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| Our steadfast friends for several months: George (far left), Sara, and Dominique (D's husband, George, stayed behind on this exursion) |
“There is the hidden presence of others in us, even those we
have known briefly. We contain them for the rest of our lives, at every border
that we cross.”
--Michael
Ondaatje, Divisadero
Season II on S/V Flying Free was highlighted by friendships—new
and old. As I continued to teach online, living my life in the “Captain’s
lounge” Monday through Thursday in Puerto Escondido, Kevin would work on boat
projects and converse with other sailors outside the marina office and
stores, a casual gathering place strewn with hardy wood picnic tables.
The communal aspect of sailing is something many, many
sailors have written about, so our story is not rare. But the friendships we
made had special significance since—unlike Season 1—we had a permanent home
base for 5 months near the town of Loreto at the Puerto Escondido marina,
perched about halfway down Baja and facing the crystal blue water of the Sea of
Cortez. Most sailors here come and go, some only passing through for a weekend.
However, we ended up parking our truck camper in the open dirt lot behind the
marina; it is here where we met Dominique and George, a couple who has been
traveling to Baja for over 15 years. They, too, have a truck camper, and they
tow a small fishing boat from Oregon every year down to PE, where, last year,
they bought a trawler that is also tethered to one of the many mooring balls in
PE.
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| View from my "office" window |
Our friendship with them began with their stories. We have
observed that sailors are a motley crew of people; the obsession with weather
is the only commonality once you lean in to hear people tell their story of
how they arrived, on a boat, in the middle of Mexico. The simple but very
unique narratives of individuals include solo male and female sailors, couples
in their 30s who decided to buy a sailboat and work on-the-go, couples in their
70s who arrived at the Sea of Cortez and never left, couples—like us—who split
their time between sailing and returning “home” as their family obligations
permit.
Dominique and George have called France, India, California,
Oregon, Hawaii, and Mexico their home…wandering when the water and adventure
call them. With her thick heavy French accent, Dominique, a 70 year old power
house with lean, musculature lines outlining her frame, is a true athlete
and would regularly kayak alone 11 to 15 miles across the expanse of the Sea to
the nearby island called Isla Carmen. She and George also invited us to snorkel
and fish around Roca Blanca, two rocks surrounded by a healthy reef, located about 2 miles from
shore (it looks and felt like it was smack dab in the middle of the Sea). Lemon
sharks are known to populate this area, so jumping out of their small fishing
boat into this reef and open ocean made my heart rate jump into my throat—but
Dominique showed no fear, so I wasn’t about to hit the pause button when she
led the way. The underwater view was so worth it—this was my favorite snorkel
spot of the season (and K and I spent a lot of time snorkeling and diving this
season).
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| George at the helm of his fishing boat |
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| Fearless Dominique |
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| I am definitely following her! |
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| While we snorkeled, Kevin and George tried their luck! |
After exploring Roca Blanca, our day with them included
freshly caught Cabrilla (Sea Bass), a fox sighting, and tales of Dominique
hiking solo into the brush on the remote Baja beaches to find “ar-tee-facts”
hidden in the caves amongst the low-lying hills inland of the beaches. Their
love of books, of words, of the ocean, of exploring Baja on both the Pacific
side and Sea of Cortez side lit our imaginations and reminded us of what a life
of adventure between two people can inspire; Dominique and George have spent 50
plus years of marriage exploring oceans and land—so when D asked us if we wanted
to hike in the Sierra de la Gigante mountain range, at a trail called Ligui Canyon
(or Mesquite Canyon), we didn’t hesitate.
Dominique: “Stacy, you must remember to bring water shoes
and a bikini on our hike; we will be crossing many rivers and even jumping into
pools of water as we traverse the trail.”
Hiking various trails became our land adventure as the
Northers (the very windy days that swept down the Sea of Cortez from Arizona,
bringing uncomfortable sea conditions) took over from mid-January to mid-March;
the windy events were by no means constant—but when they occurred, they spanned
several days and kept sailors busy with boat chores and/or land activities.
