SV Quid Sea – Sailing with Tracy and Cindy – Page 3 – Sharing our sailing experiences with family, friends, and anyone else interested in following what we are doing.

Leaving La Paz

Page 3

February was a month filled with visitors. Our friends Peter and Diane came the 2^nd week February and again, it is nice to hang out with friends from home. They also have a sailboat and are interested in cruising. We had many conversations about our plans going forward, what it’s been like living on the boat, and places they might like to go once fully retired. We enjoyed a day sail where we did some paddle boarding and more hikes of course. Their last night was spent at a restaurant that Tracy and I had been wanted to try before we leave La Paz. It’s called the Cordon and it did not disappoint. It is a beautiful place with great views and delicious food.

Enjoying Harkers, one of our favorite brew pub in La Paz

Great dinner with great friends at Cordon.

Our next visitor was Madeleine, (Cindy’s daughter) and she was able to experience boat life firsthand, as she stayed with us on the boat. As you can imagine, our living quarters are tight, and every space is in use. It is an adjustment, and you give up some comforts of home. However, we told our kids that if they come to visit and want to stay on the boat to save money, we will make it work.

When asked about her ideal vacation, she said she wanted time to run, go to the beach and read. It was easy to make that happen here in La Paz. We added paddle boarding and some of our favorite dining spots and the days flew by.

We rented a car to pick up Madeleine in Cabo and on our way back, we did a side trip to Todos Santos. It’s a nice stop between Cabo and La Paz and filled with art galleries, gift shops and plenty of restaurants loaded with ‘gringos.’ We stopped at a resort for lunch called El Farro Beach Club that we heard about from our friends, Chris & Dan. It was beautiful and we were able to spot several whale spouts while walking the beach.

Madeleine was here for Carnaval, which is a vibrant, festive celebration that takes place in the weeks leading up to Lent, featuring parades, live music, and colorful costumes. The bad news is the downtown area is very crowded, noisy and the Malecon was closed. However, we found a lovely roof top bar to hang out and enjoy the festivities.

It was very hard to say goodbye, but I know we will see her again during our future travels. Possibly New Zealand for Christmas??

Part 2: Crossing from La Paz to La Cruz, Mexico

Tracy’s daughter Marina and her boyfriend, Dakota arrived in La Paz a few days before our crossing to La Cruz. We were very excited about their decision to join us for this journey. We also picked the two of them up from the Cabo airport and visited Todo Santos. This time we went Todos Santos Brewing also recommended by our friends, Chris & Dan. The restaurant had a good selections of beers which everyone appreciated on a hot day. We only had a couple of days in La Paz before our crossing, and fortunately Marina and Dakota were able to experience the city by touring the Malecon, shopping, spending time with their Aunt Adrianna and seeing the home she shares with Marina’s Uncle Rod. Uncle Rod was traveling but they were able to visit with her aunt before leaving.

Our last night in La Paz and with Aunt Adrianna. We will miss her & Tracy’s brother Rod!

With sadness leaving La Paz but also excitement for our next adventure, we left Costa Baja Marina early morning on Wednesday, February 26^th.

Initially Captain Tracy told us the voyage would take 2, possibly 3 nights to complete this crossing. We all thought that was manageable and hoping for 2 nights. But then as we got underway, we were told it would be 3, possibly 4 nights. We now understand why Tracy insisted on over-provisioning. The three of us met and decided against a mutiny and continued on. Haha.

I have not done any overnight cruising before, and Dakota has never been on a sailboat. Fortunately, Marina had more experience sailing with her Dad to the San Juan Islands where she spent 3 nights out at sea. I’m not sure if we should feel sorry for us or for our captain.

Our first night we anchored again at Bahia de Muertos/Bay of the Dead. We enjoyed a great day of sailing and once anchored, Marina and Dakota made chicken tacos for dinner. We ate in the cockpit while looking at the bounty of stars.

Day 2, February 27th

We slept well since none of us had to do a watch during the night. Marina made us all eggs & toast for breakfast. Did I mention that she is a good cook? This is a skill appreciated in a crew member because while it’s important to have enough food, it’s nice to enjoy it too. We got off to a leisurely start and continued north where our next stop will be La Cruz!

Luckily we have wind and sailed for most of the day. Marina and Dakota trolled for fish, which we call ‘bonus’ fish because it’s something sailors do while they are trying to reach their next destination. The next place is the priority, where catching a fish is nice to have or a ‘bonus’. They were desperate to catch tuna, which we all would have enjoyed, but it was not too be. We watched for sea life but did not find much. We only noticed a few whale spouts along the shore and they were too far away to get photos.

After making spaghetti and salad for dinner, I took the 8:00 shift. This is our first night starting the watch schedule. Since we were all up most of the day, Dakota and Marina went to sleep at 8:00 PM and I took the watch from 8:00 to midnight while Tracy slept up in the cockpit to assist if I needed help. At this point we are still sailing, and it was quiet in terms of traffic. We saw one tanker and one sailboat, spotted around 9:00 PM. By 10:00 PM they had passed by us without incident. I went to bed around midnight and Tracy took over for a couple of hours before waking Marina and Dakota. It was very nice that they offered to take the late-night shift. Since they are nurses and often work the night shift, it was a little easier to stay alert during the late hours.

