Well I'm about to watch the sun go down on another day in the Sea of Cortez. Pretty mellow day here allowing me to clean up a few things and do some reading while the strong southerly winds blow. I was going to go into Mulege today with some Mexican friends on the beach that own Ana's Restaurant but I traded that ride in for a ride tomorrow into Loreto to pick up Tallen. I'm smiling right now... Sometimes that little chap can really aggravate me with his habit of procrastination, haha, but I am stoked that he is coming. About a week ago I threw out an email to him encouraging him to make a quick trip down to see his pops. However, at the time I was in Loreto and planning on heading north. I told him to get back to me the next day at the latest. Well, I didn't hear from him until yesterday. Assuming that he was writing to tell me the obvious; that he wouldn't be able to make it, I was shocked when he said he wanted to come. The problem with his good news is that it came about a 3 day's sail north of Loreto. lol
Well, we have worked out the details and my local friends are going to take me down to Loreto to pick him up. Sometimes the things that seem impossible are the ones that we enjoy the most. I guess it is a little premature to think that way but I am excited to have Tallen come down, spend some time aboard, help me cross and then put the boat away. His help will be greatly appreciated.
The rabid bee story has been swirling around the radio nets here in the central sea and many are curious as to what exactly happened. The other boat that was behind me by a couple hours is now anchored next to me here in Santispac and they had a very similar experience, being swarmed twice during the course of their afternoon sailing. As it turns out we believe that they are actually a fly, not a bee. Some sort of angry fly that swarms objects due to some sort of ferremone or something. The wife got bit (not stung) several times as well and they were in a bit more of a predicament than myself because they have no autopilot and were left to contend with the nasty buggers while they piloted the boat. Yikes, that is a nightmare straight out of a sci-fi movie. After comparing stories we believe that they were attracted to what they thought was some sort of a hive as they both seemed to swarm first the round radar dome at the back of the boat then once gathered spread out and covered the area being particularly attracted to things that were dark in color. Hmmm. What you get to experience on the sea!
Another day in the books here aboard the Liahona. All that is left now is to make a simple meal and enjoy it while I watch the sun go down. Not a bad task to end the day with. Ciao for now.
Bret
SV Liahona
Thursday, May 14, 2015
Wednesday, May 13, 2015
May 13, Santispac, Bahia de Concepcion
It was a long day today covering almost 60 miles from San Juanico to Santispac here in the Bay of Conception and during the day I got it all! The highlights were strong winds (at times), fish and bees. Today and tomorrow were predicted to have some nice southerly flavored winds which enticed me to make the long haul north to the Bay of Conception. As soon as the anchor was secured on deck I put up full sail, turned off the motor and pointed her north. The first two hours were a near perfect sail with about 12-15 knots on the beam. The next 3 hours I saw winds from 10 knots all the way up to 27 knots with the majority in the 20+ knot range. Being a single hander I sail conservative so during that period I had the main and the genoa double reefed. Not a lot of sail area but I was moving along between 7-8 knots. Plenty fast. Fortunately the winds were coming from offshore just a few miles to my port side off to the west which kept the swell height to a minimum because there was not very much fetch (room for the waves to build). So strong winds with a somewhat flat sea made for some fast sailing.
Then I rounded a point and headed more northwest and the wind completely died. Sails come in, motor goes on then 15 minutes later I had 20 knots again. Motor goes off, sails go up and Bret is getting his exercise in for the day. The wind changed directions several times and pretty much was a roulette wheel but with lots of sail adjustments it kept me going. Around 2pm the wind died to about 6 knots so I had to motor sail for a bit which allowed me to also put out all of my lines. Two handlines and two rods with reels. Very shortly thereafter the wind picking back up to 20 knots and wouldn't you know it, I had a double hook up. One on the handline and one on a rod and reel. I was busy! Roll the genoa in, reef the main and turn up into the wind to slow the boat down. Then get the other two lines in so they didn't get tangled with the fish then work on the fish. Whew. First I pulled in the handline, it was a Bonita so I tossed him back in the big blue. Then the rod and reel. By now it had spooled out a LOT of line. After about 20 minutes of reeling another Bonita revealed himself. Dang. Oh well, at least there was some action.
