Author Archives: Michael

It is Thursday, 31 May, 2018 and all is well here. After arriving at Bahia Algodones yesterday we contacted the San Carlos marina to confirm our reservation for June 7 only to learn that the previous tenants had vacated the slip earlier than scheduled. Slip B23 was sitting empty just waiting on us. With that sort of serendipity what else could we do but agree to come in early ourselves. We enjoyed a fun evening ashore at the Soggy Peso visiting with friends on the SV Kismet (Rick, Wendy and boat dog Reah) as well as meeting the crew of SV Pincoya (Gene and Gloria). This morning we bid adios to the folks on both the Sonrisa and the Amigo nets and headed for the barn. At 0810MST Milagro was secured in slip B23 at 27 56.871’N, 111 03.365’W. The OAT is 83F, it’s 76F in the pool and there is a NW breeze at 8-10 kts. We will spend the next several days stripping Milagro of her sails and canvas, giving her a good bath, removing perishable foods and carefully storing what we think will survive and then packing up those goodies we won’t leave home without. So I’m sorry to say that this is it for this cruising season. I’m not sure about chronicling our motorhome travels and adventures this summer. I may (MAY) try to keep the blog updated or perhaps I’ll just keep posting to Farkwar, we’ll see. If you’re interested, the blog URL is http://www.milagro42.com. In the meantime, thank you all for putting up with our lame attempt to share some of this cruising world.

It is Wednesday, 30 May, 2018 and the crew of Milagro are grinning large. We left Los Coronados yesterday morning about 1100 with breezes light and variable and <3kts. As we needed to run the engine for a bit to fill our nearly empty water tanks, that was OK. Then, shortly after that exercise was completed, the wind filled in and settled at +/-8kts from the SE and it pretty much stayed that way all the way to San Carlos. We enjoyed flat water broad reaching under a full moon. All. Night. Long. There was a period of about 4 hours when the wind lay down a bit which caused us to slow considerably but we were still making comfortable progress and had planned the passage to allow for this very thing. But then it came back steady at 8 with occasional periods of 10 and once again we were speeding along. Even with this lull, we averaged right at 5kts p/hr overall. I don’t suppose we should be surprised, though, we have sailed this passage between San Carlos and the Baja 9 times now and have sailed virtually the entire way for 8 of them. We particularly appreciated this sail, however, as so far this season we have only seen “noserlies” or winds too light to sail given the sea state. Now we are anchored in Bahia Algodones, near San Carlos, Sonora at 27 57.876’N, 111 06.693’W in 16′ over sand and right in front of the Soggy Peso palapa bar. The OAT is 79F, the pool is murky green and 72F, and there is a SE wind running at 9kts. We will remain here for a couple of days while we decide if there are any other anchorages in the area we wish to check out between now and June 7 when we put Milagro away for the summer in the San Carlos Marina. We will keep you posted.

It is Tuesday, 29 May, 2018 and it is moving day for the Milagros. We are still anchored at Isla Coronado but will begin our voyage towards San Carlos in a few hours. It is 113nm away and should take us around 20 or 21 hrs to get there, depending on wind conditions. The forecase call for light and variable winds but it includes some possibility of light air sailing over some portions of the passage. Like always, we will see. In any case, we should check in with you again sometime tomorrow from an anchorage on the mainland somewhere in the area of San Carlos/Guaymas. Hasta manana, y’all.

