Adventures in Mexico

It has finally happened. Rather than that moment in the morning when you first awaken and collect your thoughts to determine the day of the week and the long to-do lists ahead, we now have to take a pause to determine the month. It isn’t a long pause, so no reason to get worried here, but time has taken on a new meaning. We are indeed fortunate to have this opportunity to live a life that is so different from the 405 freeway rush hour style we left behind. Rather than the multitude of emails and other forms of constant communication that necessitated a frantic pace and a strong heart, we are finding a peacefulness that we’re still adjusting to even eight months into our journey. Finding contentment in facilitating the necessities of life is quite the adjustment. Where sleep, showers, food, and water were after-thoughts in our previous lives, we now find that finding balance is the driving force in our life.
Is it overcast? Could it be overcast? Are we going to be underway, and if so, what’s the wind doing. Will we be motoring? What’s the distance to the next port that will have diesel? Laundry and food provisioning is something that is planned out much like lesson plans – well ahead and thoroughly, with the anticipation that there will be a multitude of variables coming in from all angles. Water and power fill our thoughts, and we strategically plan everything. Repairs and improvements are consistent, everyday activities in addition to our planning for our basic needs.
Life at sea is a perspective change, for sure!
Not sure where last we left off. Cell and Internet access is proving to be harder to come by up in the Sea of Cortez. And yes, this is making me crazy. I still have the need to stay connected, and bills do need to get paid still! After being on the Pacific side of Mexico where it was much more available, the lack of availability is proving problematic. Yet another opportunity to become strategic about our travels, should anyone think we’re completely carefree. We left the Pacific coast of the mainland of Mexico where we’d gone from San Blas and south to Zihuatenajo, and back up to Puerto Vallarta area. Not bad for a new cruiser’s first year. We flew back to the states for the first week of April and were greeted by our wonderful son at the airport. Periodic emails and phone calls doesn’t make up for the long absence. It was great to feel my arms around him. Soon after, both John and Jack were on the couch in the house, listening to a basketball game, while Los Primos (our favorite Mexican food restaurant) food wrappers lied strewn upon the table. It was as if no time had transpired.
Our visit to California was obviously to see our son, but also, in addition to dealing with taxes, we had some unexpected landscaping work that needed attending and this cut into our opportunity to see more of our friends and family. We will not schedule just a week next time. It was a whirlwind period and not everything was accomplished. We return in August, so hopefully we can continue to handle everything from afar. We were able to secure a long-time lease through a referral from dear friends Wendy and Conrad. This has provided quite a bit of relief and has secured matters for another year of adventure. Our neighbors are so wonderful and rallied for a spontaneous potluck that materialized during our short stay in town. Some Corsair friends got wind and joined in the unscheduled festivities. Thank you Al and Barb for coming all the way down to visit us, and thank you Bill for finding a moment to pop over. We were sorry that Bev wasn’t able to join you, but with your continued care, we know she’ll be up and going soon. Reconnecting with friends was such a delight. Our visit back home was short, but we returned to our floating home here in Mexico to a period of jam-packed action.
We headed out of La Cruz for Isla Isabella, then the cross over to La Paz, but while we were departing the harbor, we heard our pals Jeff and Deanne being hailed. Turns out they were just ahead of us heading directly across to Los Muertos on the Baja side of the Sea of Cortez. We joined up with their little floatilla and it turned out to be quite the comfort on this 312 mile non-stop journey. We then went to La Paz where we took care of some minor repairs and re-provisioning. We had to hustle to make it up to Loreto to meet friends scheduled to arrive, so nothing was left to grow on our keel as we set sail to head up into the sea. Glad we did because we got to catch Bob Kreidel before he headed off to Florida to pick up his new yacht. It was fun having dinner with Bob and fellow cruising Corsairs Peggy and Don Cox.
