A few days back in La Cruz allowed us
to pick up our mail, finally! We spent an enjoyable evening reading
Christmas cards, then completing a few minor boat chores and anchoring out in the La Cruz anchorage before
leaving for the overnight passage around Cabo Corrientes, which marks
the beginning of the beautiful, more secluded coastline called
Costalegre.
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| La Cruz anchorage |
Along Costalegre, the water is noticeably warmer, the shores almost
continuously lined with white sandy beaches and the next good anchorage a short distance from the previous one. Every time we are at sea we see whales and
this first day out in Banderas Bay was no exception. Six humpbacks
put on a long show!
We rounded Punta Corrientes in the
afternoon under sail with almost 30 kts of wind and were far enough off the
point to enjoy a grand sail around it. The wind died for an
uneventful but beautiful night passage under a clear, starry sky.
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| Sunset sailing, past Cabo Corriente |
We slowed down to delay our arrival into the bay until dawn to avoid fishing lines
and found an ideal anchorage at Isla Passavera at 0815, just off the
shore of the small town of Chamela. There were two other boats anchored there. We stayed two nights to snorkel, swim and fish in the
clearest water. Three large jacks (we thought they were yellow-tailed
tunas) circled the boat but we caught nothing - although we could see the fish dart away every time Gregg dropped a lure into the water!
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| Fishing unsuccessfully (as usual)! |
Meanwhile, two
sailboats dropped their anchors nearby at Isla Cocinas. We dinghied
over to visit with the boaters and check out their beach.
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| True North from neighboring Isla Cocinas |
Numerous rocky islands lie just off the
shore from Chamela which do not offer safe anchorages. We passed them
as we moved further SE along Coastalegre to Paraiso, a very small, picturesque anchorage fringed by two sandy beaches. We
took the dinghy to the small, peaceful beachside hotel and found a
few friendly amigos of the hotel owner who shared their cold cervezas
with us. Back at the anchorage, two other sailboats passed through
the small anchorage but there wasn't room for them to stay
long...they missed a very rolly night, although we did deploy a stern anchor to keep the boat pointed into the swell.
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| Gregg readies the stern anchor in Paraiso |
The next afternoon, we moved 20 nm
further along the coast to Punta Hermanos and 'The Aquarium', a good
snorkeling reef. We had expected to see some beachfront activity with
colorful umbrellas, palapas, a few small hotels and other boaters, as
described in our guidebook. Once ashore, we found instead nothing but
a few vacant houses, some swimmers, and several armed guards! The
guard we spoke with indicated that we were to stay on the beach side
of the road because the opposite side was now private property. Signs
posted along the road indicated the same thing. A local expat we
talked with on the beach told us that in 2010, the local landowners
were chased off their property by armed men, backed by a wealthy
Mexican developer, with palapas burned or bulldozed. A google search
supports this story. The locals from the nearby town of Revalsito are
now allowed beach access again after three years of closure and the matter is waiting to be resolved in court. We were
the only boat in the anchorage that night. The expat had assured us
that cruisers in the anchorage had no problems being there. We stayed
to snorkel in The Aquarium the next day and were joined by another
Ha-Ha boat on the second night,
French Curve, and three more
boats. Nice to have their company nearby! The landscape in this
little bay was striking with colorful blue-green hills as a backdrop
and a long golden sand beach in the foreground. A pod of dolphins
swam all around our boat and back and forth across the bay throughout
the afternoon. Coming back from The Aquarium, one swam right between
us!
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| One of "our" neighborhood dolphins. |
On the second morning, another Ha-Ha boat sailed right up to us.
It was
Resolution. They had heard us check in on the morning
roll call from Bahia Tenacatita just around the corner and came over
to visit before heading on to their next stop. The cruisers' morning
roll call operates from different locations all along the coast. A
volunteer moderator asks for new arrivals, departures, then roll
call, followed by medical emergencies, boat needs, and who has what
to trade for “coconuts” (it's illegal for visiting cruisers to
sell goods in Mexico). After that, cruisers can hail one another on
VHF for further communication. So, that's how
Resolution found
us in the next bay. They had been at Bahia Tenacatita, our next stop
and a very popular cruisers' destination.
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| Resolution rafted to True North |
There were 23 boats anchored in Bahia
Tenacatita when we arrived. We dinghied up to
Harmony,
belonging to “Mayor Rob”, self-elected, and long-term resident of
Tenacatita, to introduce ourselves and to learn of the local
activities. That evening there was a dinghy raft-up appetizer
potluck, a first for us. Every dinghy tied up to another as we passed
around our appetizers and introduced ourselves with a story to share
with the group. These were almost all new boats and faces.
