S/V Chrokeva

update....it's about time!

2011-08-25T15:28:00.001-07:00

Wow a lot has happened since the last posting I made on here.
We left Cabo San Lucas on the 8th of June for our 850 mile "bash" up the outside of the Baja. We had originally planned on leaving with better weather window since the 850 miles is notoriously a difficult uphill climb but with hurricane Adrian (the first hurricane of the season) predicted to track into the Sea of Cortez we decided to leave Cabo early and get as far from the track of the hurricane as possible. The "Baja Bash" lived up to it's name. It took us 8 days to get into San Diego after leaving Cabo which includes 2 nights that we spent on anchor at Bahia Santa Maria. We pulled into Turtle Bay to re-fuel and killed approximately 12 hours there before making a straight shot into the police docks in San Diego. It is really hard to describe what a difficult trip this was other than to say it was the most uncomfortable 8 days I have ever spent but in the end the sense of accomplishment was well worth the discomfort.
After spending about a month in San Diego licking our wounds, doing repairs on the boat (part of the staysail furler broke from all the pounding in big seas) and reconnecting with family and friends we started to make plans to make another 450 mile passage up to the San Francisco Bay area.
We were able to find a friend from Fiddler's Cove to help bring the boat up from San Diego to San Francisco which allowed Amanda and I to drive her car up. It took 60 hours from the time the boat left Fiddler's Cove marina to pass under the Golden Gate Bridge. From what I understand the seas where flat and they were able to motor at 7-8 knots for most of the trip. What a treat to get such a great weather window for this uphill leg.
As of today we are located in Redwood City which is considered the peninsula area of San Francisco Bay. We are staying at a great little marina by the name of Pete's Harbor which is very boater friendly and centrally located to everything (what a difference over Mexico). The weather here in Redwood City is amazing (I think it may actually be better than San Diego)and we are very happy to be here rather than spend another HOT summer in the tropics. Amanda will be going to school while we are in the bay area and we will be spending time exploring the area and planning future trips.

Isla Carmen and Agua Verde

2011-05-23T16:11:00.001-07:00

Before returning to LaPaz we had a few more anchorages that we wanted to visit. We would have liked to visit all the anchorages but there simply were too many. You could easily spend years in the Sea of Cortez exploring the many anchorages.
The island of Isla Carmen was absolutely gorgeous and would have to be remembered as one of the most beautiful places we visited during our time here in the Sea of Cortez. We hiked from one side of the island to the other and even ran into a bighorn sheep. It was exciting to be able to get a few photos of this beautiful ram.
Agua Verde is a quaint little town. With beautiful clear blue/green water and a little fishing village that supplements their income by raising livestock (mostly goats). It was one of our favorite stops and a place that you could easily spend weeks exploring. The locals there were friendly and buying fresh made goat cheese was a special treat for us.

San Juanico and Isla Coronado

2011-05-09T15:04:00.000-07:00

Leaving the safe harbor of Puerto Escondido we headed north approximately 40 miles to the lovely anchorage at San Juanico. San Juanico is the furthest north we will be going up the Sea of Cortez before heading back south in order to be in Cabo San Lucas on June 6th. We spent several days in San Juanico snorkeling, fishing, hiking and having a great time. San Juanico is home to a cruiser's shrine and we spent some time exploring the creative ways that cruiser's left there mark at this shrine. We even had to leave a little momentum of Chrokeva's trip to San Juanico. It was difficult to leave such a wonderful anchorage but there were many anchorages we wanted to explore on the way south so we finally pulled up anchor headed out.

Our next stop was Isla Coronado. This is a island located just east of Loreto and falls under The National Commission of Natural Protected Areas (CONANP). A special permit is needed to visit these areas and the cost of these permits help to maintain the beauty of these national parks. With Isla Coronado's beautiful turquoise blue water and beautiful white sand beaches it would be a hard place to pace by without stopping. We ended up hiking to the top of Isla Coronado which turned out to be a very challenging hike but the views from on top where just incredible.

Loreto Fest

2011-05-04T10:42:00.000-07:00

We had a great time here at Loreto Fest 2011. Approx. 200 boats came into Puerto Escondido for several days of fun events, music, seminars and just a all around great time. If ever you get a chance to make it to Puerto Escondido for Loreto Fest in the future I would highly recommend it.
We took one day to head over to Loreto proper and tour this quaint little town and another day we spent hiking Steinbeck Canyon so I have added a few photos.

BACK IN THE SEA OF CORTEZ

2011-04-19T05:13:00.000-07:00

The timing was finally perfect to leave Mazatlan to make the 180 mile crossing across the Sea of Cortez to Bahia del las Muertos so after a short anchor stop at Stone Island for a bottom cleaning (not something you want to do in the old harbor at Mazatlan) we were on our way. The passage could not have been more perfect as the wind blew southwest at 5-10 and the seas were flat. We made it to Muertos in 29 hours motor sailing which is the same amount of time it took for us to make the crossing going the other way back in December of 2009.
It was great getting back to Muertos as it had been one of our favorite stops on the Baja last we had been there. The dogs where anxious to get to shore after there 29 hour plus passage and honestly so were we. We had dinner at the little restaurant that we had gotten so familiar with last time we were there and spent a little time exploring Muertos before heading back to the boat. We left Muertos the next morning at approximately 6:30am heading for LaPaz. The trip through Ceralvo Channel was a easy one in contrast to the one we had made back in 2009 (one of the roughest passages I can remember). We decided to put off heading directly into LaPaz and stop for the night and anchor at Puerto Ballandra. It was a great decision as the anchorage is absolutely gorgeous with white sand beaches and beautiful scenery.
It is really amazing to see the blue water of the Sea of Cortez once again. It had been so long since I had seen truly clear water I guess I must have forgotten what it looked like because I was absolutely awestruck by it's beauty. At the same time it was odd to see the desert as we had been in the tropics for over a year and a half and it seemed odd to see cactus and desolate landscape once again. I can absolutely confirm that the old saying is true that when there is a desert on land there is a jungle underwater and when there is a jungle on land there is a desert underwater. The Sea of Cortez in truly a amazing place and we are really excited to be able to spend the next month and a half exploring all it has to offer.

