Log Digital Edition August 5 – August 18

Recreational boaters in the past reported being shot at when they strayed too close to the Islas Marias prison colony. Or they were politely escorted outside the prison’s 20-mile No-Go perimeter by Mexican Navy patrol boats bristling with armed guards.

But in 2019 the federal government removed the last 16 prisoners and closed the 114-year old prison on Isla Maria Madre, the largest in the 4-island chain which lies about 55 n.m. off the state of Nayarit. At first the government renovated the prison buildings into a small environmental-education camp that for about a year hosted small groups of university students. The other three islands that had remained untouched for nearly a century were designated as a Natural Protected Area (ANP) “with the nature of a biosphere reserve,” and Isla Maria Madre was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Now, starting in April, 2022, Mexico’s federal tourism and environmental departments (SecTur and SEMARNAT) are planning to open only parts of Isla Maria Madre as a fledgling nature park, one step at a time.

Mother Maria Island will host no more criminals serving time, just smiling tourists arriving aboard small excursion vessels at Puerto San Balleto, an open bay on the northeast side of Isla Maria Madre where the new Visitor Center complex has been built. The park’s Environmental and Cultural Education Center will contain an outdoor sports area called “Muros de Agua – Jose Revueltas,” referring to the island’s walls of water that prevented prisoner escape. Many prisoners had lived in semi liberty, confined to the island only by shark infested waters and strong currents.

To begin this new endeavor, a limited number of day-trip tourists, called “excursionistas,” will be ferried out no more than three times a week from Puerto Vallarta, San Blas and Mazatlan, according to Jorge Chavez of the Mexico Daily News. This plan to limit the number of visitors on the island is intended to limit their impact on the natural environment. Last year, several Mexican Navy vessels were planned to ferry all registered visitors out and back, but this year private excursion boats are planned with Navy escorts. Details for purchasing tickets are not yet released.

After disembarking at the Visitor Center, tourists will be able to hike the newly groomed trails over Maria Madre’s mountainous terrain, take photos of the pristine flora and fauna, and relax in the Muros de Agua Visitor Center. But tourists will probably need to bring their own food and water, because a restaurant has not yet been built. And because the island has no overnight facilities, all tourists must embark and depart the island before sunset.

The amount of time visitors will be able to spend on the island has not yet been released, but it must be limited by the speed of whatever vessels are being planned to ferry them there and back. From Mazatlan, Isla Maria Madre lies about 93 n.m. SSW. From San Blas it’s about 72 n.m. west, and from Puerto Vallarta municipal harbor, the voyage to Isla Maria Madre is about 96 n.m. NW.

Recreational boaters who wish to enter any of Mexico’s 183 existing ANPs normally must buy an annual Conservation Passport from CONANP, costing about $80.

But details have not yet been released from CONANP or SecTur about how and when individual recreational boaters aboard their own boats can visit this brand new ANP and the Visitor Center and nature park on Isla Maria Madre, or if and when individual recreational boaters will be allowed to anchor to rest, fish or dive at other suitable locations along this gorgeous 26-mile long chain of islands.

Return here for details when available.

Departing from the ports of Mazatlán and San Blas, three ships of the Mexican Armada will transport a number of visitors out to Isla Madre Maria, the largest island in the archipelago, for restricted 1-day hiking excursions and return them to port the same evening. The excursions will be scheduled only once per week.

Currently, the old prison is being remodeled to give life to the Center for Environmental and Cultural Education “Muros de Agua – José Revueltas.” The idea is to launch new ways of visiting Las Islas Marías based on sustainable tourism that promotes the protection of resources and ecosystems, said Estrella Palacios Domínguez, the Undersecretary of Tourism Promotion and Operation of the Government of Sinaloa.

Palacios Domínguez added that on the recommendation of SEMARNAT, the governments of Sinaloa and Nayarit must provide information to hikers about the activities carried out to take care of the territory and protect the flora and fauna of the Mother Island.

The Nada Ha-Ha publishes these Crew and Boat lists to help skippers and crew make connections for the Nada Ha-Ha from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas. If you are interested in a crew position, or are a skipper looking for crew, please fill out the appropriate form. All entries will be removed after the event. If you find a ride or a shipmate email patsy@baja-haha.com and let me know you would like to be removed from the list.

The Nada Ha-Ha cannot in any way be held responsible for the accuracy or truthfulness of any listing. Any arrangements between skipper and crew are solely and entirely the responsibility of the parties involved.

