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Fall 2011 - Spring 2012
Our log of events starting with
most recent to past:
November 11- 18:
Our ride from La Paz to Los Muertes was very calm with
a perfect temperature of 81degrees. We need to use lots of sunscreen!
When we neared Muertes the wind came up to about 12 knots then died down
at sunset. We looked forward to another nice day going to Los Frailes
where we want to snorkel near the coral reef. The morning of the 12th
was very calm, but at noon the winds whipped up to more than 15 knots
right on our nose. It took us 6 hours to go 19 miles! Plus the seas were
coming over the bow and we are bashing into the waves. So, no snorkeling
for us because we got the anchor down just as the sun was disappearing.
The anchorage was rockin' and rollin' all night. Because we would cross
the Sea we started out of the anchorage at 6:00 a.m. to go to
Mazatlan. Wierdly, the sea was calm and the winds were only 4
knots. We motor sailed until the winds got up to 10 knots and put
the jib out to make good time without the motor. During dinner we took
the jib in and straightened the boat for a nice meal up in the cockpit.
The night sail was quiet and we even had a nice dolphin join us for a
while, The morning sunrise is always gorgeous! But mid morning we
noticed the sky behind us getting darker and darker. The clouds
were building and the winds were picking up again. We took the jib down
when the winds got more than 20 knots; we were still going more
than 6.5 knots with just the main and the seas were building and
hitting us on our aft starboard side which made the boat roll and yaw.
The auto helm was busy keeping us on course. It wasn't long before
it started to sprinkle, then rain, and rain some more! We had about 4
drenching rains over 4 hours of rough seas. The canvas was
dripping, we were dripping, and the boat was crashing
through the surf. What an E RIDE! As we were coming into Mazatlan HOT
(7.5 knots)....with the main up and the seas big. A decision
was made to duck in behind the islands that are offshore of Mazatlan so
we could take the sail down and find a place to anchor. The
marinas in Mazatlan are accessed through a narrow channel and when the
wind and surf are strong, it is too difficult to enter. The very
old anchorage of Club Nautica that is located in the main
shipping channel was our best option. We finally put the anchor
down at 2:30 after 20 hours of being on the water. We were very
happy to have the shelter, although Club Nautica's best days are behind
her. It was only 50 pesos a night to stay there and they do have
showers and internet service, but the cleaning crew obviously has been
gone for while. Ah...the glamorous cruising life!! ha ha.
Our intention was to spend just one night in Mazatlan and then go south
to Isla Isabella. But, Bob, another boater in the anchorage said the
winds would still be from the south and that if we waited an extra day
we would have north winds and following seas; we were all for that idea!
So, we took the famous VW Cab service into town to get fuel and did some
other work on the boat while we rested. On Wednesday, Nov. 16th we
left at 6:30 for another overnight sail all the way to Bahia
Chacala. As we left the main harbor and started to head towards the
south Dennis noticed the engine temperature gauge was registering
a low temperature. We stopped the engine and drifted while he went
down to check the engine water and temperature. When we tried to
start the engine again...nada...nope, not happening. Turns out the
Engine Starter battery was not working well, so he used jumper cables to
hook the started motor to the house batteries to get the engine
started. The gauges were still not working properly because the starter
motor had such a low charge, but we thought it would charge as the
engine ran. Well, that turned out to be wrong, and about 4
hours later the engine quit. Turns out the starter battery runs the fuel
pump apparatus. So, again, Dennis went below and hot wired the house
batteries through the starter battery which resulted in the instruments
fully functional. I don't know how anyone can do any
cruising without the mechanical skill that Dennis has; there are so many
things that need fixing and sometimes we are way offshore when it
happens. I am thankful every time he is able to overcome some
obstacle on the boat! We arrived in Chacala at 8:30 a.m. after a
relatively fast and nice motor sail all night. The only other problem we
faced during that time was missing all the fishing pangas and fishing
nets that are spread out over miles of seabed! The track on our chart
looks like we were doing a mambo instead of sailing to a direct point!
Chacala is one of my favorite anchorages! It is small, lovely
water, tropical foliage and fun beach palapas for good food. After
resting for a while, we took the dinghy onshore for a delicious mid-day
meal of fresh fish, rice and salad. It was so good that we didn't
even need dinner! We saw Bob, from the anchorage in Mazatlan when
he arrived. The evening and the night at anchor was perfect!
