Cruising with guests

We and our guests, Ian, Mint, and Mint's 13 year old daughter Rachel survived a week together on Ladybug.

Mint and Ian climb the trail at Isla San Francisco

The good - lots of wildlife sightings including schools of jumping rays, porpoises, and colourful reef fish. We had a good if somewhat challenging hike on Isla San Francisco as well as an expedition to see the 100 year old pearl farm on Isla Espiritu Santo (Click here for more info on this farm). We also had some excellent sails, having little occasion to run the motor.

Rachel and Rani on Isla San Francisco. The Sierra Giganta mountains on the Baja are in the background.

Rachel looks happy with her own creation for lunch. 

The not so good - Captain Curmudgeon's water rationing was not easy for Mint and Rachel who both have long hair. My offer to cut their hair with the number 4 attachment on my trimmer was not well received... We did our dishes in salt water and everyone was so careful with the water (being frightened by Captain Curmudgeon)  that we came back with our tanks still partly filled. Fortunately we brought along plenty of tequila and juices to supplement our supply of drinking liquid.

Rani at the pearl farm on Espiritu Santo island.

Chris holds an oyster shell. In the background are piles of shells and the pearl culture raceways built out of un-mortared stone.

We had some rough nights at anchor with the local Corumel winds making most of the anchorages noisy and a little bouncy. These winds are a fact of life in the islands north of La Paz, but they seemed particularly strong this time out. Mint and Ian were sleeping in the V berth near the anchor and were subjected to a bouncier and noisier ride than Rani and I who had the smaller quarter berth further aft. Rachel had the berth over one of the water tanks, which would slosh around when things got rough, so she lost some sleep too and had to move onto the settee across from this berth one night.

Annie under sail with Chris at the helm.

Ian sailing Annie in Caleta Partida

Ian enjoyed the sailing and we had some decent sailing breezes on 5 out of the 7 days. Ian has sailed with me before and both he and Mint have taken sailing courses, so they know enough to be helpful crew. Ian also enjoyed sailing little Annie in the Caleta Partida anchorage. Mint and Rachel were good sports, and despite feeling a bit queasy at times during the first few days they did not complain.

Adolescent frigate birds in the mangroves near the pearl farm.

More immature frigates.

Privacy can be a bit of a challenge on our smallish boat, especially when the head has a curtain for a door, so it was no surprise that bodily functions that do not usually get discussed were a topic of conversation most days, especially with a 13 year old on board.

Ian enjoys a nice 10 knot breeze on our last day out.

Hopefully it was a positive experience for all and we have learned a few things for the next time we host friends on board.

La Cruz to La Paz

A few notes on our recent crossing to La Paz...

We celebrated Chris's birthday a few days early with Jo and Rob in La Cruz.

The birthday 'boy'

We arrived safe but tired after an 8 day crossing ( 4 days straight at the end)  from La Cruz to La Paz,  beating into light winds. I wish I had taken a photo of the chart plot of Ladybug's wanderings over those days. She seemed to be heading anywhere but La Paz, tacking east and west. On our last day we ran the motor as the wind died almost completely and we were running out of time. Usually we wait for the wind to come up but this time we were expecting company on March 31st in La Paz.

En route, we anchored in the San Blas estuary to visit our friends Rich, Lori, Amy and Jay on their new 36 foot sailboat Third Day. Lori and Amy were busy painting mermaids and fish on the bottom.

Bottom Painting Third Day

We took time out to hike to the old fort which was built in 1770 to defend the town's extensive sea trade with the Philippines. Behind the fort are the ruins of the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary built in 1769. The church once contained the bronze bells that are said to have inspired Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem "The Bells of San Blas".  For someone who never actually visited San Blas he recalled the town's bustling past quite vividly.

Church of Our Lady of the Rosary

Inside of the church - beautiful stonework

It was fun sailing up the estuary in our little dinghy before celebrating Chris's birthday on the actual day with the Boren family on sv Third Day.

Local paddling in a pirgue type boat 

Back to the trip up to La Paz:

Passing through the San Lorenzo Channel north of La Paz in the moonless night was not as bad as I had anticipated since we did not have to dodge any tankers or ferries. Chris, to give him his sailors' due, did put up the sails for a quarter of an hour but the light head wind was no match for the strong current against us and he had to call it quits to save the sails from wear and tear.

