Back Home on Our Boat in La Paz

We arrived safely back at our boat in La Paz this evening and are just now unpacking after a long travel day (including a stop at Costco in Cabo).  Alaska Airlines managed to loose one of our bags but hopefully they will find it tomorrow.  Tropical storm Georgette did not appear to be too much of a problem though we drove from Cabo to La Paz in a pretty good rain storm and some washed out roads.

More later.

Michael (in La Paz)

Year Two to Begin!!!

We've leased out our home for another year!  And that means we get to continue cruising!.  As you probably know last year we got as far south as Manzanillo Mexico before turning around and heading north back to La Paz and the Sea of Cortez to wait out hurricane season.  This year we hope to get further south and into Central America!  We are all very excited and hopefully will have more wind!

We are now hanging out in California until September 21 and then fly back to Cabo, load up at Costco and head back to La Paz.

Michael
Atherton, CA

Turning Twelve

I woke up on August 23^rd, my birthday, to the sound of the drag pulling on my new fishing rod. We’d picked up the anchor in V cove and were headed to Puerto Escondido. Only twenty seconds later, my dad’s rod’s drag went, too. We’d caught two fish at the same time! It was only the second time we’d caught two together on the trip! My mom said that they only did that to celebrate for me. But, sadly enough, once I’d reeled mine in , I saw that it was only a pacific bonito (bad for eating) and my dad’s was a skipjack (also bad for eating). But, it was a great way to start off the day.

For breakfast, we had tortilla crepes. Some of them were veggie crepes and others were sweet ones. They were amazingly good. The tortilla was just as good as the regular crepe.

After breakfast, I got some of my presents. I’d gotten a fishing rod earlier so that I could use it in the Sea of Cortez, where more fish swim. From my brother I got a book and from my parents I got dive gloves. I love my presents so much.

We finally got to our destination and stopped at the fuel dock. My dad filled the boat up with diesel while my mom got lunch prepared. Once they were done, we had a curry mango quinoa salad for lunch, one of my favorite foods. Then Harrison and I called our friends on Stepping Stone and arranged to go to the pool that was in the marina complex. We got in our swim suits and walked up to the pool. Our parents left the dock right away to get to a mooring and clean up the boat. It turns out that the water in the pool had been drained – so disappointing as I had planned to spend much of my birthday swimming with friends. We found our friends in the cold room, a room that is really cold when the air conditioning is on, even though it never is. Kimberly, 17, was checking her email and Savanna, 6, was just running around. There were multiple flies in the room , so I spent my time swatting them. After a while, Stepping Stone had to go back to their boat. Not too exciting.

My parents finally came to pick us up and I made a giant fortune teller and looked for books on Amazon. I was feeling really bummed. I took my mom back to the boat by dinghy so that she could start getting ready for dinner and went to go pick up my dad. When we got back, my parents presented me with their final present. It was a small, beautiful piece of art with two hearts and a sun made out of copper.

Stepping Stone came over for dinner. We had a chicken curry dish with lots of vegetables. One of the vegetables were dried jalapeños and my dad dared Kimberly and me to try one, so we did. They weren’t as spicy as I thought they’d be, but our lips burned for the next half hour.

Then we had dessert and our friends on Chat De Mer came over for apple plum crisp. We talked about how when no-see-‘ems bite you, they leave a pussy layer on top. Leo (Chat De Mer) told us that that pussy layer is actually eggs because no-see-‘ems lay eggs in you when they bite you. And, no, the eggs don’t actually survive.

Kimberly convinced me to swim with the phosphorescence, so we got into swimsuits and jumped in. Phosphorescence are plankton that glow in the dark when you move. We put on snorkels and jumped in off the bow. The bubbles around us glowed green and it was one of the coolest things I’ve ever done. Kimberly dove down into the water and she turned into a ball of green. Then we swam under the boat and when we dove down, we flipped ourselves around so that we were facing the boat and when we came up, we saw the phosphorescence and the full moon together. It was so much fun.   

