Books

The following is a list of some of the books we have read while aboard Caramelo.  Being that it's June and people are gearing up for summer reading we thought you might be interested.  If you have a favorite read that we might enjoy please let us know.  You can send us an e-mail or just add a comment to this post

• Velocity  Dean Koontz
• Puerto Vallarta Squeze  Robert Waller
• Four to Score  Janet Evanovich
• The Lovely Bones  Alice Sebold
• High Five  Janet Evanovich
• The Stupidest Angel  Christopher Moore
• Chicken Hawk  Robert Mason
• Three Cups of Tea  David Relin
• The Notebook  Nicholas Sparks

Ha donde punte el guarache

Where are we going, where have we been?  I don’t think a day has gone by that Ryan and I haven’t asked or had to answer this question.  As I’m sure you’ve noticed from our spot map we abandoned the sea of cortez in leu of heading north along the pacific.  We are now dressed in our full foulies and freazing wondering just what we were thinking. 

In Spanish….or at least as my mom tells me, there is a saying: “Ha donde punte el guarache” (wherever my sandal points).  Those words couldn’t explain us any better at this time.  Currently our lives are looking toward CA for at least the next few months.  Caramelo is pretty much everything we own so we figure we better bring her with us….

Where do we get our weather information?

Some of you may be interested in where exactly we get our information about the weather.  To us the weather report is similar to the morning traffic report for highway 101 or 80.  Needles to say it’s important stuff.

1.      1.   When we are able to gain access to the internet we use the following websites.

a.       www.passageweather.com

b.      www.wunderground.com

c.       www.solmatesantiago.com/weather/index.html

2.       2.  We also use our SSB radio to pick up weather reports.  The SSB is a long range radio.  It works similar to a walkie talkie only with the proper skills and information you can speak with someone half way around the world.  The beauty about SSB is that there is no cost other than your initial expense of the proper equipment.  Through the radio we are able to pick up “nets”.  Nets are set times when people in certain areas all gather on the same channel and check in with eachother.  During a “net” there is always a call for emergency or priority assistance, next a weather report is given and finaly those boats that wish to “check-in” are able to do so.  The following are the nets we tend to follow.

a.       Amigo Net

b.      Sonrisa Net

c.       Southbound Net

3.      3.  Word of mouth.  Last but not least we talk to people.  Like stereotypical old men it seems the weather is often a topic of choice when it comes to conversation in the cruising community.  Well, that and where to find the best taco or best price on laundry.

Now, the next time you check to see where we are on our spot account you should hop over to one of the above websites and see what the weather is like where we are located.

Happy Birthday Mama

Happy Birthday to the woman who:

·         Dropped me off at school 185 days a year for 10 years.
·         Drove me to countless basketball and volleyball practices and games
·         Encouraged me to try horseback riding
·         Helped me pay for guitar lessons
·         Came to visit me in Denver, CO
·         Let me go to Chico State
·         Was always there with a hug or a pat on the back when I needed it
·         Proof read countless of school projects (most of them at the last minute)
·         Tried to teach me the value in NOT procrastinating
·         Double checks the house before I leave to find the one thing I’ve forgotten
·         Helps me with anything that comes up….even when we are hundreds of miles apart
·         Share’s a good book with me
·         Has taught me how to appreciate a good happy hour
·         Made pancakes for dinner
·         Doesn’t let fear stop her from doing something
·         Stayed the night on our sailboat while at anchor
·         Always welcomes me with an open heart and open arms
·         Has taught me to appreciate a good movie, popcorn and a hagendaz
·         Tried to teach me to dance
·         Has laughed and cried with me

I’m sorry we are not there to share this day with you but know that we will gladly share in some tequila in your honor.

We love you....