About a half hour after the fish were given another chance at life a swarm of bees decided to come aboard. Yes, a swarm. They were not very big, about the size of a fly but they were definitely bees. Within 5 minutes there were hundreds, maybe thousands all over the back of the boat and in the cockpit. The captains seat that I sit on behind the helm was completely covered. I could barely see any of the blue material, the whole seat looked black. They were not really aggressive but a few of them found their way into my shorts and I definitely got stung, or bit or whatever they do to something that pisses them off. I got out a broom and started swatting them away or killing them with the broom but it was like the old movie "The Birds", there was way too many of them. I'm sure I looked ridiculous swinging the broom around my head, swatting myself when one landed on me and running around the boat trying to protect myself. My aggressiveness with the broom yielded a broken broom handle, ya, I was going crazy on those muthers. Thank goodness for autopilot because there was no way to be in the cockpit. After about 45 minutes they just kind of all went away leaving behind just a few stragglers for me to kill. Crazy. I was glad to be rid of them. However, about an hour later another swarm came aboard. The same kind of bees. I went forward on the deck and hung out for a half hour and they slowly went away. Oh but wait, we're not done...a third swarm came. Really? How is this possible? I got stung several times with the last group so I went down below with all of the hatch screens up and waited them out. It took about 40 minutes before they decided to leave me alone and probably molest some other poor sailor. All told I think I got stung about 15 or 20 times over the course of the 3 swarms, and yes, I have the welts to prove it. I have never had that happen before and I am hoping I won't get that opportunity again anytime in the near future.
Bret
SV Liahona
Then I rounded a point and headed more northwest and the wind completely died. Sails come in, motor goes on then 15 minutes later I had 20 knots again. Motor goes off, sails go up and Bret is getting his exercise in for the day. The wind changed directions several times and pretty much was a roulette wheel but with lots of sail adjustments it kept me going. Around 2pm the wind died to about 6 knots so I had to motor sail for a bit which allowed me to also put out all of my lines. Two handlines and two rods with reels. Very shortly thereafter the wind picking back up to 20 knots and wouldn't you know it, I had a double hook up. One on the handline and one on a rod and reel. I was busy! Roll the genoa in, reef the main and turn up into the wind to slow the boat down. Then get the other two lines in so they didn't get tangled with the fish then work on the fish. Whew. First I pulled in the handline, it was a Bonita so I tossed him back in the big blue. Then the rod and reel. By now it had spooled out a LOT of line. After about 20 minutes of reeling another Bonita revealed himself. Dang. Oh well, at least there was some action.
About a half hour after the fish were given another chance at life a swarm of bees decided to come aboard. Yes, a swarm. They were not very big, about the size of a fly but they were definitely bees. Within 5 minutes there were hundreds, maybe thousands all over the back of the boat and in the cockpit. The captains seat that I sit on behind the helm was completely covered. I could barely see any of the blue material, the whole seat looked black. They were not really aggressive but a few of them found their way into my shorts and I definitely got stung, or bit or whatever they do to something that pisses them off. I got out a broom and started swatting them away or killing them with the broom but it was like the old movie "The Birds", there was way too many of them. I'm sure I looked ridiculous swinging the broom around my head, swatting myself when one landed on me and running around the boat trying to protect myself. My aggressiveness with the broom yielded a broken broom handle, ya, I was going crazy on those muthers. Thank goodness for autopilot because there was no way to be in the cockpit. After about 45 minutes they just kind of all went away leaving behind just a few stragglers for me to kill. Crazy. I was glad to be rid of them. However, about an hour later another swarm came aboard. The same kind of bees. I went forward on the deck and hung out for a half hour and they slowly went away. Oh but wait, we're not done...a third swarm came. Really? How is this possible? I got stung several times with the last group so I went down below with all of the hatch screens up and waited them out. It took about 40 minutes before they decided to leave me alone and probably molest some other poor sailor. All told I think I got stung about 15 or 20 times over the course of the 3 swarms, and yes, I have the welts to prove it. I have never had that happen before and I am hoping I won't get that opportunity again anytime in the near future.