Manzanillo to Mazatlan 2011

2011-04-03T05:08:00.000-07:00

We left Manzanillo on March 30th which was almost a whole month after what we had originally planned. Amanda spent spring break with us which was great but once she had left to go back to San Diego we were anxious to get moving north. Although there was a prediction of strong NW winds and large swells we decided that things seemed benign enough to take a chance and start our long trip north into the Sea of Cortez for the spring. We figured that we could always stop at the anchorage in Tenacatita if the weather turned poor which was only 35 miles north of Manzanillo. By the time we reached the anchorage at Tenacatita the wind was building and the swells were getting large and nasty and since we were beating into the weather we decided to spend the night on anchor and head out the next morning and hopefully be able to make a straight shot to Mazatlan which was about 285 miles from the anchorage. We headed out of Tenacatita early on Thursday morning but we soon figured out that making a straight shot to Mazatlan was not going to happen on this day as both the wind and swells were getting even worse than the day before. We ended up tucking into Chamela which is another protected anchorage approx. 30 miles north of Tenacatita. There were quite a few boats there waiting out the weather for a chance to round Cabo Corrientes which is about 70 miles north of the anchorage at Chamela. It was nice to tuck into this protected anchorage but by about midnight the swell inside the anchorage got ugly enough to make sleep almost impossible. We had been told there would be good weather on Friday but not until later in the day. We decided to take a chance and leave first thing in the morning (7:15 am) figuring it could not be much worse than the anchorage had become and for a change we were right. The swells out in the ocean had flattened down and the wind stayed in the 10-15 knot range the entire day. We made the decision to go ahead and make a straight shot to Mazatlan rather than to stop at one of the many anchorages along the way. We passed Cabo Corrientes at approx. 5:00 PM on Wednesday and started to head off shore to make a straight line to Mazatlan. Unfortunately during the evening the motor started running hot and at about 5:00 AM the heat alarm went off so everything was shut down while Mark tried to figure out what the problem was. At this point we were approx. 125 miles from Cabo Corrientes and 125 miles from Mazatlan (basically the middle of nowhere). Within two hours Mark and figured out the problem (a clogged heat exchanger) and we were back on our way. The passage although extremely long could not have been better as far as weather was concerned. We motor sailed the entire distance averaging 6.5 to 7.5 knots and made it into the anchorage at old Mazatlan harbor just at dark on Saturday evening, approximately 36 hours after we left the last anchorage at Chamela.

The only thing that really stands out on this passage (other than breaking down) was that there were literally thousands of turtles out on the ocean. It actually got tricky trying to avoid hitting them there were so many. I spent much of my time snapping photos of them which provided for some entertainment on our long slow trek.

We plan to spend a few days here in Mazatlan waiting for a weather window to head across the Sea of Cortez which will probably be sometime mid week. We are really anxious to get back to the clear water in the Sea and look forward to spending the spring exploring places we have not yet seen.

how cool is this?

2011-01-26T11:56:00.000-08:00

The view from the anchorage at Las Hadas was pretty amazing today. A couple of whales put on quite a show and I was able to snap this photo so thought I would share.

another day in paradise

2011-01-17T06:14:00.000-08:00

We are sitting at anchor right now outside of Las Hadas resort in Manzanillo. We left Barra de Navidad on the 9th of January and after spending a little time in Santiago Bay we headed further south to Las Hadas which is where we plan to stay for the next few weeks. The anchorage here is nice and it is great to be able to use the wonderful facilities and dinghy dock for a small charge.
Amanda left us on the 12th to fly back to San Diego and we miss her a bunch already but have already made plans for her to fly to La Paz during spring break in March so we can't be too sad.
As it stands now our plans are to spend the next 4 weeks or so cruising the many beautiful anchorages located in the 100 mile stretch of mainland Mexico referred to as the Mexican Gold Coast. We then plan to head back north by the beginning of March to be in position to cross the Sea of Cortez. After that we will spend the entire spring up until June exploring the Sea of Cortez which is something we are very excited about.

Barra de Navidad

2010-12-30T10:58:00.001-08:00

More photos from our stay at Barra de Navidad lagoon.

Puerto Vallarta to Barra de Navidad

2010-12-18T09:18:00.000-08:00

We left the anchorage at LaCruz at approximately 8:00 pm on December 15th heading for Barra de Navidad (Christmas Bar) which is approx. 131 miles south of LaCruz. It was another all night passage but with Amanda aboard it seemed to fly by. The trip down was uneventful other than running into a pod of about 5 humpback whales approximately 50 yards off our port side. We have never been so close to these amazing animals and I have to say we were all a little awestruck. We also saw numerous sea turtles and that was a treat as well.

I am writing this update from the lagoon at Barra de Navidad. This is our first time here in Barra and I have to say we are all in love with it already. The lagoon is flat and there seems to be everything one can want or need readily available. The whole lagoon is lush and green so the scenery is amazing and the town is adorable...it should be a great place to spend Christmas! We even have a turkey that we bought in Mazatlan for Thanksgiving but never got to cook in the freezer so we plan to have some friends over on Christmas eve for a turkey dinner and then join the rest of the cruisers for the potluck on Christmas day.

Mazatlan to Puerto Vallarta

2010-12-05T13:34:00.001-08:00

It took a bit longer than we had expected to pull off the dock at Marina Mazatlan but boy it sure feels good to be moving once again. We installed our new strong track sail system (what a wonderful product) and left our cozy little slip on Dock 5 at approx. 7:00 am on December 3rd. Since we were leaving so late and Amanda is due to fly into Puerto Vallarta on the December 12th we decided not to stop at any of the anchorages along the way but instead sail directly from Mazatlan to Banderas Bay. Last year we had stopped at Mantanchen Bay on the way to PV and got held up for almost 5 days waiting for some bad weather to pass through and we did not want to risk the same thing happening this year.
It is approximately 180 miles south from the marina in Mazatlan to the anchorage at LaCruz (near PV) which is a long passage especially considering we were short one crew member (Amanda). We were both exhausted by the time we dropped the anchor the following day and the dogs were really anxious to get to shore but in the end it is nice to be here and have that long passage out of the way.
All of our new systems worked flawlessly except we did have a small problem in that it seems our depth finder is not working correctly (probably due to the lightning hit we had back in July) so that will need to be dealt with in the near future.
It was nice having our new and improved radar especially since there was no moon at all the night of our passage and the radar was our eyes in the dark. Our new W-H autopilot works as good if not better than the ones we lost this past summer and we both really love the new VHF with integrated AIS (Automatic Identification System) that lets us know via our VHF when there are big ships out there. We only picked up one ship on the AIS leaving Mazatlan (the Ferry) and two cruise ships once we got into Banderas Bay but unfortunately the thousands of fishing pangas and hundreds of shrimping boats do not show up on AIS so the radar was the star of the evening for us.
I almost forgot to mention that on the day we left we were followed, hailed and questioned by the Mexican Navy. They had been circling off in the distance in a ship of approximately 120' for a hour or more before they decided to come along side of us and hail us. Since there English was very poor and our Spanish not so hot it was a bit frustrating but in the end we communicated the best we could and they left with the simple statement to let them know if they could be any help. I think the Mexican Navy is trying to show a presence out in there waters and that is what prompted there interest in us. It is nice to see them taking a bit of control in there waters and they were very polite so as the saying goes.....no problemo.

THE START OF CRUISING SEASON

2010-11-09T06:11:00.001-08:00

It is officially the end of hurricane season here in Mexico and we are almost ready to cast off our dock lines here at Marina Mazatlan for another year of cruising....it sure feels great!
It is amazing how many part time cruisers have shown up here at the marina over the past two weeks. The morning net has almost 40 boats checking in as of today and everyday that number is growing. After a quite summer with only 4 or 5 boats that were occupied it really is a bit overwhelming at times....a sure sign it is time to get back out on anchor where life is a bit slower.
The weather for the past 4-6 weeks has been amazing. Low to mid 80's everyday with warm ocean breezes and mid 60's at night for perfect sleeping weather. We have unhooked the ACs as there is no need for them and our days have been spent outside installing the new systems and detailing the boat which is no small job but well worth the effort as the boat is looking great. We have saved quite a bit of money doing the work ourselves so that is a added bonus.
It is nice to see Chrokeva coming back to cruising shape. She now has her sails back on and everything seems to be working perfectly so with any luck we will be leaving Marina Mazatlan sometime between the 10th and 15th of this month where we will be on anchor at the Old Harbor waiting for our good friends Rob and Kat to come down from San Diego. Besides being excited to see them they are bringing with them a new sail track for Chrokeva which we will try to install before leaving Mazatlan (it should make pulling up and dropping the main much easier).
Well as Captain Ron says...."if anything is going to happen it is going to happen out there"....so more on our progress later.

