Chez Nous arrives back in Puerto Vallarta 12-14-17

Wednesday. 12-13-17.        Motor sailing most of the way with very little wind , they did have to limit their motoring to 1400 rpms to conserve fuel.  They pulled into San Jose del Cabo at 0400 local time and. waited at the fuel dock till it opened at 0600.  Didn’t loose much time there. Filled up and left the harbor at 0645 Wednesday am.  The engine was off for approximately 10 hrs the entire trip. 

1153   Thursday.  12-14-2017  Dock to dock   Chez Nous made the trip back to PV, MX in 6 days and 14 hrs.  With a Happy well fed crew.

EEK look at the weather that was Predicted for Thursday 12/7

One of three areas ahead of them that looked like this !
Thats Colonet...the old man's nose.

A weather check Weds morning at launch time had the guys trying to decide how to miss this black area 50 plus kts.  No one wants to be in that so after first anchoring at Todos Santos and slowing down then circling, at dawn on Thurs. they decided to go into Cruise Port Marina for 24 hrs. to make sure they missed it.

Friday  12/8/17  0800:       Chez Nous departed Ensenada for Puerto Vallarta , Mx.  follow the tracking on the right side of the web site.

HUMPTY DUMPTY TOGETHER AGAIN and Booking south

Sunday and Monday  12/3-4/17:     After a flurry of phone calls and waiting for return messages Friday- Sunday  a plan started taking place.  Wilmington Iron works had 6 ft super strength steel rod they could mill to match our needs and S&W Diesel located a transmission plate in Seattle and arranged to fly it down to LA overnight.  Al delivered the broken parts to both and gathered other parts but I can't name all of them, couplers and packing glands and bushings?   If the transmission plate was delivered to S&W by 8:00 Tues. they said they could have it done by 10:00.   Everything was falling into place.  Now to line up new as Tom and Rain had work commitments.  When Rob Wallace heard of ChezNous's breakdown he offered to help and he let us know he was available.  Jim and Bob were still in.  So Bob got a return plane ticket, this time to San Diego,  having faith that we would be there with parts in hand (well, in Van) to pick him up.
Tuesday  12/05/17:    The transmission backing plate arrived before 8:00 at S&W and the machinists were patiently making the modifications when we arrived.

Old Plate

New Plate being Modified

 Picked up the new shaft at Wilmington Iron by 10:15 and headed for Belmont Shore to pick up Jim, then Laguna Niguel to pick up Rob at a carwash and on to San Diego airport baggage claim to pick up Bob.  After a quick stop for Mx car insurance at San Ysidro and then visas for the crew at the border we finally arrive at the yard in Ensenada before 3pm without a glitch.

Al, Bob, Rob, Jim

Now Al's work really begins.  Putty Humpty Dumpty back together again is a task.  The yard workers helped with the outside shaft and propeller but Al is the bilge mechanic.  This time he had lots of helpers.

We got Al out of the bilge for a short break around 4:30 for carryout fish tacos, as no one had lunch.

Al trying to get the coupler on the shaft, Jim standing by...
ready to hand him another tool.

Three professional Captains plus Chez Nous's owner engineer mechanic captain

Three hours later and a lot of hard work the transmission and shaft were installed and tools put away.   The yard was locked up for the night with us inside so cocktails and nuts for dinner..

Wednesday 12/6/17:        A bright sunny day!

A beautiful sunny morning in Ensenada 

Prop installed 

Jim pulling Al out the bilge by his feet after tightening the hose clamps
 on the packing gland.

Ready to Launch

Moving the fishing boat so Al can clear it.

Rob and Jim ready to fend off.

OK to Go

INDEFINITE DELAY

Thursday   11/30/17:    The crew assembled at Coral Marina ready for an adventure;  however, before Chez Nous left the little harbor loose bolts on the prop shaft coupler caused the shaft to bend which included collateral damage to the transmission mounting plate to the engine.  Thankfully they were close enough to pull themselves back to the dock to investigate the loss of propulsion and begin repair planning.

