The Sea of Cortez

Finally we are in the Sea of Cortez! 

April 2, 2019- current

“As all sailors ultimately learn, it is easier to prepare a boat for sea then to clear the decks of your life for a voyage into unknown waters.”  James Baldwin from Across Islands and Oceans

We had a 2 day voyage from Mazatlan to the southern anchorage of Isla San Francisco called the Hook. The journey was approximately 200 nm. SV Arctos, Dave and Kelly, were in the Sea and suggested a rendezvous at Isla San Francisco. We last saw them about a month ago in Barra de Navidad. We left to head south to Zihuatanejo and they headed back north. Our upcoming meet up would be our last chance to see them before they headed north to Loreto to haul out for the season. They were both returning to work for May 1 and put an end to their first cruising season in Mexico. 

In August 2018, we all left out of Seattle together and buddy boated primarily the entire way to Cabo. We all planned to do the South Pacific crossing and aborted when we realized we were rushing through Mexico. This was going to be the finale of this great adventure for the last 9 months with them that started after watching a Pearl Jam concert in Seattle. That was our send off to ourselves for our upcoming adventure.  We reminisced about being in the marina in downtown Seattle after the concert and planning our left turn out of Neah Bay. During this cruising season, we had different itineraries once we got down to Mexico but we would still meet up in different places. That is the nature of cruising we realized, you change your neighborhood a lot but you have returning neighbors all the time in addition to new ones. Different places with familiar faces we say. It’s pretty darn cool! They are our Northwest buddies and we probably will not see them again until November 2019 when we all return  for Cruising Season 2.0. 

The day we left Mazatlan, we a great sail that first day on a close reach to beam reach angling  northwest across the Sea. Conditions were mellow and at times we were making 6.5 knots. Unfortunately, by evening the wind died and we turned the engine on. This continued into the next day. We decided we were not in a hurry and put sails up until they started to flog and only 0.8 knots was being made. We really wanted to conserve on fuel so we could delay a marina visit/fuel stop and just do some island hopping and stay at anchorage. The hard part is when you are going that slow then of course no distance is being made and the time to cross can change from 2 days to 4 days. There were some bigger conditions coming the day after our tentative arrival of a 48-50 hour crossing so we decided to put the engine back on. We already had a day of BIG wind waves and intense seas the first time we crossed out of San Jose del Cabo and did not want to willingly be back in those conditions again. 

I am able to check the weather with our handy Iridium Go that is affiliated with Predict Wind our weather forecasting service. We pay monthly to have this satellite communication/weather system in place on the boat. I can download weather forecasts to include wind, gust, precipitation, and wave direction/period. This does guide us with our decisions on where we anchor for better protection from the winds and swell forecasted as well when to stay put and not go anywhere.  It is well worth it to have this weather forecast system and definitely for the future plan to cross the Pacific Ocean. 

When we arrived at Isla San Francisco it was glorious!!! The water was crystal clear and there was a desert landscape rising above the sea. This is what we have been waiting for… We enjoyed the mainland but were “palapa’d out” meaning we did not need another umbrella beach restaurant. We wanted fewer people, no stores, no commercialism, just nature! Finally!!! We were giddy at the idea of exploring this playground. Lots of hiking to be had, paddle boarding, spearfishing, snorkeling… Dave and Kelly arrived in the mid-morning at the same time we were pulling in to anchor. We stayed there 3 days and enjoyed multiple hikes along the ridge tops to get some splendid views of the island and anchorage and also started to spearfish. Dave got a big yellowtail tuna we gobbled up for dinner one night. The hard part about spearfishing besides needing better breath holding techniques is our inadequacy with fish identification.  Not every fish we see is on the anticipated menu. Particularly, grouper and yellowfin seem obtainable here but we don't want the beautiful tropical fish like the Sargent Major and angelfish that are plentiful.  We are learning each time we dive but need a better fish ID card/fish ID book. Phone apps do not work when you have no service btw. 

After a great visit with the SV Arctos crew, we decided to head south to Isla Partida. We picked a day we could sail the easy 20nm there. For Dave and Kelly they stayed behind because they were heading north and would not enjoy the 15-20 knots we had but as a downwind sail. Stephen and I just put out the jib a bit reefed and we had a great sail the entire way to Ensenada Grande. This is a large bay with 3 coves on the northwest side of Isla Partida and we stayed in the better protected south bite. Our eyes were met with another phenomenal scene of turquoise water with large bluffs and canyon rims to explore. We were thrilled with our new waterfront home. We spent 4 days in this anchorage, paddle boarding, swimming, hiking and spearfishing again. This time Stephen and I both had our 1st success spearfishing. He caught 2 grouper and I got one unidentified white fish with a thin yellow stripe. During our spearfishing, we saw many moray eels! One was so BIG it looked like Jabba the Hutt and I saw its large mouth and teeth trying to eat a fish - Yikes! 