• Are You Crew Looking For Boat? Fill Out This Crew Form
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The Nada Ha-Ha offers these Crew Lists as a free service and makes no recommendation regarding the character, skills or capabilities of individuals participating in the lists, the condition of their boats, or any weather or sea conditions.

-Updated from Mexico Report in SEA Magazine

The CUBAR Odyssey arrives in the Sea of Cortez as winter cruising season begins in Mexico. Winter and spring are perfect seasons to make the “Circle Route” of the southern Sea of Cortez.

Why now? Water temperatures are just starting to warm up, bringing with them the hottest fishing and clearest diving. Later in the summer, most boats will be safely berthed near their favorite hurricane holes, keeping a close eye on the weather forecasts and venturing out only for 1- and 2-day voyages. But until then, a powerboat with 275-mile legs can certainly explore the nicest anchorages and resort ports, the best fishing and diving to be found around the southern end of the Sea of Cortez.

My “Circle Route” of the southern Sea of Cortez eats up about 590 nautical miles, so you’ll be glad to know that this route offers dozens of short hops and tranquil overnight anchorages at uninhabited islands and a few resort ports, balanced by five fuel stops and three overnight passages.

LA PAZ AND BACK

My circle route starts at La Paz, then gunk-holes northward on the Baja Peninsula to Puerto Escondido and Santa Rosalia, crosses over to San Carlos, then coasts down the mainland to Topolobampo, and jumps back over to La Paz. (If you’re planning to head farther down on the mainland, say to Mazatlan or Puerto Vallarta, you’ll keep coasting southeast after Topolobampo.)

La Paz is the best place to prepare for the Circle Route, because it’s the gateway to the Sea of Cortez. La Paz had five marinas: Marina CostaBaja, Marina Palmira, Marina Cortez, Marina de La Paz, Marina Singlar La Paz. It has several good chandlers and haul-out yards. Tune into the Cruisers’ Net on VHF 22 at 0800 Monday through Friday for the latest weather and local boating news. Club Cruceros welcomes newbies, lists local services.

“THE BEST” CRUISING

In my humble opinion, this first 115 miles of the Circle Route to Puerto Escondido is the best cruising grounds in Mexico, and the next 120 miles to Santa Rosalia is next best. If your schedule is too limited, at least take time to savor this part of the Circle Route.

ISLAS ESPIRITU SANTOS

Our first overnight stop is at the Espiritu Santos Islands, only about 12 nautical miles from Marina CostaBaja in La Paz. See the satellite image of the Espiritu Santos Islands and side story. Among nine gorgeous coves along the west side, the most reliable anchoring shelter is found in Partida Cove: GPS approach 24°31.5’N, 110°24.0’W.

Partida Cove is good even if a westerly Corumuel wind should develop. For tranquil snorkel diving you can visit the reef in the middle of Caleta el Candeleros, where you can also dive the Garden of the Sea underwater sculpture garden. For expert scuba diving and sea lions, I’d head to Isla Los Islotes at the north end of this island chain.

SAN EVARISTO BAY

It’s only 30 miles from Los Islotes to San Evaristo Bay, so at 20 miles out you may stop for lunch inside “The Hook” on Isla San Francisco. This leg transits the San Jose Channel which acts like a funnel for marine life. Keep the camera handy.

Evaristo is an overnight anchorage off a small village only recently linked to La Paz by gravel road. The most private spot to drop the hook is in the hill-lined North Cove, but if any south wind threatens, pick the south end of Evaristo’s main beach. Besides fishing, the Evaristeños raise goats and run a salt-evaporation pond that you can visit by hiking over or anchoring in the next beach cove north.

Back out in the San Jose Channel, vast colonies of giant Humboldt squid and docile manta rays funnel through this narrow channel (and the Craig Channel farther north), so expect a few pangas to be fishing with nets, and with lights at night. At daybreak, if you can buy a few fresh squid from the pangueros, cut the calamari (sheath part) into strips and grill them quickly, lightly. Like abalone, they toughen when overcooked.

GATO & TORO

Cat and Bull Cove lies 31.5 miles north on Baja and is mostly uninhabited. In the north end of this 2-lobed spot, spectacular sandstone formations and ledges that surround the anchorage range from pastel pink to oxblood red, providing good north-wind shelter. This lobe and the Arroyo el Gato were named by locals for a family of puma or wild cats that live not far up the canyon. In south wind, one shallow-draft boat could anchor behind the flat-topped reef shielding the Toro lobe in front of Bull Creek.

