SV Cariba

Winding down our time in Mexico

As we prepare ourselves and Cariba for the long passage home, I am looking back on what I think is one of the best seasons we have had in this beautiful country . We have enjoyed remote anchorages, the wildlife, and the incredible warm hearted people who call this place home; all the while basking in the magnificent scenery and beautiful sunsets. I know I haven’t written since December but I struggled with how to appropriately capture the ‘end’ of this adventure we have shared together.

Fifth and final season in Mexico!

So I have a sense of “it’s the last time” for everything we are doing and the anchorages we are visiting. 2026 will bring some big changes for Cariba but before we unpack that… let’s reflect on the last few months. A lot has happened since our last blog post, so let’s start there and see where this post takes us.

Weather watching 101

Anyone who cruises long term knows that the weather determines when and where you sail. A key part of that planning is where to be for hurricane season. In the Sea of Cortez it is prudent to consider hauling out the end of August. Hurricane season lasts until November but the storms that come north in the Sea of Cortez are often in the late summer into September. The weather could have been a big issue for us if we didn’t come this far north.

Summer in the Northern Sea of Cortez – aka hot hot hot!!!!

So yes it is very hot in the Sea of Cortez in the summer but we feel the benefits outweighed the negatives… at least that is what we kept telling ourselves when it was 40C with 75% humidity! But in reality we had a great season in the northern Sea of Cortez this year. We were able to go to anchorages that we would never have attempted in the winter. The prevailing wind direction in the summer is southerly as opposed to the “northers” we have experienced in the winters here. In this blog I will take you on a journey through the most amazing places we saw between June and August!

Cruising Baja – Episode 4.0!

So OK, I know it has been a while, but we have been busy! We have travelled over 734 nautical miles since I last wrote, and I will confess I have been suffering with a bit of writers block. We’ve been back to lots of places that we had been to before, and I didn’t want to bore you with endless sunrise and sunset shots..though some will be included here! As we retrace our path back up the Baja our focus this season will be exploring new anchorages. Despite it being our 4th season here, there are still many places we have yet to visit!

Heading north again

So it has been a while since I last wrote…. and there have been many reasons for my delay: a great family visit with a trip inland, a horrible flu and then the resulting lethargy/apathy while recovering and a severe case of writer’s block!!! But despite the flu and recovery, we had a great time in Zihuatanejo and the surrounding area. I am writing this in an anchorage in Manzanillo after a fairly challenging 57 hour passage north… but more about that after I fill you in on the last two months of adventures. Get comfortable because this is a long post!

Getting south fast! It’s cold here!

If you read our last blog post you will know that after a rough start, we had a successful splash on December 5^th.The next 9 days were spent in Safe Marina busy with final boat preparations, moving out of our apartment, and watching for the best weather window to head south. The plan was to flee the cold in Penasco (the overnight temperatures were 6 to 8C). We wanted to head south til the “butter melts”. We left on December 14^th and the plan was Mazatlán or bust!…but a few gremlins that surfaced along the way did manage to alter our course.

Failure to launch

Cabrales boatyard and Puerto Penasco are starting to feel like our second home. We have tried to leave twice without success and we are really hoping that the third time is the charm. A lot has happened over the last few weeks and it has been a bit of an emotional roller coaster. This is a long tale, so sit back, get comfortable and I will try to fill you in…..

Hot Hot Hot!! Life on the hard in Mexico!

I can’t believe that we have been in Puerto Penasco for well over two months now. So much has happened and there is so much more work to come, but I thought it best to try to catch you all up! Cariba is having a mini-refit and things are progressing slowly under the hot Mexican sun… thank god for air conditioning both on the boat and in our little apartment!