The aggressive bee/fly mutants.
It is nice to be here in Santispac. Kind of feels like home. Went onshore to Ana's Restaurant and said hello to my friends Edelma and Carlos. They were happy to see me and they are going to give me a ride into Mulege tomorrow so I can pick up a few needed items. Tarren, they asked about you and Nathan and I told them you were working up in Oregon trying to get enough money together to come back down. It was a long day today full of many sail changes, fish stories and crazy bees. Definitely a day to remember. Ciao for now. Bee free! (haha, see what I did there) lol. Bret
SV Liahona
Tuesday, May 12, 2015
May 12, San Janico... In the rain
Not a typical day in Baja California. It's raining and has been for most of the afternoon. It is actually kind of nice just taking care of a few inside boat chores, making fresh orange juice and watching movies. My big chore today was to empty the galley cabinets, clean them out and reorganize. Along the way, I took care of a constant problem. In the cabinets I have some of that rubbery non stick material laid down so dishes, pots, pans, spices and whatever else resides there doesn't move around while under way. However, they were just laid in there and so they tend to get pushed around, wadded up and generally messing with my chronic OCD. lol. Gluing the non skid mats down so they stay in place was my primary purpose, the cleaning and organization were just bi-products of the principal objective.
The rain is quite unusual here in the desert but very welcomed. I will never turn down a free, fresh water boat rinse. Around 1pm today I just sat out in the cockpit and enjoyed the beauty of the rain. There is a slight 5-10 knot breeze out of the southwest and the temperature is a comfortable 75 degrees.
Amazingly enough, my finger is not very sore today. I thought for sure it would be extremely tender for a few days. However, I think I may have damaged some nerves at the tip of the finger because most of my fingertip is basically numb and even though I probably overdosed the little guy I'm pretty sure that Xylocaine doesn't last for 2 days. haha
The guy on the cat that I blew past and talked to mid sail about 3 days ago going into Isla Coronados with Gregg is here in San Juanico and invited me over for some snacks around 5pm. I am hoping the rain will stop so my paddle over to his boat is reasonably dry. Not much else to report so I will wrap it up. Ciao for now.
Bret
SV Liahona
The rain is quite unusual here in the desert but very welcomed. I will never turn down a free, fresh water boat rinse. Around 1pm today I just sat out in the cockpit and enjoyed the beauty of the rain. There is a slight 5-10 knot breeze out of the southwest and the temperature is a comfortable 75 degrees.
Amazingly enough, my finger is not very sore today. I thought for sure it would be extremely tender for a few days. However, I think I may have damaged some nerves at the tip of the finger because most of my fingertip is basically numb and even though I probably overdosed the little guy I'm pretty sure that Xylocaine doesn't last for 2 days. haha
The guy on the cat that I blew past and talked to mid sail about 3 days ago going into Isla Coronados with Gregg is here in San Juanico and invited me over for some snacks around 5pm. I am hoping the rain will stop so my paddle over to his boat is reasonably dry. Not much else to report so I will wrap it up. Ciao for now.
Bret
SV Liahona
Monday, May 11, 2015
May 11, Hooked!
After a 7 hour sail covering about 40 miles I am securely anchored in San Juanico, one of my favorite anchorages. There are about 10 other boats here including my heroes and friends Ralph and Helen onboard Moon Drifter. Ralph is 83 and Helen is 70 and they are out here cruising enjoying their golden years. Ralph is the man! The trip today was pretty benign with light winds and small but lumpy seas. I motor sailed the whole day as I had several miles to cover and there was never enough wind to carry me over 4 knots so I added some diesel power to the main and reacher to make the needed headway. The water has warmed up a little and now is about 74 degrees. The fishing hasn't improved. I drug 5 lines all day and did not even entice a looker. I may fish out of the dinghy tomorrow to see if I can get a grouper as there are a lot here.
