Travels
from May 20 to May 29, 2000:
Ahoy,
Cruising
in the Gulf of California, the Sea of Cortez, is the ultimate in desirable
cruising because it takes only a few hours to get from one anchorage to
another. No sleep deprivation, no
cooking on a moving stove. We get up at
the usual time, have breakfast, put away the solar panels, tie down the dink
and make the boat ready for getting underway and are ready to raise the anchor
by 0930 - 1000. Some of the trips are
as short as 5 miles! You see we don't
have any other agenda besides enjoying each anchorage.
Actually,
we don't stop at each and every place.
Some are desirable in northerly winds and some in southerly winds. At this time of the year, we seek shelter
from the latter. Some anchorages are
deep and some are shallower. We usually
avoid the deep ones. Some anchorages
are so small that only one or two boats can be there at a time. As we develop more experience, we have heard
and personally determined that there are good locations not shown in the most
popular guides. William's guide for The
Sea has aerial photos that have been most helpful. Otherwise, we listen for hints from other cruisers, watch for
sheltered coves and venture in observing (sounding) the depths with care. Once anchored, I dive to check for hazards
and that the anchor is well set.
Some
anchorages are rated for hurricanes.
These are referred to as "hurricane holes". Unfortunately, there are not that many. To qualify as a "hole", the
anchorage must be surrounded by land.
That provides protection from the seas from all directions. This is important because as the storm
passes, the direction of the wind and seas will clock. Remember the first rule, "It's the seas
that kill - not the winds!" Of
course, in the event of an actual hurricane, all boats have to be well anchored
to hold against the high winds as well.
La Paz has a "hole", farther to the north is Puerto Escondido
(a lagoon, not a developed port). When
I discovered that La Paz translates as The Peace, I wondered if the naming came
from being a refuge from these summer storms for the Spanish.
We keep
informed on weather development, mainly in the south where the
"named" storms begin. We also
know where the nearest "hole" is for ultimate defense and how long it
would take for Nanjo to get there.
Although
there have already been storms growing off southern Mexico, they have followed
the usual predictions and gone west. To
have depressions turn into hurricanes, the waters have to be warm, providing
energy to strengthen their dynamics.
The waters in the southern Sea historically stay below the necessary
levels until mid-July. August and
September see the water temperatures at the highest in the lower and mid
Sea. Therefore most cruisers plan to
keep moving up the Sea, getting to the so-called Midriff Islands, 2/3 of the
way up by mid-July. That's our plan as
well. Presently, we are within 10 miles
of Escondido, the second hurricane hole.
The
hurricane-talk is not an attempt to build the predictable Nanjo-suspense. We want to let you know the logic and
rules. While there can be exceptions in
the "wrong" direction with regards to the statistical norms, the
current water temperatures are indicating a longer safe-period. If a storm turns and passes over cooler
water, it will lose energy. So if a
storm appears to be moving in our direction in the next couple of weeks, don't
freak-out! BUD came fairly close to
Cabo before fizzling out. We all
monitored the position. We use special
plotting sheets our friends from Reliance gave us. As the storm gets closer, the VHF net broadcasts the position
every four hours.
But
back to idyllic anchorages . . .
Typically
we stay in an anchorage for three days.
The first day is our arrival, the second and third is for exploring
ashore or making water. Chores occur
each and every day. You have to
maintain your home - So do we. You turn
on a light switch or a water faucet - We have to make the electricity or the
potable water.
However,
if there are other boats in the anchorage, there is usually a beach party
(potluck dinner or drinks and snacks before dinner), a boat party, when the
group is smaller, or just a "jaw" session between boats. When there aren't other boats, we have other
options: Nude showers, quiet and solitude.
On
shore there is the never-ending quest for the next shell worth saving. Since we are in a varied, desert
environment, there are different rocks to strike our interest. Crystals, agates, geodes and all sorts of
interesting color. The hills are
sometimes volcanic, sometimes sandstone.
There are caves to explore, cliffs to peer over, and views that change
color at sunset. Snorkeling is both
recreational and functional (cool off).
In addition, that is how I clean the hull, prop, thru-hulls (openings
below the waterline where water is pumped in or pumped out) and sensors. We hike, we row and we swim for exercise.
The
weather has been stuck at 90 degrees (5 degrees mas o menos) for some time,
except for a few days in the 100's in La Paz.
Nanjo's decks are too hot to walk on without shoes (water socks). The solar shower heats up in a few hours and
we have to add water to cool it down.
So far we have had breezes or wind to keep us cool. The nights get into the 70's. This calls for sleeping without a blanket or
sheet. The hatch over our bunk is kept
open. There is rarely any dew in the
mornings because of the low humidity.
The
first anchorage we went to was back out on Isla Partida - El Cardonel. This was the next cove north from Caleta
Partida, where we anchored with Gemini after we crossed from Mazatlan. The anchorage is smaller and not as popular,
so we had it to ourselves for several nights.
We climbed the hills, explored caves, hiked to the other side of the
island and were run off a beach by two sea gulls. Just sitting in the dink, schools of catchable fish would swim
around us - just a tad beyond spear-gun range.
The
next stop was 24 miles north, Isla San Francisco. This was a bumpy anchorage for the first few nights. Winds were 20 - 25 knots and we weren't
protected much from the 5 - 6 foot swells.
Land between you and the swell doesn't prevent the swell from hitting
you. The swell "refracts"
around the land and comes in from a different angle. It has to be a cruising-God's attempt at humor. But, we had to make water anyway. The rough anchorage ran almost everyone
away. So, when the seas settled down,
there wasn't a crowd on the beach looking for agates and shells. It was another three days at this anchorage
before leaving, on May 26, for a short 11-mile sail to our next destination.
San
Evaristo is a small fishing village on the Baja peninsula. It has a somewhat sheltered cove, but we
weren't able to get a good anchor set in the only remaining protected
spot. So we headed out and anchored
around on the north side of the town.
This gave us good protection from the current weather, although it
required us to anchor Nanjo fairly close to the beach since the water dropped
off quickly. Later that afternoon, a
sport-fishing boat joined us and we were entertained by their stereo and
illuminated by their mega-candlepower deck lights.
The
next day, Gemini came south and radioed from the cove that it was calm and they
were holding a spot for us. Since the
weather had switched and our spot was less desirable, we joined them. Another night of raw fish caught by Gemini,
only this night it was served aboard Nanjo.
The
third day was chore-day, since we were leaving the next day for Los Gatos. [See!
We are really in a rut.]
Los
Gatos was 28 miles away. It was
Memorial Day in the Old Country and we wondered how many of our family were up
when we left at 0730 (0630 Pacific). It
was a relaxing journey. We sailed on a
light beat (wind coming more from the front, mild wind speed) for the first
hour, slack for about 20 minutes before swinging to our stern for the rest of
the afternoon. STEVE did most of the
work at the helm.
We
entered the cove at El Gato as Charlie's Charts suggested and tucked down to
the southern end as far as we felt safe.
The wind was only 15 knots, but we wanted as much protection as we could
get. Immediately, upon anchoring, a
panga came alongside and Juan Manuel took our order for that evening's supper -
Langusta!
This is
how Memorial Day is celebrated in the Sea of Cortez!
Crew of
Nanjo