The Calm After the Storm

After the legendary birthday party for Cavu Dave, things were quiet in the anchorage. It was time to relax, detox, and chill. But it didn’t take long before our little fleet got the itch to sail again. It was time to find a new anchorage. Our next destination was the east side of Isla Carmen.

Off to New Adventures

Pati and I had recently circled the island, but as the Sea of Cortez offers almost unlimited anchoring options we hadn’t stopped at nearly all the spots we possibly could. When a weather window promising some sailing opened, we all set off one by one. Cavu and Alegria took off first, followed closely by Milagros. Crack and Crystal on Small World took it easy and stayed behind. Elana and Travis on Island Fox left us for a few days to meet friends further south but would rejoin us later.

The Race Begins

Our mission was to close the gap on Cavu and Alegria, who were far ahead. Once other sailboats are around and heading in the same direction, it’s a race. Always! It doesn’t matter if you know the people on the other boat or not and it doesn’t matter how far ahead or behind they are. It’s a race. No matter what.

Bye Bye, Alegria!

We started out pretty sporty with full sails up and after a couple of hours we managed to catch up to Alegria while the winds subsided and were very light. Why were we faster than them? No idea. We just were. An annoyed Alegria Mike radioed us with that very question, to which Pati couldn’t resist adding salt to the wound: “We have a Kelly Peterson 44, and skills, maybe.” she replied. He he he.

Meeting at Las Salinas

When the wind completely disappeared, we all turned on our engines and spent the night in two separate anchorages. We anchored with Cavu, and Alegria with Small World. Since a bit of north wind was expected, we met the next morning in “Las Salinas,” an anchorage well-protected to the north, and a spot Milagros hadn’t visited yet. Readers might remember: Last year, we were stuck for a few days in a nasty north wind in the bay right next to Las Salinas with Swan Song Pete and Momo Bernie. Once our fleet had arrived at the new spot, we spent the days at anchor hanging out, walking on the long sandy beach, and snorkeling near a shipwreck.

Wreck Diving

We had been told a few times how great the snorkeling was at the wreck. Now we had to see it for ourselves. We tied our dinghy to a very Mexican marking buoy: a white jerry can. The snorkeling turned out to be as great as everyone said: The water was teeming with countless fish of all sizes and kinds around and inside the wreck. We dove through huge schools of fish so dense that you could feel the temperature drop when the gap in the school closed above you, blocking out the sunlight. It was fascinating to see how the different schools were layered. Smaller fish on top, slightly bigger ones below, and the largest ones at the bottom, only visible when the others parted. A really cool experience.

Mike’s Sea of Cortez Barbershop

Later, it was haircut time for the whole group again. What could possibly be better than a good friend who’s discovered a passion for barbering? “Mike’s Sea of Cortez Barbershop” set up a tent on the beach, and we all got spruced up. Even a kid from another boat got a haircut; an undercut, to be precise. When her mom came flying to the beach in her dinghy, we expected a scolding. Instead, Mike had to cut her hair too.

Fishing Luck and Sushi

The fishing this season had been great for me. One evening, I cruised along the shore with a couple of beers in the dinghy, trailing a lure behind the boat. Just as I was daydreaming and thought I wouldn’t catch anything, I got bites and quickly reeled in two great snappers. They were turned into delicious sushi we shared with all our friends aboard Milagros.

Setting Off for Cholla Corner

With fresh haircuts looking good, bellies full, and a light southerly wind forecast, we left Las Salinas after a few peaceful days and nights. Mike and Katie had spotted a spot on the charts marked as “Cholla Corner,” not officially marked an anchorage but looking like a hidden gem. Our new destination was set. And just as we set off, my fishing season turned even better.

Tight Lines!

We had barely left Las Salinas when I caught a huge Mahi-Mahi. Mahi-Mahi (also called Dolphinfish) are some of the tastiest fish in the seven seas and are plentiful in the Sea of Cortez during summer. After filleting, we had 3.5 kg of mahi-mahi meat in the freezer. Yesssssss. It’s wild how much work it is to catch a fish on a sailboat. Especially the “cleaning the aftermath”-part. The giant had spread its scales, bloodstains, and other remnants all over our aft deck. We hope the pictures do his fight justice. It took the two of us to hold him down.

Paradise at Cholla Corner

Our new destination “Cholla Corner” turned out to be a little paradise. Small rocky and sandy beaches where the other boats could let their dogs run (we were the only boat without a dog), and perfect sandy bottoms for our anchors to hold securely. Life was good here. So off to the beach we went.

Floating Season Begins

As summer approached, temperatures were steadily rising. The water temperature was now just right. Floating season had officially begun. Floating doesn’t require much: a beach canopy, floating gear like paddleboards, swim rings, mats, or chairs, a hat on your head to protect you from the sun, and a beer in your hand (or both hands). The hours flew by as we stayed cool and hydrated. Finally, Kim on SV Salt and Randy and Jody on SV Free Luff joined our group. We were now a fleet of seven boats, a happy mix of monohulls, a catamaran, and a trimaran.

Suddenly, Drama!

Did I mention our anchors were holding well in the sandy bottom of Cholla Corner? One evening, just everyone had returned to their boats from the beach, a strong westerly wind came up, bringing waves into the anchorage. Nothing too serious, but Pati and I were just securing our kayak on deck when we heard a foghorn. We were shocked to see one of the boats drifting sideways toward another. The boats’ anchor had dragged, and it was adrift. Mike on Alegria had sounded the horn to alert us all to the impending danger.

Collective Response

Island Fox Travis reacted first, jumping into his dinghy to help. The rest of us stood by on our boats, deck lights and engines on, ready to assist or move out of the way if needed. Mike and Katie decided to re-anchor, which was challenging as their anchor wouldn’t find proper holding anymore either. But after several attempts, they succeeded. A brief scare early in the early evening right after sunset, with a few beers too many, but all ended well.

All’s Well that ends well

We reacted quickly and effectively as a team. No one held any grudges. We’re all literally in the same boat, and things like that can happen to anyone. That’s life on a boat for you—one moment, you’re sitting carefree on a sandy beach, and the next, things take a sudden turn. Starlink deserves credit too; apart from Mikes’ idea with the fog horn our WhatsApp group chat allowed us to quickly alert each other and be ready in record time.

The Last Stop

Soon, it was time for another change of scenery. Our happy little family would soon split up as everyone had different plans for the summer. Small World were headed north to Puerto Peñasco, Free Luff south to Loreto, Alegria to La Paz at the southern tip of Baja California, Cavu to Bahia Banderas on mainland Mexico, Salt and we were headed back to Guaymas and San Carlos respectively, while Island Fox wanted to summer in the Sea of Cortez.

Back to San Juanico

So, we had to agree on one last stop. After some grocery shopping in Loreto and a night at the trusty good old Isla Coronados, where did we end up? Well, guess. San Juanico, for the third time this season. We really hadn’t traveled far this year, but we had been busy nevertheless. San Juanico is awesome and some of our friends hadn’t been yet this season. We had the best time after the armada invaded the anchorage. Activities ranged from spearfishing and snorkeling, floating with beers, beach walks, watercolor painting, and yet another great birthday party for Cavu Marla, late into the night. This is the way!

Farewells

Unfortunately, one of the few constants in sailing life is saying goodbye to good people you’ve had a great time with. Everyone does their own thing while trying to spend as much time together as possible. For me, it was especially bittersweet saying goodbye to our friends after a wonderful time. A few weeks earlier, I had decided to “swallow the anchor” as sailors say. My adventures aboard Milagros would come to an end. After four years of living at breakneck speed and one adventure after another, I was ready to return to a “normal” life. I needed more stability, and I had felt that all year. I had been going back and forth for months, but now my decision was made. With a heavy heart, I shared the news as we all sat together on the beach one evening.

Return to Normal Life

After four years of living at breakneck speed and one adventure after another, I was ready to return to a “normal” life. I needed more stability in my life, and I had felt that all year. I had been going back and forth for months, but now my decision was made. With a heavy heart, I shared the news as we all sat together on the beach one evening. But that’s how it goes. Goodbye Free Luff, goodbye Small World, goodbye Alegria! See you soon! One by one, we had to wave goodbye to our great crew. More about my decision in a few weeks in the end-of-season post.

Waving our Goodbyes

Then it was time to bid farewell to part of the group. Goodbye Free Luff, goodbye Small World, goodbye Alegria! Thanks for all the good times and see you soon! One by one, they took off and disappeared on the horizon. Suddenly, our fleet of seven was down to four: Milagros, Cavu, Island Fox, and Salt. Next stop? Punta Pulpito.

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Der Beitrag Island Hopping And Good Times And Farewells erschien zuerst auf Milagros.

We need to get out of here!

We just wanted to head out at this point, we had been stuck in Guaymas for far too long. And we knew we had to get out into the open quickly because cabin fever was taking hold, as you could probably tell from past blog posts. We needed new horizons, new neighborhoods, anchorages, anchor beers, and dolphins at the bow. Baja California was calling.

The crossing to San Juanico

But first, there was still a crossing to do. We wanted to set sail to San Juanico. Many consider this area one of the highlights in the nearly 1000-kilometer-long Gulf of California. We didn’t need any lead time because we had already made the nearly 16-hour passage a few times. As always, we chose a weather window that promised sailing with good but not too much wind, and we set off late in the afternoon. Goodbye, Guaymas, see you not so soon, thankfully.

Motor, darkness, and cold

The crossing to Baja California started promisingly. A brisk wind from the north blew Milagros sportily forward. We sailed into the night, where the wind subsided, and we had to start the engine. And it got cold. Very cold. And dark. Very dark, because it was a new moon. It’s crazy how much of a difference moonlight makes on the open sea. With a full moon, you sail almost in daylight, with a new moon, it’s pitch dark.

Light Torpedoes

And then something happened that we had heard a lot about, but unfortunately had not yet experienced. It was Pati’s night watch when she suddenly woke me up because she noticed unusual light trails in the water. When the familiar blowing sounds also appeared, it was clear: luminous dolphins were cruising along with us in the nighttime bioluminescence.

Unfortunately, we can only show you what it looks like with stolen pictures. It’s incredibly difficult to catch the beauty of bioluminescence. But we can tell you one thing: that was a lifetime experience. You can also watch moving images here.