Charter day

Today we went sailing on Latitude 32 with captain Bob. Latitude 32 is a gorgeous 52 foot Beneteau available for charters in Cabo. If you or someone you know is coming to Cabo tell them about Day Sail Cabo. Captain Bob actually takes you sailing (he even flies the spinnaker). While sailing by the arches at lovers beach we saw at least 10 rays jumping out of the water. Along the way also stopped to anchore to enjoy a snorkel and check out the fish while lunch was prepared aboard. We had a wonderful and relaxing time aboard this pleasure boat and would do it again. For those of you that can’t make it all the way to Cabo he will return to San Diego in late summer.

Surf and snacks

Tuesday June 8, 2010

Tuesday we drove the rental car that our job graciously provided to a beach just west of Playa Costa Azul in San Jose del Cabo.  Here we found Playa Acapulcito where we rode some great surf. There was a southwest swell and this surf spot was one of the nicest we have seen while in Mexico. The waves were consistent and perfect for a long board. Ryan and I, on short boards, hungout on the inside and picked up plenty of sweet head-high waves. Enjoying the morning in the warm water I couldn’t help but think about how cold the surf is going to be in CA. I guess Ryan and I will have to ditch the rash guard and bikini for a full wetsuit's. Such is life…we can’t have it all, all of the time!

surfers click here for a link to info on Playa Acapulquito

After surfing we hit up Costco before returning the rental car. Can you believe a wedge of parmesanoregiano goes for 349 pesos? I miss the variety of cheeses back home, but not that much. We did however splurge on a bag of Stacy’s pita chips and a box of Oreo cookies for night watches as we come up the coast. We also threw an apple pie in the cart in honor of our friend Tim on Marishanna. Tim crewed down to Cabo on the Bajahaha in October when Kristina came down. He has been hanging in Cabo ever since and had a mean craving for apple pie.

To cap off the day we joined Captain Bob, Tim and our new friends Lindi and Monika for two for one pizza at Andres. Andres serves one of the best thin crust pizzas we’ve had along with complementary brochetta! Yes, complimentary warm, refreshing, crispy brochetta on a baguette that’s made in house.  We could not ask for anything more.

Playa Acapulquito

June 8, 2010


A good video of the consistent break we experienced at Playa Acapulquito...

Monday work day

Monday June 7th, 2010

We went to work today!  We actually set an alarm before we went to bed...it's a shocker I know. 

We had to attend a time share presentation through Playa Bonito. For about 2 ½ hours of our time we were rewarded with breakfast, US cash, and a 24 hour car rental. Not bad for a days work in the life of a cruiser trying to stretch the dough in Cabo. After escaping the time share presentation we drove north about an hour and a half to Todos Santos. The drive was scenic as we traveled north along the pacific coast.

In Todos Santos we visited the Hotel California and checked out local shops and artistry. To be honest neither I or Ryan were too impressed with the town.

However, if you are looking a different place to stay along the baja that isn’t quite so cabo-esque try Rancho Pescadero.http://www.ranchopescadero.com/  We came across this new oasis on our drive back to Cabo San Lucas and wished we could stay for a few nights.  As you'll see from their website it is one of the clasiest Rancho's I've visited.

Zippers Surf Day

Sunday June 6, 2010

The following is a video of Zippers surf break in Cabo. The video is off of you tube as Ryan and I have no camera.


The city life in Cabo has been a luxury but today we decided to get back to some good old fashioned traveling! Ryan and I set out on a bus by 8am bound for San Jose del Cabo. We were destined to zippers (a surf break) between Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo. As the bus pulled to a stop for us to get on saw that there was standing room only! We backed off to wait for the next bus but the bus driver waved us on anyway (pretty cool since we each had a surfboard in tow).


After about 30 minutes we were concerned that we may end up all the way in San Jose del Cabo with nothing but our board shorts and surfboards for the day. We eagerly watched the coast line looking for the break. Rounding a corner a few minutes later we eyed a good looking break but we’re told we needed to go just a little farther down the rode. Two hair pinned turns later and we arrived at Zippers. Here we enjoyed a day of fast, fun, rights as you can see in the above video.

Soriana

Happy June 1st everyone.

Ryan and I are still anchored in Cabo San Lucas, or “lower L.A.” as Ryan has taken to calling it.