 And, now, we are off to the islands - Islas Partida, Espiritu Santo and San Francisco. A couple of friends and their 13 year old daughter arrived from Victoria last night. They will be our first guests to live and cruise on Ladybug II for one week, if they do not mutiny first! Chris and I went to pick up the groceries yesterday after Chris planned the week's menu - all vegetarian except for the odd tuna/squid sandwich to prevent withdrawal. We hope that the pristine beaches, turquoise waters, dolphins and whales will more than make up for cramped quarters, lack of privacy, a vegetarian diet and Captain Curmudgeon!

We shall report back when we return as to how we all fared and maybe even bribe our guests to send their feedback.

Longfellow's poem, The Bells of San Blas:

They are a voice of the Past, 
Of an age that is fading fast, 
Of a power austere and grand; 
When the flag of Spain unfurled 
Its folds o'er this western world, 
And the Priest was lord of the land.

The chapel that once looked down 
On the little seaport town 
Has crumbled into the dust; 
And on oaken beams below 
The bells swing to and fro, 
And are green with mould and rust.

Then from our tower again 
We will send over land and main 
Our voices of command, 
Like exiled kings who return 
To their thrones, and the people learn 
That the Priest is lord of the land!

O Bells of San Blas, in vain 
Ye call back the Past again! 
The Past is deaf to your prayer; 
Out of the shadows of night 
The world rolls into light; 
It is daybreak everywhere.

Desert Plants of Baja California

While sailing down the east coast of Baja California, we were constantly surprised by the density and diversity of plants in what appeared to be essentially a desert. Up close and personal, there were times we regretted wearing shorts as almost all the trees, shrubs, and ground cover appeared armed with barbs, thorns or burrs. Chris seemed to be most Cacto-phyllic as he invariably stepped on or into these iconic symbols of the desert. While we recognized some of the more common plants, we really did not have a great reference book until this year. Our friend Randall of S/V Murre gave us the most valuable “ A Field Guide To The Common And Interesting Plants Of Baja California ” by Jeannet Coyle and Norman C. Roberts. So, now our hikes have become more interesting and occasionally we dare to taste some of the edible fruits and plants enjoyed by the indigenous people of the region many centuries ago.

Phytogeographic Regions of Baja

As you can see on the map copied from the field guide, there are eight phytogeographic regions in Baja and we have only accessed one of them during Ladybug's travels this year – the Central Gulf Coast Desert. This region extends from the Bahia de los Angeles to the Cape and includes most of the Gulf Islands. As you have probably seen in many photos from our blog, the land here consists mainly of volcanic and granitic rock. The rainfall is irregular and sparse, resulting in sporadic flowering and growth of vegetation. Arriving last year in October, we saw a much greener desert after the summer rains.

Mallow Family

The characteristics of the desert are low humidity, high air temperature, with great daily fluctuations, high surface and soil temperatures, low organic and high mineral content of the soil, erosion by strong winds and water, and poor drainage. Since water is essential to any life, desert plants have become highly adapted to preserving water. Examples are: a sprawling root system (creosote ), miniscule leaf size (ocotillio and cirio), thorns and spines instead of leaves (cacti) , resin and wax coatings for water-proofing (creosote ), leaf production limited to when water is available ( elephant tree ), bitter juices to avoid being eaten ( creosote, lomboy), tough seed coats and water storage tissue ( cactus, Agave ).

Hedgehog Cactus in flower



Tough, woody seed pod



Most desert plants are low in stature and are widely spaced, mingling with dissimilar plants – a lesson in harmony. Due to the limited nutrients and water, desert perennials grow very very slowly. The cardon is estimated to grow about one inch per year, so you can see why we worshipped the “old growth” sentinels which we encountered along the way.

This old grandfather must be over 300 years old!

Torote Blanco - Elephant Tree

The aromatic scent of the torote trees remind me of hikes in the pine and cedar forests of the northwest. The bark is used for tanning and dyeing.

Wild Lilac – leaves and flowers can be boiled into a tea. Fresh flowers make a lather when crushed and rubbed in water. Cattle, sheep and deer like it. Bees visit the flowers for nectar.

Garambullo ( Old Man Cactus) - the tips of the stems are covered in coarse, gray hair-like spines.

