Not all dreams come true

From the beginning, when I told people I wanted to circumnavigate the reaction was something like “At your age?” My response was something along the line of “I’m in good shape and I have experience doing this.”

I was wrong. The first four days out of Ensenada were enough to show me that. I have given up the idea of circumnavigating. I am going to spend some time in the Sea of Cortez, then head back north to San Diego. I will probably sell the boat there. I think my sailing days are fast coming to an end. Read on for details.

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The big day finally arrived. Sunday, March 9, I departed San Diego heading for Ensenda. As I was sailing out San Diego Bay, I reached for my phone to call Judy. AT&T had turned it off a day earlier than I wanted – so no phone service. That was when it really hit me. No more 9 PM phone calls. Fifteen to eighteen months of little or no contact. I had, of course, known this all along but somehow the emotional impact was unexpected.

With that sinking realization I watched San Diego disappear over the horizon.

Getting the boat down to Ensenada, through Mexican bureaucracy and back out to sea took my mind off the separation for most of the next three days. The hard part of getting to Ensenada is that it is almost a full day (24 hours) sailing time. Being that close to land and sailing through an area where I had been warned that there were lots of unlit fishing boats operating at night meant that I got very little sleep between San Diego and Ensenada. The sleep that I got was in 20 – 30 minute naps terminated by an obnoxious alarm that I set to make sure I didn’t sleep too long.

I got into Ensenada mid-afternoon on Monday. I checked into Cruiseport Marina and was informed that it was too late to go through the entry paperwork for bringing myself and the boat into Mexico. I wasn’t entirely sorry to hear that. I was so tired that I could hardly make sense of what was going on. I went back to the boat and slept for a solid 18 hours.

Tuesday, my first job was to get Mexican liability insurance for the boat. That entailed a walk of about a mile through the area of Ensenada that is immediately adjacent to the cruise ship dock. As you can see from this picture, the entrepreneurs in Ensenada have figured out what gringos want the most. I saw a number of shops with similar offerings.

I found the insurance office. I speak almost no Spanish and the woman who handled my transaction spoke limited English. It got comical at times, but in the end it all worked out. I walked out $250 poorer but with the needed insurance. When I got back to the marina, one of the marina staff drove me to the building where the entry paperwork was done and walked me through all of it. After all the horror stories I had heard about how complicated it was, it was a relief to make it in and back out in less than an hour.

I had done a lot of shopping for food in San Diego but I did not buy any fruit or vegetables since I had read that they would be confiscated. No one ever asked about fruit or vegetables or anything else I might have on the boat and no one came to the boat to inspect. I had planned to buy the things I thought I couldn’t bring into Mexico when I got to Ensenada but for some reason, I felt the need to get out of there as soon as possible. Partly it was a matter of not wanting to spend another $45 to stay another night. I paid for that dearly over the next days. A diet of canned food gets monotonous very quickly.

Departing Ensenada was no easier than getting in. It involved sailing all night through  Bahia Todos Santos (All Saints Bay), past some islands and (once again) keeping a sharp lookout for fishing boats. To complicate matters, the wind was light and variable. I was busy all night steering and managing sails. By the time I got out onto the open ocean, I was pretty tired again. The good news was that I was getting far enough away from land that I could safely sleep for longer periods of time – up to an hour.

It didn’t take long to discover that Laelia has some very unattractive characteristics sailing in the big swells of the open ocean. One is that when she is going down wind and the seas are coming diagonally from behind, she is very difficult to steer. Her short keel and beamy (wide) hull combine to cause her to yaw (slew from side) wildly. The Monitor windvane could not keep Laelia on a straight course. Her heading varied through a range of 20 t0 30 degrees each side of the desired course. Precise navigation is difficult under those circumstances. Her wide beam also made her lift very quickly as wave passed under her. Keep in mind that the waves were coming from the sides as well as from behind. That meant that one side would lift before the other. She would roll – and roll very quickly. It was a most uncomfortable ride.

I had a problem with my new jib ripping along the leach (trailing edge) of the sail on the leg from San Francisco to San Diego. I sent the jib back to Hood Sailmakers and they repaired it. Neither they nor I had any idea why it ripped. Now, I was seeing the same problem with the main sail. Two panels had rips along the leach seam. There was plenty of wind so I figured that I could get along without the main and sail under mizzen and jib until I got to a place where I could patch the sail. Shortly afterward, the mizzen started showing rips as well.