FABRICATION OF BOAT PARTS IN MEXICO

2010-10-12T08:59:00.000-07:00

There is no doubt in our mind after spending the past year here in Mexico that one thing that makes life difficult on a boat here is the fact that parts coming from the U.S. or other countries are extremely difficult and expensive to get here in Mexico. Import fees here are extremely high and it is normal for items to get caught in customs when shipping for weeks or even months. Anyone coming into Mexico on a boat should carry as many spare parts as possible with them that much is clear.
Having said that I will also say that Mexico does a incredible job in the fabrication of parts and the stainless steel work done here in Mazatlan is beautiful and inexpensive.
Below are a few parts that we had fabricated here in Mazatlan. The first is a double belted pulley for our alternator. The pulley was not available in the U.S. or anywhere for that matter since they do not make a double belted pulley for a over-sized alternator that is spaced for the Ford Lehman. We brought in the double belted pulley that was on the boat (although never hooked up as a double belt due to the sizing issue) and a few days later we had a brand new steel double belted pulley for our engine...the cost $45.00 U.S.
The second item we had fabricated was a stainless steel exhaust elbow for our Northern Lights Generator. As you can see by the photos the old cast iron exhaust elbow was in very bad shape. We had gotten pricing for a new elbow in cast iron in the U.S. and the cost was about $350.00. We were so busy getting replacement parts from the lightning strike when we were back in the U.S. that we forgot to order it so when we arrived back in Mazatlan we took the old one off and had a new one fabricated out of stainless steel (which is much better than cast iron). The cost to have a new stainless steel elbow made from scratch here in Mexico $250.00.
We also had to have our stainless steel radar mount customized with a new foot print for our new radome since the new one would not fit the old mount. The cost for this stainless steel fabrication was $40.00.
I challenge anyone to have these jobs done in the U.S. as quickly or as inexpensively as here in Mexico.

Los Osuna......Agave Azul Distillery

2010-10-04T13:47:00.000-07:00

We decided to make a trip to the Blue Agave Distillery of Los Osuna with our friends John and Rosie from the mv Serena Ray. Los Osuna is located approx. 30 miles outside of Mazatlan, within the state of Sinaloa. Los Osuna is a family owned operation that has been producing their tequila for over 134 years. The ranch has been in the Osuna family for over 200 years so there is quite a colorful history behind this distillery as you can imagine.

It was really interesting to see how they produce this extremely tasty tequila. They even still use underground brick ovens to roast the agave bulbs. After the tour we had a tasting of Los Osuna Reposado and I have to say that although I have never been a big fan of tequila this was without a doubt the best tequila I have ever tasted. If all tequila was this good I am sure I would be drinking a lot more tequila than I currently do. We did bring a bottle back to Chrokeva and since it seems the only place you can purchase Los Osuna is in Mazatlan (due to export taxes) we may have to pick up another bottle before leaving.

October 2010

2010-10-04T13:09:00.000-07:00

Here are a bunch of random photos we took on a recent day trip to the outskirts of Mazatlan. Nothing particularly interesting but the photos are fun nevertheless. If anyone is wondering what type of animal is in the below photo it is a Coati Mundi which is a member of the Raccoon family, it is native to Mexico. The vaquero (cowboy) was actually picking up a six pack of beer at a local tienda and took the horse right inside the store (never even dismounted)...nobody even blinked an eye (except us gringos). I also thought the cactus growing on the roof of the house was a interesting thing...again only to us gringos I am sure :)

back in Mazatlan

2010-09-03T18:04:00.000-07:00

Well me made it back to Mazatlan without incident. The border crossing was incredibly easy and although the drive was long it was uneventful. It really did feel good to be back where life moves slower and does not seem quite as hectic as it does in the United States. Life here in Mexico seems to be focused on fun and family (in that order) and I have to say it is refreshing.
We are now looking forward to next cruising season and although we have our hands full with repairs on Chrokeva we know in just a short time we will be leaving Mazatlan and heading south towards new adventures. We would like to be in Ixtapa/Zihuatenejo for Christmas which is approx. 500 miles south of Mazatlan (our current location (23º 16.0’ N 106º 29.0’ W to be exact). Hurricane season ends on November 1st so that would give us a little over 1 month to make our way to Z-Town (as the cruisers call it) for Christmas. We are hoping to have some old friends from San Diego join us for the way down the coast. For now we will keep a weather eye on the horizon.

August 2010

2010-08-28T18:16:00.000-07:00

We spent the entire month of August visiting friends and family in San Diego and Arizona. It was really nice to get away from the heat of Mazatlan for the month of August which is known as one of the hottest months of the year. Although I have to say that San Diego was just downright cold in our opinion in comparison, Arizona was much closer in weather to what we have become accustom to over the past year (minus the extreme humidity). We made time to do some sightseeing in Arizona and even made a trip to the Grand Canyon....what a sight! Arizona truly is a beautiful state.
Amanda started school at Prescott College while we were there and while we are going to miss her incredibly we know that this is a great opportunity. We made her promise to spend her Christmas break with us in Mexico and said our goodbyes (at least for now).
We are now heading back to Mazatlan with a car full of boat parts with plans to start on the lengthy task of putting Chrokeva back to pre-lightning shape. It is amazing that we were able to fit all the items that we purchased in the US in this very small mexican rental car but somehow we did it so now all that is left is the work.
Purchasing the replacement parts for Chrokeva was no small task but I feel confident that she will be as good or better than before the strike. Our plan is to wait until the risk of lightning is over before installing the new electronics (a smart move in our opinion). There is still plenty to do over the next few months while we sit out hurricane season and try to stay cool in the hot mexican tropics.

HIT BY LIGHTNING!

2010-07-17T12:06:00.000-07:00

Well the thing I feared most (besides a category 5 hurricane) actually happened to us on July 16th at approx 3:15 AM. It was a very stormy night with lightning and winds up to about 45 knots. Everyone was awake and Mark and been on deck most of the night trying to hold the canvas covers from blowing away. Unfortunately, we had no warning that weather was coming so it was a total surprise...not that knowing would have kept us from taking a strike but we would have been a little more prepared.
At approx. 3:15 we heard a very loud noise that sounded like a cannon and saw a bright white flash. I knew right away something was not right and yelled out to Mark asking if we had been hit. He went out on deck just in time to see the anchor/strobe light and VHF antenna come crashing down from the top of the mast to the deck....which was confirmation that we indeed did take a hit at the top of the mast. After that the night was a blur.
The list of damaged items so far are as follows:
o VHF Radio and Antenna
o 2 Battery Charges and Monitors
o 2 W-H Autopilots
o Raytheon Chartploter
o Windex wind/direction indicator
o Raytheon Radar and Radome
o Knot Meter
o all electricity to the mast (dead)
o Anchor/Strobe Light
People keep telling us we are lucky that it did not punch a hole in the boat but we do not feel very lucky. Still I suppose we need to count our blessings.
We had hoped not to have to put in a insurance claim but at this point it seems that we will not have a choice as there are some big ticket items that were damaged. It should be interesting trying to repair the boat from Mexico so I will update on how things go on the repairs.

