We had a great crossing! After spending several wonderful days in Los Muertos… swimming, snorkeling in warm (82 degrees) water,, fishing and generally enjoying life at anchor… it was time to go. The northerly winds were calming down and the seas (forecast to have been running at 5 second intervals) were laying down as well. We were to have 3 or 4 days of relatively calm weather which is exactly what we’d been waiting for. So, without further ado, we made ready to leave… and left. With the fleet of small boats (the dinghy and kayak) up on deck and all other gear lashed down.. we were back to looking like a travelling road show complete with Sophie the wonder dog and her famous mat.
When to weigh anchor: Now then, just to explain the timing thing… as to when to weigh anchor and actually leave. There’s kind of a formula that we use. Most of us plan our voyages based upon the average speed we expect to travel, the distance we know we have to cover, the weather conditions we expect to encounter, and the precise time we need to arrive (given other factors like tide change, currents, daylight and darkness, and other navigational hazards). It’s definitely not like hopping into your car and driving to the country. Nope, there are more than a few things that have to be identified, researched and factored in to the first decision…. which is what time to leave. We’re a smallish boat and travel more slowly than others. Given that we enjoy sailing comfortably (eg: without the leeward rails buried in the water and gear and crew being tossed about like loose ballast) we have a house rule out here… we keep one reef in the main at all (well, mostly all) times. Over the years we've learned that Shannon sails very well lightly reefed in brisk winds. We've also learned that the wind and sea conditions here can change very quickly… they pay no attention to the forecasts at all, and do their own thing. So, all things considered, and unlike larger boats who figure they travel at an average of 5-6 knots, we use 4 knots as our average speed for working out timing for travel. Travelling at 4 knots, we worked out it would take us approximately 48 hours to cover the distance to be traveled – and we wanted to arrive at the entrance to the harbour just before the high slack tide. We did the math… and weighed anchor at 0930 hours on Saturday, December 1st.
It was a beautiful day, brilliant sunshine, crystal clear blue water, and a warm and steady breeze. We hoisted sail, came about to our intended course and headed across the Sea of Cortez…”Mazatlan here we come”. We had a fabulous sail! Averaged 6 1/2 knots over 10 1/2 hours! With reefed main and genoa!(there goes the timing :-) We ran from 1000 to 2045 hrs. on one tack with a steady wind and large but steady seas. It was the kind of day you dream of… the kind of sailing we usually get to experience in short spurts. Everything worked well… all systems were ‘go’. By quarter to nine that night the wind was backing off and the ride was getting kind of lumpy so we fired up the ‘iron genny’ and motor-sailed on into the night. Using the three hour watch system (3 on/ 3 off) we were kept company by the myriad of stars (including our favourite constellation… Cassiopeia), a half-full and still brilliant moon, and a few critters.
Boobies (not that kind :-) Now don’t get me wrong…. I’m a pretty critter-friendly kind of gal but even I have my limits. When the large brown sea birds and Masked Boobies start arguing over who is going to land on our tiny mast head… covered with sensitive and light-weight wind instruments… I get a little testy. And, when one large Booby decided to heck with the masthead, the solar panels make a nice landing strip…. well, I got out the fly swatter… and didn’t I look a bit silly climbing up the side of the stainless steel arch, waving about the tiny green plastic fly swatter. So silly I guess, the bird just looked at me with a stupid look on his face… Finally out of sheer boredom or in need of peace and quiet away from this mad woman with a fly swatter.. he took off. Leaving me then with only moths the size of robins to duck and swat at… who knew humongous moths could fly that far out to sea? Well, enough said… everything settled down and the rest of the night was peaceful… we motor-sailed all night and into the next day as the winds died away to nothing and the seas flattened to glass. It was early the next morning when Sophie was heading up to use her mat, we (well she) realized there was someone living on our fordeck. One young Masked Booby had decided he needed to rest and our little patch of fordeck was a good place to stop. He was with us for several hours, only leaving when the swells came sideways and rocked us about a bit.
In the middle of the great blue sea: By mid-day on our second day we were travelling through the middle of the Sea; well out of sight of land and without a single other boat in sight. We could have been in the middle of the Pacific, half way to Hawaii. But we weren’t. We were in the middle of the Sea of Cortez, with flat, smooth warm water all around us, and no sight of other human life. You guessed it… off came the clothes, out went the life-ring on its floating line to act as a safety… and in we went… skinny-dipping in the Sea one at a time (so the other could mind the boat and watch for unwanted creatures of the shark-like variety.. this, of course, is assuming that sharks swim just below the surface like in the movies.. which, of course, they don’t… but if you blow past that bit, we had our lookout looking out… and really enjoyed the swim… :-) After our swim and after lunch we carried on…. motoring on the glassy, slowly rolling sea. On and on we travelled, one course, one destination… Mazatlan.
