Post Blanca and now Carlos

Blanca fortunately became more of a wind/dirt storm than a tropical storm or hurricane.  We sat hunkered down in marina Palmira in La Paz awaiting the worst.  The clouds arrived a couple days before the winds, and then on Sunday the wind filled in.

Hurricane Blanca on her way, the calm before the storm is a real thing, and eerie.  

 Sunday night it blew up to 47 kts according to some of the folks who stayed up all night.  Our boat leaned from side to side, and the rigging whistled and hummed, but no exciting events thankfully.

The utility trucks awaiting the hurricane here in La Paz.  They arrived by ferry from the mainland several days in advance of the storm.  We were all grateful and amazed that Mexico was that on top of things.  Fortunately they were not really needed, and headed back several days later.  The men associated with each truck seemed grateful to be headed home.

 In the morning, I discovered that one of the cleats on the dock had pulled out, fortunately we were tied to several so no problem.

Finisterra tied to just about anything available.  Note the "solid" piling.  Damage from Odile is still evident.  We did end up tying another line around it just as a precaution.  Good thing as the stern line cleat pulled out of the dock.  

 I did mention the dirt, which was blown off the land and out on to all of the formerly white yachts.  We were all hoping for some nice rain to drench us and clean the boats so we wouldn't have to.  But, no, the dust and dirt swirled all around and pooled like water in the corners and on decks.

Hurricane Blanca party aboard Finisterra.  Only because we have the AC, and the humidity outside was thick.  Another Sylvia creation which was superb.  (Tom, Leif, Lisa, Sylvia)  And beaming smiles as we figured out the self timer on the camera!

   The following Tuesday, with the wind dying down, the port captain opened the port and allowed boats to leave and enter, so we left for Balandra.  Leif was under the weather, so it was a good thing to take a short hop instead of leaving for Bahia de Los Muertos. Balandra was beautiful, but we were feeling pressure to get on our way around to San Jose del Cabo, so off we went after one night.  The weather was really nice, calm, sunny, and light winds on the nose.  The Ceralvo channel can be awful, with a current going north and winds going south, which creates a washing machine effect. This was not happening today, so we put out a line and trolled a bit, catching a small skipjack and releasing it.  There were jumping Mobula rays all over as we motored out, and then a large pod of dolphin leaped their way across our bow.  It was a spectacular send off from La Paz.

A small portion of the huge pod that crossed our bow.

The flying Mobula rays of the Sea of Cortez.

Sunset at Balandra, with the pelicans and seagulls enjoying the reef marker buoy.

   Bahia de Los Muertos is trying to change its name to Bahia de Los Suenos as vacationing in the bay of the dead doesn't sound inviting.  It is inviting however, with a grand hotel/resort and a restaurant that served a good variety of dishes, including a yummy hamburger.  The snorkeling here is also excellent as the water is very clear.  We dropped anchor in 24' and could clearly see it hit bottom.

A refreshing pool and rock slide await the intrepid sailors who venture up the long stretch of beach to the Los Suenos resort.  Not to mention the great fish tacos and ice cold brews.

 After two nights it was time to head around to San Jose del Cabo, as there was another storm brewing down south.  Hurricane Carlos was hanging out near Acapulco causing lots of damage with high winds and lots of rain.  We were hoping it would die off, and as I write this, it appears that it will near Cabo Corrientes and Puerto Vallarta.

The extensive bar and view into the restaurant at Los Suenos.  The train track on the upstairs balcony is visible in the background.

   Marina Puerto Los Cabos is near San Jose del Cabo, and has made great progress towards recovering from hurricane Odile last fall.  My main concern was that the women's bathroom was rebuilt, and it had been.  The AC was just installed there last week apparently.  There are still pilings in the marina with no docks attached, but fewer, and the seawall had been rebuilt after a river of mud washed it out.  We are spending a week here waiting for a calm weather window to head around Cabo Falso and up towards Magdalena Bay.  It is a lovely marina, and like everything else here on the cape, very expensive.  We are 42', and pay close to $70. a night for a slip.  Then there is the food, so far we have tried to stay out of The Container, the local restaurant here at the marina, but have failed.  It has a good menu and is enticing to us after being at anchor for a few days.

