Bahia Chamela to Bahia Tenacatita February 14 – 18

The weather in Bahia Chamela remained a bit overcast during our visit, but we managed a couple of trips to the beach for lunch.  With each trip we improved our surf landing skills, but we are still struggling a bit with surf departures – and are not confident that we can avoid getting soaked one direction or the other.  We also had a couple of strolls through the little beach-side town of Perula.  Perula is one of those towns strung along a stretch of dusty highway that cause a traveler, when viewing it from the window of a bus, to wonder “who lives here and what do they do for a living?”.  The answer becomes clearer when you visit Perula by foot.  Along the highway are a number of abarotes (groceries) and tiendas (general purpose stores) and one very good pollo asada (grilled chicken) stand.  There is also an estetica (beautician’s shop), which, even though Molly has been agonizing (boringly) over what to do about her “sailor’s hair”, she was just not up to trying.  And of course there is the requisite “beach infrastructure” – small hotels and a couple of camper trailer parks.

Our trip from Chamela to Tenacatita started as a Valentine’s Day trip to an anchorage 8 miles south in a tiny cove called “Paraiso”.  We thought “Paradise Cove” would be a fitting place to spend our Valentine’s Day.  However, as we approached Paraiso, we peaked around the corner and the anchorage looked really rolly due to the high swells, even in the morning’s very low winds.  Our imaginations led us to wonder what a night in “Paradise” would be like if the winds picked up (as they often due in the afternoon and evening) – and with the memories of our nights at Yelapa fresh in our minds, we decided to press on another 20-ish miles to Bahia Tenacatita and forego the romance of a rolly anchorage. 

The trip to Tenacatita was uneventful but productive.  We motored, which had the triple purpose of (a) keeping us moving in a 5 knot breeze; (b) replenishing our batteries, which were quite low (solar power is great . . . until you spend several days anchored in the rain); and (c) making water, which requires a lot of power and is best done when the engine is running if the batteries are low due to lack of sun.  We were treated to a whale show as we were chickening out of a night in Paradise Cove, where we saw four or perhaps more whales – they don’t stay in one place to be counted -- cavorting.  We were finally able to sail around 15.30 (batteries topped, water made, winds finally at 12 knots), and we arrived in Tenacatita in time to anchor and have a Valentine’s Day beer by 18.00. 

The weather in Tenacatita was also a bit overcast, but not rainy.  The anchorage at Tenacatita is more remote than the anchorage in Chamela, and by times the surf landings are more difficult.  We of course managed to time ourselves perfectly on occasion and one particular departure was so spectacularly soggy it caused several cruisers to give us unsolicited advice on dinghy departures (we have been wondering if we should actually charge for some of this entertainment . . .)! 

There is an estuary off of the bay to the village of Tenacatita, and after Bryce figured out how to get us over a sand bar between us and the estuary, we took a dinghy tour about an hour back into the jungle. 

The atmosphere was very "Africa Queen" - lots of mangrove trees and jumping fish - and the occasionl speeding fisherman.



We were entertained by a flock of five white herons (we think that’s what they were – anyone know?) and several other birds that were more difficult to photograph. 

Alas, we did not see any crocodiles, even though they were seen by a commercial trip that went up the estuary the day before. 

The biggest nature thrill, however, was in reponse to a shout-out on the radio one morning.  A call to the Tenacatita fleet reported that one of the other boaters, while rooting around in his boat's bilge, had heard whale calls.  Sure enough, when we lifted the cabin sole and put our heads in the bilge (fortunately we have a relatively clean bilge!) we could hear whale music.  It was spectacular.  No one actually saw whales in the bay that morning, so we must have been hearing sounds from quite some distance - but they were clearly whale songs; very beautiful and wild. 

On an interesting, non-natural world point, Bahia Tenacatita is also the home of an all-inclusive resort named Hotel Blue Bay.  We walked to the resort one day to ask about the cost of a day pass which proved to be too expensive, but gave us a chance to download and send some e-mails.  We were interested in the fact that most of the signs about activities around the resort were in Cyrillic – and even those that were not were in a language that we couldn’t identify.  Clearly the marketers at Hotel Blue Bay have an in with the tourist industry in – Russia -- some other place in Eastern Europe? 

