A week with the Russo's

We had the opportunity to host our very good friends Mary and Paul Russo last week while we cruised Antipodes around the Loreto, BCS, Mexico area.  The week was a blast and we got to see a number of places over the trip.

* Click the pics for a full sized version

So, you know nothing is easy about living on a boat, we were planning on picking Paul and Mary up at the Loreto sport docks at 1:00 in the afternoon, the morning was to be spent provisioning in town.  The weather forecasters were saying that the winds were going to be calm so anchoring out in Loreto's open anchorage should be a breeze.

Ha, the winds were up and we had a pretty good chop in the seas as we anchored up in front of the town.  Launching our dingy from the top deck in the high winds and waves is a challenge but we encountered no broken boat parts (this time).  We needed to leave someone on the boat, so Adam stayed back doing schoolwork while Nancy and I provisioned.  All went well and we kept in touch with Adam via the VHF radio.  It only took two trips via the dingy as well as multiple taxi rides to get all the stuff back to the boat.

Paul and Mary arrived a bit later than planned, mostly due to immigration and taxi issues but in the end they were aboard, wet from the ride out and happy.  Our first stop was Isla Coronados, about 5 nautical miles away.

Isla Coronados is a volcanic island with beautiful white sand beaches and turquoise waters.  We hiked the volcano (Adam made it 75% of the way) and fished the reefs around the island.  While fishing, Paul and I enjoyed watching a Dorado jumping several times while chasing a bait fish.  Unfortunately, we could not catch the bugger.

Day two had us travelling to the Baja mainland and a bay called San Juanico.  More fishing - surprise!  We  had some fun catching Triggerfish outside the rocks, they made a great fish fry the next day!  This was the area were we saw many Osprey's and their nests.  Really gorgeous birds.

We headed to the big island of Carmen on the third day, a brief hookup on a Marlin made the trip exciting.  We got jumping mantas and several shows from the local porpoise during the voyage but the highlight was pulling into the anchorage and watching the Bighorn Sheep on the hillside.  Paul and Mary took off after them on a hike while Nancy, Adam and I swam in the clear water and played on the beach.  The anchorage was beautiful with rock cliffs all around and a perfectly calm evening.

The highlight of the night, and most nights in the Sea of Cortez, was the bioluminescence.  Watching the water you see what looks to be twinkling stars but when the fish swim through it leaves a trail of pixie dust in the water, really beautiful.  I wish I could show you this in pictures.

Bahia Salinas was our next stop, a big bay with several cool features.  First, the area was once a thriving salt plant with an entire city to support it.  A church, apartments, a store amongst other facilities were spread out along the beach.  Most of the equipment was simply left in place when the company moved on.

The salt flats were interesting, lots of equipment left over, power poles running to nowhere, a landing strip and cemetery made for an eerie scene.  The land is now owned buy a rich Mexican who uses it for a hunting lodge.

In the middle of the bay is a 120' tuna boat wreck that is sunk in 35' of water.  The boat actually had parts out of the water and the snorkeling is very cool.  The water clarity is not the best but the number of fish on the boat is really impressive.  I also spotted a very large lobster that looked like it wanted to go home with us but I could not catch it.

We settled for heading back to the shallows where, based on an earlier visit, we knew there were bountiful Chocolate Clams.  More on these clams can be found here but, to be honest, they are the most delicious clams I've had.  I was the diver, Mary the bagger and Paul the boat support crew for this operation.

Chocolate Clam diving is different that regular clam digging, here you have to dive down in 6-10 foot water and find the "eyes" of the clams poking out of the sand.  Once you spot these you dig down to get the clam, all while holding your breath.  This area was polluted with clams and we got 60 or so in about 30 minutes.

Nancy, the queen of the galley, used these clams to make a most delicious chowder and we enjoyed some steamed clams and lobster (accidentally caught by me) for appetizers.

 After we had our fill of hiking, snorkeling and clamming, we took Antipodes out and further south looking for the elusive Dorado fish.  

During the passage we were again visited by the acrobatic porpoise.  They flew around the boat all the time while watching us watch them.  Their antics were mesmerizing.

Well, while Mary, Nancy and I were enjoying the show up front, Paul was screaming, to deaf ears, HOOKUP!  HOOKUP!

The fish was pulling line off the reel fast, this is an indication of a big fish.  Paul was rewarded with a nice show by the Dorado, something they are known for.  However, the boat was not stopping.  Typically when someone hollers hookup, the captain throttles down and takes the boat out of gear, but we were still mesmerized by the mammals off the front of boat.

Paul hollered again, still no reaction.  Adam, sitting just feet away just kept on playing his damn video game oblivious to the panic that was setting in with Paul, not wanting to lose this prize fish.  Finally Paul ran up front, throttled back and yelled HOOKUP again as we finally realized what was going on.

I grabbed the rod and starting working some of the line back on the reel, the fish was a long ways off and it took several runs while I pulled him towards the boat.  About 20 minutes later we got the gaff in him and had our prize!

That will be a fish we all remember for some time.  We ended up the on water portion of the trip with a stay in Agua Verde where we caught more fish (including a nice Cabrillo Seabass) as well as took a nice hike around the area.

The final weekend consisted of a visit to Loreto, via a rental car, and the mountain village of San Javier to visit their mission.  The road to the village had been ravaged by a hurricane two years ago and made the driving exciting to say the least.  The mountains were beautiful, we all enjoyed the drive (and the A/C!).

Well, we're sorry to have seen the Russo's leave as much as we're sorry to be leaving the Sea of Cortez but that's life.

Our next leg of the journey will take us back to California where we'll cruise from San Diego to San Francisco to end the year.  Next year is the Pacific Northwest and Alaska!