Day 4 sailing solo down the Baja to Bahia Sta Maria - Too many autopilot failures
11 February 2023 · 14 min · 118 views · Baja California Sur
What this video covers
Recurring autopilot motor stall errors force a solo sailor to manually reset the system repeatedly while navigating towards Bahia Santa Maria, Baja California.0:04 The autopilot displays "MOT stall" messages and causes the boat to veer off course, requiring constant monitoring from the chart table.0:04 To avoid a midnight arrival at the more remote Bahia Magdalena, the sailor adjusts the destination to the nearby, wide-open Bahia Santa Maria.1:31 The vessel maintains a speed of approximately 6.5 knots, covering the final 15 miles in daylight despite the intermittent steering failures.6:41 Upon arrival, the sailor navigates past Punta San Lazaro, identifying the entrance by its bordering rocks, and successfully anchors in calm conditions protected from the west.10:13 The sailor plans to investigate potential low hydraulic fluid levels after anchoring.4:08 The passage confirms that maintaining a track on the chart plotter allows for effective course correction when the autopilot fails.8:18
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