Friday.   12/01/17:         Arrangements were made for a panga to tow Chez Nous back to Guillermo’s yard in Ensenada early Sat morning in high tide conditions.  Guillermo began looking for available mounting plates that might fit our engine.   The decision was made because no one knows how long repairs will take that the entire crew would come home.  Al asked me to drive down to pick them up but hadn’t decided if he would come back with us or stay down to work on repairs.

Saturday.  12/02/17:       The crew all say it was a white knuckle tow,  three miles back to Ensenada with several close calls due to a panga  driver that didn’t have a clue to what he was doing.   It’s too bad they didn’t turn on the Satilite tracking for the tow.   The haul out went well but none of the available plates fit both the inside and outside bolt placements needed for our engine so it became clear that Al would have to bring the broken plate home to find or have a replacement fabricated..  The shaft was significantly bent and had to be sawed in two to get it out.

                      Rain Wilson, our grand daughter,  was Al’s crew on the way down from San Pedro.

    Jim Morgan, his friend and classmate Bob Owen, Tom Garnier and Rain Wilson.  Al must still be in the bilge.

    All are disappointed but all accept the unforeseen challenges in good spirits.  After all it was still an adventure, although shorter than expected.

A quick stop at La Fonda for fish tacos and Tecate.   Needed fortification for what turned out to be a two and a half hour wait at the San Ysidro  border crossing.

Cruising South Again for the Winter 11/27/17

Monday 11/27      Chez Nous is headed south again to Mexico for the winter  with Al and our grand daughter Rain on board.  Their first stop is Ensenada for a haul out and bottom paint.  More crew is to arrive on Thurs.  Reports from the boat indicate they had 35kts  with steep short seas for the afternoon subsiding around Newport to 18kts and later completely shutting down for the rest of the night.  A good trip and only a few mishaps.

Rain's first offshore adventure with "PaPa"

Lift at Guillermo's yard  is small compared to Baja Naval's

Rudder in need of a little repair, must have caught a cable or fishing gear sometime last year
 causing abrasion and then allowing a few worms to attack the exposed wood.

Tuesday 11/30 :  1500   Bottom paint and rudder repair completed yesterday.  Al and Rain toured Ensenada , Hussan's and the malecon fountain show after dinner.  Boat washed and put back in the water this morning.  Al and Rain are now taking the boat up to Coral Marina for fuel and to wait for the rest of the crew to arrive.

Note that I'm not on board so for the trip down I get to watch the tracker.  I will fly into Puerto Vallarta on the 10th so until then I can con't my Physical Therapy here on land.

BAJA BASH 5/23-6/1/2017

BAJA BASH on 

sv CHEZ NOUS

5/23-6/1/2017

Predict Wind's GPS track

 1,031 nm from Puerto Los Cabo, MX to  San Pedro, CA  with an average speed of 5.84nm/hr. 

Al may add all the details later but now he is getting Chez Nous ready to take another trip back to Mx for the cruising season.

5/20-23/2017 Time in San Jose del Cabo/Puerto Los Cabos

5/20  Saturday afternoon :      We were assigned a slip near the fuel dock.   On the way in and shortly after getting tied up we recognized two familiar boats.  One was "Compass Rose" Steve Roberts boat was in a slip close to ours but no one was on board at the time.  The other boat that was across the channel from us was Lagoon 62 our old friends from the windy night at Partida  with Ray and Capt. Bryan Carson on board.  For the remainder of our time in in the Marina they allowed us to tie our dinghy to their stern so we could get to the office and cabs without walking around the entire Marina.

Lagoon 62

Compass Rose

We got to say good-by to Steve and his pilot buddies (Baja Bash crew) before they left.  They had a perfect weather window and Al was more than a little sorry all of his crew wasn't here to leave with them.

Cross on hill watching over Puerto Los Cabos

5/21  Sunday:     Got a tour of the Lagoon 62 and a nice visit with Bryan and Ray.

Ray's re-seach reveals the BD present we gave her is really a
Hammerhead shark and not a Ray skeleton.

