July 2016 – Adagio’s Voyage

Days Well Lived – Isla Coronados BCS

Hello from beautiful Isla Coronados just 6 miles north of Loreto.

The past couple of days have been very busy. We left Honeymoon Cove on Isla Danzante and headed over to Puerto Escondido for the day to do some much needed chores. Oh that ugly word (chores) that strikes fear in any young persons’ mind. The fear of the complete drudgery of chores. I remember back in my younger days how my mother had to hound me to do some of the most basic chores like just taking out the trash. It wasn’t difficult and only took a couple of minutes but for some reason I always found ways to put it off which resulted in my mother having to wake me up early on trash day just as we could hear the trash truck approaching. My mother truly was and is a Saint for all she had to go through while my brother and I were growing up.

And now for us, simple things like taking out the trash are much more involved. Everything is more difficult and takes more energy when you live on a boat. I could provide many examples but we all do what is necessary to live the lives we choose.

Perhaps for us, even though the chores are very hard work, we have the benefit of knowing that after their completion there are many amazing and wonderful experiences that await. Also, there is a sense of satisfaction in working until exhaustion when you know what you want. I read an article in (The Atlantic) magazine a while back that basically said you can identify the vocation you truly want, and will ultimately be successful at in life as that which you enjoy the struggle for. That is multiplied when you are fortunate enough to have a partner that is there to enjoy that struggle with you. This then leads to the true answer to the question we often get from many people that ask us how long we plan to continue sailing and living this lifestyle: Until we come to the day when we no longer enjoy the struggle. When that time comes we will move on to the next vocation on the list that meets that basic need.

So to start completing our list of chores, we rented some space at the dock for the day in Puerto Escondido so that we could do our laundry and clean the boat which had become extremely filthy. Also, we needed to fill up on gasoline to run our generator, outboard engine, and dive compressor. It was a lot of hard work but at the end of the day we were clean and ready for another month or two exploring the islands with the exception of food.

To solve the food shortage problem we left Puerto Escondido early in the AM the following day and headed 15 miles North to Loreto. We dropped the hook, launched the dinghy and headed into the marina with our soft sided Yeti cooler and two other tote bags to tote our stuff back to the boat. We headed into town on foot and had to stop at our favorite restaurant Islas which is right on the water. They seriously have the best huevos rancheros we’ve had anywhere in Mexico or the U.S. If you’re ever in Loreto we highly recommend you check it out.

After satisfying our need for huevos rancheros we set out to pick up dive and fishing supplies before heading to the grocery store.

On the way to the grocery with dive and fishing supplies in hand, we stopped at a small roadside tortilleria for some tortillas. When I was asked what we wanted, I told the man that we wanted tortillas de maiz (corn tortillas). He then asked how much we wanted and I told him that we wanted cincuenta (50) tortillas. This produced a puzzled look on the man’s face so I resorted to asking for the same amount as the person before me had ordered. I then realized that they didn’t sell them by the (each) but by the (kilo) instead. There was a stack of packaged tortillas de harina (flour tortillas) so I grabbed one of those also and added that to our order. The total was 28 pesos which is just over one dollar U.S. Tortillas are seriously cheap here in Mexico. The other thing that is quite cheap here in Mexico is beer. In fact, it is cheaper to buy beer than it is to buy water in Mexico. If only we could live on just tortillas and beer. Perhaps if we were younger we would give it a go.

Now that we had checked tortillas off our shopping list we headed to the grocery store where we proceeded to buy way more than we could stuff into the bags we brought so we caught a taxi outside the store for a ride back to the marina and our dinghy.

When we first arrived in the marina with our dinghy there was a group of three young locals ready to help us find just the right spot at the dock for our dinghy. We let them assist and they offered to watch our dinghy for us while we were away (for tips of course). I gave them 20 pesos and said that we would pay more when we returned. As a result, when we got back our dinghy was waiting for us and the young locals along with the cab driver helped us load all our goodies into the dinghy for the ride back to the boat. The cab ride was only 60 pesos and I gave the young locals another 50 pesos.

For the ride back to the boat with all our goodies Neptune was gracious and calmed the wind and the seas for us making the ride back to the boat dry and the transfer from dinghy to boat fairly easy. Once we had loaded and stowed all the groceries the wind picked up again and we were off to Isla Coronados which was nice because it allowed us to sail. However, the combination of the ebbing tide moving South and the wind coming from the opposite direction created some very confused seas and a slow bumpy ride. Then the wind died down making it even slower. So since we don’t like to pull into an anchorage we don’t have any experience with at night, (for safety reasons because it is easier to see shallow reefs and other navigation hazards during daylight) we turned on the engine and began motor sailing.

