Visit to Berkovich Boat Yard - 1, Doug, David, and Mark

On the Road to Berkovich's.  La Paz in the Distance, Mogote at Right.

During a visit to Snug Harbor Sails earlier in the week for some trim work on the lazarette cover I asked Doug if he knew where I could find a whisker pole, which I would use to keep my headsail opened out when running downwind.  (http://www.google.com/#hl=en&q=whisker+pole&tbs=dfn:1&tbo=u&sa=X&ei=m3KITpT4C-StsALhzv2yDw&ved=0CBkQkQ4&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.,cf.osb&fp=84c58f105e12c753&biw=1366&bih=619)  Doug suggested that I visit the Berkovich Boat Yard where he has been living on his boat for several years.  I had already heard from Bob and others that Berkovich's had all sorts of boating bits and pieces spanning two sites.  I had visions of a sort of marine junk  yard.  Doug told me that if I visited on Saturday he would show me his 38-ft Hans Christian that had been built in Taiwan in the '70s.

Doug at work  in the best galley setup I've seen yet

Yesterday morning after coffee with the guys at the Palapa I set off in my tiny fold-up bicycle designed for marina use to Berkovich's Boat Yard, which I knew would mean a long and hot ride.  I peddled down the Malecon and arrived at Marina Palmira in a remarkable 20 minutes or so.  At the office I was told that Berkovich's was another 5 or 6 km up the road, and there was a path "most of the way".  I wound up on a highway overpass above the turnoff to Marina Costa Baja, the last marina at that end of La Paz.  I looked down and saw the marina in the distance but could not see anything that looked like a scruffy boatyard.  I knew that Costa Baja had been blasted out of rock, so figured that it would be unlikely that Berkovich's would be down there, particularly since it had not been mentioned in the road sign.  That turned out to be a mistake costing me another hot 45 minutes where I had to work my way up a high hill then coast down the other side with 18 wheelers regularly forcing me to make that 1 inch drop into the verge.  I arrived back at the coast at a crossroads where I got directions to turn left back toward La Paz.  I passed the Pemex tank farm from the wrong side and arrived at Berkovich's soon afterwards.  I knew that it was Berkovich's because the boats on the hardstand were crammed incredibly close to each other as Doug had described.

David and Doug in cockpit

Doug was home and soon I was aboard.  Hans Christians all seem to have that romantic and traditional nautical feel.  Doug's boat had a particularly "homey" atmosphere which is not surprising given that he lives in the boat while working on it as well as running his sail loft business.  He was preparing a green curry for his evening meal and from the smell of the herbs and spices I knew that this man knew how to cook.  Later I asked him what spices he uses and opened up a cupboard full of all sorts of herbs and spices in industrial size containers.  He then showed me a photo album of when he was a chef, overseeing the preparation of 3,000 meals a day if I remember correctly.

View of boat yard from Doug's cockpit

Soon his friend David arrived.  David had learned to sail after he retired.  He purchased a trimaran and figured out what to do it as he went.  He's had some great experiences, including a stay of many months in the Pearl Islands on the Pacific side of Panama.  But his favorite place is the Sea of Cortez.  When he first arrived here he thought that crystal clear waters, great weather, and many islands to explore would be commonplace, but after a look around and listening to the experiences of others he realized that he had already seen the best and returned to La Paz where he now has a 26 ft sloop suited for his needs in the Sea of Cortez.

Then Mark showed up.  Mark is a superfit Gringo in his 50's who looks a good 10 years younger.  He works at Berkovich and lives in a sailboat that he purchased cheaply, but has his eye on a large power boat and will pounce when the price is right.