Exploring Banderas Bay or Bahia de Banderas

Exploring Banderas Bay or Bahia de Banderas

This beautiful bay is stated to be one of Mexico’s natural deepwater bays.  It is about 23nm across and 20nm deep.  We have been and will continue to stay in this area until March before heading north into the Sea of Cortez.  Until then we are exploring this area before we return to a marina for some travel to the United States.  

We have just spent a week at Marina Riviera Nayarit in La Cruz.  It was a very nice marina and we actually got a number of good boat projects done there.

There was a beautiful sunrise overlooking the anchorage on the morning of our departure.  

We pulled away from the dock yesterday morning while there was no wind.  I wanted to learn how to anchor (something Dan has usually done) so I asked him if I could try this in the La Cruz anchorage outside of the marina.  It is a wide, open and easy spot to anchor, so why not, and I was successful in the maneuver!

We had some time to kill, so both Dan and I put our snorkeling gear on and dove into the water with the purpose of scraping some of the barnacles that had started to grow on the bottom of the hall.  It was a good time to address this as they were small and the water was pretty warm, ie; about 75 degrees.  

While under the water, we heard whales singing!  It was amazing!  I had not noticed them until Dan asked me if I heard them.  In order to hear them, you cannot breath.  So I held my breath, I dove several times and could hear them singing!  So cool.

Once on deck and when we were just about ready to  pull up the anchor, a beautiful fish showed up about 2 feet long, rather colorful and with blue fins.  Apparently it was a small dorado, or mahi mahi.  The wind picked up, so we pulled up the main sail, raised the anchor, pulled out the jib and off we went.  

It was a beautiful sail directly across the bay with our destination being Boca de Tomatlán, a small anchorage on the south side of the bay about 16 miles away.  We noticed whales sprouting in the distance and eventually we were right next to a pod of 4 or 5 whales.  We also saw a pod of dolphins.  It was like a nature show.   

We sailed on until we arrived at Boca de Tomatlán.  It was a pretty little harbor, with very steep banks making for a deep water anchorage.  Because we did not have enough information about where to anchor, Dan decided it would be unwise to try so we turned around and went out.   

Our next destination for a good harbor was Yelapa about 7 nm away.  Because we wanted to arrive during the day light hours we had to motor there, although both of us prefer to sail.  Tacking to get there would take us too long.  It was a beautiful ride along the mountainous coast.  

We were told that a ponga  would probably meet us and sure enough one did.  We negotiated a price for two nights on a mooring ball and off we went to follow the ponga as he sped away.

The architecture of the homes looked interesting.  I especially found this dwelling that was built around rocks to be unique.  

Here is a view of the  boat moorings, beach and palapa style restaurants in Yelapa.

A mooring ball is nice because we do not have to set an anchor and neither do we need to worry about drifting.  However, we are exposed to the Pacific Ocean and there was a good deal of rolliness to deal with.   Even with the boat rocking throughout the night we slept well and were ready for a day of exploring.

We got the dinghy inflated and rowed her by the village.  Here is what that looked like:

And the beach as it gets ready for visitors that are brought here by boats.

We crossed the stream, to get to a stairway that led us to the town where we had heard there was a waterfall.  It was steep terrain that the houses were on and cobblestone paths existed for walkways with an occasional 4 wheeler being driven with supplies.  Here are a few pictures from our walk to the village.

Check out these tree roots.

As we walked the cobblestone paths, this artist was working hard.

 People were selling things along the path to a waterfall.  I loved these medalla wall hangings.

Here was the shop of a wood carver. The craftsmanship was incredible.   Notice the band saw in the background.  

Yelapa waterfall that we hiked too.

On the way back we got to see this man with a donkey and if we paid him some pesos we got to take his picture. 

We went back to the beach for a delightful lunch of fish tacos.  There were a pile of cement bricks piled on the beach.  Suddenly we noticed these donkeys being loaded up to take the blocks up into the town.  I guess this is how they transport building material - by pongas and then by donkeys.

Notice how the two men in the background, use a stick to prop up the bricks until they get loaded onto the sides of the donkeys and once tied off, they remove the sticks.  

