Yesterday we pulled up anchor and moved to Caleta Partida. This is a little area above Isla Espiritu Santo and below Isla Partida. When we pulled in, it felt like we were pulling up to a popular anchorage at the lake. Not sure how to describe why, but it seemed like a lot of weekenders, jet skis and party boats. While this might not sound like a good thing, it’s one of the reasons I like hopping from anchorage to anchorage – you never know what you’re going to get. You could be all alone, you could meet new friends, or you could watch with amusement the latest party boat and it’s antics.
Another cool thing about anchorages is the pangas. I’ve mentioned these before. In this anchorage, we ran into one panga numerous times. By the end of our two days here, had either of us known each other’s language even a little we probably would’ve invited him in for cocktails. Our first encounter was on the beach. As Jake was playing submarine, I was laying out our towel and Andy was exploring, this man walked from one side of the beach to the other almost unnoticed. We pegged him as a fisherman by his tall rubber boots. We were all friendly enough with our small waves and greeting of “Buenos Tardes.”
A few hours later, back on the boat we had our second encounter. We saw the panga pulling up with what looked to be a very large cell phone. It turns out the antennae on his early 90’s cell phone was broken and he needed some electrical tape to fix it. Andy fixed it for him and gave him the remainder of the tape for next time.
High tide came around and we decided to get a closer look to the fishing village and make our way across the shoals to the other side. As we were going through we were followed and eventually passed by who other than our fisherman friend. Another friendly wave and we went about our day exploring.
What you can't see here are the solar panels and antenna on each of these shacks....satellite TV you think?
Our last encounter with the fisherman came the following day while snorkeling in a little cove. As we climbed back into the boat we saw him coming. This time he had a huge red snapper to offer us. We didn’t have any money in the dinghy so we motioned for him to follow us back to the boat. He wanted 100 pesos but we didn’t have the exact amount (way over and way under) and we were pretty sure he didn’t have change. So we offered him 20 pesos and a bottle of $8 whiskey. He asked us to throw in a bottle of shampoo and we had a deal. As we enjoyed an evening filled with sushi, we sent our thanks up for the fisherman and his generosity.
2 comments:
Monica,
I e-mailed the story, but just to be safe, I'm posting it here well. If you see any issues, please let me know so that we can make the necessary changes. Story will be accompanied by a couple of the pictures you provided earlier.
Thanks again for letting us share your story! I'll mail some copies of the magazine to the address you provided once it's ready.
Rick
Journey of a lifetime
What do peanut butter and shark cages have in common? For Monica Mullikin McKaskle (96C) they are just two of the many things she and her family had to consider while preparing a sailing adventure all the way around the world.
Monica, husband Andy and 4-year-old son Jake set sail in April on a 40-foot Owen Eastman Catamaran, the Savannah, which will serve as their home for the next five years. This represents quite a change of scenery for Monica, who spent the last 14 years working as a project manager in the banking industry.
“I've had a successful career thanks to hard work and a great education at Berry,” Monica explained. “But we're now in a position to live our dream.”
That dream began to take shape last fall when the couple sold their home and most of their belongings and began living on the Savannah. Recent months have been spent outfitting the boat, buying provisions and tying up loose ends on the mainland.
During that time, Monica found herself seeking answers to such unfamiliar questions as “How much peanut butter does a family of three really need?” and dealing with the desire of her husband – a retired underwater photographer for the U.S. Navy – to build a shark cage for the trip so that he could photograph Great White Sharks in the waters off Isla Guadelupe, Mexico.
The Savannah set sail in April with plenty of peanut butter – but no shark cage. Monica’s last word on the subject: “Ask me in a year or so when I know how to sail better.”
Follow their progress online at www.savannahsails.blogspot.com.
Hey guys its Chadwick... I tried to contact you guys from the phone number you gave me but it didn't hook up... I have a global burner phone and my number is 4479 3714 1599....I will be in the area for another 3 weeks. some people have had to replace t 44 with 63 if you can shoot me an email at mrchadwk@gmail.com... take care.
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