In the last few days here we have run into a friend from the Baja Haha and made some new one’s as well. Yesterday' s major activity was a run to the local Soriana (like Super Target on crack) to fill our boat with lots of goodies to eat on the way up the coast. If you ever come to Mexico you'll have to be sure to take a trip to the local Soriana. Not only is it a great place to stock up on food but they usually blast club music throughout the produce and liquor section of the store!

Today’s major chores will include topping off the propane and going snorkeling off of lovers beach. A friend asked me how I was ever going to go back to work after 6 months off. At the time I didn’t think twice about it. Now as we wait for a weather window to head up the coast I’m beginning to wonder.

We like our home

May 27, 2010 Thursday

 

Ryan and I have really grown to like our time aboard our little vessel. She gives us a home while still allowing us the freedom to pick up and move to a new spot when we feel it’s time.

Ryan will be working at Northstar Academy again in the fall. He actually starts in the third week of August!

After much thought we have decided to cruse the outside of the Baja as opposed to the inside of the Baja. This will allow us to continue checking out new anchorages while slowly making our way back to San Francisco for work.

The ingenious part of this new plan means that we won’t have to struggle to find a place to live or set up a whole new home when we get back. We will also be able to devote time to all of the projects we have listed out for Caramelo. We are also excited to check out Giants games at Macovey cove, city lights in Ayala Cove, and pleasant nights at the moorings at Angel Island.

Leaving Mazatlan

May 24, 2010 Monday

We made it….

Leaving Mazatlan the swell seemed to be about 6 feet. Ryan looked like he felt great but I on the other hand was nervous. I was afraid the swell would continue and possibly get bigger leading me to be sea sick during the crossing. Nervousness is just about the worst thing for seasickness or a queasy stomach and needless to say I fed the fishes for a little while as we slowly made our way into the Sea of Cortez. It’s too bad our camera is broken!

Anyhow, I felt a little better after I got that out of the way. Ryan did his best to keep me relaxed and a few hours later we were comfortably sailing making about 5 knots with the spinnaker out. We sailed the day and into the evening until the winds died and then we turned on our iron geni (the motor) to make way through the night. I took that first night shift and Ryan came up at about 1am so I could get some rest.

Ryan was able to sail (literally) through his shift as the wind always seems to find him (or does he find it?) He even let me sleep in past my watch time as he was having such a good time with the sails.

The second day at sea seemed to be the hardest on both of us. After about 24 hours of being up and just short rests (about 4 hours) during the night we felt a bit like zombies. I personally spent most of that second day in and out of heavy sleep. Ryan poked his head out the hatch to look for taffic and wondered just how one person could sleep so heavily for so long.

Bahia De los Muertos

May 21, 2010


Today we are off to Bahia de los Muertos. To get there we have to cross the Sea of Cortez. When completed this will be our biggest passage completed together. It is exciting and Ryan seems to be more then ready. I am excited and ready to get to the Baja but a little nervous about the crossing. In all likelihood we will be out at sea for about 50 hours. In that time we will try to rotate shifts about every 4 hours on deck.

The weather is favorable to begin the crossing tomorrow however there have been some high seas warnings in the Pacific off the coast of California and Baja. We will defiantly be keeping an eye on the seas as we cross.

I have final setup our SPOT account and created a link on the blog. If you’re interested please click on the link and track our progress as we head out.

March 13th Kristina's Birthday

Who would have thought the day would come that I turned 29 again. Well it happened! I was fortunate to be surrounded by a great group of people on this day.

I would have liked to share the day with friends and family from back home….but we’ll just have to catch up on that when Ryan and I get back.

Side trip to Tepic

If you haven't gathered by now that we rarely sit still then you should start to get the picture pretty soon!
Today we again strolled into town early so we could catch the bus and take a two hour trip inland to the capitol of Tepic.

The fish in the pictures are actually from the market in San Blas along the walk to the bus station.  They are fresh and deliciouse.  We ate fresh chicken tamales before we getting on the bus but I wasn't quick enough with the camera to get a shot of those.  I guess we were hungry!

