First let me start with an apology for being gone so long. The west side of the baja peninsula is an internet desert. We were able to get a text message through every once in a while, but there was no internet at all. This poses a problem for blogging. I have condensed 2/6 - 2/14 down into one post as it was a lot of moving to make the nearly 800 miles to Cabo San Lucas.
I am very surprised at the discovery that nearly all of the west coast of the baja peninsula is completely undeveloped. From Ensenada to Cabo San Lucas we found no marinas, very few protected coves and we anchored in the open Pacific Ocean, usually behind a point for some small amount of protection from the swell and wind. The points usually had a small rustic fishing village with a number of pongas beached or moored. In most cases, we did not go ashore because it is difficult and dangerous to take the dinghy through breaking surf. We were happy to stay aboard and have dinner and a bit of rest, but it meant there was little reason to stay for more than a night anywhere.
There were exceptions! Bahia Tortugas was touted as a beautiful bay, and it was. It is protected and calm so we could sleep off the 24 cruise hours to get there. We went ashore and were met by the friendly mexican man that promised to keep the dinghy safe from the banditos that would certainly steal it or at least steal the engine. He showed us where the only restaurant was in town and we had a nice meal.
The town was pretty depressing, and it was clear that COVID had taken its toll over the past couple of years. We returned to the dinghy and our personal security guard was there with his hand out.
We moved on to Bahia Asuncion. This was another 8 hours of run time but we felt like we had seen enough of Bahia Tortugas and it was time to go.
Bahia Asuncion was a nice place -- just behind point Asuncion with a small fleet of Pongas.
We enjoyed the sunset, walked around the town but found nothing open so we had dinner on the boat.
We now faced a decision. We could move directly to Magdalena Bay but that would be over 30 hours transit, or we could break it onto two segments stopping in San Juanico which looked like a fair-weather anchorage in the middle. Since we had just made an over-night passage, we decided to leave at 6:30 AM and make it in two segments traveling during the day.
All of the transits were beautiful, calm with lots of sea life. I guess I have breezed over the joy of making the transits.
After a full day of travel, we arrived at San Juanico. The weather was calm, so it was a fine place to anchor. The breakers on the beach prevented us from going ashore so we just admired another little fishing village from the boat, had a nice dinner and went to bed.
Off at 4:00 AM to get to Bahia Santa Maria prior to sunset. This was another long day at sea, but we arrived safely in a protected cove and rested after what seemed like many days of travel.
After hours at sea with little sight of land we rounded point Lazaro and cozied up with a few sailboats and a Mexican coast Guard Cutter for a night. We were getting pretty exhausted by this point. There was nothing on shore except shore. Completely as nature intended.
We had been paying close attention to the water temperature and it went above 70 degrees about here. We were ready for a couple days of rest and swimming in the sea.
The morning broke and it was foggy. We had a relaxing morning with coffee and left for Magdalena bay -- just a couple of hours of cruising today.
Hint: here is where the tiki huts come in!
Mag bay was my favorite place so far. Very well protected cove, warm water, friendly natives on the beach. We swam before our morning coffee, we opened every window and door to the 80 degree weather and went ashore to eat.
I loved the tiki hut, and the beer was a perfect complement to the 80 degree weather. This was a very relaxing couple of days. This restaurant was family owned and they spoke no English at all. We all improved our Spanish, It was easy to communicate with people that are so friendly.
This was a really wonderful time. The water was so calm and warm it begged for swimming and the sun was beautiful.
We did have a minor hitch. When we attempted to launch the dinghy, the crane did not work. We did some troubleshooting and discovered a pin in the electrical controller had broken.
With Matt's clever work around we got it working temporarily and averted having to swim ashore.
We'll call it the Mexican Alligator solution. The parts are on order.
Alas, we had to move on. The next segment was a long 24 hours with no stops. The prize -- Cabo San Lucas.
We left at 1:00 PM for an arrival around noon the following day. Well rested and an invigorating swim in the sea prior to departure. I am starting to get into the Mexican culture!
Cabo!
We arrived and took a slip in the marina. Expensive and only 1 night available. We checked into the marina office and presented the reems of required information again, but we had trouble getting back to the boat. Tiki bars called.
Cabo seems like the Mexican Las Vegas. Everything in your face. We could not walk down the street without vendors approaching and trying to sell their goods. Hundreds of restaurants along the waterfront and megayachts everywhere.
The marina was rolly all day with tour boats going in and out, pirate ships taking the booty out for a cruise and fishing boats leaving at 5:00 in the morning. The sounds of DJ's in the background and loud music. I was satisfied with the experience after one day.
