Leg Two of the Baja Haha

We had great winds for the start, and thankfully much better seas. In fact we were able to sail the entire second leg! It was very late (or early) - about 3:30 am two days later by the time we anchored in Bahia Santa Maria. It was dark and we were very tired, and we'd become irritated with our young crew.

Perhaps it was just a generational difference. Between the ipods, kindles, and computers they were hardly ever "truly present" in the moment, they were always "plugged in" to something (or sleeping) during our entire journey. I don't know that they witnesses one sunrise. They saw some sealife, that which we pointed out to them. How sad for them, to miss this opportunity to be one with the sea and nature.

Tom caught an 8lb tuna as we passed the entrance to Magdalena Bay. Evan caught about a 12lb tuna, only to have it largely devoured by a shark before he could reel it in. All he landed we the head! Other than that, we kept hooking kelp, losing lures and had quiet poles. Oh well, the freezer was one of the tasks on the Boat Prep list that did not get finished!

Bahia Santa Maria was very nice, although coming it at 3 am was very scary. The next day we heard that a Haha "tag along" boat (single-hander, so unable to official enter) lost his boat on the beach outside the bay - he'd fallen asleep. About 50 sailors helped him salvage what he could and donations raised about $1000 for him. A grim reminder of what can happen to any of us with one bad decision.

The next day was the Beach Party. Tom went up the mast to run the spinnaker halyard as the splice had parted 10 minutes after we flew the spinnaker on the second leg. Jack Hembroke was a great help. He'd come by that morning to drop of a new pair of bifocal sunglasses Tom had ordered. Jack was happy to give us a hand. He and his wife Leanne had sold their business in Australia and the Haha had been a dream of theirs for many years too. We became fast friends with them.

The party was fun, although we spent two hour in line for food. When we finally got there we understood why - they were cooking the food in small frying pans one at a time! Fresh fish, generous portions of shrimp, rice beans and fresh tortillas made for a tasty feast.

We'd dropped both dinghies into the water to give our crew some freedom. We'd warned about the tide, to keep and eye on the tender. Tom had to run down the cliff and drag it up further to keep it from floating out on several occasions. This was after they said the motor wouldn't start. Turns out they ran out of gas and had to be towed back (a gas can was in the boat.) We left the Beach Party but they wanted to stay and party, so we said to be back before dark. When darkness came and they didn't, Tom went back to retrieve the Tinirini. A panga returned them.

The shore break was pretty sever, and while Tom tried to demonstrate the best method, they didn't follow the advice. Youth always knows better I guess. The next day we had a talk about respect and responsibility. Tom tried to explain the dangers of beach landings- hitting a wave wrong and capsizing. If they drown, it would be Tom's responsibility as Captain. Tom's words fell on deaf ears. We decided they would not have the privilege of using the Tinirini again. For boaters, their lack of knowledge and respect for the power of the sea was surprising.

Leg One of the Baja Haha

We set sail out of San Diego Harbor at 11:00 am on Monday, 10/25/10. We'd just returned from Florida a few days earlier. We didn't feel ready, a long list of incomplete tasks remained on out Boat Prep list. The departure date marched closer. We picked up our young crew, Evan and Briana, at the train station in San Diego - bright-eyed and eager. It was so great to have our friend Ray and Jennifer, and Beth and Alan come down to the farewell party to see us off. Beth was on the verge of tears during the whole party, sad to see us go.

The start was very moving, to be a part of this annual event after having it as a goal for so long. Ten minutes after the start we had our first challenge - the davit cross bar broke. Fortunately, I was steering the boat so I didn't see Tom and Evan lower the dinghy into the water while underway. Nor did I see Tom climb into the dinghy to set it up to tow behind. There was some wind, but nasty mixed seas were the biggest challenge. Nala, one of our cats got seasick. Then our crew became ill as well and were unable to stand watch their first night at sea.

