LA CRUZ TO PUERTO ESCONDIDO ON WHITE WIND 2024

April 8. 2024

I had been planning to go to Mazatlan for the total eclipse of the sun for months, but the friend I was planning to meet kept changing our plans and, at the last moment, backed out and left me with nowhere to stay. I ended up with three extra days in La Cruz. I already had cat sitters installed in my condo, so I moved onto White Wind a few days early.

We didn’t have any eclipse glasses, so had to come up with a method to watch safely. The sun was so bright that we couldn’t see anything with the naked eye. We ended up projecting the image onto White Wind’s doormat using a pair of binoculars. The sun was only 95% covered in La Cruz. It never got dark, but it got noticeably cooler. The sun was so bright that 5% of its light was sufficient.

April 10-12, 2024

White Wind in La Cruz

White Wind was prepped and ready to go. We left about 9:00 on Wednesday. White Wind doesn’t point very well, so we motored out of Banderas Bay rather than tacking up the beach as we had done on Wings. Progress One was right behind us. Our crew consisted of our skipper, Brad, a new acquaintance, Rich, and me. Blair and his brother-in-law, Ray, were aboard Progress One.

It wasn’t particularly windy, but the seas were moderately lumpy. I heated the lasagne I had made ahead of time for dinner and then tried to sleep until my watch began at midnight. It was just too lumpy to sleep in my forepeak bunk. I was getting airborne and waves were slamming into the hull. I rested until my watch and then took the watch from midnight to 3:00 on Thursday morning as we passed the Marias Islands.

When I got off watch, I was dead tired and needed a place where I could actually sleep. I took a couple of cushions off the settees and made a nest on the floor of the aft cabin where I managed to sleep peacefully.

We continued north all day. We were motoring, but the main sail had us heeling to port just enough to make it impossible to sleep on the starboard settee. Rich had the port settee bunk. I came back on watch from 9:00 to noon. Progress One was several miles behind us, but we were in radio contact.

Dawn Over Frailes

I was on watch, again, from 18:00 to 21:00. Rich cooked shrimp and rice for dinner. We had a little sliver of moon. The wind shifted just enough that we heeled to starboard, and I was able to sleep on the port settee until 3:00 on Friday. It began to get light at 5:00. We got a southerly wind during the night and began to sail. We had hoped to stop at Frailes, but it was open to the swell in a southerly. We had neared Frailes by dawn but realized that it would be unwise to anchor there. After conferring with Progress One, we agreed to continue on to Muertos.

We sailed along the east cape all day. Our chart plotter had become temperamental during our crossing. Often, it would lose track of the boat’s position. At first, it would come back after a moment or two but, by the time we neared Muertos, we had lost our position entirely. We arrived at Muertos just after dark. Muertos is a pretty easy anchorage to enter in the dark. We had Navionics running on my phone but, just to be safe, we anchored in deeper water than we usually would have because it was hard to judge distances in the dark. This led to us spending a slightly rolly night. White Wind creaks so badly that I had to put in ear plugs before I could sleep in the forepeak.

April 13, 2024

At Anchor in Muertos

Our mission for Saturday was to figure out what was wrong with our GPS. We started early in the day, tracing the wires from the antenna to chart plotter. It was easier said than done as the wires passed from lazarette to lazarette, under the floor, and then up a stainless-steel tube and through a series of plastic pods before reaching the display. Nothing seemed to be loose or corroded.  Eventually, we disconnected the GPS antenna and wired in a spare, all to no avail. The chart plotter stubbornly refused to display our position. By mid-afternoon, we had come to the conclusion that there must be a problem with the circuit board in the chart plotter.

Brad in the Lazarette

A strong north wind was due to arrive by Sunday afternoon and, if we did not leave Muertos in time, we would be stuck there until the wind blew itself out on Wednesday. There is nothing to do in Muertos. My foot was sprained, so even hiking (my usual pastime) was out of the question for me. I looked at the weather and proposed that, if we left by 18:00, we could be tucked safely into Caleta Partida before the wind came up on Sunday. Blair concurred.

White Wind and Progress One left Muertos together at 18:00 on Saturday evening. I had updated Navionics on my tablet, and we were using that as our chart plotter as we headed into the Ceralvo Channel. We let Progress One go ahead and followed their running lights as the night progressed. Rich took the first watch from 18:00 to 21:00 so that Brad and I could pilot the boat through the Ceralvo and San Lorenzo Channels.

