After our last shopping adventure in Cabo ” Costco’s” we depart San Jose  for our first trek up into the Sea of Cortez. Were excited to explore the bays and harbors we’ve heard about for many years. Bahia Los Fralies , Los Muertos, Playa La Bonanza and Caleta Lobos are the planned anchorages on the way to La Paz. Taking advantage of a weather window we leave San Jose for the short day sail “motor” to Los Frailes. Going North in the Sea can be rough and very uncomfortable if the Northerlies kick up. Watching the weather is a daily ritual. Thanks to modern technologies we can get up to date weather every few hours. The last trip to Mexico on the Namahana our only weather source was a weather fax and the daily Ham radio nets. Los Frailes was a great spot and our first chance to get in the 78 degree water. At sunset we saw the  mantus flying 6 feet out of the water. What a show, it was magical. At dawn we set off to Los Muertos 50 miles up the coast. Another great stop with a long sand and coral beach and a couple small hotels.  There was one small restaurant with great food and views. This is where we will wait a few days for a weather window to make the final 60 miles to La Paz. This section of the trip can be high seas and winds if the northerlies are blowing. Everything is on the nose if you leave too early like we unintentionally did. The normally 6 hour distance ended up being a 9 hour pound uphill. Arggg! Next time we’ll time it better. We were rewarded at the end of the day with anchoring in Playa La Bonanza on Isla Espriritu Santo. The island is a reserve and the 2 mile beach was completely  blanketed with shells and coral. After a morning of beach combing we get an early start thru the Canel de San Lorenzo. It is the gateway to Bahia de La Paz and has dangerous shoals and rocks. Best to pass thru early in the day in calm weather conditions. We make one last stop in Caleta Lobos before going to Marina Palmira in La Paz to explore the city and  do required maintenance and repairs on the boat. Caleta Lobos is a small cozy anchorage only 9 miles from La Paz but completely isolated from the hustle bustle and bright lights of La Paz. Being the only boat in the cove we were able to experience the uninterrupted show of the sea life that the Sea of Cortez has to offer.  Dozens of turtles popping their heads up to have a look at what we were up to was really cool. A coral reef along one side of the cove was teaming with parrot fish and other tropical fish. Unfortunately the water this time of year cools down to the low to mid 70s. Not as appealing as the 80 plus water further south. We will stay in La Paz only thru the first week of January going across to the mainland to enjoy the warmer waters and return up the Sea of Cortez sometime in the spring to continue exploring in warmer weather and water.