Category Archives: Sailing and Living in Mexico

The Countdown to our Pacific Crossing

This gallery contains 13 photos.

Before we sailed away from San Francisco on Cool Change in 2014 heading south, Rick had entitled our blog’s byline as “Preparing for the voyage of a lifetime.”  We had no idea.  Preparing to leave San Francisco for coastal cruising … Continue reading

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Bienvenidos a México!

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Back Home in the USA

This gallery contains 27 photos.

We would have been busy as heck for the two months we spent in the US if we had done nothing more than visit on an individual basis with family and friends, including my sister Sharon; Rick’s sister Linda and … Continue reading

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Living in Taxco while Studying Spanish

This gallery contains 45 photos.

Rick and I spent nearly seven weeks in Taxco this summer studying Spanish.  We rented a “villa,” complete with pool and housekeepers, with friends and dogs from two other sailboats: Nancy from Aldabra, and Jules and Jeff with their dogs … Continue reading

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Reflections on Cool Change’s 2017 Sailing Season

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One thing about being in a constant state of new travel experiences is that a new adventure starts as soon as the last one ends. It is difficult to make the time or have the perspective to write about an … Continue reading

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An Unexpected Overnight Sea Voyage, and a Voyage Home

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After what seemed like weeks of idyllic, timeless, internet-free bliss at anchor surrounded by nothing but blue water, brown shores and endless fishing opportunities, on the morning of Monday, May 15, we came around the northeast side of Isla Carmen, … Continue reading

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The Patrinellis Log from the Sea of Cortez, 2017, Part One

This gallery contains 26 photos.

“We stepped into a new frame and grew to be a part of (the Sea), related in some subtle way to the reefs and beaches, related to the animals and to the stirring waters and the warm brackish lagoons. The … Continue reading

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Road trip: La Paz – San Diego

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In preparation for sailing across the Pacific to French Polynesia next spring, we needed to recertify our liferaft. The closest place to do that is Ensenada, over 1,000 kilometers north of La Paz, where Cool Change is now. Since we … Continue reading

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Paraiso to La Paz

This gallery contains 28 photos.

I apologize in advance for what will probably be not my best writing, as I am sitting in a palapa restaurant in La Paz after having been trying to download pictures with bad internet to prepare for this blog for … Continue reading

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Zihuatenejo to Barra de Navidad

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Our friend Derek arrived in Zihuatenejo from California on Monday night to crew for Nancy on Aldabra. I am so proud of our friends and family who can get it together on short notice to just pick up and leave … Continue reading

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