Month: March 2024

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Misión San Francisco Javier de Viggé-Biaundó.

I rented a car yesterday to drive to Loreto from Puerto Escondido to provision. Since I had a car, I took the opportunity to drive into the mountains to see the Misión San Francisco Javier. I understand it was the second church built in the Baja California Sur state (the bottom half of Baja), the first being built in Loreto.

The mission was founded by Jesuits of the Roman Catholic church in 1699 and closed in 1817.

The architecture comprises the usual cruciform groundplan.

On the left as you walk in, there is a sanctuary with a basin of holy water.

On the ceiling is a relief.

The clergy are buried outside the church. Some of the grave markers (like this one and others from the early 20th century) are from after the mission was closed.

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Bahia Salinas

Located on Isla Carmen, Bahia Salinas is best known for its salt mining operation, which probably started in the 1600’s and ended in the 1980’s. There are several decaying buildings on the site (note the old panga on the right).

There is also some equipment left behind, including this forklift that has been turned into a planter.

And this truck (which is clearly newer than the 1990’s).

It is noteworthy that there are several newer building on the site that are well-kept-up and occupied by care keepers and some fishermen. This is their chapel.

Isla Carmen is also known for a site where the government has reintroduced bighorn sheep.

I’ll note the bay also has a 120′ tuna boat that is sunk in 35′ of water. I dove on the boat and was amazed how many fish I saw, more than I have ever seen in my 50 years of SCUBA diving.

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First Yellowfin Tuna Caught

I’ve been trying to catch a yellowfin tuna since I arrived in Mexico, and was finally successful today, while sailing near Isla Coronado. I cleaned it on the spot.

A few hours later, I arrived at Bahia Salinas and prepared a meal: pan seared tune in sesame oil with black sesame seeds. Fusion salad with rice, red onion, and cilantro. Served with say sauce and ginger.

It was served with a pseudo-Paloma (Penafiel and tequila).

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Where I Plan to Watch the Solar Eclipse

On April 8, there will be a solar eclipse. There is an interactive map that you can use to view the path for total eclipse. The path follows open ocean south of Baja and intersects Mexico’s mainland around Mazatlan.

Many of my boating buddies are head to Mazatlan to view the eclipse, but it is likely to be a zoo there, so I have decided to pick a random point in the ocean to view the eclipse. I am currently naming my way down the east coast of Baja. When I make it the Puerto Los Cabos (23.0550o N, 109.6705o W), I am going to head for 22.1211 No N, 107.1240o W (about 150 miles). At that location, the following is expected:

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Itinerary for the Next Month

After a near-perfect passage from San Carlos on February 29, Aegir-Ran has been in a slip in Santa Rosalia. On March 5th, I will start heading south. This is the plan for perhaps the next ten days (the waypoint in parentheses is from Breeding and Banister’s book “A Cruiser’s Guide to the Sea of Cortez“.

Santa Rosalia to Santo Domingo (BCS470), 38
Santa Domingo to San Juanico (BCS444), 47
San Juanico to Isla Coronados (BCS420), 20
Isla Coronados to Bahia Salinas (BCS404), 26
Bahia Salinas to Puerto Escondido (BCS351), 20
Puerto Escondido to San Marte (BCS277), 31
San Marte to Puerto Las Gatos (BCS251), 14
Puerto Las Gatos to San Everisto (BCS222), 29
San Everisto to Isla San Francisco (BCS201), 9
San Francisco to Playa Bonanza (BCS110), 29
Playa Bonanza to Ensenada de los Muertos (BCS030), 43
Ensenada de los Muertos to Bahia Los Frailes (BSC020), 46
Bahia Los Frailes to Puerto Los Cabos (BCS010), 28

March 7 – Caleta San Juanico: I anchored here about 5:30 last night. This photo was taken the next morning, the calm after the storm … it blew 30 knots most of the night.