We’ve made it to Loreto (Puerto
Escondido), after a wonderful trip with our friend Jon, from Seattle. We
couldn’t have asked for more out of a third crewmember: sailor, cook, fisherman,
swimmer and bee-killer extraordinaire (we had several days with quite a few
bees.) He’s flying back to Seattle from Loreto and we are moving up the coast
and across to Guaymas. Be sure to check out the “Galley Time” page for some fun
stories and new cooking adventures from our last two weeks. The following blog
post I wrote along the way (sequentially), reading more like my journal. Enjoy.
-G
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| Jon and Clif sitting on the high side. |
February 21st, 2014
Ensenada Grande, Isla Partida
I can’t express
how good it feels to been moving again. We are sailing, making ground and ready
to embark in new cruising grounds. When we arrived to La Paz in December, I was
desperate to stop moving. We had been pushing hard down the coast and the
thought of being able to sail without needing to conquer 40 miles a day (or
even 100 miles in a 24-hour day) gave me such ease. However, Clif and I have
both been ready to leave La Paz and start moving towards a new destination.
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| Nothing beats brushing your teeth on the bow. |
Cruising with a
destination in mind, rather than returning to the same port, is such a
gratifying experience. You cover new miles, see new towns, and have the feeling
of accomplishing a goal. True nomads: not just bumming around in a city with a
large population of old, retired Americans that haven’t moved their boat in
years (No offense to La Paz… we did love your taco stands, bakeries, markets
and conveniently cheap buses around Baja Sur.)
We have had the most perfect two days of sailing and anchoring on Isla Espiritu Santo and Isla Partida: great wind, full sails, and clear skies. The anchorages have been pleasantly calmer than our last visit to the islands. It’s amazing what a good night sleep (in a quiet anchorage) can do to my attitude and outlook on the day. Our boat has shown signs of not been sailed in a month. The salt and sun can negatively affect the lines and sails quickly when the boat is just sitting around at anchor or in a slip. Like our new crew member/guest, Jon, said yesterday, “These boats are meant to be used… and used hard!” Sailboats don’t take well to sitting around. But other than a few stiff lines and a hull in need of cleaning, Sound Discovery is looking pretty good and just as happy as us to be out on the water again. I feel almost guilty that we will have to store her away in a month, out of her natural habitat, drying in the hot sun for the summer. We will do our best to stow the boat in the best possible way to withstand the heat and the dryness.
It’s been fun to
have a new friend, Jon (from Seattle) on board. Jon joined us last minute in La
Paz, and we were thrilled to bring him aboard. All things are new, and we get a
new appreciation for the joys that we have become used to in boat life: such as
starry night skies, warm breezes at night, beautiful sunsets and sunrises, and
a fun dinghy to sail to shore. We are so lucky to have this time to ourselves;
time for Clif and I to just stand on a beach and recognize how happy we are in
our lives and in our future ahead. I can’t imagine being with anyone else, and
I’m happy we get to build up a little home on this boat. Hopefully, someday we
can add a home of our own on land as well (something a little more stable… and
immobile). We’ve been having light-hearted chats about where we can own chickens,
goats, and a puppy. It’s amazing how “soil-based” your dreams become when you
are out on the water. I often dream about hiking through tall spruce trees,
smelling the mud and skunk cabbage of Juneau trails. I’m looking forward to
indulging in that this spring!
For now, I need
to remember to enjoy this incredible place we are exploring, soak up all the
sea salt spray and sunshine possible, and really be thankful for my life on the
boat. I am so much more aware of how fun and fantastical this journey is, once
we are out on the water, anchoring every night. Feels good to be back!
February 24th, 2014
San Evaristo-- A
full bottle of SPF 50 Coppertone and one fresh Dorado later…
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| Giselle twirling with seal pups, Photo courtesy of Jon Hayes |
The sun has been
hot every day as we’ve been pushing our way north. Somehow, we scored on some
southern wind that pushed us lightly away from Isla Partida into new waters. Of
course, we had to stop at Los Islotes one more time to play with the sea lion
pups! Jon snagged a couple good shots of me imitating their acrobatic spirals
underwater (the one shown above was my favorite of the bunch). We used the
mooring buoys on the north side of the islets to avoid some southerly wind
chop, but chose to keep one person on board at all times to monitor the boat
while the others swam.
Isla San
Francisco was our next stop, affectionately known as “The Hook” by local
cruisers. The water was pristine when we arrived, so much so that we could
watch fish swim under and around our boat, spotting their color and size. With
the water so inviting, we all jumped in immediately once anchored. Our friends
on S/V Pelagia joined us for margaritas in the cockpit after our swim. Hard to
beat such a day: sea lions, sailing downwind, swimming/bathing and margaritas?!
Jonathan is hooked.
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| Isla San Francisco, "The Hook" |
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| Steve and his dorado-- just about to bring it into the boat! |
Steve ran a line
through the gills of the fish and strung it onto one of our stern stanchions.
We passed him a couple cold beers, still in awe of his fine fisherman work in
his little zodiac. I took a picture of Jon and Clif enjoying some fishing tips
from Steve, both faces looking like young kids, so giddy and excited about
enjoying such a fine fish. Their excitement just grew and grew as they filleted
the fish and chose how to prepare it for dinner.
After sailing
into San Evaristo, a small pueblo 9 miles farther north, we grilled some of the
fish up as the sun set. Doesn’t get much better!
Next step:
catching our own fish!
