Baja Ha-Ha

Champagne and Sashimi Sailing

Latitude  38– Bahia Santa Maria, BCS

The Baja Ha-Ha is a two-week event that, thanks to the nonstop activities, seems as though it's at least a month long. Now that we're in (foggy!) Bahia Santa Maria following the second leg, the costume kickoff party in San Diego seems so very long ago. The Baja Ha-Ha is fun, but it's a grueling bit of fun, particularly for doublehanders.

Our last Ha-Ha report was posted from Turtle Bay on Friday just prior to the beach party. And what a ding-dong of a beach party it was! While the water was a little too cold this year for boogie-boarding, surfing and swimming, the weather was perfect for hiking, picnicking, volleyball, icy cervezas, and meeting lots of new cruising friends. In a Ha-Ha tradition the women won the annual tug-of-war contest against the men.

"Where did all these people come from?" the Poobah kept asking himself. The record 605 participants came from 146 boats of every possible type, from light racing machines to heavy cruisers. The Poobah isn't sure if the number of starters in this year's Ha-Ha is a record, but 605 participants certainly is. And what a great group of folks!

There was some concern in the fleet for the Kettenburg 50 Cut to Heel, as they'd reported a torn main about 180 miles north of Turtle Bay. Their engine was out and they were hoping to repair their mainsail with 5200. When they weren't heard from for a couple of days, a relative of the skipper called the Coast Guard, which sent a cutter to the boat's previous position. As you might expect, they didn't find her.

Having seen this 'movie' a number of times before, the Poobah wasn't overly concerned about the 'missing' boat. Sure enough, Cut to Heel reported in 50 miles north of Turtle Bay the morning the rest of the fleet set sail on the second leg.

"This is champagne sailing," said crewmember Pat McCormick on the mothership Profligate during the early afternoon of the first day of the second leg. The wind was blowing 16-20 knots from the northwest with a very large swell but small seas. "Champange and sashimi sailing," corrected George Durden of the Marina del Rey-based Jeanneau 45 Epiphany. Yes, Ha-Ha folks were starting to reel in tuna, dorado and ahi during the second leg.

Some of the boats had to sail the second leg because of engine or transmission problems — for example, the Solaris 36 catamaran Striker, which came up with not one, but two, dead engines in Turtle Bay. Fortunately after a slow start in the morning, the afternoon winds came up as forecast by Commanders Weather. The wind did die in the early hours of the second morning but came up again late on the second day, allowing a number of boats to sail all of the 240-mile second leg.

You know how a photo is worth 1,000 words? It would have taken five million words to describe last night's sunset at Bahia Santa Maria. There was a brilliant fluorescent pink that we've never seen in nature before.

Those who have done the Ha-Ha know how beautiful it is to wake up to the sunny mountain-backed anchorage of Bahia Santa Maria. But wait — what's with the thick morning fog? You couldn't see 100 feet! Two hours later the fog was gone, replaced by clear blue sky.

Today is a lay day, so the Profligate crew had prosecco with breakfast. Ah the Ha-Ha life! Tomorrow is the surreal party on the bluff with a rock 'n' roll band from La Paz. Next day is the start of the last leg, 170 miles to Cabo and Gomorrah.