I contacted Hood via my inReach communicator and after several days of trading emails, they said they had run some tests on the batch of cloth the sails were made from and the cloth was defective. The cloth is not what Hood normally uses. They make their own cloth for normal sails but I asked for tanbark (reddish brown) sails. They bought the cloth from another vendor.

Hood is replacing all three sails – jib, main and mizzen. The interesting part is how to get them to me. Apparently air freight is not as reliable in Mexico – and there are probably some problems with customs as well. I may have to fly back to California to pick them up and bring them back as baggage – at Hood’s expense.

By the fourth night out, I was getting pretty tired. I had to make a sail change after dark with the boat motion being especially lively. The effort was about all I could manage. It was frightening to realize that if something else happened that required physical effort on my part, I might not be able to respond.  I was also feeling very lonely - with no prospect for change on the horizon.

My memories of my previous sailing experience were based on having a 30 year old body and no intimate relationships. Things have changed. I have a 70 year old body and a wife and children I miss very much. The 70 year old body does not have the stamina of the 30 year old.

To add to the misery, the boat motion was especially violent. It felt like a ride on a rubber ducky in a washing machine. Locker doors were flying open. It was hard for me to stay in my bunk even with the lee canvas in place (see the Rock and Roll posting if you don’t know what a lee canvas is.) This all came at the end of a day when I was feeling especially lonely. Single handing a boat is something like solitary confinement. At some point during the night, I decided that this isn’t what I want to do for the next 15 – 18 months of my life.

At first, my response was to turn around and go back to San Diego – immediately. I spent the next four days working my way north against the wind and currents. I saw a lot of the kind of scene in the picture to the right. At times, it felt like Laelia was airborne before she slammed into the next wave. At the end of four days, I was only as far north as Turtle Bay well less than half way back to Ensenada where I would have to check in to do the paperwork for exiting Mexico. The rips in the mizzen were getting larger so I decided to stop at Turtle Bay and see if I could patch them.

Turtle Bay is a nice, quiet little place with a small village on the north side of the bay. It is a secure anchorage with little wave action to rock the boat. After anchoring, I slept – a two hour nap followed by a wine and spaghetti dinner and another 14 hours of sleep.

The next day, I started in on the sail repair. The top picture shows the kind of damage I was trying to repair. I couldn’t really repair the rips. The best I could do was to cover them up with patches that would keep the wind out of the rip and (hopefully) keep the rip from spreading. The bottom picture shows my solution. This involved taking the main and the mizzen off their respective masts, spreading a portion of each sail out flat enough to work on and hand sewing the patch. This took most of two days.

When I announced that I was turning back, a spirited dialogue ensued between Judy and myself leaving me wondering if I had a place to come back to. The dialogue was carried on via my inReach satellite communicator which restricts emails to 160 characters. It is not a format that allows a lot of descriptive detail. We were later to figure out that there was a lot of miscommunication in that dialogue.

Considering all those factors rest, dialogue, sail repair and the problem of getting the replacement sails, I decided to continue on to the Sea of Cortez. I hate to turn back with nothing at all to show for this trip. I had friends (Dan and Dee on Rocket Girl) who had left about a week ahead of me, headed for La Paz. I also decided to try to make life easier for myself by breaking the trip up into shorter legs with rest stops.

The next stop was Bahia Santa Maria, just outside Bahia Magdelena. That was a two day and two night leg. On arrival at Bahia Santa Maria, the patches appeared to be holding up. I got a good night’s rest and continued on toward Cabo San Lucas.

I rounded Cabo San Lucas on the morning of March 28. The difference was immediately noticeable. For the first time in almost three weeks, the air was warm. I could shed my foul weather gear and be comfortable in tee shirt and shorts. A whale watching boat passed close by and I could see the whales they were following.

I elected to bypass the city of Cabo San Lucas on the grounds that it was morning and I didn’t want

to stop yet and the reputation of Cabo as a very touristy, expensive kind of place. I put in to Marina Puerto Los Cabos just outside the city of San Jose del Cabo. To my surprise, it is more expensive to get a slip here than it is in San Diego - $60/day here vs. $45/day in San Diego. It is a nice facility, fairly new, has wifi Internet connectivity and is well kept up, but certainly not fancy. The boats here are mostly sport fishing boats and mega yachts. It is obvious that there is a lot of money around here somewhere.