Finally we are heading into Puerto Vallarta! Again, we did the
sea mambo missing the miles and miles of buoys and line marking the
underwater nets the fishing fleet have put out. We now know to head into
shore when we see these hazards since they tend to spread the nets
out to sea. We arrived in Paradise Village Marina at 2;45
p.m. and were welcomed by Eddie, our dear friend from 2 years ago who is
on the same dock. After tying the boat down, we headed straight to
the beach for the sunset! whew....it has been some adventure!
November 10th:
The weather forecast is telling us that the high winds and bad seas
will subside tonight, so we will leave tomorrow morning and go "around
the corner" to Ensenada de Los Muertos which is 58 nautical miles away.
After that we will go 48 nm to Los Frailes and anchor for one night, then
we will cross the Sea to the mainland side again. Depending on the wind,
we will go 168 nm to Mazatlan, or we will go 217 nm to ISla Isabella. We
only go an average of 5 knots per hour, so those two destinations means
that we will sail at least one night and possible 2 nights without stopping.
Again we are so happy to have our auto-helm working!
We repaired the forward head and the running lights on the boat while
here, so our wait has been worthwhile. We find La Paz interesting, but
not as friendly as our San Carlos, nor as pleasant as the lovely
anchorages along the way. We do feel it is fortunate to have this
shelter during a "northern blow". Unfortunately there is not very good internet
service here, so not sure we can upload our posts until we get to Puerto
Vallarta.
November 7th;
We are sitting in Palmira Marina in La Paz, Mexico after a very
quick trip down the Baja coast. We really wanted to stop and stay
in some of the amazing anchorages along the way, but our late
start from San Carlos, and the forthcoming heavy weather, has forced us
to speed up and bust our butts to get south to a sheltered marina.
We sailed from San Carlos on Thursday for a 26 hour sail to Agua Verde
on the Baja side. The winds and weather (25 knot winds and 6-8
foot seas) made our journey less comfortable than we had hoped.
But, the good news, we caught a 15 pound Dorado on the way. Sailing into Agua Verde at 8:30 a.m. gave us all day to take a nap and then do some
snorkeling along the rocks where we saw nice Sergeant Major and other
reef type fishes. Watching the sunset and relaxing made us realize
why we do those long sails.
We got up early and headed for San Evaristo, a very sheltered anchorage,
but, as with Agua Verde, the anchorages along the Baja during this
time of the year get hit by the late night warm winds that come down the
mountain. We experienced 20 knot winds from about 10:30 -
5:00 a.m. in Agua Verde and in San Evaristo. They can be
unnerving as we continually wake up to check to see if we have moved off
anchor. The one nice thing is that we gathered with other friends in the
anchorages and exchanged stories, had food and drinks, and felt like a
community.
We left San Evaristo at 6:35a.m. and headed tor La Paz. The trip was too
calm - no wind, so our trusty engine, "The Beekster" gave us the power to get into
the marina at 3.35 p.m. We will stay here until Friday, mainly to
avoid the big winds of a "norther" coming down the Sea of Cortez from
Monday to Thursday. We try to avoid those 25-30 knot winds as much as
possible. Our plan is to stay in La Paz until Friday when we will
go around the corner to Los Muertes, and then to Los Frailes, and after
those two stops we will sail about 40 hours to Isla Isabella and
then down the mainland to Puerto Vallarta.
November 1st:
The installation is almost complete and we are crossing our fingers
that it will work. The highlight of the last few days had to be
Halloween! We had plenty of candy ready for the children who came from
the nearby homes and who were bused to the marina; all the boats
welcomed the trick-or-treaters! Then Becky and the grandkids and their
friends came! How fun! They all looked great in their costumes and were
hamming it up for the camera (go to Photo Gallery).
If all goes well we will leave Thursday morning very early and head to the Baja
coast (see below for itinerary).
October 29th:
We've been busy getting ready to sail south; we've
replaced the hoses on the engine, replaced the rebuilt carburetor for
the dinghy motor, protected the canvas with UV spray, replaced the
auto-helm after driving to San Diego to pick it up, checked the water-maker and the solar banks, updated the
ditch bag, added the fuel cans onto the deck, altered the anchor
roller, installed new dock lines, repaired the forward head, and charted
our sail plan, among other things. It takes a lot of work to sail 750
miles! We had hoped to leave on Oct. 25th but these tasks took longer
than expected, therefore, we will leave Nov. 2nd and sail 24 hours to
Isla Carmen on the Baja side of the Sea of Cortez and then make our way
down the coast and then across to the mainland and down to Puerto
Vallarta, arriving on November 16th. Here is the map of our trip
from San Carlos and down the Baja coast. We will, weather permitting,
stop in Ballandra Bay on Isla Carmen, Agua Verde or San Marte, San
Everisto, La Paz, Bahia de los Muertos, Bahia
Frailes, and then cross the Sea towards Isla Islabella and down the
mainland coast to Chacala, Isla Pena, and into Banderas Bay towards
Puerto Vallarta..

