We are back amongst the world of internet. I almost said civilized, but actually I think it is very civilized in the remotness of the Baja. They may not have internet or even electrictiy but that is what makes it a unique place to go. We thouroughly enjoyed our 3 weeks out of touch (well not really because we did have the ham radio) and we loved seeing the fabulous vistas and mountains and the water so blue.
I am amazed everyday at how the colours of the cliffs change as you move from one anchorage to the next. From Los Gatos we went to a small cove called San Marte. There is some big reefs off of this cove and we were looking forward to snorkeling on them. There were many many kinds of fish and I was excited to see such BIG Parrot fish. Wow they were about 2 feet long! There were also corals and fans and starfish and many other interesting things to look at. The water is still a bit chilly though at 23 degrees so we didn't stay in too long, maybe 45 minutes or so.
From there, we headed to Aqua Verde which was 7 miles. We went between the reefs with our friends on Kashmira in the lead as they had been through there before. You wouldn't want to do this without local knowledge as the reefs are not too far apart. In Aqua Verde, there are 3 lobes to anchor in, one protects you from the North winds, one from the South winds and the middle one your semi protected from either. Both the N and S were fairly full with boats so we opted for the middle on in front of the village. Conditions were calm so it wasn't a problem. We enjoyed Aqua Verde and enjoyed visiting in the village. One night that we were there, there was a crowning of the Queen and King of the high school. It was a festival to raise money to send these kids to a high school in another bigger town. The school in Aqua Verde only goes to grade 9 so to continue the kids go to Constitution City or the town of Loreto. The parents have to come up with the money to pay for their tuition for the week that they are away from home. Anyhow, the festival was fun, there was local performances by the students and there was really yummy food for sale made by the locals.
After 4 nights in Aqua Verde, we decided to move on to the island called Monseratte. We went to the north end of the island to a beach called Yellowstone Beach and yes the stone is yellow. It is a beautiful place but we only stayed a couple of nights as the wind from the north was predicted to blow so yesterday we upped anchor and came into the bay of Escondito. We are tied to a mooring bouy in the main bay and yes the winds are blowing from the north. We haven't had a chance to explore yet but we will be here for a few days so I will blog on this area later this week.
I've posted photos in the gallery one calle La Paz and another called La Paz to Los Gatos. I will try to get another one up today with the photos from Los Gatos to Escondito.