March 22, 2008
La Cruz, Nayarit, Mexico

First, I need to reassure “regular” readers that

A. The world did not suddenly become flat & SV Wand’rin Star did not fall off the edge
B. The boat’s NOT for sale
C. Life aboard is still good and all are healthy
D. I have finally overcome my manana-itis.

That said, I’d also like to add that this log with be the Reader’s Digest Version of our lives for the past four months as getting to press quickly is dictated by the latest adventure in our sailing lives (and my poor memory!)

OH, THE PLACES WE'VE BEEN!! (no offense to Dr. S!)

Cabo San Lucas

The boat gods thought we should spend a little more time in “hell” as the heat exchanger on the transmission chose this place to die. Cabo is not a well-outfitted town for boat repairs but we were able to find not only one heat exchanger, but two! Which was lucky because the first one didn’t fit after we got it back to the boat and couldn’t return it. Gary did locate another one that looked as if it had been on the shelf for a decade or two, was covered it dust BUT it fit!!!

We were anchored in the harbor and getting ashore involved running the gauntlet through jet skis, pangas, fishing boats, and just crazy power boaters, which made getting parts and supplies even more difficult. Salt water had gotten into the transmission system as a result of the leak and required four complete system flushes with transmission fluid to clear the system…it sure felt like we were pouring money right into the bilge! (we didn’t really put the transmission fluid there, it went into 5 gallon containers to be dinghied ashore) Finally 5 days after getting the heat exchanger that fit, we happily hoisted the anchor and headed OUT of the harbor. Mentally that was the end of the Baja Ha-Ha and we were sure ready for some more pleasurable Mexican adventures.

San Jose del Cabo

We had tried unsuccessfully to get into the marina at Cabo San Lucas (which in hindsight was fortuitous) so we rejoiced when the unfinished Puerto Los Cabos Marina radioed back that they had a slip for us! Eventually, a slip assignment was made and we headed in. As often happens when a new boat enters a marina, folks already there look up and wave….a friendly couple two slips down from us did just that. When we’d completed the task of tying up, Gary glanced at the boat where the folks had waved, it was SV Long Ben and the name rang a bell with him. SV Long Ben belongs to Leon & Leticia. Leon helped Gary move SV Wand’rin Star to Ensenada right after we bought her in 2003 and Leticia drove us to Ensenada to get aboard to bring her back to San Diego. We hadn’t seen them since then, what a delightful treat! I’m not sure who of us was most surprised. They are gracious folks who quickly offered to take us to town in their rental car, out to dinner, and to the grocery store. Leticia is well-versed in Mexican cooking and willingly shared her knowledge of the “new-to-me” items in the local Super Ley grocery store (I was the only blonde there). She & I spent almost 2 hours walking the aisles as I was introduced to jicama, the extensive use of limes, chili powders, new types of queso (cheese) and meats while the guys stood around catching up on stories. We enjoyed two days with L&L and we feasted each night at a local restaurant that featured tacos al pastor (pork & pineapple) and incredible flan. What a bright spot after our time in Cabo San Lucas. However, it was time to move on and the same smiling couple waved us out of the marina.

Los Frailes

Our next major port was La Paz and the trip would be made in several stages; the first being Los Frailes on November 19. It was a lovely cove and gave us the opportunity to jump off the boat and enjoy the warmer waters. We met Don & Peg on SV Interlude who shared info on good places in La Paz with us. Peg found an anchor while swimming which they retrieved. Gary thought he’d take a look around to see what he could find on the ocean’s floor. Surprisingly, he located an anchor buried in the sand too; just as he was getting ready to get the gear out to salvage it, he realized that it was OUR anchor! Surely glad he noticed that before he hauled it up! We spent an afternoon walking along a great sandy beach and flying our kite off the stern. It looked wonderful in the clear, bright blue Mexican sky!

Los Muertos

Thanksgiving morning we said goodbye to Los Frailes and headed to Los Muertos under that same beautiful sky with light winds. Eight hours later we were anchored in the bay with a dozen other boats. Gary worked his magic with our great wi-fi antenna and we were able to use SKYPE to wish family and friends Happy Thanksgiving before going ashore for dinner at the “ Giggling Marlin”. It was the first time I’d ever had a shrimp burrito for T-Day! Los Muertos is not very sheltered and we had 20 kt winds while anchored here, making it too windy to go ashore for several days. Finally the winds dropped and Gary took me ashore for a real walk at “Mom Speed” as Kate would say! It felt wonderful exploring dusty roads and walking on the beach.