Our Course Through the Ceralvo Channel

It was perfectly calm and a beautiful, moonlit, night. I was on deck from 21:00 to midnight. We passed within three quarters of a mile of a freighter at the top of the Ceralvo Channel. They had so many white lights burning that I couldn’t see their running lights. It was a bit disconcerting not to be able to tell exactly which way they were heading. From the AIS, I knew they were approaching at 17 knots and were not projected to collide with us. I was relieved when it finally became clear that I was seeing the side of the ship as it ploughed past us. Navionics worked fine and I could still see Progress One’s stern light a couple of miles ahead.

April 14, 2024

Brad took over at midnight and steered us through the shallow point of the San Lorenzo Channel before Rich took over at 3:00. The moon set and it grew very dark. Brad sat up with Rich for a while and Rich commented that we were catching up with Progress One and it was difficult to tell how fast they were going. Brad went below to turn on the AIS to get Progress One’s data and, lo and behold, the chart plotter suddenly began registering our position. The AIS had its own GPS antenna, and the chart plotter was able to use that position. We never knew what the problem had been, but we were back in business.

Dawn Arrival at Caleta Partida

By the time I got up before 6:00, we were sailing slowly towards Caleta Partida, waiting for it to get light enough to enter. I had slept blissfully as we sailed through the calm night. The sunrise was spectacular, and we followed Progress One into the anchorage. They had their hook down by the time we arrived, and we anchored in 20 feet of water in the northern lobe of the anchorage where we were well protected from the north winds that we anticipated would arrive later that day.

I made eggs for breakfast and then we spent the rest of the day relaxing and catching up on lost sleep. Caleta Partida is a gorgeous anchorage with shallow, turquoise water and white sand beaches. The anchorage was once the caldera of a volcano which collapsed and separated the land mass into the two islands of Espiritu Santo and Isla Partida. It is the only bay on the two islands where one can see across to the other side without having to climb to the top of the island. At Caleta Partida, only a sand spit separates the east and west sides of the island. At times, it is even possible for a dinghy to cross from one side to the other.

The Anchorage at Caleta Partida

April 15-16, 2024

Blair, Rich, and Ray went ashore on Isla Partida to try to climb the hill nearest the anchorage. Blair and Rich quickly turned back, defeated by the thorny brush. Ray scampered ahead and was quickly lost to sight. Blair and Rich left him and rowed back to White Wind. Rich was bleeding from numerous scratches, but Blair was mostly unscathed. We were all a little concerned about Ray, but we spent the day lounging about the boat and taking advantage of the Starlink.

Blair Lounging on White Wind

We kept an eye out for Ray and thought we saw him silhouetted against the sky on the peak. Sometime later, I spotted Ray’s neon orange shirt on the shore. He had climbed the peak and returned to a spot on the rocky shore closer to our boat than the sandy beach where they had landed the dinghy. Blair rowed back over to retrieve him, and they both visited with us before returning to Progress One.

Sunset at Caleta Partida

On our last day in Caleta Partida, Blair and Ray went off to climb a peak on Espiritu Santo and Brad, Rich, and I decided to explore the sand spit between the islands. The first two mornings we were there had dawned clear and sunny. The sun had been blinding by 7:00 and we expected to go ashore early, while the water was calm. The morning of our excursion, it was cool and cloudy. The water didn’t look nearly as inviting. We drank coffee and I made pancakes. We didn’t leave the boat until 9:00 when the sun finally appeared.

Our Dinghy Anchored in the Shallows

The water was still calm enough for us to motor the dinghy without getting too wet. The water shallows very gradually. We motored over clean, white sand for quite a distance before pulling up the motor and wading through calf-deep water, towing the dinghy behind us. Eventually, we anchored the dinghy and left it sitting in six inches of water while we waded ashore.

The sand spit had changed quite a bit since I had been there in 2007. There was much more vegetation. After picking our way along a sandy path through the brush, we discovered why. Someone had constructed a breakwater across the isthmus, protecting the sand spit from wave action and preserving the channel that passed through to the fish camp on Caleta Partida.