El Quelite

2010-07-15T07:01:00.000-07:00

It was nice to rent a car and take a road trip to the quaint town of El Quelite this past week. Out of all the towns we have been to in Mexico I have to say that El Quelite is the most beautiful and pristine. Every home in this little Mexican town is painted a different color and the town square which is a trademark of any Mexican village has the most gorgeous and incredibly maintained garden. After walking around the village of El Quelite we had a wonderful lunch at a local cantina. The food was not only great but the cantina seemed to be more like a museum than a restaurant.
It is now mid July and although we had expected the weather to be almost unbearable, much to our surprise, it has for the most part been only in the upper 80's which has been very comfortable. The marina here is extremely dead but the town is still very much alive with activity (minus most of the gringos).
In another few weeks we will be leaving the boat and Mazatlan to return to the states for the entire month of August. During this month we plan to get Amanda set up in Prescott to start her new life as a college student. It will seem strange to leave the boat alone for such a long time but we will hire someone to look after the boat and keep our fingers crossed that no hurricanes hit Mazatlan while we are away.

Mazatlan - June 2010

2010-06-15T06:44:00.000-07:00

We are all tucked into our slip safe and sound on dock 5 at Marina Mazatlan. We have started to pull down our head sails in preparation for hurricane season. I am surprised by how dead things have gotten over the past month. It seems that most cruisers are really only cruising part time and head back to there home country in the hot summer months. There are alot of the full time cruisers that head up into the Sea of Cortez for the summer to continue cruising in the hot months but with our pending 1 month trip back to the states in August we are left to put a boat in a marina which reminds me of a graveyard this time of year.
It is a good time to get projects done so we have started on several already. Last week we had the leather settee in the salon reconditioned by a leather factory here in Mazatlan (see before and after photos below). They did a great job and the price was very reasonable so we decided to let them recover the settee in the master cabin as the upholstery is original with the boat. We are also working on the forward head as it has been more of a closet to Amanda over the past 4 years and with her heading back to school in August it seems that we could use another head rather than a closet.
We also made time to do some volunteer work at the local church last week. We met at the church in the morning and a group of about 8 of us made approximately 300 sandwiches that we delivered to the local dump in Mazatlan where hundreds of people work everyday digging through miles of trash looking for anything of value to sell in order to feed there families. I have to say it is a very eye opening experience to see how people live and to realize how much we as Americans have (even our very poor cannot compare). My heart especially hurt for the children and it is not something any of us will soon forget.
Amanda has been taking on line classes at the college and is busy with that for a good part of every day. She has decided to go into the nursing field so the prerequisites should keep her busy for quite awhile.

finally a update

2010-05-28T10:05:00.000-07:00

I know it has been quite awhile since I have updated this blog but it seems here in Mexico putting things off until "manana" is par for the course and I have fallen victim to this thought process as well.
Last I wrote we were enjoying our time in Manzanillo and so I will start where I left off. We spent over a month at the anchorage in Las Hadas enjoying the hospitality of the hotel as well as having some great times with fellow cruisers. We really enjoyed the little town of Santiago which was within walking distance of the anchorage and it will be remembered as one of our favorite places while in Mexico.
We decided it was finally time to leave Manzanillo and so we headed back north to Marina La Cruz in Banderas Bay where Mark made a quick day and a half trip back to the states to renew his tourist visa. Unfortunately we could not travel together because of the dogs so Amanda and I ended up flying into Tijuana a week after Mark returned where we crossed the border and spent three weeks visiting friends and family and checking out possible schools for Amanda (more on that later).
While Amanda and I where off having a great time in California and Arizona Mark decided to move Chrokeva from La Cruz back to Mazatlan. He was fortunate in that we ran into some old friends from the sailing vessel Yah Tah Hey in Puerto Vallarta (Warren and Nancy) and Warren agreed to be crew for the trip back to Mazatlan. The entire passage was approx 160 miles and from what I hear was basically uneventful (always a good thing). That brings us up to date as Amanda and I have just arrived back to Mazatlan a few days ago and we are currently anchored at Stone Island which is a great little anchorage just outside of Mazatlan. Our plans for summer hurricane season change on almost a daily basis but as the saying goes "cruisers plans are written in the sand at low tide". As it looks now we will be spending hurricane season in Marina Mazatlan. The summer rates at Marina Mazatlan are great and although Mazatlan seems to get hit often with hurricanes the marina is situated far back into a estuary and we will be tucked in as far as possible so we feel confident it will be a safe hurricane hole. We had seriously considered going back into the Sea of Cortez for the summer but finding a place to put the boat in the Sea during the summer seems almost impossible and with a trip back to the states pending in August and the fact that we really want to do some inland travel here in Mexico over the summer Mazatlan seems to be a logical decision for us.

the Mexican Gold Coast

2010-04-01T08:13:00.000-07:00

Life is really great here in the anchorage at Las Hadas. We have been enjoying the great amenities at the hotel and the anchorage is friendly and flat (what more can we ask for). Jasmine is doing great and we are all thankful for that.
Our thoughts over the past week have been on where we are going to be for hurricane season (June thru October). We have seriously been considering heading to El Salvador which is out of the hurricane zone but rain and lightning will be a concern there. Puerto Vallarta is on the top of the list as it is considered a very good hurricane hole here in Mexico and recently we have been considering Barra De Navidad as it is very close to where we are now so we would be in a good position to jump off to points south at the beginning of next season and the rates at the beautiful marina there are very competitive. More on our decision later when we actually know what we are going to do, for now we are just enjoying the perfect weather of the Mexican Gold Coast and all the rest it has to offer.

the trials and tribulations of having dogs aboard

2010-03-21T13:29:00.000-07:00

I don't know what we were thinking when we decided to go cruising with our two dogs Jasmine and Dancer aboard but clearly we did not foresee everything that could happen or we would never have brought them. As much as we love our dogs they do seem to make almost everything more difficult. Getting them to shore to go to the bathroom can be extremely dangerous in large surf, we are unable to go to many places (like the South Pacific) because of tough quarantine laws and we now realize that keeping them healthy in a foreign country can be a challenge all in its own.

To be fair I have to say it has been a rather hectic week as Jasmine our little 11 year old pug got very sick after leaving La Cruz. After a few days of trying to figure out what was going on with her we came to the conclusion it was Pyometra which is a very serious infection of the uterus common in older unspayed female dogs. We knew her chances of making it were not good without immediate veterinarian help so we were off to find a vet in the little town of Chamala. It was over a hour each way by taxi to get her to a large animal vet who of course spoke no English so Amanda did her best to explain Jasmine's symptoms in Spanish. He gave her a shot of antibiotics and sent us back to the boat with antibiotics and instructions to give her a shot every morning for the next several days. We left Chamala early the next morning heading for Tenacatita. Unfortunately the antibiotics did not help at all and the muscle shots we gave her made her unable to stand up so she just laid there..... clearly she was in very bad shape. I started to realize we may loose her if we did not get help very soon so we left the anchorage of Tenacatita after only one night, passed up Barra Navidad completely and headed to the large city of Manzanillo to try and find another vet who was perhaps more familiar with what was going on with her. We anchored at place called Las Hadas and within a few hours of arriving found out from local cruisers that there were several very good vets in the area. First thing in the morning we took a taxi to a local vet (again no English spoken) and he gave us some new oral antibiotics, vitamins, pain pills for her hips and laxatives.