Islas Espiritu Santos

This unique set of islands and coves has breath-taking volcanic scenery and we spent a week here in two anchorages. Our favorite, Partida Cove, is a caldera with awesome stone & lava formations AND great sandy beaches. Highlights of our treks ashore were exploring the world of cacti and Gary having the opportunity to hold a “not long for this world” puffer fish! The fish was having difficulty swimming in the surf; we tried to help but it didn’t seem like it was working. Our week here was peaceful and we were treated to an ever changing neighborhood as boats came and went daily. While anchored here a Norther blew down the Sea and we faced in every direction possible as recorded by the boat's track on the GPS. We waited for a weather window and headed for the anchorage in La Paz on December 2.

La Paz

Many cruisers call this City of Peace home and it’s easy to see why. There are four marinas an anchorage, boat services, good stores for provisioning, and lots of cruisers! We spent two nights in the anchorage and then moved into Marina Palmira, which would be “home” for the next month. La Paz was the first really Mexican city we’d visited. (I definitely didn’t count Cabo San Lucas as a typical Mexican city!) It was here that I began to feel isolated by my inability to talk with local folks about daily life and to be understood due to not speaking Spanish (at least better than what one year of high school Spanish 40 years ago would muster!).

We went into town on Saturday and had the great good fortune of meeting Susan and Dennis from SV Two Can Play at a coffee shop. They’ve been cruising in Mexico for several years and are some of the warmest-hearted, delightful, helpful folks we’ve met. Within a few moments we felt like old friends and they graciously offered to take us for a “tour” of town and helped us get a better slip in the marina. We were on a dock with large powerboats and no cruisers. They had been in Marina Palmira previously and knew the office staff, so with Susan & Dennis’s help we moved over to C dock near the rest of the cruisers which made life more enjoyable for the remainder of our stay! S&D also re-taught us how to play Mexican Train Dominos and lent me two books which definitely gave me a better understanding of life in Mexico. I highly recommend On Mexican Time by Cohan and Yesterday’s Train by Pindell & Mallis for insight into the history of Mexico and the daily struggles facing folks here.

My frustration with not being able to communicate in the local language lead the “perverbial student” in me to sign up for Spanish classes at “Se…Habla” a great resource in La Paz, run by Juli Goff. I thoroughly enjoyed my 10 days of classes with Cynthia, my personal instructor and it definitely helped to jump start my use of Spanish. I’m still shy when speaking, but can read much more and intuit some conversations. It’s just a matter of practice, practice, practice. I was fortunate to meet Sue on M/V Pacifc on our dock & we spent several afternoons helping each other with the language. Now, I feel a bit more comfortable talking to the person next to me on the bus: I especially enjoy trying to converse with students as they are often studying English and enjoy the opportunity to practice. One’s wage-earning ability in tourist areas is often directly related to one’s ability to speak English well. Gary is beginning to pick up some phrases and can now ask for the check and count to ten.

La Paz has a very active cruiser community and a wonderful organization, Club Cruceros de La Paz, which assists cruisers and the local population, especially schools. We were pleased to become dues-paying members while there and to fly the Club Cruceros burgee. The Club outdid itself with a Christmas Eve Appetizer/Dessert Potluck…what a feast and a great way to spend Christmas Eve afternoon.

We enjoyed exploring La Paz and stayed here for a month. A new list of favorite restaurants evolved as we sampled the local fare –Baja Biscuits, La Fonda, Bismarck’s (great fish tacos!), just to name a few. There was also Ibarra’s Pottery and a local weaver’s guild, for local gifts.

Gary met a couple guys on the dock who were taking a boat to a Dockwise Transport and he was able to help as crew. Dockwise is a company that moves vessels all over the world in specially built transport ships. The transport takes on water in order to flood the boat well; when full of water boats are manuevered into it to be secured for the trip. Ballast tanks are then pumped out causing the transport to rise; the water drains from the boat deck, leaving the boats high & dry for transport. He really enjoyed seeing the process first hand and the new owner of the boat in Canada was glad he didn't bash all the way up the coast!

Meeting new folks and reconnecting with previous acquaintenance are some of the best parts of cruising and La Paz was a great place to do that. Folks from our past who we reconnected with were Tim &Cindy on SV Masquerade, Teresa & Rob on SV Yohelah, and Gerry & Chris on MV Misty Michael (we first met them at Dent Rapids in BC, then again in San Diego, in La Paz,…AND jumping ahead, we also saw them in La Cruz!) Some “new” folks were Erin & Paul on SV Romany Star, Sue & Steve on MV Pacific, Margarita & Ventura on SV Paesano and Mike & Gladys on SV Last Mango. We’ve had the pleasure of seeing most of these folks again as we all travel in basically the same direction southward.