We had a fun time and provisioned at Walmart, but by 1:oo PM we were out of the marina on to the next port.
If you made it this far, congratulations. That was 800 nautical miles in two weeks. every night was at sea or anchored. It was mostly all fair-weather cruising. A great start to the next adventure.
Technical Data:
San Quintin to Bahía Tortugas
2/6/2022
Time: 23 h 49 m ( 08:32 to 08:22 ) Distance: 184.87 nm
Fuel: 66.22 Gallons Fuel Rate: 2.78 GPH Fuel Economy: 2.79 NM/G
Avg Speed: 7.83 kn Max Speed: 9.29 kn
Engine Runtime Start: 3213.10 Hours Runtime End: 3236.95 Hours Fuel: 66.22 Gallons Fuel Rate: 2.78 GPH Fuel Rate Max: 4.07 GPH Avg RPM: 1249.47 Max RPM: 1304.50 Avg Oil Pressure: 52.74 Low Oil Pressure: 31.91 Avg Temperature: 183.80 Max Temperature: 192.20
2/8/2022
Time: 7 h 20 m ( 06:54 to 14:14 ) Distance: 54.40 nm
Fuel: 21.21 Gallons Fuel Rate: 2.89 GPH Fuel Economy: 2.56 NM/G
Avg Speed: 7.65 kn Max Speed: 8.86 kn
Engine Runtime Start: 3236.95 Hours Runtime End: 3244.25 Hours Fuel: 21.21 Gallons Fuel Rate: 2.89 GPH Fuel Rate Max: 4.20 GPH Avg RPM: 1255.87 Max RPM: 1347.00 Avg Oil Pressure: 52.63 Low Oil Pressure: 31.91 Avg Temperature: 177.08 Max Temperature: 194.00
Time: 9 h 51 m ( 06:30 to 16:21 ) Distance: 67.48 nm
Fuel: 19.21 Gallons Fuel Rate: 1.95 GPH Fuel Economy: 3.51 NM/G
Avg Speed: 7.16 kn Max Speed: 9.35 kn
Engine Runtime Start: 3252.05 Hours Runtime End: 3261.90 Hours Fuel: 19.21 Gallons Fuel Rate: 1.95 GPH Fuel Rate Max: 15.14 GPH Avg RPM: 1143.12 Max RPM: 1984.00 Avg Oil Pressure: 51.35 Low Oil Pressure: 31.91 Avg Temperature: 186.48 Max Temperature: 194.00
San Juanico to Santa Maria
2/11/2022
Time: 13 h 2 m ( 04:03 to 17:05 ) Distance: 96.56 nm
Fuel: 31.04 Gallons Fuel Rate: 2.38 GPH Fuel Economy: 3.11 NM/G
Avg Speed: 7.47 kn Max Speed: 8.61 kn
Engine Runtime Start: 3261.90 Hours Runtime End: 3274.95 Hours Fuel: 31.04 Gallons Fuel Rate: 2.38 GPH Fuel Rate Max: 3.38 GPH Avg RPM: 1228.68 Max RPM: 1292.75 Avg Oil Pressure: 52.99 Low Oil Pressure: 31.91 Avg Temperature: 182.33 Max Temperature: 192.20
Santa Maria to Marina del Rey, MX
Time: 21 h 21 m ( 11:04 to 08:26 ) Distance: 167.24 nm
Fuel: 52.56 Gallons Fuel Rate: 2.46 GPH Fuel Economy: 3.18 NM/G
Avg Speed: 7.98 kn Max Speed: 8.92 kn
Engine Runtime Start: 3278.95 Hours Runtime End: 3300.30 Hours Fuel: 52.56 Gallons Fuel Rate: 2.46 GPH Fuel Rate Max: 3.83 GPH Avg RPM: 1228.41 Max RPM: 1330.50 Avg Oil Pressure: 51.97 Low Oil Pressure: 31.91 Avg Temperature: 185.52 Max Temperature: 192.20
Time: 21 h 21 m ( 11:04 to 08:26 ) Distance: 167.24 nm
Fuel: 52.56 Gallons Fuel Rate: 2.46 GPH Fuel Economy: 3.18 NM/G
Avg Speed: 7.98 kn Max Speed: 8.92 kn
Engine Runtime Start: 3278.95 Hours Runtime End: 3300.30 Hours Fuel: 52.56 Gallons Fuel Rate: 2.46 GPH Fuel Rate Max: 3.83 GPH Avg RPM: 1228.41 Max RPM: 1330.50 Avg Oil Pressure: 51.97 Low Oil Pressure: 31.91 Avg Temperature: 185.52 Max Temperature: 192.20
