First, some background. The Gulf of Tehuantepec is a large body of water bounded on the east by the narrow isthmus that separates the Gulf of Tehuantepec from the Gulf of Mexico, near Mexico's southern border with Guatemala. The T'pec spans roughly 250 miles from the town of Huatulco on its northwestern edge, to the…
We moved southeastward fairly quickly along the Mexico mainland. Here's what happened during the month of February. 1.Feb.-3.Feb.2010Passage from Zihuatanejo to Puerto Escondido (15deg.51'N/097deg.04'W). Very little wind, mostly motor-sailing in S breeze of <5 knots. Water's calm, days are hot – 80s-low 90sF. Critters spotted en route include spotted dolphin, common dolphin, many olive Ridley…
Gary here – if this pisses people off its not my wife….. no photos necessary We always had doubts about cruising the Mexico mainland. That’s why we stayed up in the Sea of Cortez for two years. The problem is that after a couple of winters up there you really start to tire of the…
When last we left the intrepid Gallant Fox she was anchored in the Tamarindo anchorage near Tenacatita, at 19deg.16'N/104deg.48'W. And it was January 11. Hey, how are y'all?? It's been a while. To catch up now to the present day, here are some sailing logs of the anchorages and passages we now have under our…
When we were busy sailing around Puget Sound in 1999 to 2006 – I always dreamed about being down in the warm waters of Mexico. I thought that by the time I got there, I would be a pretty good sailor. Surely going through the Broughtons, Desolation Sound, around Cape Scott, and down the west…
For some time, I'd been mildly interested in taking the test to get my HAM radio license, mainly because it would expand the frequencies available to me to use on our single sideband radio. We were either moving around a lot on the boat, or were not in a location where the test was being…
WiFi pirate, that is. Accessing reliable Internet is difficult for a boat at anchor. Sure, there are the occasional Internet cafes on shore, and we use them when needs must. However in certain areas either Internet cafes are rare-to-nonexistent, or you have to schlep your precious laptop in a dinghy through rain or choppy seas;…
As terrific as Mazatlan is for engine work, boat canvas and stainless steel, there is a dearth of sail makers. If your main sail has experienced some…ermm…user error lately; saaay, in the form of an excessively taut outhaul that stresses the grommets along the luff and tears the sail fabric? If you're in Pacific Mexico,…
Way back in 2008, we purchased a Sailomat self-steering wind vane. Our Autohelm autopilot, aka "Otto," has always worked very well, but like all autopilots it uses a lot of battery power so was not the best choice for all conditions, especially for long passages. We also wanted some kind of a backup device in…
Having serendipitously discovered Internet access where it was least expected, I can update this here blog with some words on where we've been traveling since last Christmas. 26. Dec. 2009 – Boxing Day aka St. Stevens Day. 0700, raised anchor and crossed the El Mogote sand shoals, departing La Paz. Stopped briefly at the Pemex…