La Cruz, Punta Mita, Home to Seattle 1-30-13

Moved to La Cruz anchorage – Friday 1-25-13 

Silly Boat Name

  I spent the morning scrubbing Mariah’s topsides with fresh water from the marina.  My reward was another swim at the resort pool and an afternoon of reading and resting in the shade. Life is good!!

    “Mariah” and I departed Paradise Marina about 3 pm and actually sailed for 2 hours to our next anchorage at La Cruz.  While putting up the main sail in 10 knots of wind I realized I haven’t sailed since arriving in Banderas Bay over a week ago.  There was still a reef tied in the sail from my sail from La Paz.  I’ve been either anchored or motoring due to no wind during my visit to Banderas Bay.  I was nice to be sailing at 3-4 knots in gentle breezes and sun.

    I dropped the hook in 25 feet of water along with 51 other boats.  My mistake was anchoring downwind of a 30’ yellow sailboat covered with pelicans and a years worth of bird poop – sinky!!!

Traditional Junk Boat Design

   I dingied over to a 68 year old solo sailor in his home built 40’ catamaran from San Francisco.  We chatted until sunset and traded stories and philosophies. I forget his name but the catamaran was yellow and named “Feet” as in “Feet don’t fail me now” which apparently has not let him down in 6 or so years of cruising.  He did report losing all his electronics and being holed by a lightening strike some time ago but patched the leaking hole with  underwater epoxy. 

  I also took photos of some interesting boats like a traditional Junk boat and funny boat name (see photos).

 

Marina La Cruz and Boat Swap Meet – Sat 1-26-13   

   The morning radio net reported my favorite yet financially dangerous event which is a boat swap meet.  I

La Cruz Anchorage

buy almost all of my boat improvement parts at boat swap meets for a fraction of new costs.  I think of it as treasure hunting.  So at this swap I bought an outdoor shower kit for our motorhome at home for $15 and a large solar panel for $160 ($600 new).  I kinda regret not purchasing the marine sewing machine for $400 ($1200 new) but I was trying not to spend too much.  However a heavy duty sewing machine is extremely useful for the repair-it-yourself boater. Oh-well.

   I also took a stroll through the town of La Cruz which was filled with local homes and businesses.  I think I missed the upscale waterfront shops and restaurants but that’s okay.

  I planned to search out some live music at night, which La Cruz is famous for, but I was so at peace reading and relaxing at dusk that I just stayed on Mariah for the night.  No regrets.

Departing La Cruz and returning to Punta Mita – Sun 1-27-13

Punta Mita Anchorage Sunset

   I was looking forward to returning to Punta Mita for a few final days of warm weather surfing before returning home to a frigid Seattle.  While motoring back to Punta Mita I passed through many turbulent areas of what appeared to be feeding frenzies of game fish on schools of bait fish.  I still had tuna in the fridge so I didn’t attempt any fishing but I’m sure it would have been very exciting and successful.

   After dropping anchor and relaxing a bit, I dingied over to “El Faro” to surf.  This was my first time at “El Faro” so I anchored the dingy next to an anchored panga also there to surf.  The waves were slow and gentle at take off but became steep and faster on the inside, which was filled with many rocks both just above the water and well above.  It was quite an obstacle coarse on the inside I had to avoid jumping off the board feet first and instead tried to belly flop to avoid the rocks and sea erchins shallowly below.  There were mostly local Mexicans surfing short boards in the inside while I was catching the outside waves with my 9’ longboard.  The other surfers were were happily cheering on their fellow surfers in Spanish.  I met Solano who was a friendly younger surfer from Salutitas.   Out of respect, I tried to stay out of the other surfers way.  It was an exciting day of surfing and it felt good to be back in Punta Mita.