We got out of the water and we said good bye to Chat De Mer. Sarah, Kimberly and Savanna’s mom, told us stories about how they had cockroaches on their boat. Did you know that cockroaches can live for a week after their head gets cut off? It’s because they can still live off the food in their body until it runs out.

We were having so much fun that we lost track of time. It turns out that Stepping Stone left at 12:10!

I had a really great birthday and I think it’s one of my favorites so far.

Afterwards when my dad and I were talking about what it was like to be twelve, he asked me if I’d ever thought about how much I’ve slept in my life or spent on the toilet. That made me start thinking. If I’ve slept for an average of 10 hours per day and have spent an average of 20 minutes a day on the toilet every day of my life and I’m 12 years old, then I’ve only been awake and off the toilet for 6 years and 10 months. How long have you been awake and off the toilet?

Danielle (now in La Paz, Mexico)

What's for Dinner? And Other Food Items

Last week, we decided to take an inventory of our stores, and especially what's still in our freezer, given that we will be away from the boat for three weeks beginning on September 1. Of our kosher meat (which we've been ordering from the kosher butcher in Mexico City, the last time being in March just before Passover), we still had one 8-piece cut-up chicken, 4 boneless/skinless chicken breasts, a package of sliced turkey, and a package of pastrami. The pastrami was eaten on my/Michael's birthday, we've had the turkey for sandwiches, we've barbequed the chicken (plus took a couple of pieces off for a chicken matzah ball soup), and Danielle has asked for a chicken curry dish for her birthday on the 23rd.

We've also got two of those large salmon sides from Costco, a box of fish sticks, and some frozen mahi mahi from one of our big catches. There are some Boca Burgers (chickenless chicken patties as well as the tofu burgers) and some tofu sausages. Other than that, it's all frozen fruit. We'll be having lots of fruit smoothies over the next couple of weeks.

With all of this, I put together a matrix for lunches and dinners, and by my calculations, we should have an empty freezer by the time we leave. I've even included some blank spots assuming our luck in the fishing department continues.

And by the way (and this is for my mother's benefit as well), Michael and the kids were picking scallops for some friends (who also made some for Michael). The kids and I are still keeping kosher. The scallop hunt was still loads of fun - until we learned that it is illegal for non-Mexicans to do so. That's the end of that.

Last night, Danielle cooked us an incredible dinner of mahi-mahi fish burgers with home-made rosemary buns, Asian coleslaw (made by Harrison), and oatmeal raisin squares. This was, perhaps, one of our best meals yet, and we were able to share it with our friends Leo and Cecil of the Chat de Mer (during an intense game of Mexican Train).

It may be because of the delicious and healthy home-cooked meals we're having (no restaurants around here!), but the kids are growing like weeds. Harrison wore his running shoes today for a hike and they are already getting too small - we bought them big in mid-February. His ribs are still showing, yet he's gotten to be pretty muscular and tall. Danielle is almost as tall as I am yet is long, lanky and also muscular.

Having said all that, I can't wait to eat a good bagel and other great crusty fresh bread, some Korean food, Vietnamese pho, and meat - plenty of meat.

-Barb
La Ramada cove, just north of San Juanico, BCS, Mexico

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The Fish Are Back! (Or are we just learning how to fish?)

Well, the last couple of weeks have been a lot better in the fishing department. We've added to our lures and fishing gear and now seem to be catching more fish. Of course, it could also be that it is a better season and there are just more fish in the water, but we'd like to think that our skill has improved considerably along with improved lures and gear. You see, the importance of good (or decent) gear is critical. We've learned this first hand: The drag on one of our rod/reels broke. The drag is the rate or amount of force required to pull line out of the reel in order to slow down the fish once hooked without snapping the line. One morning we lost three - yes three - lures, because once the fish was hooked and started swimming away it snapped the line three times. Without the drag working there was no way to slow the fish down. It was costly in the lure department. The force on one of the catches was strong enough to have the rod fling back and knock Harrison's hat into the water. That resulted in us going fishing for a hat instead!