We arrived just about an hour and a half before dark which gave us time to complete all of the work necessary to prepare the boat for being at anchor, and take a trip to the beach in the dinghy to watch the sunset. The sunsets here in the Sea Of Cortez are amazing with the water and the mountains in the foreground and all of the orange, pink and purple colors in the sky in the background. This coupled with the fact that we were the only boat in the anchorage and the only sound was the lapping of the clear green and blue water on the white sand beneath our feet made for a truly unique, peaceful and beautiful experience. A great end to a long day that started at 6:30am and was non-stop until 6:30pm.

A couple of days well lived.

Peace, Love and Islas huevos rancheros.

Mike.

Puerto Los Gatos & Bahia Agua Verde

Well, we didn’t end up staying at Puerto Los Gatos for very long. Although it is a spectacularly beautiful bay with unusual red rock formations, the rest of our stay was a bit of a bust. There are some extensive reef systems around the bay and we were excited to do some snorkeling. However, we didn’t end up staying in the water but a few minutes because the visibility was so poor. So, we decided to try fishing instead. We went up and down the coast in the dinghy trying to catch a meal. Mike says that fishing takes patience and determination, two things that I seem to lack in the fishing department. I gave up after a couple of hours, but Mike was determined to catch something worthwhile. Unfortunately, all he caught was triggerfish after triggerfish after triggerfish. I think he pulled in over 20 of those little guys. We know the locals eat them, but there really isn’t much meat on them. We just don’t want to kill something that isn’t going to give us a few meals off of it.

And, the last straw with Puerto Los Gatos was the BEES. We had heard that there were bees in the Sea of Cortez, but this was our first encounter with them. They are looking for fresh water. They send out scouts, and if they find water they will bring back all of their friends. So, at first we just saw one or two bees, but pretty soon there were 20 or 30 of them buzzing around the boat trying to get in. We have screens up on all of the opening ports and hatches, but that didn’t stop them from making an effort. If we ran the water in the sink in the head, they all showed up at the port window in the head. I think they must be able to smell it or something. Anyway, we couldn’t exactly sit outside in the cockpit with the bees. They stayed around all day and then disappeared after dark. But, first thing in the morning they were back. We had to shoo them away as we were pulling up the anchor to get out of there. One even flew up my shorts! I’m glad it didn’t sting me, because bee stings make me swell up like a balloon.

We decided to head north up to Bahia Agua Verde. It was a beautiful, calm morning. There was no wind and the water was as smooth as glass. Beautiful, but not ideal for sailing. So, we motored our way up toward the San Marcial Reef, which is a large reef sitting off the coast of Punta San Marcial. To get to Bahia Agua Verde, we had to round the tip of Punta San Marcial without hitting the reef. Because the water is fairly shallow in this area, we used the GPS waypoints in our cruising guide to get us safely between the point and the reef.

When we entered Bahia Agua Verde, there was only one other boat anchored in the bay. There are several anchorages, and we choose the southern most anchorage, which looked beautiful and very protected. It is a small cove, only big enough for a couple of boats. It has a white sandy beach in front and an unusual rock formation called pyramid rock off to one side. Pyramid rock is a large, triangular rock that sits out in the water, surrounded by smaller rocks and a few cactus growing out of it. It looks like something a landscape architect would design rather than something naturally forming.

Bahia Agua Verde is home to a small fishing village. We read that there were a couple of stores on shore, so we dropped the dinghy in the water to go check them out. We didn’t really know where we were going once on shore. We started down a dirt road and were suddenly surrounded by goats. Apparently there is a goat dairy here! Like everywhere else we’ve been in Mexico, the livestock are “free range.” We saw some women sitting on a porch of a small house and asked them where the tienda was. They pointed across the street to another house. It didn’t look like a store, but we headed over there anyway.

As we approached the house, a woman came out and greeted us. She walked to a small building next to her home, about the size of a one car garage, and opened it for us. We had found the tienda! We were able to get some fresh eggs, onions, bananas and milk. (The great thing about buying milk in Mexico is that it comes in boxes that don’t have to be refrigerated.) It only cost us about $10. But, she did not have cerveza, which Mike was looking to replenish. The women told us to go to the “otro tienda.” There was another store in town.

So, we wandered further down a dirt road and had to stop to ask for directions again. We eventually found the otro tienda, which was very similar to the first one, except she had beer! We also picked up some tomatoes, jalapenos, oatmeal and granola. Overall, a pretty good score for a tiny village!

On our way back to the boat we stopped and made friends with the only other sailboat anchored here. Bob invited us aboard his catamaran for a few beers. He has been solo sailing for the last 16 years and had quite a few stories to tell. This was his second boat, as he lost the first one in a hurricane in the Caribbean some years back. We got to visit with Bob some more a couple of days later when he invited us and another boat that showed up over for happy hour.