AGUA VERDE

To reach Agua Verde Bay (20 n.m. north), you need to round Punta San Marcial either within half a mile off the tall rocky point, or at least 2.25 miles out – in order to avoid Roca San Marcial, an offshore reef patch that runs north-south. Also called Marcial Corners, this rocky-bottom turning point is great for cabrilla.

Agua Verde means the color turquoise in Spanish. This bay’s three anchoring areas are almost as beautifully turquoise as others we just visited, but the panguero village behind the center cove is friendly and picturesque; Lupita’s is a new restaurant. On the isolated north beach peninsula, cruisers at anchor hold so many rendezvous and pot lucks in front of the cinder-block hut that it’s been dubbed the Agua Verde Yacht Club.

PUERTO ESCONDIDO

Ready for civilization? Tie up and plug in to one of Marina Puerto Escondido’s 90 new full-service slips in front of the tall glass building. They also have 35 slips in a sheltered basin reached by a channel behind the boat yard. The Ellipse sometimes contains docks & slips too. Or grab one of 75 moorings in Puerto Escondido’s main bay. Come ashore for showers, lunch and laundry. Cruisers sometimes organize a Sunday brunch on the balcony.

The marina operates the 300′ floating Pemex fuel dock. Next to it is a haul out yard for repairs and dry storage. Mini mart groceries and Pepergina’s restaurant are in the marina, and nearby at Tripui RV resort a mile inland is another restaurant and pool. The historic mission town of Loreto is 15 miles north by taxi. This is a good place for guests to fly down and meet you.

Many Cubaristas are planning a Rendezvous here at Marina Puerto Escondido in March, 2020.

SAN JUANICO

Forty miles up the Baja coast, as you enter San Juanico Bay look for the Spires, the Lump and Isla Tercera, which are statuesque islets dotting the north-end anchorage. A couple lovely homes overlook this pretty anchorage. San Juanico has long been known for its fossils, crystals and other geological wonders, but please take only photos, not souvenirs, or you’ll destroy this ancient treasure. Instead, why not tie a ribbon or ornament with your boat’s name onto the “Cruisers Memento Bush.”

In south wind, you can go north (2 n.m.) around Punta Basilio to anchor in lovely Ramada Cove.

BAHIA CONCEPCION

One of the most relaxing side loops in the Southern Sea of Cortez is Bahia Concepcion – Conception Bay – pictured above. This “sea within a sea” is 21 miles long, only 2 to 4.5 miles wide, formed inside a hilly peninsula that’s virtually uninhabited. The shores of Bahia Concepcion are chocked full of interesting little anchoring coves, beaches and islands the size of small city blocks. The eastern shore is mostly lined by Highway 1, so you’ll see a few vacation villages and RV parks. Coyote Bay and Playa Santispac are somewhat “crowded” on holiday weekends. Hint: to avoid flies and land tourists, anchor in the coves with no beaches.

PUNTA CHIVATO

To break up the 90-mile leg to Santa Rosalia harbor, you could opt to anchor off the south side of Punta Chivato, 60 miles up from San Juanico. Upon entering the Chivato area, use caution to avoid Inez Reef, a detached submerged unlighted reef patch that lays 1.25 n.m. west-northwest of lighted Isla Santa Inez.

The stone-arch building you’ll see on the southernmost point of the Chivato headland was formerly a hotel, but their flight of steps from the low-tide dinghy beach has given access to the cluster of vacation homes and airstrips. Punta Chivato is good to keep in mind, because it has five decent anchorages for different wind directions.

SANTA ROSALIA

En route to Santa Rosalia (30 n.m.), favor the south side of the very tidal Craig Channel below Isla San Marcos.

At Santa Rosalia, the man-made breakwater harbor opens to the south. The Fonatur Marina welcomes yatistas to this small commercial harbor half way up the Sea of Cortez (240 n.m. from La Paz). In the southwest corner hard to port as you enter, this marina has a floating Pemex fuel dock, 15 slips, a 3-story blue-glass building alongside the Guaymas ferry terminal and port captain’s office. When cruise ships anchor outside the harbor, their passenger shore boats land at the ferry terminal.

You can anchor anywhere inside Santa Rosalia harbor not blocking the Navy docks in the north end nor ferry traffic. But in the harbor’s northwest corner, avoid the ruins of an older marina (destroyed by hurricanes) and a sand shoal south of it off the town seawall.

In 1885 a French company El Bolero built Santa Rosalia to mine, smelt and export copper ore, gypsum and manganese from nearby mountains. Imported lumber built the workers homes and shops that still fill the downtown canyon. Many of the wooden buildings destroyed in the Christmas fire have been rebuilt. Gustav Eiffel (as in the tower) designed the town’s unique church. Santa Rosalia has enjoyed new tourism prosperity with the reopening of the old mines. Baja’s most remarkable cave paintings and petroglyphs dot the Sierra San Borjita; hire a local guide.

