Baja California Sur
by Charlie Triggs – Deckhand aboard Sea Dragon.
Sea Dragon, although bound to the dock, has enjoyed the last few days in Cabos San Lucas, Baja California. Morning maintenance, a change over of crew, starter motor mayhem, and lots of tacos have all been on the cards for our seven day stop over in Mexico.
Servicing winch
Deck washes, polishing, servicing winches and provisioning runs have filled the agenda to prepare Sea Dragon for the next 2,600nm sail to Honolulu, Hawaii. The onward Luau Express team consists of Eric and Shanley, Iona, Shannon, Andy and Charlie, and there has been plenty of time for the team to get to know each other whilst enjoying the delights that Cabos has to offer!
There has been a constant stream of whale watching boats, sport-fishing boats, water taxis, party cruises and of course the ‘Cabos Legendo’ pirate ship coming in and out of the marina. This has offered endless people watching opportunities right on our front door, in the center of this bustling tourist destination.
As well as the tourists enjoying the Mexican sun, there are sea lions and pelicans all around the marina. As the sport fishing boats return home a few cheeky sea lions have been seen jumping up onto the back step of the boat, to be fed some freshly caught fish! A huge male who goes by the name of Poncho can always be seen swimming around the marina. His feeding technique seems to be pretty successful!
Sea Lion poncho feeding on back of boat
After a refreshing afternoon swim, Shannon, Shanley and Jen spotted a humpback whale just a few hundred meters from the shore! Its great too see such an abundance of sea life in such a busy place. Saturday afternoon saw us taking the dinghy round to view the famous ‘Arch of Cabo San Lucas’ and to do some snorkeling. We were delighted to see a big school of jacks as well as lots of other fish that were completely unfazed by our presence. The highlight was definitely a white tip reef shark lying still on the white sand seabed.
Although the water here is so busy with a variety of boats, jet skis, divers and swimmers, there still seems to be a great variety of life in this healthy looking ocean, which is really exciting. The marina and beaches appear pretty clean and this is encouraging to see considering how busy the coastline and waterways are along this shore.
For a more cultural Mexican experience some of the crew took the bus to Todos Santos, which is an hour or so up the west coast. The main road through the town was paved with dirt roads leading off into the residential areas; these were filled with plenty of friendly locals and lots of stray dogs. We enjoyed some delicious local tacos with a beautiful sunset reflecting off the distant sea, bathing everything in a warm glow. A highlight of our afternoon adventure was watching two donkeys driving past in the back of a pickup truck; cultural afternoon ticked.
Todos Santos
The starter motor has caused some annoyance in this past week and is the reason for our extended stay in Mexico. Multiple ‘fixes’ and different motors across two workshops have failed to get us up and running. The solution has been found and Shanley is flying to Long Beach to pick up a replacement. It’s a bit of a hassle but highlights the difficulties that can be faced with international sailing.
However, every cloud has a silver lining and this one is pretty epic. The six of us spent Saturday 24th March SWIMMING WITH WHALE SHARKS!!! La Paz sits on the edge of a large shallow bay leading to the Sea Of Cortez. This ecosystem is very popular with a range of whales, dolphins, sharks, rays and turtles. Currently around 200 juvenile whale sharks are thought to be in the bay, feeding on the plankton rich waters.
Equipped with snorkel, fins and cameras we jumped in next to the biggest fish on the planet. We swam with three individuals that were all feeding and swimming close together. They ranged from 6 – 8 meters with dark upper coloration and were lighter underneath; the obvious white dots could be visible from the surface. As well as from their size the whale sharks could be told apart by carrying different Remora that had attached themselves to their symbiotic host. To be in the water next to such a massive animal really was incredible. They glide so effortlessly through the water, propelled by their huge tails. Towards the end of our two hour encounter we were all starting to find it difficult to keep up!
whale shark
So unfortunately our departure has been delayed, but we have had some great fun and incredible experiences in the meantime. So our fingers are crossed and early this week we should be saying “Hasta La Vista” to Mexico and “Aloha” to Hawaii. The cupboards are filled with food and the crew is eager to slip lines, head west and taste the open ocean.