Yesterday morning we decided to try our hand at snorkeling again, hoping that the water was a bit clearer here. From what we understand, this is an unusual summer for both the visibility and the fishing. The water is still in the high 70’s, which is a lot colder that it should be for this time of year. For whatever reason, that makes the water less clear and the usual great fishing is basically nonexistent. Our fingers are crossed that it improves! Anyway, we had about 15 feet of visibility, so we got in the water anyway. We swam over to the pyramid rock, a couple hundred yards away. Despite the somewhat murky water, there were fish everywhere! We had to free dive down in some places to get a good look between some of the large boulders, but we saw all kinds of fish lurking down there. We were having quite a fun time and doing out best to ignore the jellyfish that were stinging us relentlessly. We couldn’t even see them, but you’d be swimming along and suddenly feel the sharp sting on your arm or leg. Eventually, we had enough of the stinging and swam back to the boat. It took a couple of hours for the stinging to subside and the welts to go down. Next time, I’m wearing my wetsuit!

Some clouds rolled in that afternoon which gave us a bit of a respite from the heat. We decided to check out one of the hikes we had read about in the book. We took the dinghy over to the north side beach and started on the trail up the hill. We scrambled up and over the hill into the valley below and past a small, old cemetery, which was quite in disrepair. The gravestones showed they were from the 1940’s and 50’s, and we wondered how hard it would have been to live here then. We tried following the trail around, but it seems to have washed out in the arroyos, and we couldn’t quite find the right path. We started down one of the arroyos, which kind of dead ended into a forest of palm trees, many of which had been felled, and we had to pick our way through them. We had seen cow droppings along the path, and I suddenly heard a noise behind us. Sure enough, through the palm fronds, we saw a large white cow staring at us. We headed further into the palms trying to find the path, but every once and awhile I would turn around and see the cow, who had now started following us, just stop and stare at us. I was beginning to get a little nervous about the cow. Mike thought I was being ridiculous, but if you read my bicycling post in San Jose, you’ll remember that we were chased by a cow a few months ago. Those suckers are big and I did not want to piss it off! But, eventually, the cow meandered by us and left us alone.

We were told that the trail led to a beach were there were caves you could see ancient petroglyphs (cave paintings). Well, despite our efforts, we could not find the trail that led to the beach. Maybe we’ll try to get more information about it before our next stop here in the future. (Bahia Agua Verde will be on our path back down south after hurricane season.)

Our next stop is going to be Yellowstone Beach on Isla Monserrat. At least we hope that will be our next stop. Bob told us he got swarmed with bees there. So, if the bees are too bad, we’ll be moving on pretty quickly.

~katie

Shamu, Is that You?

We left San Evaristo yesterday afternoon headed to Puerto Los Gatos, about 20 miles north up the Baja coast in the Sea of Cortez. Because we were in the San Jose Channel, between the Baja peninsula and Isla San Jose, a large island, there wasn’t a lot of wind for our sail north. We left in the afternoon and needed to make the anchorage before it got dark, so we were motoring along at about 5 kts.

We had only gone a few miles when I heard us being hailed on the VHF radio. It was our friends on Allora, who we hadn’t seen since they left La Paz in early June. They had traveled north up into the Sea and were now headed back south toward Puerto Vallarta. I picked up the radio and heard Diana say “Look to starboard and wave.” I got the binoculars out and saw a sailboat a few miles away across the channel near the coast of Isla San Jose. Allora had spotted us on the AIS.

For non-boaters… AIS is a system where you can transmit and receive information about other boats nearby. Not every boat has AIS, but all of the commercial boats do. It is especially helpful when sailing at night and you can pick up a boat nearby. It will tell you the boat name, length, speed and direction, so you can tell if you are on a collision course and need to alter course. It is a very helpful tool and something we installed before we left California. So, Allora had seen us pop up on AIS.

I chatted with Diana for a few minutes and wished them well. We were both sorry that we were passing each other and would not be able to get together in an anchorage. We’re hoping that we may catch up with them at the end of the year on the mainland side of Mexico when we will both be traveling south.

I had only signed off the VHF for less than a minute when Diana excitedly hailed us back. “There are killer whales right by the boat!” she exclaimed. Mike and I both got really excited, because we have never seen killer whales while out sailing. We saw Allora suddenly do a 360 and were speeding back up the coast at 9 kts (faster than Adagio can do…). We heard from Allora that the killer whales were chasing a dolphin and they were following, struggling to keep up.

They were a few miles away from us, but we decided we had time, so we altered course and started heading toward Isla San Jose to intercept Allora. After a few minutes we saw Allora basically stop and Marcus came on the radio to say they were pretty sure that the whales caught the dolphin and now they were just playing around their boat. I know it is the circle of life and all, but I’m a bit glad I didn’t see that part. I would have been rooting for the dolphin.

We got closer to Allora and could see the whales just off their stern through the binoculars. As we approached we heard Allora yell “they’re coming right toward you.” Sure enough the killer whales came right toward us. I was racing up to the bow with my GoPro while Mike was at the helm when one breached not ten feet away from us. It was fantastic! They were now heading behind us, so we quickly turned around to follow. We saw the whales ahead of us, when they turned back toward Adagio and came right at us again. Three of them came directly toward the starboard side just below the surface and dove down right before they got to the hull. Mike swears one of them turned to the side and looked up at him just before he went down. Unbelievable.

