't imagine where they all slept as the boat wasn't that big and didn't look to have that kind of accommodations. They dropped their anchor right in front of us. As they pulled up their anchor(an Danforth type) this morning, it was hopelessly gammed up upon it self and its chain. There was no way it would have held the boat in any serious wind.
This morning dawned cold and cloudy with some wind from the North. The forecast was for winds building through the day and hitting into the mid 20 knot range from the North to Northwest. We upped the anchor and headed out for Ensenada Grande, a large bay on Isla Partida . Out we went, raising the sails shortly after leaving. We pulled up the main sail and rolled out the Genoa and headed South. We had to go with the wind off our Starboard stern quarter(right side rear of the boat) since we didn't have our spinnaker up. The forecast was for too much wind. We were zipping right along hitting into the mid 7 knot range and having a great time. About an hour later, two more boats left the anchorage and were following us. They were headed for La Paz for a while. It's quite a bit farther to go than what we needed to do. About 8 miles out, we gibbed(moved the sails to the opposite side taking the stern of the boat through the eye of the wind). In 20 knot wind, not the easiest thing to do. We needed to correct our course so we would hit the cove at the right side. We needed to head Southeast. Tracy spun the wheel while I took care of the lines and over came the boom. Not the most graceful gibe, but we corrected our course and set off again. Cutting across the swells make for an interesting ride. The waves just slam into the side of the boat over and over as you plow through them. It can get quite rocky as we saw another sailboat headed out in the opposite direction. Some times it's fun and sometimes, it can be downright painful. During one slam, one of our folding seats in the cockpit fell over and hit poor Blue. She freaked out and ran out on deck heading for the bow. Not the best place to run to as waves broke against the side. I took off after her and managed to get her back in the cockpit. She took off for below decks as fast as her legs would carry her. She wasn't coming back out until it got better and certainly calmer. These swells will either slam into your side or go right under the hull and pop up on the opposite side with a gush of foam. It makes for an interesting ride. The two boats behind us just kept on going. As we headed toward the bay, we were cutting across the swells that had kept building during the morning. About 1130, a "rogue wave" slammed into our port(left)side and water sprayed into the cockpit all over Tracy. Out came the towels and eventually she was a bit dryer but not much. On we pressed. We rolled in most of the Genoa and were still making over 8 knots. As we rounded up to take in some more sail, we topped out at 9 knots. The winds had crested at 39 knots and we still had our full mainsail up and part of the genoa out. We were lucky enough to be heading up when it hit or we could have been in a world of hurt. That kind of wind will take a boat over. We had much to much sail up but we sure were having fun(insert Stupid here). These waves aren't you average waves. These babies just kept building and be came almost blockish with squared off fronts. You don't roll over them, they just keep hitting you. It took us 22.8 miles to cover the distance of 19 the cruise book state.
Just outside the bay, a large whale(about the size of our boat) surfaced right in front of us. Tracy cried out "WHALE", but I never saw him(curse of the blind I guess). Supposedly, he came up twice and sprayed and then went down. Dropping the sails, we entered the bay shortly after 1200. We chose to anchor in the North cove so as to avoid the up coming wind and swells that have been forecast. Once to the anchorage, I went forward to drop the anchor and chain. Tracy got us all into position and down went the anchor and out came the chain, at least the first 45 feet or so. It suddenly stopped in mid drop! Ok, stomp on the chain to make it come out--nope. Reel in some of the chain and start over--nope. OK, time to rip stuff out of the locker and get down to what was causing the stoppage. Out came line and tarps and carts and fenders just to look into the anchor locker. Hey, you have to store this stuff some where. I stuck in the boat hook and pulled on the chain. OK, try and let it out again--nope. OK, reel in a bunch more so you can get your hands on it. A BIG knot had developed in the chain. There was no way it was going to come out of the small little pipe through the deck. Once I had the chain, it took me a minute or so to get it untied. During that time, we had drifted back out into the bay as what we had out was no where near enough to catch and hold Zephyr. Tracy kept us in place like the fine skipper she is. Up came the anchor and chain and in we went again. There was only one other boat in the cove so no problem. In we went again and this time, the chain came out just fine. In 25 feet of water, I let out over 100 feet of chain to make sure it would bite in the sand. She dug in just fine and we were set(24 33.953N 110 24.436W). We've now covered 3,381 miles since we left Port Townsend on August 15th. Not bad! That puts us over 6,000 since we left for Alaska in early April.
