La Paz Blog Catch Up

Since we have been here we have been trying to catch up on maintenance and repairs. However, we have not been as adamant at these tasks as we should be. The weather has been a bit chilly compared to what we have become used to this past summer, when it was consistently in the high 90s and low 100s. It is now in the mid 70s during the day and in the high 40s at night. We have been getting lazy and using the (cold?) weather as an excuse to stay inside and curl up with a good book. Back when we were in Oregon we could only dream of such warm weather, and that included during the last few summers. SUMMERS in Oregon became a joke to us. I spent most days working on the boat in preparation for our adventure south, rain or shine, in sometimes freezing weather. The only thing that kept me inside was the wind with rain if it was over 60mph. Yes I am serious, many days the wind was over 90mph in Newport while we were in our slip. The last supposed summer we were there, we had a whole three days of real summer weather. The rest was overcast, cold and windy. We would have given anything for the weather we are experiencing here in December, in our supposed Oregon summers! I guess one could say we are now spoiled. I should be ashamed, but I’m not, I mean this is supposed to be retirement isn’t it?


CHRISTMASS CHICKEN

Anyway, yesterday I talked myself into getting off my back side (no small feat, mind you) and fiber glassed the interior splint on a repair I made on the broken oar for our dinghy. I had decided to get at least one thing on repairs or maintenance done every day in the future until I’m caught up. That was about a month or so ago, and I actually did, for about a week. Unfortunately, as previously stated, my endeavors became lost in a book, or three. But alas, I am back on track.

LAST NIGHTS SUNSET



A couple of nights ago when the wind was howling and the waves were bashing into the port side, rolling Wind Raven back and forth in a commendable attempt at tossing us about in the v-berth, the dinghy began bashing against the fenders alongside the boat. This resulted in the lifting the rear fender up into the air, allowing the dinghy to slam into the side of the boat. Besides the obvious concern for the potential damage to Wind Raven and the dinghy, it makes a very loud banging noise that is impossible to ignore, no matter how deep you were previously sleeping. As a result I drug myself out of bed and headed out into the cold wind to remedy the situation. I have always been amazed at how Judy can sleep so soundly through all these disruptions in the night. Do you suppose she could be feigning sleep, I wonder at times. But when I ask her if she hears that, she is very consistent in her lack of a response. Anyway, I went out and added another fender between the two boats in an attempt to remedy the situation. It worked until a boat would race by creating a large wake, which would bounce the dinghy high into the air, which in turn would allow two of the three fenders to escape and land in the dinghy. At that point the dinghy would once again crash into the side of Wind Raven. Judy decided to move the third fender back further in hope of a remedy. It worked, that is until the next night in the wee hours when I discovered that we had an errant fender. Yep, it was gone. I think Judy needs to practice her knots some more. She announced on the cruisers net that we had an escaped fender wondering around in the bay , or in the sea, and asked anyone who found it to return it to its home. The chances of that might be pretty slim I think!


REPAIRED OAR FORMOST

NEW YEARS EVE MORNING IN LA PAZ

PANGAS HAVE TWO SPEEDS...STOP & FULL IT SEEMS

THIS ONE PASSED WITHIN 20 FEET OF THE BOAT

I will add photos for your perusal from time to time.

TO JOIN THIS SITE

Several individuals have stated that they have been reading the blog since the begining, but were unable to figure out how to make posts and how to sign up as followers so they can post comments. I have also had some followers express their disappointment in the fact that I am no longer describing our adventures, and the lack of photos of Mexico. As a result I will test joining the site and if successful, will attempt to give non- computer-geek directions. In other words "in common english."  If I can do it with geek directions, you should be able to do it with human directions. If you still have problems e-mail me at honquesp2@yahoo.com

If all goes well I will once again continue to document our adventures with photos and text.

Common english directions, I hope!

Scroll down below photo of Wind Raven galley (second large photo) on right side of the screen between smaller photo of JewDee in the salon and pictures of "Members." There you will see an elongated blue box that says "Join this site" and click on it!

A box will come up that says "Follow Jay and Judy sail Wind Raven" --if you have one of the listed accounts click on its icon and follow instructions.  If you DO NOT already have one of the listed accounts then click on the link that says "create a new Google Account" below!

A new box will then come up for you to register for a Google account (which enables you to view our sailing blog.) Fill out all info requested and then click on the box that says: "I accept. Create My Account" which is located below the "Terms of Service."

Then congratulate yourself! You DID it! You are now an Official Follower of Jay and JewDee and Their yacht, Wind Raven....WELCOME to our journey!

TURKEY? NOT!

Three days till Christmas! We will spend a quiet Christmas on the boat. Due to the now standard greed of our world society with exhorbitant mark ups on seasonal items, we refuse to be held up by a damned Turkey! The hell with tradition! We will have a roasted chicken (pollo) for Christmas, just like we did for Thanksgiving. They can keep their $3.60 a pound Turkey. I WONDER WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF EVERYONE TOOK THIS ATTITUDE TOWARDS EXTORTION BY THOSE GREEDY RAT BASTARDS? FFELIZ NAVIDAD Y FELIZ ANO AMIGOS!

