Susan, Sequoia, and Todd go sailing

We left La Paz on Sunday, May 24 for a last family trip out to the islands. We had a good Southwesterly wind, so we sailed out of the anchorage and up the channel. Halfway into the bay the wind got pretty light and we were doing just over 1 knot, so Todd and Koiya jumped in for a cooling swim. Koiya enjoyed jumping off the bow, then quickly surfacing to catch the swim ladder. Toro preferred just being dragged along, yelling things like, “We’re picking up speed, I can feel it!” and “That’s right, we’re heating it up!”

We’d hoped to catch up with Third Day, who have two kids aboard. But when we pulled into Ensenada Grande, there was no sign of Third Day… just a swell rolling in from the West. Surveying the building swell and increasing wind, Capn Anxious asked me, “What do your instincts say?” Although it was already sunset and we’d just got the anchor down and everything put away, I replied, “I think we should move.” “I think so too!” he shouted over his shoulder, already heading up to pull up the anchor.

Luckily Caleta Partida, a great all-weather anchorage, is just a couple miles from Ensenada Grande, so we still had plenty of light for anchoring. Given that the night-time coromuel winds were predicted to continue through the week, we decided to just stay put. Todd thought that I would get antsy after a few days, but I was determined to embrace my inner slacker.

Wanting to make the most of Koiya’s last week out, we set some strict guidelines for ourselves. We’d have only one main activity each day, of Koiya’s choosing. We’d play games like Bananagrams and Hearts. In the evenings, we’d watch Firefly or a family movie. If this dizzying schedule left us with any free time, we’d read our books, listen to music, or watch the light move across the anchorage.

So we managed to get in some good hiking, a bit of snorkeling, and of course, some puffer petting. We also inflated the kayak and Koiya and I drifted over the shoal, where we were followed by two bullseye puffer fish. Koiya decided their names were Bull and Zai.

Somehow, amongst this flurry of activity, Todd had a morning free to learn some new knots. He has since been dazzling other sailors with the likes of the Highwayman’s Hitch and the Turquoise Turtle. For her part, Koiya has been teaching herself to play the recorder, using a book loaned to us by Dan and Lee from Afroessa (whom we met in the Bay Area and currently reside in La Paz).

We also ate really well! One morning a panga fisherman from a nearby fish camp came by looking for a disposable razor. He mentioned that they had a lot of fish but that their buyers in La Paz weren’t interested. So later that day, Capn Taco and his sidekick Salsa Girl dinghied in to the fish camp. For 20 pesos/kilo (less than 75 cents/pound) they bought 2 large triggerfish, which the fisherman expertly filleted. Toro grilled them up on our little barbeque… mmm, mmm! We later got some cabrilla from another fish camp, which was also excellent.

In the middle of the week, we got to spend a day with the crews of Isis, Rumiko and Monsoon. We had a great dinner and maybe a bit too much tequila on Rumiko; the pleasantries were only slightly tarnished when Kacey of Isis loudly warned me that Rumiko were their friends, not ours. I’m not sure why she’s so insecure.

Well, the week just flew by, and we reluctantly hauled anchor to make it back to La Paz in time for Josh’s 14th birthday. For his party, we made another trip out to the Coromuel Beach Park, and this time the water slides were open! We also got to eat a lot of chocolate tres leches birthday cake.

After getting her share of arrachera tacos, we rented a car and took Koiya to the Los Cabos airport on Wednesday, June 3. We drove through Todos Santos on the Pacific side of the peninsula, and were both thrilled and confounded by the summer fog rolling in off the ocean. It seemed just like driving down Highway 1 near San Francisco, but with desert and cactus all around. “It’s like we’re driving to Monterey,” said Todd. Then we passed through a stretch that smelled strongly of garlic. “We just hit Gilroy!” Todd shouted.

So, Koiya is safely back in San Francisco, but we really miss her! It’s just not the same without her. We’re planning on heading North on Saturday, and probably won’t have internet access until we reach either Santa Rosalia or San Carlos. See our latest photos here:

20090604GoodbyeKoiya

This entry was posted on Friday, June 5th, 2009 at 8:32 am and is filed under Travel. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.