The good news is that we have now been here in Las Hadas for about a week and Jasmine seems to be getting better everyday. She still has a few issues and we are scheduled to go back to the vet for follow-up in a few more days but for now things are looking up for our little friend.

Isla Isabella/San Blas/Matanchan Bay/Chacala

2010-03-02T15:29:00.000-08:00

We arrived at Isla Isabella first thing in the morning after motor sailing all night and realized right away that we were in a different world than we had been in Mazatlan. The whales were so numerous that it seemed every direction we looked we saw water spouts and whales breaching. The wildlife at Isabella is truly amazing. Once at Isabella we ended up anchoring near the Monas (the mannequins in Spanish) two large pinnacle shaped rocks for only a very short time as there was a report of possible strong winds and the protection there is not very good. After spending awhile in awe watching the whale activity we sailed another 35 miles east to San Blas which is the town that the famous poem written by H.W. Longfellow "The Bells of San Blas" was written about.....

What say the Bells of San Blas
To the ships that southward pass
From the harbor of Mazatlan?
To them it is nothing more
Than the sound of surf on the shore,--
Nothing more to master or man.

But to me, a dreamer of dreams,
To whom what is and what seems
Are often one and the same,--
The Bells of San Blas to me
Have a strange, wild melody,
And are something more than a name.

For bells are the voice of the church;
They have tones that touch and search
The hearts of young and old;
One sound to all, yet each
Lends a meaning to their speech,
And the meaning is manifold.

They are a voice of the Past,
Of an age that is fading fast,
Of a power austere and grand,
When the flag of Spain unfurled
Its folds o'er this western world,
And the Priest was lord of the land.

The chapel that once looked down
On the little seaport town
Has crumbled into the dust;
And on oaken beams below
The bells swing to and fro,
And are green with mould and rust.

"Is, then, the old faith dead,"
They say, "and in its stead
Is some new faith proclaimed,
That we are forced to remain
Naked to sun and rain,
Unsheltered and ashamed?

"Once, in our tower aloof,
We rang over wall and roof
Our warnings and our complaints;
And round about us there
The white doves filled the air,
Like the white souls of the saints.

"The saints! Ah, have they grown
Forgetful of their own?
Are they asleep, or dead,
That open to the sky
Their ruined Missions lie,
No longer tenanted?

"Oh, bring us back once more
The vanished days of yore,
When the world with faith was filled;
Bring back the fervid zeal,
The hearts of fire and steel,
The hands that believe and build.

"Then from our tower again
We will send over land and main
Our voices of command,
Like exiled kings who return
To their thrones, and the people learn
That the Priest is lord of the land!"

O Bells of San Blas in vain
Ye call back the Past again;
The Past is deaf to your prayer!
Out of the shadows of night
The world rolls into light;
It is daybreak everywhere.

We attempted to enter the estuary at San Blas but after seeing the depth meter hit 8.5 feet in the channel decided to back out (a rather scary event) and head over to the nearby anchorage of Mantanchan Bay. Mantanchan is a very large shallow bay with good holding and protection from the northwest. It was easy to take a bus from Mantanchan to San Blas for 6 pesos and the famous San Blas Jungle Tour was only a few blocks from the anchorage. The only bad thing about Mantanchan and San Blas was the man eating bugs that seemed to come out in droves anytime the wind died down (which was every afternoon). All in all it was a lovely little town but after 5 days we were definitely ready to head out before the bugs did anymore damage.

After leaving San Blas we headed over the Chacala. Chacala is a amazingly beautiful place with gorgeous sandy beaches and palapas dotting the beach. Unfortunately the anchorage was very Roley due to some big swells so we only spent one night but look forward to spending more time there in the near future.

Right now we are sitting at anchor at La Cruz in Banderas Bay. Our plans for the next few days are to provision, tie up a few loose ends and head out within the week for the Mexican Gold Coast.

SOUTHBOUND AGAIN

2010-02-16T11:40:00.000-08:00

After exactly 3 weeks to the day in the Singlar boat yard we are finally ready to go back in the water. We should be back in the water by 10:00 Wednesday morning and heading south once again. I think everyone is more excited to be back in the water after our long stay at the boat yard than we were when we left San Diego heading to Cabo.

The boat looks great and although it was a fairly large expense we hope not to have to haul out again for another 3 or 4 years. I have to say that I may actually miss the orange boot stripe but new blue looks great and more importantly the boot stripe should be out of the water now (at least until we find more stuff to put on board).

Bob Buchanan and all the crew at Total Yacht Works did a outstanding job. I have to say that we really appreciated that there were no surprises and we were kept informed when anything extra did come up. They are a top notch boat yard and I would suggest anyone coming to the Mazatlan are and in need of a haul out to check them out.

CARNAVAL MAZATLAN 2010

2010-02-15T08:44:00.000-08:00

Carnaval 2010 in Mazatlan was really something to experience. I can't imagine that there are any people that know how to party as well as the Mexicans here in Mazatlan. Saturday night we headed downtown to enjoy the dance and burning of bad humor and what a celebration! On Sunday we attended the main parade which is the highlight of Carnaval and as hard as it is to believe I think there were more people than the night before.

We are still in the boat yard with the promise of being back in the water Wednesday morning. If all goes well we will be heading south on Wednesday with our sites on some quite anchorages where we can unwind after all of the festivities of Carnaval.

will it ever end?!?!

2010-02-06T05:44:00.000-08:00

We are now on week two of our haul out/bottom job. The boat is finally almost ready for the first of two coats of barrier coat. We have had 3 people working on the boat non-stop sanding, stripping and filling the thousands of little pin holes in the hull in order to prep the hull for its new bottom paint. As you can see from the photos below they have marked off the new boot stripe with blue tape. We will be raising the boot stripe approximately 4 inches (a common thing to do once you start cruising full time).

Living life in the boatyard continues to be challenging but we are getting use to going up and down the ladder several million times a day. The boat is constantly dirty and dusty and the sanding that goes on basically all day can get on your nerves but it is nice having electric whenever we want without turning on the generator and the showers really are nice as well.

The start of carnival is coming up in just a few days so the town is really starting to bust at the seams. Mazatlan has the second largest carnival in the world (actually larger than New Orleans) so it should be quite the party. We are not sure if we will be back in the water by the start of carnival but either way we will be here for the festivities.

Haul Out/Bottom Job in Mazatlan

2010-01-28T06:25:00.000-08:00

After a few reschedules with Singlar boat yard we finally hauled Chrokeva from the water on January 27th 2010 for the 1st bottom job that we have had since purchasing Chrokeva over 4 years ago. It was a bit of a nerve wracking experience due to the fact that the haul out is located in a very tight channel with several obstacles and the added discomfort of knowing these full keeled boats back up poorly needless to say anxiety was high. In the end the haul out went without a hitch and not so much as a scratch put on the boat.