February 27, 2014
Puerto Los Gatos: Three lobsters later…
Our two days
spent in Puerto Los Gatos (about half way between the small towns of San
Evaristo and Agua Verde) were marked by incredible meals. We were visited by
Manuel, a panguero (skiff fisherman)
from the neighboring pueblo, who offered to sell us fish and lobster freshly
caught about 100 yards from where our boat was anchored. We indulged twice,
buying an enormous crustacean the first evening that obviously belonged to the
lobster family, but was called a “cucaracha,” and buying two small lobsters the
second, making some mean lobster marinara pasta.
(**If you want to read more about our
lobster meals and my first endeavor boiling lobster, check out my “Galley Time”
page—recently updated!)
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| Giselle with a small Pacific lobster. |
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| The "Cucuracha" and Manuel in the background. |
Puerto Los Gatos
was also home to some amazing red rock/sandstone formations, fun to climb
around and excellent for photos. The north wind that threatened us through
second-hand weather forecasts never showed up. We had tucked into Los Gatos to
escape a wind that never came. More fun for us! Spent an entire day explore the
rocks, tide pools and taking a long snorkel out over near-by reef.
It’s been over a
week since I took a fresh water shower, but I’ve gotten exceptionally good at
washing my hair, body and face with salt water. I purchased a loofa in La Paz
to help suds up our concentrated salt-water body wash, which saves quite s bit
of soap. I also learned that rubbing shampoo into my scalp, even if there is
not a single sud, still cleans away oil and dirt. I repeatedly scrubbed on deck
with a 5-gallon bucket, followed by jumping into the water and rinsing off.
Hooray for clean, brush-able hair.
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| The unbeatable red rock formations were fun to climb in Los Gatos. |
February 28, 2014
Bahía San Marte-- New Marine Life
Sightings
When the wind
calms down and the sun begins to set in a glassy anchorage, your senses are in
tune with all the sea life that rises to the surface to enjoy the cool evening
air. Standing on the bow of the boat, watching the colors of the red rocks
change, we noticed a disturbance on the surface of the water, very close to the
boat. It was moving too fast to be a sea turtle, but to slow and large to be a
fish. As the wake moved closer to the boat, we saw two beautiful mobula rays
(small manta rays) approach and circle the boat, casually flapping their wings
in unison.
Several
anchorages in a row, we’ve seen schools of silver needlefish spray out of the
water being pursued by large, hunting Dorado. We might only see the Dorado jump
once or twice, but the fan of silver fish give away his position, and provide
nightly entertainment.
March 1, 2014
Agua Verde— hot days, margaritas and
fresh goat cheese.
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| Jon set up the hammock for the afternoon. |
If there is one
thing I could pick that I loved most about Baja, it would be summed up in two
words: queso fresco (fresh cheese).
Ever since I walked into a Parisian cheese shop at the ripe age of fourteen, I
have loved tasting cheeses. Honestly, if anything gave me away as a “foodie”
more than wine, it would be cheese (what a convenient combo.) A trip to a
cheese shop in California or Oregon is heavenly, and any opportunity I get to
eat fresh cheese curds is much appreciated and enjoyed slowly. Alaska does not
lend well to my cheese passion… however, Mexico does. Fresh, squeaky cheese can
be found at any small, local market, and most of the time you have to request
the amount of cheese you wish to purchase, so that the clerk can cut and bag it
up for you to buy. Agua Verde, our
current anchorage, is well know for its goat dairy products, and I was more
that excited to get to buy some fresh from the village store.
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| One of the three mini marts in Agua Verde |
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| Giselle rowing: got to get my workout in somehow... |
Clif and I,
after already deciding we want to raise goats some day, have now added piglets
to our list. We found a group of piglets and their mama not far from the Agua
Verde beach and instantly fell in love. It was hard to drag Clif away from
their soft pink noses and curly tails. Clif has convinced me that our future home
of goats and pigs will not be stinky, but my mother’s voice inside my head
tells me that it will. I’m ok with being stinky everyday if I get to milk goats
and make fresh goat cheese.
March 3, 2014
Honeymoon Cove, Isla Danzante (South of
Loreto)
After a full day
of sailing upwind, with less than three tacks, we cruised into the northern
most lobe of Honeymoon Cove, just as the Northers began to pick up. Our
anchorage, a skinny bight no wider than 100 yards, required us to drop a stern
anchor for the first time in our entire voyage. I rowed ashore and hiked the
surrounding rocks for some excellent shots of the boat and a little cell phone
service. We decided the little sandy beach would be perfect for an evening
campfire. I pulled out my secret stash of smores provisions (saved from last
summer bonfires in Juneau), and we rowed ashore right as the clouds in the sky
were fading to pink. The fire made me thankful for my time in the Baja, and
excited for my summer ahead in Juneau; being able to share moments like these
with many of my close friends.
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| There's a reason why they call it Honeymoon... |
The weather has
become steadily warmer as spring progresses in the Sea. Still, we are aware of
making our way north, seeing low lying clouds across to the east, now that the
gap between us and the mainland has grown smaller. It’s not very long before we
need to be in Guaymas cleaning up our watery home for storage. Our goal is to
pick a nice weather window between the 15th and the 20th
to make the crossing, and then spend 5-6 days working on the boat before bussing
up to Phoenix. We’ve been trying to be creative with our food this trip: using
up canned items that can’t stay on the hot boat this summer. Our extra food
will have to be given away and all of our storage spaces will have to be
cleaned out thoroughly. Sails need to be removed. Lines need to come down. Decks
need to be scrubbed and covered…
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| The beach we had out little marshmellow fire on in Honeymoon Cove. |
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