San Evaristo

The Honcho sailed from Isla San Francisco on Wednesday, May 11^th. We had planned to head directly for the village of San Evaristo on the coast of Baja, but at the last minute decided to detour to Isla Coyote, a tiny island that lies between Isla San Francisco and Isla San Jose, only about 2 miles away.  The wind was blowing out of the northwest about 15-18 knots and the only anchorage at Isla Coyote is an open  roadstead and completely exposed to the prevailing wind and seas.  With unfavorable conditions at Isla Coyote, we bypassed it and proceeded on to Bahia Amortajada, on the southern tip of Isla San Jose, only three or four miles further. Sailing in company with two other boats, Blue Rodeo & Swift Current, we came to anchor on the south side of the sand spit that makes the bay in about 15 feet of water.  We had heard about an interesting lagoon here and quickly jumped into Blue Rodeo’s dinghy and found the entrance to the lagoon, which was only about a foot deep so we lifted the engine and walked the boat through the pass and entered the lagoon.  Once inside the lagoon we motored up the estuary, which was teeming with fish and birds of many varieties.  After an hour or so, we returned to our boats and prepared to cross the Canal de San Jose to the village of San Evaristo.

Looking west from the lagoon on Isla San Jose across the channel toward the mainland of Baja and the Sierra de la Giganta mountains.

Wildlife in the lagoon, Isla San Jose

When we cleared the southern tip of Isla San Jose, the wind piped up to 20-22 knots with steep 4 foot seas. Punching into this, the Honcho could just make about 4 knots, with spray flying.  It was only about 7 miles to San Evaristo so we soldiered on, a bit dampish but enjoying the view of the white flecked sea.   Around 1600 we came to anchor in a snug cove just off the village of San Evaristo, well in the lee of some steep hills.

San Evaristo is typical of many fishing villages that dot the Baja coast, with a small tienda, beer ‘Collectivo’ (where you can buy beer), small water desalinization plant, and a small elementary school. All of which serve the twenty or so families living here as well as the salt farmers and rancheros who live in the surrounding area.  One day we walked over the hill behind the village and came to the salt ponds, a mile or so away. It was a sweaty walk on the dusty road under the blazing sun. On the way we shared the dirt road with wild burros and hardy Mexican cattle. Skittish at first, the burros eventually relaxed enough to pose for a couple of photos. Looking out over the salt pans, I saw a lone worker in the distance raking salt into piles. He looked miserable in the hot sun with his rake and vast piles of salt around him.

Salt ponds at San Evaristo

These burros darted into a thicket when we surprised them coming around a bend in the road. Once we passed by, they came back onto the road, watching us and following about 50 yards behind us.

We saw several of these critters browsing on the steep hillsides near where we anchored.

Cardon Cactus

It seems like cactus grows everywhere in Baja. The Cardon, one of the most noticeable, is a remarkable plant...or tree. It is thought to be the tallest cactus species in the world, reaching more that 60 feet high. Natives of the area use the fruit of the Cardon as a food source. It also is known to contain alkaloids, and is reputed to have psychotropic properties. We didnt try any, as food or drug. These cacti can apparently grow on bare rock because their roots provide a haven for certain bacteria and fungi that can extract nitrogen from the air and chemically break down rock to extract nutrients. Pretty cool stuff.

We spent a couple of days in tranquil San Evaristo, then headed north toward the green waters of a place called Agua Verde (Green Water). Well see.

A calm day in the Sea of Cortez, northwest of Isla San Jose.

The Wedge

The Wedge is a surf break in Newport Beach, California. Its normally a pretty calm and benign place to surf, with ankle high waves, soft breezes and plenty of sun. But when hurricanes blow up out of the Gulf of Tehuantepec and head in a northwesterly direction they send powerful waves north to California. Earlier this year, Hurricane Marie did that and the Wedge came to life with surf up to 20 high, bringing out big-wave surfers and fools.

The Wedge was created when the Newport Harbor jetty was built in 1936.