Yet, to Do's!

1) Install secondary battery in bow for capstan.

2) Check auto pilot at sea.

3) Pull anchor and scrub/clean chain rode and anchor bridle. Reset anchor.

4) Take Wind Raven to clear bay to scrape and clean bottom.

5) Make wind sock (before summer).

Work Completed...I Hope!

• The parts for the roller furling arrived yesterday. The company said that since the supplier sent two sets of bearings by mistake and that I was the only one to ever order them and due to my paitence concerning the delays, he sent both sets for the same price.
• I installed them yesterday, which was not as simple as one would think. It took several attempts and one tab broke off of one bearing. I placed the broken tab on the top side so that the bottom tab stops it from sliding up into the roller tube. The bottom tab rests on the Norsman connector, so it can't slide down. Hopefully, there is no unforeseen problems that this can cause. The system seems to work well at anchor, but the true test will be at sea!
• I retuned backstay to #25 on Loos gauge, creating 4 inch rake on mast.
• We also took the dinghy to shore, where we turned it over to clean and wax its bottom. It was certainly due!
• Roger the refrigeration man came by and checked to see why it was not working on the refrigerator side, but worked great on the freezer side. The problem turned out as expected, a bad expansion valve. He was to research it last night and give me a price today. At $60 an hour, I hope he is most rapido!
• Cleaned out and rearranged garage (quarter berth).
• Judy had her hair cut to a bit above her shoulders, looks good and will be easier to maintain.

OIL IN THE BILGE!

Yesterday I cleaned the bilge only to discover two new problems. The first being that the dripless seal on my prop shaft is leaking. At least I now know where the water is coming from and can fix it. The major problem was discovered this morning when I discovered oil in the bilge. This oil leaked in from the engine when it was not running. That leads me to believe that the oil pan has a breach in it. The pan rests on the bottom of the bilge on the front edge, so that is the likely source of the oil. I will investigate further today. If it is the source of the leak I will have to pull the engine, or at least raise it up a foot or so to get the pan off.

Freezing in Paradise!

Damn it's freezing down here. Last night it got down to 52 degrees! The forcast for today is a chilly 74 degrees and that doesn't even take in the "wind chill factor." Brrrrr!

Rust & Barnicles

We noticed that we had rust coming out of the water maker drain that was staining the side of the hull. Judy scrubbed it off a couple of days ago, but yesterday we noticed it was back. There should not be anything in there to rust, so I will have to disconnect lines until I find the source.

Since we have been in La Paz we have experianced an infestation of barnicles on the bottom of our boat. The water here is dirty also so I refuse to get into it. We will take the boat to the islands where the water is clean and scrape the bottom. All summer in the Loretto area didn't produce any where near as many barnicles as three weeks here did. That is except Puerto Escondido that produced a lot, but still not as many. P.E. also has dirty water.

Fishing Rod Storage

I drilled 1 1/4" holes in bulkhead on each end of bunk in salon and inserted rod buts into them. I then placed two lengths of velcro towards the middle to hold tips. So far so good. The test will be to see if the velcro will hold the tips up in heavy seas.

Some Photos

Just some photos I took the other day in the La Paz anchorage of the Dolphins playing!

Repairs Needed!

1. SSB Radio won’t transmit.
     a) Took radio into Victor and it now transmits fine.
     b) He also programed cruiser net freq. in.

2. Auto Pilot control box installed, but turns boat in 360* to port.
      a) Call Chris at Alpha Marine...1-800-257-4225
      b) Sent Chris e-mail..His response was...
Message body


Dear Mr. Reese,
We are sorry you are having difficulties. We checked our records and confirm that, yes, we did rebuild your Alpha 3000 control unit in June of this year.
We do not see that any component other than the main control unit was sent for testing however.
If you have a volt/ohm meter I would suggest that you go to our web page
http://alphamarinesystems.com/tech_talk.htm
and run the first listed diagnostic where you measure the output at terminals 6 and 7 with all five drive unit wires disconnected.
This will allow us to further help you.
Please advise if you have any remote helm or Auxiliary control items connected.
One last item, does the pilot truly go in circles or does it try to steer a reciprocal heading?
Chris Gade
Customer Service
Alpha Marine Systems Inc.
206-275-1200

3. 110V electrical short (starboard side). Breaker off until repaired!

