Up with the sun we wanted to rush down to Ballandra in hopes of getting a good anchor spot before the winds started blowing from the north. We had the main and jib up for the entire trip but unfortunately not quite enough wind to shutdown the engine. Oh well. The most excitement came as we approached the anchorage. A monohull was also coming in just behind us so it was a race to get the primo spot. While we had the lead we also had our sails up so dropping the main could give them the advantage. Once close we talked through the plan we took our stations, Vicki at the helm with the main halyard, Jack at the mast and me at the end of the boom. Into the wind, halyard released and super fast we had the sail down and were back on our way. An excellent team effort!
After some lunch of tamales, that we had picked up in Santa Rosalia Teresa and Jack poured snorkeling gear into the dinghy. Vicki and I dropped them off and then hiked up a somewhat questionable hill to overlook the snorkeling area. The butt slide down returned us to the beach safely, which was a relief. With low tide I was able to skirt the shoreline for a good half mile. The most interesting thing was looking at the patterns in the low lying areas that the recent rains left in the sand. Back to the dinghy Jack had acquired some scallops, not the super awesome kind but still fun to forage for a snack.
Back on the boat I spent the next half hour cleaning scallops and then we had them sashimi style with wasabi and soy sauce. While not tender they did have a good sweet flavor. After a couple games of Monopoly Deal everyone was ready for some down time.
The sound of a dinghy brought me to see George (SV Believe) coming to say hello and meet Teresa and Vicki. We heard about some boat problems he had been struggling with since Pulpito but thankfully had been able to get repaired with the help of another cruiser in San Juanico. He had sundowner plans on another boat so after he left we headed for shore to climb the ridge for a gorgeous sunset view. We cut it a little close but just managed to make it to the top as the sun dropped below the Sierra de la Gigante mountains. Then it was a race to the beach before it was too dark to see. Good thing going down is fast than going up.
Vicki cooked the flounder the fisherman in Gonzaga gave us along with a great veggie pasta salad and the night was closed off with Vicki’s favorite game, Mexican Train. Good times!
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