Bahia Santa Maria

On November 5th we began the 2nd leg of the Baja Ha Ha at 8 a.m. It consisted of 240 miles that brought us from Turtle Bay to Bahia Santa Maria. It was delightfully uneventful other than some major rollers that kept us awake during the evenings. We arrived early in the morning after two nights of sailing and found ourselves in a beautiful but desolate harbor, populated mostly with our fleet. There were Mangroves a few miles from where we anchored. The sun was no longer playing hide and seek with us, but rather was out in full force, allowing us to put aside our fleeces for good. We spent the day catching up on our sleep and relaxing. A number of folks in the fleet had caught ahi tuna and they generously doled it out to others, such as Sumatra, who were not as fortunate. The Dr. nimbly sliced and diced it before our hungry eyes and we pounced on it as if in a feeding frenzy. Harold and I later took a refreshing swim to shore where pelican greeted us. Later in the day when the sun was not as intense, we took a hike into the hills that overlooked the surrounding bay. The arid desert landscape created a majestic contrast to the vast blue ocean. Strewn along its landscapes were rocks, cacti and wildflowers dotting it with vivid color. It was a mellow but enjoyable day as we prepared ourselves for the upcoming more rowdy events to come.

That night, Bill and Linda of the catamaran Lagoon 47' Moontide, hosted a "singles, over 35 party"; practically 95% of the entire fleet. The Sumatra crew piled into the dinghy once again and found themselves in a scene of controlled chaos. Contributing to the fun was an open bar, freshly caught ahi tuna, music blaring from a conveniently installed XM satellite stereo system, gyrating bodies moving to the music and clothing flying everywhere. Others sat around the boat, observing the scene while others clicked away at their digital cameras as they captured the fun. The crew from Profligate, Latitude 38’s catamaran, was there in force. Herb McCormick, editor of Cruising World, enjoyed himself so much at the party that he suddenly decided to take a late night swim. The party started to wind down as folks made their way back to their boats to get ready for an early start of another day of fun in the sun.

Mid-morning on November 8th, Profligate hosted a Pusser's rum tasting party. It was a party like not other that I have experienced. Once the crews arrived at the mothership, Profligate, in their dinghies, they were ushered around the boat. Baseball caps and rum drinks, such as my favorite, Pain Killers, were awarded to all. All the dinghies tied up, creating a huge raft-up where everyone hung out and downed their rum drinks in the sun. The Profligate crew threw out random prizes to the crowd such as beach balls, frisbees and bottles of rum that were awarded for no logical reason other than to give away booty and to have fun with the crowd. The most amusing award was for our only dentist in the fleet, who just happened to be a striking, buxom blonde. To test out her credentials, Richard had one of his crew lay down on the deck and had her "check his teeth." It was quite a scene to imagine but I do have proof. I was actually given permission to board Profligate to take pictures. I found it cool to say the magic words when questioned how I got on board, “Richard said I could.” And even cooler to get some great pictures of yet another fantastic Baja Ha Ha party.

That evening we had yet another beach party where for $12 the locals cooked their famous lobster and fish feast. As the locals are on Mexican time, we expected to be in line for a long time. We arrived at the  to be in line for a long time. We arrived at the beach and already there was a tremendous line for the lobster feast. We took turns standing in line for about six hours while we drank beer, chatted and danced. We did not truly mind the wait as we knew that the meal awaiting us would be worth it. Some folks roamed the beach for the huge, perfectly shaped Sand Dollars that were strewn everywhere while others hung out and danced to the local rock and roll band. They had traveled over sixty miles to perform for us! A few folks from the fleet joined the band singing, playing guitar and even the bongos. When we left the party it was dark and the surf had become more volatile. All of the Sumatra crew piled into the dinghy. Although the Captain steered nimbly around the sandbars, we were still unceremoniously dumped on by the waves. We arrived at Sumatra soaked and had to bail out the dinghy as it was half filled with the ocean. It was perhaps an anticlimactic way to end the day after such an entertaining beach party, but that is how it is with cruising; you always have to be ready to deal with the unexpected. That night we prepared the boat for its next journey onto her final leg of our journey, to Cabo San Lucas!