Christmas with friends, images of Topo

In front of the Topo power plant

At the bus station to Los Mochis

Margarita anyone? Fresca
& El Cabrito tequila (the Goat)
at the market in Topo

Colonial building in Topolobampo

 Some images of our short visit in Topolobampo. Behind Mike is the huge frame for the big game fish you can catch.
A quick stop in the grocery store on New Year's Eve - welcomed by the huge display of Fresca and cheap tequila - margaritas, Mexican style!

This town has a lot of interesting history, check out this brief story at:
[http://ecollections.lib.csufresno.edu/specialcollections/collections/topolobampo_collection.php

Wonderful Christmas Potluck with good friends at their new home in San Carlos

 We spent a lovely Christmas Day with our good friends who recently purchased a beautiful home in San Carlos. Turkey roasted on the grill! Ham cooked in the toaster oven. The house didn't come with an oven so, as cruisers, you compromise. Results were stunning.

Christmas Day in the kitchen at our friends' home

View from the marina to the hills of Topolobampo

New Year's in Topolobampo, Sinaloa

Our second attempt at reaching Mazatlan lasted for two days. Moderate southerly winds changed to NW as day one progressed with our main sail and jib pushing us southbound. The following seas hit at a higher frequency than predicted (sensing a trend?) and delivered uneven bashing that was unpleasant and jostling to the crew and the boat. As the NW winds increased so did the seas. Everything was lashed down and stowed. The hook holding our mesh bags full of veggies for our passage broke free and I caught most before we had a salon full of salad. That would have been a good video clip, I’d imagine.

The wish for ”following seas” as one heads out on a journey is no longer my idea of fun. I readily admit, I was not looking forward to two more days of the same. As we headed past San Ignacio Farallon rock outside of Topolobampo, the captain relinquished and we rounded to the south side to make our way in.

Crossing against the chop took six hours toward the entrance. As some know, it’s a very long and shallow way in to the harbor at Topolobampo. Following the buoys into the channel is critical and slow going. We followed large ship traffic past Buoy 11 and 12 in the main channel, then they continued N and we headed NW toward the marina. We stopped to enter additional waypoints, and suddenly our first dolphins snorted next to the boat to welcome us. In the darkness, surprise blows make you jump!

Through salty binoculars, we saw marina lights glisten in the distance at 11pm. It was at that instant we ran aground – aligned exactly between Buoy 7 and 8 in the inner harbor. Alone in the darkness, we had little choice but to drop anchor then fell fast asleep exhausted from the journey and dark passage into the harbor. We were gleefully awoken at 5AM to the boat tipped, then rocking gently – we were freed from the mud! We quickly raised anchor and made our way to the marina where we spent New Year’s cleaning the boat, doing repairs and resting.

I didn’t mind a stop at Topolobampo (the only other place I know that has 5 vowels, just like my home town of Oconomowoc!). We’d been here exactly two years ago with cruising friends, so are familiar with the town and its story [http://ecollections.lib.csufresno.edu/specialcollections/collections/topolobampo_collection.php]. New Years’ day found us enjoying fresh seafood cocktails at a street stand with a view to the bay. It was at the intersection of several streets so was reminiscent of Italy, great for people watching.

So we’ve decided to stay a couple more days until weather allows. We’ll bus to Los Mochis and El Fuerte then continue our quest south, into hopefully more mellow seas, the welcome sights and sounds of Mazatlan, and our friends who arrive from Canada – now before us – on the 4^th.

Cheese, Shrines and Projects

Enjoyed 2 wonderful concerts
at the church: chamber music, tenors
and choir from Sonora

Pelican poop isn't good for our solar
panels, in case you wondered

Eggs and honey
fresh from the market

My mom's 1950's vintage Mexican tray
is put to good use

Good friends sharing our splash

Our deluxe marina, easy walk to market

Pretty rich cheese 199.00
but, hey, we found it!

Fully decorated
roadside shrine

Mike folded
into the lazaret!

Judy not-so-folded into the lazaret
to document the new install

Wow - in the lazaret, newly installed
engine room blower vent to
hopefully cool the engine room

Upgraded stern anchor!

Pre-rust treatment

Pre-treat emergency tiller

Cool new anchor bridle 

Pretty excited about
our new fender step

a borrowed work table makes projects
easier to manage

Enjoying a tequila in our cockpit, the last
sunset in the dry yard before launching

Neptune rules

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.

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.

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!

Happy Thanksgiving from Guaymas, Sonora!

Self-serve Mexican (yellow) and
American (white) chicken

Please eat some turkey, gravy and pie for us! We shan't experience Thanksgiving in the traditional way...

Our first two plus weeks have been amazing and we're enjoying life in a great Mexican community. 