SAN CARLOS

Crossing the Sea of Cortez from Santa Rosalia on Baja to San Carlos, Sonora, is a 75-mile passage east-northeast. On landfall, when you see the landmark peaks Tetakawi, Marina Real lies just to the north behind Playa Algadones, and Marina San Carlos lies just to the south inside Bahia San Carlos. Both marinas have fuel docks, and Marina Seca has separate repair and storage yards. San Carlos is a friendly sportfishing resort on the edge of Sonora Desert.

GUAYMAS

Fifteen miles south, the small commercial port of Guaymas (pronounced “WY-mas”) spreads around a spectacular bay with coves and islands that provide excellent shelter for five boat yards. The Singlar marina and fuel dock in the NW end were rebuilt from hurricane damage. Shrimp and Sonora beef are the prime exports; it’s not unusual to see real cowboys ride through town.

TOPOLOBAMPO

Similar to La Paz, “Topo” as it’s called, is a pleasant harbor sheltered by sand banks and hills, reached by an entrance channel. My GPS approach waypoint is 25°31.275’N, 109°12.490’W. The main channel is well buoyed into the harbor. Marina Topolobampo lies at the end of the NE secondary channel, but get directions from the marina or port captain on VHF 16.

Side trip? A safe berth in Topo is the best place to leave your boat while you take the 3- to 6-day Copper Canyon train excursion, which starts at nearby Los Mochis. Purchase tickets in advance: book port side of the train going up, starboard returning, for the best viewing. A stop at Topolobampo breaks up the eastern shore of the Sea of Cortez into easy pieces. Doing the Copper Canyon is an even better reason to visit Topolobampo.

Puerto Altata on the east side of the Sea of Cortez has relatively new Marina Isla Cortes 15 miles up inside Bahia Altata. Make a slip reservation to take advantage of their pilot panga to guide you safely migrating through shoals into the bay and up to the marina.

MAZATLAN

Mazatlan is the more popular boating destination on the east side of the Sea of Cortez, offering seven well established marinas, four boat yards, ample yacht services, good provisioning. My GPS approach to the rip-rap lined entrance channel into Marina District is 23°6.247’N, 106°28.250’W. It’s not unusual for 250 U.S. boats to summer over inside this large enclosed basin, though it’s not really a hurricane hole.

In Mazatlan’s downtown Centro Historico (about 20 square blocks) visit Plazuela Machado for great eats in lovingly restored Victorian Italianate buildings, ballet, opera, strolling guitars, cool culture.

LA PAZ RETURN

The crossing from Topo southwest back to La Paz is about 110 n.m. From Mazatlan, it’s about 235 n.m. northwest. On an overnight passage, I hope you’ll be thrilled by sparkling bioluminescence, by stars that appear within arm’s reach and a cruise ship arriving at dawn as well.

Marina CostaBaja is a welcome place to come home to. It’s home port to the CUBAR Odyssey. For details on this Circle Route and many more destinations, please check out “Mexico Boating Guide.”

My 4 Favorite Hide Outs in the Upper Sea of Cortez

Summertime, and the living is easy.

But it’s mid July, so recreational boaters who are in the Sea of Cortez right now should have solid plans about where they’ll spend the peak months of this hurricane season (August, September, October) in safety and comfort.

For example, most of us anywhere in the lower and mid latitudes of the Sea of Cortez should already have slip reservations in at least one of the hurricane-refuge marinas at La Paz or Puerto Escondido in Baja California Sur, or at San Carlos in Sonora.

Otherwise, if you’re still in La Paz, you should be cruising north to at least Puerto Escondido, which is another very popular hurricane hole. If you’re not summering over in the marina there, then I think you should plan to continue past Santa Rosalia (not a hurricane hole) to reach summer safety farther north.

Mazatlan on the mainland side of the Sea of Cortez might not be considered a hurricane hole due to the frequency of cyclonic storms that curve off the Pacific and slam into this coast between 22 and 24 degrees North. Most years, boaters berthed in the popular marinas tucked back into Sabalo Lagoon have reported no problem. But it’s “luck of the draw,” and even those marinas usually get booked full by now.

Otherwise, some folks at Mazatlan might head north to the San Carlos area, which has two hurricane-hole marinas and dry storage yards.

Why the Upper Sea of Cortez?