The real story for today's post actually took place last night. I had a guy named Jared come over because he wanted to get some contact names for workers in San Carlos. While he was here the subject of fishing came up and so I showed him my worthless lures as of late. haha. I didn't notice where he put the lure when he was done looking. I just really didn't pay attention. He left around 8pm and I kicked back to watch a movie. Around 10pm I decided to go topside to turn off my solar lights. Before I even got to the first one, I have two out, I found where Jared left the lure. lol. It all happened so fast. My finger snagged the treble hook on the Rapala lure and when I felt the prick I instinctively jerked away. As it turned out, that particular instinct at that particular moment was not exactly beneficial for my own personal welfare. After the initial sting and burn I looked down to find the treble hook buried into my middle finger on my right hand. Just two days before I noticed that the old hooks were getting a little rusted and dull so I had replaced them with some new, fresh and extremely sharp hooks. Excellent timing.
The hook entered just in front of the crease under the last knuckle and almost exited in the middle of my fingertip. I say almost exited because it didn't actually come out the other side but you could see the skin pushed up and white where the tip of the hook was trying to come out from under the skin. In order to appreciate it further you need to understand a couple of things. Firstly, this is a deep sea lure. It is not a trout lure. It's big. The diameter of each hook is about the same as a pencil lead and about and inch from the bottom of the curve to the pointed end just past the sizeable barb which was securely buried about half way into the flesh of my finger. Secondly, this particular lure is connected to a hand line that is wound around a cleat on the boat to secure it while not in use.
So my problem now is I have a large barbed hook in my finger and I am stuck where I am because the lure is tied to the boat. Any movement of the 8" long lure sends a shooting pain through my hand while I am standing half on the back deck and half in the cockpit where I got hooked trying to figure out how I am going to even get to a light to see the extent of the damage. After about 10 minutes of very careful and ginger maneuvering I managed to get to where the line was attached to the cleat. Giving myself enough line to carefully walk down through the companionway into the salon I turned on a light and realized I had a situation on my hands. No pun intended. My grab bag tool kit is under the stairs so I grabbed a pair of dykes to try to cut the shank of the hook off in order to be free of the lure then I would figure out how to remove the hook. After a couple of attempts I realized that the sharp pain that came along with grabbing a hold of the hook with the dykes and moving the hook inside of my finger was not going to make this very easy. I tried several times and finally gave up. I need Xylocaine! Thanks to Marne's mom I have a great medical kit with a few viles and some syringes.
My leash wasn't long enough to go to the forward cabin to get the supplies so I had to sacrifice the handline and cut myself loose. However, I still had the lure attached to me and walking forward and digging into the cupboard where the supplies are I cradled the lure softly and carefully like a baby bird so it moved as little as possible. Movement, any movement, equals pain...pain level 9! Call me wimpy, I don't care. It hurt. I found the needed supplies and then brought them back to the galley where there was more light. Ok, I thought, I'm good to go. Hmm, but wait. Have you ever tried to bury a needle into yourself and then squeeze out the stinging burning solution into your flesh? Ok, I realize this is miles away from life or death but I seriously wondered if I was going to get this done by myself and instead leave it in overnight and then take the 30 minute trip into Loreto the next morning to see a doctor. After about 20 minutes of very wimpy attempts to push the needle deep enough into my finger to get the drugs where I needed them I finally gave a final push and drove the needle in. It didn't go in very far but far enough to squirt a little special sauce in there, wait for a couple minutes, push it in further, more special sauce, and so on until the full length of the needle was buried in my flesh. I'm not exactly sure how many CCs I put in but I used about a half of a vile. I don't know if that is a lot but I was pretty sure more was not going to hurt me and it felt...well.. it didn't feel at all anymore. lol. Awesome!