4. Dinghy pull ring broken, needs to be replaced.
    a) New ring purchased (to be installed)

5. Repair Roller Furling.
    I removed the control line drum to expose the bearings and bearing holders in the bottom of the tube that
the sail rolls up on. One of the bearings that is made from a synthetic substance had sheared off the tab on the bottom and slid up into the tube. This allowed the tube to slide down, which in turn allowed the metal bearing holder to make contact with the Norsman cable end conector, causing it to bind up. It also caused the stop tab on the bearing to be sheared off. I noticed the ID of the bearing to be 1/2" but the cable has an OD of 5/16". This is a lot of slack it seems to me, so I will call the manufactuer to check on it next Monday. I think I will have to replace the bearings. I also need to find out if one set screw is enough to hold both bearings in place.

BLACK PIECES ARE THE BEARINGS......SILVER PIECES ARE THE BEARING HOLDERS.
NOTE TAB ON BOTTOM OF LEFT BEARING SHEARED OFF!
BOTTOM OF RIGHT BEARING WALLOWED OUT!
BOTTOM OF BEARING HOLDER ON RIGHT SCORED FROM CONTACT WITH CONE ON NORSMAN CABLE CONECTOR!

BOTTOM VIEW OF BEARING AND BEARING HOLDER




BOTTOM OF TUBE WITH ONLY ONE SET SCREW!
CONE ON NORSMAN CABLE CONECTOR WITH SCORE MARKS!

Contacted manufacturer and was refered to Pirate Marine Hardware in Cozmel MX.
His e-mail response....
Sorry for the confusion with the email, I was hoping you were going to call back.
I have spoken with Martina and she has them in stock. I have to be honest, this part only retails for $15.02usd, the shipping and importation is going to cost more than the cost of the part. I have listed the breakdown below.
bearing # 1320 - $15.02usd
shipping and importation to me in Cozumel - $38.00usd (estimated, is the typical cost for an overnight letter size envelope.)(which can take 5 days to get to me.).
shipping from me to you in La Paz - $20.00usd
Total for everything - $73.02usd, the national exchange rate today is $13.95 peso to the usd, total in peso you would need to deposit into my account is $1,018.63 peso.
I would need your confirmation and payment to place the order for the part. My account info is;
bank - HSBC Mexico
acc. name - Jack Gary Dlugitch
acc. # - 4039729892
Sucursal - 978
Please send me a copy of the receipt.
Regards,
Jack Dlugitch
President
Pirate Marine Hardware
http://www.cozumelboatingsupplies.com/

My e-mail response...
body

The 1,018.63 Pesos was deposited into your account this morning for the ProFurl bearings pluss shipping to La Paz.
Please ship to;

 Jay Reese S/V Wind Raven
C/O Marina De La Paz.
Calle Topete/Le Gaspy 3040
La Paz BCS MX. 23000

6. Remove, clean and service aft bilge pump.
      a) Completed
7. Replace valve cover gasket and rubber grommets and special washers on Perkins.                                       a) I replaced the specialized washers and gromets on the valve cover and the leak seems to be stopped. At $60 for four 3/8 rubber gromets and two washers it ought to be!

8. Clean and paint bilge.
    a) The bilge is clean for now! When cleaning it I discovered my dripless shaft seal is leaking. This morning I checked the bilge and discovered engine oil in the bilge. This oil leaked out when the engine was not running. I am afraid it is a hole in the pan where it touches the bottom of the bilge. I was hoping it would last until we got to the mainland, but no such luck it seems. Will investigate further today.

9. Install secondary 1000 amp battery for Capstan.

10. Make a new Windsock.

11. Clean out Perkins Raw Water Intake Screen.
       a) Done.

12) Remove corroded stanchion support screws, retap holes and replace.
       a) Done

THE END!

It is now the twentieth of November and Judy is back in La Paz. I have not made any posts lately due to being down sick with a virus. It was my fault, as I became lax in taking my daily dose of Echinacea, which has kept illness at bay for the past four years or so. I will heed this “hard knock” lesson in the future. I am on my way to recovery now, I am happy to say.


In the last 40+ posts we have had a total of seven comments, and these were made by three people who are followers. The rest of the followers are obviously in name only. I would like you to know that writing a blog and trying to keep it interesting with photos and details of our experience takes a lot of time and energy on my part. Uploading the photos alone takes several hours on each post, due to the poor internet connections down here. Judy has no interest in contributing to the blog, so it is all up to me, and frankly I am tired of doing this for people who show no interest. Therefore, I will no longer attempt to entertain the people who have not shown interest in the blog. It is just too time consuming and I would much rather spend that time enjoying the area. I do apologize to Stash Gal, Tracey, and my long time friend Coyote, who have been great supporters on the blog with their comments. I thank you and will keep you up to date through personal e-mails.

Due to said reasons, this blog will now be kept as a reference to mechanical repairs and technical data related to our sailing vessel Wind Raven! Basically, A "CAPTAINS LOG"

ON TO LA PAZ

I awoke to an angry sea with five foot swells on a lee shore, at four this morning. The wind was around 16 knots and climbing. I could see white caps outside of the bay. This is not the best situation to pull anchor in, especially when single handing. Oh well, nothing ventured nothing gained. I suppose it is just another test to check my competence. By six I was exiting the bay wishing I could sail, as the wind was up. Unfortunately, my roller furling was not up to it yet, which makes the back stay questionable until it is repaired properly. It would probably be okay, but I try to vie on the side of caution/safety. I put out a line hoping to snag a Dorado on the way I, but with no luck.

