We'll be heading out in the field on a short NOLS alumni course at the end of this week. Here is a shot of the Drascombe Longboats, the 22-foot yawls that we expedition down the Baja coast in, and the NOLS group we taught in November.

The view from our mooring in Coyote Bay, looking at the NOLS Branch and across the Bay of Conception.

Our friend Liz Hammond (incoming director of the NOLS Mexico Branch) and Trini and Concha, sisters who have worked for NOLS Mexico for more than 30 years!

We've been working on the boat all week doing projects. Dan has had the engine almost completely apart and has had ennormous success in solving our overheating problem. We continue to chip away at the "LIST," which is difficult in that usually when you cross one item off two more get added. But we are feeling good about the boat and plan to have her ready for the Pacific "puddle jump" by the end of March. And when not working we've been having some fun visitors aboard!

A little Texas Hold'Em aboard Confetti:


YES or NO? Should Dan wear white socks with his Keens?

All is well aboard Confetti! We had to make a quick whirlwind trip back to San Francisco to close on our house sale, but we're back in Coyote Bay now ready to attack a bunch of boat projects. The most pressing one is the engine, which has been overheating on us. So we are slowly troubleshooting and trying to figure out if we'll need to go south to LaPaz to hire a marine diesel mechanic.

We go to work again in a couple weeks for NOLS - a week-long alumni course. If you're somewhere freezing now, thinking how toasty we must be in sunny Baja, think again! It's overcast and freezing here, and we're wearing hoodies and down jackets. But the clouds are actually a stunning backdrop to the desert mountains, and the break from the sun is nice on the skin!