The getaway

Caleta Lobos, BCS, Mexico

Yes that's right, we are no longer in La Paz!

We made our escape this morning, after a quick visit to the fuel dock, then the marina office to pay for the fuel and the last month's moorage, and sadly, to give back our keys to the marina.

We decided on a short trip today, in order to see if everything is running OK, and to see if we remember how to handle the boat after so much time in the marina.

The plotted course was just 10.4 nautical miles.  The first 5 miles is just following the dredged channel to get out of La Paz, so we had to motor that distance.  Once clear of the port, we hoisted both the full mainsail and full genoa, a sail combination that we have not used in over a year.  I felt that since the winds were so light, we could risk having all of our canvas up for a change.

We sailed, close-hauled, for almost 3 hours, with wind speeds between 7 and 10 knots, at a good pace of between 4 and 6 knots for most of the time.  The wind, of course, was coming from exactly the direction we wanted to go, so we spent our time tacking back and forth, making very little progress for the most part.  We eventually arrived at our chosen destination, here in a small bay called Caleta Lobos, after turning our 10.4 mile route into a 17.8 mile journey.  Sailing is such an efficient way to get places, don't you think.

This bay that we find ourselves in is the same one that we stopped at just before we entered La Paz last spring, so we were familiar with it.  The idea was to anchor someplace easy for the first night in order to see if we still know how.  It went very smoothly.

The only issues on this trip were the usual ones of things shifting around the cabin as we alternately heeled the boat to port and starboard on our tacks upwind, plus an annoying issue with the oil pressure gauge which seems to have quite completely.  I don't think it is possible to sail on a boat with absolutely everything working properly at the same time.

Tomorrow, we may carry on further northward, or stay put for a day if the flies here don't get too bad.  If you notice in the attached picture, the beach and mangrove swamps - these are ideal breeding grounds for small insects - not too bad as long as there is a stiff breeze blowing to prevent them from finding the boat.  Having said that, they seem to be finding me as I write this entry.

BTW  Since we are now out of the marina, our nice fast internet connection is gone.  We are still close enough to La Paz for cell phone coverage, so this update is being done via our Banda Ancha (broadband 3G) service from Telcel.  Not quick, but better than nothing.  As we move north, we will no doubt lose this as well and be reduced to sailmail only.

{GMST}24|17.920|N|110|19.961|W|Caleta Lobos, BCS, Mexico|Caleta Lobos, BCS, Mexico{GEND}