Punta Mita: Packing Mariah and Surfing – Mon 1-28-13

El Faro Surf Break

   I spent the morning beginning prepare Mariah for my departure.  I spent 2-3 hours scrubbing Mariah’s bottom and propeller with a snorkel.  It takes a lot of effort to hold your breath while scraping barnacles and scrubbing moss from the entire hull.  The propeller also accumulates barnacles that need to be scraped away.  The task is made easier by the warm 77 degree water.  I didn’t even need a wet suit.  

   In the afternoon I returned to “El Faro” by dingy, which is now my preferred mode of surfing transportation.  The waves were again a gentle 4 foot face takeoff on the outside with a long left and steep inside ride around many rocks.  It was another great day of surfing.

   I met Chris who was stand up paddleboard surfing on the outer waves that a surfboard could never catch.  Chris is from Vancouver and spends winters in his Sayulita’s home.  Not a bad gig!!

 Punta Mita: time is running out – Tue 1-29-13

  I again spent the morning preparing Mariah for my departure.  It’s quite a task because cruising boats have LOTS of gear and toys.

Punta Mita Anchorage Moon Rise

   In the afternoon, Chris and I took took the dingy to “El Faro” which had no surfers or waved to speak of.  We continued around the point to “La Bahia” which also had no waves so we return east past Mariah to “La Launcha” which still had surf and about 7 surfers.  We anchored the dingy just off the break and paddled over to catch some waves.  The wave sets were inconsistent but decent surfable 4 foot breakers passed through on occasion.  I was able to catch some left rides which is my preferred direction being a “goofy foot” (right foot forward).  Between sets we had fun chatting with the other surfers some of which were with surf instructors that helped guide them to the better waves and take off points.  My final day of surfing was saved by the fun waves and camaraderie at La Lancha.

Mariah prepared for hibernation

   At 6pm we had happy hour at Mariah with the folks who will be keeping watch while I am gone.  Tim and Jane from “Midnight Blue”, Leonard and Marie from “Mi Casa”, Derek and Sissy from “Octavia”, and surfer Chris were all present.  We had a few drinks and chips and salsa.  It was great visiting with all these experienced cruisers on my last night before departing Mexico.  I felt like I was leaving Mariah in good hands.

Hasta La Vista Mariah and Sunny Puerto Vallarta,  Hello Cold and Rainy Seattle – Wed 1-30-13

Trash and Carry On Baggage ready to go

  

 Today is the big day!!!  Time to say “hasta la vista” to Mariah, Punta Mita, Puerto Vallarta and all the great cruisers.  Leonard and Marie gave me a ride to shore on their dingy where I dumped my final trash and caught a public bus to La Cruz.  At la Cruz I stopped by the marina office to pick up my Ipod which Ben from “Kyanos” left there about 4 weeks prior.  I caught another minivan type public bus ($1.00) for the 20 minute ride to the airport.  Luckily my flight was on time and it was nonstop to Seattle.  I chatted with Lor (Lorenzo) who is an artist living on the Sunshine Coast in BC who often visits Yelapa.  We talked almost the whole flight which helped pass the time.

    

Home in Seattle: Final Thoughts and Perspectives – Thur  1-31-13

Final Thoughts at the computer with Lila

   I am typing on my laptop on the kitchen table at my home in Seattle and trying to assemble words to summarize my incredible cruising adventure which spans from July 2012 to January 2013. 

   I would first like to thank Vinnie, Maya, and Dylan who supported and briefly shared my lifetime dream to experience cruising on my own sailboat.  They “held down the fort” and were my steadying keel while I was gone.

  

   A heartfelt thanks to the following crew who trusted in Mariah and I enough to share in the experience and helped make this trip so successful:  

Rhys and TR (Seattle to San Francisco)

Dan (San Francisco Bay)

Vinnie, Maya and Dylan (Delta Do Dah, Catalina, and La Paz)

Dave (San Francisco Bay and the Delta)

Erick and Geoff (San Francisco to Los Angeles)

Doug (Catalina, La Paz)

Andrew, James, and Brittany (Baja HaHa)

Mayne and Matt (La Paz)

   

   I would also like to thank “Mariah” who was ever dependable and forgiving of my mistakes and faithfully carried myself and crew roughly 2500 miles from Seattle to Puerto Vallarta Mexico.  

