Sailing the Gulf of California

This is Dylan. I met him some weeks ago outside of a gas station in Baja Norte where we drank a beer together sharing travel stories. He has been traveling for years by any means necessary. Whether it is sneaking on to trains in Mexico or thru hiking across America, Dylan loves to be moving and traveling.

He told me of his experiences hitching rides on sailboats. A lot of sailors are looking for crew to help with trips such as the one from La Paz, Baja to mainland Mexico. Sailing was something I’ve always dreamed of doing so this was what I knew I wanted to do. He told me the tricks of the trade and the best way to find a ride which is by hanging out around the marinas sharing your story on the morning net radio calls.

We were riding different routes down Baja, so after our gas station beers were gone, we went separate ways.

Luckily for me, my first day in La Paz I happened to ride past Dylan where he yelled out my name and called me over. He had been in town for about a week going to the marina everyday to try and find a ride across. He was with Mike, a sailor from California who was about to do the crossing and had invited Dylan along to help.

They were going out to watch Mexico play in the World Cup and invited me along to join. We all got along really well and Mike invited me along on the sailboat also. I was ecstatic as it was a dream come true for me. We would spend our next few days hanging out together while we waited for the sail to be repaired and we could leave.

This is Mike, the owner of the boat. He does seasonal work on fishing boats in California and Alaska and also works on sailboats as a crew member. When he’s not working he is traveling and loving life. He’s been traveling for over a decade and is a wealth of knowledge and experience. He’s traveled all over the world but enjoys Latin America the most.

An Argentinian girl named Mari would be joining us also. She was a friend of Mikes and was coming along to help. She is a free diving instructor but with a twist. She is the owner of a company specializing in mermaid experiences. She leads women’s trips with beautifully crafted mermaid suits for people who dream of swimming like a mermaid. She currently lives and works out of Playa Del Carmen but has recently started traveling and running trips out of new places.

So our crew would be a sailor, two cyclists, and a mermaid. A very unusual crew for sure, but it would turn out to be some of the best people and closest connections I’ve had yet on this trip.

This is the boat, Scalawag. A 28ft Columbia sailboat from the 70s. It would be a tight fit for four people with loads of gear, but it would be perfect.

Mike, Dylan, and I were loading up my bike on the boat. We were sleeping on the boat tonight and would pick up Mari in the morning and then head out.

We had a great first night aboard making some burritos and drinking a lot of beer. I didn’t drink very much while biking because I never really craved it, but sailing was a different experience. I would drink enough in the next week to make up for the rest.

After picking up Mari in the morning, we started off towards Isla Espiritu. We were planning to spend two nights anchored there exploring the area before starting the crossing of the Sea.

Some mountains in Baja. Sadly we were trying to sail almost directly into wind, so we decided to motor to the island. It would save us hours travel time and allow us to anchor before sunset.

A great thing about sailing is you can stock up on good food. We had plenty of fresh fruits and veggies along with dry goods that would last us about a week.

And tequila of course. I mean we are in Mexico.

After a couple hours of motoring, we made it to our anchorage. Just in time for sunset.

First things first, of course. A dip in the ocean.

The water here was nearly turquoise blue, even in the setting sun.

Dylan was traveling with a small guitar. He knew loads of songs and he played and we sung along late into the night.

After a nice breakfast, we headed off on the dingy towards the beach to hike up the nearby cliffs.

Always on the hunt for neat shells, also.

Starting the rocky hike up.

There wasn’t a trail or anything, we just wanted to go up.

The top was a narrow ridge the opened into a flat plateau with beautiful views of most of the island.

That’s our boat way down there.

The crew chilling enjoying the view.

It was a steep hike but entirely worth it.

Mari relaxing on a precarious rock.

Walking back on the ridge line. You can see the ocean on the other side up here.

Some sedimentary layers on the adjacent canyon.

Mike called this the tree of life and I found it a fitting name. Pretty much the only tree up here and it was right on the ridge line. We took a break in the shade.

After our hike, we took the dingy to a nearby island that we dubbed “shit rock”. It’s because it was covered in bird poop. We snorkeled around the island and saw a lot of wonderful aquatic life. Mari and Mike each spearfished a nice fish for us to cook up later that night.

Dylan and I attempted to climb as high as we could, but it was not an enjoyable time. There was bird poop everywhere and flies swarmed us. We went back to the water shortly after.

We got back to the boat before sunset and we were all pretty beat. It was a nice day of exploration.

I borrowed the dingy to get some nice photos of the boat.

The sunrises and sunsets are one of my favorite times of the day, especially on the boat.

We all sit and watch, happily in silence.

Being the Arkansan, I became the grill master. I grilled up the fresh fish and we made delicious fish tacos.

Good times and even better people.

It’s not all fun and games out here. In the morning Dylan and I had to clean up the bottom of the boat. Barnacles grow quickly on the boat and it’s a constant battle to keep the boat clean and fast.

After two nights at anchor, it was time to head towards the channel between the island and Baja to start the crossing to mainland.

Everyone was happy to get moving again. The desire to move is always strong.

Slowly motoring our way to the channel. We didn’t have any wind here as the island was blocking it.

In the channel we noticed some nearby dolphins who also noticed us. It was really amazing, the swam directly at us.

They swam right next to us and underneath the front of the boat. It was such a cool experience.

Mari and Mike.

After leaving the channel, we were able to raise the sail since the wind was good. Now we were sailing! Sailing interested me a lot in the way biking does. It is freedom of the ocean as a bike is freedom of the sea. Using the wind to move is really powerful.