Christmas Day the aroma of roasting turkey and stuffing filled the pilothouse as we enjoyed Christmas dinner on the boat. Through the wonders of SKYPE we were able to watch family open Chrismas presents and share the day with them. The turkey was delicious and “day after” turkey sandwiches were doubly delicious!

New Year’s Eve we decided to take in a movie, The Golden Compass. Luck and my meager Spanish got us into the correct theater to see the English version; it had Spanish sub-titles and was a good way for me to practice. We toasted in the New Year with Paul & Erin from SV Romany Star at La Panga, which closed at 8:00 p.m. New Year’s Eve is not a big deal in Mexico and it was difficult to find a restaurant that was open for dinner, a little different than in the States.

La Paz would be history as of January 4th and we prepared to get underway to the fabulous island, Isla Isabel, across the Sea of Cortez and to Banderas Bay.

ISLA ISABEL

This island is a National Wildlife Preserve and nesting area for Magnificent Frigate Birds, Brown Boobies and Blue-footed Boobies. Jacques Cousteau filmed here more than 30 years ago and helped to bring attention to this unique area.

Our trip from La Paz took 50 hours as we traveled 300 miles; that type of trip is just plain tiring as one isn’t at sea long enough to get into the rhythm of watches, but it’s too long for regular sleeping patterns. The trip itself was pleasurable as we had breath-taking night skies with millions of stars and no moon. I wrote in my journal, “at night it felt like we were on a spaceship hurling through space as we traveled for more than 40 hours without seeing or hearing another vessel.” Upon our arrival at Isla Isabel on the morning of January 8, we were treated to HUGE, and I do mean HUGE, flocks of frigate birds soaring and on the rocky island. We later heard that researchers have estimated more than 1 MILLION frigate birds nest here and I think they probably missed a few!

It took a couple days to catch up on our sleep and we just enjoyed being at anchor off this magnificent (pun intended!) island. I was feeling quite domestic making cookies, roasting a chicken, and baking bread during our stay here. The galley definitely smelled good! On Thursday we finally went ashore to see the birds “up close and personal." It only took 10 minutes before one became very personal with Gary and pooped on his hat & camera bag…my turn would come later. There was a large structure ashore that we took for a visitors’ center but approaching we discovered it appeared abandoned. A young man there told us he was filming a documentary on the island and also where the paths were to see the various nesting areas. Large lizards greeted us in the abandoned concrete building and surrounding trees.

The magnificent frigate birds nest in low shrub-like trees in nests that appear to be barely large enough for the adult bird, much less a chick when he hatches. We didn’t see baby frigates, but we were fortunate to see many Brown Boobie chicks, which were almost as large as their parents and covered in white down. Their nests were only a depression in the ground, not very comfortable-looking! As we progressed up the steep trail to the top of the hill, we finally encountered BLUE-footed boobies. When I began teaching 25 years ago, I used a Life On Earth Video in my biology class that showed the blue-footed boobies and frigate birds in the Galapagos Islands; never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined that I would be sitting less than 10 feet from these amazingly oddly colored creatures! The feet and legs of the blue-footed boobies ranged from turquoise to azure to robin’s egg blue, to the palest of blues; the brown boobies had yellow or greenish legs and feet. Nature offers us such wondrous sights! As we rested at the base of the light tower atop the hill, it was my turn for the up close & personal contact as one of the soaring birds deigned to christen my hat, neck & shirt. SPLAT & ICK - still a small price to pay for the joy of experiencing this slice of life that few on earth encounter. I kept thinking that this island was a benevolent version of Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds! As you can tell from the accompanying photos, Gary had a great time making pictures here and around the island.

SAN BLAS

Other anchorages were calling to us as we left Isla Isabel on January 12 for a full day trip to San Blas on the Mexican mainland. Whales were the main attraction on the 8-hour trips and starting entertaining us at breakfast before we had even hoisted the anchor. Seeing a whale breach, while eating your breakfast, is a good portent of things to come and we counted 12 whales sightings before arriving at our destination. The anchorage for San Blas, Matanchen Bay, is quite shallow; it felt uncomfortable being anchored in only 10’ of water. Mexican law still requires that cruisers check in with the Capitania de Puerto in each district and we took the dink ashore to locate the office to do our paperwork. A short (and inexpensive cab ride) later we completed this task and set about discovering San Blas. Our timing wasn’t very good as we arrived shortly after noon and most shops & the Mercado were closed for comida and siesta. We were luckier on our trip back to the beach and bought coconut and banana goodies for which this area is known; my only regret is that we didn’t buy more, as all were delicious!