Brad on the Sandy Trail

The Breakwater at Caleta Partida

My sprained foot limited my ability to hop across rocks, so I left the exploring of the breakwater to Brad and Rich and contented myself with taking photographs 

until they returned. We continued along a path towards the fish camp and then made our way to the water across the lines they had staked along the beach. The water was only a few inches deep. We splashed along and watched the fishermen launching a panga in water that was a little too shallow. They made little progress with their engine in the up position, but eventually slid off a sand bar into the deeper water of the channel and continued out into the bay. Brad visited with some very tame gulls, and we took a selfie before returning to the dinghy.

Rene, Rich and Brad at Caleta Partida

Brad and Rich on the Breakwater

Fish Skeleton in the Sky

Brad in the Shallows

The tide had gone out and we had to drag the dinghy across the sand to deeper water before it floated. We continued wading until the water was deep enough for the engine before hopping aboard and motoring back to the boat. We were home in time for lunch. The afternoon was spent lazing around the boat and watching for Blair and Ray to return from their climb.

The Progress One boys came back by mid-afternoon and visited with us until dinnertime. I made spaghetti with Italian sausage for dinner and Rich started teaching Brad to play cribbage. None of us stayed awake past 21:00.

April 17, 2024

The Anchorage at Isla San Francisco

No one was in a hurry to leave Caleta Partida. It was only four or five hours to Isla San Francisco, so
there was no rush. We finally pulled up the hook about 10:00. There wasn’t much wind, but there were residual waves from the norther that had blown for the past few days. It was a bumpy ride, but we made good time and arrived at Isla San Francisco by 14:00.

Progress One at Sunset

Rich and Brad took the dinghy and went snorkeling. The water looked cold to me, so I stayed at the boat. Progress One was anchored nearby. It was their habit to anchor close enough to connect to our Starlink. We lost our connection and I rebooted. It was amusing to see my device connect, followed by a second and third device from Progress One. I knew what they were up to over there.

Blair and Ray came over for a late afternoon visit and then left as the sun began to set. I made a good American meal of boiled potatoes, pork chops, and broccoli. We were quite content.

April 18, 2024

Ray got up early to climb the peak overlooking the “Hook” in Isla San Francisco. Blair and I had climbed it before and none of the rest of us were feeling particularly ambitious, that morning. We only had nine miles to go to Punta Salina and we were still lounging about when Ray returned. We took off about 10:00.

Brad Leaving Isla San Framcisco

There was no wind and the previous night’s calm had rendered the seas quite flat. We were able to motor at 6 knots. We arrived at Punta Salina by 11:20 and dropped our hook in fifteen feet of water just off the beach on a sandy bottom. It was a beautiful, desolate spot on Isla San Jose. Once the site of a salt operation, there were a few ruined buildings and the rusted hulks of trucks and bull dozers. One of the buildings boasted a pile of several dozen discarded flip flops.

Blair and Ray Landing at Punta Salina

Blair's Patio Ornaments

After a quick lunch, we rowed the dinghies ashore. We explored the salt works and walked along the sandy beach. The salt ponds were just over a small rise that parallelled the beach. The scenery was spectacular with the mountains of Isla San Jose as a backdrop.

Ruins at Punta Salina

View Through a Window at Punta Salina

Salt Ponds at Punta Salina

Rusted Truck at Punta Salina

Ray on a Rusted Bulldozer

Eared Grebe

We encountered an eared grebe flopping around on the sand. He didn’t appear to be injured but seemed to be suffering from a neurological condition. We pondered what to do with him, but decided there was no way we could help. Later, Ray put him back in the water. He was capable of swimming, but just went in circles until he washed back up on the shore. Later, the couple from the other boat in the anchorage put him in the water, once again. Soon, he was back on the shore.

The grebe was flopping around on the sand when the first vulture arrived. It poked at him and decided he wasn’t dead enough to eat. When a second vulture landed, the first one chased him away. We got distracted from this episode of Wild Kingdom long enough to miss the grebe’s demise but did witness the vulture making a meal of him after his death. He was a beautiful little bird, but natural selection was doing its job.

I made chicken and veggies in tomatillo sauce over rice for dinner. It was a gorgeous evening and we tried to sit out and enjoy it, but the jejenes chased us below deck at dusk. I got badly bitten before I realized what was happening. A jejene is about the size of a dust mote and nearly invisible, but they leave a welt the size of a flea bite that itches for ten days.

I was wide awake and stayed up until nearly midnight, reading and watching downloaded Netflix episodes. We were bobbing peacefully when I went to sleep.

