Caleta Partida (Partida Cove)

We finally broke the hold from La Paz and headed out to the Islands.  Our first stop would be one of the many anchorages along the east coast of Isla Espiritu Santo and a smaller island just to the north, Isla Partida.  Our friends David and Barbara on sv Zoe are makeing the run with us.  The plan is to hang in the islands for a few days before heading out accross the Sea of Cortez for Mazatlan.  This will be a do nothing but relax and hang out experience.

We motored out of the narrow La Paz channel and as luck would have it, the wind was from the north and right on our nose.  We opted to motor the short distance (about 15 miles) north to the islands.  An hour or so out, we looked back and Zoe was under sail.  The wind had made a bit of a shift and not to be out done, we hoisted our sails fell off a bit and were making about 6 knots on a close haul.  This lasted for about an hour, when the wind just simply died.  Once again dropped the sails and motored the rest of the way.  Our destination would be Caleta Partida, a sweet little anchorage between the two islands.

We found a spot close in to the northwest side sheltered by the cliff that surrounds Isla Partida.  The water shallows fairly quickly so we set the anchor in about 15 feet and figured that if the boat swung toward the islands we would still have 8 feet or so under the keel.  For the three days of our stay, the plan worked.

The following morning we inflated the kayaks and went for a tour of our new surroundings.  Very aired, but beautiful.  The recent rains from the remnants of hurricane Paul has allowed the area to green up quite a bit.  This will be a fabulous place to just hang for a few days.

Late that afternoon, Barbara invited Janet and some of the other ladies from the boats anchored around us over to Zoe for a little gathering, women only.  It didn't take David long to abandon ship and head over to Talos IV.  We spent the afternoon talking and enjoying a few beers.

The swimming off the boat was another great experience.  The water was nearly 80 degrees and clear.  Another spot where you could see your anchor at rest of the bottom.  The fish and rays were quite plentiful.  Over the duration of our stay we spent a fair amount of time diving and swimming.

On day four we decided to pull anchor and motor over to Ensenada Grande, about 4 miles further north.  Zoe followed suit.

Talos IV under sail on the way to Caleta Partida.

The sea water temp was pushing 80 degrees, making
this the perfect swimming hole.

Janet displaying the perfect kayaking technique at
Caleta Partida.

Talos IV at anchor, snugged up against
the shoreline of Isla Partida.

We went on a dinghy ride and found this private little
beach around the corner from our anchorage.

We found this abandoned well a short hike up the arroyo.

There were all kinds of interesting rock features along
the shoreline on the way back to the boat.