Monterrey and Santa Barbara

The trip to Monterrey was uneventful with the regular cold and swell, did we forget to mention fog? Except for a nasty, short, and very high swell as we pass Point Conception, that keeps our deck awash and forces salt water through the piping all the way from the stern to the foc'sle on our way to Santa Barbara . In Monterrey, the usual welcome committee of sea lions is now supported by the Coast Guards, both committees happy and noisy! It is warm and sunny and there is a lovely market. It is time for Ryan to leave us and we are sorry that he does have to go back to work, sorry for him... and for us as we are going to miss a wonderful friend and great navigator. Santa Barbara reminds us of the french riviera and we get a taste of the warmth waiting for us farther south. Lucky Ghislaine has a wonderful birthday dinner at the Brothys Brothers, a rather reputable little restaurant on the harbor and a sunny birthday sail, one of the first of the trip, alas not for too long as the wind dies down again. We are still visited here and there by the dolphins and the funny little "potatoe" birds, pedaling above the water like if they were on a trampoline.