The lower and mid latitudes of the Sea of Cortez are vulnerable to tropical-storm winds and torrential rains that flood coastal areas, so if you’re not already hunkered down in one of those hurricane holes I think the best alternative is the upper third of the Sea of Cortez – north of a line between Santa Rosalia and Guaymas. See map.

Very few hurricanes can travel up the narrow north-south length of the Sea of Cortez, nor can they jump over the Baja California peninsula and reform with sufficient strength to travel north again.

Having summered over here 10 times on several different boats, I’ve distilled my list down to four favorite places to hide out during hurricane season in the upper Sea of Cortez. Each is not very far from a hurricane hole if you need to scoot there quickly. They have access to provisions, fuel, and a few diversionary side trips for whenever a hurricane isn’t breathing down your neck.

San Francisquito

San Francisquito is a gorgeous multiple-anchorage destination 75 nautical miles up the Baja coast from Santa Rosalia. Spend a week in different parts of the large main bay, while three small adjacent coves are fun dinghy expeditions. All four provide rare protection from summer southerlies, and are graced by crystal turquoise waters and white sand bottoms. A 1-mile outer beach roadstead is good in north wind. All this is within a 3-mile radius.
A dirt airstrip (1,200 yards) gets an occasional fly-in fishing group, and two rustic camp grounds on the south beach may have limited gasoline and water. San Francisquito enjoys the solitude of lying 60 unpaved miles from Baja Highway 1, but it’s a popular stepping stone for all boats crossing the Sea of Cortez via the Midriff Islands within sight. The nearest hurricane hole is 53 miles northwest at Puerto Don Juan near L.A. Bay.

Puerto Refugio

Puerto Refugio or Port of Refuge is not a port; it’s a picturesque sheltered bay that spreads 2.5 miles across the north tip of Guardian Angel Island, an uninhabited behemoth. Tucked inside like a cluster of jewels in a purse you’ll find nine pristine anchoring areas, providing swinging room for about 20 boats total. They’re nestled between four little islands, two fun diving reefs and two low peninsulas that slope down from the island’s rugged 3,000-foot peak.

Refugio is one of the quietest places on earth – well, except for the cries of sea birds diving into huge fish boils every morning, and except at night for the rhythmic “spwoosh” of whales breathing as they traverse the Canal de Ballenas.

For all supplies, go 35 miles south to Bahia de los Angeles, better known as L.A. Bay, which has diesel, gas, groceries, restaurants, a hospital, an airport and 20 modest hotels serving a couple hundred trailer-boating fishermen who trucked here from Highway 1. Nearly 50 small anchoring spots lie between Refugio and L.A. Bay.

Five miles east of L.A. Bay is the nearest hurricane hole, Puerto Don Juan. Again it’s really not a port; it’s a small uninhabited bay with a dog-leg entrance, room for 40 boats to swing comfortably, nearly impregnable to storm winds and seas from all directions.

Puerto Penasco

Puerto Penasco, Sonora, in the northeast corner of the Sea of Cortez is an actual port, finally, population 27,000. Here you find three small marinas, two fuel docks with diesel and gas, seven haul-out yard, good provisioning, hospitals, chandlers, an international airport, air-conditioned movie theatres, and scads of restaurants featuring the region’s mainstay – shrimp.

The U.S. border is only 65 miles north, so hundreds of gringos find it practical to keep their boats here over the summer while they scoot home. I counted only 50 yacht slips, and they fill up fast. But because the tidal range is extreme this far north (23’ max at springs), the enclosed commercial port actually shrink at low tides, providing almost no room for moorings or anchoring.

The best plan is to store boats safely on the hard. Cabrales Boatyard in the harbor’s northwest corner specializes in yachts, uses 150-ton Travelifts with padded straps and coordinates with international boat movers to truck yachts up to the U.S. or down.

Puerto Penasco is the safest hurricane hole in Mexico due to its latitude and geography.

Bahia Sargento

Bahia Sargento (“sar-HEN-tow”) is a pristine 3-mile wide turquoise bay between two sparkling white sand spits. Sargento lies within the indigenous Seri tribal reservation – all sacred land including Tiburon Island, where the Seri people believe their spirits live. No fishing or exploring ashore without a Seri guide, easily hired on VHF 16 in Kino Bay or Chuenque.

Enter Sargento Bay from the northwest, swing wide of the little reef off Punta Sargento, anchor off the northern beach in 15 to 18 feet of clear water. In the shallow tidal lagoon behind this beach you may see Seri families setting hand-made fishing nets. Distinguished by their native dress (“traje”), the Seri often camp ashore here. But unlike typical Mexican pangueros, they seldom initiate contact with outsiders, except during their annual Sea Turtle Ceremony.