Later that day our question was answered.  We were entertained by a film / video crew shooting along the beach and at the little palapa restaurant near the anchorage – including using one of the local waitresses as a cast member.  The story line wasn’t clear, but the main actor looked like an American soap opera doctor and the main actress seemed spectacularly uninterested in him (and everything else around her).  When we asked one of the production crew what they were doing, we learned they were shooting Paradise Beach – a very popular reality TV show in . . . Hungary!  And it was confirmed that Hotel Blue Bay was indeed a popular destination for Russians and Hungarians.  How international!  For those of you not planning on visiting Hungary in time to catch this episode of Paradise Beach, here’s a bit of what you’re missing:

Several boats we knew from other anchorages or marinas (Cuba Libre, Buena Vida and Damiana) were at Tenacatita with us, which was fun.  Seeing them made us feel part of the cruiser community – even if we’re still “freshmen” members.  And, we were there for the “Mayor’s Raft-up” – a cruiser’s event not to be missed.  Apparently every Friday during the sailing season someone from the crew of a boat in the anchorage takes on the exalted position of “Mayor of Bahia Tenacatita” (it seems to be a self-appointed position) and sponsors a dinghy raft-up.  This sponsorship requires the “Mayor” to anchor his/her dinghy near a very calm area of shore known (for reasons we have not been able to discern) as “Good Dog Beach” and invite all other dinghies in the anchorage to tie up together (raft-up) and bring drinks, an appetizer to share, books and CDs to swap – and a story to tell. 

So we spent Friday evening listening to the “how I named my boat and where I’ve been with her” stories of about 15 boats, eating a pot-luck assortment of food (and being very sorry we arrived too late for the brownies – there were only 12, apparently . . . ) and swapping books.  Molly has already finished 44 Scotland Street by Alexander McCall Smith which we got in trade for Travels of a Female Nomad by Rita Goldman Gelman – and insists that we got the better of the trade.  Interestingly, tucked into that book was a CD of The Scorpion King III in Spanish.  We can’t wait.  

Having made it to the weekly social highlight of Bahia Tenacatita, and in order to depart in time to meet our friends and former crew Frank Chan and Irene deBruijn Chan in Puerto Vallarta for part of their honeymoon (everyone needs a friend or two to meet on one’s honeymoon, don’t you think?), we departed Bahia Tenacatita on the 18^th.  Our trip was made safer because of the weather reports gathered and shared by Roy and Marlene from Damiana, for which we are grateful.  But it wasn’t actually the weather that made that trip challenging.  That story is to come! 

La Cruz to Bahia Chamela (via Yelapa) -- February 4 – February 10

Departing Marina Nayarit:  Our departure from Marina Riviera Nayarit at La Cruz was a low-key adventure -- basically we motored about a mile to the anchorage immediately outside of the marina and dropped the hook.  Our planned departure and trip to Yelapa was delayed for the best of reasons – we were hanging out with friends!  Saturday morning, we got up early (for us), joined our yoga group for a good stretch and to say goodbye, and showered (knowing that we were going to be on the hook for several days, and how much we would miss a good land shower!).  On our way out of the “La Cruz Yacht Club” (the place of land showers) we ran into a fellow boater that we hadn’t seen since Mazatlan – Ted from Tarry-A-Bit.  He and his mate Maureen had arrived the day before, and were traveling with other friends, Lynn and Debbie from Dolphin Tales and Tom and Pam from Kewao.  Kewao was at anchor, but Tarry-A-Bit and Dolphin Tales were in the marina. 

We joined the Tarry-A-Bit and Dolphin Tales crews for coffee and cookies and chatted the morning away.  But, rather than stay another night at the marina, we got our friend Tom from Camelot to help us slip off the dock and headed to the anchorage, where we anchored next to Kewao.  Saturday night was spent with Tom and Pam at Restaurant Huanacaxtle, listening to a very good group playing an eclectic mix of Latin American music (including from Southern California, which most musicians in Mexico think of as part of Latin America).

Yelapa:  Sunday morning, we forwent the pleasure of the La Cruz farmers’ market, and sailed to Yelapa, some 20 miles across Banderas Bay.  The winds were light and we were towing our dinghy, so it wasn’t until 17:30 that we tied up to a mooring ball.  Yelapa is in a very deep (very – 100 feet in some places!) cove that is known for being susceptible to swells, so most boats use the locally owned mooring balls rather than attempt to anchor.  Also, the locals have preempted anchoring in most places by setting out mooring balls!  We were directed to a mooring ball, and assisted in our tie-up by Romeo (yes, that is his name).

