Not wishing to be dragging through the mud again outside Marina Fonatur San Blas, we left just before high-tide, around 7 am on Sunday morning (February 16th). We had a 25 nm passage south to Ensenada Chacala and we motored most of the way. Fortunately, Randall was feeling much better so when a light, following wind of 4 -5 knot winds picked-up around noon, we hoisted our new APC sail (asymmetrical spinnaker) and quietly drifted along at a couple of knots for about an hour before having to resort to the engine again.

During the passage, Randall caught a large Pacific crevalle jack. We knew from experience that the large specimens were rather strong-tasting and needed to be eaten with flavorful sauces so Randall and I were ready to throw it back. However, after our five unsuccessful hook-ups on the way back from Isla Isabel, Mike was getting a bit desperate for some fresh fish so we kept it. Shortly afterwards, Randall landed a small sierra mackerel which we knew would be good, so we ate it breaded for lunch and really enjoyed it.

At Ensenada Chacala, we anchored off the sandy beach near a couple of other cruising boats. We tried to check-in with the Port Captain by radio but one of the other cruisers assured us that the office was closed on a Sunday and would not be open until 10 am the next day. The anchorage is well protected from the north but a bit of swell was coming in from the west so Mike and Randall used the dinghy to put out a stern anchor that would keep us facing out to sea regardless of what the wind or currents did. SV Dawn Treader and another couple of boats arrived after us and we enjoyed spending the afternoon watching the tourists and locals having fun on the palm-lined beach, being towed around on "banana" floats, and using the palapa restaurants.

For dinner, I made a curry to mask some of the fishy taste of the jack. However, I mistakenly used some coconut cream in the sauce, not realizing that it was intended for cocktails and was very sweet. In my effort to compensate for this I made the curry rather hot. Although this disguised the fish taste quite well and Mike has often teased me for my preference for milder curries, in the warm climate this curry was pretty powerful and sweat-inducing. My cooking efforts were not aided by the fact that I was coming down with Randall's cold and was starting to feel very tired.

By the next morning, I was definitely feeling under the weather so I declined the opportunity to go ashore. Randall and Mike rowed to the beach, where the landing was not too difficult in the small surf, and they had a brief look around the small seaside town. Although the stern anchor had helped to prevent the boat rolling in the swell, we decided that there was no reason to stay for a second night so we pulled-up the anchors and left just before the Port Captain's Office was due to open.