It was blowing in the low 20 knot range right through the anchorage off the tall bluffs at it's point. I set up the DuoGen as soon as we were set so it could grab as much wind as possible and make the amps we need to get us through the day. As I stowed the lines, Tracy made lunch. We stowed the rest once we were done and then watched as pangas(small boats) full of snorkelers came into the bay for lunch on the beach. A big ship from Cruise West.com is anchored in the middle cove and the beach is covered in tents, chairs and umbrellas for their enjoyment. They even have set up a barbecue for them. I'm not sure I would want to eat my lunch ashore unprotected from the wind with sand in my food, but hey, I'm not on their boat. Ours was just fine in the protection of our dodger over the cockpit.
The forecast for tomorrow is for more of the same. Wind in the mid 20 knot range but the swells are supposed to be in the 6 to 9 foot range every 6 seconds or so. Yow, that is going to make for some stiff sailing or motoring for that matter to any one that goes out in it. I think we will stay here for at least the next week or so. Time to enjoy the area. Then over to La Paz to get more provisions and chores done. Once we finish there, it is over to the mainland. Another adventure will be starting soon, but boy, what a fun sail we had today.
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03/08/2010, Isla San Francisco
We took off yesterday to walk the ridge crest trail just Southeast of the cove. If you check our longitude and latitude in Google Earth, I'm sure you can see the trail at the top of the range just to our South. It's a very popular trail walked my many thousands of people each year. This cove on Isla San Francisco is one of the most popular in the area as it is well protected and is near to La Paz, one of the main metro areas along the Baja Coast. We expect to be headed there in a week or so after a few more stops along the way. Once I regain access to the internet, I'll be posting lots of pictures for all to see.
As we walked the trail(steep on one side and a shear cliff on the other), more boat came and left the cove as people wanted to make some time in the winds. Most though, didn't even put up their sails. We talked to another cruiser as we came back to Zephyr after our walk to see if he had heard the weather since our connection was so bad. He had, but it was a toss up as to where the wind was actually going to be coming from. The previous night, it had come over the pass and out of the Northeast. Last night, it came out of the West putting us on a lee shore. That's when the stern of your boat faces the shore. If the winds pick up and your anchor drags, you could easily end up with your boat aground(not a good thing). As we were talking to the guy, he brought up one of the boaters that was anchored in the cove. This guy was on one of the charter boats from the Moorings I had talked about yesterday. It appeared to be the same boat we had passed as we came South with our spinnaker out the day before. He claimed that he had face waves of 10 feet on his way North the previous day!! Say what? I'm not sure the last time there has been 10 foot waves in the Sea of Cortez, but not often and not normally this close to land. Maybe out in the middle, 35 miles from shore. Besides, we had been out in the same weather and they might have been 4 feet max. If you are headed into them(as he was), they can seem much bigger. We've yet to see one of the boats from the Moorings with their sails up(we have two in the cove right now). For what they cost, you can't afford to take it the slow way (sailing) out here. You want to see as much as you can and motoring is the fastest way to do it. What a shame!! They are missing some great sailing days.
We came back to Zephyr and spent the afternoon watching other boats come in and jockey for a space in the cove. Each wanted the best space, but that is normally dictated by the wind and weather. This morning, about half the boat left. Some headed North and most headed South back to La Paz. We will be heading for Isla Partida tomorrow for a few days and then into La Paz for provisioning and fixing a few more things that have broken or are being installed. We found that the rigging that goes to the underside of the first set of spreaders is looser than it should be, so we will be tightening them up when we get into town.
Once some of the boats left, two boats that were in the Southeast most part of the cove upped their anchor and came over to the Northwest side for a better space if the winds continue to grow. We couldn't hear the local weather forecast from Geary on the Sunrisa Net, so we decided to up our anchor and join them. We were located about in the middle of the anchorage so, for us, it was a short trip. We're now anchored under the rock cliff we had originally been anchored under during our first time here. It should give us some decent protection from winds from all but the Southwest. Let's hope none comes from that direction in the next 24 hours.
I tightened the belt on the alternator this morning and got it up to 14.1 for a short time when I started the engine. During our move, it crested about 13.7 so that's not too bad. We'll see what she does tomorrow as we leave the cove and head farther South. At least it is generating electricity which is better than not generating any at all. I'm going after the tank in the stern head this afternoon. It appears that the vent on top is clogged and not allowing air out as you pump the toilet after use making it a big balloon full of bad gas. The effect of it is that that gas then pushes the bad smelly stuff back into the toilet instead of keeping it in the tank. YUCK!! With luck, I'll be able to fix it with out having to take the tank all the way out. If it comes to that, I'll do that job in La Paz where at least, I'll have the availability of repair parts if necessary. I'll soon know for sure what the problem is.
That's about it for now. We're a few hundred yards from where we started and all set with the anchor down.
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