Puerto del Cabos, sharing our adventure..
07 March 2016
Sharon
We arrived in Puerto Los Cabos, a relatively new and quite beautiful marina near the old Spanish colonial township of San Jose del Cabo, anchoring just 2 days before our Austin guests were due to fly in. After 10 consecutive days (and 3 overnight) of sailing 900 miles down the Baja peninsula, we had arrived at our first long stay destination. However, there was no time for recovery or rest for the weary- we had to thoroughly clean the boat of all the salt and dirt accumulation, make-ready the guest cabins, and re-stock our provisions, the latter requiring a 4-mile trip into town to the "Mega" store for food and drink. Our first attempt into town on our folding bikes - across a nearly mile-long 2- lane narrow bridge without shoulders, filled with flying passenger buses and vans, was our riskiest adventure yet. We managed to load our baskets and handlebars to overflowing, then biked back over the death bridge with our precariously-balanced loads, resembling a Tokyo biker...., though without their skillful balance.
Linda and Ken, both hard-working doctors and friends from Austin, arrived for a 5 day stay with us on Wheytogo, for de-compressing and catching up with our respective lives. We had a delicious lunch of the aforementioned fresh- caught tuna, salad and white wine ready to dine al fresco on the back deck of the boat as soon as they arrived. The following day we took them sailing to Cabo San Lucas, a serene 2.5 hr. sail toward "Land's End, “the southern-most point of the Baja peninsula, where the iconic rock formation, the" arch,” or hole in the rock attracts dozens of tourist boats and visitors daily. After capturing some great pictures of Ken and Linda in front of the "arch," we anchored just off the beach in clear turquoise waters, laden with tourist pangas, jet skis and obscenely ornate yachts, with helicopters on deck. A short distance away, the beaches were lined with tourists in front of a continuous row of beachfront resort hotels, each blaring music from enormous speakers, scantily-clad young women competed in bikini contests. After catching a water taxi to the inner harbor, we had dinner and explored the waterfront stores to purchase fishing licenses, then quickly returned to Wheytogo. Noise from the beach had further intensified, and our sailboat was bouncing in the wake of so many passing boats. We quickly revised our plan to anchor there overnight, and left the "playground of the rich and famous," unanimously agreeing to return to the calm and serene beauty of our marina, where we all retired early, for a blissful quiet night's sleep.
The following AM, Linda and Ken attended mass in the historic old Spanish- built Catholic church in the town square of San Jose del Cabo, taking a taxi at 6am to get there (I offered our riding bikes, but for some reason, they did not seem interested). After church they walked several miles to the "Mega" store for a few more supplies, and wisely took a taxi back. We spent a gorgeous afternoon on the beach near the marina, followed by a dinghy ride in surf, and towing Ken back to Wheytogo on the paddle board -a great photo opportunity! Again we retired early, in glorious fatigue (a much different fatigue than after a long day at the hospital) after a full day of sun, surf, food, wine and laughter.
The next days passed quickly: a fishing trip ~5 miles offshore to the famous Gordo banks yielded no catch, but the photos and videos of pairs of whales flapping their long fins and flying stingrays were priceless. The stroll through the "Old Town" cobblestone streets of the historic old settlement of San Jose del Cabo ( much more interesting than Cabo San Lucas, we all agreed), delightful authentic Mexican breakfast at “Jazmin" restaurant in the downtown art colony of San Jose, an early morning hike up the hill where the huge metal Cross ( colorfully lit each night) stands guard over the marina below, a few more beautiful alfresco meals, and soon it was time for our visitors to return to real-life work demands. We thoroughly enjoyed the long, relaxed care-free visit (not previously possible in our former hectic work relationships) which served to enrich and strengthen our friendships. Another amazing benefit of our new, retired (and deeply spiritual) life on the seas!