We stopped by Lopez Marine on the way to a large store called "CCC" where I picked up more outboard motor oil and a spare spark plug. We then walked another 6 or 7 blocks to find that CCC was a large, modern, and very popular department store that had a complete line of grocery items as well as clothes, appliances, etc. Arnold and I had forgotten to bring the trolley but that was just as well. We spent about 1600 pesos (130 USD) and we would have had trouble getting the cargo back to the marina with the trolley. We took a cab which cost us 60 pesos or about $5 USD and it was worth every cent.
By then the wind was up and I volunteered to take the cargo to the boat while Arnold waited. Fortunately I had brought my Gortex coat because the ride to the boat was very wet indeed. I tried to set the boat speed to match the phase of the oncoming waves but once in a while I would hit one the wrong way and a sheet of water hit me in the face. The wind speed was only about 18 or 19 knots but this is such a long and shallow bay that the currents run fast and can interact harshly with the wind. Because of those strong in-and-out currents boats can hang at all sorts of strange angles to the wind, known locally as the "La Paz Waltz". Transferring the groceries to Pachuca was challenging, with Pachuca bucking like a bronco and the Zodiac having its own ideas about how to move. I returned wearing my wet weather jacket over my Gortex and that is what Arnold wore on the trip back.
After a bucket bath, change to dry clothes, lunch and a nap I decided to resolve the issue of the head phones for the HF radio. With my old Kenwood HF (which is stored in my port quarter berth as an emergency backup) as soon as you plugged in the head phone jack the external speakers would go dead: sound came out through the speakers or head phones but not both. But the Kenwood very sensibly had its headphone jack input at the front. The new ICOM has it input jack at the back which is so difficult to get to that it would be impractical to plug and unplug the headphone at will. The only hope was that the ICOM would allow sound simultaneously through the external speakers and the headphone WITH the "mute" button suppressing the external speakers but not affecting the head phones. Fortunately that is exactly how it worked. (Thank You ICOM!). So now I have the head phones permanently jacked into the back of the ICOM. I took pains to route the head phone cable in a sensible manner, which required drilling another hole inside the electrical cabinet. But the result is good. Any time that anybody wants to hear the HF radio without disturbing others they can put on the head phones and hit the external speaker "mute" button.
On the way back from Lopez Marine we ran into the fellow Aussie Rod, who has recently purchased his Catalina "Oceanic Spirit" to sail back to Australia. His friends Les and Ann had flown back to Australia via a stay in the USA and he was not expecting his replacement crew from Australia until early May. Rod plans visit Pachuca tomorrow with his 3G dongle (a stick that you shove into a USB port of a laptop) so that we can show him Pachuca, in particular its electronic setup, discuss our experiences in long distance sailing, and use his dongle to connect to the internet and show him how to access Yotreps and other Web sites. If Rod's dongle performs OK from Pachuca I'll see about getting one, as long as the price is as low (about 700 pesos with the first month of service included) as Rod says.
By nightfall the wind had abated to 11 knots and we were hoping to venture ashore the following afternoon after Rod's visit to have our laundry done, maybe get that dongle, and have a good lunch in town. After that Pachuca would be ready for sailing pending good winds.
Before we leave we must hail the Capitania on VHF 16 informing them that we are departing La Paz Harbor for several weeks. I will not be arrogant and assume that they will speak English, which means that I will have to pre load my brain with the sort of phrases that I will need to get my message across, which is simply that sail boat Pachuca is leaving La Paz to sail north and expects to return in 3 weeks.
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1 comment:
I love this:
Because of those strong in-and-out currents boats can hang at all sorts of strange angles to the wind, known locally as the "La Paz Waltz".
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