Our friends Warren and Kelly Stone visited us for a week while we were up in the Loreto area. Knowing that this was a week reprieve for them from their busy working lives up in the states, we endeavored to make their stay with us as much of a vacation as possible. There were no repairs, improvements, or a significant focus on balancing electrical power. Rather, the focus was on fun, and we sure had a lot of that! We met them in Escondito where the 20th Loreto Fest was taking place. We connected again with fellow Corsair cruising members Don and Peggy Cox of S/V Interlude and had a fun time sipping margaritas while being immersed in the cruising community. Kelly and I were able to catch a ride into Loreto for provisioning along with Amie aboard S/V Millie J and Sally Honey S/V Illusion. We went to several stores and had a decent tour of the town.
Fully provisioned and ready to rumble, we went six miles to Honeymoon cove on Isla Dazante. We all drifted into a relaxed state (okay, with the help with some well-timed beverages) where we could behold the beautiful mountains that produced silhouettes of turtles, faces, and mushroom shapes. It was obvious that we were in for a fun week.
From Isla Dazante, we visited another nearby island, Isla Coronados. The Loreto area is just gorgeous with several islands and a multitude of coves a short distance away. It would take a year or more to explore this area, and even then you’d just scratch the surface. We were greeted by varying hued aqua blue water, white beaches, and harsh, jagged rocks. With the waters full of seasonal jellyfish, we decided to venture upon the volcano that makes up the small island. It was one of the more rigorous climbs we’ve done, but it was amazing.
From Isla Coronados, we headed south to Isla Carmen. We first went to V-Cove, also known as El Refugio. Warren thought he’d seen it from the air when they flew over it and landed in Loreto, so we had to check it out. Our fellow Corsairs, Don and Peggy had also highly recommended this spot. We were so glad we went there as it proved to be one of the most amazing coves we’ve been in thus far. I know, we say that about every new place, but this one really stands out as the best. We anchored almost upon the beach with a stern anchor to assure we didn’t end up on it! You could almost step off the boat and walk across the translucent aqua sheen to shore had it not been for those pesky jellies. They were somewhat compliant as they did drift in and out of the harbor allowing us some opportunities to cool down and explore. The surrounding caves were the highlight of this cove. Disneyland has nothing on this place, but I bet one of the designers was here and got their inspiration for Pirates of the Caribbean.
From El Refugio, we went around to the east side of Isla Carmen to Bahia Salinas. No jellies, no swells, and light winds made this a surprising spot. It is a wide open harbor that used to be a salt mining operation, but it has since been abandoned. Walking about the remains of the town was a bit ghostly, but interesting. Suddenly, amidst the ruble, I happened upon an absolutely pristine piece of paper that turned out to be an inventory of the area when it closed down. How it suddenly appeared and could have survived the brutal environment was beyond us, but it was interesting. The rusted heaps of cars and machinery were in stark contrast to the pristine coves we’d seen up to then, but the place gave us all plenty of opportunities to ponder nature, time, and humans’ role on earth. With all that swirling in our heads as we meandered through this deserted town, we went back aboard S/V Myla to another evening of revelry. While we’ve learned that cruisers sure know how to party, Corsairs do it with a flair! The next day we went diving and discovered new friends, Greg and Julie aboard S/V Adventura. A good time was had by all.
From Bahia Salinas, we went around to the west side of Isla Carmen to Puerto Ballandra. It was a welcome treat to get back into cell and internet connection, but the price was a bit steep. Poor Warren and I became the sacrificial lambs to the multitude of mosquitos that swarmed us suddenly in the evening. John and Kelly made it out relatively unscathed, fortunately. Without hesitation, we left in the morning and headed to Loreto. What a lovely town! We toured a bit, but found partying aboard was all the fun we needed. We ate and drank like kings. We wanted this vacation to be memorable for our guests, and we think it most certainly was. It sure was for us, too.
We bid our guests adios and stayed another night to get laundry and re-provisioned. We were joined by Terry and Diane aboard S/V Harmony for an evening of revelry and homemade soup, and then we left the next morning for Caleta San Juanico. The trip there was rather unadventurous with light winds, but we were reminded again how electronic instruments are only one piece of the navigation puzzle. The Navionics and Garmin systems placed Mangles Rock to port of us, but having learned early on to use these navigation systems as good ball-park locators, at best, we remained vigilant. John spotted this submerged reef located well off the coast first, fortunately, and imagine our surprise as we found it to starboard. Paper charts will never be replaced in our opinion, and luckily we had them and were aware to be on the alert! Thank you Shawn and Heather, and word to the wise – have several redundant systems going at all time. Nothing replaces vigilance, too. Harbor John, we have learned to be ever vigilant, indeed!
