Back again...

"BS" ..before sickness

I must apologize for the off again, on again nature of this blog. There were some privacy issues which have been resolved and I would now like to record, at least for my own amusement and satisfaction, the events of my recent trip to Mexico. So if you are interested...
Let's see, I left off... ah yes, leaving for Mazatlan.
We had checked the weather carefully for a couple of days before setting out, particularly Buoy Weather which is supposed to give boaters accurate, real time weather. All predictors stated that the current Norther was diminishing and that winds and seas would calm to a pleasant 15 knots and 1 to 3 feet, respectively. Perfect.
We left the Marina around noon on the 28th and motored towards Lorenzo Channel then on past Isla Cerralvo. The seas were a bit choppy and the wind above 15 knots but at least we would be able to sail, and that was the experience we were both looking for, albeit for different reasons. As we approached the northern tip of Cerralvo and set a Southwest course, the winds picked up dramatically and we had a quarter following sea with swells of easily 5 to 6 feet. Ordinarily swells are fairly comfortable and non-threatening as they tend to rather gently lift and drop the boat, not unlike a rocking chair.  But when they come from the aft quarter it tends to make a boat, even a full-keel sailboat weighing 44,000 lbs., wallow...Get the picture? As we are being propelled forward at a steady 7 knots the boat continuously rocks significantly from side to side: this, my friends, is the perfect storm for sea sickness - enfermedad del mar, le mal de mer - unpleasant in any language
Without going into lurid detail let me just say that I have I have found a way to lose 5 pound in 36 hours.

Still, I was feeling pretty positive, yes positive. Sea sickness can be overcome.  Our friend Dennis tells me, after the fact of course, that there is a terrific anti-sea sickness med which can be purchased in Mexico; it has no known side effects (doesn't even make you sleepy) and seems to be one hundred percent effective.  And if THAT doesn't work, I am told be long-time sailors that one gets over it eventually.  And after all, it's not life-threatening although I confess there may have been occasions when I seriously considered death a good option.
The thing I have always feared most is, well, fear. And while I was miserably uncomfortable and not much of a first mate, I wasn't afraid.
I went below a few times to use the head (got thrown out of it one time  - not hurt and still able to laugh at what must have been a truly funny sight!)  and to grab some sustenance. Larry chose white covered Oreos and I opted for saltines and water, water, water. One time, as I was holding on to the railing in the companionway, a large wave hit us and I was thrown down several stairs and onto my back to our cabin.  Again, good news; I ended up with some ginormous bruises but nothing broken, a sure sign to me that osteoporosis has not set in since my last bone density test.
And just to make the trip more interesting, around dusk the auto pilot quit working and,  between dropping temperatures and cold sea water covering the entire deck with each wave, we were both grabbing every possible piece of warm and/or waterproof clothing we could find.

Ahh, but more about that next time... 

January 28, 2012