Ensenada to Cabo San Lucas

We had a very enjoyable three days in Ensenada, and by the 16th we were ready to continue south.  So Finisterra sailed at 1030 that morning under a beautiful clear sky and a light northwesterly breeze. Our course took us out of Bahia De Todos Santos by way of the channel between Punta Banda and Isla Todos Santos. Once out of the bay we bore off toward our next destination, Turtle Bay, which lies about 300 nautical miles down the coast of the Baja peninsula. About that time the wind fell to almost zero and we rolled up the jib and started motorsailing under the main alone. As it turned out, we had less than ten knots of breeze out of the northwest almost all the way to Turtle Bay so we ended up motorsailing the entire distance except for a few miles when the wind backed or veered enough for us to sail, which wasnt often.

We entered Turtle Bay just after sunup on January 18th and anchored a couple hundred yards from the rickety old pier in front of the village. There were no other sailboats in the bay except for a couple of derelicts anchored off in the distance. In the past weve always anchored and Enrique, the local fuel seller would bring diesel out in his specially equipped panga. But this time he told us to bring the boat up to the pier, where they have cobbled together a couple of floats to make a rudimentary fuel dock. We took on 35 gallons of diesel and gave the attendant a thirty peso tip. The poor guy nearly fell off the dock when he realized I didnt want any change back. The people in Turtle Bay dont have much, and thirty pesos, about three bucks, is a nice spiff.

A beautiful sunset every evening

While at anchor I was able to download some weather data and the forecast was for more light air for the next few days, so we didnt waste any time in Turtle Bay and by 1030 we were headed out of the bay toward Bahia Santa Maria, about 240 miles down the coast. The wind remained very light and consistent out of the northwest so we continued under power. The sea temperature rose rapidly to 68 degrees, making the nights reasonably warm. Weather in this region can be cold and stormy as easily as warm and sunny, so, remembering how we froze on the passage north through these waters three years ago, we brought plenty of heavy cold weather gear and I was grateful that we never had to use any of it. With seven knots of wind coming straight up the tailpipe on a boat moving at seven knots, the apparent wind is zero, so even though the daytime temperatures were in the sixties, we were quite comfortable.

Finisterras cockpit. On the left are the Lifesling and MOM unit. The bag on the stern rail holds fishing gear. The GPS is mounted on a swivel so it can be seen from anywhere in the cockpit. Notice that the compass cover is closed. We almost never use it anymore. All of our navigation tools are set up for true rather than magnetic directions.

The port side of the cockpit carries the outboard motor and hoist, GPS and Sirius XM radio antenna. Notice two rods mounted on the stern. Lisa rigged one with a cedar plug and the other with a pink & white. Off Mag Bay we sailed through a school of yellowfin tuna and both reels lit up almost simultaneously. We caught two little yellowfin, about 12 pounds each. We kept one and released the other. 

Watches on this passage, like the last one, consisted mainly of relaxing in the cockpit, snacking, writing up the log, reading, watching beautiful sunsets, stargazing on night watches, and then watching the sun come up.
Off watch, we would sleep, read, relax, repeat.

Finisterra was off the entrance to Bahia Santa Maria at 1900 on January 19th. We had planned to anchor in the bay for a day or two, but with the weather so fine we decided to continue south toward Cabo San Lucas instead. Later that night the wind finally arrived and we sailed through the night on a broad reach. It didnt last, though, and by morning we were motorsailing again.

A straight wake on a sea of tranquility.

We passed Cabo Falso around 2200 on January 20th and were tucked into a slip in Marina Cabo San Lucas by midnight, thus completing what was by far the most pleasant passage down the Baja coast Ive ever done.

The day before we left Ensenada the refrigerator compressor stopped working. Faced with the prospect of losing all our frozen food, we quickly packed the freezer with ice. Worse than losing our food, we were also in danger of having to drink warm beer and wine. Not acceptable. Fortunately, the day after we left the compressor started working again. Im not sure why it stopped or why it started again so Ill dig into it after we arrive in La Cruz.

I have Nobeltec navigation software on my laptop and have used it for years as my primary navigation tool. On this trip we decided to try out Inav-X on our Ipads. It is vastly superior to the Nobeltec and the charts loaded into the Garmin GPS. I never even opened the laptop.