CHACALA

This overnight anchorage went right to the top of Gary’s 10 Worst Anchorages List! It’s a lovely little cove with a sandy beach, palapa bars & restaurants; I really wanted to go ashore as it looked “story-book perfect.” Unfortunately the bay isn’t very sheltered and opened to the rollers coming in from the Pacific. The boat rolled from one side to the other constantly from the swells and the surge. The swells were on the beam and made sleep almost impossible; it was quickly decided that we’d leave at first light with no opportunity to go ashore….a lost adventure, but many more to come….

LA CRUZ De HAUNACAXTLE

We’ve finally caught up to where we are NOW! (March 22, 2008) This has been home for more than 2 months as we were treated to another whale watching tour on the 8-hour journey from Chacala with dozens of whale sightings. We’ve seen more humpback whales in Mexico than we did in Alaska! La Cruz, as it known by most cruisers, shares Banderas Bay with other better known spots such as Puerto Vallarta & Punta de Mita. A new marina is being built here and is definitely changing the face of this little fishing village.

Pat & Trish on SV Rhapsody had previously raved about La Cruz and how much they enjoyed it, especially Pat as he’s a musician and this is definitely a music-centric pueblo! Their recommendation was right on as we were amazed at the diversity of music and restaurants in this town of about 400 very friendly locals. Here’s the short list: Le Reve with live music 4 nights/week- French, Frascati’s-Italian, Black Forest - Lacho & Andrea/gypsy/flamenco-German, Los Amigos Tacqueria- great 90 ¢ tacos, and La Cava del la Martinez-Mexican….all within a 10 minute walk of the marina! (Plus a paletaria with frozen fruit treats for only 70 ¢) Philo’s Bar is also a well-known cruiser hangout for music as is Ana Banana’s. Needless to say, we haven’t been starved either for food or entertainment since arriving here.

The marina has “matured” during our 2-month stay here and we’ve been privileged (???) to watch the progress, which includes dredging 24/7,enduring massive amounts of dust and observing Mexican building techniques, which are very different from those state-side. This is to be the largest marina in Mexico when completed and its official name is Marina Riveria Nayarit, but everyone calls it La Cruz Marina.

One reason we’ve been here so long is that we had three sets of guests arriving during the month of February and Puerto Vallarta has a good airport. Kate & Damon, my daughter & son-in-law were our first visitors and as a treat, we arranged for them to have a room at the La Cruz Inn, a small hotel here on the square. Damon is 6’3” and even though there is an amazing amount of headspace on the boat, he’s much more comfortable on land. The arrangement worked well as the hotel pool was only 10’ from their room and the beautifully landscaped courtyard provided shade for Scrabble & cribbage games all day. The trip was Damon’s first outside the US and he was interested in the variety of Mexican money, collecting coins as souvenirs. One day we took a bus trip to the Sayulita, known for its beach and surfing, enjoying a relaxing day under a palapa. Kate decided to try surfing and took a 2-hour surfing class. She never quite got up on her board, but sure gave it her best! It was fun having the kids with us for a week and we also were able to take them out to the Tres Marias Islands on the boat.

Nan, my friend since 7 th grade, was our next guest a few days later; she also enjoyed sailing to the Tres Marias and was thrilled to see the brown & blue-footed boobies. She’s an avid birder! We took a bus tour inland to the UNESCO World Heritage City of San Sebastian with her. This was our first opportunity to visit the Sierra Madre Mountains and learn about the old Hacienda system in Mexico. Many think of a hacienda as just a large house or ranch, but it really was a factory. In the case of San Sebastian, a silver-refining factory for the Spanish was built here. The large adobe house has been maintained and just walking into the rooms, the temperature was 10-15 degrees cooler than outside. Our guide was very informative and we dined on chicken mole at a local restaurant. Several hours were spent exploring the town on foot and the tour ended with a visit to a coffee plantation. We look forward to more opportunities to explore inland Mexico during our remaining ten months here.

