At isla San Francisco

Today began with a very pleasant note. I spoke with Greg and Donna Norell of "Magic Carpet" on the HF radio. Brenda and I had met Greg & Donna at the Richmond Yacht Club shortly before they departed for the Sea of Cortez. I managed to miss them when they were under my very nose at the La Paz Marina but there is a chance that we will meet in early April when they will be working their way north and we will be working our way south.

The rest of the day was the reverse of yesterday. Don Anderson the weather guru predicted easing winds today so we set out at 10 AM and pounded the boat and ourselves against a 25 knot wind all day long. If we had not listened to Don at all we would have had a splendid sail yesterday instead of getting beat up today.

Anyway, our target was San Francisco island with a large bay with a white beach and giving good protection from northerly winds, about 24 nm away. Soon after setting off I brought up the double reefed mainsail to give us more drive to windward until the expected wind drop, when I would raise the entire mainsail. This with a no. 2 headsail produced a beautifully balanced boat with just a touch of weather helm. We soon set Jeff up and had him steering the boat with no problem. It was a hard and wet day as we executed 5 tacks trying to claw our way north. The deck was heavily awash and soon the shallow bilge was overflowing due to the heel of the boat.

We had agreed to make it to the bay no matter what time of the night. We expected a half moon and we knew that we could make a safe entry with radar, which turned out to show the outline of the shore and the 6 or 7 anchored boats beautifully. However, at 6 PM we were within 4.5 miles of the bay and we decided that enough was enough so we started the diesel engine and motored into the bay at last light, dropping anchor in 5.5 meters of water at about 7.30 PM.

After we secured the boat I treated myself to a deluxe bucket bath complete with shampoo. I needed it because I was wringing wet with perspiration from all of the exertion while wearing my wet weather gear. It was a good experience: rubadub under the stars with the bay and beach lit up by the half moon.

The cruising guide gives the following description of Isla San Francisco:
"Isla San Francisco is one of the southern Sea of Cortez's most popular anchorages due to its proximity to La Paz and its beautiful crescent shaped bay. Fine, white sand beaches accentuate the crystal blue waters and burnt-red rocky cliffs at Isla San Francisco, which is also part of the National Park system. The picture perfect cove is excellent for hiking, snorkeling, fishing and just lounging on the beach."

We will see if the island lives up to this description tomorrow because we plan to have a "lay day" to rest, dry out the boat and equipment, and lounge around. There are two good snorkeling sites which Arnold is interested in.

Arnold and I agree that so far the Sea of Cortez has been somewhat difficult for us: either no wind or stiff northerlies when we are trying to get to the north. The 600 mile long sea is a corridor along which winds whiz up and down at great speeds. One has to learn how to play the winds according to the season and plan their anchorages carefully according to the expected winds.

And Pachuca hasn't helped. The seas were not That great and yet her decks were awash all the way to the cockpit. I suspect that most cruising boats would have the freeboard and buoyancy to make a passage like today's with a relatively dry deck.. The poor boat is heavily laden and has too much weight in the front I plan to move the 50 lb Swarbrick anchor the the aft section of the boat.

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