Guenevere

Greg and Jill,


These are for you.... She looks fine.

Rick

Basura.....

Garbage.... I hate it! This is my rant for the day. As we got closer to Mazatlan, we started seeing more garbage floating on the water.

Plastics are the worst. They do not degrade easily and impacts are known to almost 300 species of sea life, there are probably many more. Sea turtles mistake clear plastic bags for jellyfish. Birds swoop down and swallow indigestible shards of plastic and feed thier young the plastic which chokes them or cannot be ingested. The petroleum-based plastics take decades to break down, and as long as they float on the ocean's surface, they can appear as feeding grounds. The animals die because the plastic fills thier stomachs, it does not pass easily and they literally starve to death. They also become entangled, cannot fly or slowly choke.The plastics absorb and release various chemicals creating a stew that will kill wildlife as well. Plankton eat it, fish eat plankton, we eat fish.... get the picture?

There is a new continent forming way out in the South Pacific between San Francsico and Hawaii that has become known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. It is a floating island, twice the size of Texas and growing that is made of 80% plastic. It has been formed by an ocean current called the North Pacific Gyre. The surface winds blow the garbage to this central area where the island is forming. 80% is estimated to come from land and 20% from ships at sea.

http://www.vbs.tv/video.php?id=1485308505

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Pacific_Garbage_Patch

The Crossing....

We left La Paz last Tuesday morning at 10 am with light winds which laeted through the night giving us some good sailing and when it slowed down, motor sailing. The little diesel worked like a charm and hummed along, even as the winds got lighter. As a whole, the crossing was uneventful. We pretty much sailed, then motor sailed, sailed again, motor sailed and then finally on the last day, no winds so it was straight motoring. Very light seas, hardly any traffic, no moon as it set early each evening but that made for some very starry nights while on watch. We took 3 hour watches and our turn at the helm. The nights were warm and for the most part, we could do the whole watch in t shirts and shorts. When the diesel wasn't humming along, Crab or Crusty tended to snore a little which was usually a little louder than the diesel.... Had a couple of dolphin encounters which was fun, saw a sea turtle, lots of jelly fish, and a few seals. The dolphins came and left several times, seemed like we were the only show in town. They were probably a little disappointed in that we were doing less than 5 knots and hour and they love to jump in the wake at the front of the boat. Sometimes you could see over a dozen of them right off the bow. We arrived in Mazatlan just before 5 pm, called in to Marina Mazatlan just before closing and were greeted with a "No Problem Sweety". We were given a slip right at closing with a request to do the paper work in the morning. Nice to get into the showers and have a quiet sleep at the slip.

Back to the Islands....

At least it was back to the islands for me.....

We left on Thursday, Nov 27, and Turkey day in the US. There was a big dinner set up by Club Crusarios. Tickets were on 10 pesos, and 200 were expected. We skipped out and chose to head out to the Islands. Started later than I had hoped, 11 am, and had a nice breeze to start. It soon died and we ended up motoring most of the way. Anchor set by about 4:30 in the same little bay that Nathene and I had anchored in when we had the water pump problem last year. All was well and then a west wind picked up and blew right into the bay making for some pretty big swells. Mike did not like them…. And in the back of my mind, I could hear Nathene saying “make it stop….”. The wind pretty much blew all night. Mike survived but it was pretty hard on him. In the morning we watched “Maranatha” pull anchor and leave with its support boat running around it taking video…
Friday was partly cloudy. We moved to Ensenada Grande, which is really 3 different bays and we anchored in a tight little hole in the south bay. The next bay over has a beach that was rated as one of the top 10 in the world last year. Rod and Mike did a little kayaking and saw all of Ensenada Grande. They both seemed to be quite impressed with the kayaks and are thinking of buying their own. If they do buy them, I should start getting a commission from Advanced Kayaks because that will at least 4 or 5 people who have bought them after trying mine.

