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Sea of Cortez 2006 |
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After a nine day break in La Paz, loaded with provisions, water and fuel, we headed north into the Sea of Cortez. Within two hours of departure we were again in the company of old friends. A group of three Fin whales escorted us for nearly an hour in route to our first stop, Bahia Ensenada Grande, where we ran into our friends Steve and Pat on Danzante III. We always enjoy visiting with them as Steve, a retired biology professor, is a wealth of local knowledge, having spent considerable time in Baja conducting research projects. We spent three wonderful days kayaking and snorkeling in the turquoise waters before moving on to Isla San Francisco. Our nights were spent in the cockpit staring up at the incomprehensible sea of stars above us.
After enjoying a great sail to Isla San Francisco, we dropped anchor in a beautiful cove and went ashore. We explored and hiked around the south end of the island taking in breath-taking views along with amazing displays of the local geology and tenacious flora that flourishes in this harsh environment. The wind soon began to pick up out of the south, leaving our anchorage exposed to a building swell, so we cut the field trip short and made our way back to the boat. Within a couple of hours the wind was blowing a steady 20 to 25 knots, the swell continued to build, and by midnight it was howling. For the first time in our two seasons cruising in Mexico we set the GPS Anchor Drag Alarm and hoped we would be able to get at least a couple of hours of sleep. Startled awake around two a.m. by the alarm going off, we jumped out of bed to find the wind had died. The alarm had sounded not because we were dragging but as a result of the boat fetching up on the anchor as the rode relaxed. What a relief. |
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Fin Whales in the San Lorenzo Channel just outside of La Paz |
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Wind and water combine to create some amazing features. |
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The hike around Isla San Francisco. |
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With more strong southerly's forecast, and not in the mood for a repeat of the previous night, we sailed across to the coast and the small fishing village of San Evaristo where there would be good protection. We would soon discover that several other cruisers had come to the same conclusion. The southern end of the cove at San Evaristo, where we would be most protected from the winds, is not very large and can be quite shallow. We left Isla San Francisco just after daylight with hopes of getting a good spot and were the first in but followed, literally on our heels, by another boat that anchored just off our stern. They hailed us to make sure we were comfortable with them anchored so close, which we were, as we knew the place was likely to get crowded. I would of guessed that no more than six boats would fit comfortably into the cove but by 5 p.m. there were 11 boats tucked in around us, though I would not describe it a comfortable.
Later in the afternoon Dennis and Janet of Shilling, the boat that followed us in, came over to introduce themselves and invite us over for a glass of wine after dinner. We spent an enjoyable evening on board Shilling, a gorgeous Oyster 435, and then rowed back to ZUG in the pitch black. The winds picked up but were out of the west and had no fetch so we were able to enjoy a restfull night despite the close proximity of so many boats. |
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Our next stop, Bahia Agua Verde, was a full day's travel north so we got underway at first light, followed shortly afterward by Shilling. With only light winds we were back to motoring. It seems that in the Sea of Cortez we sailors spend more time motoring than actually sailing. Some days I put up the main sail so we at least look like a sail boat. It does help some, serving to steady the boat a give us a bit of lift and speed. We parted ways with Shilling around mid day as they were stopping at Los Gatos (our most northerly point last season). Just before taking leave of our new freinds some old ones showed up. Two blue whales (huge) came within 75 feet of the boat. Two hours later we stopped again, this time to wait for hundreds of dolphins to pass by. Cheri's day was complete. The rest of the passage was uneventful and we arrived in late afternoon, dropping anchor in the south cove.
The last time we were in Bahia Agua Verde was in 1992 on a kayaking trip. Our lasting memory of the place was the 35 mile road-from-hell to get there and then burying our truck in the riverbed while looking for a place to camp. The entire village came our to help extricate us from the quagmire. It was quite the event. |
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The north anchorage at Bahia Agua Verde. Zugunruhe is in the foreground. |
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Click here to continue. |
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