Bahia Los Frailes, Ensenada De Los Muertos, Puerto Balandra and then LA PAZ

Eastern Baja Coast South of La Paz

Bahia Los Frailes

On December 16 we sailed to Bahia Los Frailes, leaving at 7:30 am and arriving at 4:30 pm. The wind was poor and we had to motor sail.

This was an exceptional day however because Greg caught his first Dorado or Mahi Mahi on our hand line.  He is convinced now that ANYONE can catch a fish in the Sea of Cortez. After four days of Dorado for dinner and some lunches the remainder went into the freezer.

Just beyond Bahia Los Frailes is Cabo Pulmo. I had read about it in our new “Sea of Cortez: A Cruiser’s Guidebook” by Breeding & Bansmer (from Bellingham, WA). Pulmo Reef is the only hard coral reef found in the Sea of Cortez and is a primo snorkeling spot and I wanted to go there so, so much. The locals convinced the government to protect the area and there is a four mile no-anchoring zone. Unfortunately we were unable to figure out how to get there. It was too far for the dinghy and too far to walk (we tried and gave up). It may be that you have to have a guide and have to travel into the area by car. Oh well, someday I’ll figure it out and then we will get to see it. I have to keep telling myself that I don’t have to do everything this trip.

Ensenada De Los Muertos

After accepting defeat I agreed to move on. We arrived at our next anchorage, Ensenada De Los Muertos (Bay of the Dead), on Saturday long after sunset. 14 hours of motoring and sailing was longer than we had anticipated.

In this remote looking anchorage there was a restaurant that supposedly provided internet access. We couldn’t tell if it was open; we didn’t see any boats or cars that would indicate that it was. We dinghyed in the next day and discovered that it was open 7 days a week from 8 am to 9 pm. One couple was there before us; there were 6 staff. The restaurant, named 1535 (an important date for Mexico), was run by a development company selling lots in what they called “The Bay of Dreams” (apparently they didn’t think that Bay of the Dead would have a lot of selling appeal - too bad, it might have been the first Gothic community in Baja). The staff spoke English and the food was great and reasonably priced.  Another couple arrived as we were leaving. The staff didn’t seem to mind much - they were watching soccer on one of the three TVs. I got exactly one hour of internet access in exchange for dining at the restaurant.

We left Ensenada De Los Muertos at 5 am the next morning, having gone to bed at 7 pm the night before. We had the sails up by 7 am under a beautiful clear blue sky. We were peeling off layers shortly after and it was 76 degrees by 11 am.

Puerto Balandra

We were approaching La Paz by noon and decided to anchor at Puerto Balandra.

This anchorage is not good in north winds but we were experiencing a rare south wind. Even though the wind howled all night the boat barely moved.



Snorkeling spot



Not long after anchoring we were suited up for our first snorkeling. It didn’t look far, but it was a long swim there and back. The next day we decided to dinghy over for our second outing. We saw lots of tropical fish, sea urchins and rays. I was disappointed to discover that I didn’t have a single book on reef fish and we couldn’t ID what we had seen.

Snorkeling was wonderful all around these rocks.

Beautiful sandy beaches.

 

This turned out to be a great anchorage.



Brown Pelicans at snorkel spot




Great Blue Heron




Fishermen at Balandra



La Paz

We left for LaPaz on Wednesday, Dec 22^nd, looking forward to a Mexican Christmas.

At this point we have traveled 2,755 miles. We have only used 175 gallons of diesel. By my estimate, this means we sailed 1700 miles.

La Paz Anchorage



New Marina de La Paz





Sandstone cut above La Paz Road



We anchored in the bay, successfully negotiating the sand bar thanks to our new “Sea of Cortez: A Cruiser’s Guidebook”, and discovered that there wasn’t any reason to pay for a marina slip since we could dinghy in and leave the dink and our trash for 15 pesos per day (the exchange rate is $1 US =  12 pesos). LaPaz reminds me of home: the sandstone cliffs look like Sucia Island, the aquatic park reminded me of the Birch Bay water slides and the development at the end of El Magote spit looks a lot like the development at the end of Semiahmoo.



Water Park



Semiahmoo on El Magote?



A modest 5,000 sq ft La Paz house. Note the spiral staircase.



I was hoping for something special like parades, festivals, interesting decorations or cultural events. Nada.  It was hard to tell that Christmas was imminent. There was music, loud Mexican music, until 3 am though. It kept me awake for three nights.

Our Baja guide told us about Club Cruceros in La Paz. Founded in 1988, it was formed to help the boating community. For a 100 pesos annual membership fee they will receive your mail and make their library and club house available. Sounded good to us. They were having a Christmas Eve potluck, which I was looking forward to and had prepared for, but the wind shot up to over 20 knots and a dinghy ride back to the boat in the dark, after a few drinks, didn’t sound prudent, so we passed.