The unique shape of the big waves at the Wedge is the result of waves reflecting off the rock jetty that forms the entrance to Newport Harbor and combining with the next wave in the set, to form massive peaks. My friend Craig Bothwell, a talented amateur photographer was there when the the surf got big and sent me these photos. For more info or to get higher resolution copies of these shots you can contact him directly at bothwell.craig@gmail.com.

Big wave rider or fool?

Dropping in.

Spin cycle

Looks a bit like the North Shore

Dont try this at home.

Wonder what the gulls thought of this guy. Notice his board on the face of the wave.

Back aboard Finisterra, we left Catalina last Friday and decided to spend a night at anchor in Dana Point on our way to San Diego. We left Dana Point just before dawn the next morning and arrived at Southwestern YC at 1530 Saturday afternoon. We spent the next four days hanging out with friends and doing some last minute provisioning, and buying an inflatable SUP. Early Thursday morning Finisterra departed San Diego, and crossed the line into Mexican waters at 0900. In the early afternoon the wind piped up to about 20 knots as we approached the harbor in Ensenada, where we will stay a few days to check into the country, get phones and enjoy some fish tacos and Pacificos before heading south toward Puerto Vallarta.

Life in La Paz

The Honcho has been berthed at Marina Palmira, just outside of La Paz for the last week. Weve been touring the city, lounging by the pool, shopping for supplies and generally preparing to spend the next five or six weeks cruising among the islands and along the western coast of the Sea of Cortez.

La Paz is an interesting city. The area has been inhabited for thousands of years by indigenous people, but its modern history began in 1535 when Hernan Cortez arrived and tried to found a colony here. That attempt failed, but in 1596 Sebastian Vizcaino set up shop here and established a successful colony along the shores of the beautiful Bahia de La Paz, which he named. From then until the mid-nineteenth century the city grew in importance as a commercial and transportation center.

In 1853 the town was occupied by one William Walker, an American whose ambition was to create a pro-slavery republic, called the Republic of Lower California. That did not sit well with the Mexican government and Walkers republic lasted only about four months. Not one to give up, Walker later set his sights on Nicaragua, which he invaded and actually set himself up as president of the country. His presidency lasted from July of 1856 to May, 1857, when a coalition of Central American governments defeated his forces and he fled to an American naval vessel and returned to the USA.

In 1860, Walker went to central America, this time to Roatan, where he was intent on setting up another independent state. His luck finally ran out when he was taken into custody by the British Royal Navy, which turned him over to the Honduran authorities who promptly put him before a firing squad.

I wouldnt call this city picturesque. It lies mostly on flat land that is reminiscent of the land around Blythe, except of course, for the magnificent bay on its western side. The climate here is also very Blythe-like.

Though it is on the east side of the Baja Peninsula, La Paz faces the Bahia de La Paz  on its west side. The city itself is protected from the bay by a large spit of land called El Mogote. This photo was taken from the International Space Station, courtesy of Wikipedia

Its geographical location is also unique. It lies at the base of a peninsula that juts north from the mainland of Baja California. This location gives it a climate that, while hot in the daytime, is fairly cool in the evenings due to the Coromuel winds that blow in from the Pacific Ocean, which is only about 35 miles away to the southwest.

With a growing population and a relatively high standard of living, La Paz is also the gateway to the Sea of Cortez for many cruising yachts. With its low cost of living, cheap marinas and good access to the US, it also has a large and growing gringo community. Were ready to leave now,  but will wait a couple more days for some strong northerly winds to calm down.

While waiting for the weather window, Ive had time to look at some interesting cruising boats and will post something on the J/130 as a cruising boat in the next day or two.

La Paz to Bahia de Concepcion

Ensenada Grande with mainland Baja in the background.