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Bumpy ride to Cabo

We stayed in Ensenada only three days. Just long enough to check into the country and get Mexican phones, and enjoy our first Mexican fish tacos and Pacificos since last June. The check-in process has gotten easier since the last time Finisterra entered the country. A couple of months ago the story was that we needed to list virtually everything of value on the boat on our TIP (Temporary Import Permit) so I created a detailed list of all that stuff and was ready to present it at the Port Captains office, but they said the rules had been recently changed (again) and all that paperwork was no longer necessary. We breezed through the process in less than an hour.

Finisterra departed Ensenada at 10:00am on Sunday, November 16th. Just after clearing the harbor entrance we ran into a sea of kelp, so the first order of business was to back the boat down and clear it off the keel and rudder. The wind was blowing about 18 knots out of the WNW so we unrolled the jib and put a single reef in the main and set a southwesterly course for Punta Banda. Once clear of the point, we bore off to a broad reach and headed south toward our next destination of Turtle Bay, about 280 miles down the coast.

By 1800 hrs the wind had veered to NE and began to build. Finisterra is happiest on a broad reach and she ate up the miles quickly. The next day the wind continued to blow out of the northeast so we took the easterly route to Turtle Bay, leaving Cedros Island to starboard. We passed quickly down the east side of the Island in strong winds and big seas. It blew a little harder when we passed through the channel between Punta Eugenia and Isla Natividad, but once past Eugenia, the land blocked the waves but not the wind and we had a really exciting and fun 12 mile beam reach in 25-30 knots of wind and flat water. As we turned into Turtle Bay the wind died down and we came to anchor half a mile off the rickety old pier.

Within half an hour Enrique, the fuel guy, showed up in his panga and asked if we needed fuel. We topped up the tank, which didnt need much, and shared a few stories with him. He is a colorful character and is pretty much the only game in town if you need diesel fuel.  His prices are high and his fuel metering system is, for lack of a more descriptive word, elastic. So I wasnt surprised to hear him arguing with the skipper a nearby boat. But I think five bucks a gallon for good, clean fuel delivered to your boat is reasonable considering that the other options are to tie up to the rickety pier and pay approximately the same, or lug your jerry jugs up to the gas station in town.

We spent a night in Turtle, then headed south toward Bahia Santa Maria, about 220 miles further down the coast. The wind was still blowing fairly hard out of the northeast and we made good time broad reaching straight toward BSM.

We had planned to anchor for a day in the northwest corner of the bay, but as we rounded Punta Hughes we were able to download a fresh weather forecast. It called for medium winds today and light to very light air all the way to Cabo. So instead of anchoring, we headed right back out to sea in about 12 knots of breeze out of the Northwest. We sailed on starboard jibe for about 25 miles then jibed to port, back toward the land, taking a zigzag course to Cabo. By sundown the wind had built to 20-25 knots out of the northwest, bringing with it 6-8 foot quartering seas. It stayed that way for the next hundred miles.

About 50 miles out of Cabo San Lucas the wind moderated to a pleasant 15 knots and it was nice sailing for a few hours. By sunset the wind had lightened more and we were down to about 4 knots of speed so I started the diesel to give us a push until the wind returned. Thirty minutes later I noticed smoke coming out of the engine compartment. I quickly shut off the engine and discovered that the alternator had seized up. Luckily it wasnt wiring that was burning, it was the belt, which was lying dead inside its housing. We settled down for a long, light air sail toward the cape, finally arriving five miles off of Cabo Falso around midnight where the wind disappeared altogether.

Finiterra sat there until the following morning when the wind picked up out of the northeast. It was about 35 miles dead upwind to our destination of the marina at Puerto Los Cabos, and by mid-afternoon the wind died again. With a flat sea and no wind in sight, we hoisted the dinghy overboard and tied it to the stern. Its little 6 horsepower outboard pushed the 20,000 pound Finisterra along at nearly four knots and by 1630 we were at the harbor entrance. Half an our later we were relaxing in the cockpit with a sundowner.