LOOKING AT LA PAZ FROM OUR ANCHORED BOAT

PHOTO OF SHUTTLE & PALAPA FROM OUR ANCHORAGE IN LA PAZ

I was a bit apprehensive concerning the long narrow channel leading into La Paz, as I had only been through it once before and that was when we first arrived in Mexico. It turned out to be no problem at all with the forward looking sonar. The Interphase system is well worth the price, as it removes all doubt and gives one confidence and “peace of Mind.” I wanted to avoid anchoring by the Malicon like we did before, as the music is very loud and goes all night long. Where I wanted to anchor was across the channel close to shore, where it is more protected and quiet. The problem was getting around a long sand bar that lies between the channel and the anchorage area. Well I very slowly turned out of the channel with my eyes riveted on the depth sounder, when a gentleman pulled up alongside and offered to show me where the entrance was. Great, I had a guide. He led me right into the anchorage area, and gave me some advice as to rode scope currents, tides etc. Once anchored, I headed across in the dinghy to see Lulu on Siempre Sabado, and used her computer to call Judy. It was pretty funny when Judy answered. I said, “I’m in La Paz.” She said, “who is this?” I said, “Jay.” She said, “Jay who?” At this point I thought I might have the wrong number, so I asked, Is this Judy Kinworthy? I received no response. I repeated the question and she said, y…eee…ssss! Who is this? I said I’m Jay, your husband! At this point I’m getting a little concerned. So she says, “You don’t sound like Jay.” So I said, well the last time I looked, I was!” Anyway it took quite awhile to convince her it was really me. I guess Steve and Lulu’s Skype sounds different than ours. Go figure! So to make a long story short, I am in La Paz and Judy will not be down until the 14th, due to plane fares being too expensive until that time. I guess I will work on the boat. Toodles!

OVERDUE?

It is now November 3rd at 8am and I am faced with a dilemma. I just finished listening to the Sunrisa net and to my chagrin, Wind Raven was reported as overdue in La Paz by Steve and Lulu on Siempre Sabado who are in La Paz. Why? Obviously Judy forgot that I told her that I was going to take my time going down to La Paz, as I had 13 days before she was flying back from the states. As you know I did have some problems with the roller furling, which slowed me down even more, but I am certainly not overdue. Unfortunately, everyone else down here thinks I am and they are probably concerned for my safety. The dilemma is whether to cut my time in the islands short and go into La Paz to inform Judy over the phone that I am okay or try to send a message via another boat. If I do go in I will be stuck in La Paz for the next month at least. I can’t just run in and back out, as it is too dammed expensive to do so. It’s all about fuel and trying to save a dime. I guess that means an extra five days in stinky La Paz while I wait for Judy’s return. Yeah, I’ll go in, it’s the only way I can be sure she gets the message that I’m okay. Wish I had some way to call in, or send an e-mail. Oh well such is life.

YOU GOT IT...ANOTHER SUNRISE!

On the way from San Everisto to Isla Partida I caught a 30# Jack and two Dorado. I gave most of the fillets away to fellow cruisers last night when I arrived at Ensenada Grande, because the refrigerator still isn’t up to par and I didn’t want to let any spoil. If I knew then that I would be going in so soon, I would have taken more to Harley and Stephanie and also to Steve and Lulu. Sorry about that folks, maybe next time!

TYPICAL GEOLOGICAL SCENERY

I have to make a few minor repairs and fire up the water maker to fill the tanks while doing them. In so doing I will not be able to make it to La Paz before dark. That being the case I am heading for Bahia San Gabriel on the South end of Isla Isla Espirito Santo to spend the night. I will go into La Paz in the morning.

GOOD AND BAD!

Yesterday the Monday the 31st, I successfully removed the sail from the roller furling without damage. I also discovered the problem with the roller furling. When rolling in the sail the top stud on the turnbuckle rotates, causing the turnbuckle to loosen, breaking the cotter pins and coming apart. This problem causes the front stay to break loose, which in turn could cause a dismasting. That my friends, is not a pleasant thought!

BACK TOGETHER...SAIL REMOVED!

After reassembling the forward stay, roller, turnbuckle and adjusting the tension on both front and back stays, I decided to motor the remaining 51nm to La Paz rather than sail. Once in La Paz I will have phone/internet access and call PRO-Furl to speak with one of their techs to discover the cause of the problem.

Yesterday morning I slipped on the wet deck and of course landed on my injured left knee. It was doing much better, but last night it was very swollen again and painful. It is still swollen this morning and painful. Guess I’ll take the day off to give it a rest. Why is it that if one has an injury, he always seems to hit it and make it worse?

