Following a crazy week of last minute running around, we got up at 6am on Saturday 2/2 to watch the implosion of the Chula Vista power plant. Thousands gathered to witness the spectacle! We were fortunate to have a ringside seat from the marina,; Mimosa's on the flybridge of our friend Denise's boat! 350 tons of explosives did the job... about 1 minute of repeated BOOM's and it was history.
That evening at about 4:45 we said Adios to the marina, the bay, and California. Yahooooo!
There was really no wind to speak of, so we resigned ourselves to motoring through the night. There was a solid overcast, so, no moon, just the lights of the coast. As for navigation, we have our Garmin GPSMAP 441S, and an old set of charts. Oh yeah, and a fishing map!, Total distance was about 65 miles, total time: 14 hrs. It was a good shakedown for the engine, the only issues were some slight changes in the RPM's, and unfortunately overcharging the batteries. As we cruised through the darkness, our crew was always doing something, Tom was nearly always on deck through the cold and sometimes rainy voyage, Kenny was there for support: a seasoned sailor and veteran of many passages; he offered great suggestions and cautioned us of the hazards in this part of the ocean. Karin stood her watches, as well as keeping us full of coffee, and baked chicken! Toms wife Pam did a great job keeping the dogs content and out of our way while the rest of us shifted between resting, and getting back out in the cold. About three or four in the morning I heard and felt a good thump, all we could do was speculate what we hit, and if it did any damage, probably just a plank of wood (we hope!) We made it to Ensenada just before dawn, and after some nervous moments trying to locate the marina, we got it! We passed the first channel marker just as we were able to see details of the marina. As we entered the marina, the first dock was vacant, so we pulled up, only to be greeted by other cruisers. What a night! We're here!! Still getting things organised, but sooo happy to be in Mexico!
The major project for the week was cutting holes in our fuel tank. We had to siphon out the last 10 gallons of fuel, then clean the tank. While we were cleaning, Karin held up a wire brush and asked if it was mine? Well, no....... turns out, we found two wire brushes, and two hole saw cut outs in the tank! The last part of the project was installing the inspection plates, and refilling the tank. Our fuel has been filtered, treated, and the tank is clean. Peace of mind; priceless! Today we'll get started on the new alternator/ voltage regulator....progress!
