We had some gusty winds for a couple days but nothing serious. Just as I thought the weather was getting warmer, it cooled off again. No worries. When I say cool; to us that means 60. So I know most of you are cussing me out right now because you are much colder and miserable. I am sorry. I hope the cold and snow go away soon.
Saturday, the first, we had the Baja 200 race on the dirt road behind our house. The motorcycles and quads started at 7:00am and the cars started about 10:30am. Dave walked to the road and met up with friends and neighbors who were parked on the side of the road to watch the action. I stayed behind to mix up some chocolate chip cookie dough to refrigerate and then when I return, make cookies. I got that done and between 9:30 and 10:00 I walked to the road and found the gang. The motorcycles and quads were just finishing up. There was a bit of excitement as the ambulance was called to see about a motorcycle or quad that went down. The ambulance came back with no one so the person was alright. A few minutes after that the cars came. It was awesome. We knew a couple of the Mexican guys that were racing so we cheered and clapped as they went by!!!! It was fun and it is nice to show support for these guys. After the last car went by I said goodbye to everyone and walked home to bake cookies. Dave stayed behind.
As the cookies were baking, I exercised and then peeled shrimp as I was fixing Shrimp and Spinach Risotto for dinner. I was almost finished with the cookies when Dave came home. He said most of the guys broke down which was sad. The two Mexican guys we knew in the race were part of those that broke down. From the kitchen window I could tell when a car was finished as they did the winner circle like the big races and the sand was flying.
Sunday, the 2nd was Super Bowl and the Seahawks and Broncos were playing. I sat and watched the game as I crocheted an afghan. It was a pretty exciting game and Broncos did not do well at all. The Seahawks won the Super Bowl!!!!! First time ever!!!! I could just imagine all the whooping and hollering back home!!! We did a little of that ourselves. How exciting!!!!
We left on Tuesday, the 4th to go to Santa Rosalia. On the way down we saw a truck that was pulling a 5th wheel trailer where the 5th wheel was half on the road and half off. It was torked pretty bad. What a shame. The roads are narrow with no shoulders so it is hard just for a car but when you are talking big rigs and trucks pulling trailers----it can get dicey. We felt sorry for them as it ruined their day and maybe even their vacation.
When we arrived in Santa Rosalia we saw that the mine loading pier was finished and some buildings had been built. Town is bustling! When we reached the boat we were disappointed to see it hadn’t been kept up like it used to be. Now that Alberto is working for the mine he only has weekends free and I am sure he doesn’t feel much like washing a boat, but we pay him so he should continue to wash it 2 times a month. We noticed the bottom had been cleaned so that is good. We are going to be spending most of our time scrubbing the boat while we are here. We don’t do much the day we arrive so I was able to connect with the internet and not worry about using up star band minutes. I had fun searching for crafts and stuff like that.
I got a good night sleep and my arms didn’t go numb. We have a California King at the house and the mattress needs to be replaced but we don’t have any way to buy one and get it down here so we will need to buy a memory foam pad to put on top. We have one on top of the mattress on the boat and it makes a big difference. So when we go to Ensenada I will check it out and see what Costco, Sams Club and Walmart have. Unfortunately that size is expensive. I figure around $100.00. It is a beautiful sunny day and cool. It got cold last night and it was cold this morning until the sun came up. I know-----cold is relative depending on where you are. After coffee and a bowl of cereal I went up to the jeep, got the clothes I brought from home and did laundry. I brought the throw rugs that have been in the house since we moved in and they are filthy. At least I will feel better having them clean. Then I had a load of towels and sheets. Tomorrow I will wash the sheets that are on our bed, on the boat, and any dirty clothes we have. While I was washing clothes, Dave was investigating the engine. He found antifreeze under the engine and it isn’t supposed to be there. With further investigation he found some broken hose clamps which would cause leaks. The leaks must be from the last time he ran the engine. His plans were to power wash the boat and fix the forward sump pump so it will run again. Well neither of those things got done today. He had to walk to the ferretera (hardware store) to get some hose clamps and in that process found that only one store was open. Today is a holiday for Mexico, Constitution Day, so most of the stores are closed. I wasn’t doing anything so I told Dave I would fill a bucket with water and get the scrub brush and baking soda and start at the bow of the boat and scrub the grey part of the deck to mid ship. It shows the bird doo the worst. The birds have been finding us and making a mess. So we are back to scrubbing again. So while Dave did his thing with the engine I swabbed the deck!!!! It looks much better and I am glad I could help Dave in that respect. He will pressure wash the boat tomorrow morning when I am in town. When I return from town I will try and clean parts he didn’t get to. We go back home on Friday.
Well it is cocktail time. Our work is done for the day. Along with cleaning tomorrow the battery levels need checking so I can help with that.