Ken enjoying the freedom of the sea

   Lastly, I would like to thank the “the spirits” for looking over me and Mariah on this voyage.  I am not a religious man but believe that some “spirit” had a hand in supplying me with this opportunity and such good fortune during the trip which I hope continues through my return voyage planned in April 2013.

   I enjoyed the simple life of living on the sea on Mariah.  I found that I ate healthy, exercised often, met scores of wonderful people, and was truly at peace.  I found the cruising life truly fitted me.

   I realized that living on a boat is forced minimalism and conservation; two ideals that I appreciate but find hard to follow at home.  On board Mariah, I generated electricity mostly with solar panels and a wind generator.  I conserved water and electricity.  I ate simple and healthy, wasted little food, and produced little trash.  I was able to catch and eat fish (mostly tuna).   My toilet composted solids.  I mostly anchored for free but occasionally paid for a marina slip.  I used the wind to sail when possible but still motored about 200 hours using 150 gallons of diesel to travel about 1000 miles out of 2500 miles.  So overall, I felt like I was living a life that was simple, inexpensive, and healthy with minimal impact on the environment.  Not a bad combination. 

The Tuna that "got away"

   My adventures with Mariah reinforce my thoughts of the “meaning of life”; to find ones passion (sailing and water sports for me) and to give and receive love in its many forms (to family, old and new friends and even strangers). 

   I also gained an appreciation for those who are able to create a lifestyle that balance work, home life and adventure.  I guess that has long been my goal and will continue as such.

  This adventure has far exceeded any of my expectations

   So at this point, I hope to find work as a physical therapist in the Seattle area for the next 2 months before returning to Mariah in Puerto Vallarta for the long voyage home.  Beginning in April, I hope to sail back to San Diego and then truck Mariah home to Seattle.  There are still adventures to be had on the return voyage and I am in need of crew so if any of you readers are interested or know of someone who is interested please email me at kennethpainter@hotmail.com

   Peace, Love, and Coconuts from Ken and SV Mariah

Exploring Banderas Bay 1-24-13

Chore day at Punta Mita – Wed 1-15-13

Tidy Laundry

$20 of groceries at local mini market

neighbor's water dog

Mariah's water toys

   Spent the day doing laundry and getting groceries.  Similar to La Paz, the “lavanteria” does a beautiful job washing and folding laundry for $5 for a large load.  I found a small local “mercado” that had the basics I needed like eggs and bread for about $20. I learned that only that only in the US are eggs chilled.  The eggs in Mexico and most of the world are stored and sold in room temperature and do just fine which saves me cooler space.

Punta Mita to Marietas Islands – Thur 1-16-13

Mariah at Marietas Islands

   Finally departed Punta Mita for the local Marietas Islands.  I tried to find other cruisers to travel with but no takers so I finally just went on my own.  The Marietas Islands are a bird sanctuary in Banderas Bay only about 5 miles from Punta Mita.  “Mariah” and I passed within 100’ of a surfacing whale enroute.  After doing a superb job of anchoring between 2 moorings I was politely told by a man in a panga that it was prohibited to anchor for conservation purposes.  One of the 3 moorings opened up  but as I approached a 60’ tourist filled catamaran showed up and the elderly crew politely asked if they could tie to the mooring and I could then tie to them, which we did.

Pelican visitor

   After the catamaran left I tied directly to the rough mooring can that ground along Mariahs hull in the process (ouch!).  I then took the power dingy over to the beach and walked along the short natured trail with signs in English and Spanish that described the flora and fauna.  I returned to the beach for some snorkeling and spearfishing, but don’t worry, the fish are still safe from this hopeful spear fisherman.   The snorkeling was terrific though with much coral and varieties of fish.  I heard sounds under water and thought I had company but realized I was hearing whale sounds from a whale in the bay (spooky but cool).  I was also greeted by a 3 foot  eel who then swam away from me as quickly as I could retreat (again spooky but cool).

