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| Our marina in downtown Guaymas |
The Sea is the master and we, her servants, can pass gently
at times and at others, a more exciting or perhaps challenging, journey awaits.
So it is that we chose our departure Thu 19 Dec for our 400 mile journey from
Guaymas to Mazatlan, estimating 3 ½ days’ transit. Having checked Passage
Weather and UGrib for the latest weather and winds plus reading Gary’s weather
on the Sonrisa Net, these great resources provide the best to help mariners
make their way. However, unbeknownst to us, we think Mother Nature and Neptune apparently
had a spat.
Our departure wasn’t without delays, as often happens with
boats, and we headed out into the midday sun. After a long day and night
bashing into southerlies on the nose with no reprieve, and 10 hours of slow
transit time toward Mazatlan, we were burning a ton of fuel and not having the
times of our lives, let’s just say.
We continued on, as hearty sailors do, into the darkness. Although
almost full moon, a heavy cloud layer loomed and lightning strikes all around served
as our only illumination, along with the halogen spotlights of shrimp trawlers.
At 9:30p, El Capitan made the wise decision to follow Neptune's guidance and do
a 180. After 10 hours and only 35 nautical miles traversed, it was going to be a lot
longer journey than estimated 70-80 hours. Best to head back and start again later.
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| Sunset over the malecon / boulevard in Guaymas |
With our mail sail reefed, we turned swiftly in the darkness
and made haste northbound. Ironically, at midnight, the winds turned from S to
W, then to NW (as predicted before we left) and we ended up bashing north against the wind through choppy seas
with stuff a flyin’ in the salon. Funny...as the winds clocked north, we actually
pondered turning south again. For a moment. Then a lightning strike reminder:
oh yea, big storm southbound.
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| The welcome view of the Guyamas harbor upon our return |
After a long night, we waited until daylight to reenter the Guaymas
harbor (bright freighters passed and unlit trawlers lurked in the early morning darkness). The
slip we’d left 18 hours before welcomed us back to safety and a well-deserved
nap.
And so, we are happily back in Guaymas, where we shall spend
Christmas with our many friends.
Mazatlan will wait until Neptune permits and a safe, and
hopefully enjoyable, passage can be made – after Christmas!