Arrival in the early morning

At dawn, the wind returned, and we were able to sail the rest of the way back under sail. We arrived safely in San Juanico in the early morning. “You’ve been there before,” the discerning reader will say? Yes, that’s true, that was back in 2022 together with Paul and Hazel on SV Susimi (who have made it all the way to New Zealand by now). Our previous San Juanico experience was a very wobbly south wind experience. Now it was winter and north wind season – perfect for a stay in San Juanico, an anchorage that is well protected against north winds.

Life in the wilderness has us back

Finally, we were back where it was beautiful – with Milagros at anchor far from civilization. Just us, Milly, the desert, other boats, the wind, and nature. We spent over a week enjoying ourselves. Canoe trips, hanging out with other sailors, and exploring our surroundings. We found some really beautiful spots. Unfortunately, during her first swim of the year, the jellyfish also found Pati. Ouch!

Exploring San Juanico

San Juanico offers numerous great desert paths for walking and exploration. One of them leads to a small ranch with animals and a vegetable garden. Horseback rides and boat trips are also offered. Or were offered, to be more precise. Because the worker at the ranch, who immediately invited us for a cup of coffee when we arrived, said that the new owners had abolished the excursions for tourists. This directly harmed his wallet because he could earn a good supplement to his $1000 salary per month with the tips from tourists. We chatted with him about this and that; he was a really nice guy. Unfortunately, I can’t remember his name. Sorry about that.

A fireworks display for Pati’s birthday

We also celebrated Pati’s birthday and promptly invited a few cool kids from our neighborhood onto Milagros. They were a mix of boat people sitting at anchor and RV people who had set up camp on the beach. Happy Birthday, Pati! Elon Musk also congratulated warmly – he lit up fireworks. In the form of a SpaceX rocket that one evening rose high into the sky. We were only witnesses to the spectacle by chance when Pati suddenly stared wide-eyed at the horizon and could only say, “What the hell is that?” The rocket rose like a beacon high into the sky and left a glowing, ionized atmosphere. Very impressive!

New friends from the big Canton

Our neighboring boat, a large catamaran, flew a large flag in the famous black-red-gold colors. Of course we had to take a look! We rarely meet people from the biggest state in Switzerland (which is what we call Germany back home). The catamaran was called “Thosyma” – from which we skillfully deduced that at least two people on board had to be named Thomas and Sylvia. And behold: we were right. Thomas and Sylvia from Saxony in Eastern Germany were amazed when we greeted them directly by their first names, although we had never seen them before. We got along well right away and spent the rest of the afternoon on their great, large catamaran balcony. They wanted to go in the same direction (south) as us, so we would surely meet again. Of course we did not take any pictures. But before another meetup with Thosymas we wanted to make a hop north to collect another anchorage check.

Continuing to Punta Pulpito

After we had canceled the trip to Panama again, our new goal for the sailing season was to tick off as many new to us anchorages as we could. And just north of San Juanico was such an anchorage. Punta Pulpito was its name, a few hours further up the coast. When we weighed anchor early in the morning, we were already prepared for Burrito noise, when suddenly a very fine south wind set in and gently pushed us in the right direction. Sails up! What followed was some of the best sailing we had so far. We sailed slowly and comfortably towards Punta Pulpito.

We climb the peaks

When we arrived there, a spectacular backdrop appeared. Punta Pulpito is a huge rock that protrudes into the sea and steeply drops there. The large, rocky point is what covers the anchorage at its bottom. We had to take a closer look at that, and the next day we made our way up the steep path to the summit. We were definitely not the first people to tackle this hiking trail. You could clearly see a small path that we just had to follow. When we arrived at the top, the impressive surroundings of the Sea of Cortez revealed themselves in all their glory.

Sea of Cortez Obsidian

Another thing that makes Punta Pulpito a destination is the vein of obsidian that winds its way down the rocky outcrop. Scattered all over the ground, you can find the volcanic glass practically everywhere. It forms when lava cools rapidly under certain conditions. Of course, we had to take a closer look and found large chunks of obsidian right on the beach. A few smaller pieces are now travelling along with us aboard Milagros.

We take our time but are always on the move

Despite taking plenty of time to relax in each spot, we were always on the move. We seized the next northerly wind to head further south, towards Isla Coronados, a volcanic island we had visited several times before. It was about half a day’s sail south, and our sail-to-motor ratio at the start of the new season was excellent. We spent another fantastic day sailing, eager for more adventures.

Back at Isla Coronados

Arriving at Isla Coronados, we sought shelter at its southern end, avoiding a predicted harsh north wind. Additionally, a solar eclipse was forecasted, and where better to witness it than at Isla Coronados? Such events don’t happen every day.

Nortes are loud and cold

When the north wind arrived, it brought discomfort—cold, noise, and a reminder of winter in the Sea of Cortez. We spent the days working on the computer and doing laundry. After some time on the move, the dirty clothes had piled up. Since we staunchly refused to return to civilization just yet, we took matters into our own hands and washed them ourselves. A bucket, water from the freshwater tank, clotheslines for drying, and it was done.

David vs. Pelican

The most entertaining thing that happened during our stay at Isla Coronados. It involves me and a cheeky pelican, that decided to take a rest on our solar panels. We have absolutely no problem with animals hanging out aboard Milagros (apart from cockroaches, rats and such), but what we don’t like is cleaning huge Pelican poops off our solar panels. So the guy had to move. Easier said than done. What followed was a short argument in which I tried to shoo the pelican off, while he acted like he was going to bite me. In the end, I opted for a paddle of our kayak, which drew him off, just come back again right away. Pushing him off with the paddle tow times helped, and he gave up.

Continuing to the north end of Isla Carmen

When the Norte (that’s what the north winds are called in Mexican) subsided again, and south winds were forecasted, we wanted to tick off another point for a new anchorage and cruised (even with a visit from dolphins) leisurely under motor to a corner called “Puerto de la Lancha.” Well protected against the south, it lies at the north end of Isla Carmen. And it was well protected against waves from the south. But not so much against the wind because the forecasted southerly was rather channeled into the anchorage. It was quite the blow, and Milagros was rocked back and forth on the anchor chain.

Puerto de la Lancha

Nevertheless, we stayed and waited out the south wind. We took walks over the hills in the area and along the beach, where we found all sorts of exciting remains of marine creatures. Among other things, a complete dolphin skull. Of course, there was also plenty of plastic waste, so we also cleaned up the shore a bit. Even after 3 years, it is simply impressive every time anew how we are destroying the world’s oceans. And the Sea of Cortez is known to be a rather pristine area.

An unexpected reunion

But as it is, at some point, the fridge was empty, and we had to move on to Loreto to provision. So we chugged a few hours to the west and anchored off the town. We placed the dinghy on the beach and headed for the supermarket. Remember when we helped Ray deliver his boat to La Paz a long time ago (and ran into a fishing net at night)? Ray now lives in Loreto, and since we were in the area anyway, we wanted to get in touch with him. Guess who we practically ran into in the supermarket? Ray. It’s crazy how the world plays sometimes. He was there with his truck and kindly helped us bring all the food stuff back to the dinghy. Did we take pictures? Of course not.

A Sad Sight

Unfortunately, on the beach of Loreto, lie the sad remains of a sailboat well known to us. A friend of ours from the boatyard in Guaymas got into serious trouble during a sailing trip towards the town, which ultimately led to his pretty sailboat “Colymbus” being stranded on the beach of Loreto. The locals, of course, wasted no time and promptly helped themselves to anything that was and wasn’t nailed down in the nights that followed. Among other things, our old batteries, which we offered him when we installed our new lithium batteries. SV Colymbus is now a reminder of everything that can go wrong when offshore sailing. Nature shows no mercy.

Disappointment in Balandra

After all the groceries were stowed away in Milagros’ belly, we wanted to move on to the next place. Puerto Balandra was its name, a great horseshoe-shaped anchorage and well protected against all kinds of weather from almost all directions. On the way, we saw on the chart plotter that the Thosymas were also heading there. And when we arrived, disillusionment set in. Unfortunately, there was no room left for us. When Thomas and Sylvia set off back towards Isla Coronados, we decided to follow suit after a short stop.

We make the best of it as always

We spent a few more days at the southern end of the island and met with Thomas and Sylvia from SV Thosyma for sundowners on the beach. Walks to the picturesque northern bay were also due of course. The paradise beach frequented during the day by excursion boats from Loreto, which take up its entirety during the day. Good thing we were residents on the island, so we could use the evening hours and had the whole island to ourselves. Just beautiful!

When it suddenly gets dark

We also had an appointment: a solar eclipse took place at noon on April 8th. In the morning, we worked, then we made “solar eclipse margaritas” and sat in the cockpit. It was quite something when it suddenly when the moon darkened our surroundings at noon, and the intensity of the sun noticeably decreased. We could not really see anything of the actual eclipse, as we didn’t have special glasses or anything. All in all, the experience in our latitudes was quite unspectacular. Further south, especially in Mazatlán, it must have been much more impressive.

The freshest sushi ever

So without wind and waves, I had to go fishing again and was lucky – a beautiful Spanish mackerel (Sierra mackerel) took my bait. A great fish for sushi and sashimi. Of course, we didn’t miss out on that – homemade sushi from self-caught fish. What more could you possibly want in life? With this great fish in tow and sushi in our stomachs, we could set off again.

Continuing to the insider tip

And one Thursday, we packed up our things again and set off further south. Because a visit to a special place was due. A kind of insider tip that was recommended to us by Marla and Dave on SV Cavu. Whether we’ll tell you where it is? We still have to think about that.

Things are back on track for us

You see, things are back on track for us. As soon as we’re out of Guaymas, on the water, and on the move, it became increasingly clear to us that this is where we belong with Milagros. Living on an offshore going sailboat and then just sitting around in the same place is wrong. We had to get out, away from the noise, crowds, and civilization. Just the horizon and a thousand possibilities and adventures ahead of us. Because that’s the way it should be.

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Der Beitrag Continuing from where we left off erschien zuerst auf Milagros.

The marathon of visiting friends passed as quickly as it came. After Juli packed his things and we said goodbye to him at Mazatlán airport, we returned to Milagros, which layed anchored in the old port of Mazatlán again.

Home alone

Being back on the boat alone again was weird, but nice. For the first time in a long time, we had the whole boat to ourselves. Having all those friends over was great and we’re already looking forward to welcoming folks back aboard Milagros – but now we were been able to stretch our feet again, and immerse ourselves in our little everyday rhythm that we’ve built up on the boat over the years.