Diane & Dennis arrived from North Carolina on Feb. 24 and finished out the month with us. It’s always a treat to have my sister and brother-in-law visit. All of our visitors are a reminder of how fortunate we are to have such a wonderful family and great friends who enjoy sharing life with us. We’d been saving a trip to Home Depot until Den arrived, as it’s his favorite store; we thought he’d enjoy seeing the Mexican version (which was just like the ones in the states with the exception of the signage.) Riding the busses was another highlight according to them as it gave an opportunity to see the real Mexico…whatever that means? A trip to Sayulita, the Tres Marias and Old Town in PV completed their tour. The only thing Den talked about when planning this vacation was that he wanted a sombrero, needless to say, Diane wasn’t in favor of having to transport it home. The day we went to Old Town an opportunity to buy one presented itself and what started out as a 400-peso sombrero went home with Den for 200 ($20) pesos. As you can tell from this shot in the cockpit, he enjoyed his vacation. Diane is definitely a good sport and I love her dearly. All too soon their week was ended and we made another trip to the airport to bid them good-bye.

Now life started to get really interesting…..

After almost a month of non-stop visitors (who we thoroughly enjoyed!) we had hoped to spend a couple days relaxing on the hook and then heading down to Barra Navidad and the French baker! Not to be.

Gary had previously signed up with the Spectra Water Maker Company to take a class to become a Rover for them. Our friend, Rob on SV Yohelah, had done this and was very pleased with the outcome. We thought the class was in Fall, but when Gary double-checked on the dates, he discovered it was March 11-13. Luckily we knew this before Diane & Den came and were able to make all his travel arrangements. This necessitated us staying in La Cruz until he returned on March 14. OK, so what’s another 2 weeks??? In the mean time, Geoff & Sally on SV Grace (we met them on the Ha-Ha) asked if Gary would be willing to be crew on their boat for the Puddle Jump from here to the Marquesas, then to the Tuamotus and Tahiti! Unfortunately, they were looking for crew because Sally had been struck by a recklessly driven motorcycle in PV and was not able to make the trip within the required weather window. Gary of course said, "YES!" So Geoff & crew will eventually move the boat to Papeete, Tahiti, where Sally will join him and the Garys will fly to their respective homes.

See what I mean about interesting? In the span of just a few weeks our plans to head south for those fresh chocolate croissants in Barra morphed into Gary spending a week back in the States becoming a Certified Spectra Water Maker Tech and preparing for two months aboard SV Grace as part of her 3-man crew. The other gentleman is also named Gary, so Sally christened them the “4 G’s”, Grace, Geoff, Gary & Gary. We’re both really excited about this opportunity, as he has not previously done an offshore passage. (I was fortunate to do one on SV Alaska Eagle from Honolulu to San Francisco in 2003.)

In preparation for his adventures, we’ll be moving the boat to Paradise Village Marina in Nuevo Vallarta, which is about 12 miles from here. I’m looking forward to that, as Paradise Village is a 5 Star Resort with all amenities available to folks in the marina, i.e. ME!!!! Maybe I’ll spend my time pining away for Gary poolside with a margarita & book in my hands. Will the waiters put sunscreen on my back?!? In reality, I have small boat projects planned and will also be visiting family and friends in Michigan and Wyoming for a few weeks during his absence. Not quite the same as laying on the beach in Tahiti, but who knows after Gary’s seen it; maybe that’ll be our next stop after the Galapagos!

You’ll be able to read about SV Grace’s progress across the Pacific, as well as Gary’s thoughts, in a new feature called our Blog Log. There is also a link to YOTREPS which will show the boat’s position and weather.

WHEW! I finally caught up to our lives today…this is sort of like doing laundry; you just get finished and then you take off your clothes and there’s more laundry! I’m just kidding, if I weren’t such a procrastinator, folks would be able to read about our adventures in a more timely manner. I’m always amazed at some of our friends who have info on their websites within hours of arriving at an anchorage.

In closing, please think good thoughts for all those folks making the hop across the Puddle in a variety of boats. Fair winds and calm seas would be additional blessings.

May life bring you as many pleasant surprises as we’ve enjoyed in the past few months!

Fondly,

Dorothy, Gary & Murray the Boat Cat

In place of a quote this month we’d like to share some recent reading suggestions:

Gary’s Picks: Shaman’s Crossing, Robin Hobbs; Curiosity Cabinet, Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child; The Making of the Fittest, Sean B. Carroll; and the American Empire Series by Harry Turtledove

Dorothy’s Picks: The Hindi Bindi Club, Monica Pradhas; Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons, Lorna Landvik; Bel Canto, Ann Patchett; and March, Geraldine Brooks

© Copyright 2008
Last updated on September 16, 2008