We had been warned that Yelapa cove was subject to swells due to its depth and sea aspect (a “rolly” anchorage), and that most boaters visit Yelapa as a day trip.  “Ha!” we thought.  We aren’t afraid of no stinking rolly anchorage.  This turned out to be not only a case of eating our words – but eating words we almost regurgitated!  Yelapa is beyond “rolly”.  It was so rolly that Molly couldn’t stay below long enough to make a real dinner.  Thank goodness we had a package of freeze-dried soup our friends Rick and Corinne had brought with them to add to our HaHa provisions.  Boiling water was as close as we could get to cooking. 

Then about 20:00 (shortly after dark – of course) we realized that not only were we swinging wildly, so was the water taxi tied up next to us.  So wildly, and so differently than our much larger boat, that we were bow to bow with the water taxi.  Afraid not only of what the water taxi would do to our bow, but what our anchor would do to the water taxi, we decided to move to another mooring ball.  Off we went, waddling through the swell, to another mooring ball (this time without Frank Chan to assist us – see prior posting re: the unauthorized mooring in Morro Bay, California).  Bryce’s long arms achieved mooring success, and we tied up next to a catamaran. We nervously slept/watched to make sure we were swinging in a way that wasn’t dangerous to ourselves or the catamaran until the cat departed around midnight.  It’s common for boats to want to round Cabo Corrientes at night – the theory is that the water is calmer around the cape at night. 

The next morning we discussed whether we could stay another night in order to see the town.  We wanted to visit Yelapa because it is a communally owned village, accessible only by foot, horses and sea, and the site of some reportedly beautiful waterfalls. 

We decided to tough out a second night, and take the water taxi to shore to spend the day exploring the town.  That’s when we learned that, though our first mooring ball had been rented to us by Romeo, we had moved to a mooring ball serviced by someone else.  After much drama, we paid the tender of the mooring ball for the night, and explained our plan to stay a second night.  We won’t go into the painful attempts to get reimbursement from Romeo.  In short, it appears that the concept of “warranty of fitness for the intended purpose” is not honored in Yelapa.  Caveat emptor is the overriding rule of law.    

Setting aside our grumpiness at Romeo, we went to the closest of the reportedly beautiful waterfalls.  Unfortunately, at this waterfall, we were not alone – we arrived shortly after a group of tourists on a day trip from Puerto Vallarta (they apparently were from “Boat Number One” according to the calls that rang out to heard them back to the departure pier).  We bought a refresco and set and watched them take pictures of each other and fight over who got which towel.  One of those moments when not having children seemed like a good thing.

Fortunately, however, we ran into a gringo artist who, after he realized we weren’t really interested in having a picture of ourselves drawn by him, told us about a couple of interesting restaurants in the area.  One was on the way to the much further away (and hopefully, less touristified) waterfall, so we set out along the river path.  This led us through a portion of the little town, on a cobblestone path passing tiendas offering the type of wares that are sold at tiendas in small towns (bananas, chiles, toilet paper, laundry detergent, etc) as well as those unique to tourist Mexico (t-shirts, hats, beach toys). 

We also passed funky little “hotels” offering three walls, a roof and a hammock.  As we got further, the cobblestone path became a dirt path, which we shared with the local commercial traffic: horses and mules burdened with construction supplies. 

We spent the next 45 minutes looking at the little homes set back from the path – many of which were surrounded by gorgeous flower gardens – and picking our way around horse and mule scat.  Bryce’s theory is that mules are programmed to do what they need to do while working, and heading uphill.  Our unscientific survey of the hills around Yepala would suggest this theory has some merit. 

We stopped to dine at Christina’s Riverside Café.  Fortunately it is open Thursday through Monday.  We followed the neatly written instructions on the fence, and pulled a line that rang a bell further down the hill.  We were told to “come on in” and we took the path, again, through beautiful flower gardens, to the one room building that serves both as the kitchen for the café, and, apparently, the rest of Christina’s home.  We saw a bed tucked neatly behind some curtains, two pretty wooden chairs and a rug, a table with a radio on it, and a bookshelf with books wrapped in plastic against the elements and local bugs.  Christina has lived in Yelapa since 1979.  We don’t know the rest of her story – but we’re sure it’s an interesting one that has brought her to this tiny home by the Rio El Tuito. 

