Early January and it was time to get back to Demelza and check out the Sea of Cortez. Ted and Deb , Elizabeth`s long lost relative picked us up at the airport and treated us royaly. One of my main considerations in storage for Demelza was to create a favourable impression for Elizabeth on our return. It was working out very well; a nice marina, pickup at airport and a nice part of Mexico. After a lovely time with them including fishing we untied the lines and headed north into 35k of wind as we beat our way to Fraile around the tip and north. Welcome to the Sea of Cortez. Water flew and whales breached all around us. We had to be careful we did not run over them. Beating to windward to Fraile then motoring to Muerotos and La Pas. Beautiful warm and brilliant seas, dolphins, turtles desert coastline. Our first stint in Mexico was full of what we called " Pinch me moments". I can`t believe we are here! La Pas at anchor then Marina de La Pas gave us great access to the Malecon. What a lovely time it was spending time there amongst the beautiful Mexicans; young ,old , singles and families, warm breeze coming off the Sea. Pinch me. We had to get going so provisioning then heading out. Isla Espiritu Santo had always been a dream of mine but always thought it would be by kayak but now here we were on my own sailboat. Los Islotes swimming amongst the sea lions and marine life was and yet another highlight. We found ourselves at anchor at Isla San Francisco thinking "Hey carnival is coming up in La Pas,( third week in Feb) so back we went on a beautiful down wind sail. The week of Carnival was so enjoyable. We found ourselves very lucky to be at the right place at the right time : from Crowning of the Queen, parades,to various concerts at the stage , all free, crowded, and classy. Go to Mexico for the music and culture. Now we are really running late so after provisioning again we headed out again; north.Beautiful panoramas and sunsets of the Sierra de la Giganta from Isla San Francisco, Amortajada for the mangroves and birds, San Evaristo, the beautiful red rock of Los Gatos then on to beautiful Agua Verde. My old friends Steven and Darusha from Scream were there. Nice to catch up. Snorkeling Roca Solitaria with them was a lovely day. Sun and warm, we were lucky and had a warm winter in the Sea. Next stop Loreto. A nice mix of everything that is Baja Mexico. Anchored off the beach the wind would drop as night went on. No: it came up stronger so 3 in the morning found us pulling anchor and making our way to Bahia Ballandra on Isla Carmen. San Juanico ,Sunday Mar 7, what a lovely , lovely spot. Spending a lot of time in anchorages is the sweet plus` of cruising but we had to keep moving. We had to make it to San Carlos on the mainland for boat storage and return home. Next stop on the road north was the tight little anchorage of San Sebastion which we entered just as dark approached. Bahia Conception is a spot we had visited and paddled as a family in 1988 when we drove as far south as La Pas . It was nice to return and approach from the water. Mar 13 2008 was our crossing from Mulege to San Carlos, a passage I will never forget. Starting out on flat seas and warm sun, swell eventually rolled us gunwale to gunwale so we raised main. Darkness fell and the phosphorescence was unbelievable. Bait fish or maybe squid created glowing circles that we motored through, dolphins surrounded us with glowing torpedoes; spectacular. As the moon came up so did the wind to 20k on the beam which took us into San Carlos arriving at 1am moon light. Arrangements at Marina Seca all went like clockwork until we were motoring into the marina for a 10 o'clock date with the cat loader for haulout. While underway I put it in gear and nothing, nodda. Coasting to the fuel dock we had to come up with a plan. Maggie came off the bow and nudged Demelza into the waiting haulout facility. Hauling Demelza down a 4 lane highway with Elizabeth peering down from the cockpit at the passing traffic brought lots of laughs. I love Mexico! We bused north from San Carlos to catch a ride with Elizabeths sister Barbara and Roger in Phoenix. Bus system in Mexico is so efficient and cheap. A 4 day drive north returned us home to snow. Adams dog Bailey was there to greet us, how did he know? Mar 21 2008