How Does One Week Turn Into Three?

La Paz, Mexico

We had planned on being in Mazatlan for one week. It took us three to get out of there and we finally made it to La Paz a couple of days ago. So what took so long?

When we arrived in Mazatlan our Yanmar had logged just over 1,000 hours; and since there is a Yanmar service center in Mazatlan we decided to have them help us with our 1,000 hour service. We believe that our engine is one of our biggest safety features and it needs to be treated with lots of TLC. So far "the beast" (our engine's serial number ends in 666) has treated us with nothing but respect in return. Knock on fiberglass.

A mechanic came by to remove our heat exchanger, fuel injectors and various other things to be serviced. Turns out we had some pitting in the heat exchanger and it would need to be sent to a machine shop to get welded. This was supposed to take a couple of days. After one entire week(!) and many inquiries of progress we were finally told that the heat exchanger won't take the weld and we would need a new part - and it would take at least 10 days to get the new part! This being Mexico there is no guarantee for that and 10 days is probably being overly confident as things tend to get held up in customs.

So rather than wait for the new heat exchanger to come to Mexico we took action. We ordered the part to be overnighted to the Yanmar dealer in Los Angeles and booked a flight for Mike to fly to LAX the very next day.

Since his trip coincided with the weekend, Mike had some spare time and was able to do some other shopping for us as well - such as Trader Joes's, REI and West Marine. Best of all, Mike's cousin Randy was headed to Cabo by van and was able to bring everything down for us (including a new battery), rather than Mike carrying it back on the plane. How about that for serendipity?!

If the machine shop had been successful we would have looked at a bill of about $700. Here are the numbers for what really happened. At least now we have a brand new part and lots of goodies from the US.

Air travel (using some air-miles): $270
Yanmar parts in LA (new heat exchanger, gaskets, misc): $1,300
Overnight shipping from east coast: $70
Rental car (three days): $85
Gas (for rental car): $46
Bill from Yanmar dealer in Mazatlan: $450
Boat moorage for two extra weeks beyond planned: $260
Total: $2,381

Of course there were other expenses like food and shopping but I'm not including those in this total. If you're interested in this month's total expenses take a look at our monthly expenses.

Our fourth crossing of the Sea of Cortez was a breeze. Literally. We even got to sail some in the south-westerly winds that appeared as forecast on our favorite weather website stormsurfing (check it out - this site has much higher resolution wind forecasts than other free weather sites).

Arriving in Bahia Balandra (10 miles from La Paz) after our crossing this was what we were greeted by: Sunrise to the east and a full moon setting to the west. Beautiful!

Sunset over the Baja peninsula

The ice-cream man in Bahia Balandra makes in-water deliveries

We're currently in a slip for just a few days to replenish food and fuel

Mission in La Paz (founded 1720, built 1861)

Goodies from the US

Fiesta Mexicana for Travel Secrets TV Show

Last night, along with my parents, we were invited to film a Mexican Fiesta for the next (fifth) episode of the Travel Secrets Mexico TV Series. We enjoyed delicious food from several states such as Jalisco, Guerrero and Sinaloa as well as dances from different regions around Mexico. The highlight of the evening was the fire-dance where the dancers/warriors show off how much heat their skin can handle.

The TV series is produced by my parents aboard their sailboat. The hope is to help restore some trust in Mexico's tourism and get tourist to once again visit this beautiful (and safe) country. They do the work out of their love of Mexico and pay for most of the airtime out of their own pocket - save a few sponsors. The show airs every Saturday at 9 pm (PST) on FamilyNet Television. To watch any of the episodes right now visit the YouTube channel.

Margaritas

Old Town Mazatlan

This is our third time in Mazatlan and each time we come here we want to stay longer. There aren't many gringo tourists here as some bad press from the US has converted this vibrant city primarily into a tourist destination for Mexican nationals.

The ease with which we can get around Mazatlan without a car must be the towns biggest perk. Simply wait at the side of the road for a few minutes and when the right bus passes by stick out your index finger - no need to find a bus station. When you are ready to get off the bus they will stop anywhere along their route for you.

Yesterday we took a trip into Old Town which is at the other end of town from the marina. To get there you travel along the eight kilometer-long malecon (boardwalk) that meanders down the beach and the turquoise bay. In this case we opted to ride in one of the open VW Thing taxi cabs. For about 100 pesos (US$8) you can get to most places in town and they like to take you on the scenic routes to show off their beautiful city.

Open air taxi on malecon

Mercado Pino Suarez, Indoor Market est. 1899

Plazuela Republica

Catedral de Mazatlan

Fresh Churros

More Tangled Wildlife

After nearly eight months in Banderas Bay we are finally on the move again. Hurricane season and then some personal issues kept us in a marina much longer than we had anticipated.

We just arrived in Mazatlan after a nice two night passage. Considering we could have driven here in a few hours (it's only 170 miles as the boat travels) we made pretty good time. We had mostly no wind which was a good thing as the prevailing winds this time of year are from the north (the direction we were heading of course).

We saw amazing phosphorescence, spinner dolphins, some late season whales, caught a dorado and watched lots of birds catching rides on sea turtles.

At our about half-way point we came across a disturbing sight. If you remember last July we were lucky enough to save a sea turtle trapped in some derelict fishing gear. We were in just about the same place yesterday when we once again noticed a strange tangle of debris. When we slowed to take a look there was a trapped manta ray. Unfortunately we were too late, but I find it odd to keep seeing things like this...

Manta Ray caught in derelict fishing gear

Mahi-Mahi for dinner!

Crossing the Sea

Leaving Baja in our wake

We're in Mazatlan after our third crossing of the Sea of Cortez. We're on our way to Puerto Vallarta where we will be spending the summer (aka hurricane season). Since early July we've been making our way south from the Loreto area and now all that is left is one overnight trip.

We had a very long swell on our crossing which we're attributing to the two hurricanes brewing down south. After the calm of the Sea it was nice to feel the motion of the ocean under our keel.

Cooling off during the crossing

Dorado! (aka Mahi Mahi or Dolphin fish)

Mahi Mahi Tacos with mango salsa

Marina El Cid in Mazatlan

Marina El Cid in Mazatlan