This is the hardest part of our life. When I think about the fact that it’s the hardest part of our lives we have to laugh a little bit…just a little.  And of course there is the one big unknown factor: the weather.  So all of these dates are a bit tentative until further notice!

October 1st: travel back to San Carlos and begin re-assembling Oblivion.  We need to reinstall allthe sails, lines, and sheets as well as recommission all of her systems.  We will bottom paint her and re-varnish our beautiful girl.  Re-caulking the last half of the teak decks is also in ordeer.

October 15, 2010: Depart San Carlos for Topolobampo, 190 NM to the South. This is the starting point for the Copper Canyon train that runs to Creel.  We’ll likely take a trip up there once we get to Topo.  Plan on 1.5 days of sailing and 3 or 4 days of R&R in the Topo/Creel/Moshis areas.

October 21, 2010: Depart Topo for La Paz.  This section involves a East to West crossing of te Sea of Cortez and is about 150 NM total.  We’ll stop at several islands along the way, including San Francisco, Isla Partida, and Los Islotes.  Excellent snorkeling and tons of wildlife.  We’ll take 4 or 5 days sailing to La Paz and then spend about 3 days in this city of peace. (this leg is spoken for)

October 29, 2010: Depart La Paz for Cabo San Lucas, a distance of approximately 150 NM.  We’ll visit Muertos for some snorkeling along the way.  Plan on 2 1/2 days at sea and on anchor, then about 3 days in Cabo-just enough time to visit Todos Santos by bus and get some good surfing in. (this leg is available)

November 6, 2010: Depart Cabo for Mazatlan.  This is one of the longest open water legs of our journey.  We’ll cross the Sea of Cortez again (it’ll be our 5th crossing) and end up in the Old Harbor at Mazatlan.  This trip is almost 200 NM and we’ll be 100 miles offshore at one point.  It’ll take 2 solid days to cross the sea and then we’ll spend 3 or 4 days in Mazatlan visiting Old Town and the shiny beaches of the new city. (this leg is available)

November 13, 2010: Depart Mazatlan and head south towards La Cruz/Puerto Vallarta.  Along the way we’ll stop at San Blas (The Longfellow poem) and maybe Isla Isabella to see the Blue Footed Boobie Bird and all the thousands of other birds nesting there. We’ll end up in the beautiful new marina at La Cruz and spend a few days relaxing, swimming, and surfing at Sayulita.  Plan on 3 days traveling and 5 days in La Cruz. 175 NM total. (this leg is available)

November 21, 2010: Depart La Cruz for Manzanillo via Tenacatita Bay and Barra.  175 NM of sailing and 3 days on the water and anchored out.  We’ll spend a couple of days relaxing at Manzanillo on their amazing beaches. (this leg is tentatively spoken for)

November 26, 2010: Depart Manzanillo for Zihuatanejo.  This trip is about 190 NM and will take about 1 1/2 to 2 days.  The coast is beautiful but there aren’t any good overnight anchorages around there, so we’ll just keep moving and spend 4 days in lovely Zihuatanejo. (this leg is available)

December 2, 2010: Depart Zihuatanejo for Huatulco.  This trip is about 250 NM and will take about 2 days.  We’ll spend a day or two in Huatulco, which is supposed to be beautiful. (this leg is available)

December 6, 2010: Depart Huatulco and sail to Port Angel via the Tehuanapec Bay, one of the windiest and potentially most hazardous parts of our trip.  We’ll hug the coast for 250 NM and arrive in Port Angel to depart Mexico.  2 days sailing and 2 days of paperwork to depart.  (this leg is available)

December 10, 2010: We’ll sail from Port Angel straight to the Golfo de Fonseca.  It’s about 320 NM and will probably take 3 days.  Should be a beautiful part of the trip as we sail close by Guastamela and part of El Salvador.  We’ll spend about 3 weeks in this part of the world including Christmas in Belize and New Years in Nicaragua. (no visitors on this leg…international border crossing)

January 5, 2010: We’ll pull up anchor and head to Costa Rica for a while. We’ll likely spend some time in Puntarenas to begin with…

Here’s a projected map on Google Earth… http://bbs.keyhole.com/ubb/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1355081&#Post1355081