Blog #056: May 1 – 7, 2019

The wind blew itself out last night around midnight, and for the rest of the night we wandered around our anchor aimlessly. We awoke as the sun was peaking over the southern mountains. Dew soaked everything, we can’t even see out of the cockpit windows. The bay is as smooth as glass. A far cry from when we anchored.

While the wind was blowing a hoolie last night we did some trip planning. We were froze out on our last overnight run and want to get further south where it’s less miserable at night. We have more than 400 miles of open Pacific Ocean to cross before we can relax. Once in the Sea of Cortez we plan on taking it easy and day tripping our way back up the coast of Baja inside the Sea but right now these day trips are only knocking away 60-70 miles a day.

So that leaves us here today, 1,600 miles from our final destination with no wind. We tried sailing and we were making 2.9 knots on less than 6 knots of wind. So here is the math: 1,600 miles divided by 2.9 per hour = 559 hours. Divide that by 24 hours in a day and we would need 22 days without stopping to even take a pee to get to our destination! Needless to say I started the diesel and lamented the fact that even out on a sailboat, on our vacation of sorts, time is the enemy!

Punta Abreojos Village is the next safe anchorage. Abreojos means “eyes wide open” in Spanish but it’s better known as the Wright Whale Sanctuary of the Pacific. We’ve been here before. It’s where gray whales come to find a mate, have babies and teach their young to swim and fish before the long journey back up the Pacific Coast to Alaska. Once we pass between the reefs they have a very strict speed limit. If the wind is right, we’ll skip it and keep heading South.

We skipped it. Weather models all looked good for a fast run all the way to Lands End – Cabo San Lucas. We reeled in the jib, turning up into the wind just as it started clocking 20 knots, and reefed the main. We made eight knots good most of the afternoon in a two meter or better sea that was coming more from the side of us, closer to the beam. Every once and awhile we’d get a strong wave slap on the bow or the stern. 

Soon we were outside of 12 nautical miles from land. The important thing here is this is international waters – no fishing license required. So we put out a pole with one of our homemade fishing lures. It was our favorite; a big-eye squid with red and purple feathers. It wasn’t a half hour and the reel started spinning out line like crazy. “Fish on” we both yelled at the same time! The battle began… I jumped into my chair and tried to bring in line. Liana went to get the gaff and as the fish tired I was able to slowly gain back line but not until after a couple of good runs. Soon we had it along side and Liana managed to gaff it. It was a big Skip Jack tuna. We got it on board but not before it bit my finger with long razor sharp teeth. The next hour we cleaned and bagged tuna steaks. Tomorrow Liana is making Sushi! Our favorite way to prepare fresh tuna. 

When the wind finally backed to right off the stern we moved our sail arrangement to wing and wing. We poled out the jib and pulled the main out on the other side and set a preventer. Now we have sails on both sides of the boat catching wind. We’re still moving along at a good pace. Liana is on watch until 11pm and then I will take over. The closest ship to us is 30 miles away, and so is the closest point to land. The sun went down a little while ago and all that’s left is some reddish pink streaks in the sky.

May 2nd 2019 

I’m on the mid watch, it’s a cloudless night and the sky is filled with millions of brilliant stars. No moon yet so the horizon is hard to pick out. The ocean is black except for the cresting, rolling white caps driven by the 20 knots of wind. We are being frequented by a pod of curious dolphins swimming into the lights from our deck and making zigzag trails in the water beside us. They are very talkative, squeaking and squealing. They must be hunting fish attracted by our lights.

Earlier, before my watch, I was laying in the dark in the salon listening to all the noises and sounds Silhouette makes moving through the water. I used to do this at night in my bunk on the submarine. We could hear the tonnels made by the propeller and the noises coming from the sea because we always had the underwater telephone turned up to listen to whales and dolphins. It was so sensitive we could even hear shrimp and the jaws of fish popping and the sounds the hull made as we went deeper or more shallow, “hull pops” is what we called them. It sounds similar to the noise our boom makes when it fills in with wind and the aluminum creaks with the strain. 

While I was laying there I could identify very distinct sounds. The boom and main sail creak and bang when the wind fills in and the loud snap when they relax to a luff. The whole boat shutters when the main sail fills. The jibs noises are from off the starboard side and like the boom, the jib creaks and moans then snaps when its flapped in the wind. Our hull creaks as we roll side to side. I hear the flowing sounds of water being pushed away from the hull. The dishes and cups roll back and forth in their cabinets. The autopilot motor wizzes back and forth. The sensor is a screw that spins and tells a hydraulic ram to push or pull so it sounds like an electric drill. Doors make a gentle clunking sound as the boat rolls back and forth. The deck boards creak as the hull flexes from the pressure of the waves. The sink drains make gurgling sounds as they fill with bubbles of air and sea water spilling into them as the boat leans, covering the discharge hole. The entire boat really makes a racket down below but to us these are the sounds of home. Liana says each cabin makes it’s own distinct set of sounds. The first night we slept on board I laid awake trying to figure out the source of every little noise. 