Both boats tried following them, but they had gone under and we appeared to have lost them. After a few minutes, we said goodbye to Allora and headed north as they turned south. We had gone about a mile when we saw the orcas in front of us again. There was one off our starboard side and two off port. I was at the bow again with the video camera trying to get the perfect shot. The whales started for our boat from both directions. I had my camera trained on the starboard side and caught him diving down under the boat right as Mike yelled “over there!” I whipped my camera around as the two on port breached right next to the boat and dove under. They were seriously close enough to reach out and touch them! We’ve never had any kind of whale play around the boat before, but dolphins do it all the time. These whales reminded me of giant dolphins! They were huge though and absolutely beautiful. I can’t wait to clip together the video. I know it won’t do the experience justice (it never does), but I still want to share it.

Once we got to the tip of San Jose the wind finally picked up. We pulled out the sails and turned off the diesel. We had a beautiful sail to Puerto Los Gatos and got in the anchorage just before the sun dipped down beneath the horizon. We’re excited to go out and explore this beautiful place that is full of reefs and stunning red rock faces. We will probably be here a few days before heading to Bahia Agua Verde.

~katie

The One (or Two) that Got Away

So, Mike told me I had to write this blog post, because apparently fishermen are known for telling “tall tales.” As a witness to our Mike’s fishing experience today, my description will hopefully be unbiased (for whatever that is worth!).

Before I tell you what happened today, I have to give a little background. I do not have much fishing experience. Most of my experience fishing has been reeling in the trolling lines we set out when sailing or trying to learn how to “jig” when we go fishing in the dinghy. Mike, on the other hand, has been fishing for a long time. He would often go out on 3 or 4 day fishing charters out of San Diego, where he would inevitably come back with more fish than my freezer could hold. Whenever he hooks up on a fish, he’ll say “it’s a yellowtail” or “it’s just a skippy (skipjack)”. I’ll look over the side searching the water to see the fish and when I realize it is still down pretty deep, I’ll turn to him and ask, incredulously, “how to do you know?”. He’ll always say “I can just tell.” I’m still amazed when he pulls up the fish he knew it would be.

We pulled into San Evaristo on Friday and anchored in about 15 feet of water. There was just one other sailboat anchored here and several fishing pangas along the shoreline. San Evaristo is a small fishing village with about 20 full time families that live here. The fishing pangas come and go during the day dropping off their catch to be sold in larger markets like La Paz. We walked around the little town the first day and found the only store here that we assume gets some produce in once a week. Unfortunately, when we were arrived at the end of the week, all that was left on the floor were a few boxes of rotting fruits and vegetables. They have some other staples like canned goods, but they look like they had been there for some time. There are a few homes and lean-to huts that dot the shoreline, as well as a small desalination plant where the locals get their fresh water. The large Sierra Gigante mountains create the dramatic backdrop around the bay. It is sparse, unspoiled and beautiful.

Before our fishing adventure, we decided to snorkel around the rocky points in the bay. The numbers of fish and variety were spectacular. We saw lots of angelfish, damselfish, wrasses, triggerfish, and a school of juvenile jacks. The visibility was only 15-20 feet, and we wish it had been better, but it did not ruin the amazing time we had snorkeling. Mike set out to try and find clams which we read we could find down in the sandy bottoms of the harbors. The most popular clams in the Sea are called chocolates (choc-o-la-tays). After diving down quite a few times and digging around in the sand, he came up short. But, he found really large scallops on the rocks about 15 feet down. Because the only scallops we have had came from a restaurant or bought from the fish market, we took one as a test case. We had a book that showed how to clean the scallop, and after somewhat butchering it, we were able to pull the meat out. We cooked it in a little butter and garlic, and it was sweet and delicious. We might have to go back for more!

After the snorkeling adventure, we set out in the dinghy to do some fishing. The snapper that we previously caught was delicious and fed us for a few nights, but we were after some more fish! We started fishing around one of the rocky points leading out of the bay. After a few tries, Mike’s line went “zing!” The reel kept pulling and pulling as I was quickly reeling mine in as fast as possible to get it out of the way. Mike was yelling “look at him run” as we realized that the fish was pulling our 10 foot dinghy out to sea! And, just as quickly as it happened, it ended. The darn thing bit through his line and took the lure with it. We both looked at each other and said “what was that?!”

We continued fishing down the coastline and periodically mentioned the crazy fish that we almost caught, still trying to guess at what could have pulled our dinghy like that. After a couple of hours of only pulling in a couple of triggerfish and needlefish (all of which we let swim on), we decided to start to head back to the boat. As we came up on the rocky point where the monster fish stole our lure in the beginning, we decided to try a little longer before calling it a day. Just as I was starting to say that all of the fish must have gone home, Mike’s reel “zinged” again. We were once again on a wild ride where the fish was pulling the dinghy as it pulled Mike’s line out of the reel. We had recently watched the movie In the Heart of the Sea (the basis for Moby Dick) and I couldn’t help but think of the scene where they harpooned the whale and it was towing their small boat.