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| The Mayor's dinghy raft-up at Tenacatita |
The
morning cruisers' net announced the day's coming activities: group
swim to shore at 1300, bocce ball on the beach, Mexican Train (that's
dominoes) at the palapa. We opted to join
French Curve on a
buddy dinghy tour of the estuary. It's a long, narrow channel of a
few miles which winds through mangroves with a few snowy egrets, blue
herons, and some other birds unknown to us.
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| In the mangrove swamps with French Curve's dinghy ahead |
Afterwards, we stopped at
La Vena, the one palapa at Tenacatita to try it's specialty of the
house, Rollo de Mar. This is not to be missed! It's a fish fillet
wrapped around a mixture of shrimp or octopus and celery, rolled with
bacon and topped with an almond sauce. Once tried, it's not easily
forgotten.
The surf landings at Tenacatita are
known to be rough. We survived a few wet landings and launchings
until one afternoon launch, in which we thought we had timed the
rollers well but instead crashed into a big one which lifted up the
bow while Gregg, not quite inside yet, slid off the side and into the
water. Quickly recovering, we tried to make it through the surf
again, were tossed around some more but made it through.
Unfortunately, Gregg's prescription sunglasses did not survive the
unintentional dunking.
We moved across Tenacatita Bay along with
French Curve to the anchorage in front of the colorful
waterfont town of La Manzanilla. The setting is lush and tropical
with a unique and charming mixture of small town quaintness and
seaside tourism. During periods of light swell, the beach landing is similar or slightly more difficult than the landing at the main anchorage at Tenacatita back across the bay. The afternoon winds tend to build which can add to the surf so we were naturally on guard as we made our way to the beach, however it was quite tame compared to the dunking we received at Tenacatita! We found a good landing at the edge of the beachfront but among some smooth rocks, getting in and out safely. We toured the town together, first visiting the
town's main attraction, a protected sanctuary at the edge of town
filled with giant crocodiles!
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| Large cocodrilo in La Manzanilla |
Lots of small tiendas selling fresh
produce, dairy products and other food staples line the streets, plus
many very inviting restaurants. The four of us came back for dinner
at a popular local favorite, Restaurant Martin, under a palapa roof
but high above the beach with an outstanding view of the ocean. Part
of the fun of cruising is how easily friendships are made after
sharing just a few activities together. That's how we came to know
more of
French Curve.
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| The anchorage at La Manzanilla in the distance |
We buddied with French
Curve to the “secret
anchorage” of Cuastecomate for another gem of a small waterfront
town with a snorkeling reef nearby. After a night there, we proceeded
another 5 nm miles to Bahia de Navidad where we would spend the next
week.
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| Surfing the Pacific waterfront at Barra |
Barra
de Navidad is quite the oasis in the middle of a relatively isolated
coastline! There's a breakwater at the entrance to the marina and a
long narrow sandbar beyond and next to the fuel dock at the entrance
to the anchorage. The marina shares the beautiful grounds and
amenities with the upscale Wyndham Grand Bay Resort.
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| Pool with water slides at the Wyndham |
It was old home
week for Ha-Ha'ers. Eight or so friend boats were there or would
arrive a day later –
Resolution, Unleashed, Sand Dollar,
Appa, French Curve, L'Ange, R&R Kedger, Sea Otter. (Five
of those are from Washington state!)
We had ample time to enjoy the
pool and water slides together, take the pangas across the channel from the
marina and resort to the town (“Barra”) to shop, eat or sit with
a cold beverage. Every morniong, the
French Bakery panga comes around to the marina, with truly delicious bread, croissants, quiche, and don't forget the jalapeno/cheese baguette!
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| Don't miss the jalapeno and cheese baguette! |
While at the marina, we enjoyed watching a three day fishing tournament, with intense competition to catch the largest marlin, sailfish, and dorado.
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| The winning marlin and dorado |
The town of Barra is both lively and relaxing; a great
cruisers' stop for rest, play, minor maintenance. There is a large selection of waterfront restaurants catering to the largely Canadian tourist trade, but intermixed with local "loncherias" and "cocina economicas" for the real local color. Barra is also the last big stop
before two bays a few hours away just outside of Manzanillo, and then the 200 nm stretch to “Z-town” (Zihautanejo).
