The Sea of Cortez - April/May

April 13-14 

After cruising north for 13 days, we were on our way down heading towards La Paz and decided to stop back into our home away from home, Puerto Escondido. We saw our friends and did some of our typical activities there, including hiking, pickle ball, and live music at the marina restaurant, aptly named “La Brisa” the breeze! (It’s a bit windy up there at times) There is live music a few nights a week and this week it was a rock band. We were loving it and I was wondering why they picked a rock band for the older boating crowd? I wouldn’t think they would like this. Well I was dead wrong! This crowd loved the band so much they were out dancing and having a good old time, and kept requesting songs and got a few encores at the end! So fun! And not a single broken hip! (See pic below)

Darryn also worked on the boat while at port which is usually a daily activity. Maintaining a boat is a lot of work. He had to change out the impeller on the generator. As you can see by the picture below, the engine room is a bit tight! Darryn does his own form of exercise down here everyday, twisting and turning his body in ways he didn’t think was possible! He calls it “boat yoga”!

Off cruising again, further south from the marina as we take our time on our way to La Paz. Night one we stopped at Bahia Agua Verde. There were a few other sailboats anchored and beautiful aqua green water (hence the name Bahia Agua Verde). There was a small village, restaurant, store and campground here. On the morning of the 16th we headed to shore and did a hike over a rock cliff overlooking the bay. We read about a tienda (store) in our cruising guide so we decided to find it. We walked through the village of about 5-6 homes, and didn’t see it. We did see some beautiful murals painted on some buildings in this tiny town (see pic). We walked back to the small beachside restaurant to ask about it, and learned that it was in the village where we just were. Hmmm. We did not see it! Decided to have some fish tacos at this small restaurant. Two women ran the restaurant, an elderly lady and her grown daughter. We were the only ones there. The daughter cooked the fish for the tacos and they were  really good! Very authentic, deep fried with homemade tortillas, tomato and onion salsa, cabbage and cucumbers. The kitchen was like many of these village restaurant kitchens, very small and somewhat primitive with dirt floor and no running water in the bathroom (you’ve can’t think to hard about this or you wouldn’t ever eat in these small villages!). We tried our best to converse with this lovely woman but she didn’t know much English and we are learning Spanish, but it was fun trying and we did end up with a delightful visit. After we paid (3.50 US for two tacos) we went back through the village to find the tienda. We had to ask someone for help but we finally found it. It was just another room next to some homes, and it was very small with oil, flour, eggs, tomatoes, bananas, cucumbers, jalapeños, coffee beans (raw green coffee beans that I mistook for lentils!) And dried black beans. Many of the stores in these villages don’t have much in them. We bought a few things and headed back to the dinghy and cruised back to our boat for the hour cruise to our next destination, Puerto Los Gatos.

4-16 Puerto Los Gatos is probably one of my favorite spots. It has beautiful red smooth rock cliffs. Reminds me of Sedona! The beach has white smooth sand and tons of small but beautiful smooth rocks, some look like agates. The water was so crystal clear we could see to the bottom even from the deep waters where we were anchored. We had a blast running around playing fetch with Murf and walking along the cliffs. We saw hermit crabs, sand crabs, and tons of small feeding fish near shore. The hermit crabs are so funny, they come out of their holes(nests) on the beach and run so fast to the water like they are in a hurry. Back at the boat we dove into the water and took a swim. The water was delightful and warm. Murf always gets a little stressed when we jump off. She whimpers and doesn’t let us out of her sight! We came back again in the morning to take pictures, see below. On our way out of the bay to our next destination, we were sitting out on the bow of the boat, enjoying the smooth seas and I saw something in the water. As we got closer, we saw that it was a large Ray! It was huge and had a big white stripe across it. It swam right across the bow of the boat. Pretty cool!

4-17 Bahia Amortajada (Isla San Jose) is a very different anchorage. It has a lagoon surrounded by mangroves with a maze of channels. We hopped in the dinghy after anchoring and cruised through this huge area. We saw rays, turtles, birds, and some funny looking fish. Murf loves this stuff, she sits at the bow and looks out watching the wildlife. The water here is so aqua green as most of the anchorages we’ve been to lately. We headed back and went for our daily swim off the boat. The water is getting pretty warm and feels so refreshing!

