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Dec 2-3: Passage from Espiritu Santo to Ensenada de los Muertos, waiting out another storm at anchor, preparing to cross the Sea of Cortez
[ written by Sara ]
Our last night in Ensenada de la Pardita was easy, no wind, no drama. We left early and headed south.
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Leaving our week-long home
Sara's ready to goThe island is beautiful always, but the morning and evening light just highlight everything. It's easy to get lost in thought around here.
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Southern point of the island
Will having a private titantic momentThe trip down to Ensenada de los Muertos was exhilarating. A few of the huge rollers that had been built up by two days of storm-force winds hadn't completely dissipated, and they were almost directly behind us. We had decent wind and sailed on a deep reach as we flew down to Muertos. We surpassed our hull speed surfing down many of the waves! Speed is addictive.
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Great sailing
Back you go, little fishyWe also decided to put the fishing lines out since this area had been so bountiful with sea life during our last passage. We caught two small skipjack tuna and threw them back; both were too small to eat.
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Woohoo! Another fishy!
Crap, another small oneThe sun was setting as we jibed around the corner and headed into Muertos on a beam reach. We were really moving, probably going as fast as we ever have without the benefit of a following sea. It was awesome, and we were all bummed we had to drop the sails and anchor.
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Hauling ass on a beam reach
7.3 knots in flat seas!There were a few reasons for our decision to stop back at Muertos before making the crossing. First off, we were less than a month from our wedding, and I had lots of emails and phone calls to make to family and friends. We also needed to get in touch with our wedding coordinator to finalize the details. Finally, the trip from Muertos to Mazatlan was much more direct than the passage from Espiritu Santo.
We found a good location for the boat, and set the anchor without incident. Will and I decided a date night was in order, and left Sean to use the internet and skype without our ears listening in. We launched Purpeat quickly and headed in to shore.
It is a rare thing to be able to have a date night, and Will and I were very happy as we dug into some good guacamole and totopos, as well as some yummy papas y pollo. We were the only ones in the restaurant, and it was a huge contrast to the last time we had eaten there three weeks prior, when the Haha'ers and their kids had filled the place.
We came back to the boat to find Sean in a dark mood. He was dealing with some difficult personal news. A movie was in order, Sean's choice. Sean chose Scarface. Guess the mood really was dark.
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Dead man's anchorage
Fishing pangas on the beachThe next morning we all decided to go into shore; Sean for a solitary hike, and Will and me to the restaurant for some emailing and phone calls. The internet was fine from the boat, but it would be faster ashore.
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Sean's epic hike
Hidden airstrip in middle of nowhereSean came to join us after his hike, and we all had a beer and toasted to the Sea of Cortez. The weather reports were looking good: we would leave for the crossing early the next morning.
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Working lunch at the marlin
Self portrait