Saturday, November 28, 2009
Saturday, November 21, 2009
SICK IN LA PAZ
November 21, 2009
SICK
I got it, Steve has not. The last 36 hours I have spent in bed or in the bathroom. It all starts with flu like symptoms and ends the same way. I have vomited more in the past 30 days than I have in the past 25 years. Once we arrived in La Paz the joy of not cooking was such a wonderful relief we ate out for nearly every meal. The night before I got sick we attended the last haha beach party hosted by the La Paz tourist center and the conditions of the buffet line were questionable BUT I WAS HUNGRY (as always). Enough said as it is painful to reflect on this subject as I am still a bit under. (Ali, it reminds me of your story with Shanda).
We started Spanish classes! Imelda is our teacher and she works for the local community center. Steve and I are beginners so this will be a long slow process. Our stay here in La Paz will probably be until the first week of December as we plan to enjoy Thanksgiving here and continue the Spanish classes. Internet is a constant challenge. Hauling in my computer on the dinging is what’s required and it’s a bit of a hassle (and risk). Most of the internet café’s will not allow me to use a flashdrive, thus the irregular emails. We are settling in therefore tomorrow we will move to a marina slip at Marin Palmira. We walked 5 miles out of town today to check it out. $24.00 a day for our 39 foot vessel and the facility is “almost new” (a famous Mexico saying). I am ready for a few amenities and the boat needs cleaning, water and time to “power up” our tech gear and refrigerator. Recent paranoia: Cockroaches. Tomorrow we will go to the Asian district to find Chinese Chalk. Apparently this substance has glass in it and somehow, someway, you coat the dock lines and base to prevent a cockroach march and infestation. Nice huh? It’s me or them as far as I’m concerned. Enough for now & love to all.
SICK
I got it, Steve has not. The last 36 hours I have spent in bed or in the bathroom. It all starts with flu like symptoms and ends the same way. I have vomited more in the past 30 days than I have in the past 25 years. Once we arrived in La Paz the joy of not cooking was such a wonderful relief we ate out for nearly every meal. The night before I got sick we attended the last haha beach party hosted by the La Paz tourist center and the conditions of the buffet line were questionable BUT I WAS HUNGRY (as always). Enough said as it is painful to reflect on this subject as I am still a bit under. (Ali, it reminds me of your story with Shanda).
We started Spanish classes! Imelda is our teacher and she works for the local community center. Steve and I are beginners so this will be a long slow process. Our stay here in La Paz will probably be until the first week of December as we plan to enjoy Thanksgiving here and continue the Spanish classes. Internet is a constant challenge. Hauling in my computer on the dinging is what’s required and it’s a bit of a hassle (and risk). Most of the internet café’s will not allow me to use a flashdrive, thus the irregular emails. We are settling in therefore tomorrow we will move to a marina slip at Marin Palmira. We walked 5 miles out of town today to check it out. $24.00 a day for our 39 foot vessel and the facility is “almost new” (a famous Mexico saying). I am ready for a few amenities and the boat needs cleaning, water and time to “power up” our tech gear and refrigerator. Recent paranoia: Cockroaches. Tomorrow we will go to the Asian district to find Chinese Chalk. Apparently this substance has glass in it and somehow, someway, you coat the dock lines and base to prevent a cockroach march and infestation. Nice huh? It’s me or them as far as I’m concerned. Enough for now & love to all.