Grupo Tortuguero of the Californias, an NGO based in La Paz, helps preserve the Seri’s nautical heritage, and together they now protect all five sea-turtle species that thrive in the Sea of Cortez. For details, visit http://grupotortuguero.org or visit their Turtle Center at 108 Ficus Street, La Paz, (612) 146-3553.

Chill Out this Summer in the Coolest Dive Spots around the Sea of Cortez

Access to remote places is one of the coolest advantages of boat ownership. So, while land-based folks are sweating through summer, we can cool off in a few of the most interesting dive spots that are accessible only by boat.

Because August and September are the height of summer storm season in Mexico, let’s look at remote dive spots near hurricane holes in the Sea of Cortez, which Jacques Cousteau dubbed the Aquarium of the World.

GEARED UP?

Whether you’re doing some serious scuba diving or just snorkeling around the boat for a few minutes, first give all your dive gear a summer safety check. When’s the last time your scuba tanks were inspected? Are they full now? Did you flush the sand and salt water out of your regulator with fresh water before stowing it last time? If not, flush it now. Do your need to replace some worn out straps on your fins, masks and snorkel tubes?

Is your boat’s swim step or ladder ready for divers to get in and out safely? Is your dinghy easy to board, or do you need to hang a rope ladder? Got plenty of water proof sun block?

Bigger boats are likely to carry some scuba gear – maybe even a compressor – as safety gear for making emergency DIY bottom repairs. Since that’s often the original excuse for the investment, you may as well “limber it up” for recreational pleasure, just in case.

What about wet suits? Sea of Cortez coastal waters are usually warm enough in summer that a full-body neoprene wet suit is over kill. But the added floatation of even a “shorty” wet suit (shorts and short-sleeved or tank top) will benefit children, elders and novice swimmers. A long-sleeved T-shirt over a swim suit prevents sun burn. Protect your tender tootsies with booties.

CHECK IT OUT

Whenever exploring a new dive location, an easy way to check it out is to anchor nearby and snorkel over it first to see what catches your eye. Or take the dinghy around a few corners, anchor the dink off the nearest beach and snorkel around to determine if conditions are favorable and it looks inviting. If you see any jelly fish, just move on. Remember to shuffle your feet in beach sand to scare away any sleeping sting rays.

I’d like to avoid the tourist-heavy locations, so let’s look at just the most interesting boater-only dive spots that are within a day’s sail from the hurricane holes of La Paz, Puerto Escondido, the Midriff Islands, L.A. Bay and San Carlos.

LA PAZ

Boaters can anchor in El Empachado Cove on the southwest side of Isla Espiritu Santo to dive the wreck of the Fang Ming, the 185-foot steel-hulled Chinese smuggling vessel seized with 88 men and seven women in confinement. Fang Ming was sunk in 1999 a quarter mile west of this cove, sitting on the sand bottom in 69 feet, attracting lots of marine life.

Dive through the “Garden in the Sea,” a sculptural grouping submerged in 2017 off the north side of Monument Rock in the middle of Caleta Candelero. This environmental project shows how quickly marine flora and fauna thrive. But don’t anchor atop the sculptures: 24° 30’18”N, 110°23’25”W.

PUERTO ESCONDIDO

Isla Danzante carries a nav light on its south end to mark a lovely linear reef stretching less than a quarter mile southeast. Danzante Reef’s near shore half is often breaking, so you’ll dive the south half, which looks like a ship’s bulbous bow or an older submarine surfacing. Current and upwellings bring nutrients to the colorful sea life on Danzante Reef. One mile northeast is Danzante Arch, seldom visited by tourists.

Danzante Reef is less than five miles from Marina Puerto Escondido. The nearest anchorage is Honeymoon Cove (Luna de Miel) on Danzante’s northwest quadrant.

Alternately, V Cove on the north side of Carmen Island is a unique dive excursion reserved for summer. Here you’ll find a sea-level cave that’s roomy enough to enter with your dinghy, SUP or kayak, and at low tide you can land on a small beach at the cave’s far end. V Cove is about 1.75 miles southwest of Punta Lobos, the bold NE tip of Carmen Island.

During hurricane season, boaters keeping a close eye on the weather can roam freely around the upper Sea of Cortez.

MIDRIFF ISLANDS

Bahia San Francisquito on Baja is one of the most remote places on earth, yet logistically it’s a primo departure anchorage for the easy 60-mile crossing of the Sea of Cortez with the Midriff Islands always in site.