Evening in La Paz



We’ve gone into town several times, walking for miles, for various reasons. One thing really distinguishes Mexican towns from the US - the sidewalks.  All shapes and sizes abut one another. There are incredible holes waiting to swallow small children and curbs that need ladders. Lawyers probably don’t get much work here except to sell gringos property.

Some things are the same as when we were here 10 years ago and some have changed. The CCC market that we had provisioned at before has changed hands and is now a Mexican version of Wal-Mart (there is also a Wal-Mart a few miles down the road). I was impressed with the cleanliness and order of the store. All the employees in the food departments wore hair covers and face masks.

We took a walk on the El Magote spit and found a pair of birds that seemed to be couple, even though they were two different species (White Ibis and Snowy Egret). They moved around together, one seeming to

guard the other as it fed.

I came upon the skeleton of a swordfish. I had just finished reading Linda Greenlaw’s book The Hungry Ocean, her account of being the captain of a commercial swordfishing boat. Greenlaw was captain of the companion boat to the Andrea Gail which was lost in the Perfect Storm. I was fascinated by the unusual vertebrae, which are large plates, and the thousands of tiny teeth that felt like sandpaper. The skull was very large and the bill had been sawed off. I really would have liked to have seen it.



Swordfish on El Magote



Today we are making one last run into town for a visit to the farmers market and the wine store then its time for us to head out to the islands. By Wednesday we should reach Isla Espiritu Santo.

WE MADE IT!

Approaching South Cape

I am wtiting this from an internet cafe in LaPaz, my first opportunity since Cabo.

The south cape doesn't look anything like the pictures that I had seen. There is a very nasty organism that is encrusting all the hillsides. I am afraid that it is a terminal condition. If there is a sandy beach anywhere within reach it is plauged as well.

The bay at Cabo San Lucas is not a place for someone who loves the serenity of nature. It is a combination of Las Vegas, Club Med and Disneyland. At first I was going to warn everyone to avoid Cabo like the plauge! We entered the  harbor to fuel up, the attendants were very nice and spoke English, but the marina was $160 US per night and we chose to anchor out in the bay (we have been told that it is the second most expensive marina in the world). DON'T do this if you can afford the marina.

We were in the middle of a three-ring circus: paragliders, glass-bottomed boats supporting the paraglider boats, jet skis circling our boat (splashing me in the cockpit @##%^!!!), fishing boats, water skiiers, and two cruise ships that seemed to be anchored in 6" of water.

I would have liked to visit the lovely beaches at the famous Cabo rocks but there were crawling with tour boats and kayakers. I had to settle just enjoying them from a distance.



Certainly not a 5-Star but I guess tourists like it.

 The next day we dinghyed into the marina where you can leave your boat for 30 pesos per day. We walked thru town in search of the Port Captain. There were "vistor activity" shops on every other corner (presumably working for commissions). They couldn't believe that we were only staying two days. The offered swimming with dolphins, horseback riding, parasailing, and dining in a 5-star restaurant.



1

Hey! Where's the driver?

 After seeing the gorgous marina up close, its surrounded by beautiful landscaping, restaurants and a really upscale mall,  and walking around town I changed my mind about Cabo - but not the bay. We took the bus to a WalMart to find replacements for our two coffee carafes that had gotten beaten to death on the way down. The buses are inexpensive and  very clean.

Our next stop will be a days sail away.



Encrusting



Magnificent Magdalena Bay

 

 

Our next anchorage after Turtle Bay was Bahia Santa Maria, a very large comfortable anchorage on the outside of Magdalena Bay. The rocky hillside between Bahia Santa Maria and Punta Entrada, the entrance to Magdalena Bay, was reminiscent of California’s Painted Desert with deep green and red areas. Our camera could not do justice to the beautiful colors.

We anchored just inside Magdalena Bay south of Punta Belcher. There was a fish camp at the point’s end and, not uncommon for Mexico, the remains of a very substantial pier. We couldn’t decide if it was abandoned and the top disappeared or it was never completed. Great plans for development seem to be everywhere in Mexico as well as the signs of failed attempts.

Our anchorage

Back to Ensenada for a moment.

My Ensenada entry was rushed and there were some very interesting things that got left out.

It was a beautiful sunny day, probably 65 deg, as we headed to CIS for our check-in. Greg and I were both wearing shorts and I wore a light cotton sleeveless top. As we walked down the malecon we smiled and said Buenos Dias to all the folks we passed. One fellow sitting in the middle of the malecon smiled and asked me

“Tiene frio?” (Are you cold?) and I responded “No. No tengo frio.” He smiled, shook his head and pulled his sweat shirt closer to him. All the women I saw that morning were wearing heavy coats. You would have thought that it was in the 40’s. We tried not to laugh at the El Banco employee who was in his cubicle wearing a fur-lined parka with the hood up. These poor folks would probably freeze to death in Washington.

