Mexico Report: Winter Itinerary Planning

As 2024 dawns, winter conditions are beginning to creep down the West Coast. But that doesn’t mean all the Mexico-bound boaters departed the U.S. with the masses on November 1. The only thing magic about November 1 is that many U.S. yacht insurance providers start covering their boat owners’ itineraries that extend farther south than Ensenada. That’s when hurricane season (June 1 through October 31) is supposed to be over. Key words are “supposed to.” Of course, Mother Nature doesn’t read our calendar. So, if you’re still stateside, complete your last few boat projects while monitoring weather forecasts for southbound vessels on the outside of Baja. This 800-mile coast offers very few shelters from hurricanes. Let’s look at some itineraries. What about the Baja Ha Ha? Sadly, 2023 may have seen the last Baja Ha Ha (See photo.), because founder Richard Spindler retired. For the past 24 years, this collection of 100 to 150 cruising sailboats has cautiously planned to ignore the November 1 date, because they often departed San Diego harbor in late October. Was this wise? As a group, the Ha Ha also bypassed Ensenada, where southbound yachts are required to stop and officially check into Mexico. That stop would have allowed sail...