On Saturday, April 13^th we went grocery shopping at the local Mega, took a long swim in the pool and had dinner at Steinbecks. The next morning we checked out of Costa Baja and headed north to Isla Partida. In the Sea of Cortez the wind generally blows up the sea or down the sea. Today it was blowing down the sea so we motor-sailed directly into a 15 knot headwind and lumpy, choppy seas as we passed up the west side of Isla Espiritu Santo toward our destination of Ensenada Grande on the west side of Isla Partida, arriving in the late afternoon. There were a few other boats in the anchorage, but it’s a big enough bay that we were able to anchor in a fairly secluded spot close to some bluffs on the south side of the bay. The water was clear enough that I could see the anchor send up a cloud of sand as it hit the bottom 22 feet below the surface. This made the snorkeling great, and we saw lots of tropical fish and healthy looking coral. Later we took the dinghy around the southern end of the bay, past Punta Tijeretas and into the tiny cove of Las Cuevitas where there is a blue footed booby rookery. It’s not the nesting season now, but there were still a lot of boobies around. That night I set my alarm to wake up at 0200 so we could watch a total eclipse of the moon. There is something awesome about seeing a lunar eclipse from the deck of a sailboat where there is no light pollution from any nearby civilization.

Sunset is a perfect time for a paddle in Ensenada Grande.

I have no idea how these unusual rocks were formed but they are fascinating to explore.

While there, we hiked up the hills behind the bay and explored the strange rock formations that line the north side of the bay. When we got restless we sailed north again toward the fishing village of San Evaristo on the mainland of Baja.

With a nice breeze out of the southeast, we had a pleasant sail for about twenty miles then about six miles from the anchorage, the wind died and we began to motor. We had been trolling all day without a bite, but about four miles out, the reel lit up and we caught a 20 pound dorado.  This was our first fish of this kind and as soon as we got the anchor down in Evaristo I had the BBQ out and we had a fine meal of grilled dorado, wild rice and a fine bottle of pinot grigio, supplied by my friends at C1. Thanks guys!  We spent a couple of days in Evaristo then departed for Puerto Los Gatos, about thirty miles up the Baja coast.

We caught him just in time for dinner.

A dorados beautiful colors quickly fade when they die. After giving him a couple of shots of rum this fellow relaxed and died peacefully.

It was a beautiful starboard tack reach, with about 12 knots of wind out of the east under a hazy, somewhat overcast sky. I like the overcast because it provides some relief from the sun, which can be brutal here in the Sea. We approached Los Gatos from the southeast and saw a boat anchored in the far northern part of the bay, which is about half a mile wide. We anchored in the southern part of the bay, about as far from the other boat as we could get and were looking forward to a beautiful, quiet evening.  But within an hour three other boats came into the bay and anchored close enough that we could hear them talking as they enjoyed their sundowners.  A couple of them left early the next morning so we were able to explore this beautiful bay pretty much in peace and solitude. Different voyages have different flavors. The last time we were here, three years ago, we were delighted to have lots of friends from other boats around. This time, we have been inclined to seek the solitude of empty bays and quiet nights. 

Our dinghy is a speck on the beach at Los Gatos.

On Saturday, April 19^th we got the anchor up early and headed for Bahia Agua Verde, about 13 miles north. With three knots of wind out of the southeast, there was no point in trying to sail, so we fired up the diesel and a couple hours later we anchored about a hundred yards off the beach in Agua Verde. Since it was the day before Easter Sunday, the beaches in the fairly large bay were crowded with Mexican vacationers here to celebrate the holiday. The next morning we hiked into the country behind the little settlement. Aside from fishing, the locals raise goats, pigs and a few cattle. There is a school and church, along with a couple of small tiendas and a restaurant or two, so Agua Verde, though it has no cell phone or internet service is fairly cosmopolitan compared to most other places in this part of Baja California.

Later in the day we raised the anchor and continued north 22 miles to Puerto Escondido.  We arrived around 1700 and passed through the narrow channel into the lagoon that makes this place an excellent all weather port of refuge. The lagoon is over a mile long and half a mile wide and until recently had over a hundred moorings. Now there are only a few moorings left, and they don’t look well maintained. Ashore, things have declined from the last time we were here. There is still a boatyard with a Travelift and a floating dock and a few boats hauled out here, but the place is pretty desolate. The restaurant has closed down and so has the little tienda. Puerto Escondido should be a thriving community, but apparently there has been a lot of disagreement within the local business community and with the government which has had a bad effect on the village. We had hoped to stock up on fresh food and use the Internet here, but instead we spent one night in the lagoon tied to an iffy looking mooring and left the next morning for the town of Loreto, about 14 miles up the coast.

