Puerto Escondido

We took an eight day journey from Puerto Escondido to La Paz, A mere 98nm but we like to travel slowly and enjoy the people and places we visit. Our short little adventure brought us time shared with friends new and old, photo opportunities, and a longing for more.

Our first stop was Aqua Verde. This is not our first time in this sweet little village and it will not be our last. The queso de cabra fresca (fresh goat cheese) from the local goat dairy alone would be enough to keep us coming back. Every evening the hills are alive with the tinkling of bells on the goats as they scramble about looking for food. Mornings and early evenings are alive with pangas as Pescadors (fishermen) go about their daily work. There is a blending here of land, sea, and daily living that leaves us feeling serene and at peace.

On this visit we decided to explore a new beach. Landing our dinghy and wandering about we were first met by a friendly dog who licked my knees as he wagged his tail. Not long after my new friend Señor Perro showed up came his owner, Milo. This lively character from old Czechoslovakia, now the Czech republic has been living in Mexico for 17 years. He once lived near San Carlos, Mexico where he somehow sunk his boat, although we never really got the whole story on that, and now he is squatting on “this” beach. He has a truck with a camper shell and a small sailboat up on a trailer that he is working on. He drives 45 miles to Loreto once a month and collects his social security check from the bank along with some supplies and he seemed quite happy. We were in a rush to get on to other things so we didn’t spend as much time as we would have liked. Hopefully Milo will still be there when we pass through again.

After leaving Aqua Verde we had a one night stop in a place called Timbabiche. I’m not sure it’s actually a town, or if it’s just the large rancho that gives it its name. The waters were filled with leaping rays that entertained us for hours and the gentle breeze carried us off to sleep. However, sometime around 2am we were awaked by the roar of 20+ knot winds howling through our rigging. We checked the anchor alarm, took a look outside to find everything was just fine and promptly fell back to sleep. If we hadn’t been on a deadline we probably would have stayed a few days. There is a decaying old house of notable history on the shore and a lagoon that promises to hold wildlife just waiting for my camera lens. We will certainly stop here again.

Getting closer to our destination we had to drop in on Lupe Sierra and Maggie Mae. The last time we were in San Everisto Maggie was still away with their daughter Barbarita. During the school year Maggie and Barbarita live in La Paz Monday-Friday and sometimes don’t return to San Evaristo for weeks. We were happy to see them and visit for a few nights. Steve and I have great respect for Lupe and his wife Maggie. They have a big dream and they work very hard to grow their business poco y poco (little by little).

San Evaristo

This small fishing community is one place that has worked its way into our hearts. The people work hard and the community is strong. There is a school however there is no teacher and the education only goes up through primary level through videos and guest educators. There is no electricity, but there is a desalinization plant that runs off of a diesel powered generator. Their minimalistic life does not make them poor nor are they unhappy. Actually, it’s quite the opposite. We are welcomed with shouts of “Hey Pablo” and fisherman are often heard singing as they come and go throughout the day. We hope to get closer and more accepted by this town as time passes. Being in community is one of the things lacking from this nomadic life we have chosen.

From San Evaristo we stopped again in Caleta Partida. We have now been to this anchorage 6 times, each time staying anywhere from 2-8 nights. Needless to say, we really like it. There is a green turtle that lives in the bay that I have named Penelope and I have attempted to photograph it multiple times. As Steve and I came into the bay I saw her and then later as I was backing down on the anchor I looked behind me to see her right behind us, so close I thought she might get bonked by Picasso (the dinghy). Later when again I pulled out the camera, she disappeared. I have a few blurry shots but nothing worthy of show and tell. However, I did manage to get a few pictures of other critters that didn’t run away so fast (or at all). We only spent two nights here this trip. As always, we wanted more so we will return again.

We made one quick overnight stop into a new anchorage for us, Caleta Lobos and then we headed into Marina de La Paz. Here we are spending our days getting Pablo settled because we are leaving for a visit to Santa Cruz. There are always tasks to be done when we leave the boat, however this time we have a lot of extra work to do as we are in the midst of hurricane season. This means everything needs to be stripped off the decks, the mainsail has to be lashed, extra dock lines to be installed, and on and on. The work is made difficult by the intense heat so we often work in 20-40 minute spurts with breaks in the shade to keep us from overheating. It will all be worth it as this trip is a special one. We will soon celebrate the wedding of my son Nick and his lovely bride Kristi.

I am so grateful that even though we travel so far from family we still get to celebrate the big events with them.

Guineafowl Puffer fish photo taken from the dock in La Paz