4-18 Headed to Isla San Francisco, an absolutely stunning island! The bay is a very large one that circles around with a big rock mountain around it. The water is even more aqua green than most, and the beach is white sand. It is a popular anchorage with about seven other boats anchored. We walked the length of the beach with Murf and enjoyed a refreshing swim off the boat. In the morning we went on a wonderful hike up the cliff that extended over the summit. There was a bag with a notebook and pen hidden on a ledge for hikers to put in a note about the hike (see pic). The view was stunning and rocks were beautiful. It was a little scary at times as it was pretty narrow and very steep! A great way to start our day! Cruised the rest of the day to our next destination, Isla Espiritu Santos.

We arrived mid-afternoon and decided to anchor off Isla Espiritu Santos.We took the dinghy out to explore the area. We found more mangroves and lots of seaweed that washed up on the shore. This island is series of bays, about eleven of them. We cruised over to a different bay to take a look. The bay is called El Empachado, it is a shallow bay that isn’t conducive as an anchorage for that reason. But it's beautiful, and there are permanent tents there for "glamping". It appears that locals from La Paz are transported here on pangas as we saw people there but no boats. There was a larger tent in the middle and about 5 smaller tents spread out on each side with a beautiful white sand beach. We took it all in and headed back for our afternoon swim off the boat. There are tons of sea turtles in this area, their heads popping up everywhere! Darryn saw a Moray eel while we were swimming, but decided to wait until we were out of the water to tell me! The bugs are bad here too, the no-se-em’s, (super small biting insects). We both have quite a few little bites that itch! Have I mentioned how awesome the night sky is in the Sea of Cortez? The stars are amazing, so abundant and clear with no light pollution. Tonight the moon was a bright crescent and there was a cloud of white in a perfect circle around it! I woke up in the middle of the night and went outside to get some air and the moon was orange! It was beautiful!

4-19 Today is the day to head to La Paz. It will only take about 2-3 hours. We are excited to see this city as it is fairly big, 275,000 residents, but mainly locals except for the cruise ships that bring in the tourists. We don’t expect them since we are still in Covid season. The cruise ships go back and forth from here to Vancouver and Alaska normally, but this year they are sitting in the bay waiting for the world to start up again. As I am writing I can see the cruise ships sitting in the harbor in the distance.They are quite stunning out on the water!

4/20- 27 La Paz means peace, and its fitting. It’s a peaceful place that caters to the locals as well, not just tourists. There are many marinas here (at least five), and it is quite pretty. The malecon is the main attraction here. It is a 5 km waterfront seawalk with many beautiful sculptures that represent the culture in the city. There is a bike path, palapas, a fountain, plants and flowers etc. It its quite stunning! Across the street are many local restaurants and shops to explore. What is nice is there aren’t any vendors or large restaurant chains. It's local run businesses. It is forcing us to work on our Spanish too since many people speak very little English. We are enjoying the local cuisine and have found a few of great restaurants. The marina where Curandera resides for the week is Marina Costa Baja which is surrounded by a resort called Costa Baja Resort and Spa. There is an absolutely stunning Gary Player Signature Golf Course here called El Cortes Golf Club.We played it and it was super challenging but fun with beautiful views! We ate at their restaurant, El Catron which is up high on a cliff overlooking the ocean and the marina (see pic). It was stunning and the food was wonderful. We watched Steven Speilberg’s boat coming into our marina as we were eating dinner (he must be following us :) There are a few other good restaurants within the resort as well. They have a beach club with a wonderful pool, restaurant, tennis courts and access to the beach. We played tennis one morning and spent the remainder of the day enjoying the amenities and the water (see pic).We left the resort and made our way to Marina de La Paz on April 28th which is right in town, easy access to the malecon. It is a saltier type marina but close to everything! We want to enjoy the town when Leaf and Paige arrive on May 1st.

One of the many beautiful statues along the La Paz Malicon...

Enjoying the beach club in Marina Costa Baja....

Gary Player Golf Course and Club House...

Costa Baja Marina Sunset...