SCHOOL OF HARD KNOCKS

10/29/2011

I have in the past, been forever plagued with the malady of having to learn everything the hard way, in that all too well known school of hard knocks. I should have checked the rigging before sailing out of Ensenada Blanca, especially the cotter pins on all turnbuckles. It certainly would have saved me a lot of grief had I paid more attention to Nigel Calders “Cruising Handbook,” where it clearly states to check the pins frequently, especially before sailing to a distant location. It’s “live and learn” for me, I suppose. One would think that by the time he/she reaches retirement age they would know better than to go off half cocked. Now that I have thoroughly chastised myself, I suppose I should get on with it, the repairs I mean.

Today, weather permitting; I will attempt to repair the Roller Furling, which is quite a challenge for me “all by my ownself.” First let me say that I have three major concerns regarding this repair. My first concern is how do I get the long stud up and back into the roller spool, when it is being held down by the sail that is connected to the roller and the top of the mast? I can’t just unhook the sail, as it has a tremendous pressure on it and if I did God only knows what catastrophe would transpire from such stupidity. Being a stepped mast there is always the concern of it coming down if not evenly supported, especially in high winds and a rolling anchorage. My second concern is that the sail tape ripped out of its groove about half way up to the top of the mast. Wish I had a sky hook, Ha! Ha! At my age, the thought of shimmying up the furling is out of the question and using a bosons chair alone is a bit difficult. Assuming I get the stud back inside of the roller, the pressure and weight of the sail, which will most likely still be bound up on the furling, might cause the forestay cable stud to be too short to start the turnbuckle threads.

Being faced with this dilemma yesterday morning when I awoke with the wind howling through the rigging, I decided to take the day off and let these problems simmer in the back of my head. To occupy myself, I went fishing and read a book. Last night when I went to bed I still had no solution to my problems, but as usual they came to me during the middle of the night. Since it is a cutter rig I have two forestays, one for each sail, dummy. The second forstay will hold the mast up while I release the forward forstay. However to guard against disaster I must release the tension off of the backstay first. Such a simple solution and it can even be done in moderate wind, I hope!

First I must clean and lubricate all of the turnbuckle threads with lanolin grease to insure that they don’t bind and strip the threads. Once this is done I will be able to release the pressure and reinstall the roller furling. The jammed sail might still be a problem, but I will deal with it later. Ihave ten more days before I have to be in La Paz to meet Judy’s flight.

WINCHING IT BACK IN

It is now noon and my repair on the Roller Furling worked out great! I am trying to decide if I should try to remove the sail with the tape bound up in the groove, or wait until I am assured of no wind for at least an hour. Either way I will be sailing to San Evaristo tomorrow morning. The fishing is great here, but one person can only eat so much fish.

HERE I SIT

Judy went to our friends house in Loreto Wednesday the 26th to spend the night in preparation to catch her plane to San Jose, CA. on the 27th. I hope all is well and she is in San Jose now. The Memorial is on Sunday the 30th. In the mean time I tried to get a good night’s rest on the 26th in preparation for my departure the next morning. This was to no avail, as I was up most of the night, due to the nagging pain in my elbow and back. One of these is okay but two is a bit much to cope with.

JUST ANOTHER SUNRISE

I left Ensenada Blanca after the cruisers net at 8:30am on the 27th headed for La Paz, via several other stops along the way. The plan was to take my time and enjoy the cruise and visit some new anchorages. Once I cleared the channel between the Candeleros Islets, I deployed my fishing gear. It was a beautiful day, with the wind at around fourteen knots.

A few days ago I finally got around to installing the auto pilot control box that we had rebuilt last June. After installing it I ran it through its paces while at anchor and it seemed to be fine,but the real test would be at sea. We haven’t really needed it, as Judy could take the helm if I needed to do something, or I could tie the helm in place in calm seas. This time I would be the only one aboard so I would probably need it. As soon as I got on course I engaged the auto pilot and the boat started doing 360s. I tried several times in different ways, but the result was the same. During this test a Dorado hit my lure, which I promptly lost due to doing 360s. Oh well, I’ve single handed before without it and I saw no reason why I couldn’t do it again. I tied the helm, but the sea had some pretty big waves at five seconds and it was hard to keep on course, due to it being a following sea also.

I decided to deploy the jib to steady to improve the stability of the boat, not to mention saving on fuel, which is a major consideration in itself. The jib deployed beautifully and the boat settled down for a great downwind run. About ten minutes later I hooked a Dorado on #1 rod. I turned broadside and was reaching for #2 rod to reel it in when another Dorado hit it. Damn, two on, now what? Well I took in the Jib, but by the time I did one fish got off and the other took out all 900 yards of braided line and broke the leader when he hit the end. Oh well, back out with the jib and with the helm tied I deployed the #1 rod only. About fifteen minutes later it was “fish on” again. This time I rolled in the jib first, but it only would come in about half way. I tried several times, but it would reach a certain point and just stop. Yeah you guessed it, I lost the fourth Dorado while trying to roll up the sail.

