Down Baja

Before we left San Diego, we went out to the HMS Surprise, to have a look.  I've started reading the Patrick O'Brian series, the first of which is called "Master and Commander" and it is really quite a fun time.  I think best when the deck beneath your feet moves on its own.  Better still, should there be guns being run in and out and excercised.  So they made a movie about it a while ago, spent tons of money in making the boat (or rather, re-making the "Rose") and then the movie didn't make enough money so they didn't make more.  Pity.


After that, we turned our sights South.  We made Ensenada in a day, got checked in and sorted, then pushed on south.  After a few overnights we made it to Islas San Benitos, which are beautiful islands, as the name suggests.  There are tons of Elephant seals on the islands, something that I did not see the last time I was there (5 years ago).  Previously, there were Guadalupe Fur Seals, but I guess their lease on the island is only for the autumn, and in the winter blubber trumps.  Blubber and burping croaks.
There are little cacti all over the place, and these wonderful succulents, so I got some shots of the smaller flora and fauna.

We went for a walk up to the lighthouse that probably more of the big container ships of the world see than the rest of Baja, because it is the furthest west point going up the coast, and everyone hugs that point a little bit on their way through.  The new light is on the top of the hill, a square boring building, but the old light was a treasure.  A corroded and broken treasure, to be sure.  We set foot inside to explore.  Up the questionable staircase we went and got to the tower's tip, where Rapunzel probably would be paralized by fear (and Tetanus).  The Fresnel lens from the light is still there, and it rotates around, or would, when the power turns the motor.  Its old glass, but you can tell that it was well made.  People have broken a lot of the windows, but the fresnel is still mostly intact.  A form of reverence for the science of refraction.

We left and went to Isla Cedros, then to Turtle Bay, and to Ascension Bay, and finally to Bahia de Ballenas.  The bay of the whales.  We saw bunches of grey whales migrating and being frisky, and would have liked to watch them further, but the weather turned (after a beautiful sunset) and we fought our way south for three days to Bahia Maria.

Bahia Maria was my favorite place last time down, and I like it still.  Initially I surfed the south side point, and it was HUGE and scary with lots of rocks all over the place.  Kind of heavy, too.  Then the wind shifted and we went to the north side to see the lagoon and the sand dunes and surf the north point.
After a hurried exploration, we left and overnighted to Cabo, catching a Dorado on the way.  The water is 75 degrees and its thunderstorming outside, but soon it will clear up and we'll go across the sea of cortez on our way to Puerto Vallarta.

There are fishermen who are here and they catch sharks in order to ship the fins to China.  If only the sharks could donate a fin or two and then continue to live.  Here is one on the beach looking fierce.  In Cabo, there is a great diving spot that I've been going to, and I've seen a small white-tip reef shark twice there now.  A real cutie.  Sharking is a big thing for Lindsay and for me, and although I am worried about the "Jaws" lurking in the shadows while surfing, I really like to see the sharks out there swimming around and beating up on the jets.  

San Diego

We've arrived at the end of America.  While rounding Point Loma, we found ourselves in Mexican Cell-phone territory, and we could smell the southern land in the SE wind that blew against our long drive from Catalina to here.  The smell of burning plastic and garbage.  Ahhh.  After a great skiing trip in the high elevations of the Rockies and a return to Altair, we are going south once more.  It feels good and also I am nervous.  I like the progress after two months of being stationary.  I'll be here until Tuesday, probably, and then head to Ensenada to cross the border.

Now for the pictures  Here is a Northern Fulmar (I think) that was swimming slowly close to Santa Barbara Island, and I snapped a shot.  Zoom in on the beak and look at that thing!
We went to Two Harbors and saw some of the Bison that live on Catalina.  They were brought in for a movie a long time ago and have remained.  A sort of pitiful little herd, but menacing at the same time.

We left in the middle of the night in order to make the 71 mile trek from the southern tip of Catalina to here, and during my lonely watch I got my camera out and snapped a few pictures.  It was really calm, so this 30 second shot worked well.


Hopefully in a few days we'll be in Mexico with all the political things sorted out, in a few more days.  From then on, its just a matter of wind and water.