Online Scuba Blog: Scuba Gear & Dive Equipment Info

This morning I am in Cozumel. We are expecting to pick up another person today. The crew has progressed beyond just Gary and me. We are now five, including a Canadian, a young guy from Israel, and a gal from Alaska.

We had a good sail down from Isla Mujeres yesterday. We are running with a ¨Norte¨which although producing a confused sea, has good wind for us. We were able to maintain about 9 or 10 knots all day. I spent most of the time at the helm, and at some times, the back of the boat was as much as 20ft above the front of the boat. I may have some pictures of the view. I also got some pretty good hits where it turned the boat so hard I had trouble keeping the helm and the sails full. Every so often we would get a pretty good wave catch us from the stern, and I would surf the boat for maybe ten seconds or so. It may all sound a little dangerous, but not really. This boat was designed for and has seen much more. Remember that is is 55 ft long and about 30 feet wide. If things go well, and we find our 6th person today, we will sail out this evening for a tomorrow afternoon arrival at our next stop. I´m looking forward to getting at least part of the time at the helm tonight and sail with the moon.

There is also a friend of ours who decided to hop a few ferrys and buses and come down from Isla supposedly in town, but we have not found him yet. We hear from some other guys we ran into here, that he had a couple of fishing rods and wanted to hang along with us for  a while. If we find him, a couple of the guys will have to hot bunk. I still have the largest cabin on the boat, having been the first one on. The new guys think I´m some sort of sailing veteran because I am instructing them. It´s good to have more people on the boat because that means more money. If I have to bail out for some reason, I want to at least make sure that Gary has the money to get through the canal. After that, he can just sail home.

As far as tourist stuff, the whole front of Cozumel is cruise ship tourist zone. Once you get away from that, it is a pretty nice island. We all went to the central market today for ¨Cochinitas ¨which are pork sandwiches. The problem is, all of Mexico eats them on Sunday, so it was just too crowded, so we had traditional food. When we were sailing down here, I could not believe how many hotels are in Cancun.

So, once again, this may be my last email for a few days.

Our friend here at OnlineScuba has signed on for an adventure and he has allowed us to post his experiences on our blog.  Bill P lives in Las Vegas and is actually an Engineer who has never sailed a boat much less lived on one for more than an afternoon at Lake Mead.  But he is a great writer and we love the way he makes us join right in on the fun with his adventure.  While this is not a full on Scuba Diving Adventure, it is a trip of a lifetime that I feel is worthy of sharing with our friends.  So, lets start with what we have so far and Enjoy:

I just want to let you all know that I may be out of town and out of cell range for an indeterminate amount of time starting  this Sunday morning. I have signed on as a crew member on the sailing vessel Crystal Blue Persuasion. The captain has been operating her on the tourist circuit in Mahahual, Mexico and now needs to bring her down through the canal and all the way up to the SF Bay. Not quite sure how much of this lengthy trip I’m going to participate in. This is a 55’ catamaran, so there should be plenty to keep me busy. If you want to see what she looks like, her web site is:

http://sailmahahual.com/the-boat/

As of right now the plan is to take the boat on a shake down cruise to Holbox Island north of Cancun for a few days leaving Monday the 21^st.  We will then leave for Panama around the first of the year. Right now, I do not know if I will return to Vegas next week for a few days, or if I will stay in Mexico until the voyage begins. It depends on a few things, availability of flights and prepping the boat being among them. Captain Gary knows that I am looking for work and have to leave if I get a gig in Vegas. So, if anyone has a position for me, make sure you contact me immediately. Finding a job is absolutely my number one priority right now. Sailing is only to acquire a new skill while I am unemployed and impoverished. It is my intention to head for the nearest airport and fly home as soon as I get any job offer or interview.

Stacey  and Allen will keep an eye on things around the house while I am gone.  I should have email access off and on, so maybe I’ll send a few pictures.  If there are alternative ways to contact me, Stacey will know how, so call her if you need to find me.

This is the sort of thing that could entirely fall apart, so I may be right back, but I wanted to put out some information just in case I appear to have fallen off the face of the Earth. If something like six months go by and nobody has heard from me, I’ve probably been killed by pirates off the coast of Nicaragua, so please divide my stuff equitably. (Allen gets the Vette).

That is all.

Bill P.