It is Saturday, 26 May, 2018 and all is well here. A little windblown but well. Plus, now we have a better idea of which weather forecast model was closest to being correct regarding today’s wind forecast. It was the ECMWF this time, one of the models forecasting more wind from the NW than we wanted given our choice of anchorages. And we got blown out. We had a great time with friends yesterday, our excuse being the birthday of our good friend Rick (SV Hotel California) and today we started all over again with birthday cake for breakfast (Joanne from MV Mystic Eyes made a world class carrot cake) followed by card games. This kept us distracted sufficiently and long enough for the wind to build from nothing early in the morning to 15 gusting to 25 from the north, right into the open end of our anchorage. With miles of fetch from that direction the wind built waves of 3′ to 4′ running about 3 seconds apart. Very sporty conditions for recovering dinghies and getting underway. In fact, we abandoned efforts to recover the MV Mystic Eye’s dinghy altogether on account of conditions making it just too dangerous for people or equipment. Reluctantly, Sam was obligated to rig a long bridle and tow it. To get around to the other side of Coronados we were forced to run broadside to the swells about half of the way, encountering several 6 footers in the process. Rock and Roll, indeed!! The tilt-0-meter showed 45 degrees a couple of times as we were rolled from starboard to port and back. Still, the passage was completed with nothing worse to show for it other than the cabin sole littered with everything loose or not tied down inside. At 1645 our anchor was reset at 26 06.066’N, 111 17.053’W in 22′ over sand. The OAT is 83F, the pool is 77F and the wind here is from the N 15G20. The sea is flat except for some small wind waves as where we are now, the island provides good N wind protection. We’ll move along further North to San Juanico either tomorrow or Monday with Wednesday or Thursday our current aim for crossing over to the mainland. Hasta pronto.

It is Friday, 5/25/2018 and all is well here. We’ve done a lot since the last update and I just wasn’t able to keep this updated. Sorry. We moved on Wednesday from Nopolo to Puerto Escondido where we joined friends and rented a car for some shoreside sightseeing, laundry, provisioning (can we ever have enough food?) and, of course, shoreside dining. Yesterday we journeyed about 40km outside Loreto to the Mission San Xavier. Very cool little village, very rugged, scenic drive and, of course, the mission itself. Built apx 250 years ago, it was the first Catholic mission in the California’s to sport glass windows. We got Milagro’s bottom cleaned while in PE and in the process learned that the growth was much worse than we’d realized and was really creating a lot of drag. So, on to today. We left PE at first light this morning to make our way North to Isla Los Coronados where we joined other friends, one of which is celebrating a birthday today. At 1035MDT our anchor is set in the NW bay at Coronados at 26 06.673’N, 111 17.043’W in 16′ over sand. The OAT is 86F, the humidity 53%, there is now a N breeze running 10kts and the sea is 78F and flat but with wind ripples. The water visibility is about 15′ which is a bit of an improvement. The WX forecast models cannot agree and, depending on which models are closer to being correct, we may (may) see NW winds increase this afternoon enough to drive us around to the protection of the South side of the island. We will see what develops. We are starting to focus on the best day(s) to make our crossing to San Carlos and think the coming Wednesday or Thursday may serve. We will continue watching closely in the meantime and will either hang here until time to cross or move North a little bit first.

It is Tuesday, May 22, 2018 and everything is good here on the SV Milagro. And, no, we did not fall off the face of the earth. It has been so long since our last update that one could come to that conclusion but it’s not the case. We just haven’t moved from Point Nopolo in all this time – 14 days by my reckoning. Point Nopolo is a nice setting with good beaches, restaurants (yes, more than 1), good cell coverage and decent wifi from the hotel. At least it was decent in the middle of the night when all their guests were asleep. Anyway, we couldn’t think of anyplace better so why move, eh? Today, however, we have joined a group of friends at the Loreto waterfront where we are gonna fool around on shore today. We are set at 26 00.734’N 111 20.182’W in 10′ over sand. Yes, it was a “minus” low tide, the last one for several days so we’ll be in deeper water soon without moving an inch. The OAT is 80F, it’s 80F also in the pool and there is 5kts of breeze from the E. Seas are flat with about 10′ visibility. Our aim is to move tomorrow to join other friends for yet another shoreside adventure. More on that later. Hasta prono.