Now back to the dykes. I squeezed as hard as I could but couldn't cut through the thick shank of the hook. Damn! I need another tool. Bigger dykes. I finally got the shank cut and then I was finally free of the bothersome lure. However, I still had one of it's hooks in my finger with about 1/4" of the shank sticking out where I cut it off. My problem now was to push the pointed end of the hook through my skin in order to get a hold of it and pull it out the only way it was going to come out. It turns out that my frickin skin is pretty tough and it was pretty darn difficult getting the pointy end to push through. With vice grips on the shank end and another pair of plyers slightly open pushing down on the area where the point was trying to come trough I finally got it to pierce the skin and give me enough to grab a hold of with the vice grips. I have determined that hooks would be a lot easier to remove if they were straight instead of curved. I had to pull so hard on the vice grips that I actually thought the hook might be buried into my bone. Fortunately I had enough Xylocaine in there to amputate a leg so there was zero pain just the mental anguish of knowing how hard I was pulling trying to get this damn thing out. A big pull and a twist and the rounded hook and barb came oozing out of the end of my finger. Mission complete! Holy Toledo Batman! That was not an easy self surgery. lol.
Some clean up with hydrogen peroxide and betadyne, a clean bandage and I was back in business but not without a lot of sweaty palms and wimpy screeches. ha. Oh, I was also a little worried about infection so I started a 5 day dose of antibiotics. As I left Escondido this morning I realized that today, and probably for the next several days, I was truly a single hander. lol. Clint, Kari and Katie...I wish you nurses were on board, it would have made the situation much, much easier. Catherine, thank you so much for the special sauce. Without it I'm sure I would still have a lure attached to my hand. Oh, and of course I do have proper documentation as I took several pics along the way. I'll try to post those up when I get back. This has been a long one but I wanted to give you the full picture. btw, I'm sure that you read this much faster than I typed it as I am left to type Mexican style...two fingers, the pointer on each hand. Ciao for now my hookless friends.
Bret
SV Liahona
The real story for today's post actually took place last night. I had a guy named Jared come over because he wanted to get some contact names for workers in San Carlos. While he was here the subject of fishing came up and so I showed him my worthless lures as of late. haha. I didn't notice where he put the lure when he was done looking. I just really didn't pay attention. He left around 8pm and I kicked back to watch a movie. Around 10pm I decided to go topside to turn off my solar lights. Before I even got to the first one, I have two out, I found where Jared left the lure. lol. It all happened so fast. My finger snagged the treble hook on the Rapala lure and when I felt the prick I instinctively jerked away. As it turned out, that particular instinct at that particular moment was not exactly beneficial for my own personal welfare. After the initial sting and burn I looked down to find the treble hook buried into my middle finger on my right hand. Just two days before I noticed that the old hooks were getting a little rusted and dull so I had replaced them with some new, fresh and extremely sharp hooks. Excellent timing.
Injecting the special sauce
Finally got the shank cut
So my problem now is I have a large barbed hook in my finger and I am stuck where I am because the lure is tied to the boat. Any movement of the 8" long lure sends a shooting pain through my hand while I am standing half on the back deck and half in the cockpit where I got hooked trying to figure out how I am going to even get to a light to see the extent of the damage. After about 10 minutes of very careful and ginger maneuvering I managed to get to where the line was attached to the cleat. Giving myself enough line to carefully walk down through the companionway into the salon I turned on a light and realized I had a situation on my hands. No pun intended. My grab bag tool kit is under the stairs so I grabbed a pair of dykes to try to cut the shank of the hook off in order to be free of the lure then I would figure out how to remove the hook. After a couple of attempts I realized that the sharp pain that came along with grabbing a hold of the hook with the dykes and moving the hook inside of my finger was not going to make this very easy. I tried several times and finally gave up. I need Xylocaine! Thanks to Marne's mom I have a great medical kit with a few viles and some syringes.