LA PAZ
November 17th, 2009
It has been an interesting journey getting to this place. Please keep in mind readers that I am not a sailor….I am learning how to be one and again my nautical jargon and overall familiarity is slim. Anchoring, we spend a lot of time anchoring. Setting the anchor (45 # CQR), testing the anchor, listening to the anchor, watching the anchor and finally pulling up the anchor. One needs to be very careful not to scratch the boat while bringing it up. We have this cool remote control device, kind of like the one you use for your TV that easily lifts the 100’ 5/16 chain and 250 or so feet of rode (rope) right off the bottom of the ocean. It’s a nifty thing for a country girl like me. Lifting chain and rode, that’s my job here on the Lady J, what seems like all day long sometimes, as Steve is quite particular as to where, when and how we drop our anchor. Heading toward La Paz from Frailes we anchored in this beautiful, what felt like a canyon, a bay called Puerto Ballandra. The boat next to us was dragging chain and came within 20’ of actually hitting us. The frustrating part of this situation was that Steve refused to move the boat “why should I move, he’s the problem.” So basically the game of chicken is played while this yacht just slowly drags right on by us with nobody seeming too alarmed but me. I’m learning how to relax but sometimes it’s just no easy task, and I miss my horse.
Okay, enough of my whining. Our anchorage in Puerto Ballandra was beautiful but as the evening progressed the winds rose to 25 knots and the swells kept us up all night. First thing in the morning we headed for a new spot as we were anxious to explore beaches, swim and continue slowly to La Paz…hey what’s the hurry right? Well the wind gradually increased and thankfully we hid just around the corner from Ballandra in a new cove called Caleta Lobos (Tim, I sure hope you are tracking all of this and if so the real name of this cove is El Merito). We tucked in behind a big island and barely escaped another tough night of heavy winds in our secure well protected spot (yes, it was a spot). Three nights with little sleep, did I say that life is really tough down here? We never did get to swim or explore the shoreline as the winds kept me snug in the boat and Steve was wanting to be watchful of our new anchorage (he really loves his boat). The truth: Caleta Lobos has mangrove trees on the shoreline that appear to thrive in the sand. After hearing that the birds love to nest in these trees and poisonous snakes linger to eat their eggs this confirmed my decision to stay aboard. We pulled anchor at 630am on Monday and slowly motored into La Paz which is a very long narrow channel probably 3 miles or so. I certainly would not want to pull into here at night. We have dropped anchor in a fleet of a hundred or so boats and spent the day yesterday walking around town and getting groceries. We must have had 10 bags stashed in our little dingy and off we went zipping back to our boat. The boat is home and is quite comfortable for us. Amy arrived with her friends yesterday and she plans on taking a flight home on Wednesday. We will entertain tonight on the boat. I plan on getting some fresh scallops from a fisherman on the wharf and making pasta. Today we will get a slip in Marina de La Paz, fill our water tank (yes we filter and treat it) take showers, do laundry, eat, drink, socialize, shop, walk, run, laugh, cry (I miss being the MOB) and just enjoy La Paz, 85° and the wind has finally subsided.
November 21, 2009
It has been an interesting journey getting to this place. Please keep in mind readers that I am not a sailor….I am learning how to be one and again my nautical jargon and overall familiarity is slim. Anchoring, we spend a lot of time anchoring. Setting the anchor (45 # CQR), testing the anchor, listening to the anchor, watching the anchor and finally pulling up the anchor. One needs to be very careful not to scratch the boat while bringing it up. We have this cool remote control device, kind of like the one you use for your TV that easily lifts the 100’ 5/16 chain and 250 or so feet of rode (rope) right off the bottom of the ocean. It’s a nifty thing for a country girl like me. Lifting chain and rode, that’s my job here on the Lady J, what seems like all day long sometimes, as Steve is quite particular as to where, when and how we drop our anchor. Heading toward La Paz from Frailes we anchored in this beautiful, what felt like a canyon, a bay called Puerto Ballandra. The boat next to us was dragging chain and came within 20’ of actually hitting us. The frustrating part of this situation was that Steve refused to move the boat “why should I move, he’s the problem.” So basically the game of chicken is played while this yacht just slowly drags right on by us with nobody seeming too alarmed but me. I’m learning how to relax but sometimes it’s just no easy task, and I miss my horse.