I was scrambling to get my GoPro out of my bag to catch the whole thing on video as we were flying along towed by the fish, and then suddenly there was a huge splash on the surface in the direction we were headed. The splash was at least as big as our 10 ft dinghy. Mike and I both screamed “Woah!” at the same time. Mike was standing up at the bow of the dinghy trying to keep the pressure on the beast, as I was at the outboard getting ready to put the boat in gear if this fish decided to try and take us into the rocks. And, just like the last time, suddenly he was gone. Spit the hook. Mike was yelling all kinds of obscenities as I was wide eyed trying to just process what the hell kind of fish was on the end of that line! Whatever it was, we obviously wouldn’t have pulled it into the dinghy. But, I know Mike wanted the satisfaction of reeling it in. And, we both want to know “what the hell was that?!” We don’t have any really good guesses. There are lots of large marlin in the Sea, but they are top feeders and we were jigging on the bottom. Maybe a large grouper? Seems hard to believe. Any good guesses?

Anyway, it was a fun day and left us with a good story to tell. Mike says it was definitely the largest fish he’s ever hooked, and I know he’s pulled in some big ones. We’re going to lovingly refer to the monster as Moby Dick. Seems appropriate.

Our next stop is going to be Puerto Los Gatos. So, we will update you on the next leg of our adventure from there.

~katie

Isla Partida and Isla San Francisco

As you last heard from Mike, we left La Paz and anchored in Ensenada Grande on Isla Partida a week ago. When you leave La Paz and cross the San Lorenzo Channel, the first island you come to is Isla Espiritu Santo, which is part of the National Park System in Mexico. (We got annual park passes while we were in La Paz.) Espiritu Santo has beautiful red rock faces that show the striations that formed due to the movement of the tectonic plates. It is quite beautiful. We decided not to stop at Espiritu Santo because most of the anchorages do not afford protection from the strong summer southerly winds. We intend to go back to the island when we head back south later in the year when the winds shift to the north.

Isla Partida is the next island north of Espiritu Santo and much smaller. We pulled into Ensenada Grande, one of the larger anchorages. Just as the sun was setting, we were treated to a show of mobula rays jumping in the air. They are so fun to watch, and I got some great pictures. After relaxing the next day, we were treated to another show the second night. The water was full of bio luminescence. It looked like fireflies darting around in the water. Mike dropped a line over the rail to trail through the water, which made it look like fireworks were going off. So cool! And, the night was so clear with just a sliver of a moon that we could even see the Milky Way. It was pretty special to sit out on the deck at night and experience all the beauty in the dark.

The next day we dropped the paddle boards in the water to go exploring. Ensenada Grande has three lobes or fingers of the entrance to the anchorage, and we paddled around them all to check out the beaches and see what other sea life we could find. Because it is so close to La Paz, and because it was the weekend, the anchorage and beaches were pretty crowded with local people renting boats to come enjoy the water. We were also a bit disappointed in the visibility, as the water is pretty green. Apparently there is an algae bloom happening that generally occurs when the water starts to get warmer. We were told that it is really late in the season for this to happen, but that the visibility should start to get better later in the summer and as we head north into the sea. So, we didn’t really do any snorkeling or diving here.

On our way paddling back to the boat, we saw some other folks returning to their sailboat in their dinghy. We paddled over to say hello and introduce ourselves. Cruisers are pretty friendly people and always interested to hear the stories of other cruisers! We met a really nice couple who have been cruising around the world for the last 13 years! Impressive. They had two friends on board who were guests for a couple of weeks. They were curious about our paddle boards, and we let them try them out and they then invited us aboard to hang out.

We decided the next day to head further north to another island called Isla San Francisco. But, first we stopped at some rock out croppings called Los Islotes off the northern tip of Isla Partida. Los Islotes is home to a sea lion rookery. You could see and hear the sea lions barking up a storm, and I got lots of pictures of the babies on the island. Meanwhile, Mike wanted to see if there was any good fishing off the islands. He caught a skipjack and a bonito, which lived to swim another day because those fish are not on our dinner menu.

After Los Islotes, we headed for Isla San Francisco, about 20 miles away. The water was unfortunately dead calm, and we had to motor. We did see a couple of large sea turtles and a pod of pilot whales! When we got to Isla San Francisco, we decided to anchor in the smaller anchorage on the east side, as it looked more protected from the southerly winds that usually come up at night. However, we did not anticipate a large easterly swell that came through in the middle of the night, making it a very rolly and uncomfortable night. After anchoring, we put on some fins and swam to shore. The shore was pretty rocky, with a lot of small red rocks rather than powdery sand. Supposedly, there are a lot of agates on the beach that you can collect. We looked around for a while, but we didn’t really know what we were looking for.