April 19, 2024

Sometime around 3:00, the boat began to roll. A southwest swell was marching straight into our open anchorage. Somewhere to the south, a southerly was blowing. White Wind is light and rolls dramatically when caught broadside by a swell. I lay in my bunk, trying to sleep, while the boat rocked hard enough that I got up to check on the anchor. I could hear the waves crashing on the beach, but we were actually in deeper water than before. At 4:00, my water bottle crashed to the floor, and I gave up on sleeping and got dressed.

Everyone else was awake, also. We could see lights on Progress One, so assumed they were up, too. We drank our morning beverages and watched the sun rise. Both boats pulled anchor before 6:00. It was still windless, but the swell in that anchorage was brutal.

Progress One on the Way to Agua Verde

We had 42 miles to go to reach Agua Verde. We arrived by 14:00. The popular anchorage was emptier than usual. We anchored in 17 feet near the big rock on the left side of the beach. We were all pretty low energy after having been so rudely awakened. We lounged for a few hours and then Ray and Blair came over and cooked the trigger fish they had caught in Caleta Partida for an appetizer. We all lay about like lazy sea lions until we decided it was best to retire inside before the bugs arrived.

The Rock at Agua Verde

I made penne with sausage and a parmesano sauce for dinner and we weren’t good for much, after that. I stayed up long enough to watch an episode of Netflix and then went to sleep. Predict Wind was forecasting 25 knots of wind off the beach overnight, which had Blair quite concerned. We never felt a breath of wind, all night, and hardly even bobbed.

April 20, 2024

Agua Verde in the Morning

There was no big rush to get moving. We got up and drank coffee or tea. Rich had cereal and I made scrambled egg tacos for Brad and myself. I spotted a whale shark cruising through the anchorage.  Then we hunted up Blair and Ray and rowed the two dinghies into shore. Blair had arrived first and had time to do a little reconnaissance while he waited for Ray to go back to the boat for his shoes and us to arrive. Someone had caught a 25-pound yellowtail and there would be fresh fish at the palapa on the beach, that night. We made a reservation.

Features of Agua Verde

We followed the signs to the new minisuper that had sprung up since my last visit. It looked deserted. It was only 9:00, so we thought it might still be closed until we noticed locals entering what looked like a darkened shop. Rich went in to buy cookies and the rest of us followed. Brad and I left our shopping for the return trip, but checked out what was available. The selection was small, but much more varied than the previous business had offered. They had canned goods, bread, tortillas, eggs, some fresh produce, frozen meat, snacks, and cold drinks.

Agua Verde's Catholic Church

Agua Verde's School

Agua Verde was new to everyone else, so we explored the town a bit. Rich and I were both limping, so an extended walk was out of the question. The town had a school, a hospital, two churches, two grocery stores, a tire shop, and two restaurants. I had been there a few times before but had never succeeded in finding the goat farm that sold goat cheese. That was my mission. We were wandering around, when we were hailed by a piratical looking fellow on a dirt bike. He was a Czech named Viroslav who had lived in Agua Verde for ten years. He told us where to find the goat farm. Apparently, my error was in expecting it to be on the outskirts of town. In truth, it was just off the left end of the beach.

Goat in Agua Verde

We had found a pen full of baby goats and were oohing and aahing over their cuteness when a man carrying milk buckets greeted us. I asked him where we could buy goat cheese. He said his mother sold it, but it wouldn’t be ready until after 15:00. He then asked his mother and she apparently had some from the day before. We bought a kilo for 150 pesos.

By then, we were nearly back at the beach, so we completed our circle and returned to the minisuper to buy eggs, crackers, a few veggies, toilet paper, and some mineral water. There were five or six customers and the line was slow because another cruiser had run out of pesos and was paying with a debit card. Miraculously, the tiny shop accepted cards. We were impressed but elected to pay cash.

Back at the boat, we had a snack of crackers, goat cheese, and sardines. Brad, Rich, and Ray went snorkeling. Blair and I lay around and surfed the internet until the guys came back. Blair and Ray returned to Progress One. We resumed lazing around. I took a swim and then sat down to write until it was time to go to dinner.

Brisas del Mar

We ate a delicious dinner of yellowtail fillets at Brisas del Mar, one of the palapa restaurants on the beach at Agua Verde. It was a much more substantial palapa than the one that had housed it several years before. The restaurant seemed to be prospering.