Okay, enough of my whining. Our anchorage in Puerto Ballandra was beautiful but as the evening progressed the winds rose to 25 knots and the swells kept us up all night. First thing in the morning we headed for a new spot as we were anxious to explore beaches, swim and continue slowly to La Paz…hey what’s the hurry right? Well the wind gradually increased and thankfully we hid just around the corner from Ballandra in a new cove called Caleta Lobos (Tim, I sure hope you are tracking all of this and if so the real name of this cove is El Merito). We tucked in behind a big island and barely escaped another tough night of heavy winds in our secure well protected spot (yes, it was a spot). Three nights with little sleep, did I say that life is really tough down here? We never did get to swim or explore the shoreline as the winds kept me snug in the boat and Steve was wanting to be watchful of our new anchorage (he really loves his boat). The truth: Caleta Lobos has mangrove trees on the shoreline that appear to thrive in the sand. After hearing that the birds love to nest in these trees and poisonous snakes linger to eat their eggs this confirmed my decision to stay aboard. We pulled anchor at 630am on Monday and slowly motored into La Paz which is a very long narrow channel probably 3 miles or so. I certainly would not want to pull into here at night. We have dropped anchor in a fleet of a hundred or so boats and spent the day yesterday walking around town and getting groceries. We must have had 10 bags stashed in our little dingy and off we went zipping back to our boat. The boat is home and is quite comfortable for us. Amy arrived with her friends yesterday and she plans on taking a flight home on Wednesday. We will entertain tonight on the boat. I plan on getting some fresh scallops from a fisherman on the wharf and making pasta. Today we will get a slip in Marina de La Paz, fill our water tank (yes we filter and treat it) take showers, do laundry, eat, drink, socialize, shop, walk, run, laugh, cry (I miss being the MOB) and just enjoy La Paz, 85° and the wind has finally subsided.
November 21, 2009
Friday, November 13, 2009
LOS FRAILES & ENSENADA de LOS MUERTOS
November 13, 2009
Lady J pulled anchor from Cabo early Tuesday morning. It is now Friday the 13th and we have a lovely anchorage in the Cove of the Dead (Los Muertos). Our first stop was Los Frailes (The Friars) about 43 miles northeast of Cabo. This was an eight hour journey and we probably spent about two hours of it sailing. The wind was light and the sun hot! Hook in the water but no fish. This really was the first journey for just Steve and I, as I mentioned above Amy is on another boat with some wonderful people and is running a day or so behind us. Adios (the boat she is on) pulled into our anchorage at Frailes late Wednesday evening and we didn’t even get to say hello to her as we pulled anchor early Thursday. We did however get her picture…….look how happy she is! The beach at Los Frailes is the highlight and finally we got to snorkel. A bit dangerous near the rocks so we puttered just off the beach and found some wonderful shells and saw some amazing fish. The water is close to 80 degrees and swimming, lounging, eating, drinking, socializing and gazing are our pastimes. Steve is constantly puttering on the boat and I’m happy to report that nothing major has broken yet. We seem to run the battery every five hours to keep the refer working and our computers charged (camera’s & cell phones too). Anyhow, Pulled anchor from Frailes Thursday morning and cruised north for 9 hours to Los Muertos. We saw dolphins! Buck naked, out in the middle of nowhere (okay it was 23°18.5’N 109°24.5’W) Steve shouts “Look!” Sure enough, a small pod of about eight or so dolphins was playing on both sides of the boat. What looked like a mom and baby took lead at the stern of the boat and jumped and frolicked with us for about 5-10 minutes. This was a thrill for me because I had never seen (only heard) of these close appearances. Beautiful creatures, lighter in color than what we have in the northwest and huge! I was too excited to grab the camera so maybe next time I’ll get a shot. This cove was once a thriving little port bringing in supplies and shipping ore from silver mines and salt. Apparently old sunken anchors exist and resemble the dead such the name. Today there is a single restaurant, The Giggling Marlin and Steve and I had a fabulous dinner there last night. We bought a bag of ice which the bartender dumped in two big plastic bags and then we jumped in our dingy and headed back to the boat in total darkness. This particular dingy landing was quite the challenge as it was literally a vertical rock wall about 20 feet high with manmade steps (thankfully). This is Mexico, definitely not Hawaii and not for the less adventurous. Did I say life is really tough? Twenty other boats are anchored with us. We have yet to feel unsafe, and have not gotten sick. Last night at dinner I was reminded of the two rules of sailing by a skipper ready to leave port: No bananas on board and never leave port on a Friday….especially Friday the 13th. Went to bed at 8:00pm and woke at 4:30am to a glorious sunset (photo above), no fish on the hook for at least a week, life is really tough.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Goodbye Cabo
+060.JPG)
Steve and I pull anchor tomorrow am...probably at the break of dawn which is roughly 630am. We will sail 43 miles north into the Sea of Cortez to a small bay called Los Frailes. Our journey will be 5-7 hours and we are excited to get out of the craziness of Cabo San Lucas and anchor in a quiet bay. We were snorkeling at Lovers Beach this morning making adjustments our new gear. Amy has decided not to fly home right away, instead she is continuing to La Paz on another boat named Adios with some new friends. This may be the last post for awhile so please continue to send prayers as we love all of you greatly!