By anchoring in Bahia San Francisquito you can snorkel the lushly cloaked rock piles on the east side of Punta Mujeres, the bay’s northwest corner. These piles are rife with tall lacey fans and brilliant reef fish. Also, you can dinghy around that corner to snorkel off the pristine white beaches in two tiny coves known as Caleta Ninos and Caleta Mujeres.

On the east side of Isla San Esteban (about half way across), a small volcanic islet with dramatic 80 feet peaks stretches its reef fingers 300 yards northeast and southwest. This reef (one mile northeast of the island’s rounded southeast corner) pokes out perpendicular from the south end of Playa Arroyo anchorage. You can walk down the beach and swim right out over the reefs at either end of the islet. Sea life here is incredibly rich, because the whole Sea of Cortez ebbs and flows around Isla San Esteban.

Monument Pass (35 to 50 feet depths) at the south tip of Isla Tiburon (largest island in the Sea of Cortez) offers expert diving in three spots: a rock reef that runs north from Isla Chayudito (Little Knob), a longer deeper reef that links Chayudito to Chayudo, and all around Isla Turner. The west side of Monument Pass drops off to 900 foot depths, while the east side forms a 30- to 60-foot shelf. Expect strong tidal current, whale sharks and schools of manta rays. The nearest summer anchorage is at Tiburon’s Dogs Bay, five miles northeast of Monument Pass.

L.A. BAY

From the hurricane hole of Puerto Don Juan near Bahia de Los Angeles, you have 17 separate islands running north for 10 miles, providing half a dozen intimate dive spots. Of those, my favorite is Ventana Reef (15 to 35 feet depth) running southeast from Isla Ventana.

If you’re hunkered down in Puerto Refugio at the north end of Guardian Angel Island, the two best dive spots are False Pass at the south tip of Isla Division and Isla Piedra Blanca in the middle of Refugio’s East Bay.

SAN CARLOS

From the summer shelter of San Carlos, Sonora, boaters can zoom 15 miles west to Isla San Pedro Nolasco where hammer head sharks gather for their annual mating rendezvous in August, while some stick around through November. La Cueva on the island’s southeast flank has a good cave dive. If you’re exploring north up the coast, primo diving reefs are found at Himalaya, Venazia and Seri Muerto Cove.

La Paz, Baja California Sur, is a beautiful historic port, a lovely beach resort city and the capital of Southern Baja – found at the south end of the Sea of Cortez.

For us yatistas (recreational boaters) La Paz (pop. 200,000) offers so many nautical services (five full-service marinas, five boat yards for haul out & repair, many marine chandlers) that nearly 6,000 liveaboard boaters from the U.S. now make it their home port away from home, staying 6 months and even 6 years.

By sea, we reached La Paz in late November, 2017, along with 120 members of the CUBAR powerboat rally and at least 200 Baja Ha Ha sail boaters. We had all just sailed or powered down the length of Baja, now heading up into the Sea of Cortez. We explored the town, feasted at its great restaurants, provisioned our galleys and filled out fuel tanks. Though I’ve visited La Paz by boat nearly 50 times, I’m still in love and find it difficult to leave its comforts.

Gateway to Adventure
La Paz is the Gateway to the Sea of Cortez – and that well-kept promise of pristine salt-water adventure is what’s calling me onward today.

Here are “Five Easy Pieces” – 5 small, remote, but rewarding stops – to help you plan your cruising itinerary between La Paz and Puerto Escondido. You’ll find yacht services on both ends, but none in between. Yet, I consider this remote 115-mile stretch to be THE most interesting cruising grounds on the Pacific side of Mexico.

Each of my Five Easy Pieces has overnight anchoring potential during winter cruising season, when prevailing conditions are from the north. So if you watch your weather, you can plan to spend at least a few days in each place, maybe a week or more. They’re all detailed and charted in “Mexico Boating Guide.”

Partida Cove on Isla Espiritu Santos
Only 27 miles from downtown La Paz, this 3-island chain is uninhabited yet provides 22 separate coves – all with dramatic geology, white sand beaches and good holding for overnight anchoring in multiple places. Partida Cove is the favorite first stop. The whole island chain is a Natural Marine Park, so your SEMARNAT permit lets you anchor, kayak, snorkel or scuba dozens of reefs and hike the easy trails.

To work your way north toward Isla San Jose, Partida Cove and Ensenada Grande make good stepping stones, as does “The Hook” anchorage on Isla San Francisco.

