A Taste of Cruising Mexico

Vessel Name: Journey
Vessel Make/Model: Passport 40
Hailing Port: Ventura, Ca
Crew: Jeff and Dori Beller
About: We're home ported out of Ventura, California. Jeff is a software engineer and Dori is a special ed teacher. We're both on sabbatical from our carreers or early retirement. We're not too sure which and don't really care. Cruising fits us real well right now.
Extra: This is our third extended cruise to Mexico. I guess we like it there! We hope you enjoy reading this journal of our cruise.
19 March 2020 | Ventura, CA
12 July 2012 | Ventura, CA
20 June 2012 | San Diego, CA
12 June 2012 | Turtle Bay
11 June 2012 | Turtle Bay
04 June 2012 | Bahia San Juanico
02 June 2012 | Outside of the Baja
31 May 2012 | Cabo San Lucas
27 May 2012 | La Paz
22 May 2012 | La Paz
22 May 2012 | Southern Sea of Cortez
15 May 2012 | Bahia Candeleros
15 May 2012 | Bahia Salinas
15 May 2012 | Isla Carmen
15 May 2012 | Isla Carmen
15 May 2012 | Isla Danzante
02 May 2012 | Sea of Cortez
02 May 2012 | Punta Colorada (Isla San Jose)
02 May 2012 | Sea of Cortez
02 May 2012 | Sea of Cortez
Recent Blog Posts
19 March 2020 | Ventura, CA

Another Taste of Mexico

This is a photo from back in 2008, the first time Journey went cruising to Mexico. The boat was full and overflowing with guests come to wish us Bon Voyage before we set off on our travels. It is a memory we still cherish.

12 July 2012 | Ventura, CA

Home Sweet Home

Journey has been home for just over a week, after sailing into Ventura harbor on the Fourth of July.

20 June 2012 | San Diego, CA

Survivors of the Un-Bash

It seems there is no rest for the weary. (OK, after resting four days, I guess being weary isn't an excuse anymore.) Anyway, we've received a few 'gentle' hints from some impatient readers. They've noticed that our position reports show we've reached San Diego, but our blog hasn't been updated to reflect [...]

12 June 2012 | Turtle Bay

A Night at Anabel's

Last night we debated whether or not to leave Turtle Bay early this morning, but one day's rest just didn't put a dent in the sense of exhaustion we were feeling after this last week. So we put off our departure until tomorrow. Our reward for making that decision was spending this evening at Anabel's. There [...]

11 June 2012 | Turtle Bay

The Half Way Point

Arriving at Turtle Bay is a milestone because it means you've reached the half-way point in your trip up or down the Baja. Several of the boats who left Cabo with us had a little celebration by having a scrumptious potluck lunch hosted by Mary and Jack on S.V. Oriana. We also attended to mundane details [...]

04 June 2012 | Bahia San Juanico

The 'Un-bash'

With one-third of the trip north completed, the good news is that we haven't really been 'bashed' much at all. The closest we've came was the passage around Cabo Falso early Saturday AM which Jeff described in his last post. As he mentioned, once that was behind us, it was all motoring in calm seas [...]

The Half Way Point

11 June 2012 | Turtle Bay
Dori
Arriving at Turtle Bay is a milestone because it means you've reached the half-way point in your trip up or down the Baja. Several of the boats who left Cabo with us had a little celebration by having a scrumptious potluck lunch hosted by Mary and Jack on S.V. Oriana. We also attended to mundane details like taking on fuel, changing the engine oil and grabbing a few groceries (ice cream!). So we're all ready to continue the 'bash'.

The Baja coast features three major "bights" or indentations that are 150-200 miles across. The first is from Cabo to Magdalena Bay. The second, or middle, bight which we just completed is often quite windy. We didn't experience a repeat of the benign conditions we enjoyed while making the passage from Cabo to San Juanico, so we've resorted to a strategy Jeff calls 'dash-and-duck'. The prevailing pattern is for the wind and seas to kick up worst in the late afternoon. From San Juanico to Turtle Bay we made about 50-mile hops, leaving each morning between 2-5 A.M. and trying to arrive at the next anchorage before it gets too snotty.

This plan has pretty much paid off. During our 70 hours of motoring, we've averaged about 6 knots of boatspeed. Sometimes we've had to claw our way through an uphill current and other times the current has given us a nice push. Opportunities to sail have been few and far between, but we've mostly avoided getting too beat up.

One memory stands out from this section. Seeing whales has become rather commonplace, but during the trip from Abreojos to Ascuncion we passed through a pod of 8-10 large whales - bigger than our boat. Our best guess was that they were blue whales. It's a pretty awe-inspiring to look out and see whales spouting from every direction all around the boat (some a little too close for comfort). They didn't do any spectacular breaching or such, but it was still a very special experience.

One other note before I close this entry. Jeff came up with a little addition that makes these wet, cold passages a little more tolerable. He made a portable seat that straddles the bottom of the companionway opening. It's upholstered with 5 inches of thick foam. We call it the 'Princess Seat'. Perched there, you are usually dry and well-sheltered from the wind, with a good view through the dodger windows and easy access to the radar, autopilot and other instruments.

It's just one of the little comforts that have made the first half of the trip bearable and hopefully will help with the second half too. The third and last bight is the jump from Cedros Island across Bahia Vizcaino back to the main peninsula. We have about 350 miles to go to San Diego. We have covered about 600 miles since leaving La Paz. We'll keep you updated with our progress.

Dori
Comments
Journey's Photos - Main
We've posted our favorite photos from this year's cruising in the Sea of Cortez
46 Photos
Created 8 July 2012
Four glorious days of surfing "the longest wave" at Matanchen Bay in warm water, tropical surroundings, and no crowds.
11 Photos
Created 13 April 2012
Dori shot these photos of a morning surf session at Barra de Navidad. She was standing on the breakwater which adjacent to the surf break, giving great access for pictures.
15 Photos
Created 22 February 2012
This is a morning spent touring the estuary and river above Matanchen up to Tovara springs.
28 Photos
Created 27 January 2012
Yelapa is a unique little hidden away village on the south side of Banderas Bay. No roads reach it and the only way to get there is by water.
14 Photos
Created 15 March 2011
14 Photos
Created 20 December 2010
40 Photos
Created 15 November 2010