All that said, we've generally been catching more fish than we have in the past. Mostly all Dorado (Mahi Mahi) but also a yellow tail. Needless to say we've been eating a lot of fish. Sushi (a variety of spicy and non-spicy yellow tail rolls), ceviche, fish jerky, fish tacos, fish soup, fish cakes, fish cookies, fish burgers, fish, fish fish...

Yesterday, we motor sailed from Isla Coronado (26 degrees 6.64 minutes N by 111 degrees 17.02 minutes W) (after stopping in Loreto for a third day in a row -- see blog post "Loreto - Take Three") up to La Ramada (26 degrees 22.90 minutes N by 111 degrees 25.90 minutes W) which is just on the north side of San Juanico. On our way we hooked the biggest Dorado yet. After fighting to bring it to the boat for over 45 minutes with everyone helping reel it in, we got it on board, into our net. Once on board, I was wrestling it to get control of it. In all the commotion, the hook came out and it literally slid out from under me and back into the water. Think WWF - and I had it pinned! We all said "$*#@*#&$#$" at the same time (the kids got a hall pass on that one). It really was a beauty!

That said, not five minutes later we hooked another fish on our other rod (Danielle's early birthday present - isn't that cool that that's what she wanted??!!)! We started reeling it in. Now this one seemed to behave differently in its fight. First, it did not jump out of the water the way the Dorados do but instead dove. And, it fought like nothing else we had reeled in before. What could it be? Harrison wondered if it was a Marlin -- "Dad, Dad can we keep it?" -- and Danielle wondered if it was a shark -- "Dad, Dad, we better cut the line and let it go!" After over 65 minutes of fighting to get it on board (Barb, Danielle and Harrison had given up because they got too tired), we got it close to the boat. It was still deep and all we saw was its silvery color -- "Dad its a shark" -- but finally we reeled it to the surface and saw that it was a Mexican Skipjack (a tuna but not very tasty). While we don't like eating them, we decided to practice bringing it on board using our gaffer (large fish hook) to see if we could do it correctly so as not to lose our next Dorado! Success! We got it on board, got some photos and then let it go.

With all this activity we had originally expected to get to La Ramada by 4:30 pm. Instead, we got there at 7:00 pm. We anchored in this beautiful cove and then had ceviche for dinner! Then we played Rummikub.

Fishing's been a lot more fun!

Michael
(in La Ramada)

Loreto - Take Three

Seriously.  Here we are, once again in the Mission Hotel in Loreto.  This visit was unplanned, but we discovered last night as we went through our clean laundry that Harrison's top sheet was missing.  We got up early once again, to head south for the 6 miles to Loreto, to pick up our top sheet.  When we entered the laundromat, there it was, folded neatly and sitting on the table waiting for us.  We made a quick stop for internet, and now we are heading back to the boat so that we can quickly raise anchor.  We'd like to get to San Juanico, our next destination 26 miles north (would have been 18 miles from Isla Coronados), before dark.

-Barbara
(from Loreto once again)

Who Does He Think I Am?

Harrison caught a skipjack, a fish that isn't all that good to eat, so our friend

Bill, on Iron Maiden, threw it at the sea lions. This short story is told from the

alpha sea lion's perspective.

I was swimming peacefully in the bay as three dinghies and a kayaker drove up. One of the dinghies had a fish. I could smell it. I wanted it. But, I realized it was a stupid skipjack, not my favorite, but it would do. What could be better than free food? But, as the polite creature that I am, I let him keep it. As the alpha male of my pack I made sure nobody took it either. Feeling that my duty was done, I swam to shore.

Then - get this - he threw the fish at me! He THREW it! He didn't hand it to me. He didn't place it in the water. He THREW it to shore! What does he think I am? An animal?

They stared at us, like we were in a zoo. I've already been tagged and I didn't like it. I definitely don't want to be in captivity. And here I felt like I was. I didn't like it. So, I changed my act from polite, cute, and cuddly to a big, strong party pooper. I stared them down and didn't even glance at the fish. When the pups came to try to eat it, I barked at them to scare them away, and they waddled off. I didn't want to give the boaters a show. That would teach that man some manners!