We decided to employ Bob Buchanan with Total Yacht Works to oversee the bottom job as we have heard so many positive things about both Bob and Total Yacht Works. We had planned to just have the bottom painted and the waterline raised but we soon found out once the boat was out of the water that we will not be able to paint directly over the old paint as it is starting to fail so the decision was made to remove the old red bottom paint (a much bigger and more costly job) and put another coat of barrier coat on it and then re-paint the hull with black Trindad SR. We also decided to change the color of the boot stripe (now a really funky orange) and possible re-paint the blue hull stripe as it is really starting to show its age. The other things that are on the list for this haul out is an out is a out of water survey for insurance purposes, change the cutless bearing, do some gel coat repair and possibly do a stainless steel repair the bow pulpit. There may be other things added once the survey is done but for now things look good.

We will be living on the boat while it is up on stilts in the yard and I have to say that is quite a experience in itself. We all must climb a very tall ladder several times a day and the dogs must be carried up and down to go potty. One thing we realized right away is that it is quite a bit hotter being on a boat out of the water. The fans are going all day and night and it still seems almost unbearably hot inside. The good news is that the boat yard is absolutely immaculate. The restrooms and showers are great and the people are friendly and professional. We should be out of the water and living aboard for the next week (give or take a few days).

Just another day in paradise

2010-01-03T09:56:00.000-08:00

It is January 3rd today and we are finishing up another project on the boat (a little modification to the starboard berth. I will be varnishing for the next few days but the weather is perfect for it (80 degrees as usual).

We have been having a great time here in old Mazatlan. We went over to the El Cid Marina a few days ago to check out the local iguanas that roam around the grounds. Amanda really liked her new green friend but seemed opposed to letting him move into her room with her.

Merry Christmas

2009-12-23T12:13:00.001-08:00

We wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and let all of our friends and family that we love them and miss them very much.
Merry Christmas!

.....so this is mainland Mexico

2009-12-13T06:06:00.000-08:00

We really have been enjoying ourselves here in Mazatlan. Anchored in the old harbor we are located away from the tourist spots and marinas of Mazatlan. We have been taking the bus, shopping in the open air market and eating with the locals which is without a doubt a much richer experience than being with all the other gringos in the resort areas of Mexico. Once away from the tourist spots you stop looking like a walking, talking money tree and the locals start treating you like a person...not really unlike being in any tourist spot in the U.S. I suppose.

The food here is quite a bit cheaper than on the Baja side of Mexico and the fresh fruit and vegetables are amazing. Since Mazatlan has the largest shrimping fleet in the world we have taken it upon ourselves to gorge ourselves on fresh shrimp almost daily....it is a tough life but hey someone has to do it :). We have gotten pretty good at cooking both coconut and garlic butter shrimp.

Before leaving the states we were warned over and over about how dangerous and violent Mexico was but I have to say after visiting various ports over the past few months I believe that this is the biggest misstatement of facts that I have heard in a very long time. Most of the people we have run into here are unbelievably warm and friendly and there dedication to family is touching. Religion plays a big part in the culture here and is evident in about every place you go in Mexico. It really is a wonderful culture and it seems ashame that there is such a misguided view of how things are in Mexico by many in the U.S.

Baja Mexico to Mainland Mexico

2009-12-12T15:26:00.000-08:00

After taking care of our business we left LaPaz last week and headed over to Isla Espiritu Santos and Isla Partida for a few days of R&R. The islands in the Sea of Cortez are amazing! The water is so clear it is like a hugh aquarium and the terrain is stunning. The photos we took really do not do it justice but we thought we would post a few anyway.

Leaving the islands we headed south to Muertos once again to make our crossing from the Baja side of Mexico to mainland Mexico. We were able to buddy boat with our friends Ken and Lori from the beautiful sailboat Trim. The crossing was approx. 200 miles across the sea of cortez. The weather was great....10-15 knots from the north/northwest and swells of 2-4 from the north at approx. 6 seconds. It was the best sailing we had since leaving San Diego. We even had a little bit of excitement when Mark hooked a 5 foot marlin, with all the sails up it turned out to be quite a fight pulling it in. We arrived in Mazatlan 26 hours after leaving Muertos a bit tired from the crossing but none the worse for wear.

Currently we are anchored in the municipal anchorage located in old town Mazatlan. We will post more about this lovely town as we get to know more about it.

La Paz.....part two

2009-12-01T08:09:00.000-08:00

It has been awhile since I updated the blog. We spent the Thanksgiving holiday with other cruisers here in La Paz. It was very nice but we really missed our friends and family.

We are still in Marina Palmira in La Paz. We had planned to head over to Isle Espirito Santos and Isle Partida right after Thanksgiving but due to a mess up with Mark's government pension we were forced to stay here a little longer to try to resolve the problem. As some of you know making phone calls to the states from Skype can be a frustrating thing and trying to talk to a government agency over Skype is as you can imagine almost impossible. We should have word by tomorrow if everything is resolved and if so we will be leaving in the morning.

Our past few weeks here have been spent getting to know La Paz and the people. We even made it over to the Anthropology Museum (something Amanda had on the top of her to do list while we are here.

La Paz

2009-11-19T08:42:00.000-08:00

We made it to La Paz late Tuesday and are currently tucked into a slip at Marina Palmira where we plan to stay until after the Thanksgiving holiday. This is the first time in many months that we have been at a slip and it felt great to be able to wash Chrokeva down with fresh water. I was so excited to see the boat clean again I even decided to post a few photos on the blog although it would have been much more impressive if I had before/after photos :)

The crossing from Muertos to La Paz was one of the roughest I can remember as the seas were still very confused and steep due to the norther that was passing through. The boat did great but the crew of Chrokeva (including Jasmine and Dancer) were pretty shaken up by the end of the day. Mark hand steered almost the entire day to try to keep us from getting too beat up. Needless to say we all slept very well Tuesday evening.

The boating community is very active here and everyone is extremely helpful. There seems to be alot of boats that end up staying for many years after arriving in La Paz but we have alot of world we want to see so that will not be us. Right now we plan to leave the La Paz area heading for Mazatlan around the next full moon (December 2nd).

Los Muertos (part two)

2009-11-14T08:30:00.000-08:00

We are waiting for our first norther here in the Sea of Cortez in Los Muertos. It seems whenever Southern California gets a Santa Ana condition the Sea of Cortez gets a norther. The last weather report said it should be coming in by tomorrow and lasting through Monday so we are planning right now to leave Muertos for La Paz on Tuesday (two days before Thanksgiving). We are expecting 40+ knots of winds and it seems our new anchor will get to start paying for itself finally.
We hope to be settled in in La Paz by Thanksgiving as we here there is a hugh pot luck with the cruisers there. I provisioned the boat with a large turkey breast before leaving the states so we should be set no matter what.
In the mean time we really are enjoying this little cove. Yesterday we walked down the beach and came across this beautiful resort (Gran Suenos). Amazing is the only word that can describe this resort. Everyone was so friendly and invited all the cruisers over to use the pool and restaurant facilities and enjoy this beautiful resort.