Something’s different

One morning, we experienced Mazatlán from a side that we hadn’t seen before. As always, we woke up early in the morning at first sunlight. But this time something was different. It was extremely quiet and only the occasional horn blast from large boats echoed through the area. I had to put my head through the hatch right away and check on the situation.

Cruise ship in the fog

And I was amazed: We were sitting in dense fog. We hardly saw the boats next to us it was so dense and Milagros was covered with thick drops of dew. However, the Mexican sun had already risen and quickly put an end to the spectacle. The fog cleared, revealing an impressive scene. With a deep, loud horn blast, a huge cruise ship pushed through the port entrance and the remaining clouds of fog and past our friends on SV Munday’s Off into Mazatlán harbor.

Back at the Kraken

We also visited the «El Kraken» football stadium again. The local football club had a home game against Monterrey. It was our third visit to the stadium already! We should have gotten a season ticket right away. So, we headed back out to cheer for the purple heroes. Instead of Florian, Tyr and Onno were with us this time around. Before kick-off we made ourselves comfortable in a restaurant near the stadium.

A stroke of luck

The restaurant we chose randomly should turn out to be a stroke of luck. We were received super friendly by the owner, who explained to us that in addition to various barbecued meat, the owners also served their own homemade cheese. Of we ordered a mixed meat platter with the cheese.

Filling our bellies

We were amazed when not just one, but two table grills filled to the brim with pork, chicked and beef seasoned with different BBQ sauces were placed in front of us. Wow! We enjoy the game satisfied and with full bellies where Mazatlán was defeated by Monterrey (as expected). In general, it was more of a Monterrey home game. The stadium was filled with black and white jerseys, and the Monterrey fans were LOUD.

Topolowhat? Topolohow?

Soon it was time to look for a weather window for the onward journey. A larger hop of about 200 nautical miles (370 km) was pending. The next destination was a small port town called “Topolobampo”. That would be yet another tongue twister for our good friend Hürzi, who has contributed a blog post about his visit on Milagros. At that time, he had a hard time pronouncing “Zihuatenejo”. Before leaving, we had to fill our diesel tanks, as we expected to be motoring during night time.

Topping up the diesel tanks in a different way

Getting diesel was a bit more complicated here in the Mazatlán harbor than anywhere else. We had to pack our diesel cans in our dinghy and cruise across the harbor to a dock where taxi boats took day trippers to a secluded beach. There had to be a gas station somewhere over there, Google said. So, we first did an on-site inspection, because here in Mexico you never know if the places that are marked on Google Maps actually exist. And indeed: there was a gas station with diesel, gasoline and even propane gas.

The viking rushes to help

We summarily recruited Tyr, who accompanied us on our drive through the harbor and helped us haul diesel. Under the incredulous eyes of a few dozen Mexicans, we docked our dinghy, got the diesel we needed at the gas station and were promptly given a ride back to the dock by a friendly local. Back on Milagros we filled her belly.

All the better!

Topolobampo is about 200 nautical miles north of Mazatlàn on the mainland of the Sea of Cortez. Unlike the much-visited Baja California Peninsula, only a handful of sailors lose themselves on the mainland because the general consensus is that there isn’t much to see, which is simply not true. All the better for us, so we could explore the area undisturbed. What is true is that on the mainland, the distances between the anchorages and cities that you can visit by sailboat are bigger.

Let’s gooo!

So, to our great joy (not) there were two nightly sails to be done. But you can’t always choose, so we had to bite the bullet. It is important that we have to jump over our own shadow from time to time. Our theory is that all we need to do is experience a few great night shifts for our attitude to change. Let’s do this!

Goodbye Mazatlan!

Unlike our last visit to Mazatlán, Burrito (our engine) started without a murmur and we were soon on our way. We expected southerly and easterly winds and no wind at night for the entire trip. The trip started with great sailing. Bye Mazatlán, it was fun! Vamos Maza!

The weird waters of Mazatlán

Along the way we noticed the same phenomenon as during our crazy crossing from La Paz to Mazatlán with Flo. The sea was choppy, with waves hitting the boat from different angles and at irregular intervals. Milagros’ movements, while weird and unfamiliar, were not uncomfortable. The wind also did what it was supposed to and pushed us towards Topolobampo.

Managing night shifts

We also managed the night shifts well. The moon was shining brightly in the sky, which helped a lot, our surroundings weren’t just pitch black. As expected, we had to cover part of the nightly route under engine, which at the same time always means that the sea calms down. Only having to deal with the noise of burrito, we could sleep without being constantly pushed around.

Sea creatures everywhere

The second day was peppered with great encounters with sea creatures. A humpback whale surfaced right next to the boat to take a breath, sea lions were haning out the waters everywhere and could hardly believe their eyes when they saw Milagros passing by them, dozens of sea turtles were on the move.

We’re too early

Since we wanted to take advantage of a window of good wind, we left Mazatlán a little early. It quickly became clear that we were a little too early to enter the channel to Topolobampo. We had to actively waste time. In the early morning hours of the second night, a light wind picked up. So, I could enjoy beautiful and very slow sailing on my shift while Patricia could snooze. When fog came up, the scenery turned into a dreamland.

Magical, foggy night time sailing

The moon in the sky lit up the whole sea of fog, the sea was smooth as glass and the light wind pushed Milagros very slowly but steadily. We sailed absolutely silently through the fog at a snail’s pace. Nocturnal bird calls, which we normally never hear, rang out from the humid environment. Light rippling on the hull, no noise from the wind blowing around our ears, no creaking and squeaking from the cabin, no rushing of the waves. It was pure magic.

Buying time

Although we only made slow progress during the night, we were still too early. When it was Pati’s turn for her shift, we just decided to drift for a few hours and wait for the first light of day. It was my turn to take a break and I didn’t wake up until we were slowly but surely moving toward the entrance to Topolobampo Bay.

Through the canal to the marina

The small town lies inland in a beautiful bay at the end of a man-made excavated canal. Large container ships and a ferry pass through the sandbar, so the canal is well maintained and buoyed. So, it was easy for us to find the way. The night before we radioed back and forth Tim from SV Coconut, who was also on the way from Mazatlán to Topolobampo right in front of us. He found a place in the marina there, told us that there was free space, and so we spent two nights in the pretty little marina of Topolobampo.

Exploring Topolobampo

As soon as we arrived, we set off to take a closer look at Topolobampo. With almost 6000 inhabitants, it is a tranquil town, but it has a large port where big cargo ships can dock. The houses painted in many different colors are particularly beautiful to look at – they reminded us of our great visit to the mind blowing Iztapalapa district in Mexico City together with Nic and Janine from SV Rua Hatu.

Tacos at Don Gato

After indulging in tacos at Don Gato (which are probably some of the best we’ve ever had), we just walked around town, following our noses. This under the curious gaze of the inhabitants of Topolobampo; apparently not many foreigners stray into the city. Topolobampo is very pretty and definitely worth a visit. Unfortunately, the ugly side of humanity showed itself, too.

Ewwwwww

At the very end of town, a river of sewage pours straight into the waters in front of the town. In general, Mexico, like so many other countries on the planet, has a problem with the treatment of its sewage. In many places, these flow directly into the sea, often completely unfiltered. The kind of mess we are making of the only freaking planet we have leaves us speechless over and over again.

Discovering yet another new to us anchorage

Back on the boat I discovered an anchorage just at the entrance of the canal in our navigation program that looked promising and which we had overlooked in the planning. “Hook’s Anchorage” was its name. What a salty name for an anchorage – of course we had to check it out. Said and done.

Hook’s Anchorage

After two nights in the marina of Topolobampo and far too many days in the filthy but fun old port of Mazatlán, we were finally back in a real anchorage. We made the best of it relaxing, exploring, dinghying into the nearby mangroves and planning for the next leg which would take us to our final destination for the season – back to Guaymas and San Carlos.

Plastic everywhere

But here, too, we were caught up in the grim reality of the state of our environment. The long, beautiful beach was covered in pieces of plastic of all sizes. A particularly large number of the bottles were marked with the famous red caps of a well-known beverage giant. We didn’t let that spoil our mood because we had the whole sandbank to ourselves. So, we enjoyed long walks every day, the peace and quiet and being alone. We just love having anchorages all to ourselves.

Someone wants to move in with us

Apart from us and our floating home, there was only the animal world, which wanted to make Milagros its home. Pati was busy reading in the cockpit, when suddenly our solar panels started making a racket. After an initial startle, she set out to find the source of the riot. The culprits were small birds that seemed to be busy scouting a possible nesting site under our solar panels. They flew in and out and landed on the mounting plates on our railing. We let them have their way because we had to move on anyway, which would not leave enough time for nesting. And they were cute, too, those little guys.

The last crossing of the season

The days passed and soon it was time for the last passage of the season. We wanted to pay a visit to the kingdom of El Mero, where we tackled some projects before being southbound at the very beginning in the winter of 2022. There we had to prepare for the haul out of Milagros. This last crossing of another 185 nautical miles was relatively uneventful with changing wind forces and a few hours of great but uncomfortable sailing in the last part before we finally turned the corner back into the kingdom and anchored there, under the eyes of many old acquaintances and a few new faces.

Preparations for the haul out

Instead of docking at the old El Mero docks, we decided to anchor further out. This enabled us to dismantle our sails and make initial arrangements for getting out of the water. We had big plans. Our choice for the time at the Boatyard was «Gabriel’s Yard», where Iñaki and Carmen did their big refit of Anila. They didn’t leave the best review, to put it nicely. Now we wanted to take a close look at the situation ourselves. Exciting times are ahead!

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Der Beitrag The Comforts of Solitude erschien zuerst auf Milagros.

A maze of memories

The 41 hours from La Paz to Mazatlán were beautiful, extremely arduous, fascinating, scary, extremely easy, extremely difficult. It was up and down and up and down and up and down. I have noticed that this is what I struggle most with since living on Milagros. The constant changes in mindset, morale and level of happiness and comfort. Nothing is ever constant on a sailboat. Everything can change within short periods of time. A lot of people say that that’s where the beauty of cruising life lies for them. Not for me.

A storm of thoughts

What we have both noticed on our crossing to Mazatlàn is nothing new, really. We still don’t like being underway at night. Once the sun sets and the night covers the boat, we feel like we just have to give up a little too much control. We both feel that way. Sometimes, even in daylight, I have the feeling that I’m constantly pushing the limits of my comfort zone, and this is even more noticeable at night. Even the smallest occurrences or unusual things stress me out and my reaction to them is not always the best. I quickly degenerate into a grumbling bundle of nerves that just thinks everything is shit. Boating sucks, the sea state is horrible, waves are the worst, fuck sailing in particular, all is crap.