We were also delighted to see numerous sea turtles floating about; quite a few actually… None were going anywhere fast (do they ever?) and all kind of gazed at us as we passed… and then carried on their way.
Oh oh: It was my watch; Kathy was sleeping. The time was 2330 hrs. precisely. Otto was driving (that’s Otto the auto-pilot… the auto-pilot that failed on us on our journey down the west coast… the auto-pilot we had to replace in Ensenada because the cost of the one broken part was only $200 less than the cost of the entire unit… and you couldn’t buy just the one part anyway… the autopilot that couldn’t really handle the seas at the best of times….). I digress, but only because I am so displeased with the Auto-Helm I purchased and had installed the year before we left…a Raymarine SmartPilot X-5. To continue, there we were, motoring on a flat calm sea on a windless night… and my ears picked up a whining sound coming from the motor tube (which contains the motor and gear box) of the auto-pilot and within minutes the whole shebang ground to a halt. Now we’re not new to the routine of hand-steering (having hand-steered over half of the 2000 nautical miles we travelled last year) but oooooh, what a disappointment. So much time and money spent on this auto-pilot already.. and it goes and breaks again !! And, this time it breaks when we’re in the middle of the Sea of Cortez with over 12 hours still to go. I called Kathy up and we reviewed all we could… she tested what she could … and then we just carried on, now one hour on and one hour off… hand-steering yet again.
We arrived at our waypoint, just outside the entrance to Mazatlan and the El Cid Marina, a couple of hours early and Kathy was able to contact Raymarine to discuss our current problems. She and the tech guy agreed the problem was (again) the Motor Tube. Unfortunately, while the equipment is still under warranty, being in Mexico practically nullifies the opportunity to use said warranty. Between finding an actual dealer (there’s one in PV), ordering the unit, shipping the unit, the potential customs fees (rumoured to be totally outrageous.. eg: thousands of dollars) and the time required for all this to happen… AND the fact I’m loathe to put one more nickle into this auto-pilot… turns out we’re kind of hooped… for now.
At 0930 hrs., exactly when we’d planned to arrive, we motored into the El Cid Marina and were warmly welcomed by Lynn and Debbie Greentree (SV Dolphin Tales) friends from our own yacht club. They had kindly arranged for a good slip for us (B 07) and after helping us tie up and giving us a brief rundown of all the great things to do at the El Cid, they left us to catch up on our sleep (always necessary after a couple of all-night runs).
Current status: You know, sometimes when you think you’re having a bad day… you need only look about to find someone who’s having a worse one. Dave, a friend from La Paz, and his crew Cheryl also sailed across the Sea (SV Free Spirit). They were one day behind us. On that same day our auto-pilot gave up the ghost, their transmission followed suite. They were forced to sail a great deal of the way.. in little to no wind. When they arrived on this side, they had to anchor outside the entrance.. no transmission = no motor = no manoeuvring in small spaces. They’ll be coming in to the slip right beside us this morning (under sail and with small dinghies helping)… and we’ll be here to catch them. The good news? Dave will get his transmission fixed. It’ll cost him, but there is a good mechanic here. More good news? Dave has a spare auto-pilot on board which he may be able to spare and that may work for us. Still more good news? Dave may be able to use our spare course computer (one of the brand new parts left over after we had to buy an entire unit to get a motor tube) on his current auto-pilot. Time will tell and we should know where we stand by the end of today or tomorrow morning.
A little time for fun: Oh yes, it’s time for some fun. We had dinner at the Fat Fish restaurant tonight (thanks for the tip George). It was great. And tomorrow (er today) we get to take a free cooking lesson… cooking Marlin… and with free tequila.. how good is that?? And, did I mention, that with our slip rental at the El Cid Marina.. comes free use of two pools, one hot tub, morning yoga classes, aqua-size classes, free shuttles to town, clean towels, movie night under the stars twice a week, and all the pools and spa facilities at all El Cid hotels here… (there are four I think… beautiful hotels). Not bad hey?
Well I think that’s enough updating for now.. sorry for the delay in writing but we had to get a few things organized before I could clear my mind. We’re doing well. Sure like the greenery here.. it reminds me of Maui. Kathy has photos to post and will do so as soon as she can.
We hope all is well with all of you… think about you lots… good luck with your winter weather… California has sure taken a hit this past week or so. Stay warm… stay safe… write anytime.. we love to hear from you. Bye for now… adios.. CJ
