Moving South Cautiously

Part of the fun of traveling in foreign waters is getting to know the locals. That’s exactly what the Baja Ha-Ha rally fleet has been doing for the past few days, since the fleet extended its stay in Bahia Tortugas due to concerns over Hurricane Vance (now centered roughly 300 miles SSW of Cabo).

With its dusty streets and simple homes, there’s nothing fancy or sophisticated about this long-established fishing village, but its people are always warm, friendly and helpful to visiting mariners – especially the Ha-Ha fleet, which gives a huge financial boost to the local economy.

When the potential path of Hurricane Vance became a concern prior to the scheduled Saturday-morning start of Leg 2, the rally’s Grand Poobah decided to err on the side of caution and hold the fleet in Turtle Bay for at least one more day. The cruisers spent this lay day hiking the hills and getting to know the townspeople, and some participated in a paddle board race around the committee boat, Profligate.

Sunday morning, some crews were anxious to get moving, and elected to temporarily ‘drop out’ of the rally and sail toward Bahia Santa Maria, 240 miles to the south, while the majority of the fleet stayed in Bahia Tortugas. One unanticipated effect of this change of plans was that the town came close to running out of beer!

With Vance now beginning its anticipated northwesterly turn toward the mainland, the whole fleet is expected to push on toward BSM today. Sailing conditions offshore should be ideal, with 15-25 knots of wind from the northwest. With any luck, the entire fleet will arrive at the Cape on Friday, just a day behind the original schedule.