The boaters didn't seem to want to leave, so I got in the water and swam away to my favorite rock. I didn't like to walk. Then they finally started to leave. Yes! But as they left, the pups started to nibble on the fish. So, the boaters got a show after all! Ugh! I should've stolen stolen it from him at the start after all! That would've shown him!

Loreto - Take Two

We arrived in Loreto by boat yesterday (Sunday) for the weekly market.  The ride takes about 2 hours, so after getting up at around 6:30, lifting anchor in Isla Coronado, reanchoring in front of Loreto, and heading to the market, we got there around 9 a.m.  We got our fresh produce, and took it back to the boat.  We were quick so that we could run some additional errands, like picking up some dry goods at a grocery store, hitting the fishing store, the hardware store, the laundromat, the gas station (for our dinghy), and some lunch.  However, as we were getting into our dinghy to head back to shore, some dark clouds (cumulonimbus, as I'm told) quickly came over the water from the mountains.  The winds picked up and the water got extremely choppy.  After consulting with a number of other boaters also anchored there, we decided to 'skidaddle'.  In just a few minutes, we had raised anchor and were on our way to out run the storm.  It was rather exciting - the cool rain started coming down, the winds churned and tossed us around, and we were scurrying to get electronics into the oven, as well as anything outside the boat inside (shoes, clothes, towels, or anything that might blow off).  For the first time since our last overnight crossing, we all wore our lifejackets. Although our plan was to continue north after our trip to Loreto, we instead decided to take refuge back at Isla Coronado.  It was a great day after that - much cooler temperatures.

This morning we got up to do it all over again.  I am currently sitting in the Mission Hotel (free internet) after a day of laundry, hardware store, fishing store, lunch, gas station and ice cream!  We'll head back to Isla Coronado this evening and then get up early tomorrow morning to continue north.

-Barb (from Loreto, BCS, Mexico)

Sea of Cortez is Catching On!

Check out this recent article in the San Jose Mercury News about a couple who took a one-week learn-to-sail 'vacation' in the Sea of Cortez: http://bit.ly/btlZny 


Thanks to our friend Ken Ostreich who told us about it.


-Barb (in Loreto)

Things Have Greatly Improved...

Just wanted to let you know that things have greatly improved since my last post. Still bees, but they are not swarming. We've managed to pick up more screen material and have taped that up which has kept the bee numbers down while still allowing for air circulation inside the boat. It has gotten cooler during the nights which has made things more bearable. We have all been sleeping outside on the trampoline which I love - I wake every morning as the sun rises over the mountains and thank God for another day - then go back to sleep for another hour. I have been doing yoga many mornings. The sunsets are gorgeous. The giant bat rays do acrobats in the anchorage at all times of the day and night. We've been snorkeling a lot - as Danielle noted in her post, the number of fish species and starfish is astounding and I've really grown to love snorkeling. We've caught a dorado (mahi mahi) and had three yummy meals of it (fish tacos, sopa de pescado, and I've learned to dry fish into teriyaki fish jerky). We've been hanging out with some new friends aboard another Fontaine Pajot catamaran called Chat de Mer, as well as those on an 88 ton motor sailer called Iron Maiden. Together we've snorkeled and visited the north side of Isla Coronado where there is a small sea lion rookery. We've headed into Loreto for the Sunday market and picked up gorgeous produce. We've been eating well (tonight I made curried vegetables and dahl with brown rice) - we are trying to use up a lot of our food before we head back to California for three weeks next month. We have been spending very little - which I also love given that I am the keeper of the budget. It's very simple living, and we are very used to it by now. We've been doing some homeschooling that doesn't require internet given that there is none here, and we're trying to be done by 11 a.m. given that it is already scorching hot by that time.

