For us the sea of CORTES cruise is over: we have to reach now directly  Mexico mainland 550 miles more south before our next pacific passage.

We are surprised: the northerns,  so numerous and strong in winter are more rare and weak now, even if we got a pretty good one less than a week ago to reach Santa Rosalia. It seems there is almost no transition time as for the temperature: we push the heater1 week ago and it's sometimes really too hot  now...

we can jerry jug clean gas oil and get some good fresh food in LORETO n

keep internet on board in wide MARQUER BAY, ... this ll be our jumping point for PUERTO VALLARTA; too much south wind; no way to wait for an hypothetic northern...i spend (n loose) time making simulations to find the best timing ... That's enough ...tuesday before daylight is not perfect and we should have to use the engine a part (half) of trip, but we have no choice if we want leave MEXICO for POLYNESIA before end of april !

"brutal"weather change: north wind still on west coast, but southwind  or calm in the gulf

Let's try first daysailing for what we can to LORETO !

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...but winds are not really helpfull: morning calms...

...pure sky n dry weather are not going for long anymore for us...but it's not what we need...

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..bad move: daylight thermic is much stronger closer to the shore

...unlike in the calm stop of SAN JUANICO: 25k on the other side !

Next morning:mulet'school but no wind..the daytime strategy is wrong...

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.we have no time to anchor everynight; last stop in LORETO

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...Perfect for a Fuel n fresh food top up; Helena don't take covid risk...

........

...we

drop anchor for the last time in BAJA 10m away in Bahia MARQUER

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...where we wait for less south wind, preparing the cat n playing unusefull simulations..

Nice 13th morning..after an exhausting first night

reason is the coromuel, catabatic night WSW winds drpping with violence from the Sierra...

...blowing from 5 to 35k in minutes.

..

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.difficult to imagine as we have to use the engines...

...or tacking in the gentle thermic btreeze a bit later...

...the second night was better, Coromuel softer...

..no miracle...we have to use the engine again until we reach the N wind  (orange markers)...

...Baja offer her best colors to say good bye...

...but day thermic allow ALCYONE to sail from 11 to 15h only...a bit more engine...

...and we are in lazzy conditions of 6-10k Code 0 sailing...

...easy watch from outside...

...but from inside too through the hatch,,,

...and great result with light energy...

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Following short videos about this so pleasant Code 0 sailing ,,,

...we find again real Pacific Ocean with swell from sunset...

...to sunrise...

...15th morning Helena at squid market...

ALCYONE was fishing during the night

...with a bit of garlic.. good tapas before lunch...

...wind vanished again...still nothing 20m offshore...

...in deep sea fishing area of PUERTO VALLARTA

16th...15h, 5 miles offshore he thermic arrive ...

...and push us to sunset anchorage in LA CR

UZ

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..many boats around...covid strategy...

Jerry-jug confirm less than 2 l/h ALCYONE has 1000m gas-oil autonomy !