We had a great 24 hour run. The seas are calm and we are making six knots still wing and wing and passing Santa Maria Bay and Bahia Magdalena. The sun is shining but the mainland peninsula is shrouded in fog. We don’t have a fully enclosed cockpit, just front and side windows so when the wind blows from astern it is cold. During the night Liana rigged up a shelter for the cockpit because she hates being cold. The winds blow in and just chill to the bone so she took blankets and plastic clips and made a wind break.

We were supposed to be seeing 14-20 knots all the way to Cabo San Lucas but by mid afternoon the wind died. For a while we enjoyed barely moving and calmly swaying on a gentle ocean. We both even layed out on the deck in the sun, but it was time to move on, still 155 nautical miles to Cabo so our peaceful cockpit was replaced by the diesels rumble.

This evening our prayers were answered with 15 knots of wind. We should be able to anchor before sunset tomorrow night. Liana’s redneck tent is back up over the aft cockpit and I helped her this time. It really does make a difference when winds blows right over the stern. So making a full cockpit enclosure is now on our to-do list.

May 3rd 2019

We had a good night of fast sailing until around 4:30 am. I was on watch at the time and all of a sudden the wind cranked up to 25 knots. Soon we were sailing 10.5 knots and the whole spinnaker pole rig started to groan with the strain. I had to act quickly to shorten the sail up a bit. But first I had to remove the redneck tent to get to the winches and lines. And then five minutes later the wind died out completely. The mainsail was swinging side to side banging in its stops. The jib that I just reefed and trimmed was now flopping. I waited and with each slam of the main I cringed. After what seemed like an hour and was more like ten minutes I decided it’s time to start the diesel. I was supposed to wake up Liana at 5:00 but was too busy undoing the tent again because just before the wind died I had neatly put it all back in place. I had to get on a harness and life jacket, attach myself into the jacklines and step out on deck to undo the preventer from the main so I could crank the main boom to center. I strapped in because once I unclip the preventer the boom is several hundred pounds of loose swinging, head removing, aluminum beam that swings at the mercy of the wind and waves. Remember how much damage it did to the deck rail in about a second? Then my watch was over.

I just woke up and Liana is sitting at the helm taking logs. She says the weather report shows our winds are gone for the day. We both had the same idea ….It’s shower time! We don’t normally shower when we’re underway. but…the water is calm and the thought of a hot shower and clean clothes sounds glorious. So we started the generator and the water heater and the watermaker and then ran around plugging in everything in the boat that needs charging. Liana showered first and she came out with a big satisfying grin.

We should be in Cabo sometime between 5-6 pm. There is only one last little navigational challenge left – rounding the “cape”. Last year going North, it was the largest free-standing waves we ever crashed and bashed our way through. But today should be much calmer and easier. We are going with the wind, what little there is, and the seas. The cape effect happens when a river of current at the edge of a continental shelf runs out of its land mass. The wind, the swell and the current have all been doing the southerly trip since Alaska, always guided by its land mass, until it hits Lands End and then it collides with the not moving stuff just around the corner, or the waves coming up from the South due to the circulation of currents in the Sea of Cortez. What happens at the end of the line is about a 10 mile patch of confused seas all piling up on top of each other figuring out its own path of least resistance. Some of those waves get blasted many feet in the air against the iconic rock arches at the entrance to the bay of Cabo San Lucas. 

May 4th 2019 

The town that roared into the night is just waking up. No loud music, no tour boats, just kayakers and early morning paddle boarders heading out to the arches. The jet boats are pulling the parasails out of bags and rigging them on deck. Our holding here is good but we chose something not normal for us – 38 ft. water depth to anchor in. All the close-to-the-beach spots were taken. We like a 500 ft swing circle on a 200 ft scope of chain. Sometimes hard to come by in such a busy harbor so we have to compromise. Our scope at 200 ft for a 38 ft bottom depth is only 5 to 1 ratio. Our preference is 7 to 1.

I forgot to mention we had engine troubles again yesterday while we were anchoring. The diesel would almost die if I didn’t keep the RPMs over 1000. Then as soon as I backed down on the anchor and went to neutral the engine died. Wow, that was a close call. So I did the same routine as last time and changed out both fuel filters. We restarted the engine and were still plagued with a throttle problem. It would not hold consistent RPM. I would throttle up to 1000 and it would slowly backtrack down to 700 and then without touching it speed up again. Very troubling! I decided I must not have primed the fuel injection pump enough and went back and did it again. Now it settled out. We still had the problem but only minimal. 

