Average Day on Che Bella

The average day on Che Bella was pretty nice. We would generally get up around dawn, pull up the anchor and start motoring. If there was a bit of breeze, we'd put a sail up, too. I'd have breakfast while letting the autohelm steer and Dan would listen to the radio nets on and off until 9 am or so. The radio nets are kind of neat, they're designated times and frequencies that cruisers can tune in their VHF or SSB radios, to hear the weather forecast, who else is around, where they're going, if someone needs something, someone else will generally click in and tell them where they might find it, and near towns, they'll have announcements of parties.



Dan said that making lunch on Che Bella is a “blue job” on Che Bella, so he would take care of that. It usually consisted of PB&J and a bit of fruit (half an apple or an avocado with salt and pepper). When the wind and seas pick up, I'd steer some, because I think its fun. But, for most of the day we'd let the autopilot steer, while reading, catnapping or looking at the passing shoreline. We'd check now and then that we were still going the direction we wanted to go, weren't headed for rocks, etc. We passed amazingly long stretches of EMPTY white sandy beach, backed by palm trees then hills then mountains. An occasional bit of experimental architecture of a coastal getaway for unimaginably wealthy.

We always tried to get to the next anchorage before sunset (around 6 pm during these short winter days). Dropping the anchor sometimes got interesting. After dropping the anchor, it's time for a Corona, maybe a little guacamole, and maybe a swim. Dan was tired of the music he'd been listening to for the last few months, and at least pretended to like Beck, Loretta Lynn, Weezer, the Strokes, Cake, and a few others from my CD collection. I'd generally whip up something for dinner, which we'd eat in the cockpit watching the sunset, or in the salon down below if it was dark by then. Although it doesn't sound like an exhausting day, I was generally sacked out in my bunk by 9 pm or so.