We expect to arrive
in Paradise Marina on Nov. 16th. Updates on this trip will be done after
we arrive, as we won't have internet connection unless we we find one in
La Paz. The majority of the trip will be spent in small coves where only
a village of fishermen live and work - absolutely beautiful. Come back
for the pictures!
First Posting: We
arrived in San Carlos on Oct.7, 2011 after stopping in San Francisco to
see Cam and Amanda. As usual, they provided lots of laughs and fun times
for us while we stayed at their house. We are sorry we could not help
them finish the roof, but we hope they get it done before the rain
starts. After spending Friday-Sunday, we left and drove the 12 hours to
Phoenix where we were graciously hosted by Carol Jennings at her
beautiful house. We spent a nice day with Wendy who made us a
traditional Mexican lunch and worked on some projects at the Clinton
Street house that we have rented. Raul and Kellye Serrano provided a
delicious dinner the night before we left for San Carlos.
The boat welcomed us back by being immaculately cleaned (by Jesus,
who watches over Pura Vida while we are gone) and cooler-than-expected
weather. We didn't even have to get the air conditioner out! After
unloading the many boxes onto the boat, Todd Pendleton and Heather
visited us. They are here to do scuba dives.
Becky and Gabriel are busier than ever; he is competing in a
fishing tournament for the weekend and Becky competed in a triathalon on
Sunday. The children are attending parties or playing with friends. We
hope we can see them often when they squeeze us in between the many
activities they do.
Winter - 2011
We arrived in San Carlos on January 15, 2011 and plan to be in San
Carlos until April. Here is our log:
The boat is in
excellent condition; Jesus and Eduardo have taken really good care of
her. We need to install the new depth meter and check the wiring and
plumbing now that Pura Vida went through the hot summer.
We saw Becky and the family the 2nd night here and enjoyed a
nice late Christmas celebration. It is always fun to see the
children having fun.
We hope to
see them a lot these next couple of months.
There are many new boats in the marina; I love hearing the
stories of those sailors who have traveled such long distances. Across
from us sits "True Companion", a beautiful sailboat who's owners, Fred
and Cathy, have sailed from Oregon down the Pacific Coast, through the
Panama Canal, through the Caribbean, up the East Coast, and back again.
They are much braver than me! We have another new neighbor from New
Mexico and are meeting some of the sailors through the morning "Net"
radio broadcast.
Thursday, 1/19/2011 caught us hiking up Tetakawi, the
mountain you see behind the marina. The name means "goat tit" and it
does look like that. The hike goes from 87 feet to more than1220
feet, much of it very steep and difficult terrain. We learned that it is
good to have gloves, as you need to pull yourself up along the
rocks and slide down using your hands. The views are
amazing. See the Photo Gallery.
The marina has space for Roseanne to offer fitness
classes, so today, Friday, I attended Zumba! I love this class - dancing
and working out! What a combo! Tonight there is a Blues Jam at the
Palapa...gotta go!
February 1, 2011
The days go by quickly because we
seem to find lots of things to do. Dennis has been working to fix a few
things on the boat; the depth meter has been changed, the batteries are
all working/charging as they should, the new roller for the anchor, and
general cleaning. An assessment of the various food items we have
on the boat resulted in throwing a few things out and trying to use as
much as possible soon. Of course, the local grocery stores are
excellent, so we can re-supply whenever we want. Plus a wonderful
gentleman comes to the dock to sell fresh shrimp and scallops and very
fresh veggies.
Lynn continues to attend the fitness classes, especially
Zumba. We rode our bikes over the hill to Paradiso and have done many
lovely walks in the mornings. Lynn joined Ligo de Arte, the art
league that consists of people interested in any form of art, where
workshops are offered and feedback is provided. She has been painting to
practice.
The grandchildren are getting so big! we joined Becky when
she took Gabrielito and Valentina to the bike track to learn how to
ride without training wheels. We took Siena and Andrea to the
Bellas de Gallerie for a special showing of paintings. When there the
girls indicated they liked a particular type of painting and the
President of the Ligo de Arte said she would teach them how to paint in
that style. We went to see Gabriel's parents to celebrate Luzacena's
birthday. We will have the small children on the boat for a 'MOVIE
NIGHT' next weekend.
