Heading South from Canada

had to go up the mast to try to trouble shoot the wind instrument. No luck so guess gotta go back up and retrieve it and take it back to Canada. The view was spectacular of course!

When you are planning your "adventure" on the sea I think time almost gets forgotten. There are "deadlines" of course and you rush toward them knowing that the weather windows of fall will get fewer and shorter as time moves on. You are busy planning, provisioning, installing, repairing and finding crew and on and on. The lines are cast and off you go finally transferring from "dreamer" to "doer" as Bluewater Cruising Members will recognize. There are the long nights standing watch and adapting to live under constant and often unpleasant motion. Many cruisers, especially those who cruise from Canada to Mexico will leave the boat in Mexico for the summer and return to Canada. There are many reasons for this, weather concerns and visas being but two of them. Six months sounds like a long time when you are leaving Canada and heading down the coast. Time does however have a way of passing as days turn to weeks and months pass by, and there you are realizing it is almost time to head north. What maybe you do not think about too much until this time draws near is that your boat is also your home, indeed for some of us our only home now. You have spent "winter" away from the cold, the ice and the snow. You have happily accepted that this winter you are not anxious for spring to come, reality for you being that winter here is like summer for you, with the only exception being that the darkness of night is longer here. You are enjoying the constant adventure and newness to your surroundings as you venture about the places you visit. You are not at all feeling any rush for winter to end, in fact you are maybe wondering how it came to be that you will return to summer in Canada and wait with anticipation for summer to end so you can return to the adventure.

It is easy to anchor in one bay for two weeks, stay at a marina for longer but at some point the inevitable must be faced. I doubt that most people are comfortable with the concept of leaving their boats in a place where heat and wind can be very destructive for months. There are contradicting experiences and opinions as to which areas, which marinas you should trust to leave your boat in. We have been told by locals and transients here that we would not enjoy the extreme heat and humidity that comes in the summers here. That along with the potential for storms and hurricanes makes the concept of crusing the waters here in summer very unappealing. It will be interesting to see how it feels when what we consider summer weather continues. I would not say I actually hate snow, but I can honestly say I have not missed it.

To everyone who takes the time to read and comment on my blogs I apologize for not responding to the comments. Internet is limited and facebook is a much easier way to post pictures and comments on them.

I guess everyone has their own stories of the things that "touch them" as they are cruising. We spent four weeks in La Paz, really only intending to spend a week but somehow the weather, the things you have to get done at dock and just the ease of getting used to a place stretched the time out. The staff at the marina were so friendly and helpful. It felt good to be there. We met a lot of fellow travelers and more importantly maybe some of the locals. The language barrier is huge for us, our command of the language is coming very slowly. But the effort made by the people who do not speak much if any English is touching. Trying to find a part to finish off installing the new safety propane items we had brought from Canada meant drawing pictures and gesturing. We found one part by having the fellow in a store come outside while we pointed to the picture of the part in his window and somehow he knew what we meant by 1/4" and we got the part.

Last week we needed some dowel and not having found it in town took the bus to Home Depot. Getting there was easy, but coming back not so much. There are not many actual bus stops and standing in the parking lot outside Home Depot there was nothing. No one we approached spoke enough English to help us. We stopped a woman on the street, she had enough understanding to know what we needed but did not have the answer. She gestured for us to accompany her and said the word Honda. Easy to figure she thought we should come with her to the Honda dealership nearby. So after no one in the dealership could tell us where to board the bus, she and one of the Honda staff somehow made us understand that she would drive us back to the Marina we had pointed to on the map I had in my pack. Wow, she did just that. Drove us right to the gate. The three of us managed some conversation with words we all understood and when she dropped us off she smiled the most lovely smile as we thanked here over and over. It is nice when kindness is able to bridge the verbal communication shortcomings. I had until now forgotten the waiter in a restaurant in Cabo San Lucas who told us about his family and asked for the pins we had of Canadian Flags. We happily gave them to him, flattered that he wanted them.

We left La Paz two days ago, are now anchored waiting for the wind to subside. Islas Espirit Santos, Partida Cove. It is an interesting place, so different with its rather barren landscape strewn with cacti, so much in contrast to what we are used to having lived in British Columbia, the lushness of the landscape both in the interior and on the coast. I had my first swim of the trip yesterday and we spotted a sea turtle not far away. Until now I had only been in the water to enter or exit the dighy, not always with grace so yes I had been soaked prior to this. We have not made it to shore here yet but the shallow water with its azure colour definitely is calling. The beaches look nice, not too sure about climbing about the hillside as it looks a bit less friendly. I am eyeballing the stretch of beach that joins the two islands, must go there.

People ask us our "plans" and we honestly say that other than meeting my sister in La Paz and doing some exploring of the area again and then crossing to Mazatlan we have no plans. Do we head back to Canada when our visas run out and then come back after the summer or do we travel further south and then turn west and head out further? The best way back to BC is via the South Pacific, decisions, decisions. Until then we will enjoy meeting new people and realizing over and over the difference between a grin and a smile. So far I think the Mexicans smile often right from their hearts.

This bird came along as we were heading to Los Meurtos. He landed on the bow and then left, came back with a couple of friends and they circled us for awhile. Then he, she or one of the friends landed on the bow and stayed for about 2 1/2 hours. It was a rough ride and yet it never left even with the million candlepower light on it as I tried to see what was ahead in the dark. I went forward and was within a foot of it. Still it remained until I was actually dropping the anchor in the dark. It was a very moving thing for me, like a spirit helping me. It had been a very long and tiring day. I doubt I will forget how this eased anchoring in the dark in a strange place.

some of the trees are sooooo cool

Wow, I never thought to use these for a tree decoration