At this point I had a real serious problem. A half deployed jib and seriously building winds. The wind was at 18 knots and rising. I went forward and discovered that both ring pins were missing on the turnbuckle studs and they had unscrewed. The roller shaft had pulled up and out of the roller with the stud just hanging there. The only thing holding the whole works in the air was the jib sail which had ripped the #6…………..out about half way up to the top of the mast. Of course all this time about 15’ of jib was flapping in the now strong wind. This can be very dangerous as the sheets (lines) are whipping about with great force. These sheets can cause bodily damage as my now vacated sun glasses can testify. One certainly does not want to be lashed with these sheets, but must secure the mess. So I went into the midst of it all and tried to take the end of the sail by the sheets and physically wrap it up. After almost being thrown off the bow when the wind caught the pulled back sail, I decided that somehow I had to get the boat pointed into the wind and hold it there while I was on the bow. I could try to put up the main and lie a-hull, but the jib would be ripped to shreds by then. I didn’t have much time so I had to do something fast. I went to the helm and as soon as the boat was headed into the wind, I ran forward grabbing the sheets and manhandled the sail around the aluminum post and it, completing one wrap. Cool, this might work. After going through this process several times I discovered that, due to the post not being attached it was unwinding itself every time I went back to head into the wind again. I made a lot of trips back and forth to no avail. The next step was to secure the roller from unwinding, which I did forthwith. About this time Heime, who sailed out of Ensenada Blanca after me, caught up and I had him stand by until I got everything temporally secured. He stuck around watching the sail and sheets trying to whip my ass for a half hour or so and then he headed for Agua Verde. I chose to continue on to Bahia Santa Marta, skirting the reefs and then approaching from the South. And that is where I set; waiting for the winds to calm so I can hopefully make the repairs that are needed. The weather man says that could be two or three days. Now that is okay, as Judy won’t be back until the eighth of next month, and I could use some healing time from that wrestling match on the bow in 20+ knot winds.



Oh! I almost forgot. After securing everything and sailing in, I hooked and landed a very nice Dorado. It was the fifth that tried to sacrifice itself to me in about 20 miles. I gave half to a Kayak tour group, who were quite delighted!

Memorial

Judy will fly to San Jose, CA. next Thursday to attend the memorial for her best friend’s daughter, who was unexpectedly taken from us a few weeks ago. Her mother has been awarded temporary custody of her daughter, and will be taking her back to CA. until the court has awarded full custody. In the mean time we will wait here in Ensenada Blanca. When Judy catches her flight to San Jose I will sail to La Paz by myself, that is unless I can find someone who wants to go along for the ride. I can single hand the boat, but it is always better to have two people aboard in an emergency. My plan is to sail to Bahia San Marta, or Punta San Telmo the first day. At that time I will decide on my next anchorage.

PANDORA ROUNDING THE MIDDLE CANDELEROS

Until next Thursday I will get caught up on some boat maintenance that I have neglected lately. I have been spending too much time fishing and kicking back. It’s time to do some work! Adios amigos!

LORETO AGAIN!

We came back to Loreto yesterday and to our surprise, our friends (harley & Stephanie) aboard their boat Pandora, were anchored here. We went into town to see Alan and Irene, but they were not at home, so we left one of our cards on their door. After doing some shopping we returned to Wind Raven. After putting away the supplies we went over to Pandora to visit with Harley & Stephanie, and had an enjoyable time catching up on each others travels since we last met in Puerto Escondido.

PANDORA

We will leave Loreto later today and either head for Bahia Marquer or Ensenada Blanca to wait for news from Judy's friend concerning her daughters memorial, as Judy will be attending.

Busy, Busy, Busy!

It has been a while since I posted in the blog, as we have been very busy of late. A couple of weeks ago we took a trip on Wind Raven to Loreto with Steve and Lulu from Siempre Sabado and Basil another cruiser. No fish were caught on trip, but we had a nice sail and good weather. It was Basil’s first time to Loreto, so he went sightseeing. We separated to accomplish our various tasks and then met at Mexico Lindo’s for another great lunch. The trip was uneventful (no breakdowns), which is nice for a change. Not that I don’t have boat problems, they seem to be lurking around every corner, so to speak. I guess I’m just getting used to them popping up all of the time. For example, this morning I narrowed down a battery drain to the 110v starboard side wiring. I will keep that side turned off until I locate the culprit.
STEVE & LULU

BOSIL THE GREEK

Last week Alan was suspended from work due to putting a cruiser that got out of line, back in line, so to speak. Judy and I felt this to be unfair, so we invited him and his family to go for a sail with us on those days. I mean why not turn a bad situation to a good one? We also collected some money from a few cruisers to help them out, as they have two children (twins 14 months old), and can’t afford to miss the pay. Their wages here are shit! I don’t know how they can survive on them.