Upon our return, we pulled up the dinghy and watched the sun set. We wanted to be ready for an early departure for Puerto Escondido the following day.

Sunset at Agua Verde

April 21-23, 2024

We left Agua Verde about 8:00 and motored up the coast towards Puerto Escondido. It was flat calm. The striated mountains on shore were spectacular. By 11:00, we were passing the first of the rocky islets that our route threaded through on the way to the entrance to Puerto Escondido.

Entering Puerto Escondido

Puerto Escondido is an old volcanic caldera. Two of the three gaps in the original walls have been filled in by breakwaters, leaving a single, narrow entrance. The bay, inside, is exceptionally well protected. There is a small marina, fuel dock, and boatyard near the entrance and a mooring field at the other end of the bay. A circular area known as “the Ellipse” is located just off the entrance. In the years that I have been coming to Puerto Escondido, it has been both an anchorage and a mooring field. Currently, it is unused, but they seem to be preparing to put in some slips. We contemplated the most efficient way to divide a circular area into rectangular slips and came to no definitive answer.

The Ellipse

Brad had reserved a slip for us near the fuel dock. White Wind is 44’ in length and the slip they put us in couldn’t have been more than 30’. We protruded so far past the end of the dock that the gate through the lifeline opened onto open water. We had to climb on and off at the spreaders. It would have been better if we had backed in, but we had prepared all the lines and fenders for a starboard tie and didn’t have time to change them to the other side. We were not the only oversize boat on that dock.

White Wind in Her Tiny Slip

We had a lot of chores to do while we were in the slip, so I immediately started on the laundry while Brad and Rich washed the boat. The laundry room was crowded, so I had to do my three loads of laundry one at a time. I spent most of the afternoon, there, reading while our clothes got washed. The laundry facilities operate on the honor system and one goes to the office to pay once finished. I was shocked to discover that three loads of laundry washed and dried cost 600 pesos (about $34.) Anywhere else in Mexico, I could have had someone else do it for half that much. Everything in the well stocked store in the marina cost about double, as well.

Once we were done with our chores, we met Blair and Ray (who had taken a mooring) at the restaurant for a pizza dinner. Then we took much appreciated hot showers in the beautifully appointed restrooms. I had no complaints there.

The following morning, we did a little more laundry and took more showers. We were due to move out to a mooring. We hung out on the boat, using the surprisingly strong WiFi until time to vacate our slip. They we motored over to the fuel dock to fill out tanks and jerry cans. Santa Rosalia would be the only fuel stop once we left Puerto Escondido and we didn’t want to take any chances that the fuel dock might be closed.

Calm Night on Our Mooring

We hung out on the boat and visited with Progress One. We had to come back to the marina to accept delivery of our rental car at 16:00. The Alamo representative met us promptly. Rich had stayed on the boat, but we met Blair and Ray for drinks and snacks at the restaurant. They had surprisingly good onion rings and tasty ceviche.

The night was flat calm and the moon nearly full. I sat out in the cockpit watching downloaded Netflix until nearly 22:00. It was a gorgeous night.

Tuesday was our busy day. Rich had a flight out at 9:30, so we left the boats at 7:00 and zipped across the glassy water to the dinghy dock. We had reserved a compact car, but ended up with a small Mitsubishi SUV that had plenty of room for the five of us, Rich’s luggage, and two propane tanks.

Cemetery in Loreto

Our first stop was the airport where we said goodbye to Rich. It took us some investigation to find the propane farm and we stopped to explore a cemetery along the way. By 8:30, we had located the propane dealer and filled our tanks. I had searched online for a Farmacia Guadalajara in Loreto because I needed to refill my prescriptions. There wasn’t one. My sprained foot had prevented me from walking to the pharmacy when I was in La Paz, which had been my original plan. Google suggested the Farmacia San Javier in Loreto which turned out to be quite near the propane farm. I went in. They didn’t have the patent medicines I was seeking, but they did have some reasonable substitutes and I stocked up on enough drugs to hold me until I could get back to La Cruz.

Blair and Brad at the Propane Dealer

Errands complete, we drove into the center of Loreto to eat breakfast and explore the old downtown. First, we went to the bank. The only bank in downtown Loreto was BBVA. Their ATM fees are high and exchange rates poor, but we had little choice. Brad just didn’t want to use them, so he only got 4000 pesos, thinking he could do better at Banco Azteca.

