January 8

Imagine being in a deep sleep, when all of a sudden at 2 am you force yourself out of bed, splash water in your face, throw on a t-shirt and shorts, start the engine to your sailboat and take off...all the while keeping a semi-sleep state of mind. That's pretty much what we did yesterday morning to get an early start for turning the corner south at Cabo Corrientes (Cape Currents)!

Considered to be the "Pt Conception" of Mexico, Cabo Corrientes is a point of land that juts out into the Pacific Ocean, causing confused seas and strong currents. Add opposing strong winds to the mix, and you've got gnarly seas to deal with. Timing the rounding of any significant cape is crucial; I guess that's why they are given daunting names like Cape Fear and Cape Caution and Cape Disappointment. Weather conditions at the Cape are a daily topic on cruisers' Nets and makes for conversation exchange between skippers, sharing up to date information and strategies.

Our strategy turned out to be a fairly good one. The currents were strong and seas were confused, but the wind was light (almost too light), making for a slow, rolly ride at daybreak when we rounded Cabo Corrientes to head south along Costalegre (Happy Coast). This bit of coastline is also called The Gold Coast.

Costalegre is a beautiful, tranquil coastline, lined with white long stretches of beach. A few dolphin, a sea turtle, and some brown boobies came to check us out along our way. We caught a fish, what looked like a small Dorado; but it got away as we tried to reel it in. I guess it decided not to join us for dinner...smart little fish!

Leaving at 2 am brought us into our next anchorage at 6 pm in time for a nice sunset off Punta Perula. We are now anchored off Bahia Chemala and plan to visit the little village of Perula and, if weather allows, explore and snorkel around the islands in the bay. There's a southerly wind and possible rain expected tomorrow, which might make for a leeshore. We may need to get out of here if it gets too rough. All depends on what the seas say!

January 9

Dolphins were playing around Pinocchio this morning. We noticed the anchor line being pulled, so we went up to the bow to check it out. The crystal clear torquoise water allowed us to see that the dolphins were playing with our anchor line and rubbing their backs on it. I guess you gotta do what you need to do, when you have an itchy back!

As I compose this, the southerlies are building, blowing about 18 knots, and swells are increasing making for a rocking horse ride on Pinocchio at anchor. David just let out more line. No water over the bow yet!.....