We decided to hike over the dunes and the salt flats to the other side of the island that has a southwesterly facing anchorage. We spotted our neighbors from Ensenada Grande as well as another boat we met back in May when we were in Bahia Los Frailes. Despite the anchorage being open to the south, it looked calmer than our anchorage, so the next morning, we picked up the anchor and moved to the other side of the island. We spent the day pretty much relaxing inside the boat as we were both on sun overload! Even with lots of sunscreen, hats, long sleeve shirts, etc., it is easy to over do it and need a day out of the strong sun here.

One of the boats invited us to a bonfire on shore that evening. Their three kids had worked hard collecting what little wood there is on this desert island and got a pretty decent fire going on the beach. They invited all the boats anchored in the bay, and about 20 people showed up. Several of the boats had kids & teenagers aboard, and they all seemed to get along. One of them even played the ukulele for us. It was really fun talking to everyone of various nationalities. We always seem to find a lot in common with other boaters! The wind kicked up pretty good while we were all hanging at the bonfire, and all of the dinghies had a bit of a challenge getting off the steep beach and through the surf. Even though it was probably 1 am by the time we got back to the boat, we all agreed it was a great time.

We decided to try and do some fishing the next day, but we got a bit of a late start since we were up so late the night before. We put the dinghy in the water and headed out around the island. We caught several triggerfish, which are really beautiful fish. They are a roundish fish with beaks like a parrotfish. They have a lot of blue shimmery color on them. We heard that the locals eat them, but they really aren’t that big. We just weren’t sure if we wanted to go to the trouble of filleting these little fish, so they got to swim on. But, the highlight of the fishing trip was a show that a marlin put on right in front of our dinghy launching himself up in the air about 10 times. I had never seen anything like it! Awesome!

After we got back from fishing, we got an invite to a pot luck on another boat. A fishing boat had given them a bunch of marlin, and they offered to share it with us and another boat. We had a delicious meal, drank some wine, told some stories, and had another late night. But, it is all good!

We weren’t quite satisfied with our fishing expedition yesterday, so this morning we got up early (well, earlier) and decided to go a bit further out to and island called Isla Coyote on the northern end of Isla San Francisco, which has some rocks surrounding it that we thought looked good for fishing. Mike reeled in a huge snapper! We deduced from our fish cheat sheet that it was a greenbar snapper. We’re estimating it was about 20 lbs. That was enough for our freezer, so we headed back to the boat. After Mike finished cleaning the fish we shared some with our neighbor. I am really looking forward to some snapper fish tacos for dinner tonight!

We’re in the process of making a plan for our next destination, so we will keep you all posted.

~Katie

Update from Ensenada Grande

We have finally left La Paz and are now anchored in a gorgeous spot called Ensenada Grande. The water is flat calm, the boat is anchored in about 20 feet of water and we are surrounded by beautiful red rock rising out of the sea. The water is about 77 degrees which is perfect for cooling off in the heat of the day.

We have spent one full day here and we spent it by first sleeping in mainly because we were tired. The night before was a bit restless because we had a power boat come in late at night and anchor uncomfortably close to us especially when the wind picked up at around midnight. We have an Ipad application called Anchor Watch that sounds an alarm when the GPS location of our boat moves out of an identified boundary. Well the alarm went off at about 1 am indicating that the wind had shifted causing our anchor to drag a bit and then re-set itself. As a result we were now only about 100 feet away from this power boat and the wind was still blowing around 17 to 20 knots. The anchor was holding so I re-set the boundary for 50 feet and then went back to bed but didn’t sleep much. Not much fun but all part of the adventure. In the end the anchor held and we enjoyed a great day in this beautiful spot.

After getting a late start because of sleeping in we decide to just spend most of the day lounging in the cockpit reading and relaxing. I did a little bit of work cleaning the water line and the propeller and a few barnacles that had attached themselves to the hull.

It was so nice to spend a day relaxing after all of the work that we did for the past six weeks in La Paz upgrading the boat. Here is a list of the things we accomplished while we were there.

–Installed the new water maker
–Installed a 37 gallon fuel bladder that will allow us to carry more diesel fuel and extend our motoring range without having to store jugs of fuel on the deck of the boat.
–Made new screens for the opening ports and companionway to keep the bugs out and allow the breeze to blow through.
–Installed dinghy wheels that will make it easier to haul the dinghy up the beach when exploring new beaches.
–Re-plumbed the electric and manual bilge pumps and added a secondary backup electric bilge pump.
–Added new custom swim ladder. We paid someone to do this one for us and it turned out great.
–Fixed the SSB radio that I reported earlier had smoke coming out of it when I turned it on. Turns out the remote power switch was the
culprit so the technician just bypassed it. Now it turns on immediately when we turn on the switch at the electrical panel.
–Waxed the hull above the water line.
–Applied a fresh coat of water sealant to all of our external teak.
–Installed a new bilge alarm
–Installed new cabin fans in our cabin and the forward cabin.
–Fixed the boom vang mount that broke on our way down to Cabo from Newport Beach.
–Fixed the roller furling for our yankee jib by drilling and tapping some new holes and adding new screws.
–Added new shelves in one of our hanging lockers and the battery compartment.

