Caleta Herradura

Where Next?
Bob Williams
Wed 8 Dec 2010 23:47

Position: 28 05.86 S 071 09.93 W
At anchor
Caleta Herradura
Wind Sou’ west F3 Gentle Breeze
Weather: Partly cloudy, mild
Days Run: 92 miles

We had hoped to make a Caleta a little north of here by this evening but overnight the wind gradually eased and by 11 this morning the wind was barely a whisper. We tried the drifter for an hour or so but eventually had to give up and with the desire to be at anchor for the night we resorted to the engine for an hour and a half to get us to the nearest reasonable shelter, Caleta Herradura. It looked appealing on the chart as it was small, isolated and appeared uninhabited, but as we rounded the jagged black rocks projecting from its southern entrance we were a little disappointed to see some industrial looking buildings at the head of the small bay. As we got closer however, apart from the sound of an unseen dog barking, they looked like they had been abandoned for some time and we were intrigued as to what their purpose might be or might have been. We shall probably leave this question unanswered as our intention is to sail tomorrow morning without stepping foot onshore and make for the Caleta we had hoped to arrive at today. Despite mankind’s inconsiderate intrusion on our serenity the bay still displays a very rugged beauty, especially as one looks to seaward, with numerous jagged black rocks, a landscape completely bare of any vegetation, guano covered islets and headlands and a number of sea lions basking on the bigger rocks.

My turn to cook - curry anyone?

All is well.