Sailing by the Light of the Moon

It’s presently 2315 hours (11:15 p.m.) on Wednesday, May 23rd.  We left Cabo San Lucas Monday at 1700 hrs. with our destination of Turtle Bay, @ 397 miles away.  Going past the famous arch and heading towards Cabo Falso was rough.  Thankfully it was a relatively short interim as we turned north to follow the coast – and the waves calmed down.  After 2 ½ days at sea, we arrived at 0700 hrs at Puerto Belcher (burp!) in Bahia Magdalena for some much needed down time and sleep.  When you are a “rocking and a rolling” it’s hard to relax and get some shut-eye.  Rum for the crew and hot dogs on the grill with sauerkraut…..a hot shower and in the sack by 2100 hrs.

Photo of the arch on a calmer day.................

 There are 4 other sail boats and one motor vessel that are all traveling north.  Shamaness,  Kindred Spirit, Di’s Dream, Scout, and Incognito.  This time of year the winds are mostly from the north which means it’s blowing on our nose – not good.  You and your motors take a beating.  Every 6-8 hours Paddy will turn the engines off and go down into the engine rooms (we have 2 engines) to make sure everything is in good working order.    Weather is the main concern, especially the winds which were forecasted to be BIG!  Because Mother Nature is always changing her mind, we have constant updates with the Amigo Net (every morning at 0800 on the single-side band radio) and our fellow sailors to discuss in great detail what is expected, when we should leave and when to drop anchor in a safe and calm anchorage.

After a good night’s sleep, it is decided that we should leave at 0900.  Sails up, anchors aweigh,  and off we go.  Once we rounded Cabo San Lazaro, the winds were right and we are SAILING!  It always makes the Captain happy when we are not using any fuel.  

S/V  Shamaness with June and Dennis has been our buddy boat so we check in with each other regularly. They just turned their motor off to check the oil.  All is well with them.  Our speed is 5.4 kts with the winds @ 11-13 kts. from the southwest , and the engines are running at 2000 RPMs.  Yes, sometimes it is necessary to motor-sail!  Only 180 miles to go = 64 hrs. 40 minutes to Turtle Bay.

S/V Shamaness in Cabo

A sunset in Cabo

The weather is changing!!  Last night in the cabin it was in the lower 60’s, and now at 0700 it is 70 degrees.  The foul weather gear was out and worn on Tuesday and we are now in jeans and jackets!  We’re not in the Tropics anymore Dorothy!
Tonight the moon is almost full and lighting our way.  The reflection of the moonlight on the calm sea is a beautiful sight to behold.   Now as we move north, the 2 constellations that were prevalent in the southern seas, Scorpio and the Southern Cross, are not visible here.  I will miss them!  They were our guiding lights.

Good “May 24^th” morning to ya! 

Changing of the guards - I’m up and Paddy’s down for the count.  He’s the only person I know that can fall asleep before his head hits the pillow!  I’m jealous because I’m a tosser (not to be confused with the British term!), and I can lay there much longer than I’d like while trying to go to sleep.

Changing of the weather – It’s  68 degrees in the salon.  I need a pair of gloves.  I only have about a dozen pair of them in storage!  When I go back to Florida this summer, I’ll be shuffling through boxes looking for warmer clothes.     We spent a week in Cabo where it is dry and dusty, it is the desert.  The temps were pleasant: low 80’s during the day and low 70’s at night.

Changing of the sea creatures - we haven't seen any dolphins in a while.  But did see 2 humpback whales, sea lions, and still some turtles.

A sunrise

I go to the stern to check on our status.  I am greeted by a blinding sunrise and dew all over everything.    We are doing 6.2 kts and are located at N 26’03, W 112’51.  It is necessary every night to bring in all our stuff from the cockpit – if you don’t want them to get wet from the dew.  So drag in the hats, binoculars, GPS, chart book, iPad, and Le Chat Beaute’s log.  Still @ 280 degrees on the auto pilot, the sails are as full as they are going to get for now – not much wind.  There is a swell, so the boat is bobbing a bit.  Another day of changes.

The LCB log is full of information……………we log in every departure, weather, date and time, items of special interest like it’s my birthday, Memorial Day, etc., and every anchorage, where, depth, & time.  The log includes not only the cruising information, but the vessel info, fuel info, maintenance and inventory.    So when Paddy installs (another) Raycor filter, belts or pumps, just to name a few things, he will be reminded how long or in some cases how short a part lasts.  Trust me, they never last long enough. 

No pictures of Turtle Bay, and why not?  Because it is a dry, dusty, desolate town.  I keep waiting for Clint Eastwood to pop up at "High Noon"......remember that movie?  Well, that's what it's like here.  So why stop here, you ask?  Calm anchorage and Fuel!

Today is Tuesday, May 28th.  Hope everyone enjoyed their Memorial Day festivities.  We have been in Turtle Bay a few days.  Le Chat Beaute, Kindred Spirit, Shamaness & Incognito are getting ready to leave Wednesday evening as we finally have a good weather window.  Which in this case means light winds and relatively flat seas so we can motor to San Diego.  Because we checked out with the Port Captain and Immigration in Cabo, there so need to stop in Ensenanda. (even though I heard they have great shopping there! - another missed opportunity.) :(

Paddy and I are excited about our next stop - the Good Ole U.S. of A!