Changing World Changing Rules

Well its been about 3 weeks since our last update. As mentioned in our last post we are spending our time in the waters around Loreto. We have circumnavigated Isla Carmen and checked out several neat bays and anchorages and are back in Loreto re provisioning before we continue north.

We are fortunate in that our plan was to spend the season in the Sea of Cortez. We have met several boats that had plans for ports in the South Pacific, Central or South America that have had to radically alter their plans. One boat we know of had crew lined up for different legs of his voyage. No one can make it now, so he is single handing his boat for the season. There are many more in this predicament as well. We have heard of boats that were part way across the Pacific when the South Pacific Islands closed. They have been forced to turn back. Not an easy passage as you head back into the prevailing winds. Others chose to head to Hawaii or turn north and head to the Pacific North West. Several, that arrived right as the Islands were changing the rules, were forced to leave their boats in the Islands and fly home.

We have other friends, that like us, sold everything with the plan to head off into the proverbial sunset this year and are now stuck at the starting line, on the boat with no place to go. Others we know put their boats on a freighter and headed back to the Pacific North West. Others turned their boats north and are cruising back up the west coast towards their respective homes.

If cruisers were any more flexible, we’d all be Olympic gymnasts!

Everyone here is just kind of hanging out waiting to see what the various levels of government are going to do next and what that does to any plans we might have.

Since our last post even the rules for Loreto have changed. They have now shut the city down for anyone other than residents. They have blocked the road and closed the port. Mexicans are an enterprising lot though. A husband and wife team are now available through WhatsApp. Send them a message and your shopping list and they will do the shopping and bring it to the end of the pier in Loreto. You pull up in your dinghy exchange the groceries for payment (cost plus 20%) and you are on your way. Their kayak rental and tour company was shuttered so they came up with this to make a living. They cleared it with the Port Captain, so everybody wins. The convenience store in nearby Puerto Escondido will take an order and have it ready the following day as well.

We start every morning by listening to two radio nets to catch up on the latest news and weather. That determines if we head to a different anchorage or if we stay another day where we are. The rest of the day is spent either in transit to a new location or trying to find something to do to pass the time. Barb and I play a card game called 3 – 13 she currently leads 254 wins to my 233. (I’m serious we’ve played it that many times)

We still have lots of wildlife to watch, glorious sunsets and the occasional sunrise. I’d see more if they didn’t start so darn early.

Rumor has it, Puerto Penasco may open before the end of May. Bahia Conception is north of here. It has a number of anchorages and we can spend a week or so in there. Some of them have cell coverage so we can keep updated on the situation and it’s still close enough that turning back is still a viable option if things go sideways in Penasco. We’ll head that way and hope for the best.

There’s not much more to report so here are some pictures to look at.