It is Monday, May 7, 2018 and all is good here on the SV Milagro. We enjoyed 5 days at Puerto Ballandra hanging out with friends. We even used my birthday as an excuse to have a beach party. Our good friends Sherri and Ken, retired master bakers on the SV Cake, even baked a most awesome birthday cake for me. But today was moving day and we have returned once again to the anchorage at Point Nopolo just about 7 miles south of Loreto. Here we have good cell signal and decent wifi from the hotel on the beach. The weather forecast suggests that this unprotected spot should be good for most of the week so we’ll see how that plays out. We’ll likely stay here until either the weather runs us out or some temptation elsewhere draws us away. For now, we are the only boat in the anchorage here and that’s kinda nice. We are at 25 55.480’N 111 20.840’W anchored in 13′ over sand. The OAT is 80F, it’s 75F in the pool, there is a wee breeze from the E running 3 kts. The water still is not very clear, visibility is maybe 6′ or 8′ but it’s millpond flat and glassy. The sunshades are up already and we are settled in. If the pool will only warm a few degrees we can look forward to a bit of swimming. Hasta luego for now, y’all.

It is Wednesday, May 2, 2018 and all is well here. The Wx forecast calls for N winds increasing over the next several days and our anchorage at Nopolo is a poor choice in those conditions, therefore, it is moving day. We managed to make 2 legs of it though as first we moved about 6nm N to the town of Loreto to pick up a few groceries. It is a roadstead anchorage at Loreto which offers no more wind/sea protection than where we’d been so we had no inclination to stay longer than needed. In just a little over 2 1/2 hours we had completed our chores, eaten a nice breakfast ashore and were on our way. Leg 2 was not very far either, but on the way there we got to enjoy some of the weather we’d been expecting. NE winds 15 to 20 kts over 2′ to 3′ close spaced swells topped by 1′ whitecapped wind waves, also from the NE. Kind of a lumpy, wet ride as our target lay in a ENE direction from Loreto. With overcast skies and cool temps we were very much reminded of our days sailing on San Francisco Bay. Of course, in the end, the passage was uneventful and we are now set in Puerto Ballandra on Isla Carmen at 26 01.198’N, 111 09.914’W in 50′ over sand. The OAT is 74 and there is a NNE breeze running at 12kts. The pool is 71. We found 9 other boats already here including 2 whom are friends of ours. We reckon to hang here for a few days and probably through the week end.

Today is Sunday, April 29th, 2018 and all is well here on Milagro. After enjoying the Candeleros anchorage and resort for 3 1/2 days, including 2 decadent days ashore, we have moved about 15nm North to a little anchorage at Point Nopolo. Again, we are in front of a resort which is generously, if not knowingly, sharing it’s internet with us. Unlike Candeleros, there is a small community here comprised of a couple of hundred homes and several restaurants. There’s a sandy beach for landing the dingy and the resort is friendly to cruisers. We’re even welcome at their pool so long as we make restaurant or bar purchases. Pretty reasonable, eh? There is an estuary alongside the resort which winds its way through a golf course making a pretty nice place to kayak, then when the water clarity is better (later in the season) the snorkeling is quite good as well. We will hang here for several days before deciding where/when to head next. Currently we are at 25 55.522’N 111 20.916’W in 14′ over sand/mud. OAT is 80F, the pool is 71F and there is a SE breeze running at 5kts. Sea is flat but water is murky green color w poor visibility.

Today is Wednesday, 25 April,’18, and things are good here on the Milagro. Last evening a bit of red tide moved into the anchorage at Los Gatos which settled the “should we stay or should we go” question for us. It wasn’t a full scale event and it’s not like it smells or that we planned to go swimming but it IS unsightly and that was excuse enough for us. Winds in this area are still light and variable and the seas flat as a fritter but I suppose that beats wild and wooly by any measure so we are fine with that. We ended up gliding right past Agua Verde and landed instead at Bahia de Los Candeleros. This is the bay at the south end of the greater Loreto Bay area and also the location of the very swanky Villa del Palmar resort. Assuming conditions remain benign we will hang here for a couple of days, probably going ashore tomorrow to enjoy the pools and other amenities of the resort. VDP is a time share property and we happen to be owners, or is it members? Whatever, that sometimes gains us a little extra respect, other times, not so much. We’ll soon see how things are this time. In any case, we have cell coverage again so can do normal email as well as voice calls again. The OAT now is 83F, the pool is 72F and the wind continues to howl out of the North at 2 to 3 knts. We’ll have an update for you when next we fold our tent and move along. Hasta luego for now.