In Southern California we don't deal with wind waves too often. We're more concerned about the timing of the swells and their periods since almost all cruising is done off shore. We've had a similar experience down here in Mexico where the majority of our cruising has been in the Pacific. The Sea of Cortes is another beast. I was thinking about doing the Great Loop and our first experience cruising on Lake Michigan. The forecast called for 10 foot wind waves and I was flabbergasted that a lake could have such big waves. Today was much like that. At 0557 we up-anchored at Bahia de los Perros and started out on our 97 mile journey southeast to San Carlos. The day started out calm and peaceful but that quickly ended as steep short period 5 foot wind waves and confused seas dominated our entire 13 hour day. At one point during my watch I held onto both armrests in order to not be flung out of my chair and joked to Jeff that we really needed seat belts. He wasn't amused. As we entered San Carlos bay at 7pm we were met by many pangas going out to start their evening fishing. The sun was just getting ready to set and the anchorage was filled with sailboats. We discussed the best location for wind and wave protection. Finally we decided on a space with ample room and nicely tucked like I like. And wouldn't you know it that after 13 hours of being tossed around like salad as it's getting darker and darker the anchor decided not to set the first or the second time. Finally finally our third attempt took and we felt settled. I immediately went for the mezcal and Jeff the tequila. What a day.
Leaving Los Perros
En Route to San Carlos
Approaching San Carlos
San Carlos Anchorage
We both slept like babies we were so worn out from the previous day and took our time and had a nice slow morning. As lunch approached we hopped into the dink and headed towards the marina to explore our new surroundings and I hoped to see Wild Bill. The marina is huge and has a nice dingy dock for all the anchored boats to use. The facilities are very nice with three different restaurants and a coffee shop/cafe that serves breakfast and lunch only. All the workers speak english and you can feel the heavy gringo presence. We ended up at Mavida for lunch which was a brewery and restaurant. Everyone spoke english and other then one table the restaurant was full of gringos. The food and beers were good and they actually had a vegan option for me which I haven't seen since the states. After lunch we walked the grounds and got a little more leg stretch in before returning to the boat to relax and watch Deadliest Catch.
Anchored in San Carlos
Houses Overlooking Anchorage
Channel Entrance
Dingy Ride to Marina
Lunch at Mavida
Evening
I may have failed to mention that the generator has been having a problem. It no longer can start on it's own but requires Jeff to attach it to the engine batteries in order to jump it to get it to start. It's made anchoring the last 14 days a nerve wracking experience and one that keeps us on our toes. Jeff arranged to have a battery waiting for us in Mazatlan but that won't be for awhile. This morning when Jeff went to jump the generator after the overnight it made sparks and a burning smell and forced us to start the engines in order to get the generator started. Needless to say we were super uptight and wondering how long could we keep this up. Deciding we could no longer risk just hanging around we needed to get going to a marina and give the poor generator a rest until we can get the new battery. We up-anchored after a little while of readying the boat and made our way to Guaymas where we could get fuel and anchor for the night getting us a couple hours closer to our next destination.
We radioed both the marinas at San Carlos and Guaymas but both were full. As we made our way to the fuel dock (if you could call it that) a man met us to grab lines I thought but he was warning us that the dock was hanging on by a thread and to come in gently to not rip the entire dock apart. Fantastic. Jeff glided the boat in as I tied the lines and fueling began. This day was tense. After about an hour taking on fuel we made our way out to the anchorage which had a very rank smell with brown water and many boats. Once again it took us three times to get the anchor to grab. The second time we actually pulled up an old rusty anchor off the bottom. Finally the hook grabbed and we settled in for the night.