Strange bird on island walk (blue footed booby?)

I decided to spend the night since the tourist boats departed and left me alone in these wild islands.  From my anchorage the island appeared prehistoric with many caves both at sea level and higher above.  It was a great setting for a spooky island movie.  In the spirit of this unique setting I played my drum for the first time and then attempted to play my ukulele again.  Hopefully the island birds are as pitch deaf as I am.

   At 3 am I was awoken by a banging/grinding on the hull which I knew was the abrasive mooring can so I carefully moved to the rubber ball mooring.  It was a poor night of sleep but worth the adventure.

Marietas Islands to Yelapa – Fri  1-17-13

   Left about 8 am for the 3 hour motor to Yelapa which used to be one of my Dad’s favorite hang outs about 15 years ago.  Yelapa is located  on the Southern side of Banderas Bay which is known for exposure to the northwest swell and wind and has deep bays with poor anchoring conditions necessitating bow and stern anchors.  The saying goes: “Its better to have a Palapa in Yelapa then a Condo in Redondo.”  Yelapa has a cool mix of locals, tourists and hippies.

Caught 3 Tuna

   I caught 3 small tuna on the trip on my hand line with a cedar plug.  Boy they make a bloody mess when filleted.  I felt like I committed mass murder with all the blood in the cockpit.  It was worth the mess though because I had enough tuna fillets for 12 meals (4 per fish). Its been a while since I caught fish so I was happy to stock the fridge again with fish.

Falls up Valley

   Anchoring at Yelapa was tricky and took me 2 attempts due to being so close to shore to find a shallow enough anchorage (50 feet deep).  I then dingied ashore and strolled the narrow pedestrian streets up to the local waterfall and had a refreshing rinse under the falls.  The water was cool but not cold and there was a bar/restaurant  overlooking the falls.  I learned of more waterfalls up the valley so I headed out up the trail through the tropical jungle.  What a beautiful, tropical setting.  I spotted green 2 Mccaws flying overhead and passed many colorful flowers on the trail.  A green 12 inch snake crossed the path in front of me.  The hike took about an hour and I was again rewarded with a refreshing swim.

Yoga Center with view

   At the waterfall, I chatted with Julie who is from Seattle and is helping at the local Yoga retreat.  She later showed me the Yoga center that she was preparing for upcoming guests. Wow, what a beautiful space and view for Yoga.  She did mention that spiders and scorpions were attracted to the tiled floors though. She has had to kill about 1 scorpion per day for her first 4 days here.

   At night I was serenated with drums on shore and watched someone twirl fire sticks on shore.

Hiking in Yelapa – Sat 1-19-13

   I enjoyed the village of Yelapa and the waterfalls so much that I planned to stay another day and hike further up the valley to more waterfalls.

Upper falls at Yelapa

   While dingying ashore I met Senior Tamborin (means drum) who was attaching his repaired rudder to his Haida sailboat moored in the bay.  Tamborin is also from the NW but lives in Yelapa.  Despite being 68 years old, he is very excited about his new son from his 39 year old (Dutch?) girlfriend.  They are living in town but he hopes to move into his home “above the waterfall.” I tried to visit this home above the falls but ended up seeing it across the valley.  From a distance, it appeared to have a white tarp roof with bug netting and a terrific view.  This man seemed very healthy and happy.

View of Yalapa Anchorage

   I hiked about 2 hours up the valley and found 2 more sets of waterfalls and pools.  It was a beautiful jungle hike mostly on a horse trail but I did some bushwacking after losing the trail.  I think I saw the same 2 Mccaws again overhead.  I was bushed after the return hike to town but had a really nice day.

   Yelapa is a really special place with great people, colorful architecture, and a jungle filled valley.

