Isla San Francisco- A Slice of Paradise!

Well my friends I am a fish out of water while I write this. I’m currently seat 23D on a flight leaving Cabo heading to Seattle, making my way to Oregon. It’s time to renew my Mexican Visa and to do that, you must leave the country. So this time I’m taking the opportunity to visit family in my hometown of Brookings, Oregon! But that’s not what this post is about. This post is about a slice of paradise!

Brad and I shared similar thoughts about what we envisioned cruising would be like. This place was the jackpot of our imaginations. Clear turquoise water, hiking, snorkeling, and great friends! We found ourselves in Isla San Francisco for several days for a couple of reasons. The primary reason was to spend a bit more time with Jim on Silk Purse before he continued his journey north. He has big plans on land and will be hauling his boat out, and moving back to Kansas! While we are fully supportive and excited for him, selfishly we will miss his company. Reason numero dos: we wanted to get out of La Paz for a few days and explore somewhere new! Both reasons weren’t made in vain. Here, let me show you what the anchorage looks like! It’s a wide anchorage with a crescent beach full of sea shells and soft sand. Oh, and a few sticks for Sydney to fetch! (Sticks and her coconuts are her preferred toys these days). The shore includes hiking trails that provide you with gorgeous 360 degree views. Here are some of my favorite views from the top. As you can see it’s quite lovely! We made the hike with our cruising friends, Liz and Risto on Silver Wings and of course Jim on Silk Purse. On the way back we traversed the ridge and made our way down to the salt flats and then back to the sandy beach. Another thing we loved about this place, there was no shore break. Meaning we could easily land the dinghy or paddle boards with Sydney without any issues.

From the boat we could see schools of fish, turtles, star fish and even a moray eel! I’ll just pretend we didn’t see an eel there, I always assumed they hung out in the rocks! Eeeeks!!! Brad felt inspired to fish off the side of the boat, which unfortunately did not provide us with anything edible. He called it quits after hooking a puffer fish. (No fish were harmed or maimed during his fishing attempt.)😂 Speaking of all these water creatures, we geared up for a snorkel and explored one of the large coves near the anchorage. The water was a little cold so Brad suggested a wetsuit. I happily slapped it on and bobbed like a cork which was perfect. The snorkeling was productive. We saw Sargeant Majors, Angel Fish, Surgeon Fish, mystery fish and even a sea turtle! Brad was manning the GoPro and did a great job of capturing the scene. He’s not afraid to dive down and snoop around. If this is a taste of what the Sea of Cortez has to offer then call us hooked! They say the water will get warmer and clearer as the months pass. And while Isla San Francisco has no internet, stores or restaurants, it makes up for it in nature. Brad and I will have no problem plugging in to that!

In other news, I recently learned the importance of writing recipes down. Apparently getting the recipe for Chocolate No Bake cookies from my Mom constitutes as an emergency worthy of a satellite phone call. We wanted to surprise Jim with a batch before he left and I found myself forgetting the recipe. It’s something I’ve always googled before. Well, not anymore. The recipe is on paper now! We also procured the boat bread recipe and gave it a try. Our loaf turned out picture perfect so I demanded a selfie. Good thing Brad is such a good sport! Alright my friends we will surely keep you posted with our plans after I return from the states. If all goes well, we will be provisioning and heading into the Sea as soon as possible. Cheers to each of you and as always we hope this blog finds you happy and healthy!

More photos for your viewing pleasure…