Mission in Loreto

We had a lovely breakfast, which we finished about an hour before we were due to meet Fred from Wings and his crew for lunch. Then we visited the old mission and browsed through the souvenir shops until lunchtime. I was impressed with the quality of the handicrafts. I bought three metal sculptures of fish for my guest room wall. Ray bought some gifts to take home.

We met Fred and Sarah at Mi Loreto and had a nice lunch there. They served a delicious beverage called a coconada which was made with limonada, coconut cream, and mineral water. I had a very nice salad of romaine lettuce with peaches, pears, raisins, tomatoes, and goat cheese in a strawberry vinaigrette. Sarah was a vegetarian and managed to get mushroom tacos (actually mushroom quesadillas without the cheese.)

After lunch, we said goodbye to Fred and Sarah and rushed off to buy groceries before 15:00 when we needed to leave so as to return the car on time. By the time we had all stocked up on groceries, it was 15:00. Brad stopped at Banco Azteca while I ran up the street to buy chips at a tortilleria. Brad’s ATM card didn’t work at Banco Azteca. We then drove back out to the Intercam Banco on the highway near the propane farm. Intercam is my Mexican bank. They are often out of cash, but Brad was lucky and managed to get all the pesos he needed. Then we sped off down the highway and returned to Puerto Escondido with 5 minutes to spare.

We had a lot of groceries. It became apparent that there wasn’t room for me in the dinghy. I waited on shore while Brad delivered the groceries to the boat. I took a shower, bought a snack, and studied Duolingo for an hour or so until he returned.

"Weather Station" in the Puerto Escondido Marina

Once again, we had drinks and onion rings at the restaurant. Brad took a shower while I waited and then we took a very quick and smooth dinghy ride back to the boat. With Rich and his belongings off the boat, it was much more zen. We enjoyed a very relaxing evening and didn’t realize we had forgotten to eat dinner until about 21:00 when we heated up leftover pasta.

LA CRUZ TO LA PAZ ON WINGS 2024

 March 24-27, 2024

The 2024 cruising season presented my friend, Fred, with a new set of challenges. He had not attempted to cruise Wings since the death of his wife and my friend, Judy, in 2023. They had an established routine but, suddenly, everything needed to be accomplished in different ways. I volunteered to make the crossing to La Paz with Fred, as I knew both the boat and the crossing well. Fred’s race crew came through and helped us to swap out all the racing gear for cruising gear. With three vehicles, we managed it with only one trip to the storage facility. Racing sails were packed away and the cruising sails, dodger, dinghy, and motor hauled out of storage and transferred to Wings.

Wings at the Fuel Dock in La Cruz

We were scheduled to leave on Thursday and Fred was already worried about getting the boat ready between the end of the Banderas Bay Regatta on Saturday and our scheduled departure date. Things became much trickier for him when Wings was damaged in a collision during Friday’s race. The bow pulpit, anchor roller, and bow light were destroyed. The bow pulpit could be lashed and taped together until his return to La Cruz, but the anchor roller (a heavy stainless-steel assembly firmly bolted to the bow) and the bow light were essential. Miraculously, the local stainless-steel fabricator managed to force the bow roller into serviceable shape without removing it from the boat, saving days of work. The local chandlery had a bow light in stock. Somehow, Fred managed to get the boat ready to leave on schedule.

I had my own long list of tasks to accomplish before I could leave for what could be three months. Cat sitters were located, laundry done, bills paid, and gear packed and delivered to both Wings (a light load) and White Wind where I would spend the majority of the season.

March 28, 2024

Brainwaves on Banderas Bay

Fred and I left the dock on schedule on Thursday morning. We proceeded to the fuel dock where we loaded up with diesel and Fred ran up to the port captain to check out. Then we set off across Banderas Bay. I was introduced to the Monitor wind vane and immediately saw the advantage. Autopilots require power and can fail. The wind vane ran itself and, while it couldn’t handle light air very well, was at least as reliable as an autopilot. The wind was blowing from a more southerly direction than usual, so our sail across the bay did not follow the usual pattern. We still made good time across the bay but lost the wind shortly after we cleared Punta Mita. By 14:00, we had surrendered to turning on the engine.  Our friends, Jim and Deb, on Brainwaves left just after us and so our crossing became a bit of a race.