Once again, I fixed a wine and spaghetti dinner and crashed for a 14 hour nights’ sleep. Yesterday, Saturday, March 29, was mostly devoted to catching up on all the things I haven’t been able to do because of the lack of an Internet connection – pay bills, answer email, catch up on the news.

I had planned to spend only one full day here before moving on but I realized last night that I need another rest day before I push on. I will be on my way north to La Paz starting tomorrow. I will probably make stops at three anchorages along the way with a days’ layover in each before getting to La Paz.

So, that’s the story to date. I don’t know when I will have Internet again – certainly not before La Paz. I am looking forward to continuing at a more relaxed pace. I want to spend a couple weeks recuperating before I turn around and start the trip north. I will be a rough trip – against prevailing winds and currents. It is referred to by sailors as “The Baja Bash.” From what I saw in the days I was trying to go north, it is quite appropriate. But, more on that when the time comes.

Farewell to San Diego

I first came to San Diego from Washington, DC, in late 1974. I was part of a group supporting the installation of new software at the Naval Communication Station at Broadway and Harbor Drive. I came under protest. I had just bought my boat and started living aboard in Annapolis, MD. I was here in San Diego for about four days when I decided I did not want to go back. It all worked out. I got the job as site rep on the installation I was supporting. My company paid to truck the boat here and I lived aboard in San Diego Harbor from about March 1975 until Christmas Day 1975 when I set sail for Hawaii and on to Guam.

I have visited several times since and always felt there was something almost magic about the place. When I sailed into San Diego Harbor two months ago, it was homecoming of sorts. I instantly felt at home. An additional attraction this time was that daughter Alana now lives here. This would give us some time to visit - and as it turns out, we've been able to get together almost weekly for dinner and time to talk. So wonderful after years of living so far apart!

I arrived here with a list of three items to fix up before I left. I expected to be here two weeks and then go on to Mexico. As the previous blog relates, the list quickly grew to 16 items and beyond. I put off my departure for an additional two weeks because of problems with the Mexican government “embargoing” (impounding) boats for minor or imagined paperwork problems. Just before the two weeks was up, my transmission broke again. It was the same problem as I had about a year and a half ago – the damper plate splines were sheared off. In addition the splines on the input shaft to the transmission were ruined. I signed up for another month in my slip and started to work.

One of the unexpected benefits of the additional delay was that I was able to take a trip home to spend time with Judy. I had been worried that five days might be too long - that I would start feeling claustrophobic being in Placerville. It turned out not to be a problem. Our five days together flew by filled with talk, walks, good food, a visit to the restaurant where we had our first meeting - and much more. We also managed to also squeeze in two short visits with daughter Lane. The problems that kept me in San Diego have turned out to be a blessing.

The transmission problem was resolved without too much trouble or expense. Another Pearson 365 owner had a transmission identical to mine that he was willing to sell at an extremely reasonable price. I found a different vendor for the damper plate who had an improved, more robust version. The transmission was in Phoenix where the boat owner lived. Once again, Terry Hoffart came to the rescue. He and his wife, Heather, were planning to come from Phoenix to San Diego for President’s day. He picked up the transmission, paid the owner and brought it over. With his help, I had it installed and ready to run in a little under two hours. We had two enjoyable evenings on the boat and a day sail to try out the transmission. That’s Heather in the picture to the right.

While I was lining up the transmission replacement, I was also studying for the amateur extra class license exam. I took the exam Saturday of President’s Day Weekend. I think I aced it. All the examiner would say was “Well, you did rather well!” My new call letters are AG6YW. I have spent only a little more time tinkering with the installation because of all the other activities. The most recent change was to make the antenna wire as long as possible. I have been able to talk to a couple of stations with it. I think (I hope) that part of the problem is that I am surrounded by sailboats with metal masts and wire rigging that distort the antenna radiation pattern and result in a much reduced signal when I transmit. I will be trying it again when I get out to sea.

