The crew returns from the States

We had a wonderful trip to California catching up with family and friends with the bulk of our attention focused on our grandson Caeden.  He had not forgotten us (as we feared) and he met us at the airport clapping and holding his arms out to us.

The trip south to Persephone did not go quite so smoothly.  We hadn’t noticed until the night before that Brian’s “identical” ticket had him flying out two days early.  The airlines were booked and Brian ended up missing Caeden’s second birthday party.  All was good because it took two days to clean off all the bird s*!* covering our floating home.

Sandie arrives on Tuesday, February 12, with our long time cruising buddies Barbara and Curtis Bryant who had cruised the Sea of Cortez with us 25 years ago.  We buy provisions in Loreto and head back to the boat where the winds are howling and the forecast is for a week of high wind and seas.  Undeterred, we slip our mooring Wednesday and cross the channel to Honeymoon Cove (25 48.52N, 111 15.46W) where we hike, snooze, and begin a gastronomical adventure that lasts the entire voyage.

Homemade salsa and drinks before dinner (Honeymoon Cove)

Persephone at anchor in Honeymoon Cove

Sailing from Honeymoon Cove to Agua Verde

Low tide exploring in Honeymoon Cove

Climbing Isla Danzante with Persephone in the distance (Honeymoon Cove)

Bar-b-que in Honeymoon Cove

On Thursday we take advantage of the strong north wind and sail south to Agua Verde (25 31.36N, 111 04.40W).  But as we approach the wind dies and we have to motor the last few miles.  Curtis notices that our chart plotter is not showing a 115 foot high rock at the entrance to the bay and quickly brings up his “backup” charts on his IPhone (he always has a backup plan) and it too fails to show this massive obstacle.  We pass the rock and drop our hook in the north anchorage.

The next day we hike into the village for cold cervezas and return along the rocky shore as the tide drops.  This is a beautiful and protected anchorage and we forget that the north wind is blowing until a north bound boat enters the anchorage after battling “uphill” all day.

Agua Verde anchorage (note the ghost rock outside the bay)

Fish camp at the Agua Verde anchorage

Spinnaker run to San Evaristo

Beach at Agua Verde village

The wind moderates on Saturday and we enjoy a perfect spinnaker run south.  We bypass Los Gatos when the weather forecast predicts east wind and end up anchoring in San Evaristo (24 54.76N, 110 42.14W) after sunset.

In the morning we meet up with our friends Charlotte and Steve on Willful Simplicity.  Sandie has brought from the States jackets for all the kids in the village and the women tag them with the children’s names.  Charlotte then leads us to each house where the children are presented with their gifts.  The kids and parents are very appreciative and we are a little taken by how such modest gifts can mean so much.  Thanks to Sandie’s Lions Club for their support in this effort.

Sardine roe in San Evaristo Bay

Vulture watches as we go house to house

Distributing jackets throughout the village

Shopping at the tienda in San Evaristo

Kids try on their new jackets

Our crew and Steve & Charlotte enjoy dinner at Cipriana’s

Quenching our thirsts after delivering the jackets

We can’t leave San Evaristo without having dinner at Cipriana’s cantina on the beach where we consume large quantities of beer and fish tacos.  In the morning we motor across the San Jose Channel to Amortajada (24 52.74N, 110 34.54W) with its miles of white sandy beach enclosing the emerald waters of the protected lagoon.  We spend hours beach combing and both Barbara and Curtis find bottles containing notes.  We are disappointed when later we find that the notes have gotten damp and the ink is unreadable.

Enjoying a peaceful anchorage

Barbara discovers the first bottle with a message

Beach combing miles of sandy beach

Another lazy afternoon

Curtis opens the message in a bottle

In the morning we take a dinghy ride into the mangrove lagoon where Barbara discovers clams and we all start digging in the sand for what becomes a delicious clam chowder.  In the evening the wind shifts putting us on a lee shore and making for an uncomfortable night.  In the morning we motor south to Isla San Francisco (24 49.21N, 110 34.28W) and find excellent protection in a gorgeous bay with a crescent white sandy beach.

Clams that became chowder

Clamming in the lagoon

Mangrove lagoon

Exploring the mangrove lagoon

Exploring the mangrove lagoon

Exploring the mangrove lagoon

We go ashore for a hike and find a sailboat that has dragged during the night and ended up on the beach.  Curtis and Brian return later in the dinghy with lines and anchors and spend the late afternoon getting the boat refloated, much to the appreciation of the young crew on the boat.

Sandie on the ridge at Isla San Francisco

Beached sailboat

Crescent beach at Isla San Francisco

We raise anchor Thursday morning and sail to Ensenada Grande (24 33.50N, 110 23.87W) where our guests spend the afternoon bolder hiking the arroyo to the back side of the island.  They arrive back at the boat after sunset famished and tired.

We motor to Caleta Partida (24 31.96N, 110 22.83W) Friday morning and enjoy a relaxing day onboard while the north wind builds.  The evening drinks rank high on the octane scale and we find ourselves dancing outside as we witness another spectacular sunset.

Sunset at Ensenada Grande

Bolder climbing the arroyo

Dancing at sunset in Caleta Partida

After a rolly night we decide to sail to La Paz (24 09.32N, 110 19.65W) and are fortunate to get into Marina de La Paz before the harbor is closed for hazardous conditions brought on by strong winds.  With Persephone snug in the marina we spend the next couple of days exploring the city and eating way too much!  Sadly, Barbara and Curtis depart Tuesday morning for their timeshare in Cabo San Lucas.  It’s been an amazing two weeks and we are already planning their next visit further down the line.

Barbara and Curtis depart for Cabo

Very mellow after a day of sailing

Sandie is still working on her tequila shooters

Statue on the waterfront malecon in La Paz

Tequila shooters