After a cup of coffee and some cereal I walked to town. I needed to get some sweet bread at the bakery for our gate guard and a few grocery items. I wanted to walk the town to see if any new stores had opened. It was a fun time. When I returned to the boat Dave had the engine going and he was trying to heat up the hoses so he could tighten the hose clamps. Unfortunately more of them broke. Well it has been 12 years since they were put on so it was time. He still needs to get a couple more tonight when we walk to town for dinner. After he finished the job he went out to power wash the boat and I checked the water level in the house and bow thruster batteries. I stripped the bed and gathered clothes for washing later today when we were all done working. I heard Dave outside complaining and come to find out the pressure washer nozzle blew off and into the water never to be seen again. So much for getting the boat power washed today. He has to order another nozzle. So he had to scrub the deck with the brush; rinse it and clean the solar panels. I wiped down the inside of the bimini and the stainless steel as there was a lot of dirt and crud collected on them. Then we were done for the day. Dave ordered another nozzle and we should get it in a few weeks.
We discussed the option of moving the boat to La Paz as we received an email from our broker there. He said our price on the boat is right in the ball park to be sold and a lot of people come down and walk the docks looking so he wondered if we could keep the boat there so it would be easy for people to see it. After giving it some thought, I think it is a good idea. Rent is getting more expensive in Santa Rosalia, and the birds are a major problem where in La Paz there wasn’t a problem with birds at all. There is going to be hard to find someone to wash the boat and dive it like we have done here at a reasonable price. Our moorage contract is up the 19th of April so we are thinking we will take the boat to La Paz then. Dave checked moorage rates at Palmira where we moored when we were in La Paz and it is actually going to be cheaper than leaving it in Santa Rosalia. The advantages to having the boat in La Paz is we can haul it out and get the bottom painted; work on the boat and clean her up, shine all the stainless steel, fix the dodger and parts are easier to acquire also. So I think that is what we are going to do. We have to do something. The boat is falling apart here in Santa Rosalia with no place to get parts or fix canvas and etc. So the next time we come back to the boat to do repairs where necessary, we can take her out for a test run. I have to get my sea legs back!
We went to town and stopped at the bank and then had a Santa Rosalia hot dog. They are full of cholesterol but ohhhhh so good. The hot dog is wrapped in bacon then deep fried. Yum!!! I only have one and Dave has 2. It’s a treat when we come here. Well we have packed things up and will leave for home in the morning. Alberto stopped by tonight to talk to Dave about the boat. Since the boat didn’t look like it had been washed, Dave is going to ask him if he still wants to wash the boat as we understand he might be really busy with his new job.
Alberto just left and Dave said he still wants to wash the boat. Actually he did wash the boat and right after that, about 3 days the birds came back and messed the deck badly. So Dave told him to stop by on his way home from work and if birds (cormorants) were on the spreaders and mast just smack the shrouds that connect to the spreaders and they will fly away. When it is dark they don’t fly so they won’t come back that evening. Alberto is going to talk to the guard here and ask him to shoo the birds away as he walks the dock each night. So the boat may stay a little cleaner. I hope.
Dave had contacted Palmira in La Paz and they sent him information on the cost to moor our boat there. Well it wasn’t cheaper than Santa Rosalia. Matter of fact it would cost us $700+ for moorage, electricity. Then try and find someone to clean the top and bottom while we were gone. So we will check and see if Fonatur marina has room for the boat. That is the marina we moor at in Santa Rosalia. No matter where we go it is going to cost us a few pennies.
Since we have been back at the house we have had a rock wall built alongside the south arroyo to guide water to the sea if we get a downpour. It turned out really nice and it makes the house look better too!! In April, Rafael will come back and build a couple more and then that will finish that project. We had a gringo friend, Roger, come over and move dirt around to help level out the property. He also made a trench for the water to flow down to the north arroyo. That way the water will be diverted away from the driveway. Roger has a backhoe and he loves to play—so we let him. We have more property than we thought we did. Now we have enough room for Dave to build a large garage and workshop. As it turns out we didn’t need to order any dirt to level the driveway as Roger did that. Awesome!!!
This is the other side of the house facing north where the land has been leveled and the new trench.
There is a roof overhang over a small portion of the deck and the posts have been exposed to the elements and it needs painting badly. Some of the wood has never been painted so that will be taken care of to protect it and give it a longer lifespan. I cleaned all the rafters and then painted it white. It was not a job I enjoyed but it had to be done. The weather report was calling for wind so I had to get it finished in two days. With Dave’s help it got done. It looks nice and clean now.
I finished the afghan I was crocheting for E.J. our almost 17 year old grandson. He will be happy to get it this summer to use in winter. I am making crochet bracelets which are fun and I plan on selling them at the Arts and Craft Show in November. I have several grandmothers that come down here before Christmas that have granddaughters so I should sell a few. I hope!!
There were 6 of us gals that went hiking on the back side of Red Mountain. I have never been on the back side so I was looking forward to it. It was a good hike but we left between 9:30 and 10:00am and it was getting hot. We expected the wind to come up but it didn't until after we were done with the hike. We had a beautiful view of the sea and mountains which was nice.
We had some rain which made this beautiful rainbow. It had a beginning AND an end which most of the time you just see the beginning. Enjoy!!