The wind was light but the seas were a bit lumpy. We decided to heat up the lasagne I had made ahead of time for our dinner. Fred removed the leftover containers stored in the oven and lighted it for me. Not wanting to make a mess in the oven, I put the foil packet I had prepared in a casserole dish and put it in the oven. Fred was on watch and I was below. After a few minutes, I noticed a strange smell. I opened the oven to check on it and a wall of flames shot out of the door. I closed it quickly and turned off the gas, but the fire continued. Every time we opened the door, we were greeted by more flames. The fire didn’t seem to be spreading to the hull, so Fred didn’t want to discharge a fire extinguisher. Gradually, the flames died down and finally went out. From the burning plastic smell, we deduced that a Tupperware lid must have been hidden in the oven, melted, and caught fire. It was very exciting, but ended well. The lasagne was not harmed. We still had a nice, warm, and filling dinner.

We motored north up the coast all night.

March 29, 2024

Wind predictions had all showed a southerly. Wind was, indeed, coming out of the south but it was too light to sail. Hoping to catch the wind when it strengthened, we chose a course between the shore and the Marias Islands. We motored all night, passing the Marias just before dawn.

Fred still had a list of boat repairs to accomplish. The first job he tackled was repairing the ground wire to the engine instruments. We knew the engine was running hot but, when I came on watch at 15:00 on Friday and saw the temperature gauge at the high end of red, I suggested rather forcefully that we shut it off and do something. We set sails and sailed slowly while Fred worked on the engine. The water pump seemed to be working well. Fred removed the thermostat and reamed out the heat exchanger. By the time he was done, the engine was actually running cold. He also worked on the watermaker and got the pump working, but it still was not producing any fresh water.

Winds were light, so we turned the engine back on once the engine was repaired. We motored all through my watch from 21:00 to 24:00. There was a beautiful full moon that rose late in my watch. There was no traffic. We were alone.

March 30, 2024

Wind, at Last

I woke up about 2:00 when Fred shut off the motor. Our southerly wind had finally kicked in and we were sailing. I came back on deck at 3:00. We were sailing nicely with the wind vane driving. I was able to hunker down under the petite dodger and stay reasonably warm.

Fred took the sunrise watch from 6:00 to 9:00, but I came up to eat breakfast about 8:00. We were still sailing nicely. The wind built gradually. We continued sailing all day. By 15:00, the wind was up to 15 knots from the south. By 16:00, we dropped the headsail and continued on main alone. We were still making six knots. My fantasy of actually sailing across the Gulf of California was coming true.

Finally Sailing

It got windier and windier and the wind continued to clock. This was the night that Fred decided to cook a complicated dinner. The boat was pitching all over the place and cooking, eating, and washing up were all quite challenging. By 20:00 it was up to 20 knots. We could see the coast of Baja and began to think we would arrive in Muertos before dawn. By 22:30, the wind had completely died and we started the engine. However, the wind continued to shift and by midnight we were sailing close hauled.  

March 31, 2024

It was chilly with the wind out of the north, but we sailed until the wind died at dawn. We pulled into Muertos at 9:30 and anchored next to our friends on Brainwaves.

At Anchor in Muertos

We rested and puttered around the boat. We weren’t as tired as expected and had plenty of energy to inflate the dinghy and install the motor. Jim and Deb invited us over for a fish dinner on Brainwaves. We had forgotten to adjust our clocks and arrived for dinner an hour early. We spent that hour toodling around the Muertos anchorage, visiting the other boats and watching the campers pack up and leave after their Semana Santa beach holiday. Many of the campsites were quite elaborate.

Campers on the Beach at Muertos

Jim and Deb cooked us a lovely dinner and we had a fine time, remarking that it was nice to be able to have just an intimate dinner with friends. In La Cruz, it was difficult to have a dinner party without inviting a dozen people which made it a completely different affair. We called it an early night because the weather for the following day looked promising and we all wanted to get an early start.

April 1, 2024

Sunrise at Muertos

We were up early and ready to go well before 7:00 on Monday morning, but our starter had died and we couldn’t start the engine. We raised the main sailed off the anchor. Then we hoisted the #2 jib and headed for the Ceralvo Channel.