(Steve requests special prayers)
+115.JPG)
+040.JPG)
+280.JPG)
Sunday, November 8, 2009
LEG THREE (Cabo San Lucas)
November 6th, 2009
We did it! Leg three of the Baja ha-ha is complete. We pulled anchor on Wednesday at 6:00am and sadly sailed goodbye from the beautiful bay of Bahia Santa Maria. We covered 180 miles in roughly 33 hours to our slip. Yes, our slip. We are staying in the luxurious Marina Cabo San Lucas. It is very expensive, probably the priciest place we’ll stay on our entire trip. But we need the amenities, i.e. rest showers, laundry, easy access to groceries, restaurants and the whole tourist thing are fun. The sail was relatively easy compared to leg one, 15-23 knot winds, swells 5-8 feet and at times we had no wind and resorted to motor sailing. We are having interesting moments playing with our genacker which is used for light breezes and is sooooooooooooooo beautiful with its florescent colors. AND we caught a Mahi Mahi (unsure of the spelling) and grilled it an hour within catching (the best fish I have ever had). Our first night in Cabo (we arrived in the dark at 9:00pm) the fleet had a bash at the ever famous Squid Roe. This is a huge bar that probably accommodates 400+ crazy, dancing sailors. We danced, probably got to bed around 1:00amish. Amy continues to function beautifully on little sleep, and she easily establishes wonderful (and very cute) friends. Yesterday she attended the beach party while Steve and I did the wallmart shopping to reprovision the boat. Today is the closing Baja ha-ha ceremony. Perhaps some you heard about the sailboat that sunk during our first leg due to a whale attack. The fleet is trying to fly down the captain of that boat to share the story. My hope is she will be present at this closing event as we have all been a little on edge regarding the fluke episode and wish to know the details and lessons learned. CAN YOU IMAGINE? (The skipper spoke at our closing event last night and please note that it was not a whale attack. For the details of this event, which is quite fascinating I suggest you purchase Latitude 38, January issue) At present, our challenges include: Language, laundry, banking, water, and the heat (loading things on the boat require long walks with heavy items). Amy will probably fly out of Cabo within the next few days (although I think she is open to staying for the season) and Steve and I will putter north to La Paz. We plan on having Thanksgiving with our new friends Dan and Rainy in La Paz but who knows anything can happen between now and then. Anchoring in Punta Los Frailes and then Endenada de los Muertos before reaching La Paz is the projected itinerary. The internet connection continues to be a problem as we have yet to get online from the boat and wireless café’s are scarce. It is a really tough life here dealing with the fresh fish, lovely culture, warm breezes, fellow sailors and warm water. I will probably not be able to post again for a few weeks so please, don’t worry too much about us, I think we’ll survive.