Today was overcast for the first time this summer, and we prepared for a chubasco (severe weather cell) that we watched as it came north and then by-passed us, but not without some rain showers and light winds. It was a welcome cooling and cleaned the outside of the boat. I used the opportunity to clean inside the boat which we hadn't done in a couple of weeks. The kids watched a movie. Michael fixed things, as he usually does, and still amazes me with what he knows. For example, when we blew a circuit breaker on the generator just as we tried turning on the air conditioning (which is why we don't run the air conditioning for those who asked) which led to the generator failing to run the AC power, he headed down into the engine room and got the generator working again. Trouble shooter extraordinaire.

Michael and I celebrate our birthdays on Saturday - for me it's number 45, for Michael it's 46. The kids are planning another one of their self-cooked meals for us with apple pie for desert. That's it for gifts - there's no where here to buy anything, so we'll both be taking rain checks. Other than the hand-made cards. Birthdays while cruising are really spectacular for both kids and adults - very simple, unplanned and last minute gatherings of any cruisers who happen to be around on that day (and no matter how well you know them). You give make shift gifts (a brownie mix, a fishing lure, a can of olives, a used book, a used piece of clothing) with homemade cake and whatever snacks you have in your stores that you are willing to share. None of these expensive parties or gifts. Low expectations, but heavy on the fun.

Perhaps it's being in the Sea of Cortez in the middle of complete wilderness and nature, but one day seems to blend into the next. I can't remember how long we've been anchored here, and it's hard to believe that it's already mid-August with High Holidays just around the corner. The world keeps turning, the year keeps cycling, and we've been gone for 11 months already. I'm just about ready for a change of pace, but not quite yet.

-Barbara
Isla Coronado, BCS, Mexico
26 degrees 06.618 minutes N; 111 degrees 17.032 minutes W

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A Snorkeling Trip

We are now anchored at Isla Coronado, near Loreto. We'd heard about great snorkeling on the other side of the anchorage, so we went this morning. My mom and brother wore their jellyfish suits and me and my dad just wore our swim suits. There was a gorgeous sandy, blue water cove near the reef so we anchored the dinghy there.

Once we were in the water, the first thing I noticed were the jellyfish. Jellyfish look like see-through umbrella tops with several long tentacles. It's the tentacles that touch you and sting you several times. Getting stung feels like an electrical current is running through you. I started swimming toward the reef. And sure enough, I was attacked by huge jellyfish! Most of the time, you can't see jellyfish, but these were easy to notice in the clear water. I swam back to the dinghy and stared at the bumps growing on my leg. Once they died down, I got back in.

I swam around to the other side of the reef where everybody was. By the time I got there, Harrison was cold and wanted to go back. He'd been helping my dad collect scallops, so we switched places and I helped my dad instead. While he was collecting, two big fish kept following us, trying to get to the scallops. They were pretty fearless, so we had to kick them to make them go away.

The snorkeling was great. There were tons of fish and starfish. There were needle fish, angel fish, and butterfly fish. To go from one side of the reef to the other, you had to go over a deeper part, which was between two reefs, because the reef itself was too shallow to swim over. On that route, there was a huge school of thousands of fish that swam the entire side of both reefs back and forth. The starfish were very unique. There was a five pointed one that was green with brown spikes and a pink multi-pointed one with blue spikes. Some starfish were just the normal five long points.

On the way back, my dad saw an eel. We both saw lots of jellyfish and rockfish. And then, I got stung again! This time, it was on my hands. Right away, my hands turned bright red and welts popped up.

I loved the sea life in this snorkeling trip, except for the jellyfish. I guess I learned my lesson though: always wear your jellyfish suit unless you want to get electrocuted!

Danielle (in Isla Coronado)

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Reflections of the Past Year

My lifestyle for the past year has been very different from what it's been in past years, given that I'm living on a boat in Mexico.

In an everyday lifestyle, kids' entertainment is laid out before them. They have dance, sports, TV, theater, and lots of other things. I have activities too, like swimming and playing at the beach, but I don't have TV or sports like the ones at home, things that used to take up most of my time. Instead, I rig up zip lines and swings, some that hang you off the side of the boat.

