La Paz to Loreto
Leaving La Paz on the 26th of April our plan was to get to Espiritu Santo for a few hours rest before taking advantage of the winds forecast to come in later in the night. Worked like a charm! There is nothing like sailing with stars bright overhead… better yet, a full moon. We had both.
Over the next few days Bree and I were met with such perfect sailing weather!!! We used the motor only to leave or arrive in anchorages, to charge batteries or to run the water maker. It was sheer bliss! Due to the angle of the wind we needed to tack out quite a long way before tacking back toward our destination. Maybe you know this, maybe you don’t but when you are sailing unless you have the wind straight behind you pushing you toward you goal you will be zig zagging a whole bunch. That’s what we did. If you could see our track on paper it would literally look like zig zag madness. Spending the day sailing was well worth the extra miles.
Our second stop was San Evaristo. We dropped anchor, slept, then got up to do another day of sailing. The winds remained in our favor! This was especially a good thing considering the engine kept trending toward higher temps than what it’s meant to run at. Insert sigh and eye roll here! I investigated all the usual suspects, which are relatively easy. No cause could be found right off so we sailed on and kept a good eye on the temp gauge when we did have to run the engine, reducing RPM’s or turning it off altogether when necessary. Sure don’t want to break Mr Perky, my Perkins 4-108 diesel!
Tembabichi would be our goal for the third night and then we were headed to Aqua Verde just about 27 miles further up the coast. Again we were blessed by the winds, and again we added more miles to our distance due to our zig zag course. Well before sunset though we sailed into our anchorage, waiting until the last minute to crank up Perky for the anchor drop.
The trick in anchoring in a small, tight anchorage is making sure you have enough depth under your keel while you position yourself snuggly in-between the boats already there. This can be pretty tricky. You have to take into consideration the length of rhode you will put out to determine where your boat will be actually be floating, ensuring you aren’t all up in everybody’s business. With relatively little experience anchoring I still get nervous.
As we drove through the anchorage sizing up the potential spots we motored past a catamaran and I asked the depth they had dropped their anchor in and how much water they draw. Giving us good information we chose the hole right next them.
I dropped the anchor, put out the appropriate amount of chain, and slide right into a perfect place for the night. The owner of the boat behind me stood on his bow, keeping a keen eye as I did so. No pressure, RIGHT?!?
After a long, hot sail and a solid anchoring job Bree and I were ready to jump in the water. As we were down below getting our suits on a guy shows up on his paddle board. He ended up being the captain of the catamaran and someone I had recently met. Erin & Stu, owners of Skookum, a 40’ catamaran, Them and their two young daughters, Ellie & Lilly, are friends of Mapache and Catspaw. We had all gone to dinner in La Paz. I simply did not get a good look at the crew when we drove by so didn’t recognize them.
Erin and Stu invited Bree and I over for fresh ceviche and drinks. Man, I love the cruising community!!! Bree and I didn’t take long to find our way over where we had so much fun spending time with the Skookum family. They let us know that we had just missed the other two boats. We had almost caught up with the guys I would be heading north with. Such a relief!
With the engine still running hot I really couldn’t sleep. We were set for a 7 a.m. departure. After checking out the usual suspects all I could think was maybe the thermostat wasn’t opening. For me to address that one I would need to empty out the expansion tank, remove the tank, switch out thermostats then reassemble. Not as easy as it sounds. At about 3:30 a.m. I gave up on sleep and got to work. Of course, coffee came first.
Bree got up shortly after me, helped a ton, and was such a trooper for getting the anchor up right on time. We waved our good-byes to Skookum before setting off. Soon after it was clear that no, it wasn’t the thermostat! DAMN!!!
We were fortunate enough to have yet another beautiful day of wind and sailing. So lucky!!! It lasted all the way up until we were maybe 10 miles to Puerto Escondido. From there the winds started falling off and getting squirrelly. With this we started dancing between using the sails and the engine, monitoring the temp and shutting the motor down when it got too high for my comfort.
If I hadn’t been looking for this place, Puerto Escondido, I would have sailed right past! This gem is tucked in amidst a ring of small mountains. So beautiful!!! It was like turning the corner into a fantasy land. Unbelievable.
Getting through the channel, into the huge bay, we drove through the anchorage looking for Catspaw and Mapache. Once we found them we picked up a mooring ball close by. The relief and excitement that washed over me, indescribable! The only downside to arriving was that I would be putting Bree on a plane in Loreto the following day, saying so long to my last crew member and, by far, a favorite.