I tried working on my autopilot again before I left Los Muertos. I followed the instructions for purging the system of air. I think I did not do it long enough because it still did not work as I headed out of the bay. The other possibility is that there is a leak in the system somewhere, but the reservoir of fluid has not dropped. Definitely need to fix this.

That meant hand steering for the day. I left Los Muertos at 0730 and arrived at Marina Cortez in La Paz at 1630. Luckily there was no wind in Cerralvo Channel. At the south end of Cerralvo is a place called La Ventana, renowned for its consistently strong northerly winds. Windsurfers and kitesurfers come from all over the world to play there. When I went by, it was flat calm.

After passing through Canal de San Lorenzo and turning the corner into Bahia de La Paz, the wind came up from the port quarter. I unfurled the jib and was notorsailing at a good clip into La Paz. At Marina Cortez some other cruisers came to take a line as I docked. I soon made friends with a few of them, which led to having dinner together and a lively conversation over pizza and a pleasant tempranillo. Despite my fatigue, I enjoyed the evening. Everyone out here has an interesting story about where they have been and how they started cruising.