Change in mindset

Just as quickly my mindset can change in the other direction. It only has to be a shooting star crossing the sky at night or a fish jumping out of the water during the day and I’m completely zen. And it’s been like this for more than two years now. Up. Down. Up. Down. Up. Down. The constant swings can be exhausting. I feel that I’m exhausted a lot. Not physically, but mentally.

Next stop – Isla Isabela

All of us were exhausted after our trip from La Paz, not only me. The fact that I also slit my hand the next morning only helped to a limited extent. But what the heck – show must go on, after all we wanted to arrive in Panama at some point, so we started the passage planning. The next stop was going to be a very special one, one that was highly praised by every single visitor. Isla Isabela.

Yet another nightly passage

Located almost 85 nautical miles southeast of Mazatlán, it is a breeding ground for hundreds of thousands of seabirds. There were hymns of praise for the place from all sailors who have visited. But what was the name of the visit? A passage overnight. Argh. It takes almost 17 hours to reach the island from Mazatlàn. The skippers and crew almost went crazy with anticipation. Not. But we had no choice.

Next stop – not Isla Isabela

While on the phone with my parents I was just about to announce our departure while Pati was checking the oil on Burrito in the engine room. She came back with a sober expression on her face. “We’re not going anywhere” she said. We had oil dilution. What that means is that an unfamiliar substance has found its way into our oil. In most cases, this is diesel or cooling water. Departure cancelled. There are many causes for oil dilution, one of them being a leaking cylinder head gasket, which would involve a lot of time and work. We really hoped it wasn’t the gasket because we wanted moooooove. But the cause was quickly found: we had diesel in our oil, because our BRANDNEW lift pump broke. Now we also knew why the engine didn’t want to start during the crossing. After our ordeal back in Peñasco, at least we knew what we had to do.

Pulling our hair

It was just horrid. After months of our engine purring wonderfully, our confidence in it was back to zero within a few days. Up. Down. Up. Down. Up. Down. The pump was quickly bypassed with a piece of diesel hose with a suitable connection that we still had aboard. And with the addition of a small electric diesel pump, we were able to temporarily fix the problem. After an oil change and a 3-hour test run of the engine to see if it worked, we were able to start our journey towards Isla Isabela with a day of delay.

On the way in the dark

The crossing went smoothly. We set out in daylight and a good wind, set the sails and had fantastic weather. The waves were moderate, the wind was steady at around 15 knots. Just like Milagros and we like it. Unfortunately, all the fun was over in the evening and Burrito had to go to work. This time he started up smoothly and moved us through the night to the southeast. The most exciting thing that happened? We moved passed a sailboat that was sitting completely still with its sails set and flapping, and we passed the buoy of a fishing net way too close for comfort. Those kinds of threats are simply invisible in the dark. So much for night time passages and giving up control.

There she is – Isla Isabela

At the crack of dawn and with the first light of day, Isla Isabela National Park appeared. And wow, we weren’t promised too much beforehand. The place is often called «the Galapagos of Mexico». The sky was full of frigatebirds, blue boobies, pelicans and many other bird species. They circled overhead over and around the island in the warm morning light, and their “talks” could be heard loudly from the shore. Unfortunately, we had already seen from afar the many anchor lights that lined the island.

Easy Come Easy Go

It quickly became clear that a stay would not work out. We wanted to make ourselves comfortable on the east end of the island. The closer we got to the island, the more anchor lights from other boats appeared along the shores of the rocky island. At the east end, three boats were already gently rocking over the sandbank that would have been our target anchorage. We still tried to find a spot, tough. However, we didn’t feel 100% comfortable dropping our anchor ultra-close (by our standards at least) next to another vessel in 12 meters of water with no idea of what to expect of the seabed. So, we called off “Operation Visit Isla Isabela”. But not without a little sightseeing tour around the island.

Safety first

In the main bay at the southern end of the island, which is known for its rocky bottom with only small sandbanks, there were a mere 8 boats at anchor. Maybe all the anchors had found sandy bottom, maybe they had found boulders. Who knows? But we didn’t want to anchor there anyway, we’ve heard too many stories of snagged, broken, fouled and lost anchor gear. So, we embarked on a leisurely cruise around the island and are now even more interested in visiting it. Then we turned back to the southeast and thus to the bay of Chacala.

And then I stabbed myself again

And guess what happened on the way there: I stabbed my wrist with a knife. Great, right? I did that when I wanted to kill a fish that we had caught on the way. The big unlucky animal that bit the rubber squid was a beautiful Pacific Crevalle Jack. The other big unlucky animal who now had two holes on the same arm was me. It wasn’t deep or big, but I must have pricked a tendon. Now I couldn’t use my right hand anymore at all and Pati had to make use of the fish. I was so fed up, you cannot even imagine.

Hello Chacala!

Luckily, we arrived in Chacala soon after. A sandy beach, palm trees, beach bars and the good side of sailing life awaited. However, we also had to be prepared for possible uncomfortable nights. In our navigation program sailors wrote of swell, which could roll undisturbed into the bay. So, it was time for yet another first time: We had to make use of our stern anchor. A stern anchor prevents the boat from turning unfavorably in wind and current, possibly putting your boat sideways to incoming waves or getting too close to possible obstacles. With the use of a stern anchor, you can thus move the bow and stern of the boat in the desired direction and prevent the ship from moving around too much. This keeps the ship aligned at the right angle to the waves or keeps it away from dangers in small, sketchy or crowded anchorages.

No problemo!

Said and done. We wrestled our big stern anchor and anchor rode into our dinghy and took the equipment towards the beach. Flo gradually let out line from the stern of Milagros and when we found a suitable position, we dropped the anchor. Everything worked like a charm and soon we were able to enjoy the view comfortably rocking in the cockpit.

Discovering the beauty of Chacala

Chacala is a small village on a beautiful, long, picture-postcard sandy beach lined with many small restaurants. Behind the village, lush greenery borders the hilly landscape. It was very nice to look at and of course we had to see it up close right away. After a quick zoom ashore in our trusted deflatable dinghy we stood barefoot on the beach and sipped on three ice cold margaritas. The next few days we spent with everything that makes life on a sailboat beautiful. Balm for our battered souls.

Finally, greenery!

We were especially looking forward to the vegetation after two years in the desert. So of course, we didn’t miss the opportunity to go for a walk in the forests that surround the cute little town of Chacala. We were accompanied by a friendly doggo, which we quickly christened “Schoggi” (which is swiss German for chocolate), because of its brown coat. She accompanied us all the way up into the forest. We were only stopped by the guard at a pompous entrance to a private property. Back on the boat, we met up with friends from all the boats we knew that were also anchored in Chacala, enjoyed tacos made with the fish we had caught, or walked through the village, where, among other things, I was finally able to have the threads of my knife cut removed at the local health center.

Florian gets the full range

Our good friend and crewmate Flo got the full range of highs and lows on a sailboat. The dark clouds had lifted again and we were sitting on a palm-lined beach, sipping alcoholic beverages of all kinds. Where Flo had recently been seasick burying his head in the toilet, he now buried his feet in the sand. Our idea that we could continue from Chacala to La Cruz only met with limited approval from him. He would rather stay in Chacala a little longer. Enough of the sailing adventures for now. Enough of the constant Up. Down. Up. Down. Up. Down.

Flo’s conclusion

This is also Flo’s conclusion of his sailing adventure with us on Milagros. Highlights for him were visiting Chacala, meeting other sailors, experiencing bioluminescence, spotting whales and dolphins and being adventurous with friends. On the opposite end of the spectrum are the technical issues we encountered, the moral lows, seasickness and David’s hand accidents – I would say it was a 360° experience for him with all that entails the cruising life. It’s not just summer, sun, sunshine and champagne sailing.

We continue to La Cruz

The time we had together was short and soon we were getting Flo to the early morning bus that was supposed to take him to the Puerto Vallarta airport. We also packed our belongings, raised both our stern and bow anchor and motored comfortably in the direction of La Cruz. At anchor there we had to prepare the ship again for the next visit of two friends from Switzerland.

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Der Beitrag Up. Down. Up. Down. Up. Down. erschien zuerst auf Milagros.

After spending a night in Pichilingue Bay, we sailed the last 10 nautical miles into La Paz. The anchorage in the channel was crowded with boats, and it wasn’t easy to find a suitable spot. Additionally, it was a new moon and low tide, meaning very low water levels. We didn’t want to cross the sandbar to our “regular” anchoring spot as we didn’t want to take any unnecessary risks. Although the depth was probably enough, we didn’t want to take even the slightest chance to get stuck.

Finally, we found a place to drop the anchor, but soon after we realized that we had anchored right in the middle of the channel. Although we were in good company – other sailboats had anchored in the middle of the channel, too -, we didn’t want to stay there. As it was already evening, we decided to wait and re-anchor the next morning during high tide.

Noisy affair

On the first night, we could hear loud music from shore. It was time for the yearly Carnival in La Paz. We didn’t want to miss out on the festivities and joined the crowd the next day. In the late afternoon, the parade started, which in many ways resembled “Fasnacht” we know from back home in Switzerland but was still quite different. Regional organizations and clubs had decorated trailers with great attention to detail, on which either many costumed people danced, or one or two young women were presented in magnificent dresses and crowns.

The trailers were mostly pulled by pickups with huge speakers installed, blasting Mexican music at ear-splitting volumes. Between the trailers, various dance performances took place. We stood directly opposite a stage where a host commented on all the passing participants. The edge of the parade was lined with amusement stalls and food stands. The atmosphere was especially unique as the sun set over the sailboats which were anchored in the La Paz channel. And this whole vibe made us a little homesick.

Hello civilization

After several weeks of being far from civilization and several months in not-so-nice Guaymas, we enjoyed being in La Paz. The city has a lot to offer in terms of cuisine and culture, and we enjoyed that everything was within walking distance. We also had some preparations to do before sailing south with Flo to unknown waters (to us at least).