SV Zissou, Mel, and Tris showed up for a day during our time there. They were in the adjacent cove called El Cardonel. Stephen and I had hiked the ridge top and saw this single sailboat in the anchorage but did not know it was them. They moved over to our anchorage for better protection from some upcoming winds and the local Coromuel winds. These are local winds in the La Paz area that is a nighttime wind that blows up from the south or the southwest. They stay all night and die after sunrise and can be sustained at 25 knots.  They are a  katabatic wind, meaning a downslope wind that typically arises when there is an elevated plateau surrounded by mountains. The hot air that rose during the daytime will fall down through the gaps and saddles in the hills when it cools off during the night as cold air sinks.

The day of our successful spearfishing Mel and Tris were with us. Tris speared a big spotted Grouper. We made a yummy Thai green curry with grouper for dinner that night to celebrate! And I got Grouper Fever after that because it is ridiculously tasty fish and I wanted more. We also had a nice invite by some folks on a catamaran called Sky Pond for some warm homemade bread that was fabulous! I will pursue that recipe as it requires little effort with grand rewards. These folks bought their boat in Vietnam and circumnavigated West to East going to Australia, NZ, S. Pacific, Hawaii, up to Alaska and down the Pacific coast and are now in Mexico. They have been on their journey for the last 3 years full time as they are both retired. A catamaran is always such a great place for social gatherings and I always enjoy getting the tour of what I feel is a luxurious cruising vessel. There are always discussions on a catamaran being a worthy blue water cruising boat but certainly, they have proved some of the naysayers wrong. 

After a lovely stay in Ensenada Grande, we moved on to Partida Cove with a locale of the southwest tip of Isla Partida. We stayed there for 3 days, a fair bit hunkered down due to 30-35 knot winds one day. We snuck up into the northwest cove and had great protection from almost 360 degrees the way the cove is surrounded by sea cliffs. Many other boats were taking shelter during that time and the anchorage remained busy. We did manage to get a paddleboard in and some adventurous swimming. We had many sea turtle visitors in that cove but always too skittish once you near as they dive down. 

We then decided to move to El Mezteno, a tiny cove just south and next door to the Partida cove but now on Isla Espiritu Santo. I chose this spot because it is smaller and so figured fewer boats could nestle in and I was right. We pretty much had the anchorage to ourselves:)  It was another dramatic rise of volcanic rocky cliffs with sparse cactus to decorate its walls. Stephen speared another fish and was super pleased with increasing comfort with his Riffe speargun. I was not on the hunt this time - ha! I occupied my time with some open water swimming, paddle boarding, and reading. 

I finally finished James Baldwin’s Across Island’s and Oceans. He did a single hand circumnavigation starting at the age of 25. The quote at the top is from his book. Stephen and I also read Alone Together: Sailing Solo to Hawaii and Beyond, author Christian Williams. He sailed solo to Hawaii and back from Marina Del Ray and he was a laugh out loud read! I think anyone could enjoy but certainly the trials and tribulations of sailing maybe more enjoyed if already a sailor ( I put the picture of the book in the Mazatlan post).  

We were just about to take a hike when we ran into the CONANP/SEMARNAT (this is same as NPS in the States) park ranger who did ask for our park passports and sadly informed us the trail was closed for some archeologist work being conducted. The Sea is pristine and I was happy to know the Mexican government is patrolling to keep this area stunningly beautiful. We are enamored with the Sea and look forward to exploring more after our visit home to the States. We are heading to La Paz now. 

We have been out ( meaning on the hook) for 13 days with trash accumulated: 3 bags, fuel left: 3/4 tank, water used: 75 gallons from 140 gallons and batteries: full due to solar! OH and most importantly, souls content, grace received, and the bearing of time and thought reoriented to the present.  The gift of appreciating a simple life will guide us to weather the storm as we sail into the hurricane of humanity. 

“With long hours of little else to do, I worked, as I did at sea, to cultivate a freedom from anticipation-that urgent thief who steals the minute to minute awareness of life.” ~James Baldwin

Other books I have enjoyed during this passage: 

Pearl in the Storm by Tori McClure 

Rowing to Latitude by Jill Fredston

Lilac Girls  by Martha Hall Kelly

Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life by William Finnegan
The Golden Spruce by John Vaillant

Currently reading: 

Fastnet Force 10 by John Rousmaniere and North to the Night by Alvah Simon

It has been so fabulous to have the time to read

Isla San Francisco

Isla San Francisco

Kelly from SV Arctos

Isla San Francisco

Kelly and I on a hike

Salt flat on Isla San Francisco

Sunset 1st night on Isla San Francisco

Panga in the distance

Stephen doing some man-scaping

Inside cozy Soulstice

Ensenada Grande

Getting in a swim. The yellow bag is a float for spear fishing but also for safety for me on open water swims - keep me visible

Ensenada Grande

Ensenada Grande

Ensenada Grande

Ensenada Grande anchorage/hike 

Partida Cove

Partida Cove

Partida Cove

Espiritu Santo - El Mezteno Cove

Espiritu Santo -El Mezteno