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”