My leash wasn't long enough to go to the forward cabin to get the supplies so I had to sacrifice the handline and cut myself loose. However, I still had the lure attached to me and walking forward and digging into the cupboard where the supplies are I cradled the lure softly and carefully like a baby bird so it moved as little as possible. Movement, any movement, equals pain...pain level 9! Call me wimpy, I don't care. It hurt. I found the needed supplies and then brought them back to the galley where there was more light. Ok, I thought, I'm good to go. Hmm, but wait. Have you ever tried to bury a needle into yourself and then squeeze out the stinging burning solution into your flesh? Ok, I realize this is miles away from life or death but I seriously wondered if I was going to get this done by myself and instead leave it in overnight and then take the 30 minute trip into Loreto the next morning to see a doctor. After about 20 minutes of very wimpy attempts to push the needle deep enough into my finger to get the drugs where I needed them I finally gave a final push and drove the needle in. It didn't go in very far but far enough to squirt a little special sauce in there, wait for a couple minutes, push it in further, more special sauce, and so on until the full length of the needle was buried in my flesh. I'm not exactly sure how many CCs I put in but I used about a half of a vile. I don't know if that is a lot but I was pretty sure more was not going to hurt me and it felt...well.. it didn't feel at all anymore. lol. Awesome!
Now back to the dykes. I squeezed as hard as I could but couldn't cut through the thick shank of the hook. Damn! I need another tool. Bigger dykes. I finally got the shank cut and then I was finally free of the bothersome lure. However, I still had one of it's hooks in my finger with about 1/4" of the shank sticking out where I cut it off. My problem now was to push the pointed end of the hook through my skin in order to get a hold of it and pull it out the only way it was going to come out. It turns out that my frickin skin is pretty tough and it was pretty darn difficult getting the pointy end to push through. With vice grips on the shank end and another pair of plyers slightly open pushing down on the area where the point was trying to come trough I finally got it to pierce the skin and give me enough to grab a hold of with the vice grips. I have determined that hooks would be a lot easier to remove if they were straight instead of curved. I had to pull so hard on the vice grips that I actually thought the hook might be buried into my bone. Fortunately I had enough Xylocaine in there to amputate a leg so there was zero pain just the mental anguish of knowing how hard I was pulling trying to get this damn thing out. A big pull and a twist and the rounded hook and barb came oozing out of the end of my finger. Mission complete! Holy Toledo Batman! That was not an easy self surgery. lol.
Some clean up with hydrogen peroxide and betadyne, a clean bandage and I was back in business but not without a lot of sweaty palms and wimpy screeches. ha. Oh, I was also a little worried about infection so I started a 5 day dose of antibiotics. As I left Escondido this morning I realized that today, and probably for the next several days, I was truly a single hander. lol. Clint, Kari and Katie...I wish you nurses were on board, it would have made the situation much, much easier. Catherine, thank you so much for the special sauce. Without it I'm sure I would still have a lure attached to my hand. Oh, and of course I do have proper documentation as I took several pics along the way. I'll try to post those up when I get back. This has been a long one but I wanted to give you the full picture. btw, I'm sure that you read this much faster than I typed it as I am left to type Mexican style...two fingers, the pointer on each hand. Ciao for now my hookless friends.
Bret
SV Liahona
Sunday, May 10, 2015
May 10, Puerto Escondido
Just want to say happy Mother's Day to all of the mothers I know and am close to, especially my own mom, my sister, Marne, her mom and also to Maureen, the mother of our children. I hope it doesn't make anyone uncomfortable, my mentioning Maureen, but I have nothing but good to say about the kind of mom she has been for our kids. She is kind, caring, loving and nurturing. Thank you Maureen for everything you have given and will give of yourself for them. (She is not on the list that receives these emails but I hope someone who does will pass on my appreciation to her)
Today is a sit and do projects day as I wait for more favorable weather here in the protected waters of Puerto Escondido just a few miles down the road from Loreto BCS. Items checked off the list today include rinsing and stowing the Flopper Stopper, changing out the reacher furling line (part of my ongoing project of replacing all of the running rigging with new, I'm almost there) installing the new adapter and hose for the rail mounted BBQ (no more expensive throw away bottles), remove the old outboard rail mount and install the new one that I made with Ron Drake when I was there at Christmas, re-rig the solar shower lines, and last but not least, redo and retighten circuit breaker wiring for the compass at the binnacle and also the stereo (finally solved the problem of the intermittent power supply to the stereo that made it sound like it was skipping). Bit by bit, little by little, the Liahona gets revised and revamped to better and more comfortably serve and protect Marne and I as we make it our home on the water.