Fortunately I had thought to bring along a spare alternator. It wasnt a perfect fit, but with a little effort we got the dead one out and the new one installed. A few hours after we tied up to the dock, the wind got serious and blew 25-30 knots out of the north for the next three days. We were happy to be nice and snug in Puerto Los Cabos where weve met new friends and reconnected with old ones.The recent hurricane, named Odile, that devastated Cabo San Lucas left its mark on San Jose as well. The Hotel Gonzo, located on the beach next to the harbor entrance was hit hard. Its plate glass windows, rooftop bar and swimming pool that we loved are all, well, gonzo, and the place is closed. Fortunately Fidel, our favorite bartender there survived the storm and is happily employed at the Container restaurant, which is located here in the marina.

In addition to knocking out the beachfront hotels around the harbor, Odile pounded the harbor, breaking up docks, damaging and sinking boats and blowing roofs off of the buildings around here. The marina restrooms are actually prefab buildings set on solid concrete and stone foundations. The mens survived intact but the womens was blown apart, leaving only the foundation and a couple of shower stalls intact.

When we were here last June I wrote a rather scathing report about the dolphin show they put on here. We were curious to know how they had survived the storm in their pens near the harbor mouth. The pens looked empty the first time we checked, but the next day we noticed some big trucks parked nearby so we wandered over for a look. They turned out to be the dolphin delivery trucks, returning the animals from Puerto Vallarta, where they had been taken for safekeeping before the storm hit. We watched as they offloaded them from the trucks one by one in canvas slings. With ten guys carrying each dolphin, they walked them down to the waters edge and carefully rolled them into the water.
They had been coated with a white salve that one of the trainers told us was to protect their skin while they were in the trucks so at first they looked mottled and unhealthy to me. After swimming around for a few minutes the stuff came off and they looked normal again, and certainly seemed to be happy to be out of the trucks and back in their pens. All I can say is that the exhibit operators seem to be treating their prisoners well.

Just launched, this dolphin is still smeared with white salve.

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They dolphins put on a little impromptu performance for us.

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Cabo is back!

The harbor in Cabo is choked with boats of all types, except cruising sailboats.

The dark hulled Atessa  is the big boat in the harbor right now.

Four years ago we sailed the Honcho into the harbor at Cabo San Lucas and discovered that the place was empty. It had been hit hard by the recession in the USA and at the time I estimated that 70 percent of the slips in the harbor were empty. The bars and restaurants that I had frequented in the past were closed or barely hanging on, and the people I talked to bemoaned the bad economy and lack of jobs.

That was then. In the wee hours of Monday, January 20th, 2014 we entered the harbor once again and were presented with an entirely different situation. The place is packed with sportfishermen, day boats, party boats, dinner cruise boats, luxury yachts from around the world and a zillion pangas. I think we got the last available forty foot slip in the harbor. It was heartening to see the town bounce back from what was a devastating recession here. Of course we were not pleased with the prices for a meal around the waterfront were the tourists go, but overall, its great to see the economy in this part of Mexico rebound.

The last time we were here, a slip for a 35 boat cost about $125.00 per night. This time we put the 42 foot Finisterra in a slip for $79.00 per night. Still not cheap, but acceptable for a couple of nights. There has been quite an uproar recently in the US about a recent crackdown by Mexican authorities on foreign boats that are temporarily in the country. I wont go into the details of it because they are available on Lectronic Latitude, but basically, some boats that didnt have all their paperwork in order, and some that did, were impounded by AGACE, Mexicos rough approximation of our IRS, until the paperwork is straightened out or taxes paid. The problem has been with boats that have all the proper documentation but because mistakes on the part of AGACE, and due in part to foreign owners not having all the documents available at the time AGACE inspected their boats, the boats were impounded. I noticed several boats in the marina with "Embargo" notices taped to them, so this is a real and serious issue. Before leaving California and upon checking Finisterra into Mexico, we made very certain that we had all the paperwork and understood the new rules and so as far as I know, were in good standing with AGACE. In the US, this controversy has already resulted in the cancellation of at least on race to Cabo and I know of several boats that are sitting out this cruising season in California because of the controversy. All the Mexican officials Ive spoken to have downplayed the situation, saying the inspections were not well conducted and that AGACE will handle things better in the future.