Sailing on the #4 Jib

Wings in the Ceralvo Channel

By 9:20, the wind was up over 18 knots and we changed to the #4 jib. A sail change on Wings usually involves two agile foredeck crew to handle the sails, someone to jump the halyard and someone (formerly me) to tail the halyard and grind up the last few feet. With just the two of us, Fred had to handle the sails and jump the halyard while I tailed and made sure the boat went where it was supposed to go. Autopilots and wind vanes don’t work very well when you are pointed head to wind to change sails. Nobody observing Fred on that foredeck would have ever guessed his age at 78.

Wings with a Reef In

The wind dropped a little in the afternoon as we proceeded up the channel. We switched back to the #2. Then it got windy, again. We didn’t want to change sails, again, so we put a reef in the main. On the other side of the Ceralvo channel, we shook out the reef. Finally, by 16:00, we were in a position to raise the spinnaker. Brainwaves had left Muertos shortly we did. The stayed about six miles behind us all day. We expected them to catch us, but they never did. About the time we put up the kite, they decided to quit and go to Espiritu Santo. Fred was gloating.

Fred Readying the Spinnaker

We sailed fast under spinnaker for about and hour and a half until we failed to make a gybe and had to douse it and put up the #2 about the time we passed Pichilingue. The wind died about the time we entered the La Paz Channel. We still couldn’t start the motor, so we drifted down the La Paz Channel with the tide and dropped the hook in front of Marina Don Jose at sunset. It was a relief to have made it to our destination under sail alone and we felt very accomplished. We had a drink and made a simple dinner of bacon and eggs. It was finally time to rest.

April 2, 2024

Fred Working on the Starter

As is usually the case, our starter was the victim of a cascade of failures. The extra tasks necessitated by the collision during the Banderas Bay Regatta caused us to leave before repairing the engine instruments. The overheating engine caused a crack to open up in the heat exchanger cap which leaked onto the starter and eventually caused it to fail. Our first mission was to locate a working starter. Fred got up and immediately began an internet search. Then he asked for recommendations via the morning net. Someone suggested a shop that specialized in repairing starters and alternators. After calling every parts shop in La Paz and visiting one of them, we took an Uber to Kevin’s Autopartes to talk to him about rebuilding both the failed starter and the broken spare, whose repair had been overlooked during the chaos surrounding Judy’s death. Kevin told us he needed an hour to diagnose the starters, so we walked down the street to a nice restaurant for lunch.

By the time we returned, Kevin assured us that both starters could be repaired, one for 1800 pesos, and the other for 2400. After some negotiation, he agreed to fix both for a total of 3600 pesos. He told us they would be ready by 17:00. We went back to the boat for a nap and then returned to Kevin’s. One starter was ready, but the new solenoid was the mirror image of the original and couldn’t be installed in the boat. After some confusion, the proper solenoid was located and installed on the repaired starter. We waited for an hour or so until the second starter was finished and provided with the correct solenoid. Then we took another Uber back to the boat.

Fred cooked some chicken with BBQ sauce and beans and we relaxed, hopeful that the following day would see Wings’ engine functioning, once again.

April 3-4, 2024

Fred at His Computer

I could barely restrain Fred from testing the starter long enough to make French toast and bacon. After breakfast, we pulled off the heavy engine cover for the umpteenth time and Fred installed the first starter. It cranked on the first try and we cheered. The second starter worked just as well. Then, Fred tackled the watermaker. He had spoken with a watermaker dealer about his problem and they were both fairly certain that the membrane was OK. Fred already had a rebuild kit so, though he never saw anything obviously wrong, he installed all the new parts. He was pessimistic about that solving the problem, but was pleasantly surprised when the watermaker suddenly began to produce fresh water. The day had been very satisfactory.

By mid-afternoon, we were ready to go ashore. We went to the grocery store and then stopped by Club Cruceros for 20 peso beers. We were supposed to get free hot dogs, but the line was so long we never bothered. We came back to the boat and had a lovely dinner of steak, cauliflower, and salad.

Thursday was a slow day.  With out boat repairs completed, we were able to relax.  I spent a good deal of the day writing and Fred worked on his computer.  

April 5, 2024

My flight back to La Cruz left at 10:53.  We got up and shared a last breakfast together before loading my gear into the dinghy and delivering me to the dinghy dock.  I said goodbye to Fred somewhat reluctantly, as I had not yet met his next crewmember who was due to arrive that afternoon.  I took an Uber to the airport and caught my flight back to Puerto Vallarta via Mexico City.

The La Paz Airport Is Not Busy