We met up with Tom and Annie aboard S/V Tapanze in San Juanico. These two early-retired engineers have been cruising for three years now and are full of great advice. We went hiking with them over to La Ramada cove and other surrounding areas. After this particularly strenuous hike, largely due to the blaring sun and hot volcanic rock beneath our feet, we went swimming in La Ramada cove. The cool water provided immediate relief, but soon after the rush of cool water hit our overheated skin, we all began to feel a tingling, stinging sensation. None of us saw them, but we certainly felt the jellies. They may have been some microscopic variety, or the lingering remains of the season influx of the nasty little plague we’ve been experiencing in the area. Regardless, we will certainly have a repeat visit to Caleta San Juanico as it is really quite beautiful.
We then did a 53 mile hop to Bahia Conception. The winds were predicted to be blowing 10-15k southeasterly, but turned out to be more in the 20-25 range for a period. It was wonderful! We finally got to let the engine rest and let Myla fly. We hit some 8k and everything just felt, well, groovy! Then the wind began to get shifty. It went light, shifted to a southwesterly direction, picked back up, went light, and then shifted more northerly. The last shift made for a fine entrance to Bahia Conception, and the other shifts gave us great opportunities to consistently adjust trim. With more motoring and motor-sailing than we’d ever expected here in Mexico, this opportunity to sail in almost every condition was a real blast.
We arrived in Bahia Conception with plenty of time to choose one of the many coves to anchor. We went to Play Santispac and ran into Raine and Don aboard S/V Comet. We first met these California cruisers back in Zihuatenajo and have run into them in several ports along the way. We buddy boated with them from Chamela to La Cruz, and it was a nice reunion to see the one other boat in this cove was our pals. We ended up having a dinner of chips and guacamole with our guitars and singing as entertainment well into the night.
We left the next day after determining the one source of internet was unavailable. The little palapa restaurant that advertised having the service was closed. This forced us to determine what the day of week it was, not just the month. It is Tuesday. Of course, the place was closed…for no other reason than it was Tuesday. We have learned that there is often no rhyme or reason to some things, particularly to us Americanos. T.I.M. (This is Mexico) has become an often repeated statement to explain that which cannot be explained, is unexpected, or not understood. The multitude of variables that necessitates an ever developing level of flexibility is becoming more and more a part of our nature.
We stayed a few days in El Burro, Bahia Coyote, Playa Santa Barbara, and Isla Requision. We returned to Santa Barbara, our new favorite and were joined by Jim and Daniella of M/V Capo Doste. We had a collective dinner together from treasures we caught from the sea and had a great time. We then left to head further north, and they joined us. Proving that power boats and sailboats can get along, we both went about the same speed up towards Isla San Marcos and Sweet Pea Cove. It was alright, but the bees decided to attack. I’m still sporting a nasty reminder on my hind end – don’t ask!
We then headed over to Santa Rosalia. What an interesting little town. It used to be French mining town, so there’s a lot of European styled architecture. It was then owned by a Mexican company, and now a Canadian/Korean venture. Like the many abandoned structures throughout Mexico, this town has a lot on display. Interesting history here, and a visit here wouldn’t be complete without a stop at Turkos chicken restaurant. This is certainly not a tourist town targeting Americans or Canadians. They have a museum with old mining artifacts, but everything is in Spanish. It was still very interesting and we even are beginning to understand more of the language. It is also a common harbor where cruisers converge to then head across the Sea of Cortez to San Carlos where they store their boats for a few months through the hurricane season. We are surrounded by familiar cruisers we’ve seen along the way and look forward to seeing them next season.
We will begin our journey tomorrow back south to La Paz where S/V Myla will have some work done and will stay for a few months. We will take our time and catch up with friends along the way. We are planning a road trip for the hottest months of August and September through California, Oregon, and Washington. We will visit family in California and DC, attend my high school reunion in Long Beach, and otherwise continue our adventures. Adios for now!