Today I have been thinking of my pal Gregg as he is hopefully putting a LONG bus ride back home in his rear view mirror. Gregg, be sure to send me a note as soon as you are safely back home. Last night I went up on deck and marveled at what I saw. The heavens above are so expansive, so beautiful, so endless that it leaves my mind calm yet pensive all at the same time. Few get to truly experience what it is like to look up into the sky on a dark night and take into your mind's eye the seemingly endless numbers of stars that exist beyond our touch. Unless you live or have visited a place 100 miles or more from a town or population center where light pollution is almost nonexistent, you and I have different perspectives of "the heavens above". Here there are so many stars and they are so bright and clear that it makes it difficult to even find or pick out the major constellations like the Big Dipper or Orion's Belt. They simply get buried among the billions of other stars that most don't even get to see. Sometimes I lie on the foredeck staring upward watching the masthead light dance among the backdrop of stars. It's mesmerizing.
I have said it many times before and I will say it again...I am truly grateful for my existence here in this amazing place on this amazing planet in this amazing universe. Being honest I won't pretend to understand all of the workings of this infinitely intertwined puzzle of mankind, God and our universe but I am grateful for it. I try to be present for the little details of that puzzle that are presented to me daily and in turn be thankful for them and use each of those experiences to better myself. I know that good things abound wherever you are but I do feel incredibly lucky to be experiencing them here aboard the Liahona. That is probably enough introspection for one day my friends. Take some time and try it sometime, it's good for the soul. Ciao for now.
Bret
SV Liahona
Today is a sit and do projects day as I wait for more favorable weather here in the protected waters of Puerto Escondido just a few miles down the road from Loreto BCS. Items checked off the list today include rinsing and stowing the Flopper Stopper, changing out the reacher furling line (part of my ongoing project of replacing all of the running rigging with new, I'm almost there) installing the new adapter and hose for the rail mounted BBQ (no more expensive throw away bottles), remove the old outboard rail mount and install the new one that I made with Ron Drake when I was there at Christmas, re-rig the solar shower lines, and last but not least, redo and retighten circuit breaker wiring for the compass at the binnacle and also the stereo (finally solved the problem of the intermittent power supply to the stereo that made it sound like it was skipping). Bit by bit, little by little, the Liahona gets revised and revamped to better and more comfortably serve and protect Marne and I as we make it our home on the water.
Today I have been thinking of my pal Gregg as he is hopefully putting a LONG bus ride back home in his rear view mirror. Gregg, be sure to send me a note as soon as you are safely back home. Last night I went up on deck and marveled at what I saw. The heavens above are so expansive, so beautiful, so endless that it leaves my mind calm yet pensive all at the same time. Few get to truly experience what it is like to look up into the sky on a dark night and take into your mind's eye the seemingly endless numbers of stars that exist beyond our touch. Unless you live or have visited a place 100 miles or more from a town or population center where light pollution is almost nonexistent, you and I have different perspectives of "the heavens above". Here there are so many stars and they are so bright and clear that it makes it difficult to even find or pick out the major constellations like the Big Dipper or Orion's Belt. They simply get buried among the billions of other stars that most don't even get to see. Sometimes I lie on the foredeck staring upward watching the masthead light dance among the backdrop of stars. It's mesmerizing.
I have said it many times before and I will say it again...I am truly grateful for my existence here in this amazing place on this amazing planet in this amazing universe. Being honest I won't pretend to understand all of the workings of this infinitely intertwined puzzle of mankind, God and our universe but I am grateful for it. I try to be present for the little details of that puzzle that are presented to me daily and in turn be thankful for them and use each of those experiences to better myself. I know that good things abound wherever you are but I do feel incredibly lucky to be experiencing them here aboard the Liahona. That is probably enough introspection for one day my friends. Take some time and try it sometime, it's good for the soul. Ciao for now.
Bret
SV Liahona
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