We did it! Leg three of the Baja ha-ha is complete. We pulled anchor on Wednesday at 6:00am and sadly sailed goodbye from the beautiful bay of Bahia Santa Maria. We covered 180 miles in roughly 33 hours to our slip. Yes, our slip. We are staying in the luxurious Marina Cabo San Lucas. It is very expensive, probably the priciest place we’ll stay on our entire trip. But we need the amenities, i.e. rest showers, laundry, easy access to groceries, restaurants and the whole tourist thing are fun. The sail was relatively easy compared to leg one, 15-23 knot winds, swells 5-8 feet and at times we had no wind and resorted to motor sailing. We are having interesting moments playing with our genacker which is used for light breezes and is sooooooooooooooo beautiful with its florescent colors. AND we caught a Mahi Mahi (unsure of the spelling) and grilled it an hour within catching (the best fish I have ever had). Our first night in Cabo (we arrived in the dark at 9:00pm) the fleet had a bash at the ever famous Squid Roe. This is a huge bar that probably accommodates 400+ crazy, dancing sailors. We danced, probably got to bed around 1:00amish. Amy continues to function beautifully on little sleep, and she easily establishes wonderful (and very cute) friends. Yesterday she attended the beach party while Steve and I did the wallmart shopping to reprovision the boat. Today is the closing Baja ha-ha ceremony. Perhaps some you heard about the sailboat that sunk during our first leg due to a whale attack. The fleet is trying to fly down the captain of that boat to share the story. My hope is she will be present at this closing event as we have all been a little on edge regarding the fluke episode and wish to know the details and lessons learned. CAN YOU IMAGINE? (The skipper spoke at our closing event last night and please note that it was not a whale attack. For the details of this event, which is quite fascinating I suggest you purchase Latitude 38, January issue) At present, our challenges include: Language, laundry, banking, water, and the heat (loading things on the boat require long walks with heavy items). Amy will probably fly out of Cabo within the next few days (although I think she is open to staying for the season) and Steve and I will putter north to La Paz. We plan on having Thanksgiving with our new friends Dan and Rainy in La Paz but who knows anything can happen between now and then. Anchoring in Punta Los Frailes and then Endenada de los Muertos before reaching La Paz is the projected itinerary. The internet connection continues to be a problem as we have yet to get online from the boat and wireless café’s are scarce. It is a really tough life here dealing with the fresh fish, lovely culture, warm breezes, fellow sailors and warm water. I will probably not be able to post again for a few weeks so please, don’t worry too much about us, I think we’ll survive.
LEG TWO (BAHIA TORTUGAS to BAHIA SANTA MARIA)
November 3, 2009
The fleet has arrived to Bahia Santa Maria. We are roughly two thirds of the way down the Baja of Mexico. Leg two was a vastly different experience than leg one. The seas were calm, winds never higher than 11 knots and the swells were basically nonexistent. We sailed the first 36 hours with the genacker flying and then ran out of wind. Finally we gave up, dropped the sail and motored in arriving at a breathtaking 11 mile long beach. The trip was 48 hours of pure bliss compared to our first leg and the most exciting part: We caught a blue fin tuna! Amy started her watch at 7:30am and 20 minutes later “FISH ON!” Steve rigged an amazing hand line and it actually worked. Maybe a 15 pound catch. There is no town in this bay only a handful of fisherman. However, specifically for our fleet accoutrements were shipped in by water taxis and the local villagers served us a fabulous lunch. The locals here are poor, badly bruised by hurricanes, yet happiness is abundant. Collectively, we all agree we are in heaven and our only concern is how to feed Steve for the next four days. We are out of bread, have very little ice, smell just a wee bit, and are salty, warm and content. We leave tomorrow at 6:00am (San Diego time) for Cabo San Lucas. Hasta luego amigos!
