Tuesday - Thursday 25th-27th April 2017 Los Muertos
A very pleasant but productive couple of days at anchor here - Robert ('Tillicum’) gave me a lot of help looking at the generator problem - removed the seawater pump and looked at the impellor - it appeared fine but on more careful checking, it became clear that the central metal part was often turning without moving the impellor flanges with it - so the impellor was damaged and not working correctly… Replaced it with a new one - need to buy a spare now. Robert also fixed back in place a switch he had given me in B.C. last year that occasionally helps when starting the generator. That had been disconnected when the motor had been rebuilt in San Diego and, inexplicably, not replaced…. Similarly, he made a hole in the new lining of the lower generator casing and poked the oil drain pipe through so I could drain the motor oil, ready for oil changes - another small job that clearly should have been done, but infuriatingly had not, in San Diego. At last, the generator is working fine - but the cooling water pump circuit had to be primed to expel an airlock before that happened. At least, now, I know how to do that.
Rose helped us inflate the double kayak Jeff had lent me in San Diego and I paddled it to shore with Robert & Rose following behind watchfully in the dinghy - it felt very stable and I didn’t have too much problem paddling it, despite quite a strong wind blowing. We enjoyed a meal and some cold drinks on shore with a wonderful view over this large bay with its vivid turquoise blue water and long golden curving beach backed by low mountains.
Thursday morning, we hoisted the kayak onto the stern deck and tied it down and, by 10 a.m. I was heading out of the bay towards La Paz - 55 miles away. 'Tillicum' will be headed towards Sitka, Alaska, via Hawaii very soon, so the next time I'll see my friends will be when they reach Sidney, B.C.
The wind was very light initially so I was motoring in a calm sea - and later, although it increased, it also backed from NE to NW, soon becoming on the nose as we headed up the Canal Cerralvo, so was of no use for sailing. We passed by arid rugged landscape and long sandy beaches - this is the S end of the Sea of Cortez.