Moving into our spot on the “rollerskate”

Even before we arrived in Penasco, we knew it was going to be a long hot summer. On the Whatsapp group for the Cabrales Yard someone was selling a used air conditioner for $100USD. Let me tell you.. that was the best $100 we spent by far. It sits in the companionway and keeps the temperature inside the boat at least 10-15 degrees cooler than outside. This has been significant as we have had many days with the outside temp is higher than 40C! We have definitely embraced the Mexican custom of siesta – which translates into starting work very early and retreating to the air conditioned apartment by just after lunch.

The first several weeks were spent getting the hull of Cariba stripped down to her barrier coat. We needed to assess for any areas of blisters and there were none found fortunately. It took Brian the equivalent of 40 hours of back breaking work in the heat to get all the layers of old bottom paint off. He did this by scraping by hand with a carbide scraper, then grinding with an angle grinder and finishing it off with a palm sander. He kept the hose nearby and would douse himself off every 30 minutes or so to cool off. On average he would consume 4 to 5 litres of water and juice each day!

After Cariba was stripped down we moved onto several other projects: replacing thru hulls, new cutlass bearing, and replacing a water logged rudder that was draining rust coloured water.

To make a long story short, the rudder was toast. There was significant delamination and we were concerned about the integrity of the internal structures. Options for getting a new rudder could be a very lengthy and costly process. Then Brian had a brilliant idea! Our welder friend, Jorge from Guaymas had come to Penasco to install a new stainless steel arch for our solar panels. Brian showed him the rudder and asked if he could create one made of stainless steel for us. He was thrilled to take on the project and was able to take our old rudder home to use as a template.

Out with the old!

Once home, Jorge sent us pictures of the state of the inside of our rudder. The internal tangs had rusted off the rudder post and there was significant corrosion and pitting on that post. We were so glad that we decided to replace the rudder! Jorge returned to Penasco in early September with our new shiny rudder. He sent us some pictures of the stages of construction which I have shared below. Of note, the new rudder weighs 50 pounds less than the old one!

In with the new! Can’t wait to see it installed!

Jorge has been such an integral part of our refit. In addition to the rudder and the arch, he repaired our exhaust elbow and fabricated an additional one as a spare. He also made us a new water tank that essentially doubles our water capacity on Cariba. We have loved working with him and consider he and his wife dear friends! Mucho gracias nuestro amigo!

Exhaust elbows, new water tank and new arch!

We did escape the heat for a quick trip home to Canada. We were there for three very busy weeks. We managed to complete several medical appointments, shop for things we could only get at home and catch up with friends and family. We can’t thank enough our dear friend Sheila for allowing us to invade her home in Vancouver. And a big shout out to the crew from SV Committed Sardine – Emily and Scott. They enabled us to downsize to a much smaller and less expensive storage locker. In a single morning, we moved all our belongings and they helped us get rid of all the excess “stuff” we had. It takes a village to support this cruising lifestyle!

After all the chores in were completed, we connected with our kids and grand kids. We had a great visit with Chloe and Tom in Vancouver and a lovely visit with the Merritt crew. Then we flew to Calgary to stay with the grand kids while their parents had a kid free weekend! I have put a collage of pictures from that visit below. We miss you all so much!

So the wiring, fiberglassing, plumbing, new equipment installations continue. (So excited for the new windlass!) We are taking our time and working slowly towards the goal of splashing and continuing our cruising adventures. We have time on our side as hurricane season won’t end until the beginning of November. Stay tuned for another update on our projects before our journey further south.

Reflections: Northern Sea of Cortez cruising

The picture above is just one of many that show the lovely colours and landscapes in the Sea of Cortez. And the colours of the hills change as the day progresses and the sun changes it’s angle to the land. It is so beautiful here. We have travelled just over 4200 nautical miles since leaving Neah Bay last August. We have put down some land roots for now. As I write this, we are busy in Cabrales boatyard in Puerto Penasco. Cariba is up on the “hard” and we have many projects on the go. But I will fill you in about Puerto Penasco in a later post. We had such an amazing time over the last two months cruising up the northern Sea of Cortez….more stories and pictures than I can share!