Muertos (by Mark)

2009-11-12T13:56:00.000-08:00

We Leaving Frailes we headed east out of the anchorage. Then heading north we passed Punta Arena and got our bearing for Muertos. Once in the shadow of Cerralvo Island and the point of land that makes Bahia de los Muertos the wind pretty much disapeared along with the sea state. We dropped anchor at about noon and were pleased to find the most relaxed little anchorage we've seen so far, along with clear water just the right temp for swimming and nobody in a real big hurry. To top that off they have a small beach club restaurant with just the right amount of shade and cold refreshments to be had. Jackie and Amanda are having fun along with me getting acclimated to the warmer temp here. We should be staying through till Saturday morning then pulling out for La Paz hoping to find little treasures like this further on in our adventure.

Baja Ha-Ha 2009 (by Amanda)

2009-11-12T13:12:00.000-08:00

LOS FRAILES (The Friars)

2009-11-10T04:50:00.000-08:00

We left Cabo San Lucas on November 9th heading to Los Frailes which is our first stop on our way to La Paz. This really was the first day of our cruising life since up until now we were still on a schedule and in the company of what seemed like a whole city of boats and people all with the same goal of making it to Cabo San Lucas. It seemed strange to be without our crew (Marcus and Stan) and to have left the HaHa fleet but Mark reminded me that we have been on our own and dealing with all the challenges of living onboard and moving the boat for many years and of course he was right. As soon as we pulled anchor and put up the sails it felt great to be out on our own again and have the freedom to go wherever whenever we felt like it.

The seas out here seem very flat in comparision to the pacific side of baja but the wind which built to 18 knots in the afternoon and blew right on the nose reminded us that this still is the ocean and the challenges still exist. Once behind the headlands and protected from the strong north winds Frailes was a welcome stop for us.

Sitting on the beach here seemed almost like a dream especially after spending several days in the mega tourist area of Cabo. We plan to spend at least one full day exploring this are before heading to Ensenada De Los Muertos on Wednesday.

AND WE'RE OFF.......

2009-11-07T12:46:00.000-08:00

We started off our cruising life on October 25th 2009. We had originally planned to leave with the Baja HaHa on the 26th but due to the prediction of large swells (15-20 foot) we made the decision to leave on the evening of the 25th before the rest of the fleet. The first leg (San Diego to Turtle Bay) was very quick as we were trying to out run the weather coming from the north. The next two legs (Turtle Bay to Santa Maria and Santa Maria to Cabo San Lucas) were much slower and winds were very light. We ended up doing 750 miles in 11 days due to the schedule that the Baja HaHa sets. Although most would think this was a very slow pace the truth is this many miles in a week and a half on a sailboat really is quite fast and it felt more like the rat race we are trying to get away from rather than the cruising life we have been looking forward to. Now that we are in Cabo the HaHa fleet will disperse in different directions and everyone will set there own pace. Our pace will be much slower from here on out.

Right now we are sitting in Cabo San Lucas on anchor and since we have a pretty good internet signal I thought it would be a good time to post a few photos of our trip down. We plan on leaving Cabo on Monday and head around the cape to Los Frailes. After that we have decided to beat our way up to La Paz and spend a little time in the sea of cortez before heading over to mainland Mexico.

2009-10-09T15:06:00.000-07:00

As time of our departure nears closer the reality that we are finally leaving has really begun to set in. Mark is now officially retired although I do not believe he feels much like a retired person since we are up before the sun every morning to start our long list of projects and do not stop until after dark (or cocktail hour).

His latest project was to sew chaps for our new (to us) dinghy. It was a pretty big job which no doubt is why you have to pay a professional $900-$1200 for a set. This type of expense is just not part of our budget so Mark broke out the sewing machine and three days later we have some pretty darn nice looking chaps.

2009-07-13T14:11:00.000-07:00

Wow time really has flown!

2009-05-22T07:30:00.000-07:00

We left Newport Beach for the last time on June 22nd heading to San Diego where we plan to stay until leaving with the Baja HaHa on October 26th. It is really great to be back in San Diego but now that we are here we are looking forward to leaving and heading south to our next adventure.
Amanda graduated high school on June 4th with her eyes set on seeing some of the world in her near future (a decision that I am sure she will no regret making). Mark has pushed his retirement date back to the end of September due to the fact our wish list keeps getting bigger and the extra money will come in helpful about now.
I have posted a few recent photos of the graduation, a trip we made to Catalina during easter break and a few really cool dolphin photos that we took from the bow sprit of the boat.

2009!!!

2009-01-26T09:55:00.001-08:00

Yeah it's finally 2009!! I cannot believe the time has passed so quickly. It seems that is was just yesterday we sold the house and moved onto the Chrokeva.
Amanda will be graduating high school in June, Mark will be retiring from the Fire Department in September and we will be heading to Mexico and beyond sometime in October. We feel very lucky that we have already made the transition to living aboard two years ago and since we spend so much time moving the boat from place to place within So. Cal. the adjustment to the cruising lifestyle should not too difficult (at least we hope not)

The to-do/wish list is a mile long and no doubt will take a small miracle to finish everything on the list but we figure what does not get done before we go will have to wait until we are out there. The good news is with so much to do I imagine the next few months will fly by quickly.

With everything there is to do I probably will not be spending much time updating the blog but will try to keep it updated with info and photos as the time gets closer to us cutting the dock lines.

2008-09-26T15:31:00.000-07:00

Herb and Margaret were kind enough to send over this photo of a original painting that they had painted of the Chrokeva while she was at anchor in Palmyra in the late 1970's.

A few cool photos of our recent trip to Alamitos Bay

July 2008

2008-07-30T10:31:00.001-07:00

We spent the entire month of July on the guest dock of Fiddler's Cove Marina in Coronado. The weather was perfect all month and although we did not get done as much as we had hoped we sure had a great time. The time we spent with good friends was some of the best times we can remember.

We were able to get several projects done while at the dock. Right before we left Mark went up the main mast to rig up haylard for the spinnaker. The spinnaker has been in storage since we purchased the boat but we figure it is time to pull it out and get familiar with using it. Mark also worked on re-designing a issue that we had with the outhaul (a rather complicated fix to a bad design). Mark has gotten very handy with the sewing machine and re-upolstered the nav station cushions. He also built a deck box for Chrokeva which looks great and gives us a ton more room for cleaning and paint supplies. We purchased a wood heater off of ebay and have been brainstorming on where to put it (more to come on that project later). All in all it was a productive month "

Catalina - June 2008

2008-06-16T13:49:00.000-07:00

We left Newport Beach at approx. 4 am on the 9th of June heading out to Avalon harbor. As usual it was a uneventful trip as we motored the entire way. We had 7 people aboard for the trip to Avalon including 4 teenage girls and 3 adults. We then picked up two more guests that had taken the express over on Wednesday which brought the total aboard to 9 for the rest of the trip. Needless to say it was a full house on the Chrokeva.

Once we arrived at Avalon we met up with more friends from Chrokeva's sistership the Teal Sea. We spent several nights enjoying the hospitality of Craig and Debbie from Teal. Spending time at Teal Sea also had the added advantage that the teenagers stayed on Chrokeva while the adults enjoyed there time at Teal Sea. Nothing like a little space :)

On Thursday we motored over to Emerald Bay which is a rather remote but beautiful anchorage. We were amazed to be able to see the bottom at a depth of 30 feet! We were able to anchor with a bow and stern anchor right next to Teal Sea. What a sight it was to see two CT54's anchored together in this wonderful place.