I snorkeled in the bay where the boat was anchored. Saw lots of different fish, schools of different species with all colors and hues, some pretty big, lots a sea anemones, etc. Most of them were right along the rocks right next to shore or up against the cliffs. There were schools of larger silver fish that we saw local fishermen catching with nets last year as well but they tended to keep out and away from the rocks and more on the sand in the open water. Saw a few rays laying on the bottom and lots of puffer fish.

Later I kayaked around and saw all 3 bays as well as the nice beach. Took a few pictures and back to the boat, dodging the big motor cruisers that set up in the same bay. “Maranatha” was the big boat in the anchorage on Thursday night, it has been significantly dwarfed. I climbed the hill above the boat and took a few pictures then we cooked up a nice steak supper. Evening spent sitting quietly talking and listening to a local station Rod found. First nice one we’ve had.

The wind picked up after dark and blew pretty much all night. It was bumpy, Mike did better thanks to modern chemistry but I think we were all up several times with a few loud clanks and bumps. The anchor held, we did not move, but I think the loud clumks were either from the anchor chain when it snapped tight or from the boat ladder which was left down and against the rudder.

Breakfast and because of the north wind, we chose not to go further north to check out the sea lion rookery. Instead, we caught the wind and it pushed us into La Paz, sometimes breaking 6.3 knots, which is clipping right along in Tansi!

Tied up to the dock, cleaned up, put things away, and made of list of what worked and didn't work for the next trip out. That will be the crossing, and most likely departure will be Tuesday morning.

Crusty and Crab arrive….

I’ll let you figure which one is which. I got here Saturday, spent most of the time cleaning the boat and doing some maintenance items. They arrived on Monday after a long, long trip. But it did go well, other than Mike being checked and rechecked by every security guard that laid his/her eyes on him.

Spend the next day or two still on maintenance. Fixed the fuel tank, did not move it back but instead rigged up the old tank under the quarter berth and gave up on the new tank. Looks and works well. Replaced the leaking seals on the water pump on the engine so it is now dry and also replaced the fuel gauge, and it works! What a bonus.

We moved the fridge out from under the table, I find it works great when we are in port and had a hard time leaving it behind. It now sits in under the radio and looks great. That compartment was pretty much filled with junk. Threw some out and stored the rest elsewhere.

When not working on the boat, Boomer would come by and keep Rod and Mike amused. Boomer is one of the colorful individuals that can found around here and lives in the Marina on his boat year round. He gave us a ride into town for groceries and provisions. It was very kind of him to do that. Thursday morning it was cast off and head for the islands. These islands which are a marine sanctuary, of which Isla Espiritos Sanctos, is the largest. They are a unique world class destination.

Kayaking at Ispiritos Santos

I picked up 2 Advanced Frame Kayaks made by Advanced Elements for use both with the boat in Mexico and at home during the summer. They fold up into a bag the size of a large suitcase and weigh 36 lbs. so they were perfect for us to use and move back and forth when we fly. I checked several forums to see what others thought of them and then bought one to try out. My first trip was down the Bow River. I just got into the current when I spilt the kayak over. Not the kayaks fault, just the operator. It took me a few minutes to get it back over to shore, drained out and then back on the river. They are light in weight, sturdy, and a very responsive craft. After the trip, I came home and ordered the second one.


They are great on the sailboat because they store so easily and handle so well. When inflated, they can lay on the deck and do not interfere with the operation of the boat. Launching them is easy, and we had not problems either getting in or out and back into the boat. I use the swim ladder off of the stern of the boat and ease myself into the kayak or out. We have found them great for getting back and forth to shore or for kicking around the marina or exploring when anchored out. I can see us using the kayaks over the dinghy in many cases.


We sailed out to Ispiritos Santos for a few days, something that I had looked forward to for the whole trip but alas, a perfect trip was not in store for us as we experienced an engine problem. On the way out, the engine quit and inspite of all my efforts could not get it going again. We sailed into a secluded anchorage at the north end of the island and spent the night there, then slowly made it back to La Paz in some very light winds. In between we were able to to a little kayaking which was a welcome relief from the messing around with the diesel.


