01:05 UTC | 12°16.946’ N 087°18.066’W
Sailing
We are gearing up for our last twenty-four hours at sea that is promising to be some sporty sailing. The crew defeated the final boss, Tehuantepec winds, a few days ago. Now that everyone is battle hardened we are putting on our crusty, sunscreen caked game faces on for the little brother, Papagayo winds, which are forecasting twenty-seven knots gusting to thirty-five knots. In the mean time we’ve had several ebbs and flows of perfect thirteen to fifteen knot sailing with a couple hours of easy flat motoring to top up on sleep.
Have you ever heard of disco jellies, or electric dolphins? I never had until we set off on this trip and what a treat it has been to learn about the bio illumination and then immediately get to see them in all their glory. First we had the electric dolphins zooming through the water like little torpedoes leaving a trail of teal blue streaks. There were hours of entertainment to be had just following their sporadic movements. At times two to four dolphins would get into perfect Blue Angels fighter jet formation whizz by the side of the boat and peel off from one another just like at the air show. The dolphins were amazing and just as awe inspiring were the flickering orbs of the disco jellies. The same beautiful teal blue in front of the magical starry night sky made the night watches effortless.
Delaney has kept a steady and variable stream of snack options such as Pringles, my favorite, granola bars, chocolate straws, mixed nuts, and plenty of fruit. Now getting down to the snack dregs digging deep in the cabinets revealed dried pineapple and cashew clusters. Both of these are worth their weight in gold having exhausted our fresh fruit days ago and wanting a new flavor of salt the doesn’t have to get dropped in sixteen ounces of water and dissolve for four minutes.
Mary is whipping up a wonderfully fragrant sweet potato, squash risotto with crispy artichokes, Italian sausage, and a heaping three cheese blend -butter counts as cheese ;). I have no doubt our last dinner will be one of the best with the stunning Nicaraguan mountains as our backdrop at sun set.
Papagayo Winds here we come!
// Jake
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Among the Channel Islands
In the wind shadow of SoCal we had a restful night with calm conditions ghosting through smooth seas. We’re getting ourselves in position for spicy weather tonight once we round Cape Conception, the seas build and the breeze freshens. It will be an upwind sail into an acceleration zone along a formable coast with few bailout points, Morro Bay being one. The crew is really gelling with lots of smiles and laughter on deck. Monterey is in our sights!
Day Two Delights
The seas were completely glassy with a gentle swell as we approached San Clemente Island, the southernmost of the Channel Islands. Everyone jumped in and marvelled at the lovely temperature and crystal clear, indigo-colored water. Before long the wind started to pick up, and we happily unfurled the jib and were sailing again. The afternoon has been gorgeous, cruising along at 5-6 kts, close hauled on a port tack in a gentle breeze, Catalina Island in the distance on our starboard side, and everyone is happy.
Adios Ensenada!
Around 9am this morning, we slipped lines and made our way out of Todos Los Santos Bay with a pre-arranged escort pod of dolphins. After a few hours of motoring through very calm, very blue, very kelpy seas, we clicked the engine off and off we went. After some delicious frittata and not-new potatoes a-la Adam, we executed our first of many tacks. With only 5-10 kts of wind, our close haul has been nothing but pleasant so far. After a lovely week in Ensenada for me, Alex, and Adam, we’re stoked to finally head out and begin our upwind journey back up the coast.