We enjoyed the scenery along the road on the trip into Tepic.  Once there we took another bus to the center of town and visited the Cathedral and a handful of museums.


All of the walking helped us work up an appetite so we ate at a local diner and then stocked up on a few esentials at wal-mart (of all places) and soriana (like super walmart or super target) before heading back home to Caramelo.

Out on our own

Brave souls that we all are...and with inspiration from the crocodile tour we decided to make our own adventure up the estuary.

Two Dinks, five friends and a few hours.  We ended up about 4 miles up the estuary from where we anchored the boats.  There we found a semi-abondoned crocoldile in a semi-secure cage.  This was at a restaurant along the river bank that was presently closed.


We wished they were open as we got pretty hungry on our trek up river...

Market Day in San Blas

Our beautiful Caramelo at anchor in the estuary in San Blas. We ended up staying here for a week. Compared to Isla Isabela it was wonderful to be at anchor and have the boat remain relatively still.


Caramelo certainly seems to draw her share of attention. We had a few fisherman stop by our boat as we did at Isla Isabela. One in particular stopped by to tell us how much he loved San Francisco. He works the off season in Drakes Bay farming oysters. It's always good to see felow lovers of the bay.



Today was the first day we roused ourselves out of bed early enough to go to the market. This was a task rewarded by huevos rancheros for Kristina and Chilaquiles for Ryan. Both plates were delicious but Ryan still favors his chilaquiles the way my mom and make them.

Croc tour

Today we took an excursion with our friends to find some croc's.  Not the brightly colored ones you wear on your feet...the snappy ones with sharp teeth!

Ryan and I came ready in true safari style. 

Check out the full album in the scrap book section of the blog...there are even a few videos of the crocs and the fresh water swimming hole we found at the end of the journey.

Off again

Here are some pictures of our journey about 40 miles back toward the mainland to San Blas. If you've seen the photo album of Isla Isabela then you know we had a great time there but alas it was time to move on. An early start called for some coffee.

The loud cloud cover that morning reminded us of San Francisco.  Although I'm sure San Francisco is much colder at this time.  It was nice to pretend we were back in our home port. 

The boat below is the s/v Tao. Tao, Estrella, Plume and Caramelo all left Isla Isabela together bound for San Blas.

To celebrate another day at sea Ryan enjoyed one of our treasured Newcastle.

arriving to Isla Isabela

It is March first and we are headed into Isla Isabela. We've had a pleasant trip through the night from Mazatlan under a full moon. The total distance was approx. 80 miles and we were able to sail much of the way. The night was highlighted be a few whale sightings.


Kristina was on watch sometime after midnight when two whales appeared off the bow. After about 20 minutes of watching them breach and slap their tales on the water we continued on coarse to Isabela.

Casting Off

Today we finally untied the doc lines and headed over to the anchorage in the "Old Harbor" in Mazatlan. It was wonderful to finally feel Caramelo stretch out a bit under sail. We will anchor here overnight and if all is well head to Isla Isabela in the morning.

Click on the photo below to see an album of pictures from the hike we went on to get a great view of the anchorage and Mazatlan.

Old Harbor Mazatlan

48 hours later…

This afternoon we have officially been in Mazatlan 48 hours! Some of you might be wondering just what we've been doing for the last 48.  There has been no surfing or snorkeling that's for sure.  Instead we have been busy working on several projects aboard Caramelo.

1.  Changed the bolts on the monitor 

2.  Installed new zincs

3.  Made room in the boat for sleeping & living!

4.  Relocate holding tank from under port settee to under v-birth (huge job!)

5.  Sand &scrape bilge

6.  Sand teak & holly sole

We've been eating out for one meal each day and cooking simple top ramen style dinners on the boat.  This helps us save money as we're not working right now and it costs money everday we are in the marina.  Check out the link to the full photo album for a better picture of "the last 48"

48 hours

click the picture above to go to photo album :-)