Money, money, money

For example, we had our watermaker’s high-pressure pump serviced – luckily by a professional. A stainless-steel spacer between two gaskets that had to come out simply wouldn’t budge. The service technician took the affected unit with him to his workshop but still couldn’t remove it there. The technician then promptly installed the unit of another model on our boat. He also found that the water suction pump was broken. We had suspected this due to its strange noises but had hoped for a miracle or a simple solution. Unfortunately, we had to dig deep into our pockets. The small part cost a whopping $400!!! But without this pump, there would be no homemade water. So, we bit the bullet and paid the price.

Burrito is happy

We also brought Lauro, the diesel mechanic from Puerto Escondido, on board. On one hand, to replace the leaking gasket on the fuel lift pump, and on the other hand, to do a general engine check before the crossing. We went through everything together and also checked the alignment of the engine. His conclusion was: all is good with Burrito! That’s exactly what we wanted to hear. We also used our stay in La Paz to stock up on all kinds of goodies for Milagros (and us) in the many boat accessory stores – oil for the engine, sacrificial anodes, a new and completely overpriced toilet seat, etc.

There’s confusion

On the day of Flo’s arrival, David took a taxi to the airport to pick him up, while I stayed on the boat. Suddenly, I heard Flo’s voice on the VHF, calling Milagros, saying that he was at the dinghy dock. So, I drove to shore to pick him up. On the way, David called me to say that Flo hadn’t shown up yet. It turned out that the two had missed each other at the airport. Oops. We celebrated the reunion with tacos and margaritas, as it should be.

The world is a village

The Swiss sailors Thomas and Anja on SV Robusta were also in town. So, we arranged to meet a few days after our arrival for a few beers – unfortunately without Thomas, who would be absent due to a dental appointment. But we saw Thomas a little earlier than planned, because his dinghy motor broke down on the way to his dentist appointment, and we jumped in as a taxi service. As a thank you, Anja brought us a homemade Swiss bread. Yummyyyyy. We then went ashore for dinner and later, we were joined by Alex, another Swiss sailor who has been sailing solo around the world with his SV No Stress for 6 years. The world is a small place sometimes.

Swiss meeting

As a good weather window for the sail to mainland Mexico approached, we prepared for this crossing at full speed: inspecting the rigging, mounting the inner forestay (which had been sitting in our bilge for almost 2 years), provisioning, cleaning the underwater hull, planning the passage of the 350 nautical miles, and so on. But we didn’t forget to have some fun. We enjoyed not only the vibe of La Paz, but also the sailor life. Alex invited us for a sundowner on his boat No Stress, a 54-foot Amel Super Maramu. This is the same boat that the famous Youtubers from SV Delos have been sailing around the world with for 10 years. It was exciting to see this model with our own eyes. We spent a fun evening speaking Swiss German. 6 Swiss sailors on one boat, that’s rare for us. Unfortunately, no pictures were taken.

Let’s go on the crossing

Then it was time: we started our nearly 3-day crossing to La Cruz, because a nice north wind window with 20-25 knots opened up, which was ideal for the planned downwind course. After a few hours of motoring north and into the wind to get out of La Paz, we were able to hoist the sails and turn east. We sailed on a fairly sporty beam reach with the waves on the side. When it was finally time to turn towards the southeast and thus towards La Cruz, we realized that Milagros didn’t want to go that way.

The mood is decying

The sea was really confused and we just couldn’t stabilize the boat. That meant hand-steering. And as soon as it got dark, Flo got seasick and was out. So, David and I steered by hand, which was really exhausting, but we got into the flow, eventually. When we suddenly got a radio call in the middle of the night with the words, “Milagros, Milagros, what are your intentions? Are you going in front of me or behind me?” we lost our flow. We scanned the horizon and couldn’t see anything, no lights, no boat, no nothing. And we couldn’t see any boat on our AIS screen (Automatic Identification System) either. We asked him what kind of boat he was, and he replied, “I’m a cargo ship.”

Then we found out that the AIS information disappears when we zoom out too far on our screen. Not good. Not good at all. We agreed with the tanker that we would accelerate, and he would pass behind us. After that, we lost our desire for the long crossing. The high waves, strong winds, and uncomfortable course strained our nerves and we became lethargic. For example, when a portion of noodles with tomato sauce spilled, we just left it on the floor. No one wanted to clean it up.

It gets worse

After reconsideration, we changed our destination on a whim and headed for Mazatlán. This shortened the crossing by about a day. Eventually, we got back into the flow somehow. Milagros sailed herself with the wind steering system on a downwind course. We had 6 – 10 ft high waves from behind and surfed them at up to 11 knots (which is about the speed of light). So, sailing became fun again – until about 4 hours before arrival. Suddenly, out of the blue, Milagros changed course in the middle of the night for unknown reasons and gybed, in this case, a Chinese gybe, because we didn’t want to gybe (sail with the stern through the wind). Fortunately, we had mounted a preventer line, which prevented the boom from swinging freely from one side to the other. Immediately, we lost all of our sailing spirit again. What had happened? We still don’t know.

It’s over

But that wasn’t all. When we wanted to start the engine it just wouldn’t start. After the second attempt, I went below deck and tried everything related to diesel supply. I started the electric diesel pump, switched tanks, switched to another filter, and operated the fuel lift pump lever. In combination with David giving a bit of throttle on the third try, the engine finally started. This episode was another blow on the already not very enjoyable crossing. Finally, we had to anchor in the port of Mazatlán at night; our first night anchoring manoeuvre. We radioed the harbour master just before entering at 2 a.m in the middle of the night. He only said, “be careful.” But the harbor was well lit and we quickly dropped anchor. We left everything as is and were just glad to have finally arrived after 41 hours.

Misfortunes seldom come alone

The next morning, we wanted to treat ourselves to an extensive breakfast with pancakes and fruit. Which was when the misfortune happened: David slipped with a knife while cutting a mango and sliced his hand open. It was immediately clear that the wound needed to be stitched. So, Flo and I prepared the dinghy, which was still deflated. David and I then set off to shore. The guard at the dock recommended the Cruz Roja – the Red Cross hospital – and an Uber brought us there within 10 minutes. We were prepared for a long wait and packed pancakes and entertainment material. But David was seen immediately, and his cut was stitched with 5 stitches. It cost 180 pesos – about $9. One hour later we were already back on Milagros.

We need to relax

After these exertions, we longed for a hot shower, so we just booked the cheapest room we could find in Mazatlán. We walked through the old town to the hotel, checked in, showered, left again, and treated ourselves to a fine dinner. In the coming days, we stretched our legs with walks through Mazatlán: up to a viewpoint, through the old town and its alleys, and along impressive cruise ships. In between, we enjoyed the rich culinary offerings, from ice cream to street tacos to local beer. We really liked it there. The only thing that disturbed the idyll were party boats, ferries, and cargo ships that constantly passed by the boat.

If we had known

After five days, it was time to sail on, as Flo had to catch a flight home to Switzerland from Puerto Vallarta, which was 200 nautical miles (approximately 360 km) away, and our next guests, Hürzi and Chrigi from Switzerland, also wanted to board there soon. We planned our journey south so that we could stop at Isla Isabel, a bird breeding ground 20 nautical miles off the coast. Only in mild conditions, the anchorage there was somewhat acceptable. But on the day of departure, Milagros had other plans for us. Yet again. We discovered something that prevented our further journey and potentially delayed it for a longer time…

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Der Beitrag From Madness to Memories erschien zuerst auf Milagros.

After several days of strong, gusty north wind, we were really exhausted. The constant noise, the swaying back and forth at anchor and the night’s unrest left its mark on us. We were tired and just happy when the end of the almost week-long troublemaker was in sight. As quickly as the «Northers» show up and hassle everybody in their way, they disappear again. All of a sudden, calmness returned. And as almost always, we had to devote ourselves to one very important object on the project list. Our mast. What was an impossibility in 30 knots of sustained winds, now we could finally tackle.

A Quick Review

As we found out at Cabrales Boatyard, our mast is a banana. The rear mast support (the so-called backstay) on Milagros had been much too short for years or even decades. This pulled the mast backwards too much. Our mast is made of thin, lightweight aluminum, which has resulted in some backwards warping. We carefully examined the whole situation at the boatyard and came to the conclusion that we can correct the deflection with the new rigging, which we did as best we could. Still, we weren’t satisfied as photos of Milagros taken by SV Swan Song’s Pete and Shinyi still showed the bend. After a bit of brainstorming via Whatsapp with Marga (we love you so much for all your help) we decided that the mast had to be corrected again in its position, which required a lot of work.

Important work on the mast

First, we had to loosen all the mast supports, which was the main reason why the wind had to drop first. With two lines we extended a sling that we wrapped around the mast. This allowed us to use the winches to crank the mast back and reposition the rubber wedges that hold the mast in place through the deck. After that we had to readjust the rigging. What sounds short and painless took a whole day. The fact that, contrary to expectations, the wind picked up again in the middle of the project only helped to a limited extent. But in the end, we were very happy with the result. We have lost all reservations about working on even the most crucial parts of Milagros, which is so, so incredibly important.

One hop further

We weighed anchor early the next morning. It was time to move further south. Our friend Florian was counting the days and hours at home in Switzerland, because it wasn’t long before he came over for a two-week visit. He reported regularly how much he looked forward to his time with us. Us too dude, us too! We were on a tight schedule because we had to be in La Paz at the end of February for his arrival. The sun barely showed an orange shimmer on the horizon before we were on our way again and set out to sea. The almost 6 hours passed in no time, a nice little Bonito for Tacos included, and when suddenly a westerly wind blew across the sea from the mountains of the Baja, which made for an hour of two of great sailing. We were happy and enjoying ourselves.

Finally north wind again! Not.

We continued with our plan to visit anchorages we had never been to on our (probably) final trip in the Sea of Cortez. Our destination San Marcial was such an anchorage. The cove offered protection to the north. Wonder why? Well, guess why. A few days of north wind were coming! Haha! Great! Finally, a Norther again! We couldn’t wait. F****** hell. At least, the forecasts only showed moderate winds compared to the monster that had just passed.

Bahía San Marcial

As we rounded the corner into the bay, our little sailor hearts beat a little faster. Not a single other boat far and wide! That’s how we like it! Anchorages are always at their best when we have them to ourselves. Just us, Milagros and the nature around us. And wow, Marcial was a great stop. The hills around the anchor bay shone in all the colors the Sea of Cortez has to offer. Earthy brown tones fading into reddish copper, plus the rain from the hurricane had caused grass to sprout, which has now dried out in a light yellow over the entire impressing scenery.

