San Diego to Ensenada

January 12, 2014, Sunday
We had a wonderful time in San Diego visiting with our friends Tom, Mary Ellen, Dave and Jan.  T and ME, we met in La Cruz four years ago and have been enjoying our friendship ever since; and Dave and Jan owned Pendragon a Davidson 44 that Leif raced on, and I joined in later to be a part of the crew as well.  We ate, sailed, drank and generally caught up on things past and present.  Then it was time to leave, and we were fortunate to have Tom and Mary Ellen join us on the leg to Ensenada.

Leif and Tom discussing the ipad navigation system.  Very state of the art!

  We all met at the dock at SDYC at 6 a.m. for an early start, hoping to arrive in time for celebratory cervezas y refrescos.  Well, it was foggy, cold, and no wind.  Lovely start.  Then the wind filled in, but from astern and so we motor-sailed the entire way.  It was a cold, windy cloudy day.  Not what the Dr. ordered. Just east of the Coronado islands we had a surprise inspection from the Mexican Navy.  They appeared out of no where, and hailed us to stop and allow them to come aboard.  There were about 10 of them, many with large weapons, so who's going to complain?  We tied up in very bouncy seas, and they were formal yet friendly, only wanting our documentation, and to know where we would check into Mexico.  Still, not a fun experience.  Once we arrived, we cleaned up and went to Sano's, an excellent restaurant owned by T & ME's friend Juan Hussong, who also joined us for dinner.  After a fantastic meal we were driven back to the boat by Juan and hit the sack.  It was a very special night having such good friends to dine with.

Mary Ellen and Tom, from cold and foggy to beautiful sunny morning.

  We then said good bye to Tom and Mary Ellen, who took the bus back to San Diego while we checked into Mexico.  Upon arriving at the Capitania de Puerto, we met one of the fellows from the Navy boat that inspected us, all smiles, and we were grateful that we did what we said we were going to do.    One more event for us was a wine country tour that we had heard was excellent.  And, it was. I expected strong rich wines similar to Paso Robles, but no, very refined and smooth.  Not rough at all.   We went to L.A. Cetto, Adobe Guadalupe, and J.C. Bravo.  These ranged from large production like Californian wineries to exclusive/expensive to a small winery run by one gentleman who produces one red and one white, but very good.
   Our one glitch was that on the evening prior to leaving our refrigerator decided to not turn on.  Bummer as we had a full freezer of meat and frozen dishes.  So, I gave some away on the dock, and went in search of ice and a cheap ice chest for cold drinks on our trip south.  We have plenty of food that's not in need of cold, but it would have been so nice!

Arriving at Cruiseport marina in Ensenada, wearing long pants and jackets for one of the last times in awhile.