Arrived safely in Bahia Santa Maria after a challenging 45 hours…. The world goes by very slowly at an average of 3.8 knots.

We prepared well for rounding Cabo Falso, just above Cabo San Lucas, and we timed it perfectly, getting North of Cabo Falso in moderate seas and 8-10 knots of wind. While expecting winds to increase in the afternoon with the associated wind waves, the predicted West swell was manageable. What made life tough for the next 24 hours was the larger sets that came through every 30 seconds or so that acted like a speed bump, slowing us to 3 knots. Several times the bow dug deep into the wave, bringing a wave of water over the bow and washing the deck as far aft as the dodger. The sails and motor would power us back up only to have the next set repeat the process. We experimented with various angles to the wind and seas to stop the bashing, which took us 30 degrees off the rhumb line, adding time to our passage. In the daytime we could see them coming and at least prepare ourselves. At night, until the moon rose around 3am, we were blind to the oncoming wave train. Sleeping in these conditions was tough, with Rina and I taking 2 hour shifts both day and night. The off watch would sleep on the leeward side of the cockpit, warmed by two seasick puppies. Did we say it was cold? OMG, it has been too long since we had to layer up... Socks? what are those? Yea, we know, welcome back to reality.

The challenge going forward is managing our fuel use given ~500 miles of remaining upwind passage in front of us and the oncoming weather. The cruising grapevine has confirmed that Turtle bay is open but they do not want you to leave your boat to come ashore. Will the fuel guy be willing to come out and top us off? We can’t really take that chance, so we have to manage our fuel as if we need to make it all the way to San Diego. Good news is that fuel usage is right where we expected, at .88/gallons/hour at average 4.3 knots over the entire passage. Using the data from our first leg, we updated the passage plan as follows:

* Depart Bahia Santa Maria Wednesday 1000 for Bahia Tortuga, 225 miles, 52.5 hours, arrive 1700 Friday
* Depart Bahia Tortuga Friday at 1900 Friday, 348 miles, 73.5 hours, arrive San Diego Tuesday 0300
* Weather considerations are forcing a quick departure, with just enough time to transfer fuel from our jerry jugs to the main tank, clean the sea strainer, check the oil and give the puppies a chance to use the astroturf on the deck without it pitching wildly.
* If the weather window does not materialize, or the strong winds come sooner than expected, we may find ourselves in Turtle Bay for a week or longer.

Using the updated data, we should still have 20 gallons to spare before cutting into our 20 gallon reserve, so we are likely ok, and as the hard core among you will remind us, we can always sail!