Ensenada & Waiting

It seems that this cruising life style is a lot more preparation and work than anything else. Our friends, Steve and Lulu, continue to assure us that it will be well worth the effort once we arrive in the Sea of Cortez. We are over half way there now, with only two places to possibly stop on our route past Cabo San Lucas to Los Frailes. We will anchor at Los Frailes, to get what I am sure will be some much needed rest, after sailing nonstop from Bahia De Tortuga. Then the short sail to La Paz. After La Paz we will sail to Puerto Escondido. This is the Anchorage that will be our home base for the next year or so. It is about fifteen miles south of Loretto, as near as I can tell. They have an international yacht club there that only costs eighty dollars a year. Being internationally recognized means that you get free, or discounted slip rates at similar yacht clubs. You also get the use of their services, such as the pool, showers, activities etc. The same as if you were a member of their club. This guest privilege is for a limited time, of course. Nonetheless, it will save money in the long run, not to mention being fun to experience.


As you know we are at present in Ensenada. All of our paperwork is completed and we have our visas. We will be heading south after we fuel up, locate a small water leak in the drinking water system, and service the auto pilot. Weather permitting, of course. Yesterday, we walked all over town to find propane, Freon, and to go to the bank. Today, we will service the auto pilot, locate a leak in the water system, Pack diesel fuel from the gas station, and transfer coordinates from our charts to the GPS. We have been waiting two days for fuel from Baha Naval to no avail. When I asked, I was told they would have to check their supply to see if they had enough. I tried to ask again yesterday, but could never locate the manager to ask. So today, we pack seventy gallons from the station. Baha Naval charges three dollars a gallon. I don’t know what the station charges, but I’m sure it is less.

The people here are very different from the people further south. The street hawkers are a little too friendly, to a point of being pushy, one might say. It is easy to tell that their friendliness is superficial, to say the least. However, the further you get away from the tourist area, the more real the people become. This is especially so when you attempt to address them in their own language. I noticed that if you walk past a person and say nothing, they sometimes pass with trepidation. However if you greet them in their language they are much friendlier greeting you back with a smile. It reminded me of home when we have to dial one for English vs. a real person speaking to us in our language. I enjoyed walking through the barrio section, and the people there. Some of the homes were one room shacks, with other very nice homes next door. Most people at home don’t like this, thus zoning. I personally do like it. I like it when people are free to do as they please with the land they own "the right to pay taxes on." The fact that we actually pay someone to tell us what we can and can not do with our property, never has made any sense to me. Think about it!