Sailing Espiritu Santo and Partida - Baja

We met under the oddest of circumstances – after we did a dance in a courtyard to a rendition of Imagine by a fantastic guitar player and singer just entertaining the dinner crowd. How would you like to come sailing with us? Sure!

A week later, we were buying supplies and moving our provisions on board. We set sail for the islands of Espiritu Santo and Partida, which are north of La Paz, MX. Virtually uninhabited and known for its great diving and being part of a natural preserve, we were excited to combine the adventure of sailing with diving.

Our crew consisted of the captain, Dennis, owner of Spirit, and his best friend, Bill. They'd known each other since high school, graduated in 1969 – same as Bob and all owned the same motorcycle at one time. Dennis had taught sailing; sailed for years, so thus was very knowledgeable. Bill was learning along with the rest of us, altho he had a two month jump having sailed across the Sea of Cortez recently.

We stopped at three anchorages. We learned how careful one must be to find the right depth to set anchor; the right distance between boats; the right anchorage itself according to current and predicted winds. We learned how much a weather forecast matters. What are the predicted winds? What direction? What is coming up in the next few days? We learned that sailors rely on each other and help each other because each knows their lives depend on each other with accurate information.

First thing you learn on a boat is how to ration everything. Water – for cooking, cleaning, bathing – is minimal. Trash is kept to minimal levels. Noone could shower (the shower drain wasn't functional) – altho if you dove or swam during the day, you sort of cleaned off; but after several days in salt water, your hair feels like straw. Cleaning dishes – the faucet dripped, soap was barely used, if any; dishes were wiped with paper towels and never stacked before washing as you'd dirty both sides that way. The sea or a bucket became one's urinal; the head was reserved for the other function. I became chief cook; Bob became interested in all facets of sailing, helping with the anchor and lines.

Living on a boat can have it's challenges. Both Dennis and Bill were smokers. You'd think smoke would fly out the back of the boat, but interestingly enough, it circles around and infiltrates all areas. I think it contributed to the slight nausea I felt during the trip. It is difficult for more than one person to be in the kitchen at a time; drinks needed to be put in the kitchen sink if not being used; things secured or put away when under sail.

 We didn't leave until Tuesday due to rough seas and wind. We anchored at Ensenada de la Raza. I think there were maybe 9 other boats there. We had arrived around 4pm and Bob and Dennis took out the dingy to do a dive at a nearby rock island. That night, we had a condition called the coromuels. These are winds that come from the south/southwest and hit heavy at night. I believe they are unique to the Sea of Cortez. Our boat rocked during the night, altho it was not bad and eventually put you to sleep.

A typical view from the boat of the two islands.  Barren, but beautiful in their own way.

 Dennis and Bill on the Spirit.

 Mary on the boat - typical spot!

 From our hike - look at that water!!

 Our next anchorage was at the Ensenada del Candlelero. This had a massive island off shore, which we dove completely around it the next afternoon and following morning. The island tip had more schools of fish than I'd ever seen and we saw the largest lobster all three of us had ever seen. The beach areas of these anchorages are crystal turquoise blue waters – absolutely stunning water. We took the dingy over to shore and Bob and I hiked a one mile or so trail through spectacular rock formations. It was nice being on land again and there were under a dozen people in this whole area. We stayed several hours here until we all got hungry. There was a small fish camp and also a spot where kayakers are brought to kayak around this island. Other than that, these islands are basically uninhabited – except for a few other fish camps. They are rock, mountainous and full of cacti.

The last anchorage we stayed two nights. This anchorage was the crater of a long extinct volcano and you could see the bowl you were in. There was an “S” curve of shallow water leading from the windward side to the lee side, and we took that in the dingy to check out some caves. Motoring on down this coast was amazing. I wish I had a camera for that, but it's just too risky in a small dingy with water splashing on you. The cliffs were layers of various types of rock and huge hunks of rock had fallen along the shores. We got to where the sea caves were – and jumped in with our diving gear. The waters were crystal clear; coral was more abundant and we saw various fish, including a rather large angel fish. That morning, we had gone to two other dive sites along the coast. I “ran into” a moray eel – perhaps 4-5 feet long. He slithered into the rocks backwards and showed his open mouth. I excitedly called the others over to point him out.We saw several turtles; a whale breeching pretty far off; dolphins jumping near the boat; and manta rays doing flips in the waters. I also learned that it is nearly impossible to identify birds while on a boat. You can't keep your binoculars focused long enough on the details. That being said, I did see Brown Booby's, Frigates, Masked Boobies, Brown Pelicans, Caspian Terns, and Pelagic Cormorants.

The insects called “bobos” were a pain to deal with. They'd usually find us around 8am and if the wind wasn't up, would stay with you until the sun set. They are just little annoying pests. Don't bite; just go everywhere – like up your nose, into the insides of your sunglasses; ears, etc. You could use DEET to avoid them – or just get in the water or pray for wind. One day we just set sail out into the open sea to escape them and chase them back to the land.

The diving was good – I wouldn't say spectacular – just good. The reefs aren't all that colorful or full of life. I guess we compare every place to Bonaire and with that as a standard, there isn't any place even close. We're looking forward to Cabo Pulmo as it is one of the premier diving spots here in Baja.

When we pulled into La Paz after 6 days, the marina was closed and it forced us to anchor out in the harbor. We took the dingy over for some yummy hamburgers at Shacks. Getting into a slip the following morning, we then cleaned house (or should I say, cleaned boat), helping to wipe everything down.

It was strange being on land again. During my shower there, I reeled back and forth and swore the marina was floating. (It's not!) We were both happy to have had that experience. On to Los Barrilles!