I picked up the back bone for them which just gives them a little more rigidity. There is a skeg on the stern which helps with tracking. When we left the boat, it was pretty calm but when we returned, a pretty stiff breeze had picked up. The kayaks handled very well and easily took the waves that were just starting to build from shore. Going into the shallows was not a problem as the boats only need a few inches of water to float in. This got me right up to a small island right next to a number of sea birds that were just hanging there with me, quite unconcerned.



We found them great to get around the marina in and used them to tour and look at different boats as well as just to visit with friends. Our long time friends Bob and Cindy came up from Cabo to for a few days with thier truck making it easy to go out for a day trip.

Tan'si

Tan'si is an 1973 Islander 30 that I bought on ebay from a not for profit society. She had been abandoned at a marina and neglected for about 5 years when I got her. No name on the boat, so we named her "Tan'si".

"Tan'si" is a Northern Cree word that loosely translated, means "Welcome". I worked with a number of northern communities, developed some great friendships with some very good people who are passionate about their language and culture. "Tan'si" is a tribute to those people.

Our boat is not the prettiest vessel to grace the seas at this time, as I have focused most of my efforts on making sure she is a sound vessel. I left her in Berkeley for 2 years and did a lot of work on the boat there. I traveled down 3 or so times a year and spent a couple of weeks at a time working on the boat and also getting to see the Bay area as well as Napa Valley and other places. It was sort of like cruising without leaving the dock.

Tan'si is our toehold into the cruising world. I am not ready to retire yet, so we are limited to a few trips a year and Tan'si gives us a feel for what cruising would be like at a pretty low investment. Also makes for a great holiday at a reasonable cost, even including marina or dry storage fees for the year.

La Paz

Well, made it back to La Paz. Guess we didn't update the trip from Cabo to La Paz from last spring. It was great but with all things sailing, took a little longer than expected. Nathene arrived and I had pulled the boat back into the Marina for her first night. She thought, sailing is quite nice as we sat in the sheltered marina.

Next night we anchored out in the bay and had an eventful night with steady swells from the pacific rocking the boat."Make it stop" was heard often from Nathene as she tried to adjust to life on the boat that night. Next day we pulled anchor and sailed towards Los Frailes, an anchorage about 40 nautical from Cabo. Nice little bay, named after the rock overlooking the bay that sort of resembles 3 friars hunched over climbing a hill. Saw lots of whales on the way to Los Frailes with beautiful sun and light winds.

As we pulled anchor the next morning some rays starting jumping out of the water. Others just came to the surface and sat there sunning themselves. Really cool. We rounded the point out of the bay just as the wind started to pick up. 4 hours later, we gave up and turned back, a northerner was starting to blow. Northerners are north winds that blow down the Sea of Cortez and usually occur when the Santa Ana winds are blowing in California. This one lasted for 4 days, stranding us in Los Frailes in behind the Friars and secure out of the wind. We were running low on water and I ended up catching a ride into town with "Phil" an expat from California who may still have been trying to avoid the draft or recovering from the last war. Lets say it was an interesting ride on the back roads, dodging 1/2 starved cows will balancing on the back of a 1970 Yamaha 90.

When the winds lightened up, we pushed forward and got to Los Muritos, or "The Dead Men", refering not to dead men, or ghosts, but to the heavy anchors that laid buried in the bay. They used to hold the boats secure back in the mining days. Dinner at a restruant was welcome but we both found it a little uneasy after being on the boat so long.

Next night found us in a small bay north of La Paz, beautiful beach, nice sheltered anchorage, Balandara bay. Did some snorkling and walking on the beach.

La Paz was a welcome sight and we spent 3 days at the marina in pampered luxury before leaving the boat in dry dock and taking the ferry to Mazatlan, the only gringos on board.