I was able to use the extra time to make several improvements. I modified the running pole installation to make it easier to use. I installed an inverter to provide 120 volt AC house current from the boat’s 12 volt DC battery system when I am not hooked up to shore power. I wanted this because I have a number of small items that run off house voltage that I have only been able to use when I am in a slip. The computer printer and the camera battery charger are a couple of them. I have to be careful about using it because it pulls a lot of current from the battery. To do this “all” I had to do was hook up two wires to the battery. But this is a boat and nothing turns out to be that simple. The first problem was to find a way to have a short cable run from the battery to the inverter. That meant pulling out all those bulkheads out the port cockpit locker that I installed a month ago. I had installed them with knowing that I might have to do that, so it was only moderately painful – after I pulled everything out of the locker. Chaos reigned again on deck. But, the job is done. The inverter works.

I have greatly enjoyed the people I have been associated with here in San Diego. Dan and Dee Kent on Rocket Girl hired me to go sailing with them and coach them on sailing their boat. They are experienced power boaters but this is their first sailboat. They didn’t need much coaching. We got to be friends as well and spent several evenings talking, laughing and drinking beer.

My immediate next door neighbors are Jason and Lauren on Perpetua. They bought the bare aluminum hull and spent the next four years getting her outfitted and ready to sail to the South Pacific. They had a rental car and have been quite generous in taking me along on shopping expeditions. We have visited back and forth and exchanged a lot of information and idea for our pending journey. Lauren is a radio amateur as well and we have set up a schedule to keep in touch once we leave here. And, as always seems to happen with boat people, we spent enjoyable evenings talking, eating and drinking.

Carl and Jan Paul on Sequoia scanned documents for me that I needed to have in digital format to send off to French Polynesia. They also gave me their duplicate copy of a cruising guide to the South Pacific and information on where to find charts and courtesy flags in San Diego.

 

What is a courtesy flag, you ask? When a boat is visiting another country, it is a courtesy to fly their flag from the starboard spreader. Often the "courtesy" is a requirement. Showing up without the proper flag flying can result in a fine and/or a requirement to buy a rather expensive flag. I have bought flags for Mexico, French Polynesia (the French Flag), Tonga, Australia and New Zealand. New Zealand is the protector(?) for several island groups in the Pacific. I hope to visit the Cook Island - one of the protectorates, hence the need for the NZ flag.

Greg Lakes on Whisper also gave me a lift several times to track down parts for the boat as well as being another source of ideas and conversation over beer.

I also made contact with Jane Wassel while I was here. Her husband, Stan, was my partner in support the computer installation when I was on Guam 1976/77. They split up after I left and she moved to San Diego. She and Stan reconnected here in San Diego shortly before he died of cancer. It has been fun to catch up on the doings and whereabouts of people I knew on Guam. I got to take her for a day sail so she could see what the boat was all about. She has driven down to the marina several times to go for brisk walks – she sets a mean pace! To top it all off, she drove me on a five hour expedition to do my final shopping for groceries and supplies. It would have taken me a lot longer and a lot of trips to do it by bicycle!

By the way, if any of you are concerned that I might run out of supplies on the 30 day leg to the Marquesas, check the picture to the right! I expect I will be able to get at least to Australia before I have to do any major shopping. I didn’t buy fruits and vegetables on this trip since many of those items would be confiscated when I enter Mexico. I will buy those items in Mexico. Finding places to store all of this has been a challenge!

Now it is time for all of us sailors to move on. Rocket Girl left a week ago and is now anchored just outside Bahia Magdelena on her way to Cabo San Lucas. I hope to catch up with them somewhere in the Sea of Cortez. Perpetua is leaving Sunday to the Marquesas Islands. Sequoia is leaving Saturday or Sunday to go to Mexico.

I have changed my mind again and I will be leaving for Mexico Sunday. The general opinion seems  to be that the Mexican government has been sufficiently embarrassed by the embargo fiasco and will not repeat it soon. The first leg will be an overnight hop to Ensenada where I can do all the paperwork for entry into Mexico with the boat. From there, I will probably go to Bahia Magdelena, stop for several days, then go on to La Paz and on to cruising in the Sea of Cortez. Sometime in early to mid April I will re-provision in La Paz and head for the Marquesas Island.

So – once again I leave San Diego with pleasant memories. The marina facilities are quite good and the management is friendly. The boating community has been wonderful. The weather has been pleasant (mostly). Sunsets are often spectacular enough to make me stop and watch. San Diego is a place that I want to come back to in the future.

For now, the die is cast - time to move on! I called AT&T today and my phone service will terminate Sunday at midnight. From here on, all email will be via wifi. I am set up on Skype in the hope of being able to talk to Judy and other family members.

On to Mexico!