The fleet has arrived to Bahia Santa Maria. We are roughly two thirds of the way down the Baja of Mexico. Leg two was a vastly different experience than leg one. The seas were calm, winds never higher than 11 knots and the swells were basically nonexistent. We sailed the first 36 hours with the genacker flying and then ran out of wind. Finally we gave up, dropped the sail and motored in arriving at a breathtaking 11 mile long beach. The trip was 48 hours of pure bliss compared to our first leg and the most exciting part: We caught a blue fin tuna! Amy started her watch at 7:30am and 20 minutes later “FISH ON!” Steve rigged an amazing hand line and it actually worked. Maybe a 15 pound catch. There is no town in this bay only a handful of fisherman. However, specifically for our fleet accoutrements were shipped in by water taxis and the local villagers served us a fabulous lunch. The locals here are poor, badly bruised by hurricanes, yet happiness is abundant. Collectively, we all agree we are in heaven and our only concern is how to feed Steve for the next four days. We are out of bread, have very little ice, smell just a wee bit, and are salty, warm and content. We leave tomorrow at 6:00am (San Diego time) for Cabo San Lucas. Hasta luego amigos!
LEG ONE (SAN DIEGO to BAHIA TORTUGAS)
First, we feel it necessary to mention our send-off from San Diego. Tom and Lois followed us out in ‘Dela’ and cheered us on as we paraded with the rest of the Baja Haha fleet of 190+ boats. They went above and beyond by creating signs, checking in with us in the early am, and simply being our best support system preparing for this event. THANK YOU TOM AND LOIS (and the boys: Kevin, Kyle & Keenan). Departing San Diego Bay with 190+ beautiful, bright colored genackers (Steve is only 93 percent sure of this spelling) flying was truly a sight to be seen!
We arrived at our 1st anchorage in Bahia Tortugas (Turtle Bay) at approximately 3:00am Thursday. The moon had set around 3:00am and yes; it was pitch black, windy, the crew severely sleep-deprived and needless to say a bit eerie entering into this unknown bay. Especially, after we had just covered 350 miles (64 hours straight sailing) in mostly 12 to 15 foot swells (with intermittent 30+ footers) and 25 to 30 knot winds, gusting to 35 knots! Rita was hearing voices, Amy was seeing things, and Steve was one cool cat. It was a very spiritual experience for all. We are now seasoned and securely anchored for a couple days of rest. The captain remains strong. Rita is recovering from sea sickness and Amy is our champion sailor. Currently we count 50 to 60 of our fellow haha members and are praying for the rest to arrive safely. The officials encouraged those sailing with children, and the weak of heart to head into shore due to heavy weather conditions. But ohhhhhhhhhhh no, not this crew. WE DID IT! Leg one complete. Our new Moto: Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.
An important side note from Steve to Paul and Nam: There were a few times I wished you were there to take a watch but the ladies came through when things got tough and their feminine energy made things rather interesting.
We arrived at our 1st anchorage in Bahia Tortugas (Turtle Bay) at approximately 3:00am Thursday. The moon had set around 3:00am and yes; it was pitch black, windy, the crew severely sleep-deprived and needless to say a bit eerie entering into this unknown bay. Especially, after we had just covered 350 miles (64 hours straight sailing) in mostly 12 to 15 foot swells (with intermittent 30+ footers) and 25 to 30 knot winds, gusting to 35 knots! Rita was hearing voices, Amy was seeing things, and Steve was one cool cat. It was a very spiritual experience for all. We are now seasoned and securely anchored for a couple days of rest. The captain remains strong. Rita is recovering from sea sickness and Amy is our champion sailor. Currently we count 50 to 60 of our fellow haha members and are praying for the rest to arrive safely. The officials encouraged those sailing with children, and the weak of heart to head into shore due to heavy weather conditions. But ohhhhhhhhhhh no, not this crew. WE DID IT! Leg one complete. Our new Moto: Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.
An important side note from Steve to Paul and Nam: There were a few times I wished you were there to take a watch but the ladies came through when things got tough and their feminine energy made things rather interesting.
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Wireless in Mexico
Hi all. Finally got to a working computer here in Cabo and it will not accept my flash drive. Stay tuned as we have lots of great pictures and stories. Notably, we are safe after a horrific storm and enjoying the hot weather. I will hopefully be able to post tomorrow! Adios till then!
Rita
Rita
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
