Latitude 38 May 2004

CHANGES

the Caribbean perfectly flat and the wa¬ ter crystal clear. As it becam^-semi dark, it was eerie to look overboard, as we couldn't see the water. It appeared that the catamaran was just hovering ei^ht feet above the sand and grass bottom! After what looked to be a three-foot barracuda meandered by, the clouds opened up and washed off the boat. We ran forward to the tramp with our salty clothes for a free freshwater rinse'v.Life was good, as it rained buckets wiuf absolutely no wind for 15 minutes."

"Sometimes Latitudes are hard to come by in the South Pacific, so we just fin¬ ished reading about the controversy of your cover photo of a lovely young girl," writes Fred Roswold of the Seattle-based Serendipity 43 Wings — currently in Scarborough, Queensland, Australia. "An3Avay. the woman at the helm of Ser¬ endipity in the accompan3dng photo is Judy Jensen,, the most beautiful woman I know. It's hard to believe from the way she's dressed, but the photo really was taken in the South Pacific."

"I'm sure you know about the 'pro¬ tected area' near Loreto in the Sea of Cortez," writes Mary Shroyer of Marina

More than skin deep. Fred Roswold^hinks that Judy Jensen — seen here all bundled up while driving the Serendipity 43 'Wings' in the South Pacific — looks more than just good.

de La Paz, "but I'm not sure if you've heard that all the islands in the Sea of Cortez have been declared an "Area de Proteccion de Flora y Fauna. As such, a 20 peso — about $2 U.S. — person/day

charge has been instituted for the "use and enjo3mient" of the islands. While the regulations and fees were primarily estab¬ lished for kayak groups, campers, and others who spend the night on the islands, the fee is to be levied on everyone who steps ashore — cruisers included. The government authorized the fee on Janu¬ ary 1, but it hasn't been enforced until now because they didn't have the means. Now they have the means for at least mini¬ mal enforcement. Proof that fees have been paid will be in the form of brazaletes — wristbands — which will be issued wlhen one pays the fee. So, for example, when a cruiser pulls out of La Paz head¬ ing north, and plans to spend two days at Isla Partida, one at Isla San Francisco, one at Isla San Jose, and one at Isla Monserrat before putting in at Puerto Escondido, he/she would need to pur¬ chase five brazaletes per person — for a total of about $10 U.S. per person — prior to leaving La Paz. By the way, forget about taking a dog to shbre for a run or a poop — dogs are no longer allowed on the is¬ lands at all.

"People under six and over 60 are ex-

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Page 198 Uuujcli May, 2003

IN LATITUDES

empt from the fee, as well as residents — which inchides foreigners who nave FM2 or FM3 status showing a local address." Shroyer continues. "The fees for the brazaletes can be paid in La.Paz or Lnreto. Here in La Paz. they can be paid at the regional office — which means you don't have to run off to a bank io gel a receipt first as with clearance papers. The brazaletes will probably also be available from the kayak companies, the tour op¬ erators, and maybe even here at the ma¬ rina for our clients — although it's not something we're anxious to get involvedin. Although the brazah ^es should be dated, they Won't be in thi hope that an honor system will work. The government is trying to be reasonable with cruisers, understanding that weather and other factors don't allow mariners to travel a specific route at a specific time. If a pa¬ trol shows up and people ashore don't have brazaletes, the patrol will sell them

‘ rather than issue fines - at least for thetime being."

If the fees for visiting t he islands were to remain low, and were truly used for the preservation of the island emiron-

ment, we at ;.:ia tude wGi'ldn't have a probleri. with them. Un- * . ' for V u nate 1 V , clear and con sistent prices ^ and policies have never been ;,,,, the norm in Mexico — astir. following letter demonstrates:

"When we left Marina de La Paz last month.

Maty Shroyer of Marin,' C ' ' - just posted a translaiion o'n.-. -Cfr--

lations for the isUindr in i ‘ ‘.. o ne/:, including the 20 pf?so yr" : ■ -wvcharge," report MopLe c.'c ; ;the Durango/San Carlos Sea. "Fortunately, th; >-,- v :■/ : . ■ . forjustanchoringaii.ntTi- iS 'now up at Puerto f/sr<.ndi(i<!, v SKi;> y- ant sign proclaiims siir-iSa! rv' /. -:

.^minder: the lovely islands in the Sea of Cortez not garbage dumps, so don't leave your crap uehind. ^his is a beach on Espiritu Santo.

5’: pi-:o ($5 U.S.) person/day fee — and juoi for going ashore at the islands. Lees are apparently also due if you scuba£' j ve. sail, kayak, or fish."

: be 'vlohrs also report there are other c he'^ge . Puerto Escondido: "You can bo y rn- - < iured amounts of potable water o' ; ■ nil . ai $2 U.S. for 200 liters, or $3 iw un in 500 liters. They also take gar-

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Moy 2003 • • Page 199