Enough about embargoes and officials. Weve been enjoying wandering around the bustling town, dining on fabulous cuisine in high end restaurants, and equally fabulous meals in smaller places outside the tourist areas.
We checked out the beach and the new cultural pavilion downtown and marveled at the vast number of fish being caught in the local waters.

The barrels are full of fish parts. Pelicans and gulls live like kings around here.

While here I checked all the systems aboard the boat. The only issue we had on the trip south was the refrigeration system. It stopped working in Ensenada, then mysteriously came back from the dead a couple of days later.  Its working now so Ill wait until we get to La Cruz before digging into the system. We also thoroughly washed the boat which had acquired a thick layer of gritty dust in Ensenada, the result of a Santa Ana wind that blew hard the day before we departed.

A remarkable bird, the pelican...

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Cabo San Lucas to La Cruz

Three days in Cabo are more than enough, so Finisterra cleared the breakwater of that picturesque port at 10:00am on January 23rd, bound for La Cruz de Huanacaxtle. There was a cruise ship anchored just outside the harbor so the bay was thick with tour boats, paragliders, jetskiers, fishing boats and pangas loaded with vacationers. We picked our way through the crowd and it wasnt long before we were sailing in clear air. The wind, however, stayed light and we began to motorsail again.

A cruising boat struggles to keep his spinnaker full on a light air Bahia Banderas morning.

La Cruz is located on the north shore of Bahia Banderas, about 290 miles southeast from Cabo San Lucas. I plotted a course that would take us 20 miles south of the Islas Tres Marias and then through the channel between Punta de Mita and Islas Tres Marietas, which mark the entrance to Bahia Banderas.

Pretty little trawler in the anchorage at La Cruz.

For the next 30 hours we motorsailed over a glassy sea with winds never getting above five knots or so. With these conditions it is easy to see all the sea life that abounds in this region and we saw so many whales that we stopped counting them and focused more on avoiding running into them. Birds were plentiful and we were entertained by the incredible diving of the blue-footed boobys that fed on small fish that were stirred up as the boat passed by. A bird would dive into the water and swim after its prey under water, usually coming up with a fish dangling from its beak. This is also frigate bird country and we were never without them soaring overhead. At night the boobys and frigates often try to land on the boat. They can wreak havoc on masthead instruments and antennas so we do all we can to keep them off the mast. We had one booby hitch a ride with us for a short while but it didnt harm our masthead gear. Ive found that the best way to keep them off at night is to have a powerful flashlight ready and shine it at the bird just as it makes its final approach to the masthead. During the daytime there is little you can do to keep them off.

An overloaded Freeport 36. If you truly need to carry this much stuff, you may want to consider a bigger boat.

Here is another F36 in the same anchorage. Which would you rather sail?

About thirty miles out of Bahia Banderas the wind turned around and blew hard straight out of the east so we found ourselves punching into a nasty chop with spray flying over the dodger until we reached the mouth of the bay at 0130 the next morning. Once through the pass we turned northward and anchored just off the village of Punta Mita. It was about 0300 by the time we got the hook down and the boat secured.

The next morning we lazed around on the boat for awhile, then sailed the last nine miles to the anchorage outside of La Cruz, arriving around 1500 in the afternoon. There were 46 boats anchored there when we arrived. We anchored on the southwest side of the group, a couple hundred yards from the nearest boat,  then went ashore where we met friends for drinks and dinner at the famous "Tacos in the Street" restaurant. Naturally just after we got our anchor down, another boat arrived and decided the best thing to do was anchor as close as possible to us in spite of all the open water all around us. Thus began our stay in beautiful La Cruz.

The voyage from Long Beach to La Cruz is for all intents, the first leg of our journey. To summarize it, we sailed just over 1,400 miles, traveled from a temperate to a tropical latitude and traversed two time zones. It took a total of 23 days, and we made stops at Newport Beach, Dana Point, San Diego,  Ensenada, Turtle Bay, Cabo, and Punta de Mita. During that time we had excellent weather, though the winds were lighter than we would have liked. The boat, aside from a balky refrigeration system performed flawlessly.

Here in La Cruz well make the decision whether to hurry south to Panama by May, or spend another season cruising in Mexican waters.

Reunion at Ana Bananas in La Cruz. The crews of Scout, Finisterra, Hotel California and Sirena share a table.

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