Cholla – Green, fleshy fruit was bitter to us but is popular with cows. We spent many hours trying to pick out the fine spines from our lips and hands after this taste test!

Devil's Claw – The woody seed pod has prong-like claws which attach to fur, clothing and skin for a highly effective dispersal method. The two claws often clamp into cattle nostrils or hikers' boots!

Juanita – Blooms continuously with pink flowers forming garlands over cacti and shrubs in arroyos and hills.

Desert Mistletoe

Desert Mistletoe ( Toji ) is a woody parasite that we see latched onto many trees. Its berries are eaten by birds or dried and eaten by Indians. Leaves and berries are also cooked with rice and the mixture used as a poultice to draw out pus from boils.

Pitaya Dulce

Missionary records state that the Indians spent the Pitaya Dulce fruit season in a state of euphoria. It was a dangerous period for young girls gathering fruit as the braves would try to catch them. The feasting lasted several months and allowed the tribes to travel and socialize together. If the fruit was not eaten fresh, it could be dried for future use. Interestingly, when the fruit was gone, the indians would gather their dried feces to collect the black seeds, then grind these into a meal – the “second pitahaya harvest”.

Blooming Barrel Cactus

                                          

Bursage ( Burro weed )?

Nopal - Prickly Pear Cactus

Nopales are generally sold fresh in Mexico, the spines removed and diced. Used to prepare nopalitos, they have a light, slightly tart flavor, like green beans, and a sticky texture.

Yummy!

Torote Colorado - birds love this fruit

                                

These berries looked enticing but we knew better!

                                            

Beautiful patterns on Barrel Cactus



Flowers of the Desert Agave





Cardon Cactus in bloom



                                                                

Red chilli-shaped flowers of Palo Adan - a very common shrub in the Baja

                      

Possibly Heronbill but I am not at all sure - comments?

                                        

Brittlebush - Sunflower family

                                                        

Bird's nest with built-in spiny defense courtesy of Chain-Link Cholla

                              

Mangrove tree at Caleta Los Lobos

                                                      



Nightshade

                          

Acanthus family

The underwater plants off the desert coast can be just as colourful! This photo was taken by Randall (sv Murre) while snorkeling at El Gato

La Cruz and Sayulita

The main purpose of our trip to La Cruz was to see off our friends Jo and Rob on Blue Moon. They are off to the Marquesas and will spend the summer in the south Pacific before returning to their home in New Zealand. After spending a couple of days here in La Cruz with them, we decided to take a trip together to the nearby surfing resort of Sayulita. The bus ride from Bucerias to Sayulita was impressively quick, the driver at times behaving more like he was at the wheel of a Maserati. I was standing at the back of the bus and had no illusions about where I would end up if we had to stop suddenly at these speeds. Still it was only $1 for a 25 km bus ride and we all arrived unscathed.

In Sayulita, the road bridge was washed out in a flood and as you can see from the picture below, so were other facilities. Jo from Blue Moon is to the right, Rani in the middle, and first time cruiser, Cathy on the left. On the plus side there was no one there to collect the normal 5 peso (40 cent) fee...

Line up for the washroom

We all went swimming and body surfing. In the picture below, Rob is coming out for a break while Cathy's husband Lindsey and I get ready to catch a wave. You can see how successful we were in the following picture.

Ready to catch the wave

The wave caught us instead

There is an iguana sanctuary in Sayulita and we were able to get up close and personal with the big fellow shown in the picture below. This iguana was at least 5 feet long including a three foot tail.

We ate our mid-afternoon comida at a little sidewalk restaurant, enjoying huevos rancheros and tasty vegetarian sandwiches with fruit juice for a very reasonable 50 pesos each ($4). After comida we went back to the beach for more swimming and surfing before catching the bus home. It was nice for a change to get away to an area where there were not so many sailors!

When we arrived back at the marina, we just had time for beer and a snack before watching a performance of folk dancing. The performers were young girls mostly between 12 and 16. They performed a wide range of dances, many of them involving tapping intricate rhythms with their shoes. Some of the dances were performed in costumes as old men with white bearded masks and canes. The young girls did a remarkable impersonation of wobbly legged bent backed old creatures and I could not help but think they might regard the majority of us cruisers as such!

We will be here in La Cruz or a few more days before re-crossing to La Paz.