What we thought would be a two hour hike through this narrow
canyon (reminiscent but more beautiful than the Narrows at Zion National Park) became a four-hour epic adventure. Why? Dominique is so fearless and such a
mountain goat that I, Kevin, and our other two friends, Sara and her husband,
George (#2), took twice as long as D to cross the multiple streams and pools of
water. The water levels were unseasonably low, according to D, but see the pictures.
It was worth the murky crossings and rope rappelling we did to reach the last
pool of deep water (I just had to ignore my niggling fear of water snakes as we criss-crossed the stream.)
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| First big pond where we stopped for lunch |
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| Sara and George, our constant companions |
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| The last big pool before the end.... |
Dominique and George shared their love of the surrounding
area, including beautiful anchorages, like Bahia Salinas, where the water
color, white sand beaches, and small camp accomodations for current-day Big
Horn Sheep hunters on Isla Carmen gave us plenty to see and explore. Below: pics include relics from a former salt mine village and our snorkeling/SUPing.
Really, we met so many people during our 5 months in Puerto
Escondido that I finally understood the power of cruising—of being on the move
while simultaneously fostering wonderful conversation and activities with like-minded
individuals.
Two more people we finally re-met were Virginia and Robert Gleser,
authors of Harmony on the High Seas and regular cruisers of the Sea of
Cortez and Mainland, MX for the past 16 years. Their book was one of the most
important cruising books we read in preparation of our sailing journey—in short,
because Virigina writes about the importance of communication—especially for
couples—on a small cruising vessel. We met them at the Richmond boat show in
Spring of 2019, a few months before our maiden voyage to Mexico. We listened to
their presentation at the show, an extension of Virginia’s book, an eloquent and
informative homage to the art of couples’ communication while cruising. In this
cruising “guide,” Virginia discusses the importance of couples expressing their
expectations, anticipating anxiety—and how to mitigate it—and working as a
partnership in a confined space.
Virginia and Robert anchored near us in San Juanico, where we had no
Internet service for a week during my Spring break (so we had 10 wonderful days without me checking my phone). At this anchorage, a lovely bay with great hiking, snorkeling, and an authentice working ranch where we stocked up on fresh veggies and goat cheese, we had an evening cocktail hour with
them; the next morning, Robert and Virginia cruised over in their dinghy.
The conversation—and kind directness with which they approached us—I will never
forget:
Robert: “Virginia and I want to talk to you about you: your
styles and communication. Would you like some free advice?”
K and I agreed, of course, because even though I understand
there can only be one captain aboard a ship, I have struggled to find my “place”
on our boat—even after 3 years of working together; after all, Kevin is the experienced
sailor; he is the one who can fix anything (and I mean everything—there is no help
he needs with maintenance); and while I have become a capable first mate both at the helm and in the
galley, I still feel like I should have a
more important role. You couple my independence with Kevin’s role in calling
the shots in everything he has done for the past 20 years (as a long-serving Sergeant
with the CHP), and we have been two very strong-willed individuals slowly
learning that our time aboard FF is not just about working together collaboratively (we can do
this); but we *see* things in very different ways—hence, the very normal dis-harmony
aboard the boat on occasion.
So, without getting in to all of the details, they shared twenty
years of wisdom with us—when they could have been out exploring or doing any
number of things. And they did so with kindness, with compassion,
and with a forth-rightness that made us feel so much gratitude and love. Virgina and Robert--along with Dominique and George--are reminders of the reward that comes with taking risks and embracing adventure as a couple.....that old adage, "the couple who plays together, stays together," stood before us in the form of couples all season long.
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| San Juanico: one of our favorite anchorages of the season! |
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| Cruisers' shrine, with our S/V FF addition |
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| Entire bay of San Juanico |
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| The beloved local ranch, a short hiking distance from the anchorage. |
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| One small section of fresh veggies, available for purchase |
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| Amazing fresh goat cheese! |
Next up:
the friendship memories continue…..I will share more adventures with our friends, Sara and George, and the biggest celebration of all: a 50th birthday
bash with Stacy's high school buddies!