Since we are in San Carlos for the winter we decided to
drive to Ciudad Obregon to explore local areas. Obregon is the 2nd
largest city in Sonora and is a very nice city. We especially liked the
Yaqui Cultural Center; the city is located in the Yaqui Valley and there
are 8 Yaqui Villages located around the area. The history is
similar to the Indian tribes in the US and they practice similar
celebrations. The Mexican government has designated their villages as
protrected areas after many years of desecration and discrimination.
February 7, 2011
The week brought a very cold spell that started in the US and carried
lots of gale force winds and cold temperatures. Very unusual 30+ degree
nights and low 50 degree days kept us inside with our little space
heater running all day. Today it will be back in the 70's and
sunny, although we wish the afternoon winds would die down. If we
want to go sailing we have to go very early and come back before 1:00
p.m. otherwise we cannot get back into the sllp. So, we are taking this
time to change the oil in the engine and repair the refrigerator, which
is not freezing at this point.
We also are having so much more time with Becky and the family. On
Saturday night Valentina and Gabrielito spent the night on the boat and
we watched movies and ate popcorn. Of course we played lots of games and
laughed at how cute they are. Monday was a holiday so Becky
brought the crew out to a beautiful canyon where we all did some bike
riding and a lovely hike back into a wash where there are palms and huge
boulders for the kids to climb. They all came back to the boat for
spaghetti dinner and more games. The coming week will offer an
opportunity for the older girls to get special art instruction in
acrylic paints.
March 4, 2011
I have been remiss in writing, but I must admit that we
have been doing a lot of the same things...getting with the
grandchildren, working on the boat, exercising, painting, and enjoying
the company of other boaters. Dennis has joined a group of guys
who ride their bikes each Monday and Thursday for some pretty strenuous
rides out through the desert or around the bay. The tend to go 20 miles
or more. This is great because they are fun "old boys" who laugh
and enjoy each other's company. Dennis and I have taken rides together,
one where we followed the San Carlos Challenge route and hiked into the
lovely canyon. I have gotten more involved in the
painting group and help with art shows or charity events. We were
happy to help Becky and Gabriel by babysitting the children so
they could have an evening out, and we have seen them regularly. Next
week we will drive to El Fuerte, Sinaloa, where we will catch the train
to go up into Copper Canyon, a canyon larger than the Grand Canyon. I
hope to bring back lots of pictures and stories.
March 19,2011
The trip to see Copper Canyon and
Alamos was a true highlight. We loved the small town of El Fuerte (the
Fort) which was founded by Captain Francisco del Ibarra in 1564,
and is one of the most beautiful and tropical towns of northern
Sinaloa. El Fuerte preserves many stories. It is said that here in
1795 the legendary Zorro, Don Alejandro de la Vega was born and lived
until he was 10 years old. He fought the Spanish to help the poor.
We stayed at the Posada del Hildago which is apparently on the
grounds of the de la Vega home. Each evening at happy hour, Zorro
appears to entertain the guests with songs and flirtations! We explored
the local Municipal building that has outstanding murals depicting the
history of the Mayo Indians and the settlement by the Spaniards. The
Mayo tribe celebrates and lives much the same way as the Yaqui culture.
We caught the Chepe train, built more than 50 years ago, that runs
through the 6 canyons that make up Copper Canyon. The train is
very comfortable and offers excellent scenic views. The conductor
described various areas in English and Spanish. The train goes all
the way to Chihuahua, but for the first leg we went to Posada Mirador.
This hotel sits on the rim of the Barranca del Cobre, Copper
Canyon. The other canyons include Urique, Sinforosa,
Batoplilas, Candamena, Chinipas, and Oteros. The highest elevation
is at Candamena at 8,333 feet, but the greatest depth occurs in Barranca
Urique at 6,135 feet. Overlooking Copper Canyon, it is easy to see why
the Tarahumara Indian tribe, known for incredible endurance running, are
so strong as you look at the depth of the canyon and see the
trails they use on a daily basis. The Mirador offers a walking
tour down the canyon to a Tarahumara household. These people don't
like "neighborhoods"; they build homes with relatives, but dont build
next to other families. Rather, they distance themselves in their living
arrangements, yet are close knit in celebration and culture. The females
and children concentrate on daily life chores and making their famous
baskets. Their sewn handcrafts are beautiful. The men work in the
mines, (gold and silver), agriculture, or construction. We saw few men.
School is valuedby some of the members, but others feel the
traditional ways aremore important and don't want them diluted. Most
finish the 3rd grade, few go beyond at the Tarahumara boarding school.
The Mirador overlooks the wide expanse of the zip line that spans
several promontories. There is also a gondola, although the only
way to get to the bottom of the canyon is by 4 wheel car/truck.
