Overnight on a sailboat: A fun dud

Bahia Balandra

Well, I'm back from my first overnight stay on a boat. It could have gone worse I guess. But just barely. Sunday was fine; we got to the boat, motored out to Balandra Bay, and then snorkeled a couple times in the afternoon and at dusk. So then we moved from anchor point #1 over to #2. But then the wind just would not die down, so we moved back from anchor point #2 over to anchor point #1 at around eight or nine o'clock. Then we all tossed around for the next two hours or so and no one got any sleep. So then at around eleven Allen (the captain) decided that conditions were miserable and pulled anchor to head back home. So we motored back to the bay of La Paz and slept peacefully for the rest of the night.

So I pretty much think of this trip as a bit of a dud. It was really fun to stay on the boat all day, but we didn't catch any fish, we didn't get to do any night-snorkeling, and we didn't get to spend the night (or the whole night) at Balandra. Actually, the worst part about that is that we were supposed to go spend the night at the Island (Espiritu Santo), but lately every trip to that slab of rock has failed. I now believe it to be cursed to all organized events.
The one good thing that came from all this is that I found out that I really like being on boats; even overnight (that was the one thing I wasn't sure I would like). The swaying kept me awake sometimes, but I could definitely get used to it.
Oh yeah, did I mention we didn't catch any fish? Not spearfishing, not trolling, not casting... It was sad...

~Ian

San Juan Pier: Good Times for All

Yesterday I went to the pier site on San Juan de la Costa. It was amazing! There were schools and schools of bait fish, jack fish, even some dorado! There was also a shipwreck there with lots of fish in it. I'd like to go back with some scuba gear and check out the inside. Also I want to go back because i didn't explore all the pier supports, it seemed like it was getting to deep. And there was a structure on the south side of the pier that had some supports that looked promising. Overall it was pretty awesome.

After we got back in the car, my dad drove North for a bit to show this other spot. It was a cliff that plunged straight into the ocean. If there is a drop off it could be really cool. But we didn't have time to snorkel it to find out.

~Ian