Living in Mexico is like going to camp every day. Water sports after school, is always the first on our agenda when at an anchorage. My favorite is scurfing, a version of wake boarding, except for the fact that your feet aren't locked in because you're standing on a surfboard. Close seconds are wake boarding, knee boarding, boogie boarding, surfing, snorkeling, and just plain old swimming. On this trip, I learned how to build a bonfire, surf, scurf, and dive off of higher points than I was used to. I'm still working on my back flips!

I've also made many friends on this trip, Mexican and American/Canadian. At home, I've had most of my friends since kindergarten. But here, I've started all over. One of the Mexicans that I befriended didn't speak any English at all. But I still managed to teach her how to juggle devil sticks!

Throughout the trip, I gradually gained more freedom. I learned to drive the dinghy and to do it alone. That's like driving a car while your parents are still home. I've also done dinghy landings, getting the dinghy onto the beach. I go almost everywhere alone, when at home, my mom was reluctant to let me go to the park around the corner.

Even with all those activities and new experiences, I'm still an everyday kid with school, chores, and after school activities that I don't get to do until school's done.

I think I've grown a lot this year and I've had fun trying out a new lifestyle.

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How To Play "Horse Fights" In The Pool (Revised)

This game needs four people, two pairs of two, and is played in a pool. One person goes on top of another person's shoulders. The goal of the game is to get the other team's top person off and into the pool. The bottom person can NOT interfere. When the top person is all the way off the bottom person's shoulders, that team loses. The team that has their top person on the bottom person's shoulders the longest, WINS! Have fun playing "Horse Fights".

Harrison (in Isla Coronado in the Sea of Cortez)
26 degrees 06.646 minutes N by 111 degrees 17.004 minutes W

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How To Play "Horse Fights" In The Pool

This game needs four people, two pairs of two, and is played in a pool. One person goes on top of another person's shoulders. The goal of the game is to get the other team's top person of in to the pool. The bottom person can NOT interfere. When the top person is all the way off the bottom person's shoulders ,that team loses. The team that has their top person on the bottom person's shoulders, WINS! Have fun playing "Horse Fights".

Harrison (in Isla Coronado in the Sea of Cortez)
26 degrees 06.646 minutes N by 111 degrees 17.004 minutes W

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House rental, boat insurance, and health care

We have not yet rented out our house, and must seriously begin to consider our options if we have not rented it out by mid-September, which could include making our way back home earlier than planned.  We so don’t want to do this, so if you know of anyone who needs to rent a home in Menlo Park over the next school year, please pass on our information. 

We’ve recently had to make some other decisions.  We changed our marine insurance to one that does not require us to be north of 27 degrees latitude during hurricane season.  This didn’t make logical sense given that hurricanes do reach north of 27 degrees, and that there are ‘hurricane holes’ south of that.  In addition, there are many things you can do to prepare your boat should a hurricane pass by, often stipulated in the insurance contract (lash down sails, remove all canvas, etc.).  We know of only a handful of others who were required to have their boats north of 27 degrees in order to be covered for a loss from a named hurricane. Our insurance agent came up with even higher premiums after we discussed it with him, and so we’ve opted to go elsewhere.  Our new insurance, which is more reasonably priced, has given us a few more options of where to leave our boat when we head to northern CA next month, including keeping it right here in Puerto Escondido.

Another decision we have had to make is whether to keep health insurance.  We have a catastrophic policy that would provide us with medical coverage in Mexico in an emergency and would fly us home if needed. This is all about $300 per year total. In addition to this, we’ve kept our health insurance in the US but it doesn’t cover us out of country.  Our premiums have just gone up to nearly $1000 per month, and given that we haven’t used it at all this year, our deductibles have not been met either.  Many cruisers have opted not to carry any health insurance, given that Mexican doctors’ visits/tests are so inexpensive and are reputed to be just as good as many American doctors. I know someone who had a mammogram done in La Paz for $50, and wasn’t charged for a resulting ultrasound either. In any case, we must now decide whether to risk not having any insurance against the astronomical costs of the insurance, or loosing continuous coverage.  The jury is still out on how to gamble this one.

-Barbara
Puerto Escondido, BCS, Mexico