ON OUR WAY

ALAN

IRENE

We met them at the Marina in Loreto at eight in the morning and made two trips in the dink to get them and their stuff aboard. Fortunately, the weather was nice and the water calm. They didn’t have their sea legs yet and if the water would have been rough it could have caused some problems boarding Wind Raven. All went well and we headed for Bahia Marquer on Isla Carmen about ten miles away. As we started out we set our lines in hope of catching a nice fat Dorado. This was not to be, but Alan did catch a Bonito, which we released. Their meat is not of the best quality. Alan’s wife Irene made pollo enchiladas verde, which were most excellent. We spent the next couple of days fishing, snorkeling, and generally kicking back. I believe a great time was had by all, especially the twins. (Even though one of them, Alan? Dylan?) slipped out of Papa’s grip upon boarding and fell in the drink over his head and didn’t even cry at the mishap!)


DOLPHINS CAVORTING

I, (Judy here) especially enjoyed getting to know Irene better-she is learning English very well and is helping me with my Spanish AND we have quite a few things in common! She went to the university in Mexico and studied Communication like I did in the US and we BOTH have worked in radio and journalism! Irene and I are looking forward to spending another day together soon when the “guys” go out fishing and I visit her at their home in Loreto---she wants to teach me proper Spanish and I am looking forward to spending more time with those lovely twins Alan and Dylan!!!! Also, Alan and Irene cannot afford a computer and Jay promised to help them put some photos of the boys on their Face Book page to send to a grandma in Utah (Alan’s mom) and Irene’s family in Mexico……so that will be fun to do next time we see them………but the boys also made me miss my own grandson Hayden who is older, but still a toddler….can’t wait to see him again and Mikey and Brandon and Katie’s new baby when I am there next year! And Leah and Britney and Haley and Anthony…..and my girls!!!!!!! (heavy sigh!)

When we headed back to Loreto there was no wind, so we decided to take a roundabout route in hope of catching a Dorado. This again was not to be. After a while the wind came up and we were actually able to sail almost all the way to Loreto before it died. We delivered them back to the Marina, said our adieus and departed for Ensenada Blanca.

On our way back we saw a whale way off to port. As we continued along it appeared that the whale was on a collision course with us, but as it turned out he passed in front of us at about fifty yards distance. Just after seeing the whale, we spotted a very large disturbance about a mile off to port. We headed out to investigate the cause and discovered a very large pod of Dolphins cavorting about on the surface. They were shooting out of the water, reaching heights of at least eight to ten feet. I tried to get photos of them in the air, but it is very difficult as one must take the photo as they come out of the water. It happens so fast and you never know where they will come out next. I did get one out of fifty or so, but it isn’t the best. Maybe next time we encounter them I will get lucky.

After saying good-by to our Dolphin friends we got back on course for Ensenada Blanca. As we passed Isla Danzante I hooked and landed a smaller Dorado. The trip back was really great, but I keep thinking how much better it would have been if our Mexican friends could have experienced it with us. I can only imagine how the twins would have reacted to the hundreds of Dolphins playing all around Wind Raven.

SWELLS

While at Ensenada Blanca we shared the cost of a rental car with Steve and Lulu and went to La Paz. We bought supplies and saw the Doctor about getting rid of my warts and having x-rays taken of my elbow and lung. It turns out that my elbow was misdiagnosed in Loreto as tennis elbow. The x-rays showed it to be a lack of calcium in the bone. The nodule in my lung is about the same size as it has been for the past eight years, that’s good I guess. The wart issue is turning out to not only be a pain in the ass, but quite expensive. The Doctors are very inexpensive, but two brothers have a monopoly on the drugs and they are outrageously pricey. We made the trip in one day and it was very exhausting. The road is not the best, with horrendous speed bumps and very poorly marked bad curves on some sections.

While there we made a few repairs on the boat and fished a bit. After a few days we were informed of pending large waves coming from the North. Since we would be on a lee shore the decision was made to move to a more protected anchorage. Most of the other boats headed for the overpriced Puerto Escondido harbor, but we opted for a beautiful protected anchorage with clear turquoise water and great fishing. Did I mention it is also free? The water here is so clean it is amazing. Our water maker is working again and yesterday I was amazed that it made over 55 gallons of fresh water in a little over three hours. I didn’t think that much was possible in this warm of water. It is rated at over 20 gallons an hour, but that is an incredible amount of water to produce. Cruisers have suggested we get a new updated one, I think not! Okay back to our anchorage here at Puerto Ballandra. Our new friend Jack followed us over to this beautiful bay in his boat. I won’t mention its name, due to his displeasure in its connotation. He plans in changing it asap. On the way over two huge pods of Dolphins greeted us and frolicked about the boats most of the way to our intended anchorage. Of course as soon as I informed Judy the Dolphin people (as she calls them) were here, she was out to the bow to greet them. She truly loves these creatures, waving and yelling greetings to them as long as they are around. They seem to enjoy the attention and give us quite a show with their bursting from the sea to heights exceeding ten feet. A lot of the Dolphins had young swimming in unison with them. They were a pleasure to watch.

