Isla San Francisco

5-13-14

Mangle Solo- Bahia Amortajada-Isla San Francisco

25 deg 01'09.6"N 110 deg 41'06.1"W

24 deg 53'21.5"N 110 deg 34'67.8"W

24 deg 49'20.8"N 110 deg 34'03.9"W

9:30-12:30 4-6:00 pm

Winds out of the NW, 9-15

Seas 4'

Sunny and less hazy

Engine hours 156.8-158.6

It was so great to see dolphins again!  We haven't seen them in a while and it always makes me feel better when we do.  There were 6 or 7 along the way, which isn't many, but I will take it!

We had a really easy downwind sail again.  We even were able to sail wing-on-wing for some of it.  We have been extremely lucky to have such consistent north winds, as generally the winds switch to the south about now.

We arrived at Amortajada mid-day, and the winds were mild-moderate.  The water and surroundings were in full sun display and looking quite glorious!  The water shoals off pretty quickly at this anchorage and the color change is quite dramatically beautiful.

We paddled into shore where there is an entrance to a mangrove tour.  It was a bit of a struggle to get into the the lagoon as the current was really strong and the winds were blowing against us.  The lagoon courses east toward the backside of Isla San Francisco, and in the middle of the trip offers a stunning view of the island and surrounding water.

It was about half-way through that I questioned the wisdom of doing the whole distance, as I was pretty certain the wind was going to come up and be blowing against us as we head back to the boat.  Mike agreed.  And we paddled on, totally ignoring our own best advice.

Just as predicted, the wind came up and right out of the north which was the direction we had to paddle to the boat.  It was so strong that we had to sit down on our SUPs and paddle them like kayaks to make any progress.

If the wind wasn't enough of a mental and physical challenge (we had about an hour left in our journey) the hornets were out with a vengeance and were terrorizing us as we battled the wind.  In the end, because we didn't put up a fight, they left us alone.  

As we left the lagoon and entered the sea we found ourselves heading right into 2-3 foot surf about 3-4 seconds apart.  Not huge but consistent and we were getting pretty exhausted.

We made it back to the boat and decided to head straight to Isla San Francisco, as it was almost 4 pm.

We had a fun downwind sail right into our anchorage.  There were 5 boats already anchored, including a really beautiful 75-foot sloop, navy and white.  It looked like something out of a Nautica or Ralph Lauren ad. Complete with pretty people.

We were hot and tired, but the water looked refreshing, so we jumped in.  It was cool but it felt perfect for the sore and tired body.

We were thankful for leftovers for dinner.  We were pooped!

All paddled out,

First Mate Kate