That is all for this post.

La Cruz

La Cruz in Banderas Bay is a very cool little town and a nice marina.  We have spent the past week here enjoying luxuries like:  daily showers, water hookup, electricity (which we haven't needed, as our solar is working so well),  an internet lounge, for WIFI, a beautiful walkway to walk on and other cruisers to visit and meet.
 

It was nice to walk this boardwalk especially for an early morning sunrise or for an evening
sunset.

 

For me, the highlight of staying here was the ability to meet up with Denise - my good high school friend from Connecticut and her husband Frank who just happened to be vacationing in Puerto Vallarta this week.  It was really wonderful to spend the day together exploring the Old Town of PV and catching up.

We went to a fabulous restaurant that was a recommendation from her brother David.



Here we are at the restaurant.



Denise is an artist and teaches sculpture and ceramics at Connecticut College in New London.  Dan loves art and sculpture as well, so it was interesting to explore the Old Town with them.    We came across these mural painters.  What I noticed was that the artists were actually in a safety harness which was not something I saw much of in Mexico.

Denise found a special friend at the ceramic store.

Everywhere we went, people were trying to sell you something,  Here was a booth with hats and dresses.  Everything was so colorful.

We walked back along the boardwalk or "malecón" were there were many interesting sculptures.



My favorite one was this "Sand Man" who was actually a real person that was covered in sand everywhere.  He did a fabulous acting job and at first I did not think he was real, as he was so still.  If you gave him a tip, he would give you a drink of sand!  Yum yum!  He would pour himself one as well, but the sand would just pour down his lip as though he was drinking.  The picture is cool, but his actions were even more amazing.  I hope he is there in a few weeks, when my sister and daughter come to visit me.  We will definitely check this guy out.

This sculpture reminds me of sea urchins.  I took this one for my sister and brother-in-law Marji and David who love sculptures of all types and have created numerous ones throughout their property in CT. They actually have a kinetic sculpture business called wood that works.  Here is a link to their site, which shows the incredible sculptures they make.    http://www.woodthatworks.com

Lastly, I found this Octopus sculpture interesting, as I have recently finished reading a book about Octopus and incredible they are.

After a wonderful visit with Denise and Frank, Dan and I hopped on the bus and rode back to the marina.  We were both pleasantly tired when we got back to the boat.  I was very happy to meet my old friend Denise.

Now I am really looking forward to my sister Carolyn coming for a visit AND today I learned my eldest daughter Kara is also coming in about a week!  Yah!!!!!

Dan and I will be leaving this harbor in La Cruz tomorrow morning and going to a few anchorages in the Banderas Bay area.

Moving onto Banderas Bay and Punta de Mita

Moving onto Banderas Bay and Punta de Mita

1/4/2018 & 1/5/2018

We had spent enough time in Chalaca and both felt it was time to move onward.  We did our usual of storing the dinghy and SUP boards on the deck and planned to head out in the morning.  Dan’s hip was feeling somewhat better after his rest and my massages of course.   This was a shot taken on our last evening.  

We experienced light winds at first and tried to sail the Code One.  Eventually, the wind died completely and we had to motor a couple hours which is not our favorite thing to do.  

Eventually the wind started and we ended up having a fabulous sail for this 36 nautical mile trip. There were some dark clouds hovering over the land, but no bad weather occurred,  unlike the East Coast that experienced a blizzard at the same time.   

We saw a few whales and once we thought they were too close to us, or we were too close to them, we would lightly hit the stainless steel helm with the wrench handle and that would make a high pitched sound we hoped would travel and alert the whales.  We never hit one, so I think it works.  

Punta de Mita forms the northern point of the Bahía de Banderas or Banderas Bay.  This is one of the largest natural, deepwater bays in Mexico.  We sailed along the coast of the famous Four Seasons Resort and golf course.  Our anchorage is nestled inside the cove and there are what appears to be high-end condo’s, some palapa restaurants as well as some more fancy.  