So as you can tell we were very busy in La Paz much like we were in San Jose.

Working every day on boat projects is definitely not what we came here for. However, there are some pluses to time spent on boat projects. Self sufficiency
o There is for me a great deal of satisfaction and peace of mind that comes with the work it takes to know your ship and all its systems
Learning opportunities
o There is always something new to learn. This then gives you the ability to help someone else later on and pass on your knowledge.
Attitude check
o The work isn’t always fun when you’re in the middle of it. There is a saying that is actually on the back of my t-shirt as I
sit here writing this (“Attitude” the difference between an Ordeal and an Adventure).

When I look at the above list of projects, it seems like we should have been able to get these things done in just a couple of weeks. I am reminded though that some of the time was spent waiting for parts to arrive and finding a custom stainless steel fabricator that could make some of the parts we needed. I should also say that we did have lots of help finding what we needed from a couple (Tom and Jeanne Brown) that run La Paz Cruisers Supply (http://www.bigleftturn.com/lapazcruiserssupply) right here in Marina Palmira. If you are a cruiser stopping in La Paz they can direct you to anything cruising related that you might need. Without their help we would have probably spent even more time trying to accomplish these projects.

Now I am very happy to say that all of the major projects are done and we are ready for some serious exploring.

La Paz wasn’t all work. We met some cool new people on the docks and we enjoyed some wonderful meals and drinks with them either on our boat or on theirs. Sometimes we had to pay the price for that fun the next day resulting from a bit too much wine or rum the night before. But it sure was fun. One couple performed for us by playing the accordion and singing. Good times.

Tom and Jeanne Brown were nice enough to share their experiences with us of the cruising areas we were planning to see as we travel north into the Sea Of Cortez. It helped us to decide on some places we definitely wanted to see and also about how long it would take to see them.

Now that I’m not so focused on working on boat projects every day I hope to be updating the blog more regularly to keep everyone more informed on the details of our adventure.

Time for another margarita.

As they say in Mexico “Vaya con dios”.

Mike

Minimalism on a Boat

I was reading a blog about living a more minimalist life and realized that a lot of the writer’s ideas about minimalism overlapped with our goals in taking this journey on our sailboat. That got me to thinking about putting down in writing what some the goals were and what I have learned so far. Traveling and seeing the world by boat might sound like it would be the sole reason for doing this, but we actually came up with quite a few other things that we think will make this adventure, and our lives, more meaningful. So, here goes…

Getting rid of all our “stuff.”

Do you know how much “stuff” you have? Downsizing from a house to a 41 foot boat will be a wake up call for how much “stuff” you have that you really don’t need. Mike had already decluttered his stuff years ago when he moved onto Adagio. He literally moved into my house several years later with just one bag of clothes.

But, I’m the one who had to seriously purge my stuff last fall. It was a fascinating exercise in having to decide exactly what was necessary or important to me. I actually found boxes in my garage that hadn’t been opened since I moved into the house seven years earlier. I found files with old bank statements from the 90’s. WTF? Why was I holding onto that junk? There were other things that I know I had thought were important at one time, but when you really think about it, do you NEED it?

I think getting rid of my stuff has been one of the most freeing things I have ever done. And the thing is, there is nothing that I miss! I don’t have any regrets of selling or donating any of the items I got rid of. Even if you don’t get rid of all of your belongings like we did, the next time you are out shopping ask yourself if it is really something you need before you buy it. I wish I had done more of that when we were land based. The consumerism mentality in our country just wants you to SPEND. But, think about what else you could do with that money – send your kids to college, go on an exciting adventure, donate to a worthwhile charity… You get the picture. You really don’t need all that STUFF!

Be less busy and more purposeful

How busy are you, really? Between working full time jobs, hobbies, social commitments, etc. (and those of you with kids have even more commitments), how busy is your life? I think we all get over scheduled. It is so easy to do! Do you ever have that feeling that time is flying by? That would always happen to me. I swear every year at Christmas I would think, how is it Christmas again already?? I think when we are too busy, sometimes the world just flies by us.

When you live on a boat and are out at sea, things just slow down. You can’t be in a hurry. And, you can’t do things on a whim. Little tasks take much longer to do. Getting anywhere takes much longer when you only go 5-6 knots. Even when we are in port (with no car), things take longer. A trip to the grocery store on the bikes can take a couple of hours.

But, the upside in everything being slower is that we really have to think about what we need or want to do. We don’t just go on autopilot; we have to be purposeful in choosing what to do each day. As a consequence of that, I think we get more out the experience, whether it is a menial chore like grocery shopping or something fun like diving. And, you know what, things are not flying by! We left California almost four months ago, but that seems like it was a year ago!