Quimixto – Sun 1-20-13

Quimixto Falls

Modern Bridge

Anchored close to beach

We motored 1 hour from Yelapa to the small village of Quimixto.  Anchoring was easier in 20’ of water but its rolly due to swell and panaga taxis.  I again set out to find the waterfalls in this bay.  The town is more simple and rustic compared to Yelapa. The 20 minute hike led though 6 to 8 feet deep narrow dirt paths that must flood during the rainy season (summer).  Horses share this trail so I had to avoid the “horse pies”. 

Life's a Beach

Quimixto Retreat

   I chatted with an elder local woman on the path in Spanish and English.  After learningI was a physical therapist, she asked if I could look at her sore knee.  I poked around her knee which didn’t appear too have an acute injury but was likely arthritic.  I gave her some back and knee exercises and suggested better shoes for her flat feet.  She was appreciative and gave me a bottled water from the snack shop she seemed to run at the waterfall. 

    I again swam and the waterfall and climbed a rope part way up the falls.  I was too unsure about the water depth and the possible slide down the stone face so I climbed back down the rope to avoid injury.  I found a quite place to read and relax near the falls.

   I walked down to the beach and napped in my hammock under the shade of a tree on the beach. Aww, life is good:)  I later strolled up the beach and happened upon a somewhat private beach with a lovely open air resort built on stilts into the hillside above the beach.  Wow what a cool resort.  Ill have to google “Quimixto Retreat” check out  their rates.

   After Yelapa, Quimixto has less to offer, but I still enjoyed my visit.

Scenic Rockey Beach

Boca de Tomatlan – Mon 1-21-13

Dingy Locked to tree

   Boca de Tomatlan is a small bay with a fishing village.  There is a small freshwater harbor providing mooring for the local pangas.  Its quite a sight to watch the pangas race at full speed up to the narrow and shallow opening and coast with outboard raise into the small bay.  Unfortunately, I anchored just to the side of the entrance so I got a front seat to the show…all day and night:(  These  bays are very deep so I again had to anchor close to the beach and also put out a stern anchor with the dingy to keep from drifting out to sea.  Its more work but keeps me facing the swells which minimizes rocking.  Again, I put out  “the kraken” (rocker stopper) off the boom to minimize the side rolling.  It really helps.

Mariah anchored near beach

   I took the local bus for about 10 minutes to “Chico’s Paradise” which includes restaurants perched besides natural waterfalls and swim pool.  It was a warm sunny day so the pools were refreshing.  There was a crazy local who dove off the recessed upper rock ledge about 50’ high into a narrow pool surrounded by large boulders.  He did flips and even did the trick blindfolded…all for tips.  He also had a pet raccoon (Lola) the perched on his shoulder while he swam.

   I met a young couple currently living in New York developing a catering website.  The woman’s younger brother (12)recently move to PV with their folks and he is learning 3-4 languages at an international school.  The parents own Mariners Insurance which is what I use to insure Mariah in Mexico.  Small world.

Falls at Chico's Resort

Attack of the killer racoon!!!!

Los Arcos

Los Arcos and Mismaloya – Tue 1-22-13

Mismaloya Beach

"Night of the Iguana" movie set (I think)

ithin view of the bay.

"Eden" restaurant and falls

   I again anchored near the beach with 2 anchors.  This kind of anchoring always makes me nervous because if my primary anchor drags, Mariah will end a wreck on the beach.  But I always put out a lot of chain, set the anchor well, and watch the conditions after anchoring.  Neptune thus far has been good to me…but I always count my blessings.

   Mismaloya is another small bay but more touristy with high rise hotels along the beach.  The is another fresh water bay for Panga parking.

   I started to walk the 3 miles up the steep and dusty road towards “Eden” which is another waterfall and swim hole with restaurant and canopy tour/zip lines.  Luckily an open tour bus driver had pity and stopped allowing me to jump on board.  The 2 Canadian women in the back were surprised to see me suddenly appear from the back of the truck.  The 2 women and there husbands were from Canada and on their way from Puerto Vallarta to the canopy tour.  How nice of the driver to save me the long, hot, and dusty walk.