The next day we caught the train and went to the town of Creel
where we stayed 3 days. This town offers more information about the
Tarahumara and more varied terrain. The Museum provided an
excellent overview of the indigenous people and the history of area.
The Tarahumara say they have lived here forever - the original people of
the world. Other accounts say they have existed since 1,300 BC, and
documents show they have been in the canyons for 400 years.
It is acknowledged that few know much about these interesting
people. In 1602 the Franciscans started to arrive and a few
Missions were built. The priests wanted to organize the
people into communities and baptize them into the Catholic religion.
As mentioned, the people live in separate, but equal, households
and do not prefer community. They rebelled. There are accounts of many
rebellions by the Tarahumara people; they burned the
Missions/churches and did not join the church. The Franciscans did bring
corn seeds and taught them agriculture. It was not until
1990 that a functioning church mission was accepted. The Mission church
we entered had the pews along the wall because the people want to
see each other; they use the church as a meeting place to discuss
loacl problems. They are democratic and allow for differing views and
come to a mutual agreement. The Tarahumara have
combined their belief system with that of the Catholic system. The don't
recognize the cross as the symbol of Christ, rather it is seen as the 4
points going towards north, south, east and west. They do not believe in
evil or sin. They are philosophical and focus on consciousness. They use
peyote for very special celebrations to achieve a higher level of
spiritual attainment to find the god within. They think young
people are ready for marriage when they can commit to being responsible
for themselves, can commit to loyalty and faithfulness, and commit to
caring for their family and the culture. They are not influenced
by our modern world of materialism, as a matter of fact, the
believe they will be the ultimate survivors of the world since they live
so close to nature. The first priest reported in 1602 that the people
were docile, friendly, self sufficient hunters and fisherman, and
excellent at bartering for goods. This is still the case. All
of the women wear very colorful skirts and tops with beautiful shawls -
most of which has been sewn by hand.
The people are internationally known for their long distance
endurance running, most often using sandals made from rubber tire soles
and leather thong straps. When the terrain is slippery they go barefoot.
Recently a race was held through the canyons - 50 KM non-stop.
International athletes competed, but the winner was Tarahumara who
finished in 8 hours, almost 2 hours ahead of the next runner. An annual
Ultramarathon is held here and to date no athlete other than a
Tarahumara has won it. The men play a game using a carved wooden ball
the size of a softball where they kick this ball running for more than
20 K-the game may last as long as 40 hours. The women have a game
they play that is similar to Jai Lai using a stick with a hook
that they catch and toss a 5" diameter ring. This game also goes on for
hours. There are few cars in the canyons so most travel is by foot. It
is no wonder they are fabulous athletes. Like other Indian
cultures, they do have trouble with alcoholism, but stay away from any
involvement with the drug trade/cartel groups, according to a
professor in international studies in Mexico City we met. Interestingly,
we also heard that marijuana is widely grown in the back country of the
canyons, but not by the Tarahumara people.
We hired a local tour guide, Rafael, who turned out to be a
wealth of information and a very kind/gentle man. He is 65 years old and
has been guiding people in his hometown for 30 years. We not only
learned about the area, we learned about Rafael and what his life
has been like, especially the pride he takes in talking about his
daughter and son, who both attended college. He is also a
singer/song writer and won an award for writing and performing a song
about Creel in a national competition. We loved the song.
We found very good restaurants in Creel that were exceedingly
inexpensive. The Indian women sell their baskets and weaving in the town
square or at areas where tourists visit. We also hiked 2 miles to the
bottom of the canyon to visit the hot springs. This turned out to
be a treat; the water was crystal clear in 3 separate pools that
cascaded to the river below. Very relaxing after the hike down and
prepared us for the steep hike up.
We brought the train back to El Fuerte and stayed
another night at the Hildago. The next day we drove to Alamos, the
former capital of northern Mexico and an interesting historic city. We
stayed at the Posada de Don Andres near the town square. It is a city
that has seen vast wealth from the silver mines and has struggled with
loss of employment. Many of the old mansions are now owned
by American or Canadian people who have refurbished them. The town
center can be found by looking for the church steeple which dominates
the downtown. Many of the old homes of the wealthy times have
tunnels going from their homes to the church; they hid their
silver wealth in the tunnels. One of the main mints of Mexico was
located in Alamos. There is a Festival Cultural (Art Festival)
each January and some of Mexico's leading artists come. The art
galleries were not open when we were there since it is past their high
season, but Jorge, our hotel owner, is an outstanding artist, so
we did get to see local art. We took a walking tour with an
older gentleman who told us much about the history and about all
the famous people who have lived in Alamos. Be sure to see the
pictures
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