So, here in San Jose they actually have several camels on which tourists ride.  So weird.  But they're totally relaxed and the trainer says they have him trained as to when they want water or food.  Not sure about that, but, they were really cute.

Most of the other sailboats have left to bash back, but looking at the wind, it appears that they will do exactly that.  We are hoping the forecast is correct for light winds in a couple of days, as we would like to take our time and see the smaller anchorages which we have passed in prior years.  It is now Thursday night, and we are prepped and ready to depart early tomorrow morning.  We had one last extravagance, a dinner out at Flora Farms.  The taxi was $17 one way, and then there was dinner... It was superb.  The grounds are beautiful although we didn't get a good chance to see them as our reservation was at 8:30 p.m. and it was already dark.   I would highly recommend it as a special night out.  I'm finishing this so I can post it before leaving here, but will add more pictures when I can.

Balandra, La Paz, and the surrounding Islands

We made excellent time crossing from Mazatlan to Balandra, which is both good and bad.  Our planning was to arrive around 6:00 a.m. and have lovely daylight in which to anchor.  Not the case as we arrived in Balandra around 11:00 p.m. with high winds.

Not the usual intense sun this year in Balandra.

 There were only five other boats anchored inside, so we crept in and found a nice quiet spot, dropped anchor, backed down to ensure it was buried and went to bed, keeping an anchor watch.

The view of La Paz and Marina Palmira from atop the local hill.  Note the reefs visible near shore.

   Balandra is only an hour away from La Paz, and yet it is one of our very favorite spots for clear water, snorkeling, hiking and generally hanging out.  On this occasion, the weather did not cooperate much.  We had overcast skies and wind which makes snorkeling not the best.  Due to this, we made our escape to Marina Palmira in La Paz.  Here we spent time washing the boat and laundry, provisioning, doing engine maintenance, and catching up with friends that had been staying there.  One side trip was a drive out to Todos Santos with Connie and Ed from Sirena. Ali'i'Kai, and Talitha were in town which made for truly fun times.  Sylvia helped me find the best shopping for groceries, as well as how to prepare them.  She's an accomplished chef who is fascinating to watch and get tips from, as well as her many other talents.

The typical tourist shot.  We had to wait for the opportunity after others took their turns.  But, it would be fun to stay there, it's beautiful inside with a pool and restaurant.

At Tequila's Sunrise we added our boat card to the thousands already stapled on the bar.

 We all had a extravagant lunch at the restaurant Tequila's Sunrise, directly across the street from Hotel California.    Some other friends from Cinnabar,

Kitty on Talitha anchored in Balandra.  We were all out enjoying another stellar sunset.

   Time flew by and we persuaded Cinnabar to join us all out in the neighboring islands, as they had yet to leave the dock this year having been busy in La Paz.
   Our first stop was Balandra of course, on our way out.  We spent a couple of nights there, kayaking and SUPing during the day and socializing at night.  The water was still a bit cold (73-75), so we donned  wetsuits for our snorkeling adventures.  The mangrove tour was a highlight for some of us who paddled out one afternoon, with a narrow channel and shallow water in which to navigate.

Stunning Cinnabar with Tom and Sylvia, coasting past us as we both photograph each other.  It's not often that one can get sailing pictures of your own boat.  We met up with them later in the day as we arrived an hour later...

   Next up was Ensenada Grande, on Isla Partida.  This lovely cove has three small fingers in which to anchor, and we chose the northern-most, joining our other two buddy boats who beat us there.  The water was spectacular, a little warmer and filled with fish and coral.  It's amazing how much coral there is in the Sea of Cortez.

Hikers, L-R: Leif, Lisa, David, Toni, Kitty, Joe.  We hustled into the scene, hoping the camera didn't take the shot too quickly.  Good job Kitty for setting up the timer!  What a fun group.