Mike was making dinner this night. I cooked most of the time since I was eager to make myself useful on the boat. Dylan helped cook too and was a huge help with all the sailing since he had a lot of experience.

Cooking while moving was pretty tricky. The rocking of the waves would demand nearly constant attention on the pots and pans.

I wish I had taken pictures of more of the meals as we ate pretty well. This was pretty standard for dinner.

After dinner, it was time to start the first night at sea. Mari and Mike were taking the first shift from 9pm until 1am and then Dylan and I would be up from 1am till sunrise. We had an autopilot we dubbed Wall-E, which made the job much much easier. We practically were babysitting Wall-E, making sure he wasn’t unplugged or messed up. Dylan and I went to bed to get some rest before our shift started.

The first night was the roughest night. Dylan and I woke up to start our shift to Mike considering if we should turn around. The swell was much worse than predicted and we were rocking aggressively back and forth. The boat is a small one so it can only handle so much. Dylan and I felt pretty comfortable and confident that it would get better so we decided as a group we should keep going. Shortly after the swell lessened and confidence increased for everyone.

Sailing at night under the stars was amazing. Unsurprisingly, it is very hard to get a steady shot on a boat. So here are some shaky stars, which was the best I could do.

After a long shift, the sun finally rose.

Dylan and I passed out after the end of our shifts. Sleeping was very hard for me on the boat. The boat was constantly rocking so I could never fall asleep completely. I would have to get by resting my eyes for the next few days.

My sleeping spot for the trip. It was pretty cozy.

There really isn’t a ton to do while sailing. We all hung out, slept, read books, ate, and played some games.

Shortly into the second day of the crossing, we lost sight of the land behind us and were completely surrounded by ocean. It was a feeling I was looking forward to.

Some wine for sunset.

Dylan had a saying that I liked a lot, “Don’t be sorry, be silly”. He would say it every time anyone would say sorry and it always lightened the mood.

The wind was really good this day and we averaged a pretty fast speed. I will say I was a bit surprised at how slow sailing was at first. We averaged about 4.5 mph for the whole trip.

It got chilly at night on the water. Mike and Mari are bundled up here.

The last sunrise during the crossing. We were set to make it to Mazatlán after sunset today. Sadly the wind completely stopped and we were left to motor the last day.

The MVP, Wall-E. He had one job that he never stopped and that was to keep the tiller straight.

Thanks to Wall-E, I was able to relax and read. Here I was finishing Fire and Blood. The prequel to Game Of Thrones. It started strong but I got pretty bored in the second half. It was very repetitive.

The usual breakfast I would make. It’s sweet potato, onions, vegan chorizo, and egg scramble. It’s so tasty and filling. We would snack on fresh fruit throughout the day, also.

It was on this day that the highlight of everyone’s trip would happen. Mike noticed a massive pod of dolphins nearby so we quickly changed course to be right in the path of them. We could see hundreds of splashing dolphins which meant there were thousands down below.

As soon as we got close they rushed to our boat and swam with us. It truly is amazing how wild animals like these seem to love people. We were completely surrounded by dolphins, it was overwhelming and incredible.

These were spinner dolphins. They would jump out of the water and do a crazy amount of spins. It was so cool to watch. Sadly this is the best photo I got of one as it was a challenge to capture and I wanted to fully enjoy the moment.

Here you can get an idea of just how many dolphins there were. This is only a small portion of them as we were surrounded like this.

Dylan, Mari, and Mike all jumped in the water while I offered to stay and man the ship. They jumped in and could see all the dolphins in the water as the dolphins swam around them. Mari took some amazing GoPro videos so I was able to share in the experience as well.

We were all on quite a high for the rest of the trip after the dolphins. We still had a long day ahead of us so we passed the time as usual.

Mike had a bottle of champagne that he was saving for a special moment. He popped it and we enjoyed it during our final sunset at sea.

Full moon on our final evening. We were just a few hours away from land.

The first lights of Mazatlán really revealed that my time in Baja was over. Baja was very remote and small and the entire coastline of Mazatlán was covered in high rise resorts. I was still very excited to see what all mainland has to offer.

We arrived in Mazatlán late and anchored at a free spot. We were all exhausted and looking forward to our first real nights rest on flat waters. We all quickly went to bed.

When we awoke, we decided to move to a marina that would be more enjoyable to spend a few days at instead of anchoring outside of town.

Mikes mom was in town to visit him so after getting setup at the marina we went to find her at her resort.

We drank a bottle of tequila and enjoyed some nice beach time together while getting to meet mikes mom.

Hungry, we decided to hop on a bus and get off at a random location to find a nice local eatery away from the touristy area. The buses here are really great

But the tacos are even better.

When we were walking to the taco shop I noticed a light up Ferris wheel a few blocks away. Me being me, I demanded we must go see what is is after we ate dinner.

It turned out to be an amazing Mexican fair. We had no idea what it was for or anything but it was a blast.

This is now my fourth fair I’ve been to on this trip. First one in Mexico. The rides were the best part, we rode every single one that was big. We all screamed like kids as we were spun about in every direction.

Truly a wonderful day. We went in with no plans and expectations and that is how I love to travel.

I’m writing this on the evening of my last night on the sailboat. Tomorrow morning I’ll be getting back on the bike as I head towards Durango.

I’m a bit sad as the friends I made on this trip are some of the closest I’ve made so far. Being complete strangers before this to spending all day together on a boat for over a week can really form strong bonds. Dylan and I will be biking similar directions and will likely see each other again, but I’m not sure when I’ll cross paths with Mike or Mari again.

Thank you all again for reading along. I always have you all in mind as I’m traveling and taking photos to share the story of my trip.