Puerto Escondido sunrise. Regardless of the business situation in the village, the scenery remains awe inspiring. 

There is a tiny harbor at Loreto but it is for the exclusive use of the local fishermen, so we anchored outside and took the dinghy into town where we had a nice meal at the Hotel La Mision, checked email and wandered around the town a bit before heading back out to the boat. While ashore we visited a unique museum of sorts, with the skeletons of whales and dolphins on display.  Back aboard Finisterra, we spent a peaceful night anchored outside the harbor, then left early the next morning for Caleta San Juanico.   

 The distance from Loreto to San Juanico is about 27 miles and with scant wind, we motorsailed the entire distance, arriving in the early afternoon. There were four or five boats anchored in the north end of the bay and a couple more at the south end, so we chose a nice spot just off the beach in the middle part of the bay, anchoring in about 15 feet of water. With a light breeze coming out of the southeast and crystal clear water, the swimming was delightful. Later we grilled the last of the dorado I caught a week ago for dinner. The next morning we were underway early for the 50 mile passage to Bahia de Concepcion.

Caleta San Juanico is dotted with rocky islets.

 The wind blew out of the northwest, exactly the direction we wanted to go, so we motored toward Punta Concepcion until we were a few miles out. Then the wind shifted to northeast and piped up to about 20 knots and we had a fast sail around the point and about six miles down the bay. Then we furled the sails and picked our way through the pass between Punta Piedrita and tiny Isla Pitihaya, toward Playa Santispac. There were several boats already at anchor there, so we bore away toward the little cove at Posada de Conception where we anchored in about 20 feet of water in the lee of some tall bluffs which offered good protection from the strong northerlies that sometimes blow down the Sea of Cortez. Finisterra was to remain at anchor here for the next nine days. 

Market Day in La Cruz

Every Sunday local growers, artisans, musicians and vendors of all sorts of foods and clothing gather on the malecon in front of the La Cruz fish market to sell their wares. Its a festive and colorful occasion that really brings out the eclectic culture of this pretty little town. In the years since I was last here, the town has grown and prospered. When it started, the open air market was a small affair, but now its a pretty big deal, and people come from miles around to sample and buy fruits and vegetables, breads and exotic sauces, clothing and art. Its a lot of fun to wander among them and enjoy it all.

The bread girl sells delicious baguettes.

Fresh foods abound

Basketry made of pine needles

Dolls are a big deal in Mexico

This dancer looks pensive before the start of her routine....

Her partner looked more confident.

In the La Cruz Vortex

Sunrise from near the center of the Vortex

Weve been here about six weeks now and probably wont escape what I call the La Cruz Vortex until sometime late in the month of March. The problem is that there is so much to do, friends, projects, inland travel and just relaxing, that it is difficult to leave. Here are a few news items:

1. We spent about ten days anchored outside La Cruz, in mostly picture-perfect conditions. Then a few days ago a large Pacific swell rolled in from the northwest and converted the normally peaceful anchorage to a lumpy, bumpy place, and we decided to return to our old slip on gangway 10 in Marina La Cruz. Here are some interesting boats that were anchored near Finisterra.

This steel cruising yacht is named "Go For Broke".  Notice the outboard motor mounted on the transom bracket. 

Look closely and beneath all the stuff on deck you can just make out what looks like a Newport 41

Much has changed in the anchorage since we were here three years ago but this fine vessel has been here the whole time. I guess its having a little trouble escaping the Vortex. I hope thats not the fate that awaits Finisterra.

 This Dencho-built Peterson 43, a former IOR racer, has found new life as a high performance cruiser.

"Pied-a-Mer", a Seawind catamaran, looks shipshape and seaworthy.  

