S/V INTREPID II - Cape Dory Intrepid 40

My photo
Intrepid II is a Cape Dory Intrepid 40 sailboat, hull #2, designed by Chuck Paine and discovered by the Captain in Blue Hill Maine in 2006. The crew are Kelly (Captain) and Carol (Admiral and Blogger). In 2009 INTREPID II embarked on her West Coast journey from Victoria to San Francisco, the Baja Sur Peninsula and into the Sea of Cortez. In 2010/2011, we sailed from Guaymas, south to Bahia Banderas and back. In 2011/2012 we left Guaymas, headed south to La Paz, spent three weeks at anchor on our northward journey and rested on the hard in San Carlos. Her 4th, 5th and 6th seasons were Boat Projects related. Season 7 - an incredible amount of boat work - but no cruising. Season 8 - Tropical Storm Sergio toppled Intrepid II in San Carlos dry storage. A disappointing season of serious and costly repairs. Season 9 - continuing those repairs and still hopeful for cruising.

June 26, 2010

The Captain returns to sunny Mexico

The Captain comments:

While Carol stayed home in Victoria to manage our house projects, I returned by car to Guaymas to bring down some needed boat supplies and to bring home items no longer required on INTREPID II. Our cruising months had taught us much about what was necessary and what we could live without or what we had no space to accommodate.
A well earned break from working on INTREPID II
My time here in the dry storage yard is taking longer than anticipated, which will of course come as no great surprise to anyone who knows boats!  Most projects have been delayed while INTREPID II is getting painted, which wasn't on the agenda when we started.  However the opportunity to have the considerable work done by experienced people could not be passed up.  That major project will soon be completed, which will allow me to finish preparations for INTREPID II's long hot months on the hard.

My first task was to locate and buy a small air conditioner and rig it up to work on the boat.  This project-filled adventure would not be possible without it.  With the boat closed up tight all day due to sanding or painting, it quickly gets up to 100 degrees F. inside.  As an added plus, the ability to close the boat up at night with the AC running means I don't hear the local karaoke bar quite so much.  Just like back home, the worst singers are the loudest!  The only difference here is that they keep going long past when most bars in the U.S. or Canada would have closed and the decibel level is about double what you would get at home.

Guaymas is an interesting city.  While it does not have chandlers carrying yachting gear like in La Paz, it does have metal working shops and other services that can make just about anything, due to the large shrimp boat fleet here.  It is definitely not a tourist town, although there are some restaurants where most of the staff speaks some English.  San Carlos, about 40 minutes away by car, is much more of a gringo town.

At the start of this venture, I said "I want to go where it's warm."  Well, that seems to have been accomplished, in spades.  If anyone needs a few degrees of heat to warm up their home town, I know where you can find some.