SHOWING OFF

Once we were anchored and secure, we had Jack over for dinner and made arrangements to go fishing in the morning. The next morning Jack and I took our respective dinghies out, he trolling for Dorado and I jigging for Trigger fish. I went out to the reef and caught two needle fish and one small Trigger fish, which I released. About this time I noticed Jack had stopped trolling and had a fish on. When I saw him land a nice Dorado, I changed rods and started trolling for Dorado. About twenty minutes later I landed a nice one too. We filleted these out and shared them with our fellow cruisers here. We did not fish the following day as we still had some fillets left. We invited Jack to dinner that night and ate up the remaining fillets. The next morning Jack slept in, but I went trolling for Dorado. I hooked one outside the entrance to the bay, but it spit the hook on its second jump out of the water. I got one more hit that I missed before noticing Jack and another cruiser standing on shore talking. I decided to go back in and see what they were up to. As I was trolling past Dave’s boat (Free Spirit) I hooked and landed a Dorado over four feet in length, a nice fish, to say the least. Last night we had Jack and Dave over for Dorado fillets and some interesting conversation as well as some good pumpkin pie that Judy had made that afternoon!

We will head for Loreto for ice as soon as the weather permits. Until then we will be stuck here in this terribly wonderful anchorage. OH darn!

Play Pirate Party

Pirate Days!




Yeah, we all got to play pirate last Monday at El Santuario, ( The Palapa Bar). It came off great, especially for a first. I am not sure how many showed up, but my guess would be around fifty, more or less. We even had several people show up who were getting bored with the fancy hotel and bar up the beach. The food and drink was plentiful, with the exception of Fresca which they always run out of early. Being a tea-totaler this is an inconvience, as I can’t stand coke which they always have plenty of. However, they certainly bought enough beer, as they had many, many cases left over at the end of the party. Okay, now that I’ve had ”MY” whine, I’m satiated. I will continue with the good part. The staff and manager were great, catering to all, and extremely courteous as they always are.

LUIS (THE MANAGER)

THE STAFF

ALAN




DAVID


LUIS, ROBERTO, AND AN IMPOSTER


John from Trick came up with the idea to fix up a Hobi-Cat that was lying out behind the bar, and actually got it in sailing condition the afternoon of the party. Several People sailed it out in the bay (including Judy) and had a great time.

JOHN AND DEAN

THE HOBI-CAT




They had a sand castle contest, a Pirate costume contest, a kayak race, a pot-luck with barbecued chicken supplied by Diana and Ray,who also initiated and coordinated the party. The prizes were the long celebrated Pirate Booty, “A Bottle of Rum.” This did cause a small problem in the sand castle contest, as one co-winner was under age. Ray and Diana remedied this by substituting a non alcoholic prize for the upcoming pirate. One contestant had a problem, resulting in the collapse of his creation, attributing it to the consistency of the building material. I asked him to pose for a photo with his collapsed creation, but he declined. I won’t mention his name, as he obviously doesn’t want any pirate notoriety!


KING OF THE PIRATES RAY & RICK (PARTY CRASHER FROM PALOMAR RESORT)




IRENE-CASTLE BUILDER WINNER




SIDNEY


OOPS!

Most of the aging Pirates left by ten that evening, but Judy and I hung around watching the mostly younger Pirates having a great time socializing, dancing, hula hooping and just plain getting down. I will say that a few older Pirates did stay till the last dog was hung (so to speak). A couple even woke up in the wee hours minus navigation skills, with sand for a pillow. They know who they are, but I must leave this loop hole for all fellow Pirates whose reputations are at risk! I mean  a real Pirate would never risk their reputation with his/her peers by leaving a bash early, now would they?


GUESS WHICH ONE IS THE PIRATE QUEEN?



SAY WHAT?


LINDA

JUDY, STEVE, AND LULU

RICHARD



MIKE AND MELISSA

DIANA FAR RIGHT




RICHARD WITH CHRISTY AND RICK




DALE, GORDON, AND LINDA



PIRATE FOLK


JUDY AND MELISSA



The dancing Pirates were well worth sticking around for, their dancing was superb, and I must say, quite energetic. Man, what I would give to have that much energy once again. Unfortunately that will not happen, at least not in this lifetime. However I can at least watch and dream of those days of old!

THE LADY DANCERS-(IRENE AND LYNN)



ROBERTO, LYNN




ALAN AND IRENE


When the party finally ran down in the wee hours, we thanked the wonderful staff, who had generously broken bread with us, collected a few slightly confused Pirates who had been abandoned on the sands by their mates, and transported them back to their vessels. It was a great day and enjoyed by all. We thank Ray and Diana for all of their efforts in bringing this event about!