Nov 10, 2005

Hello,

It has been awhile since my last check in. Much has happened and I will make it short and brief to get you all caught up.

Gary and I spent the summer back home in San Diego which was a relief from the hot weather in the Sea of Cortez in the Gulf of Mexico. It was nice to go home for a little while and sleep in big beds and walk around the house with way more room than our vessel. However, by the end of our time at home, we were ready to get back on board and prepare the boat for our big journey south.

My family has been struck by cancer twice this year. Most of you know that my mother died of brain cancer in March of this year, which was a huge shock to my family. And now our second mate and loyal dog companion, Sampson, became very sick with a Sarcoma cancer growth that attached to his elbow. Fortunately, this did not affect him until we returned for the summer to San Diego. The cancer made it very difficult for him to walk but he still hobbled along and became pretty good at walking on his 3 other legs. He was such a good sport. We spent a lot of time at home tending to him and taking care of his needs. By the end, he was no longer able to walk and we carried him everywhere. We still took him to his favorite spots, out to breakfast and for rolls on the beach in a dock cart with large wheels. He got lots of attention being wheeled around like the King that he was. Sammy let us know when it was time to let him go and we had to put him down. This of course was very hard for us and especially me since Sammy was a child to me. After almost 14 years, I had to say goodbye. He had a blessed life and was a great sailing dog and I say goodbye knowing that he lived a very full and adventurous life. I miss him terribly and life will not be the same without him around. Sampson was a very cool dog!

Gary and I returned to Sol Surfin in October and spent 2 weeks getting her sails put back up and the boat put back together after the hurricane season’s take down. This was a lot of work but we got good at putting sails up and down.

Prior to going home for the summer, we had a glorious time in the Sea of Cortez, exploring all the islands and meeting new friends. The sea was very beautiful and tranquil. We explored new territory and swam a lot checking out the reefs. I would highly recommend a cruise to the islands if anyone is thinking about where to visit in Mexico. The terrain was like the Grand Canyon on the water. There are lots of caves and crevices with great colors and textures.

Now we have sailed (really motored because there was no wind) across the sea of Cortez and have been in Mazatlan for a few days. We leave tonight for Isla Isabelle Island which is between Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta. We will hop scotch our way down the coast and get to Puerto Vallarta in a couple of weeks. The goal is to spend some time coasting down the gold coast which is south of Puerto Vallarta and hit some surf spots along the way. We are hoping to be in Costa Rica by spring time. There are several other boat friends that are on the same path as us, so we will have a few new friends to travel with.

I will send along another email in the next month.

Hope all is well with you.
Check out our website, we have new photos posted at www.solsurfin.com

Blessings always,
Celeste and Gary too.