We left this morning planning a quick u-turn if anything seemed amiss. The problem weighed on me and I brought all the manuals up to the cockpit and while we continued rounding the southern tip of Baja I had my head in tech manuals. I figured it was an injection pump problem or air in the system. About a half hour out of Cabo our little nagging problem just about gave us both a heart attack. All of a sudden our engine nearly rumbled to a halt from 2500 RPM down to about 700 and then reved right back up like nothing happened. We quickly made plans to pull into Los Cabos Marina about 20 miles ahead. Just as we were getting close I came across something in the manual about trapped air in the system and that you will experience engine slowing at high RPM momentarily while air passes through the injection system. Then it will run normal. I am sure that’s what happened. It ran perfect the rest of the day and we headed on to Bahia Los Frailes. 

What a wonderful blessed day we had. Liana spent a long time out on the lounge pads on deck in the sun. It was hot, I am sure mid 80’s. I think she was thawing out and trying to get feeling back in her fingers and toes. The sunlight makes beams in the water and we saw all kinds of fish and sea creatures including several striped yellow and black sea snakes swimming along under the surface and lots and lots of jelly fish. 

Our electronic charts failed us completely going into the anchorage. Both of our chart plotters had us on land. We’ve had this problem before. Keep your eyes wide open. We dropped anchor and relaxed the rest of the evening. We are so happy to finally be in the Sea of Cortez. Love, love, love this place! In celebration we had carne asada grilled on the BBQ with cream cheese filled jalapeño poppers wrapped in bacon. Then we watched the sunset as we drank our limonadas – sparkling water with lime juice and sweetener over ice. The only sound we hear is the lapping of water against the boats hull, a slight breeze through the rigging, and just a few sounds from campers on the beach where bonfires are popping up. The stars are out and you can’t peel the smiles off our faces.

May 6th 2016 

The alarm went off at 5:00am – time to head for La Paz. Liana went to make coffee and I rolled over and went back to sleep. She called me when the coffee was ready. We had to be in the Cerralvo Channel as soon as the tide shifted to the incoming flood. Our plan was to get everything ready and head out at first light. The charts say accept no winds out of the North greater than 10 knots and do not attempt on an outgoing flood tide, or an incoming flood tide against winds higher than 15 knots. We looked at the current weather reports. Two said we would have light winds and two said we would have up to 14 knots from the West. Everything is in our favor.

A few pangas were motoring out with us by the time we lifted anchor. We watched the sunrise on our way out. Just then Liana got excited about something. Rays were jumping high into the air flapping their wings and splashing down. We must have seen thirty or forty of them lifting off like rockets out of the water and gliding back to a belly flop after several flaps of their shinny black wings. Their bellies were pure white and they glisten in the sun. Then as we move by them slowly they are thrashing about in the water circling at the surface, like they are chasing each other.

La Paz is just ahead. Liana radioed the Capitania de Puerto and requested permission to enter the port. They asked our vessels name and how many persons onboard and granted us permission to enter. We were so excited to be here again, it felt  familiar. As soon as we anchored Liana did laundry while I dropped the dinghy and then the two of us lowered the motor into position on the stern and loaded the fuel tank and battery and hooked them up. Liana hung the laundry and we locked up Silhouette, grabbed our waterproof backpacks and got in the dinghy racing across the bay. We eased up to the dinghy dock and locked it up. We had two missions; get parts and get groceries. All the chandleries were closed so we walked two miles to Chedraeu which is like a Walmart. Shopping went quick, we needed to get back before sunset.

We finished dinner and put the dinghy up just as the Corumuel “night winds” started. They blow 20-30 knots at night and usually stop when the sun comes up. They are a regular feature at night in May around the La Paz area. No concern as long as you are anchored well. They call it the La Paz waltz.

May 7 2019

The Corumuels blew all night and into the morning. We had no desire to try and dinghy across the windswept tumultuous bay so we had breakfast, drank coffee and listened to the La Paz cruisers net on channel 22. Then leisurely headed in to town.

Liana wasn’t doing her job today and I was getting all wet. The wind was coming from the side so every wave splashed me but she was dry. For the record it’s her job to keep the dinghy driver dry… just sayin. At Club Cruceros we paid our yearly $20 fee and Liana waited to get the wifi hookup while I reserved a table for us on the patio with my wet butt. Right beside me was a Catalina 34 just like “Miller Time,” a sailboat we owned in Colorado. We bought it from the Millers who had once sailed her to La Paz from San Diego. I thought about what that must have been like compared to Silhouette. Wow, that must have been a completely different experience. Miller Time seemed big to us then but Silhouette has so many more creature comforts. I hope we never take this for granted. 

This evening our nephew Kyron texted me and asked if we are still enjoying life on the water. Well, I said, we are BBQing tuna steaks, watching the sunset, drinking limonadas and watching dolphins swim beside us in the in La Paz harbor. How could life be any better than that? He texted back asking for pictures of dolphins. Just then three or four dolphins decided to give us a show, playing and diving right under our boat. Liana took a video for him on her phone. So there you go… God is so good. We are very blessed to be sailing Silhouette.