Quickly ashore!

Our time in San Marcial was spent going ashore, flying the drone for pictures, fishing and just plainly enjoying. For example, we followed an old river bed that led inland through the flora and fauna of the desert. During these excursions we notice again and again that the desert may appear dead and lifeless, but it is a complex habitat for countless animal and plant species. Birds sounded the alarm in the bushes and announced our appearance, various lizards sat on stones and warmed themselves, brown heaps or small balls on the ground indicated the existence of wild mules and goats.

Another small weather window to move on

Of course, our old, unwanted acquaintance joined the whole pleasure and holiday feeling – the cold northerly wind. This time, however, it didn’t blow so mercilessly and couldn’t spoil the beautiful San Marcial anchorage for us, because it only kept us company for two days. So, we were soon able to prepare Milagros again for the onward journey. Back towards Isla San Francisco we went. But this time we would only pass the island close by and hunker down at the very southern end of Isla San José. A large bank with a small mangrove forest awaited us. Well protected against the NORTH! Because of the NORTH WIND, which would annoy the entire Sea of Cortez again shortly after our arrival at the new spot.

Sheltered by the mangroves

Very early in the morning we set off on a long, 10-hour trip from San Marcial for a stretch which unfortunately we could only cover motoring. The wind was too weak or non-existent. We chugged along, enjoying the view and looking out for dolphins or whales. Not much to report on that front. Burrito purred along in his engine room and we sat on deck, taking in the scenery. Who knows if we’ll get lost in the Sea of Cortez again. Who knows, maybe we will. Nothing is for certain. What is certain is that this place will forever hold a very special place in our hearts.

Bahia Amortajada

When we arrived at our new anchorage “Bahia Amortajada” we first had an anchor beer. We anchored 5 meters deep, but the water was so clear it was almost a little scary to look down the side of the boat. Only the big “5” on the screen in the cockpit confirmed that everything was fine. SV Grace was also anchored in the same bay. Of course, we recognized their backside immediately. The boat’s backside that is. Yet another sister boat of Milagros! “Grace” is actually a Formosa 46, basically the same boat as Milagros, just different. Makes sense? Yeah, we know. So, we met Joseph and Louisa to inspect each other’s boats. Always a very interesting pasttime!

Lush greenery on shore

The fact that the shore was made of greenery as far as the eye could see was a novelty for us. Of course, we had to go and explore. As the tide was low, we were unfortunately unable to take the dinghy into the mangroves. So, our dinghy tour turned into a short walk. Mangroves form an extremely important ecosystem wherever they grow. Mangrove forests and mangrove swamps are mainly found in tropical coastal areas. Comprising a total of almost 70 species of trees and shrubs, they have adapted to brackish salt water in which they stand with their root systems. They are an important habitat for specialized animal and plant species and a nursery for numerous organisms and animals. Unfortunately, like many other habitats, mangrove forests are threatened by rising sea levels, pollution, drainage, fishing and other human encroachment. Brave new world.

Florian, here we come!

At each new anchorage on our way towards La Paz, we informed Florian, who was counting the days in Switzerland, about our progress. After two nights in the mangroves of Amortajada, we hoisted the sails in a stiff leftover northerly breeze and set off towards Isla Espiritu Santo. We have already visited many anchorages on this paradise island, so we had to add another stop in a new anchorage as planned. But first we had to get there, and the road to get there was rocky.

Until it hurts

The way to Isla Espiritu Santo turned out to be a tough one. We were able to sail along nicely, but at the same time the notorious Sea of Cortez swell built up – small, steep waves at an unusually short distance. This made the movements of Milagros quite uncomfortable, after almost 6 hours of rodeo my already damaged back started complaining. My back is much, much better now, but the being pushed around for hours was still a little too much for my herniated disc. We were happy when we finally arrived in the new bay called «Ensenada Grande». It consists of three smaller bays, each of which extends in a different direction. There was still space for us in the middle lobe.

Isla Espiritu Santo – one for your bucket list

Entire books could and should be written about Isla Espiritu Santo and Isla Partida. A stone’s throw by boat from La Paz, its entire east side can only be described as: anchorage after anchorage after anchorage after anchorage. One could spend days and weeks just on this one island. One corner is more beautiful than the other. The proximity to La Paz also means that hundreds of excursion boats visit the island every day and tourists populate the beaches. But that doesn’t detract from the beauty, because in general a lot of consideration is given to the island. The largest bay at the very southwest end of the island has now even been completely closed to visitors and anchored boats.

Edgar – Lord of the Kayaks

We found out that a few hiking trails were marked in Ensenada Grande, which we wanted to explore after a little rest. We inflated and our kayak, paddled into one bay after the other and found an old creek bed in the southernmost corner through which one could climb up to the hilltops of the island. On the beach we also made the acquaintance of Edgar, who was in the process of setting up a small camp. A storage tent, a small off-site toilet and about 10 kayaks were lined up on the beach. Edgar is a cook for a kayak tour operator and has already prepared everything for the guests’ arrival the next day. We arranged to meet him for a cold beer after our walk, because we didn’t have any more on Milagros. An emergency situation!

Hiking up the barren island hills

Our little excursion was not a walk in the park. The way up the river bed was rocky. The further we penetrated into the interior of Isla Espiritu Santo, the steeper the creek bed became, until finally we were just climbing. Over millions of years, large boulders had accumulated left and right from the top of the valley, which we had to climb up. Stone by stone, step by step. Until we got to the top. And the climbing was worth it. The view was crazy impressive.

Isla Espiritu Santo from the other side

The east side of the island is completely different from the west side. Instead of bays for anchoring, there are steep cliffs that plunge vertically down into the sea. Not great for anchoring but great on the eye. It doesn’t get much more dramatic than that. So, we just sat and enjoyed the view before heading back down. After half an hour on the way back, a classic “David” happened to me. I was able to tackle back up the steep terrain again because my sunglasses got lost on the way. Cursing, I climbed up the stones again, because I knew exactly where I had lost them. When I found the sunglasses, I climbed down the path cursing a little less.

Conversations the Mexican way

Arrived at the beach we enjoyed a few cold Pacificos with Edgar and talked about God and the world. We really enjoy such conversations with the Mexicans, we never learn more about the country and its customs. And our Spanish stays in tip-top shape. We’re still far from fluent, but nothing stands in the way of conversations with the locals. And every time we put a smile on the Mexicans’ faces and we regularly get compliments. See, can’t be that bad.

Trouble anchoring – for the first time

The next morning, we continued our journey back to La Paz. After a short trip along the island, we wanted to anchor in the Ensenada La Gallina. Wanted. Our anchor just did not want to hold. For the first time. We tried three times and then we gave up. It felt like we were trying to bury the anchor in concrete. It just scraped along the bottom, I even had to reluctantly jump in the cold water because we wanted to know what the problem was. However, the visibility in the water was so bad that in the end we simply decided to head straight to La Paz.

A sporty ride to La Paz

We had already come to terms with the fact that we had to motor the entire way, when a strong easterly wind came funneling through the Canal de San Lorenzo. With the wind 90 degrees off the side, Milagros activated monster mode and we blasted through at 7 knots to Bahia Pichilingue, our destination. Another new tick on the “bays we’ve never been to”-list. We anchored in a busy bay, as is often the case near the big(ger) cities. Lots of boats both big and small, lots of people on the beach, loud music on the beach and a few restaurants. We went to the latter immediately upon arrival and enjoyed the sunset with a beer and absolutely mediocre food. We had done it again. We were back in La Paz. Time to prepare for our passage to the mainland of Mexico. If only we had known what was lurking on the horizon…

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Der Beitrag Our Farewell Tour erschien zuerst auf Milagros.

Before that, we wanted to explore a few more anchorages on the Baja side. Although Isla Coronados was not entirely new to us, we had never anchored on the south side of the island. The day after our arrival was a Monday, a work morning for me, and David went ashore with Pete and Shinyi from SV Swan Song to climb the volcano. I probably should have gone with them because I wasn’t aware that it would be another five days before I could set foot on land again.

It’s Wet and Cold

It was north wind season, and the weather report predicted four days of strong winds up to 35 knots (70 km/h). Although we had anchored on the south side of the island, we were less protected than we had hoped. Waves sneaked around the southeast corner of Isla Coronados, making Milagros dance. We didn’t bother to launch our dinghy. However, Pete and Shinyi were not deterred by the wind and waves and came by Milagros several times – mainly for Settlers of Catan and internet connection, but certainly for us too. Bernie and Kate from SV Momo also didn’t miss out on the Settlers of Catan games.

Change of Scene

One afternoon, we also spent some time with Pete on Swan Song and tried to get his watermaker to make water. Unfortunately, we failed in the end due to a (presumably) faulty sensor, but Shinyi comforted us with delicious homemade sushi. The change of scene was good, although we were basically just rocked back and forth on another boat in the wind.

We Keep Sailing

As soon as the sea had calmed down from all the wind, we could sail on to the next island. Unfortunately, another strong, four-day north wind was forecast. Therefore, after our arrival in the new bay (Punta Perico), we wanted to quickly launch the dinghy and go ashore. Just as we started getting the dinghy ready, the only other boat in the bay pulled up its anchor. We liked that and were already looking forward to having the bay to ourselves.

Loss of Control

As the other boat motored in our direction, we thought nothing of it. The owner wanted to circle around our boat, greet us, and tell us that there were many bees. But suddenly, he was hit by a gust of wind, and his bow headed straight for Milagros. He lost control of his boat, and we weren’t fast enough to get out the fenders. Fortunately, he wasn’t going very fast, but his BBQ, which was mounted on his railing, scraped over our toerail, and destroyed a section of varnish of almost 3 ft (1 m). The BBQ then got stuck in one of our stanchions, bent the fitting on the deck and was torn off the other boat’s railing.

Just Saying Hello

Fortunately, we were able to prevent damage to our new paint job, and no one was injured. But we now had another damage that we hadn’t caused ourselves, just after we had repaired the last one on the bow pulpit. Our new acquaintance on the other boat could have greeted us and informed us about the bees over the radio. Or maybe not come within 10 feet of our boat for this kind of information? It is what it is. At least he was kind enough to give us his number and was willing to pay for the damages. But how should we quantify the damages? In disbelieve we shook our heads as we lowered the dinghy into the water.