Day 3, February 28th

The electronics that help keep us on course.

The boat can be very noisy and of course at night when you are trying to sleep, it seems magnified. With the sails luffing, fairleads banging, the boom knocking, none of us got much sleep.

Waking up to another bright sunny day helps with our lack of sleep. The morning also brought much calmer winds for better or worse. It makes for a smoother ride, but we also move through the water at a slower pace.

Due to the rough seas the night before we had some interesting guests drop in overnight. We found 5 squids on our deck and they were not alive by the time they were discovered. I learned that Squid remain in the dark depths of the ocean during the day to avoid predators. But when they venture to the surface at night to feed, they are liable to jump out of the water in a panic and on to a boat if you happen to be in the right place or wrong place, depending how you look at it.

Tried fishing again and almost had one but he got away! So instead of tuna for dinner, Marina made us chicken quesadillas for dinner. Delicious!

Sailing in this day and age is much easier with new technology. The boat is powered by solar and we are able to make water through a reverse osmosis desalination process. Quid Sea carries 120 gallons of water and our water maker can make 13 gallons an hour. It is something we can easily do while sailing to keep the tanks full. The boat is powered by 4 lithium ion batteries and we also have 1350 watts of solar to continuously charge them. It is more than enough to run the refrigerator, freezer, lights, water maker, electronics, etc. And, we can run the engine if we need more charge. Last, we have 2 auto pilot systems. The auto pilot controls the primary rudder and the wind vane steers by an auxiliary rudder. They both serve the same function but one uses wind and the others uses electric power. Both systems will automatically maintain Quid Sea on a predetermined course or bearing, allowing us to focus on other tasks without constant steering.

Day 4, March 1st

We stuck to the same watch patterns, and we all slept much better. It was an exciting day because we were finally rewarded with sea life! We saw numerous sea turtles swimming by, too many to count. A couple of pods of dolphins hung out by the bow of the boat and played with the waves for 5-10 minutes. It was joyful to see. We also saw a couple of sea lions floating by on their back sunning themselves.

Dolphin Video

We enjoyed another night of spaghetti (who doesn’t love spaghetti?) and shared watch responsibilities again. Another calm night without incident. But we all are excited for the morning when we will arrive at our destination.

Day 5, March 2nd

Land ho! We arrived in our slip at approximately 10:15 AM local time. We experienced a time change and jumped ahead an hour from La Paz. Our location is Marina Riviera Nayarit at La Cruz. The marina is beautiful, and we’re surrounded by hundreds of gorgeous sailboats. Tracy is in heaven! There are many cruisers here, using this as their launch point to Panama, French Polynesia, or back to the U.S for the summer.

Outside of the marina is a small fishing village called La Cruz de Huanacaxtle. It was founded in the 1930’s and is situated on the Pacific Ocean’s Bahia de Banderas in the state of Nayarit approximately 17 miles from Puerto Vallarta. The town name comes from a cross that is made of Huanacaxtle wood. The population is 4,169 as of 2020. It is one of those cities where the population increases by tourists and cruisers and levels off again as the hotter temperatures arrive.

Marina and Dakota were able to enjoy the area for few days before they flew home. Once again, it was difficult to say good bye but we are heartened they plan to visit us again in Tahiti.

Tracy’s been busy coordinating boat maintenance getting in preparation for the next crossing. He had the boat detailed including all of the stainless rigging cleaned, and the hull was buffed, polished and waxed. All the non-skid on deck was repainted and the teak toe rails are being sanded, cleaned and varnished. Quid Sea is looking good!!

The guests are still coming! Tracy’s cousins (Tim & Chris) came for a visit to get reacquainted with Tracy and meet me for the first time. It’s been 20+ years since they have seen each other. I think I can speak for all of us in that we had a wonderful visit. They are from Michigan and reminded me of many of my Midwest relatives. Not only in their speech but also in their kindness, humor and generosity. Tracy felt like he had just seen them yesterday and their reconnection was easy.

Tracy’s cousin Tim hoisted Tracy up the mast for repairs.

Spotted a whale while sailing in Banderas Bay!

That’s it for now. I am heading back to Vancouver and Tracy departed La Cruz for French Polynesia on March 28th. We’re excited about the next phase of our adventure and very grateful for our wonderful experience in Mexico!

Still in La Paz

It’s been a while and we are still in La Paz, Mexico enjoying the sunshine. We have settled into our beautiful Marina called Marina Costa Baja and getting to know a few people. Within walking distance is a sandy beach where we can paddleboard around the coastline and return to our favorite beach club for food and drink. The Indigo hotel is also nearby along with about 5 other restaurants offering Spanish, Mexican, Pizza, and Sushi. By now we have sampled them all many times and enjoy the convenience.