Ray also gave me resources on the different kinds of Rays in the sea and ways to tell if they are sting rays of not.  So the jumping ones Mobula don't sting.  If the tail is longer than the width of the wing span or body then they most likely are the ones to avoid.

Big boats here make Chez Nous look small

For dinner tonight we took the dinghy to Hotel El Granzo near the harbor entrance.  Lovely but poor service.

5/22  Monday:     All of us were needing some exercise so we went exploring around the Marina and the road to town but my heels held us back a little.   We did get to the cactus and sculpture gardens.

My last night on the boat so I packed while waiting for Kevin Kowey to arrive around 1700.  He made it in time for all of us to meet Ray and Bryan for dinner.  They had made reservations for us and  drove us out into the hills to Acre Restaurant and Hotel for a special crew dinner with our new and old friends.    Fantastic farm to table gourmet foods and custom cocktails in a gorgeous palm valley.

Ron,Kevin,Al,jl,Ray,Bryan

5/23/  Tuesday:     All of us were up early.  Breakfast on board and one final weather update.  Al had to pay the final bill and dinghy me over to the office side where I could catch a cab.   I hung out at the little restaurant there for a while so I could wave good-bye to Chez Nous. 

0930  Chez Nous departed Puerto Los Cabos with Kevin Kowey, Ron Wood and Al Garnier on board.  No wind.  Log 6919   I'll let Al fill in the details of their trip home.  It was a bash. 

Alaska Air

0345   My trip home was idyllic.  Isla Partida and Isla Espiritu Santo under the wing and La Paz peninsula on the right.

5/17-20/2017 La Paz to San Jose del Cabo

5/17  Wednesday :     Boat maintenance day, change oil, filters, fuel filters.  Laundry and pool time for jl then one last trip into town to fill the coffers at the Cow store (a local grocery store that has a large  sculpture of a cow on its roof.   Super Mercado Aramburo which is across the street from J&R Ribs, the best ribs in town.  I'll miss LaPaz.

5/18  Thursday:     0740 Underway from LaPaz to Los Muertos Al and I and a single reefed main.  13kts SSW expected to increase.  A cool 65 degrees.  Jacket weather.

1000 rounded the corner and entered San Lorenzo Channel and wind went down to 10kts.

1200 wind down to 4kts and shifted to the East.

1605 anchor down in Los Muertos in 30ft of water and 165 ft of chain with wind at 12kts from the SE. 

Los Muertos

 Chez Nous in the middle of a huge fish boil

Wind died around 2100.  a very still night.  Around 2300 I got up to see what was going on outside.  It sounded like a babbling brook or rain.  It was solid mass of fish all around the boat jumping and feeding on small 1 ft balls of bait that looked like krill.  I took a movie and got the sound but it was too dark and my little flash light didn't help.  Something to remember.  There is a deep canyon on the sea floor near the anchorage at Los Muertos that is over 4,000 ft. deep so maybe the bait comes from an upwelling of the cooler water.

5/19  Friday:     0800  Anchor up head for Los Frailes with no wind.  Motor on.

Los Muertos

1230  overcast , wind from the SE at 12kts.  motor sailing with full main, and staysail close hauled and flat seas.

1530 anchor down in Los Frailes.  53nm from Los Muertos.  Anchored south of waypoint as all sail boats were south.  Later we heard that the ranger had made them move saying they were in the Cabo Pulmo National Park restricted area although the chart did not indicate that.  So we're in 25 ft of water.  Restful night.

5/20 Saturday :     0805 underway for SJ del Cabo motoring with light headwinds.

0920  off Punta Tule-20 boats at anchor fishing on a reef.

Oh that must be the reef

 1100 approaching Punta Gordo head winds  at 7kts and flat seas.  A very easy no stress trip down from La Paz considering the wind that we have had the prior two weeks with Amanda and Steve.

Heading for the fuel dock

Looking back at the Entrance to San Jose del Cabo

1230  Tied up at the fuel dock.   Took on 443 L 117gal.  Burn rate in mild weather 1.4gal/hr.   We last took on fuel when we arrived at Marina Palmira April 7th after crossing from the mainland.  Since then we have cruised 496 miles.