 We all met onshore one morning for a hike up a rocky canyon which goes to the opposite side of the island.  It was a bit far in the heat, so we turned around after an hour or so.  The fishing had not been successful yet, and fortunately Tom managed to land a couple for dinner that night.  Sylvia did her magic and we had a delicious dinner together out in the most beautiful scenery imaginable.  Ali'i'Kai and Talitha had haul out dates which they needed to meet up in San Carlos, so we joined them on their run towards the north for a few days to San Evaristo where we parted ways.

Finisterra anchored off of Isla San Francisco.  We hiked up the cliffs to get a better view of the bay or hook as it is known.  

We enjoyed the hiking and watching the various boats in the anchorage.  One huge yacht came in, sent their tender to check depths, then anchored closest in of all of us.  It was interesting to see how they maneuvered carefully between the already anchored boats and found a great spot way inside.

Launching their tender to check depths.  Nice to have an electric arm to hoist it instead of a human hoist.

Isla San Francisco, with us anchored out a bit.  The large yacht squeezed inside of the two boats in the foreground .  Not as stunning when there are clouds, but still serene.  

  We left headed for Espiritu Santo in hopes of clearer water and fewer boats.  As we made our passage, Aldebaron motor-sailed past us in the opposite direction headed for San Evaristo.  I chatted with Lynne on the radio and waved at Rob as we passed each other.  This will be remembered by us as it was the last time we saw Rob, he passed away on board just a few days later.  When you are in the Sea of Cortez, it has many attributes, one of those being solitude.  This unfortunately becomes a problem when health issues arise.

Once again Balandra has been covered in clouds.  This is during the lightning storm, with heavy rain as well.  It's June for heavens sake... it's supposed to be sunny and HOT?

   On a lighter note, we dropped anchor in Ensenada de la Raza, in Puerto Ballena.  This lasted all of five minutes as the bees and bugs landed on our boat and us instantly, so off we went to Balandra.  We spent a rolly quiet night and awoke to loud thunder and lightning close by at 5:00 a.m.  Not what I had ordered for the day.  It got progressively worse, and at one point I put some of our electronics into the microwave oven for protection.  Our wind instruments lost power when one bolt seemed to hit almost over us.  So, after all morning sitting nervously while the rain squalls and lightning drifted past us, we finally got a brief break in the action and bolted for La Paz and Marina Palmira.  It was nice to be in a slip in case we were hit.
   While in Palmira, Leif took out the mixing elbow from our engine which had a minute leak and had it resurfaced.  It was supposed to be a one day fix, which took two weeks and we had no engine during this time.  Not a big deal however there were two hurricanes off the coast and headed our way. Of course I was a nervous nellie during that time.  Hurricane Andres fortunately veered away from the Baja peninsula, but it looks like Hurricane Blanca is headed right at us.  She became a category 4, and now is a cat 2, hopefully downgraded to a tropical storm before it hits here in La Paz.  More on that in the next blog.

Oh goody, just what I was missing in our travels, a Cat. 4 hurricane.  Soon to become downgraded to a Cat.1 or 2 we hope.

   We enjoyed our time here, not too many friends from before, but several newer ones with which to enjoy dinners and swims in the pool.  Lynne from Aldebaran was here, and we enjoyed getting to know her better even though it was a very sad time for her.  I spent a lot of time provisioning for our eventual trip around the corner to San Jose del Cabo and up the Baja.
   As I write this, it is Saturday, June 6, 2015 and we are on hurricane watch.  The storm is all people are talking about, since Odille made such a mess of peoples lives and boats when she came ashore last year.  This new storm started a week ago, with the predicted path to be directly over Cabo and La Paz at a category 4 or so.  Now, it is closer and she has been downgraded and then upgraded once again.  No one seems to have a clue as to what will eventually happen here, so all are nervous but preparing.  We've lashed down the dinghy on deck, taken down sun covers, filled water tanks and fuel tanks, doubled up dock lines, got money, and secured everything on deck.  We are thinking that it won't be at hurricane strength when it arrives, so are being optimistic.  Tonight we will have a BBQ pre-hurricane party on board with the AC on as the humidity is 80%.  The clouds have arrived and it looks like it should be cooler, NOT!  To be continued...