The Hook

PHOTO GALLERIES
2008 Mexico 4 – La Paz to Guaymas

Last night’s anchorage was off Isla San Francisco, in a bay called “The Hook”. On our previous trip we had to bypass this particular spot as the wind was coming out of the wrong direction making the anchorage unsafe, but conditions were in our favor this time around. The south end of the island terminates in a long curving white sand beach ending in a mountain peak – appearing exactly like a giant fish hook. The water was calm, clear and turquoise – just like a giant swimming pool! Mike and I hiked along the mountain ridge that stretches along the east shoreline the length of the island. That side of the island was rugged and rocky, with very volcanic looking rock formations, bizarre colors including mauve and green, plunging cliffs meeting a dark blue sea rough with surf and a beach of multi-colored stones some 10-12″ in diameter. All in all completely different from our safe haven on the opposite side of the island, even though the two coastlines are only separated by less than a mile of terrain.

Dinner last night was the last of the mahi mahi we caught last cruise; this morning we’re trolling for a new candidate for fresh fish dinners! We hung out in the cockpit watching the full moon rise over the same peak we had climbed earlier in the day, and entertained ourselves by shining a flashlight into the water to attract small fish, predominately “Long Toms”.

Our planned three-week cruise ending in Guaymas is some 300 miles all told. We’ll speed past the areas we’ve already visited on past cruises and slow down further north as we get into new territory. I’m especially anxious to see Bahia Concepcion and Mulege, followed by Bahia Los Angeles and the Midriff islands. Today we’re off on a 35 mile leg, planning to anchor near Puerto El Gato, a pretty anchorage where we lucked onto a lobster dinner last trip. We’ve got our new dive gear sorted (kind of like Christmas morning aftermath, playing with the new toys) and we may give it all a trial run this afternoon.