Experience nature and be environmentally conscious

If you live in a city and spend most of your day inside an air conditioned building with artificial lights, you are really missing out on nature. I think it is easy to also roll your eyes at news reports on climate change or pollution or damage to some ecosystem when you never get out and see it. If it doesn’t directly impact your life, why should you care?

Ok, I know a lot of you do care, and so do we! We live on a big planet, and most of that planet is ocean. We wanted to get out and see it all. There are so many beautiful places that are still raw and untouched by humans, and many that you can only get to by boat. We’re just starting this journey, but hopefully we’ll get to see much more than we ever imagined. We’re also having to learn a lot about weather systems, the wind, the ocean, tides, currents, etc. It is actually really fascinating.

One of our goals is to be as self-sufficient as possible. That is the best part of a sailboat – it is powered by wind! We also have solar panels and a wind generator on board to power our electrical equipment. Of course, we do have a diesel engine in the boat, but we’re trying to use it only when necessary. That means that sometimes when the wind dies down, we’ll just bop around not going anywhere until the wind picks back up again (see above re not being in a hurry). We’re trying to use as much renewable energy as possible rather than rely on fossil fuels.

We’re also having to learn to really conserve water. We carry 80-100 gallons of water on board. Do you know how much water you use? I don’t think I paid that much attention to water usage on land. But you know what, you can really conserve water if you want to. Mike and I have estimated that together we can get down to four gallons of fresh water a day. Of course, that means washing a lot of things (including ourselves) in salt water. (I’ll let Mike post later about our water maker…)

Be healthy

We tried to eat healthy and work out regularly before we left. But, one of our goals was to have a really healthy lifestyle on the boat. We occasionally eat out to experience the local cuisine, but most of the time we cook on board. When you are busy (see above) it is sometimes difficult to always prepare a healthy meal at home, but we have more time to think about that now. We don’t eat processed foods and try not to eat anything artificial. We also stay away from a lot of unnecessary starches and breads. Fresh home cooked food really is the best!

We are also a lot more active on the boat. Even if you go to the gym an hour a day, most people spend 8-10 hours sitting at a desk and are very sedentary. Pretty much everything we do now has some activity, even if it is just walking or biking into town. Sailing, swimming, hiking, diving, paddle boarding, biking, boat projects, cleaning the boat, etc. have added much more activity to our daily routine. I think overall this lifestyle is healthier than the one we had back at home.

Minimizing screen time

How many hours a day do you watch TV or play on the internet? It was funny to me how many people asked me if we would have cable TV when I moved onto the boat (uh, no.) We do actually have a TV that we can use to play movies, and we do occasionally but not that often.

I can remember watching TV my entire life. (I was a big Scooby Doo fan as a kid.) It was really exciting when we first got cable TV and all of the sudden had more than four or five channels to watch. But you know what, I don’t miss it. AT ALL. Why the heck I ever spent hours watching TV instead of getting outdoors or even reading a book is really beyond me.

Right now, in La Paz, is the most internet that we have had since we left California. (I’m on the internet right now in the Cruiser’s Lounge while I’m waiting for my laundry to be done.) But, I’m ready to be free of the internet again.

It is great to stay in touch with friends and family and keep up with what is going on in the world, but it will suck you in! We read a blog recently that talked about getting the “clicks.” You know what I mean…when you start to click on things on the internet with no real purpose and then you realize a couple of hours just went by. Yeah, we’re trying not to do that. I admit that it is a bit of a challenge.

We were biking back to the marina last night around 9:00 pm, and I commented to Mike that I was surprised at all of the people out. The malecon was full of people out for a jog, riding a bike, or just strolling along the waterfront. Young people, old people, families with kids, it seemed like the whole town was out on a Monday evening. It just seemed so different, and Mike commented that it was different from back home because they all weren’t at home watching TV.

Learn something

This journey is about learning. We want to experience different countries and cultures, read some good books, learn a new language, meet new people that come from different backgrounds, learn about nature, perfect our sailing skills, and ultimately come back enriched by the whole experience.

Share our experience with others

That is the purpose of this blog! We know not everyone can (or wants to) do what we are doing. But, we hope to share our experiences with everyone else. We don’t just want it to be a travel blog, but a blog of our experiences, thoughts and feelings along the way. I’m still trying to figure out what to include on the blog, so I would love feedback from everyone who reads this (all three of you??). Let us know what you would like to see on the blog.

We also want to share this experience by inviting friends to join us for a leg or two of our journey. So, give us a shout if that is something you are interested in.

We’re leaving La Paz today and will be out of WiFi range for a while, but we hope to have lots of pictures and video to share with you of our exploration of the islands when we get back into WiFi range.

~katie

Video: Diving Cabo Pulmo

So… I finally found fast enough WiFi to upload this video! It only took 2.5 hours to upload! This is my first underwater video, so hopefully they will get better. After we took this I got some dive filters for my GoPro. That should improve the color for future videos. We’ve been told that as the water starts to warm up in the Sea this summer, we will have even better visibility. Anyway, here is the video from our Cabo Pulmo dive in May. I hope you enjoy!