A few days before Christmas we sailed to an island called Ensenada de la Partida and anchored for 3 nights. We relished the clear nights and star gazing along with sun filled days to paddleboard and dingy around the bay. We met a few other cruisers and enjoyed hearing their cruising stories. As much as we like our marina, it’s exciting to venture somewhere new. Most places we anchor only have 3 or 4 other boats, so it’s very peaceful.

Christmas was spent with Tracy’s brother Rod, sister-in-law Adriana, and many of her family members. They graciously included us in their Christmas Eve and New Years festivities where we celebrated with about 15 others, eating, drinking and playing games. I enjoyed a Mexican Ponche, that is typically enjoyed at Christmas. It’s a punch served warm and made with apples, pears, oranges and guavas and spiced with cinnamon, cloves, tamarind and hibiscus. In Mexico, they typically celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve, and we were happy to participate in all the festivities, ending the night around 3:00 AM! New Years Eve was similar with lots of family, food and drink. Antonio (Adriana’s father) played his accordion while his daughters and granddaughters sang along in Spanish. The rest of us were back up musicians playing the tambourine, goat hooves stringed together, and bongo drums. Another fun night had by all!

New Years Eve Celebration with more family!

Percussion Instrument made with goat hooves.

On Friday, January 3^rd, we left the dock again and headed to Bahia de los Muertos (Bay of the Dead), for a couple of days to help celebrate Tracy’s brother Rod’s birthday. We were planning to meet them there as they would come by car. However, before you know it we had 4 other crew members who decided they would rather sail with us than drive over. The remaining family members were not expected until Saturday but showed up a day early to surprise the Birthday boy! There were 10 of us on the boat for dinner with everyone contributing spaghetti, salad, red wine and dessert. I’m happy to say we pulled off the surprise and had fun celebrating Tracy’s brother’s birthday!

On a side note, we found some interesting information on the Bay’s name. Bahia de los Muertos is known to be a site for numerous shipwrecks in the area which resulted in many lost lives, possibly from pirates and burying their dead in the bay. Some sources mention the use of ‘dead man anchors’ in the bay that further contributed to the name. For better marketing, Mexico is changing the name to Bahia de los Suenos, (Bay of Dreams).

We enjoyed a breakfast at one of the restaurants on shore and this was our view.

We did some day sailing to Playa Balandra which is said to be one of the most beautiful beaches in the world! You are not allowed to stay overnight to help protect the area. So instead, we anchored for an afternoon and paddleboarded along the shore viewing the colorful fish while hoping to spot a sea turtle. It’s great to paddleboard from the boat but it is a bit tricky getting back on the boat from the paddle board. We have both fallen in the water attempting to get back on, fortunately at different times. The challenge is that the boat, water and board are all moving in different directions, and it’s difficult to stay balanced. Luckily, we were not hurt and after the surprise of falling, enjoyed a refreshing swim in the ocean. We’re glad we have time to master this maneuver.

Of course during a trip like this, there is always work that needs to be done on the boat. We decided to have Quid Sea hauled out to have her bottom painted before the big crossing to French Polynesia. The good news is we rented an Airbnb for a week while Quid Sea was in the boat yard. It was a bit of a treat to be on land with all the amenities. The location was downtown La Paz within walking distance to everything!

The haul out was an experience. In the US, the boat yard employee brings your boat into the yard and let’s the lift raise the boat with no one on board. To our surprise, this particular boat yard in La Paz had Tracy pilot the boat into the boatyard and we both stayed on the boat while they attached it to the lift. They do this by putting strong belts underneath while the lift raises the boat. But there were questions as to whether the belts were positioned properly. Because of the uncertainty, a young man without any diving equipment quickly dove into the water and guided the belts to the right locations. In the meantime we had to stay on the boat while they lifted Quid Sea out of the water and onto the ‘hard’. It was quite exciting and only a little scary.

The boat weighs 14 tons, hence the need for the heavy lift.

First time I’ve actually been able to see and touch the bottom!

During the course of our stay in La Paz, we enjoyed quite a bit of walking and hiking. Tracy’s brother told us about a good hiking trail with an overlook of Balandra Bay where we hiked several times by ourselves and with friends. The pictures below are from our hikes.

Hike overlooking Balandra Bay with our friends Chris & Dan

Our first visitors arrived in La Paz late January. It was great to spend time with our friends Chris & Dan, showing them La Paz and catching up on life back home. We enjoyed exploring downtown La Paz and checking out new restaurants as well experiencing a couple of great hikes! We hope they will join us again along our journey.

Enjoying a laid back lunch in one of our favorite beach clubs in the marina.

We will end here and our next story will include more visitors and our crossing to Puerto Vallarta.

Welcome to our Blog!

We hope you enjoy following our adventures on Quid Sea. We are new to blogging so please come back to visit as we get more experienced and have more experiences!

Tracy and Cindy