On Saturday morning it was time to pull anchor and sail home. The weather was good as we had 20 knots on the stern almost the entire trip back.

IS IT SUMMER YET?????

2008-04-08T11:00:00.000-07:00

It sure has been a long chilly winter and we are all ready for the summer to come with some warm weather. I am definately adding a heater to the list of things that are needed in the near future. Trying to keep the boat warm with my Mr Heater (which is totally unreliable as it only works when it feels like it and eats propane like nothing I have ever seen) and the alcohol heater I bought of Ebay (puts out as much heat as a few candles on a good day) has proved to be a real challenege even in southern California. I know I know it's not like we are in Alaska but cold and damp is still a bad combination.

Mark has been spending just about all his free time (which is not much) fishing. He even accomplished catching this prize ....... YIKES!!! He can't expect me to eat this thing can he?

Goodbye 2007.....Hello 2008

2008-01-12T07:35:00.000-08:00

Well another year is gone and we are another year closer to cutting our dock lines and heading out for our extended cruise. We are currently looking at the fall of 2009 as our date to head south and thankfully that date really does sound closer than it did last year.

Looking back on 2007 I realized just how much has happened for us this past year. We took a big step in February by moving aboard full time (a decision that we are so glad we made). Amanda started a new school, met some really great friends and celebrated her 16th birthday. We learned alot about the boat (and each other), definately got a little saltier and took a few hard knocks along the way. We met some really great people this past year and had a wonderful time with friends new and old. Chrokeva got a few upgrades including a new stove, new solar panel, new toilet, new windlass, and lets not forget the 110 washer/dryer. We also got our 200 gallon a day water maker up and running (which I am sure we will need now that we have a washer/dryer. All in all a pretty good year :)

Plans for this year? Well back to school for Amanda, work for Mark, and lots of time moving the boat and learning more about the Chrokeva. We would all like to get certified to dive since the Chrokeva is outfitted with dive equipment as well as a dive compressor (something that I think we all would enjoy). We will be spending the summer again in San Diego and hopefully make a few trips to Catalina and possibly the Channel Islands. Upgrades for the Chrokeva scheduled for this year are looking at a new paint for the topside and a haulout and bottom paint sometime this year.

CATALINA - CRUISERS WEEKEND 2007

2007-10-24T05:40:00.000-07:00

We had a great time on our first trip to Catalina for the Lats and Atts Cruisers Weekend.
We left Newport Beach at midnight on Thursday and ended up motoring the whole way. We arrived at Two Harbors before sunrise but waited till the sun came up before we went in and picked up a ball.
There was some really great seminars and Catalina was beautiful, we wish we had more time to explore the island but that will have to wait until the next trip. Mark even got to meet Bob Bitchen! He was so excited!!
We left on Sunday and actually was able to sail all the way back to Newport. The weather was perfect and we were able to average 6 knots which is not exactly fast for the Chrokeva but it got us there and we had a great time.

CORONADO - SUMMER 2007

2007-08-05T13:11:00.000-07:00

After leaving the Cruiser's Anchorage we headed over to Coronado and spent a few days anchored at Glorietta Bay. The view of the Hotel Del was really something to see. We then headed over to Fiddler's Cove which we call home and is where our permanent mooring is located. We spent two weeks on the guest dock there enjoying the time with all the wonderful people. If there is one place that is truly a gem within San Diego it would have to be the Navy Marina at Fiddler's Cove. It was hard to leave but we look forward to coming back and spending some more time there in December.

SAN DIEGO - SUMMER 2007

2007-08-05T12:58:00.000-07:00

After leaving the police dock we headed over to the Cruiser's Anchorage (A9) which is located right next to the Star of India in downtown San Diego. The view of the city was incredible and watching the tall ships sail every afternoon was definately a perk. Amanda turned sweet 16 during our stay there

SAN DIEGO - SUMMER 2007

2007-08-05T12:34:00.000-07:00

We left Newport Beach June 23rd with plans to spend the summer in San Diego and although normally both the wind and the current would blow us directly to San Diego we seemed to have the luck of the Irish with us and both the wind (15 knots) and the swell (5-7 feet) was directly on the nose the entire trip. Needless to say it was a bumpy trip down but we arrived safe and sound in San Diego well before dark. We were able to find a spot at the police dock and spent the 4th of July visiting with good friends watching the fireworks over San Diego Bay.

ABOUT THE CREW

2007-05-10T18:12:00.000-07:00

The amazing Captain Mark
Here is Captain Mark in his favorite place (the bilge). Mark currently works for the fire department at Camp Pendleton but is due to retire in July of 2009.

The beautiful and talented 1st mate and cruise coordinator Amanda and her trusty sidekicks Jasmine and Dancer. Amanda graduates high school in the summer of 2009 and plans to join us for at least a year or so to see some of the world after graduation.

Last but not least is Admiral, Galley Slave, Line Handler, Varnish Queen and Poodle Groomer Jackie the Great.

ABOUT THE BOAT

2007-05-10T08:18:00.000-07:00

SPECS::
Designer: Robert Perry Year: 1978 LOD: 54' LOA: 65'
Displacement: 60,000 Beam: 15.6" LWL: 43' Draft: 7'
Gross Tons: 26 Ballast: 19,000 lbs
Engine: 120 HP Ford Lehman
Cruising Speed: 8 knots
Max Speed: 9 knots
Tankage: Fuel: 300 gal. Water: 250 gal. Holding: 45 gal.
Full keel with spade rudder
Masts keel stepped on both main and mizzen
Rudder has been rebuilt from original design and fully-epoxied with S/S reinforcements
Spars: painted spruce completely unstepped and professionally overhauled in 2006

EQUIPMENT:
8KW Northern Lights Genset
Bow Thruster (Side-Power SP125T Thruster 12V)
Probe Sonar (1500-feet forward-looking)
Water Maker: 500-gal/day Village Marine Tech (new in 2003)
Dive Compressor
3 Kyocera Solar Panels (300 watts total)
Xantrex Pro Watt 3000 watt inverter, Statpower 800 watt inverter
Lofrans Anchor Windless (rated at 3500 lbs)
Anchors: CQR 75#, CQR 65#, Danforth stern anchor
Steering has 2 hydraulic systems (SeaStar new in 2003)
2 independent autopilot systems (ComNav & WH Autopilots, P-3C system 2003)
Wagner & ComNav rudder angle indicator
Icom 802 SSB
Raytheon R20 24-mile Radar
Raytheon Nav 398 GPS
Raytheon RC520 Chart Plotter
406 EPIRB
Built-in Freezer Unit (110/engine driven)
Refridgeration (12V/110/engine driven)
Washer/Dryer (Majestic MJ9000V)
Tecma Silence Head
Harken roller furling on both staysail and jib
New spinnaker sock w/cone (2003)
10 self-tailing winches
1 - Antel Electric WInch
Entire rig new in 2003

The CHROKEVA started life in 1978 with the lovely Herb and Margaret along with there 4 beautiful children, Cheryl (CH), Roxanne (RO), Kenny (KE), and Virginia (VA).