Oh yeah, let's have lard

Holiday wine display - don't
forget the Boones Farm!

Yea! Judy rethreads
the main halyard

Sunset tonight...behind our neighbors

Mike installing
our new port

Mike installing our new portlight

On the hard with our 'front door' ladder

Judy up the mast 3x - what a view

Mike climbing down the ladder,
heading to the shower
after a day in the engine room

...Our 4 sails on the bowsprit, awaiting
re-install

Judy projects: clean up and paint
stern anchor and emergency tiller

Loud music, crisp school uniforms, dangerous sidewalks, sky-high lard displays (especially for holiday cooking), riding in the back of pickup trucks (ah the freedom, whether entire families eating ice cream cones, full work crews, or machine gun-toting camouflaged Federales). It’s all good and now, familiar.

Plus, this year we have our car and the responsibility of being part of what I call anarchy driving, where there are apparently no rules, few street signs and optional stop signs. You have to remain keenly aware of buses, motorbikes, dogs, and the oft unlabeled “topes” (serious speed bumps).

Potluck fun: Ulla (in red) made margaritas
for the ladies (with Ziggy from Poland)

We enjoy connecting with old friends and meeting new in the dry boat yard, where we live onboard, up and down the ladder. We’ve attended two potlucks with people from Canada, England, Poland, Argentina and of course, the US. Such a melting pot of adventuresome individuals, it rocks.

In the boatyard, we are working on Pura Vida projects so she’s ready for a full season of cruising. Progress! We are thankful for Gabriel and Arnulfo, the yard managers, and have hired Gama, the stainless steel guy and Chaba, the electrician for small repairs.

One path, two schools of thought –

We are dedicating this post to our friend, Mike Vokoun, who left this earth too soon and is watching over us from heaven. Mike lived life to the fullest, laughed a lot, shared his 'joie de vivre', and truly lived by his mantras: it’s all good and no worries. He applied those life philosophies long before the sayings became popular. We will miss his warm smile and zest for life. And we’re looking forward to his soulmate and widow, Cathy, coming to visit us in Mexico!

Dinner at Omar's, Judy's fave restaurant -
in Ashland OR on our way south

View from the ramp at our rental floating
home on the Columbia River

Quotes from two famous people with two distinct schools of thought motivate us on our path of adventure:

"Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do
than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bow lines. Sail away from the safe
harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover" - Mark Twain

“Well if anything's going to happen, it's going to happen out there.” - Captain Ron

Early morning walk along the dock

Mike delivered this sailboat from Newport
to Portland OR with our friend Lisa

The drive from Portland in our fully loaded car has been good. Brief stops in Alameda and Phoenix to see friends and buy some goodies that are hard to come by south of the border: good butter, blue cheese and our kind of bacon... Now the next chapter of our sailing adventures has begun. Our Mexican auto insurance policy is in effect and once we splash, we’ll store the covered car in the same dry yard where the boat is. We secured our annual Mexican fishing licenses via mail, as we plan to catch our dinner as much as possible and improve our skills.

Tony carved 'Wilson' for our deck

We intend to spend about a month preparing Pura Vida for her next voyage, then hopefully head to Zihuatenejo, around 1,100 miles as the crow flies, SE on the Mexican mainland. At a max of 6 nautical miles an hour, you’ll quickly see that this will be a long trip. We're stoked.

During the summer we had several jobs both working at West Marine and Passion Yachts on Hayden Island where we lived in two fantastic floating homes on the Columbia River. Additional jobs also kept us hopping and working almost every day. We were able to get by with one car, having sold Mike's truck to a friend last year. And, we rode our bikes to work or walked on the island.

Six years ago today…

I married my best friend. Today is our wedding anniversary and we’re so thankful for each other! When I think about it, I would never have imagined a water-focused lifestyle nor the idea of living on a boat but since I’ve known Mike, it just makes sense for us. Thank you to everyone who made our day so special in 2007!

We’re gearing up for our return to Mexico and excited that we are heading out for unknown adventures. Just gave our notice at the lovely floating home we’ve been renting since July so we’ll be out November 1^st. We’ve decided we’ll drive our Rubia-mobile to Mexico! Driving down will give us some flex on what we bring and remove the Mexican bus from the travel mix. While driving my BMW in Mexico makes me a tad nervous, I am getting over it.

View to I-5 freeway from our floating home

Sunset from our moorage

We look forward to spending about a month getting Pura Vida ready for her big splash. Then, we’ve decided we’ll head south to Zihuatenejo on the Pacific side.

Happy Autumn to all.

Judy & Mike

Girls outing via pontoon boat to a floating restaurant!

Jody & I before our High School
Reunion in Oconomowoc WI in Aug