After clanging, banging and flopping around for over 24 hours, I pulled out the chart to try to find a place to seek refuge, rest and pull the dink on deck. She would not survive being towed much longer in these conditions. It was about 10 am, but we were over 30 miles off the coast. We decided to head to Bahia San Quitin and we able to set the anchor before the sunset. We were all alone in a very peaceful anchorage, had a great Chicken Parmesan dinner that night and a much needed night of sleep.

At day break the next morning we hoisted the dinghy on deck and made the run to Turtle Bay going inside Cedros Island. We anchored the following day before sunset. It was much colder than expected - both the air and the sea. It seems the cold summer and fall we had in SoCal wasn't just localized. The town and people in Turtle Bay were wonderful.

Life's a Blur

Tomorrow it's time to go. Seems like it got here awful quick, after wishing and waiting for the day to arrive. We're not ready, but they say you never are - that's why you do the "Haha" - because the date is set in stone. No procrastinating, you either go or don't go - and the fleet leaves without you. So we go!

Mere mortals would never have attempted to accomplish what we did this month. Tom got slammed with work - a good thing since work = $$$. Unfortunately, his boat prep list is very long. The there was his Captain's License Course in San Diego. Two weeks, 80 hours, homework every night and the weekend in between. They tell him after he starts it "Don't plan anything this weekend. You'll need to study!".

Naturally, that was after we'd already scheduled the movers to come on Sunday, because we'd need at least all day to pack on Saturday. Dawn had already spent the week before packing. Nothing considering there was twenty years of "stuff" that had to be moved or disposed of. Then there was the garage sale Saturday AM... We finally sent Tom "home" to the boat in San Diego with the two cats at about 10:30 pm Sunday Night. He still had to do his homework!

The movers were gone, so was Tom, the cats and even Anne. I was alone with a mess - dust bunnies covering where the beds, sofas, and other furniture had been. A smattering of items that were somewhere between trash and Goodwill worthy. Another load to go to Tom's shop, which we'd move later after we got to Florida. It was sad, but hopeful. It's exciting to start a new chapter in your life, but scary and you can't help but wonder if you're doing the right thing.

I stayed and Anne's that night, she was finally in tears earlier when Tom left, after holding it together for so long. She was glad to have me stay over and have one more farewell dinner. I got up the next day, went back to the house and cleaned up the mess so it was move in condition. It was late by the time I drove down to San Diego.

Three days later I drove to my mom's house in Tucson with the cats. Of course I was delayed by several hours because of a missing orange cat - Chico couldn't be found. We thought we might have left him at the Shelter Island Marine where we'd stayed the night before. He's been known to get off the boat... After several hours of searching, I found him asleep on a headliner panel - we'd not quite finished that project!

Tom drove out on Friday after passing his test with flying colors. No rest for the weary. Saturday morning we left the cats with mom and drove my loaded car to Florida. We thought we'd NEVER get through Texas! We made to our hotel late Sunday night, and had to meet the mover at 8 am the next day. By lunchtime all of our CA belongings we safely stored in Panama City, FL. We spent the next few days getting a FL drivers license, opening bank accounts, arranging insurance, etc. We flew out Thursday afternoon, mom picked us up at the Tucson, AZ airport at about 10 pm. The cats were happy to see us, we scooped them up Friday am and drove to San Diego. We had to move the boat off the police dock on Saturday morning because our time was up there.

What were we thinking - that we could get all this stuff done in a MONTH??

Leaving Los Angeles

After about four years in LA Harbor, the Santorini is about to embark on a journey more suited to what she was built for. Although the frequent trips to Catalina Island, the Channel Islands, Santa Barbara and Newport Beach were fun. The Ship, her captain and owner all long for the type of sailing she was intended for, and we are now ready for. The jump from a 30' 13,000 lb vessel to a 48', 30 ton vessel is big. It took us time to feel comfortable handling her. I cried the first time Tom told me I had to pull her into the slip. Now, no one at the dock even bothers to come to our assistance because we've become such pros. We'll miss our friends at PYL, but it's time to move on. From LA we sail to Newport for the night, then it's on to San Diego to wait for the Baja Haha. We've very excited as it's something we've wanted to do for many years now.