April 28th-May 9th I am writing this entry after the fact, as we had a busy time in La Paz Marina De La Paz was a great marina, close to the malicon. We thoroughly enjoyed La Paz on our bikes and by foot. We spent our first few days getting the boat ready for the arrival of Leaf and Paige. They arrived on May 1st, they flew into Cabo and took a 2-1/2 hour van ride to La Paz. It isn’t easy getting direct flights into La Paz as it isn’t a tourist destination. We had a blast with the kids! Leaf’s birthday was the 2nd, we walked down the malicon and found an outdoor restaurant for breakfast. Lobster omelets and mimosas, yum! We spent the afternoon swimming in the ocean and enjoying the sun. That night we celebrated birthday dinner at La Tres Virgenes for dinner. Great drinks and good food (see pic). We adventured around town the next day on bikes dropped by Buzo’s (third time this trip) for their great gin and tonics. Headed out on a two night cruise to Isla Partida and Espiritu Santos. It was very hot, perfect conditions for ocean cruising and swimming. First night we anchored at Isla Partida and second night Ensenada del Candelero (Candlestick Cove) We did our annual Easter egg hunt (celebrating a bit late) on the water. The plastic eggs were thrown out on the water and we all dove in to gather the most eggs we could. Paige won, and rightfully so as she came prepared with a fin, arm floats, and goggles! She was much more agile than the rest of us with our bulky orange life jackets! (See pic). We snorkeled around a rock island. The fish were beautiful, some bright blue and yellow, some black and red. Jumping and diving off the boat was so fun! The beach was beautiful too with interesting volcanic rock and formations. On the third day we headed back towards La Paz and stopped at playa Balandra right outside La Paz. The beaches here are very popular with the locals as its beautiful white sand and shallow water. The remainder of the week we spent enjoying La Paz and the malicon. We celebrated my birthday a day early due to the kids departing early on the 8th. We found a restaurant a few blocks up from the malicon that Darryn and I stumbled on when we first got to La Paz. It’s called Paciana, and decided to bring the kids because we loved it so much. It is the best restaurant in La Paz! The food and service was amazing! Darryn had the most delicious truffle ravioli and all the food was top notch. The waiter, Rodrigo, is the owner and he spoke great English. He spoiled us and even gave us unlimited limoncello at the end of the night that was homemade and delicious! This restaurant is a must for anyone visiting La Paz! We were all impressed with the restaurant scene in this city. Locals tend to eat out later, between 8-9. Many places close in the afternoon from 2-4 as well. The town squares are always bustling, especially at night, consistent with all of the Mexican towns we have visited. The malicon was so busy the night before Mother’s Day with families and friends enjoying the outdoor spaces. Music, lights, open air patios….it had an awesome vibe!

Pics from our anchorage at Isla Espiritu...

While we were here we took advantage of some contacts we received from one of our cruising friends (Stu) to get some things done on our boat. Darryn designed a canopy for the back of our boat to function as an additional outdoor space for entertaining and relaxing. We needed two different experts, one for the stainless steel  and one for the canvas. Both of these contacts were so skilled and professional! They both knew we only had a week and they make it happen! The steel guy, Sergio, and his crew had the steel frame  up within a few days. The canvas expert, Hector, brought fabric samples, took measurements, and worked into the night to have our canvas delivered at 2 am the night before we left! Not only did he do the canvas canopy, he made cushions for both seats in the fly bridge and a cushion for a bench seat as well. This would have taken weeks in the US or Canada and the price would have been triple what we paid. We are so thrilled with the work ethic of these individuals and the end product.

We left La Paz early on Mother’s Day, the 9th. As we cruised out of the marina and made our way along the malicon via the ocean, back out towards the Sea of Cortez, we reflected on our time here and felt we had time well spent and would love to come back to enjoy this beautiful city, with its own personality and charm. We appreciate the local culture and feel blessed we had the opportunity to experience it, especially with the kids. Now back to our home marina, Puerto Escondido, with a peaceful night out on the ocean beforehand. We are so fortunate to have had the opportunity to experience the Sea of Cortez! A few more nights to get the boat ready for hurricane season and see our Nordhavn friends before going home for the summer. On our journey back we saw two blue whales, which are the largest animals on the planet, and are endangered. Murf spotted them first and went crazy! They are more common here in the winter months so it was a very special treat! I didn't get pictures because we didn't want to lose a moment reaching for the phone! But when they surfaced, it almost looked like a parking lot rising out of the water!

Adios until October when we head to mainland Mexico across the Sea of Cortez.This last picture is a panoramic view of a hike we did weekly in Puerto Escondido. I will miss this place but look forward to summer in Vancouver!