2. For the first time that we know of, a cruising couple was attacked while walking home from a local waterfront cantina late at night. There were no injuries and the would-be robbers didnt get any money. Still, it was a wake-up call for those of us who assume that our little community around the waterfront is perfectly safe. Now, before everyone jumps to conclusions about the dangers of life in Mexico it should be noted that this is the first and only time we know of that anything like this has happened around here, and muggings, robberies and worse are daily events in Orange County. I still feel quite safe here.

3. We learned that cruising yachts need to have a liability insurance policy from a Mexican insurance company in addition to your regular boat insurance. A standard policy from Novamar Insurance runs about $200 USD. Its important to have this insurance because Mexicos laws are based on Napoleonic Law, which means that you are guilty until proven innocent instead of the other way around. If you dont have Mexican liability insurance and your boat damages another boat or causes some other property damage, youre likely to be calling home from a Mexican jail.  I never liked Napoleon anyway.

4. Since were going to be here in Mexico quite a lot this year, we decided to join the Vallarta YC. Its the racing club here in the Bay so well be doing some fun racing, and were looking forward to spending lots of time in the clubs swimming pool this summer, and perhaps in the bar as well.

5. The Banderas Bay Regatta is coming up March 11-15. This is a cruising boat regatta, but the top boats in the event take it quite seriously, with some boats flying in crews from the States. Ill be sailing aboard Snapdragon, a Beneteau 473 for this event.

6. Sirena, the boat that was dismasted finally had the stump removed and is awaiting a new rig from the states. Fortunately SeaTek rigging is based at the La Cruz shipyard so were confident that the new rig and other repairs will be first class and it wont be long before Sirena is back to her cruising ways.

7. After the regatta, we may stick around for Mexorc, which starts around March 23rd, or we may take a road trip to Gudalajara, Morelia and Guanajuato, or maybe both, or neither...

Ensenada de los Muertos to Puerto Balandra

The Honcho arrived at Ensenada de los Muertos in the middle of the night, anchoring well out in the bay. The next morning we moved in closer to the beach and, thrilled with the clear and warm water as well as the lovely view from the cockpit, we quickly donned mask and fins and cruised among the reefs and shoals along the edges of the bay. Later we took the dinghy ashore and explored the pristine beach as far south as the Bahia de los Suenos Hotel. We wandered up to the hotel which is perched on a rise a quarter mile back from the beach. We explored the grounds and bought a beer in the lounge. The place was exquisite, but empty so I asked the bartender if we could take a dip in the pool. He said, "Sure, certainly, go right ahead." So we spent a couple of hours sipping beers and swimming in the pool, vowing that wed come back to this place again.

Dirt road from the beach to the hotel

View from the pool

Overlooking the bar is a vast model railroad with multiple levels and various gauges of track. Very cool.

We spent a couple of days in Ensenada de los Muertos, then headed north toward Puerto Balandra, about 45 miles away. To get there, our course took us north past Punta Arena de la Ventana, where we entered the famous, or notorious, Canal Cerralvo (Cerralvo Channel), leaving Isla Cerralvo to starboard. Sailing on a NNW course we passed Punta Coyote and entered the Canal de San Lorenzo, which passes between Isla Espiritu Santo and the mainland of Baja California. This channel runs in an east-west direction, and opens into the broad Bahia de La Paz. Passing through the channel, the view of the bay was fabulous. We bore off around Punta Tecolote and entered the picturesque bay called Puerto Balandra. We are now in the region where the Coromuel winds blow, so we came to anchor in the lee of the hills in a cove on the southwest side of the bay. Coromuels are winds that blow out of the southwest at night. In this bay they begin around 1900 in the evening, and blow throughout the night and into the morning, averaging 18 to 25 knots. Tucked in fairly close to the land, we experienced plenty of wind, but flat water, so in spite of the wind, nights have been comfortable here.

The water here is crystal clear and reasonably warm, 70 to 72 degrees. Snorkeling around the underwater rock ledges was an awesome experience, with clouds of brightly colored tropical fish all around. Well stay here for a couple of days, then head into the city of La Paz.