We left Ensenada’s Bahia de Todos Santos just after sunset to catch wind. Once we were away it became apparent that there wasn’t any. We decided to try to anchor by a little rocky island just outside of the bay. The underwater rocks were treacherous but we managed to set a hook and barely miss another large submerged rock that I could clearly see skimming along our starboard side.

It’s hard to describe the rugged beauty of this small island. In the moon light I could just make out the craggy rocks that a multitude of birds were perched on. There was a small sandy beach tucked in the middle and I could hear bull sea lions barking. I was anxious to see this little wonder in the morning and wished I had a kayak. As it turned out I never did. The wind rose and the captain demanded that we leave.

Adventure on Magdalena Bay.

I’m an estuary and lagoon junky; I’ve got to explore them. Greg is very anxious to get to the sea of Cortez and I have to negotiate time for my “adventures” as he calls them. I had to “trade” San Ignacio Lagoon for a visit to Mag Bay. Mag Bay is possibly as large as or bigger than San Francisco Bay. There is a lot of fishing activity here but the pescaderos don’t sell to boaters; they’re in a co-op. It is one of the two gray whale breeding areas in Baja. I have a feeling that most boats headed to the Sea of Cortez just come in, anchor and then take off at the first opportunity if there aren’t whales to be seen. Unfortunately we are just a little too early; the whales haven’t arrived yet.

I had to settle for just one lagoon at Mag Bay. Laguna Howlands was well hidden to the casual observer. This very large lagoon lay behind sand dunes and went back at a sharp angle. The difference in vegetation made it easy for me to find it though once I knew its general location.

Howlands Lagoon

It exceeded my expectations. Curlews and American Oyster Catchers (different than our Semiahmoo Bay Oyster Catchers) were on a sand bar right at the lagoon’s entrance. Little blue herons and Ibises were perched in the mangroves. Of course there were birds that I couldn’t ID. Every turn reveled more birds; birds that didn’t visit the open bay.

Oyster Catchers and Curlews

Passing thru Howlands Lagoon

Ibis & Heron

Beautiful abalone

Just inside the lagoon there was a sandy beach with a large accumulation of shells.

I was in heaven. I had to collect some since I wouldn’t be able to in the new Sea of Cortez nature preserves. Some locals obviously enjoy visiting the lagoon since there was an opening in the dense vegetation with a very nice palapa.



Great blue heron



The water was crystal clear and warm. I wanted to swim but I hadn’t planned carefully in reference to the tides and we had to leave because the tide was going out and Greg didn’t want to be trapped behind sand bars. It was less than 24” deep for a half mile off shore when we came in.

 On our way back to the Punta Belcher anchorage we caught our very first fish with our West Marine hand line - a little mackerel that was barely enough for the two of us. It may have been small but we were very proud.

We had a beach adventure that afternoon. We are getting much better at landing the dinghy and got to shore without incident. The beach was deserted except for one fisherman. This beach isn’t anything like what you see in the states. As usual, I started to pick up plastic trash and then realized how hopeless a task it was. Getting rid of our own trash is difficult and Greg was giving me a very stern look. I settled for collecting monofilament line and soda pack rings (probably the two worst).

I’m intrigued by bones and dead things (if they aren’t too smelly) - Greg is not. The beach told the story of fishing Mag Bay and the ocean just outside.

There were piles of spiny lobster shells, then heaps of 18” long scallop shells. This was followed by a fish camp where huge piles of fish heads were left behind. I thought what a shame. They should use them for fertilizer but no one grows anything here. There was a dead carcass of some large animal buried on the shore and someone had carefully set its head and a dolphin skull next to it. Mexicans seem to enjoy making art out of pieces of dead sea creatures. Next Greg discovered an intact turtle shell, about two feet in length, with its fore limbs still inside - perhaps a natural death. From what we have observed the Mexicans are trying to preserve turtles and wouldn’t purposely kill one.

After the turtle I came across a shark head. Then I realized that I was standing amidst many of them, all the same species. For fisherman, its lop off their heads and on to the fish market.

 

I have to say that the most unexpected bird we saw at Magdalena Bay was a Bald Eagle. Greg spotted it and urgently called me to the cockpit to confirm it. Shurnuf, it’s a Bald (I apologize for the poor picture). The Petersen guide shows its range only extending to Ensenada. This guy must be scouting out new territory to replace any lost by global warming.

We left Mag Bay on Dec 13 at 2:30 am. Motoring time was used to make water. By 10:30 the spinnaker was flying. Greg deployed the hand line from the starboard aft cleat and in no time we had landed our second fish, a nice bonito. We Bbq’d it underway and enjoyed a wonderful lunch.

Bonito

We are looking forward to rounding the south cape and landing at Cabo San Lucas.

Sailing is such hard demanding work!