The dining room of the café is outside the kitchen door and down the hill, on a beach next to the river.  We spent the next hour or more watching birds and waiting for our lunch – with increasing foreboding.  But when lunch arrived (sometime around 15.00) it proved worth the wait – Christina served the best falafel and hummus we have ever had, some very good spiced lentils with rice, and a fabulous chocolate brownie dessert!  The meal was a true treat. 

The other “treat” at Christina’s Riverside Café is the restroom.  Other café patrons had suggested that we “not to miss the restroom”.  Bryce was the first to follow their interesting recommendation.  When he returned, he reported that everything functioned just fine – as long as one didn’t lose one’s grip.  Hmmm.  Molly took her trip, and found that the restroom was nestled into the side of a huge tree, and entry required a climb over the roots of the giant, old tree.  Upon arrival, one finds a fully functioning toilet and sink – plastic pipes heading off into the ground to the far side of the tree.  So – not only a delicious meal, but a unique restaurant experience.

Unfortunately, by the time we’d finished our meal, it was too late to hike to the waterfall and back to the water taxi before dark, so we returned to town, using a path on the other side of the river than we’d used on our way out of town.  This took us by a true Mexican cowboy bar – horses tied up outside, saddles hanging from the rafters of one three-sided building, and the riders drinking happily in the second open building.  Music blared from next door (apparently the bar itself had no electricity) – through speakers of a size not seen in California since the 1970’s. 

We took a water taxi back to the boat and spent another miserable night.  Thanks to the lateness of our meal at Christina’s we didn’t need much for dinner, so we popped some Jiffy Pop and drank a beer and went to bed (lying down is the only way to handle that kind of turbulence).  Worse yet, Molly was not able to follow her usual practice of making a meal for us to eat underway.  For those that are interested she has posted her recipe for “Double Reef Pasta” on the Cruisers’ Notes page. 

The next morning we took off relatively early – not wanting to spend any more time rolling around Yelapa cove.  We have decided that we like Yelapa very much – but next time we’ll come over via Boat Number One or some similar form of water taxi, and stay in one of the shacks on the beach.  We admit that we were defeated by Yelapa cove!

Chamela:  From Yelapa we sailed about 26 hours (about 91 miles) to reach Bahia Chamela.  Leaving Banderas Bay we sighted two whales about 500 feet off our port bow, and later saw the blows that represented two others, and the tail of a small whale about 30 feet off our stern; an excellent whale-watching day.  Our rounding of Cabo Corrientes was uneventful, but the winds began to build around 16.30 and by 18.00 the winds were averaging 23 knots with gusts as high as 36, and we had both sails double reefed.  The winds were high until about 21.00, and were brisk until 01.00.  The moon was full, so the night was beautiful once the seas flattened out around 01.00 when we sailed with about 11 knots of wind though a night that looked like an artsy black and white photograph.

When we arrived at Bahia Chamela on Wednesday morning, we were greeted by dolphins playing around our bow, light winds and sun.  It was an auspicious arrival. 

We anchored, and were promptly invited to join some boaters for sundowners that evening on the catamaran, Damiana. 

The crew of a beautiful Cal 43, Cricket, Pat and Lynn, joined us and the crew of Damiana, Roy and Marlene.  It was fun to get to know more people that have been cruising in Mexico (and in the case of Damiana, beyond) for a long time, and to gain from their experience. 

Yesterday, the skies opened up and we have begun to wonder where our beautiful sunny Mexico has gone!  It’s been pouring down rain for two days.  Yesterday we braved the weather and visited Damiana where Roy and Marlene taught us the basics of an important Mexico cruiser survival skill: Mexican Train Dominoes.  Fortunately no money was on the table.  Bryce was the overall low point score – but Molly’s score was high enough to more than offset his win.  Today we have been doing boat projects.  Bryce looked for and, thinks he has found the source of a small diesel leak.  Molly has been cooking cold weather food like oatmeal and macaroni and cheese.  We’ve both been blogging (using wifi from a local hotel that we can pick up when Abracadabra swings in just the right direction . . .). 

Tomorrow?  We’re just hoping for some sun as we’re beginning to be bored by our provisions.  While it’s true that people eat everywhere, and that one can provision from local stores even in very small towns in Mexico – sometimes getting to town is more work than it’s worth.  Landing a dinghy on a beach invariably means that we get wet (bum, pants legs for the shorter of us, etc.)  which is not a big deal if the next step is to buy a refresco at a beach palapa and dry off.  But without the prospect of being able to dry off – we’re now foraging through our canned food products for dinner.  Thanks again for the Costco canned chicken idea, Frank!