Excerpts from Talion's Log

April 28 - May 8

Marv Dunn and Patsy headed north to the final event of the Baja Mexico cruising season, the Loreto Fest. The event actually takes place in Puerto Escondido a huge harbor about 120 miles up the Sea of Cortez and 20 miles south of Loreto. The harbor used to be a great hurricane hole and open bay but it has now been taken over by the Mexican government and Singlar Marina’s mooring buoys. We managed to find a spot to anchor just outside the harbor in a place called the Waiting Room which was extremely crowded with boats avoiding the Singlar Marina fees. Loreto Fest is a land based local event with potlucks, music, horseshoes, costume contests, a chili cook-off, and even a puppet show. A former La Paz cruiser and friend from years ago, Alison Cary flew down from California to join Talion for the fest and the sail back to La Paz. We stopped in some beautiful anchorages on the way back including Aqua Verde, Nopolo, and Isla Todos Santos. Talion’s engine had a worn hose which caused a leak and a potential overheating problem so we sailed all the way back to La Paz and only started the motor for anchoring and docking. We were becalmed a few times but it only added to the experience. A great trip!

April 13

La Paz Bay Fest is a 5 day land based event with a sailboat race on the last day. Talion couldn't resist entering so with a crew of 10 cruisers we were ready for the predicted heavy afternoon winds. Unfortunately the wind was very light... so light that at the start everyone was allowed to motor until they crossed the starting line! It was a boat for boat event with no handicap given for a live-aboard boat with a washing machine and a microwave so even though we led the fleet for most of the race we were passed by a performance Olson 40 race boat Aquila.

April 1-6

The revived Sea of Cortez Race Week started a little small this year with only 14 boats but we wouldn't have had it any other way. It was a great opportunity to get to know people better, have small pot lucks, a cocktail cruise, and to let everyone have a chance to play volleyball... oh yeah... and the sailing was good too. We started the first day just outside of the La Paz channel and had very light wind all the way for the 11-1/2 nm course. Only 4 boats finished and we were one of them. The next day was a lay day with a long hike in the morning (completed by 6 people including Marv and Ardy of Talion), volleyball in the afternoon, and a pot luck on the 63' huge catamaran Profligate. The next day had no wind and despite efforts to sail most motored up to Isla San Francisco 20 miles to the north. More potlucks, parties, and hikes in this beautiful little bay. We lucked out the next day with 20 knots of wind behind us and had a chance to fly the chute. Another lay day in Ensenada Partida, a fantastic sail back to La Paz on Sunday, and a fun awards dinner in La Paz. Because it is a sailing week and not a race week everyone got a 1st Place Trophy. Ours was (of course) 1st in the Women Skipper Division. Great trip thanks to Craig Shaw and Marv and Ardy Dunn.

March
26-27

Spring break at The University of Oregon brought niece Morgan and her friend Quentin down to Baja. They took a break from the partying and drinking and came over to La Paz with Denise & Andie for an overnight boat trip. The adventure was delayed as on the way out the La Paz channel we rescued a sinking jet ski and its 2 drowning passengers. We managed to pick up the people, net all the jet ski pieces and get the thing under tow. We were just about to plan our next move when lucky for us a fisherman in a panga came by and took them all away. Our next rescue was a puffed puffer fish. We wanted to know if it was dead. Even Quentin's attempts at mouth to mouth couldn't revive it. All this put us into the anchorage at Isla Partida a little late but just in time for a late walk on the beach and another great sunset. All were totally entertained that evening with the glowing fish, crabs, eels, and creepy crawlies in the sea. Some successful attempts to net them brought more squeals & laughter. Before heading back to La Paz the next morning we headed 7 miles further north to Los Islotes a group of islands covered with sea lions and guana. Quentin dove, swam, and played with the sea lions while the girls watched from the dinghy.

March
10-13

Just before Tim and Susan flew home to Portland we took a dingy cruise through the canals around the marina where we encountered iguanas, pelicans, beautiful homes and lush tropical plants. Craig and Patsy left for La Paz on Tuesday with a stowaway named Wes Clegg from Vancouver BC. Wes had managed to sail from Miami to Puerto Vallarta on various boats. The crossing was wild, wet, and windy for the first 24 hours and then calmed to nice flat seas and beautiful weather. All of the racing and the desert climate has revealed some new deck leaks so we had a busy day of cleanup upon our arrival.

March
6-8

The Banderas Bay Regatta consisted of almost 30 boats divided into 6 different classes. Talion is not a race boat by any means with the washing machine, ice maker, and 400 feet of anchor chain (to name just a few) but the other boats are cruisers too. Lucky for us Marv and Ardy agreed to crew which was a lifesaver. On the first day the wind was light (8-12 knots) and we were always very close to our competition. We did manage to finish first over the line and first in class. Check out our press at 'Lectronic Latitude! The Banderas Bay Regatta is a different course and a different starting area than the MEXORC Regatta. On the second day both regattas started right next to each other. We had a great view of the big boats in action. That day it blew 12-25 knots which is a much better wind speed for our boat. The start was very close with about 6 inches between the boats. We took the start... there was a lot of yelling coming from the other boats :) Once again we took first in our class despite some scary jibes, painfully slow tacks, and Patsy's hangover! Day three we played it conservative, covered our competition and managed to stay in front all day. So it was three firsts for Talion! That night the awards dinner and party was at the Yacht Club and couldn't have been more fun. As promised Patsy wore the Baja Ha Ha Viking helmet to the trophy presentation. Let's hope none of those pictures taken by Latitude 38 are published! Unfortunately Patsy dropped and broke the trophy but Tim managed to hang onto his First Place Laser trophy! (Don’t worry the club is sending Patsy a new one)

March
2-5

Our first race was the Governors Cup - out there with the big boys! If you look real close you can see Campbell Rivers in his foredeck getup on "Akela". We placed second in our class which prompted Patsy to drag out the Baja Ha Ha trophy hat! The next day was spent drinking & reading under a palapa on the beach while watching the MEXORC boats racing. The big decision of the day... should we boogie board in the ocean or swim in the pool? Tuesday was to PV for more shopping & a visit to the Cultural Center, Wednesday we spent the afternoon drinking on the Yacht Club deck while Tim made us proud winning the Laser race!

February 29 - March 1

Lat:
20 41.50

Lon:
105 17.40

Arrived at Paradise Village Marina in Nuevo Vallarta just north of Puerto Vallarta after a 53 hour crossing. We are on the shirttails of the San Diego to Puerto Vallarta race as well as the MEXORC Regatta so we are with some nice race boats and lots of racers. We spent our first day in downtown Puerto Vallarta. Later we were treated to a free traditional dance show complete with complementary cocktails. There we ran into fellow Portlander's Marv & Ardy Dunn who are cruising Mexico this winter on Odyssey.

February
26-29

December
24 - 31

Talion and Patsy were joined by Pete and Roseann Thompson for a quiet Christmas holiday. Pete and Roseann had been in La Paz on their boat a few years ago so we pooled our experiences and explored the new developments, old favorite places, and new businesses by land. After Christmas we took down the lights and decorations and headed out to the Sea of Cortez. It was windy and cool so we only spent a couple nights out at the islands of Partida and Espiritu Santo (20 miles north of La Paz). With a couple more days left of their visit we decided to explore the area around La Paz a little more and made an attempt to reach the new development on the peninsula of Mogote in the van. The road turned to sand so we headed up the sea to the beautiful cliffs and huge cactus.