The following morning, we rigged up our water toys and headed to play in the surf waves.  There were already some stand-up-paddleboarders there surfing the modest waves.  We anchored the dinghy and started out, but did not really catch any waves.  Apparently, the surf protocol is not to take another surfers wave if they are there first. Tomorrow we have spotted another location and will try that.  

We had brought our snorkeling gear as well, so we continued around the point and found a nice rocky outcrop area for some snorkeling.  (The picture is a little cloudy, as it was taken through my waterproof case).  We enjoyed the snorkeling and swimming over some interesting rock formations with fish swimming around.  

We finished the day, with a dinghy trip to the shore and a nice lunch.  We were bombarded with people selling their wares.  I did soften and buy a few things from these nice individuals, but I also declined many.  

Even though this is a high end tourist area, I noticed a few building projects happening. As we walked along, I snapped a few shots for those people I know who are interested in building projects.  I believe Mexico has different building standards than we do in the USA.  Here are those photos.

That is all for this blog.  Dan and I tried surfing our stand-up-paddleboards this morning.  It was fun, but I was not too successful.  No worries, I will leave it to my girls to figure out when they come for a visit.

We rowed the dinghy to a wonderful palapa to post these blogs and use their WIFI.  Meanwhile after a few drinks and a lot of sun this morning, we are still able to send warm wishes to all our followers and family members who are in the cold, winter climates.  Come to Mexico!

More Hanging in Chacala (second part)

On New Years Eve Day, Dan and I paddled our SUP boards to a beautiful little cove.  We must have paddled 4 - 5 miles at least (round trip).  We passed this neat, rugged outcrop.  

I can see that I need to ask Dan to take a few more pictures with me in them.  So far the blog has mostly Dan.  If you check out his blog, he does have one of me SUPPing to the beat of music that was playing in the cove.  https://onemoretimetosail.blogspot.com

Unfortunately, Dan has been having difficulty walking due to hip pain.  He has been  laying low and staying on the boat for the past several days.  Meanwhile I do my thing -swim, SUP, explore and cook.

I really enjoy SUPPing and it easily gets me off the boat.  Lately, I’ve been listening to music while paddling.  This is much nicer.  Along one of the coves, are these beautiful houses.  I was planning to hike up there today, until I learned that it is a gaited community and unless my name was on the list, I was not going to get in.  Here is a view from the water.

There have been a lot of pelicans around lately.  I believe they follow some type of small fish as the place is loaded with them now.  We get to watch them dive-bomb to get their catch.  The  amazing thing is that they do this right amongst all the swimmers.  What amazing divers they are!

 I wanted to get into town, so decided to swim and take a couple dry bags for my shoes and clothes. The dinghy is too difficult for me to get off the boat myself and I do not want Dan to do any lifting unless he has to.  I am also uncomfortable about leaving the SUP board at the beach, so my best choice was to swim. I explored a few side streets.  This is a small town, with cobblestone streets.  Here are a few shots my day hike.  

We desperately need to do our laundry, as the dampness gets to all our bedding etc.  We've been wearing the same bathing suits, shorts and tees so do not have many clothes, just towels etc.  Then I stumbled on this laundry service.  The women there was working hard washing everyone's clothes. I will wait until I can do ours at a marina.

Cement mixers are seen everywhere in Mexico just like the ones my Dad used to have.

There are interesting steps around here.  

I came across the tortilla factory - and tried chatting with the workers - as well as buy a few tortillas for our dinner tonight.  The motor cycle with the cooler on back is used to distribute the tortillas while they are hot to the various little stores in the village.  They spoke no English and I used my limited Spanish to try to converse.  They were willing to have me take a picture which of course I asked for.  

Lastly, I tried to find this famous taco shop but was unable to.  I did find this restaurant cooking beans (or something) on a wood fire outside, along with some peppers.  

Tomorrow, if Dan’s hip is better,  I hope we head to a new place, Punta Mita.  This has been a nice harbor but I am ready to move on.  We actually made marina reservations at La Cruz which is in Bahía de Banderas and Puerto Vallarta.  I am most excited to see an old high school friend Denise and her husband Frank there.

Adios to Chacala.  Malo has enjoyed your anchorage and beautiful water.  (Repeat of a previous photo for those that recognize it).