Passing by Solitary Rock on my way out
of Agua Verde
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Turned out to be a bit of a bash for a while, but I got
to sail at 5-6 knots with jib alone.
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Scenery along the way. Look carefully and you will
see a sailboat on the horizon line.
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One of the many small islands that need to be avoided
on the way to Puerto Escondido.
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An uncharted rock near shore. There are many, so I stay
at least 5 miles out unless approaching an anchorage.
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Puerto Escondido is now run by a private entity and there
is no anchoring. Moorings and slips are available.
I picked up a mooring at the "X."
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Circadian on a mooring |
My view of the inner harbor |
Early morning |
Coping |
Looking out the "window" |
Sunrise |
I came to think of this formation as Cathedral Peak |
Moon setting as the sun rises |
Blue moon rising over the mountain. |
The full blue moon |
Saguaro cactus from directly above |
Whale bones at the entrance to the harbor |
Looking toward the inner harbor through the narrow
entrance.
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Looking toward the marina from the jetty |
Looking toward the marina from "The Ellipse" |
The marina restaurant |
The pool is on the second floor! |
The Mabula Ray Show
The mabula rays put on a great show for the boats out
on the moorings.
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It's not easy to photograph them mid-air, but after
a week I got pretty good at it.
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This is what a ray looks like swimming on the surface. |
The males jump and land with a loud smack in
order to attract females.
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Sometimes they do a backflip. |
Landing upside down at the end of the flip. |
Flipping for the nearby females |
A high flyer |
This is why some people refer to them at bat rays. |
A rare site: two rays jumping together in formation!
Only time I saw it and I was lucky enough to
capture the moment.
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Sometimes the rays jump right next to the boat. |
I rented a car twice for two trips into Loreto: one for
pleasure, one to find a new pump.
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Highway 1 runs along the coast to Loreto. |
While a good road, there was detour around improvements
being done.
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Nearer Loreto, it becomes 4-lane highway. |
Loreto has been designated a Puebla Magica, and is
a charming town.
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Looking toward the town government center from the plaza |
Mural inside the government center |
Another mural inside the government center |
Door on the plaza |
Loreto's claim to fame is it boasts the first of
the Spanish missions.
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Nuestra Senora de Loreto church |
Relatively modest, but hey, it dates from 1697! |
Looking toward the plaza from the church |
I met this guy on the way back. I saw him across the
road, and when I stopped to take a picture, he came
right over and stuck his head in the open window.
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Tackling Fresh Water Problems
After filling the tank with good RO water,
I went through the process of testing
the pump and the spare over two days.
Both were bad.
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In the meantime, Plan C! Water jug with a spout.
Even with that, I had to repair a cracked fitting,
proving once again that Paradise ain't fer sissies!
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Fortunately, the only marine supply store in Loreto
had some freshwater pumps. They even had the
right battery for my salinity meter! I left the store
relieved and in a celebratory mood
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I decided to have a beer and lunch at the only craft
brewery/restaurant in the area.
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It was in a nice spot on the plaza,
and the beer was great!
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I installed the new pump and it worked great, with
a greater capacity than the old one. A happy
ending! Now I just need to wait for the weather to
improve.
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