From the time it was initially built in New York, the once popular Fiesta Cruiser sailed over many oceans, and spent a number of years touring around the waters of the Sea of Cortez, before finding itself prey to intense winds and uncanny local weather over the past 6 months. After being built in New York, it traveled through the Panama Canal on a journey to Honolulu, Hawaii, where it was dubbed the Starlet II. Then there was the 19 day, 4,000 mile trek from Honolulu to Puerto Peñasco with just the captain and two fishermen on board. Once it found its new casa here in Rocky Point, the ship served as a popular sunset or day cruising option for a number of years.
Yet, the voyages of the Fiesta Cruiser came to a halt in late October 2011 when severe winds* (*added to other factors still under review) rocked the ship near the city’s harbor during an evening cruise; this led to the evacuation of those on board, and then the ship eventually came to rest on the beach between Las Gaviotas and Playa Bonita. As we reported at that time, a long-time Las Conchas resident and fan of Puerto Peñasco, adventurer, and beloved friend to many, was the sole loss of life from the unfortunate event.
Right around Christmas, it was Christmas Eve to be exact, there was an attempt to take advantage of the high tides that evening in order to drag the Fiesta Cruiser off the beach. However, this strategy did not work until early February when the tides rose again and the Cruiser eventually was moved to another resting spot, moored near the entrance to the city docks.
Just last Saturday night (3/17), intense winds once again swept through the city and seemingly sought out the moored Cruiser, somehow dislodging it and pulling it back out into the water. Currently, the ship is resting just near the mouth of the entrance to the city docks. We are all anxious to see what the next part of this ship’s journey will be, and hope it will soon be removed from its current spot in order to be laid to rest properly.