It was a buddy boat sail up to Puerto Escondido with Striker and Harlequin. We were the last out of the anchorage, by a few minutes, and pushing north we passed both of them. It isn’t a race, right?
While at the helm I spotted a disturbance in the water. There are numerous reefs along the way so at first I was a bit leary. A minute later I was treated to a beautiful blue whale surfacing. A call to Jean and we throttled back the engine to enjoy this special part of nature. The show was short but still a great start to our day on the water.
Blue whale sighting!
Getting closer, still hoping to catch a fish we decided to take the north route around Dancer island while our friends followed the shorter route through the “pinnacles” a series of small rock islands separating the baja from Danzante island. The added mile or two gave them the jump on us as we approached the entrance to the harbor.
Pinnacle rocks near Isla Danzante
We were coming during mid tide and I was surprised to see that our depth dropped to 10 feet, 9 feet, 8 feet, 7 feet, before bottoming out at 6 feet 8 inches. Wow, that was unexpected.
Approaching the entrance to Puerto Escondido
Inside the main harbor we had our first chance to use a mooring ball. With little wind it was a non-event. However we were not sure the best way to secure to the mooring line. The first couple nights we placed the line around our anchor cleat before adding a D shackle to connect the line to our anchor bridle.
We happened to arrive on Superbowl Sunday and while listening to the morning net learned that a nearby hotel, Tripui, was hosting a party. We joined our new friends, from Agua Verde, Eileen and David (SV Striker) along with about twenty other cruisers for the game. The margaritas were strong, the game was exciting, but what stole the show for me was a garlic Cabrilla (fish) I had for dinner. I had asked the server what her favorite preparation was and she was spot on. It was amazing.
Rather than pay $30 each way to Loreto, the following day we arranged for a rental car. Striker joined us where we explored the shops, mission, buildings, and malecon before settling in for a long lunch that included, well, more than a few beverages. A surprise passerby were our friends from Harlequin.
Interesting artwork inside of City Hall
Mission in Loreto established in 1697
Finally pulling ourselves off our chairs the six of us loaded into the rental car, it was a friendly group, and headed to the grocery store for some provisions (i.e. beer and vegetables). Heading out of town David reminded me he needed to hit an ATM since the one in the main square rejected his card. A quick u-turn and we followed Google to the bank. That wasn’t there. Hmfp. Well it isn’t a big town so we decided to drive around looking. Stumbled on another bank only to find out it was still under construction. Just about giving up hope, Eileen had the idea of transferring money from a different account. But would it work? With the benefit of cell phones we pulled it off and all was good with our world.
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