We took our time coming up to La Paz from San Jose del Cabo with our first stop in Bahia Los Frailes (Bay of the Friers, or monks) where we anchored for 3 days. We were having coffee in the V-berth our first morning there when we heard a strange kind of noise like the flapping of a jib as you tack the boat. It wasn't windy so it shouldn't be that, and even if it was, it was way to close! Popping up thru the hatch I was treated to the most unusual sight of sting rays jumping out of the water then belly flopping back in. It wasn't just one ray jumping and it wasn't just once or twice, but rather, a whole school of them, and they jumped repetedly as they worked their way across the entire anchorage!
That evening we learned that Los Frailes is kind of a nursery for manta rays and it's the young ones that jump. While the most impressive display occurred that first morning at Los Frailes we occasionally saw rays jumping throughout the rest of our stay at Los Frailes. Unfortunately we can't share any photos with you because our cameras were at the nav station. Lesson learned? Keep the cameras handy!
On our third morning there the winds were quiet so Gail and I went for an extended dingy ride around the point toward Cabo Pulmo and did a sort of drift snorkle back towards Music, swimming lazily while towing the dingy behind us. The water was so clear we could clearly see the bottom which was at times 60 to 70 feet down. Just a couple of the bigger fish we saw down deep were sea bass and grouper. In the mid water column were schools of mackerel and other fish, while in the really shallow water swam schools of tangs, convict fish, and an occasional brightly colored angel fish.
The next morning, Nov 18th, we were up at 5:30 to get an early start to get around the double capes of Los Frailes and Pulmo before the winds and chop got too severe. Together these two capes form what is locally called the "East Cape". About 45 miles later we dropped the hook in 25 feet of water over a sandy bottom at Ensenada de Los Muertos, or "Cove of the Dead". The cruising guides claim the bay and smaller cove supposedly got this name after the deadman mooring system employed there during mining operations in the early 20th century. But I have my doubts. After all, a developer who has moved in and built a really posh resort refers to it as Bahia de los Suenos (pronounced Suenyous), or Bay of Dreams which sounds much more inviting.
After getting settled we dinghied over to the resort and had drinks and appetizers with cruising friends Daryl and Sarah of El Tiburon, a Tanaya 47, to celebrate my birthday. There certainly could be worse ways of spending a birthday! - John
The following day we got up even earlier to get through the Cerralvo and San Lorenzo channels before the wind picked up in the afternoon. Heading North, we had about a knot of current against us but the water was flat so we made good time. After clearing San Lorenzo channel we turned right and headed to one of our favorite anchorages - Ensenada el Cardonal on Isla Partida.
We had such wonderful memories from anchoring here in 1996 during a charter out of La Paz that we just had to visit El Cardonal again. During that charter we had the anchorage all to ourselves and were treated to a full moon rise between the saddle of 2 hills just as the sun was setting. Would we be lucky enough to have it again 14 yrs later? Well, luck was with us and we had the rising full moon during a stunning sunset.
Is it possible this visit could be any more special? - the short answer is Yes!
Some folks we met in the anchorage told us about snorkeling at Los Islotes where they swam with the sea lions. Minutes later we found ourselves in the dingy motoring the 5 miles to the islands (more like rocks) and jumped in the water. WOW!!! Right below the dingy were hundreds of colorful reef fish just hanging out in the current.
A short swim took us to a swim through in one of the rocks. The walls of the "hole" were covered with beautiful soft corals, and to top that off while in the swim-through sea lion pups came right up to us and swam around us. Right behind came Momma sea lion to check us out. What a fantastic snorkel - in fact we call it one of the best dives we've had anywhere, including the scuba diving we've done in Hawaii and Fiji.
One of the things we pay a lot of attention to is the weather. Unfortunately the weather was going to change over the next few days so we decided to head into La Paz and get a slip at a marina. It was going to be nice to wash all the salt off the boat and get a few lingering projects done, not to mention replenish the food stores.
We're currently in Marina Palmira for several days while we wait for the weather to settle down again. While here we've seen several other cruisers from Gate 11 Marina Village, our previous home port on Alameda, and yesterday we had Thanksgiving dinner at the marina restaurant. There was a big cruisers pot luck Thanksgiving dinner put on by a local cruisers club but it was overbooked so we missed out on that. We had a great time anyway, and finished the day off watching our favorite cruising movie, Capt'n Ron. - Gail
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