Plenty of Excitement in La Cruz

We stayed in Marina Riviera about three weeks, which is a week longer than planned. My first priority was to get all the maintenance and repair items on the boat finished. There was not a lot to do, but here in the land of Manana, simple things can take longer than you expect. For example, I needed a replacement belt for the alternator on the engine, a simple part that should be available anywhere.  But after visiting about a dozen refaccionarias (auto parts stores), it had become more like a treasure hunt. I finally located one with the help of my Bolivian/American buddy Ed, in an Autozone store just outside of Puerto Vallarta. You may be wondering why I didnt bring my own spares with me from the US. Well, I did but it turned out that the belt specified in the engine manual does not fit on my particular engine because the standard alternator was replaced with a high output unit.

Lisa updating her Facebook page in her new Bumfuzzle shirt. For more info go to www.bumfuzzle.com

La Cruz is a gathering point for boats waiting out winter storms before heading north to the Sea of Cortez or the US. Boats heading south to Central America or the South Pacific also gather here. It is a perfect place to reprovision, repair and upgrade your boat before heading out to more remote destinations so its a great meeting place for friends, old and new. Of course winter brings lots of Canadians, some by boat but many by plane. Among them are our good friends Judy and Wolf, who we have met in various Mexican ports in the past. They invited us to join them for the Southside Shuffle in Puerto Vallarta. This is a bi-weekly art walk in the heart of the "Zona Romantica". We wandered through the many shops and galleries, sipping free wine and marveling at the surprisingly (to me) high quality art on display.

Map of the Shuffle

A few days later friends from the States, Tom and Mary Ellen flew into town. Veterans of Mexico cruising themselves, they were ready to party and visit old haunts in town. In the evenings we listened to Latin Jazz at Philos and Sax virtuoso Bryan Savage at Osos or played Mexican Train aboard Finisterra. One day we drove into the town of Bucerias for a horse show. The Mexicans do them with lots of pageantry, LOUD music and Big Sombreros. We wandered around the grounds and watched the pageant that preceded the actual competition. Unfortunately, the event was delayed and we had to leave well before it was over.

Young Girl with proud Poppa. She was one of about a dozen girls in the show. Notice she is wearing a spur on her left boot. This is because she and the rest of the girls in the show rode side-saddle.

The show began with a pageant of sorts, when a dozen or so girls ranging in age from about 6 to 16 rode to the center of the ring and each was called out by name and awarded a big sombrero and a bouquet. Later the men rode out but were not rewarded with any gifts.

Young rider with a brand new sombrero and a bouquet.

Mexican horsemen are called Charros. Notice the young rider on the far left, his hat is almost as big as him. In Mexico, kids learn to ride early in life.

The youngest female riders horse was led by her mom.

Another day we went out for a sail on a friends sailboat and got dismasted. A dismasting is always a lot of work but we had a good, experienced crew and quickly secured the broken mast and rigging and got back into the marina in time for cocktails.

A dismasting is always serious, but this time there were no injuries and quick work by the crew prevented more serious damage to the boat.

A couple of days later we took a cruise out to Islas Tres Marietas aboard Finisterra and were treated to lots of up-close sightings of whales. Before we knew it, another week had flown by and it was time to say goodbye to our friends.

A few weeks ago the autofocus on my trusty Olympus C-740 camera stopped working properly. It would only focus on things it wanted to instead of what I wanted. Im not sure if its fixable, but it was time for a new camera anyway. Ive had the Oly for over ten years and during that time it has traveled over three continents and many thousands of miles with me. Some of the hardest on it were the sea miles, where it occasionally got hit with salt spray or worse. So I ordered a new Olympus Stylus 1 to replace it. The photos you see here were taken with it. As you can see, Im still on the steep part of the learning curve with it.

A double-ender slipped out of La Cruz at sunset

Yesterday we moved to the anchorage outside of La Cruz. Well hang out here a few more days before moving out to Punta de Mita.