Predator Character

   “Eden’s” claim to fame is being the set for the movie “Predator.”  There is a full size helicopter body on display from the movie.  The restaurant surrounded the water pools so there was less pool and more structures.  I went for a quick swim and swing on the “Tarzan” rope into the pool.  I later found access to deserted upper swim pools and followed a trail to more deserted and natural pool up a rugged but distinct trail through the jungle.  I much preferred these natural pools over the developed pools.

Cable Bridge

   Luckily I was able to hitch a ride on a tour bus with A/C for a $2.50 tip back down to the beach.  Luckily Mariah lay right where I left her at anchor.  I let out a sigh of relief and thanked the spirits that be…who ever they are.  The other risk with these outings is leaving my power dingy on the beach.  I have a long cable to lock the outboard, dingy, and gas can all to a tree or pier.  The outboard is a high theft item but luckily I’ve only come back to sand in the dingy from kid play…which still annoys me but at least its not damage.

Puerto Vallarta and Marina Vallarta anchorage: Wed 1-23-13

Pretty Flower

Public Pier

Malecon Sculpture

   We motored to Puerto Vallarta, fill up on fuel at Marina Vallarta, and then anchored just outside of the Marina breakwater.  I landed the dingy through small surf and locked her to a palapa post at the edge of a the last resort on the beach.  Luckily the hotel security left me alone.  I tried not to dilly dally near the dingy to avoid scrutiny.  There was a 50 cent bus that took me to the Puerto Vallarta malecon after a 10-15 minute ride.  I strolled the malecon and noted how much its changed since my last visit 25 years ago.  The malecon is now closed to car traffic and has many statues along the dedicated beach walk.  There was more restaurants, shops, hotels, and tourists then I was used to.  I bought a popsicle and a coconut drink from the street vendors which I enjoy giving business over the restaurants.  The walk let from the malecon, through the “old town” and along hilly streets along private beach homes and resorts.  I think I found the gay section of the beach because it was filled 90% with tan men in tight shorts…but I could be wrong and I was too afraid to ask:)

Malecon Sculpture

  





 I stopped by the “Mega” supermarket on the way back to the boat and stocked up on supplies…and chocolate:)  Actually there seems to be a shortage of chocolate in all the stores but I have found their fresh chocolate pastries pretty good.  However, the candy sections are mostly devoid of chocolate or are very overpriced.  I did get some M&Ms with peanuts to hold me over.  I also got some burger meat and chicken to use with my remaining teriyaki sauce.  And I always get my favorite fruit: fresh papaya.

   Again I returned to the beach (in the dark) to find the dingy and Mariah safe and sound.   More blessings to the spirits that be:)  The groceries survived the dingy launch through the 2 foot surf but I was wet up to my belly button.  For this reason I always wear my favorite floral shorts that dry really fast.  But back at the boat, after putting away groceries, I was able to take a quick shower in the cockpit with warm water from running the engine (oh joy!!).  Another great day in paradise…well touristville but it was still a nice day.

Paradise Marina at Nuevo Vallarta – Thur 1-24-13

Mariah at Paradise Marina

 

Relaxing Poolside

Fun Pool

   Now I can say I’ve been to paradise…well Paradise Resort that is.  For only about $22 per night, I get a marina slip at Paradise Marina and access to the whole resort, which includes 4 pools.  Pretty nice hey?! So, after walking around the resort and local mall, I spent the afternoon swimming in the pool and reading a book in the shade.  It was surreal being with all the resort tourists but I enjoyed my little bit of time on land. 

Cheeseburger in Paradise

  
 I later celebrated by cooking burgers on the BBQ, making fresh french fries, and drinking a cold beer.  I actually don’t like beer much but it just seemed to go so well with the meal and setting.  I dubbed the meal “Cheeseburger in Paradise” which I thought appropriate for the Paradise Marina.  However, the cheeseburger was really a teriyaki burger with pineapple.

So, cheers from Paradise:)

Ken and “Mariah”