Leaving San Carlos
Heading into Guaymas
Guaymas
Sketchy Fuel Dock
Shrimping Fleet
Guaymas Malecon
At Anchor
At 0820 on May 4th we begin our first of three overnight passages on our way to Mazatlan. The east side of the Sea of Cortes (the mainland) is very spread out between ports with only a couple of options for stopping along the way. Topolobompo 27 hours away would be our first of those destinations. Fortunately the day and night were mellow and the timing of moonrise couldn't have been more perfect. As the sunset around 7pm the moon rose at 8. We went from one light source to the next never in the dark for the entire passage. A great way to start. We took three hour shifts listening to our book on tape, music and podcasts while the other slept behind the driver. As we approached the entrance to Topo (as the locals call it) we felt close even though it takes almost two hours to make your way into the bay and to the marina. Several of the reason why not many cruisers come here. Finally around 11am we pulled into our slip at Palmira marina (the sister marina to where we stayed in La Paz) and two nice men helped me to tie up and hook up to power. Shew! It was a long night and finally we could plug into power and give the gen a much needed rest.
Sunset
Moonrise
Overnight Cruise by Moonlight
Dolphins
Entering Topolobompo
Shrimper
Topolobompo
Shrimp Fleet
Palmira Marina
We both tried to nap unsuccessfully and eventually got up and walked to the melecon to look for some dinner. We ended up at Don Gato with a pretty view of the harbor. By this point I was delirious and just wanted to get back to the boat and sleep but it was nice to get some fresh air and stretch our legs.
Malecon Topolobompo
Sunset
The next day was somewhat uneventful we slept in and went slow and completed a lot of much needed boat projects and blogging. We were so happy to be plugged in and settled for a couple days.
Topo From the Boat
Sunset
Our third day in Topo had to be the most memorable for me. Not only for being in Topo but in all of the Sea of Cortes. For several days Jeff had been communicating with Nelson the dock master at the marina and today he offered to drive us to the nearby city of Mochis acting as our personal tour guide. Around 11:30a.m. he picked us up and as we made the 30 minute drive while he pointed out the highlights along the way. Our first stop was lunch at a sushi restaurant that Nelson and his fiance enjoy. While we waited on our food we drank beer and saki and got to know one another. The food was great and we were happy to be with someone who knew where to go. After lunch Nelson drove us around showing us the city, the college and took us to the top of the mountain for an incredible view of the entire city. It was green and lush and looked so beautiful from that high up. As we were wrapping up our day Nelson then drove us to Wal-Mart where we did some provisioning while he waited in the car. It was so incredibly kind and we were floored by his wonderful hospitality. Never have we met a dock master who went so out of their way to make sure we felt welcome and had everything we needed. It was really unbelievable and special.
Sushi Lunch with Nelson
Statue on Top of Hill
View From the Top with Nelson
The fourth day in Topo would be our last and we spent it readying the boat and ourselves for our second overnighter. The port captain boarded the boat and did an inspection and gave us permission to leave. We said our goodbyes to Nelson and thanked him for everything and by 5:30pm I was tossing lines and we were on our way to Altata. The 147 mile run would take us through the night arriving the next day around noon. The seas and wind were calm with 3-4 footers on the nose. The moon gave us light from 10pm till sunrise so not as perfect as our first overnighter but still pretty great. As the sun rose the frigets found the bow and the railing and by the end I think we had four stowaways. The marina at Altata was kind enough to give us the coordinates to the channel that leads it's way through the shallow waterway and into Altata but as we approached we noticed large breaking waves right at our coordinates. Fortunately there were many pangas around and when Jeff asked if the entrance was ok one panga offered to lead us in. Prior to our arrival Jeff had been communicating with man named Charlie who is the local expert, restauranteur and will sometimes come out to help boats get into the tricky entrance. Today Charlie wasn't sure if he could get out to us in time and told us any panga could lead us in. Instead of taking the marked channel designated with higher water we took a back channel normally only used by the pangas due to their shallow draft and fast motor. As we slowly made our way into the panga channel we noticed the depth gage decreasing rapidly until we saw 6.8feet and turned around. Fortunately the panga followed us and assured us that our 5 foot draft was not a problem. As we were turning around to make our second attempt through the panga channel we saw another panga racing towards us and noticed the name, "Mi Charlie" on the side. We were more then relieved to see Charlie and like a large cruise ship or freighter entering a foreign port he came aboard acting like a pilot and helped navigate us through the channel. Once again we saw 6.8 feet but never less then that. As we turned the corner the depth began to rise and Charlie said, "you are the first cruising boat to ever come through that channel." What?! Still in full pucker mode I made us all coffee and Charlie pointed out the sites as we made the long two hour ride into the harbor. Right outside his restaurant Mi Charlie he hopped back into his panga which we had been towing behind us while he buddy fished off it and we thanked him and said goodbye for now. The rest of the ride was in the marked channel all the way to the marina where we received help tying up, got checked in and immediately took naps.