(1.) Amortajada on Isla San Jose
Amortajada Lagoon (23 n.m. from Espiritu Santos) is a triangular estuary that projects 2.5 n.m. west-southwest from the south end of Isla San Jose’s mountainous profile. Punta Ostiones (Oysters Point) Light marks the west corner, but the whole lagoon is bounded by a unique linear sand berm (about15-foot high) that allows entrance by dinghy or panga only at one or two cuts. Amortajada means Shrouded. Anchor in the commodious mile-wide Bahia Amortajada almost anywhere northwest the lagoon and east of the white pinnacles of Isla Cayos.

Inside are four square miles of shallow sheltered waters, 20-foot trees, mangrove marshes and a 1.25-mile channel ideal for exploring, bird watching, swimming and fishing by kayak or dinghy (quiet motor to protect wildlife). Vacate the lagoon at sunset when blood-thirsty “no see ums” show up. Alternates on Isla San Jose: La Salina or Cazadero Points.

(2.) San Evaristo Bay
Back on Baja, San Evaristo lies directly across the 3.4-mile channel from Isla San Jose. Evaristo villagers tend herds of goat, fish from pangas and operate the salt works on the north slope of the village (population 300).

Anchorage choices are (a.) off Village Beach so you can watch all the action if a pick up arrives via the newly graveled 65-mile road from La Paz, or (b.) nearby inside the uninhabited rectangular North Cove, where the tinkling of goat bells may start your morning. In case of south wind, choose Village Beach.

Evaristenos are friendly. School kids love to practice English with visiting boaters. They may greet you on the beach or zoom by your boat offering to sell you a fresh fish or half kilo of fresh goat cheese. I’d buy both.

(3.) Agua Verde Bay
Cristal turquoise water over white-sand bottoms and a choice of pleasant winter anchorages draw us to Agua Verde, 45 n.m. up from Evaristo. Anchor off the tongue-in-cheek “yacht club” beach in the bay’s northwest corner. Or, anchor east of Pyramid Rock.

Only slightly larger than Evaristo, the fishing villagers of Agua Verde also tend a few goats and pigs and operate Maria’s, a part-time grocery store. If you’re lucky, you can sometimes buy fresh baked “empanadas,” a tasty pastry, half-moon shaped and filled with cheese, fruit or mystery meat. If you plan to be here two or three more days, ask the matron of the store if she’ll make you a dozen.

Where’s the store? Land on the southeast end of the palm-studded beach in front of the village, walk 300 yards inland and ask anyone you meet – Donde esta la tienda? Or ask Se venden empanadas hoy? TIP: Don’t bring Fido ashore here; the pigs run loose and don’t like gringo dogs.

(4.) Isla Danzante Primera
The translation “Prima Ballerina” sounds pretty, but this island looks like a dragon or dinosaur swimming north with its snout just above sea level. At 20 n.m. from Agua Verde and only 2.5 n.m. outside Puerto Escondido, most folks use Danzante Island to avoid entering the complex harbor entrance after dark.

Honeymoon Cove on the northwest corner of Danzante Island is an easy in and out anchorage, so it’s also a popular day sail from Marina Puerto Escondido. Honeymoon Cove has three picturesque lobes each big enough for only two boats to swing, or you can drop the hook just outside the lobes. The warm water and pristine sand bottom are the perfect place for novice snorkelers to get comfortable. Tiny silver guppies may peek at their reflections in your dive mask or nibble cheese morsels from your fingers.

Alternately, the next two similar anchoring spots within a mile south of Honeymoon are ironically dubbed Denouement Cove and Divorce Cove. Or, six miles south of Isla Danzante, Candeleros Cove has shelter from south wind and a yatistas friendly hotel.

Finally we arrive at Puerto Escondido (Hidden Port). We can top off our diesel tanks, gas up our outboard, grab a mooring out in the land-locked Main Bay, or get a full-service marina slip, all from Marina Puerto Escondido. Or we can haul out for repairs or secure dry storage with the 65-ton lift.

The 2-story blue glass marina complex (formerly a Fonatur marina) houses a small grocery store, Pepergino’s wood-fired pizza restaurant, West Coast Multihulls charter office, a dive charter office, showers and coin laundry, cruisers’ lounge, library and the marina office. A mile inland is Tripui RV resort with a small hotel, restaurant and RV storage. For details about Marina Puerto Escondido, see my Mexico Report column in SEA Magazine’s September 2017 issue.

The town of Loreto is 15 miles north off Highway 1. Loreto has a busy panga basin and a passenger loading dock for small excursion ships, but no marina for yachts. The airport a mile south of Loreto has direct flights to the U.S. on Alaska, Calafia and others.