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J World: The Performance Sailing School
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2007 Winter Cruise & Baja-Ha-Ha Report
Wow what a whirlwind it has been! Our annual cruise to Mexico started in mid October from San Francisco. With the growing presence of winter in the Bay area, we pointed the bow of our trusty J/120 south and slipped under the Golden Gate Bridge. The first leg, the sail down to Santa Barbara, started off with light breezes as we worked south between some early winter frontal activity, but ended up getting some wild rides as the breeze kicked in down in the Santa Barbara channel! It was the perfect time to be heading south...
Our Southern California cruise coincided with the large wildfires that were fueled by Santa Anna winds... we saw some wild scenes (raining ash) and some wild conditions (35 knots with gale warning, dropping to zero breeze and "motor-on" in abut 10 minutes!). We headed to Channel Islands Harbor after leaving Santa Barbara, and then it was out to Catalina Island. We grabbed a mooring in the Isthmus and hit Doug's Harbor Reef (the restaurant, NOT the reef!) just in time for dinner. In the morning, we cruised the length of the island before pulling into the charming town of Avalon, the only real community on the island. A late night departure earned us an on-time arrival in San Diego the next day.
In San Diego we joined the Baja-Ha-Ha cruiser's rally... some 180 boats and 600 participants were entered for the two week cruise to Cabo San Lucas. The camaraderie of this gang is fantastic, and our crew were welcomed by Halloween revelers at the kick-off party. The next morning played host to some fabulous conditions off the starting line. It really couldn't have been better.... good breeze, a nice angle, so up went the spinnaker! Consistent breeze and a great crew got us to Turtle Bay in good order... we were about the 8th boat in, finding ourselves in the company of a lot of larger boats... Some R&R in Turtle Bay was most welcome.. the normally sleepy town gets saturated with cruisers, but everyone takes it in stride and seems to have a great time.
Leg two got a bit light at times, but our team stuck it out and sailed the whole leg. We entered Bahia Santa Maria surrounded by a pile of boats who had motored much of the way... it really is a pleasure to be on a boat that sails so well... less motoring, and a lot more sailing! The swell came up in Bahia Santa Maria to the degree that the Pangas (long, lean, open Mexican fishing skiffs) running crews ashore for the beach party had their work cut out for them... in fact, in the afternoon a couple stopped running and when darkness settled, 70 sailors were still stuck on the beach, including a number of our crew (who shall remain nameless!). An overnight beach party ensued, with everyone putting a positive spin on the situation. But the next morning, we rallied and started the final leg to Cabo.
We had a fun duel with our friends aboard Sooner Magic, a Beneteau 47.7, battling right up to the finish line... ok, so somewhere along the line we might have temporarily slipped out of cruising mode and into playful racing, but is was all in good fun! We crossed gybes with the bigger Bene a couple of times within the last 5 miles in some challenging and light conditions, and barely managed to sneak by them... well done gang! The J World team sailed the entire way from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas, and managed to win their class. AND, check out the cover of the December issue of Latitude 38... fine form!
We had a changing of the guard after a couple of days of rest in Cabo. With the new crew, we headed north along the Baja coastline to the anchorage at Frailles, then early the next morning headed off to cross the Sea of Cortez. The breeze was dead at the start but filled nicely and we ended with a nice spinnaker run to the gem Isla Isabella. A swim in the crystal clear waters with the accompaniment of all varieties of fish was most welcome. The following morning, we set off for San Blas, and had a blast reach into the wide anchorage shortly before sunset. Then after a leisurely morning, we set off on a freshening run to Punta Mita. We rounded the northern boundary of Banderas Bay in the afternoon, and anchored in the quiet waters inside the point. After a toast to a successful trip, we managed to hitch a ride ashore from a panga (local fishing skiff). We explored the small town, and had a fabulous dinner at one of the local restaurants.
The next day, we sailed the last 20 miles to our wintertime home base in Puerto Vallarta, wrapping up another fantastic cruise. We had an absolutely fabulous crew for the entire trip, and I want to personally thank all of you for contributing to the success of these programs! Positive attitudes and a high level of camaraderie and cooperation contributed to an enjoyable and beneficial learning environment.
Well done, everyone, and we can't wait until next year!
Some Notable Notes:
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