Leaving Topo
Sunset Underway
First Friget
Two More Joiners
Then There Were Four
Panga Escort with Charlie
Following Panga
Charlie Helping Guide Jeff
With Charlie in Pilothouse
Panga With Sail
Approaching Altata
Malecon - Altata
Mi Charlie Restaurant
Saying Goodbye to Charlie
Docked at Altata Marina
After a good nights sleep and a slow morning around 1pm Charlie and his son in law came to the marina to pick us up and tour us around. They acted like our tour guides giving us the history of the city and showing us the sites of the 2,000 person town. We ended up at Mi Charlie where Charlie told us he wanted to make us something special. First he brought out these huge prawns for an appetizer for Jeff. Then he went to the kitchen so he could personally cook his famous stuffed lobster for Jeff. He said it was his creation and only he can make it. I had a nice salad, homemade corn and flour tortillas, rice and a green bean dish Charlie's wife had just prepared. The food was great. The view of the water was peaceful and relaxing and we couldn't believe what incredible hospitality we were being shown again. After lunch Charlie offered to take us back to the marina but first he showed us the "real" Altata pointing out the first and second streets to be built and showed us the incredible vacation homes that the people of Culiacan built along the water. It was a great day.
Stern View Marina
Lunch at Mi Charlie
View at Mi Charlie
Jeff's Lunch
Charlie
Malecon Altata
Street View Malecon
Mi Charlie
With Charlie and His Family in the Kitchen Mi Charlie
Our third and final day in Altata was mellow. We took a nice long walk outside the marina to a beach then began to ready the boat for our 4pm departure and our third and final overnighter to Mazatlan. Just as the entry into Altata was tense so was the departure. Jeff had communicated with Charlie a little to find out what the pangas were saying about the entrance and he said it was better then when we arrived and Jeff thought that we would be able to take the main entry channel. As we got closer and closer the breakers began to appear in the main channel and just outside. Fortunately we had our path from our entry still marked and could easily follow that out but even that channel had breakers as well. As we move closer and closer towards shore my eyes were glued on the depth sounder this time 11 feet was as low as we saw. We went miles out past the breakers and the entrance and before we knew it we were pointed south and away from the chaos that is the entrance to Altata.
The 19 hour passage felt long and we were both more then ready to be at a marina for awhile and be done with the overnighters for the foreseeable future. When we left Altata the entrance to Mazatlan was closed by the port captain due to breaking waves. We were hopeful as the winds calmed overnight it would reopen by our 12:30pm arrival. The night was calm. We never saw another ship on AIS or radar the entire cruise. The moon didn't come out util 1a.m so we had a lot of darkness. As Mazatlan came into site so did the sea turtles and Jeff counted over 50 different sitings. I unfortunately was sleeping and missed them all. About 30 minutes prior to arrival the port captain opened the channel and after surfing through we made our way into the marina where a nice security guard was there to catch lines. So happy to be here.
Beach Walk Altata
Leaving Altata
Breaking Waves Leaving Altata
Sunset
Sea Turtle
Mazatlan
Breakers Into Mazatlan