Finally back on land

Shortly thereafter, Swan Song sailed around the corner. As soon as their anchor was set, the dinghy was in the water, and we all met on the beach for a walk. It was then I realized that I hadn’t set foot on land for 7 days. It felt good to walk over rocks and stones again. Luckily, I hadn’t forgotten how to walk. We enjoyed the calm before the storm and discovered the remains of all sorts of dead sea creatures on the beach. Various fish, a turtle, a small moray eel, shells, and corals layed scattered on the pebble beach to be admired. The dramatic rock formations of the island in all colors and shapes, dotted with cacti and low-growing bushes, were a sight to behold. The anchorage was Sea of Cortez at its best. As was the Norther that came up the following days.

It’s very windy

For 4 days, sustained winds of almost 25 knots (50 km/h) with gusts up to 40 knots (75 km/h) practically ripped at the boat non-stop, relentless and furious. And we could do nothing but close the hatches and endure the cold wind. So, we devoted ourselves to some boat projects. We had wanted to install a bilge pump counter and a bilge pump alarm for a long time. The former counts how often the bilge pump runs (ideally, never) and the latter alerts us if the water in the boat rises above a certain level (ideally, never). We also wanted to combine the alarm with the installation of a secondary bilge pump (which starts sounding ideally, never), but we were missing a small piece.

Starlink modification

Our Starlink satellite dish had trouble with the boat’s movements in the wind. The dish constantly realigned itself. This used a large amounts of power, and with each realignment, the connection was briefly lost. So, we couldn’t work online. Therefore, we unmounted the backing plate of our dish and simply disconnected the motor from the power. The alignment will no longer be optimal in the future, but still good enough for us. In any case, we didn’t notice any difference.

Wind damage

One particularly angry gust one evening tore one of the old solar panels out of its mounting. David happened to be in the cockpit at the time and was able to prevent something worse from happening. We found out that some aluminium rivets were corroded, and it was only a matter of time until they failed. Thanks to our solar upgrade, in which we also equipped the old panels with connectors and switches, it was easy for us to take one panel off the power. With a few quick steps, we stowed the panel below deck. The next morning, we repaired the mounting and in no time the panel was producing power for us again. A quick fix, just how we like it.

Enough is enough

At some point, however, we had enough. The four days just wouldn’t pass. We kept checking the weather forecast, but it remained the same. It was really uncomfortable on the boat because the wind was one thing above all: loud. And the constant back and forth movement is incredibly tiring. You can’t sleep well with this noise either. But we both didn’t want to use earplugs to sleep, because if you can’t hear anything, you also won’t hear if something goes wrong. Your own anchor could come loose, or that of another boat in the bay, things could break under the strain of the howling, gusting wind outside. After the four days, we were exhausted and looking forward to quieter times.

Farewell time

Before we left Isla Carmen, we had to say goodbye to Pete and Shinyi, who had to make their way back to Guaymas. Pete is a firefighting pilot in Canada and the wildfire season will start soon. A day later, we also said goodbye to Bernie with one last round of Settlers of Catan. Bernie has been living on his sailboat Momo for 19 years, raised two children on her, and sailed around the world. We had an interesting conversation about the advantages and disadvantages of growing up on a boat. We could only think of one disadvantage: you don’t have roots, no home, no old school friends to go “back” to, because you’re at home all over the world. What do you think, do the advantages compensate for this disadvantage?

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Der Beitrag Gone with the Wind erschien zuerst auf Milagros.

I’ve been working for a Swiss company for almost 10 years now, which includes assignments abroad every once in a while. This time around, I flew to Bangkok for a little over two weeks, which I´ve spent working long days at our office there. It was great fun to immerse myself in working life again, to see my colleagues again and to be out and about in a noisy, big city. Time flew by and I even had time for some sightseeing. And who would have thought? Of course, I chose a boat trip. My dad has travelled Thailand a few years ago and always highly recommended a Bangkok river cruise experience to me.

Boat traffic in the big city

The Chao Prayha River meanders through the middle of Bangkok and is frequented by all kinds of boating traffic. What the bus, the regional train or the tram are for us in Switzerland, the boat is for the population of Bangkok, among other means of getting from A to B. The river is frequented by various boat lines, which are distinguished from each other by colored flags. I decided to take the slowest of them all, which is marked by an orange flag and stops at most piers on both sides of the river.

The wild ride begins

I stood at the pier on our free Sunday and waited for a fast, long boat with a waving orange flag, which arrived after a short wait. Powered by a large, noisy diesel engine, the boat snarled my way, only docked with the stern and I was escorted onto the boat by a whistle-wielding attendant. The trip cost a whopping 16 baht (50 cents), which you had to pay to another employee who, like in the good old days, walked up and down the boat with a small, rattling cash register to issue the tickets.

Thai engines have to work hard

I quickly realized that Burrito (our diesel engine) lives a really comfortable, almost luxurious life aboard Milagros. The captain of the longboat let his engine roar, especially on the piers the forward and reverse gears were engaged with revs increased to five digits. I almost pitied the screaming engine in its box a bit. Who knows, maybe Thai diesel engines like it hard. The communication between captain and attendant on the back of the boat took place via whistle and rear-view mirror and was very well-rehearsed. Pati and I can only dream of such seasoned communication on Milagros. Maybe, we may also need to order a whistle and rear-view mirrors.

Pati is doing good for the canine world

While I was enjoying myself on rivers abroad, Pati, along with a few other residents of the Kingdom of El Mero, did something good for the dogs that lived with us on the dock. SBPA San Carlos is a non-profit organization dedicated to neutering street and family dogs free of charge. Mexico, like so many other countries around the world, has a huge, unmanageable stray problem, and SBPA is trying to help. After a quick phone call to the organization, an SBPA employee arrived in the wee morning hours at 7am on a Sunday to capture and neuter all the unneutered dogs that roam the docks.

Dingo, Rubber Ball, Cheesecake, Einstein

As if suspecting, the unneutered dogs were nowhere to be found and only two unfortunate remaining animals were captured and had their surgeries. Einstein and Cheesecake (other dogs got names like One Year and Two Year, Rubber Ball, Dingo or Mamacita, the residents of El Mero are extremely creative) had their balls and ovaries removed. As soon as the procedure was completed and the SBPA lady took off, all the unneutered dogs reappeared out of nowhere. Clever, clever. Unfortunately, I missed the action because I was still in Thailand.

Please help the dogs of Guaymas: We know that all of you have a few dollars, francs, euros or baht to spare to help SBPA. Opens your wallet and do something good for the canine world of Guaymas, Mexico! A castration costs around 20 bucks. We’ve already donated 100 dollars, so off you go, too! You can donate easily for example via Paypal here. It is worth it!

A long, long journey back from Thailand

My time in Bangkok passed quickly. My return voyage not so much. It was one of the longest I have ever undertaken, and God knows I have traveled a lot in my lifetime. One hour by taxi to the airport, 7.5 hours from Bangkok to Tokyo, just under 13 hours from Tokyo to Mexico City, 24 hours of layover in Mexico City, 3 hours from Mexico City to Hermosillo, 2 hours bus to Guaymas, a 45 minutes drive from the bus terminal to Milagros. All in all, complete madness, but in the end the trip passed relatively quickly and you can never go wrong with spending time in Mexico City. We can only recommend a visit to the capital of Mexico to you all! If you want to dive into the capital with us – here`s the first part of a two part blog post about our visit a while ago.

Home at last

When the bus finally turned into its destination in Guaymas, Pati was already waiting for me. It was late evening and dark night. We didn’t even have to take a cab since she was allowed to borrow Keith’s car. My return from Bangkok also marked the official start of our journey south. This year we want to make it to Panama and finally catch up with Iñaki and Carmen. We wanted to take another week or so to prepare the boat and complete a small upgrade that has been taking far too long.

An upgrade for our solar panels

Our solar panels were previously only supported by two plastic stands made by the previous owner, which were not screwed to the solar panels. So, it happened again and again that the wind lifted the solar panels out of their stands and they banged down on the railing. We decided to put an end to this problem once and for all by ordering fancy stainless steel stands from local metal worker and welder Jorge Garcia. As is unfortunately often the case in Mexico, he took far too long with the production of said stands. Unfortunately, the whole project degenerated into a last-minute project with which we are satisfied with overall, but which did not turn out as we had imagined. Nevertheless, our old and new solar panels are now safe from the wind. The installation also marked our final touches on Milagros in the beautiful kingdom of El Mero, before attempting the crossing back to the Baja California Peninsula.

Goodbye, dear kingdom!

Of course, we couldn’t leave El Mero without hanging out one last time on the dock with all the lovely people that have made our stay so enjoyable. We haven’t experienced such a great community since Cabrales Boatyard. We will miss you guys! And then, just in time for the beginning of a new week, we started our next great adventure. Upon leaving, we almost broke off our two new solar panels on one of El Mero´s big bollards. They are only still attached to the boat thanks to Lucas’ quick intervention. The moral of the story: We always have enough time to think through the departure maneuvers and do a quick briefing, but for some inexplicable reason we just don’t.

A sporty start to the crossing

The weather window we chose promised light wind sailing or motoring. Ha! Not even close! As soon as we turned the corner out of El Mero, the wind picked up and we were flying in 15 knots of wind with an average of 7 knots. Instead of light wind sailing, Milagros was in racing mode. Even with a double reefed (reduced) mainsail, Milagros didn’t lose a bit of momentum. We had exactly the same experience as at the end of 2020 when crossing from Ensenada to the boatyard of Puerto Peñasco – once the wind picked up Milagros has chosen her speed, you can reef all you want. So, we raced out of the bay of Guaymas and had a lot of fun. We definitely feel our experience growing more and more.

The sea calms down

After almost 5 hours of high-speed sailing and as it got dark, the wind steadily decreased. That was actually what was predicted in the forecasts. After a beautiful sunset it was time to furl the headsail and Burrito had to get to work. We chugged out into a clear and freezing cold night. During my 8pm to midnight shift, I could practically watch the waters calm down. A few hours ago, we were being pushed around by the Sea of Cortez, now she was smooth as a mirror and calm. Pati had decided to sleep in the cockpit because of the movement of the waves, for my resting time, I went to V-berth since the waves had subsided.

Dolphins for breakfast

The next morning, just in time for coffee, visitors. As usual, they arrived completely unannounced. All of a sudden, there they were. Dolphins! A small group of bottlenose dolphins gathered at the bow of Milagros. Little did we know then that this small group was only the vanguard of a large school of probably several hundred animals. Suddenly we noticed that dorsal fins could be seen everywhere behind the boat, plowing through the water.

