Latitude 38 - November 2018-2019

from Latitude 38 - November 2018-2019

CHANGES

Fonatur basics into a real marina."

David also recommended that folks heading to Mexico follow the instructions in the Mexican government publication called Visiting Mexico by Private Boat, a copy of which can be found at www. marinapuertoescondido.com/mpe-images/boating-guide-1.pdf. . To which the Wanderer says, no, no, no! If you follow those instructions, the skipper and every single member of the crew will have to leave Mexico at the same place and at the same time. That means, at the very least, everybody has to waste an hour or more at Immigration purchasing new tourist cards for about $25 each. The unexpected wasted time has caused people to miss their flights in the past.

If you're taking your boat to Mexico for the first time, the Wanderer has the following advice. First, do not drive yourself nuts trying to get a TIP (Temporary Import Permit) online. Some people have been successful, but the instructions are terrible and there are inadvertent traps that may have you putting the wrong information on the TIP. This won't be a problem — unless the Mexican government goes on a persnickety bender as

If paying just $50 for a Ten-Year (!) Import Permit for your boat doesn't have you jumping for joy, you know nothing about the world of cruising.

they did about four years ago.

The TIP solution is simple — get your TIP at just about any of the big Mexican consulates — among them, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, or Sacramento. Baja

LATITUDE / RICHARD

Ha-Ha entrants who have done it say the clerks were very friendly and it only took 10 to 20 minutes. Note that you cannot get a boat TIP at the consulates in San Francisco or San Diego. But if you're in San Diego, just go to the Customs office at Otay Mesa and you can get a TIP in a few minutes.

For a complete list of all the Mexican consulates and ports of entry on the California border where you can get a TIP, go to www.banjercito.com.mx/PDF/ Modulos_iitv.pdf.

As for 180-day tourist cards — or whatever they call them now — we'd simply get them at Immigration in Ensenada, if it's your first stop, or Cabo San Lucas if that's your first stop. This based on the recommendation of Victor Barreda, ship's agent in Cabo.

There are so many older couples quietly out cruising that it's hard to fathom. Couples like Eric and Pam Sellix of the Clatskanie, Oregon-based Seawind 1160 cat Pied-a-Mer. The former restaurant owners didn't start cruising until 2012 when they were both 68. And Pam had never been offshore before.

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Page 116 • Latitude 38 • November, 2017

IN LATITUDES

Candace and Norman Thersby left Point Richmond in September, 2011, aboard their Swan 44 Kyalami. They joined that year's Baja Ha-Ha, and have been commuter cruising between home and Mexico ever since.

"Until we retire completely, my husband and I work from April to September, and cruise in Mexico October through March," says Candace.

Norman has his own race car engineer business, which is responsible for a fleet of vintage race cars that mainly

TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS

race only in the summer months. Candace is an administrative coordinatorfor a nonprofit that has four events on one day in September each year. She is

her purse dry on her arm. Once ashore, "I sloshed up to the market to inquire about eggs, only to find they were all sold out or spoken for," she says.

Norm and Candace — working to make it work.

only needed for a few months leading up to the event and a couple of weeks after. This 'perfect' arrangement "just kind of fell in place for us," says Candace. In 2011, Norman's primary customer decided he wanted to cut back a little and Norman suggested they race just six months of the year. He took a salary cut, but asked to be paid monthly, so the couple has a steady income yearround. For their first couple of years of commuter cruising, Candace worked fora temp agency during the summer months. That led to her finding her current gig in 2013. She's been with that outfit for five years now.

She returned to the dinghy to dry off a bit while Dave made a longer, and more successful, trek into town.

Eggs in hand and avoiding the area

where the rope was, they headed back to Anila. Dave wanted to return to put a marker on the rope, especially after they found out another dinghy had also hit it. Luckily, the locals had heard about it and went out to take care of the problem the next day. It turned out to be a big boat mooring with no float attached.

The happy ending of this little tale is that daughter Kyra got those cupcakes for her 13th birthday party the next day, with older sister Camille as well as kids from Blue Zulu, Counting Stars and Shawnigan n on hand to help out and help celebrate.

• Abraham Phillips' 53-ft Odyle started life as a Skookum-designed ketch built in Port Townsend in 1974. Abe recently finished the two-year project of converting her to a square rigger with the addition of two yards on the foremast. He, wife Susan, son Cian (13) and daughter Saoirse (6) are currently living aboard and sea trialing in Monterey Bay in preparation for heading to Mexico late in the year, then across the pond to French Polynesia next spring. Eventually, the Phillips hope to circumnavigate.

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