Mon 17/10-2011 Day 49

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This bird must have just passed away...lying in the low tide zone :-(This is a very common species here.

Pos: here
Loc: Escondida beach
Acc: tent
Dist: 46.1 km
Start: 8:40 End: 17:50

I agreed with Ariel last night about a pick up at 7 am. This morning I woke early to a dead calm sunny morning, and was more than eager to go!
Unfortunately I had a message this morning on my mobile phone, sent last night 11.30 pm: “Sorry, have to bring kids to school, but will be there at 8 am”

Hmmmm….this was LATE for that beautiful day!
I texted him if he may be ok to ask either his brother (who lived next door and was already up) or the Prefectura to pick me up and drive me the 3 km to the harbor, well before 8 am?
Ok, he confirmed at 6.30 am, the Prefectura will be there in 15 min…yahoo!

But I already thought ok, if this will be “Argentine time”, then they may be here maybe around 7am…but nobody came! I texted Ariel again at 7.30 am, and he promised to call them again…

I could have already asked three neighbors starting into their day, and three other reasonable looking cars passing by in this small neighborhood street to give me a quick lift to the harbor, but I had still hopes it would work out as agreed…
Eventually, at 8 am, the Prefectura car came, manned with two guys! Well, then I could have as well been gone with Ariel himself…but no complaints…thanks for picking me up and storing my kayak!

I was checking for a good launching spot in the steep shoreline, and luckily there was just a meter of mud left before the rocks, covered with mesh wire, started.
Still I was stumbling in the mud while packing! It was quite a job, watched by about six Prefectura members in the early morning sunshine.
I was just almost ready packing, when Ariel showed up anyway to wish me good bye. Thanks for all your help, Ariel!

Stuffing the last bags, the kayak was slowly getting afloat off the mud, and I eventually jumped *on*, not in yet…I had to wash my feet and sandals before I wanted to stick my feet inside! All was working well in that dead calm river mouth harbor.

I could enjoy again an escort with a Prefectura boat out of the harbor into a calm sea with winds under 10 knots. From which direction? I couldn’t even tell…the weather was strange any way. It was rather calm all day under 10 knots winds, instead of the forecasted moderate to strong northerlies…but I didn’t mind!

I enjoyed eventually the freedom being alone again out on the water in beautiful sunshine!

I was hoping with the tide turning at 10 am there would be my usually pushing strong current coming up (which seemed to break me down a bit now…), but the current which was very strong since Bahia San Blas was very much less noticeable today…strange! So I really had to *paddle*, but no problem after three rest days in a row…

The coastline was either cliffs with few beaches hidden behind rocky reefs, exposed on low tide…few sandy landing spot openings to be seen. But they were there…

After the last longer stretch of reef I took my chance to go in with a dog leg around a big rocky reef further off the coast, which provided good shelter on an easy landing on the gravel beach. Still, I was almost in, there was a bigger breaker crashing just behind me where there was nothing crashing sice I decided to go in…the swell is really unpredictable!

I landed between two larger group of elephant seals, and spotted even two fisher men in the distance further south. Good spot to land! I dragged my boat up a flat ledge on the steep gravel beach, and am hoping the water doesn’t reach up my campsite tonight at 10pm!

And – my laptop obviously started, after two tries only! I said, it needs some shaking while paddling every day…. 🙂 – good boy!

4 comments on “Mon 17/10-2011 Day 49

Meike Michalik

viel Spass und weiterhin toi toi toi mit dem Wetter. Geniesse die Ruhe und Weite.
moin moin 🙂

pepe

Good Luck Freya!! i m the friend of Ariel in the red truck!!!
“The force be with you” !!!!!!
Good landing in Cabo Raso!!!

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