Just wow.

The dolphins were on exactly the same course as we were. While the few animals in front had already made themselves comfortable, the rest stayed at a distance behind the boat, which didn’t last long though, because suddenly the dolphins took off like crazy until they caught up with us. Hundreds of dolphins stayed all around the boat for a little over an hour and so we became part of their group. What an awesome experience. Seeing wildlife from such a perspective is probably one of the greatest privileges that comes with living on the water. These are the very memories that will last a lifetime.

Land Ho!

After the dolphins had said their goodbye, our anchorage of choice “San Juanico” was already in sight. Anyone who has been reading along for a while knows that we anchored there with Hazel and Paul on the SV Susimi last summer on our way north. What a stunning place to be! In San Juanico we wanted to wait out the strong northerly wind. We were already preparing for anchoring when Pete from SV Swan Song and Bernie from SV Momo radioed in. They had been there for a few days so we asked about the situation.

A small change of plans

Pete had just set out to sail towards Isla Coronados, hoping it would be a little quieter there. Apparently, San Juanico was rather shaky even without a strong north wind and there were already a few other boats anchored in the bay. After our experience on Isla Espiritu Santo, we want(ed) to avoid a repeatition very, very much. All in all, the info and a very nice wind and wave situation made us decide to just follow Pete and sail with him straight to Isla Coronados. Turns out the decision was the right one and it was a really comfortable trip with nice light wind sailing over flat, calm water. Our little “Champagne sail” resulted in some great pictures of Swan Song and Milagros.

Back on the beautiful island

We were amazed when we turned the corner at the southeastern tip of Isla Corondos and only two other boats were anchored on the long, sandy shore. So, we took our time to choose an anchorage spot and found ourselves for the umpteenth time on the paradise island of Coronados that impresses with everything that the Sea of Cortez has to offer. White sandy beaches, hiking trails, beautiful surroundings, a large city nearby which provides cell signal and lots of sea creatures.

Time for an anchor beer

The water was crystal clear and as soon as we anchored, the first puffer fish found themselves near the anchor chain to look for food in the sandy seabed, which had been churned up by our anchor chain. A pod of dolphins swam by, the water was turquoise green, the clouds drifted by and hung themselves on the mountain peaks around us dramatically. What a great start to the new season. It was time for anchor beers and making plans for our stay. Good times ahead!

So, that´s it for this weeks blog post. This time around, we´re not asking for beer donations, but for donations to the SBPA neutering service in Guaymas. Please do something good and help contain the amount of homeless dogs roaming the streets of Guaymas. You choose how you want to donate on SBPA´s homepage by clicking the button below! It´s very easy! We promise! Thanks very much! Wooof!

Click here and help the dogs of Guaymas!

Der Beitrag Dolphins for Breakfast erschien zuerst auf Milagros.

I don’t really know where to start and where to stop. It’s completely crazy how many memories we’ve been able to make in the last year and a half. Looking back in my mind’s eye, I’m almost a little overwhelmed. The many scraps of memories and images overload my brain a bit. Life on a sailboat also overloaded my brain. Positively as well as in the negatively.

A little pride

One feeling I have is pride. I’m proud of myself and of Pati. What we have achieved in 2021 and 2022 is really awesome. Without any prior knowledge, we undertook a huge refit of a 44-year-old sailboat, went through ups and downs and just kept going. Even at points where others would have stopped. We have shown perseverance, persevered and have been rewarded. Because everything that came after the conversion often made us forget all the hardships. The wind on our face, the water beneath us, the stunning scenery of the Sea of ​​Cortez all around us. The time we put into rebuilding Milagros was worth every second.

Major and minor incidents

Something else that I have to emphasize is that we were also have spent half a year at sea without any major incidents. It seems that during our refit, we drew attention to the right places, and so far we haven’t noticed any major weaknesses that we overlooked or built in ourselves. If we ask around, we actually started off with a reasonably problem-free season. Apart from our engine failure at the worst possible moment, in wind, weather and waves, of course. Since the injection pump was repaired, we haven’t had the slightest problem with our Burrito (which is what we call our engine). Let’s hope it stays that way for a long time. Because you never know if an incident is lurking around the next corner. Life on a sailboat is full of surprises.

Life on a sailboat is a back and forth

I could describe sailing in the Sea of ​​Cortez like this: Engine on, anchor up, sails up, suddenly not enough wind, sails down, engine on. As soon as the engine is turned on, the wind picks up, sails up. When everything is set and trimmed nicely, the wind direction suddenly changes. We have to adjust the course, but the course no longer suits our route. At the same time the windspeed is increasing, we have to reduce the sail area. Just when that’s done, the wind shuts off completely. So, we take the headsail in, turn on the engine and motor along. Suddenly there’s wind again, we are sailing again. It was often back and forth, up and down, forward and backward. Where the heart of an inveterate sailor soars, the whole sailing thing gets on my nerves at some point.

Me and the sailing thing

Maybe it’s the lack of experience on our part to make the right decision at the right moment, maybe it’s just the Sea of ​​Cortez as a sailing area with unsteady winds, the irregular topography and what else. I can’t say that I not enjoy sailing at all, but at times I was just plain annoyed. Life on a sailboat, I guess. But here too: We didn’t experience any major incidents and were very conservative and cautious on our voyages. This will also be the way in the future. And when everything is going well, the conditions are ideal, the sails are trimmed correctly, the wind pilot has the boat under control and Milagros just wants to stubbornly move forward, then it’s just pure pleasure. Then I’m in full flow and don’t want it to stop. But whether I will become a die-hard sailor or not remains to be seen.

Baja Magic

What I am enormously grateful for is that we found Milagros here in Mexico and were able to take our first steps in Baja California. The Sea of ​​Cortez is completely overlooked by the entire world (including the sailing world). And that’s a good thing. This little piece of paradise is a giant playground with countless bays for water sports of all kinds, each new corner, every new anchorage is more beautiful than the last. It’s just magical. The wildlife is incredible, the scenery is breathtaking. We met so many people who had big sailing plans and ended up just getting stuck here. This place has everything a sailor’s heart desires. Still, I’m ready to move on. I’m looking forward to moving south, where there’s a little more change in weather and vegetation.

Special moments

I would like to highlight a few very special moments. They’re the first ones that come to mind when I think back. Places, people, short split seconds, encounters, nature, the wind and the water – the list of moments is endless. Still, I want to pick out a few special memories. And I’m not going to talk about our time at Cabrales Boatyard here. We could fill an entire book with memories from Cabrales.

The big reunion

A very important moment was the big reunion with our friends from the Boatyard in Puerto Peñasco. While we had managed (albeit with a great delay) to sail the entire Sea of ​​Cortez, our fellow sailor friends were slowly returning to the Sea of ​​Cortez from their season on mainland Mexico. We arranged to meet at Bahia Bonanza, an endless sandy beach. Cavu were there, Alegria, Boomerang, Empyrean. A gathering of many great people in a dreamlike place.

Party in paradise

We had a couple of great stays on Isla San Francisco. However, there’s not only the famous, horseshoe-shaped southwest bay, but there’s some more anchorages. For example, on the east side of the island. It was yet another rendezvous with friends on other boats. Cavu, Alegria and Boomerang, plus Perspective and Peep. Since we had to follow the spotty Sea of Cortez internet for Patricia’s online work, Cavu Dave’s birthday party was brought forward and so, after a boat crawl (everyone gathered in turn on each other’s ships), the party continued waaaayy into the night. All of this in one of the most beautiful anchorages we have had the privilege of visiting.

We didn’t want to leave at all

Another highlight was our stay at Refugio or V-Cove. We now had Starlink on board and therefore Internet à discretion and no longer had to hop from Internet hotspot to Internet hotspot. This was and is a huge game changer for us, so we just stayed in the same place for as long as possible. The V-Cove anchorage was our home for almost two weeks at a time while other boats came and went. The only permanent roommates were the pelicans, the seagulls, the fish and the dolphins. In the morning we worked on the computer, in the afternoon we just enjoyed the surroundings and our life.

We have finally made it

How we have met Marga on Dogfish, also a Kelly Peterson 44, is for the history books anyway. But the fact that we actually managed to anchor next to each other in a beautiful, hellishly hot bay was still special. Our two KPs on a crystal smooth water surface, a visit from two humpback whales, a trip with a rental car to visit Mike, Katie and Rosco on Alegria, morning coffee deliveries by dinghy – our time in the Bahia Coyote had everything that makes life on a sailboat beautiful.

The second half of our horror ride

Anyone who has been reading along for a while will remember how our maiden voyage turned into a horror voyage. An engine failure near the coast with winds of up to 30 knots and meter-high waves was not cool at all. Nevertheless, a veritable shitty moment turned into one of the memories that is one of the most important to me. Because when we had the boat and ourselves under control again, it became apparent that we can call an absolute monster of a sailboat our own. We always felt 100 percent safe on Milagros in these adverse conditions and we learned to sail her in those very moments. Simply because we had no other choice. Milagros showed us that she’s made for exactly such situations. That she’s made for the high seas and does not become stubborn and uncomfortable even when her owners are stressed and make mistakes.

Up and down, and up and down

In this way, a moment of maximum stress became a moment of maximum enjoyment. High and low are so incredibly close when you live on a boat. This was never more impressive than on this crossing. No book, blog post, article in the world’s sailing magazine could have prepared us for the emotional roller coaster that is life on a boat. In the blink of an eye, a beautiful sunset can turn into an absolute washing machine as unexpected waves come around the corner. Calm turns to insomnia because the wind suddenly picks up and throws the boat around. I have to say, sometimes the ups and downs and the backs and forths were a bit too much for me.

It can go on like this

But after a few months break and a little distance, I can say – let’s do this again! The anticipation of returning to Mexico and Milagros is growing and growing. We have big plans. First, we have to tweak the boat a little, then we want to head south. To mainland Mexico, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Panama. Or anywhere else. In the end, everything always turns out differently than we expect. But that’s the great thing about life on a sailboat. We can start each day from scratch because we have no idea what’s going to happen. And that’s the way it should be.

We’ll be back on Milagros soon with new stories! Feel free to offer us a beer by clicking on the button! You can also become a monthly contributor by heading over to Patreon if you want! Thanks a lot!

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Der Beitrag Our Unique Life On A Sailboat – Looking Back erschien zuerst auf Milagros.