Leaving Mexico for Central America

Where do I begin? It has been some time since my last blog if you don't count the small one from Ixtapa with the crocodiles. I have put a number of miles and a lot of ocean under my keel since leaving Mazatlan in January. Places where we have dropped anchor or stayed in a marina have been Acapulco, Ixtapa, Barra de Navidad, Isla Isabela, La Cruz, Bucerias, Chamela, Escondido, Impala, La Noria, Melaque, Puerto Angel, Zihuatenejo, Tenacatita, Puerto Vallarta and now I am in Santa Cruz otherwise known as Huatulco. Those of you that took out a map to see where I anchored will notice that the list is out of order so no I didn't go back and forth because I was lost. After leaving here our next stop is Bahia de Sol in San Salvador. El Salvador is in Central America for those of you that may not have found geography your best class in school. I also want to add that I took a bus trip inland to Oaxaca for three days to play tourist. More on that trip later in the blog.

In case you missed it, I picked up crew in Puerto Vallarta (La Cruz). A younger man from Spain who is staying with me for an undetermined time.

Two years ago on March 30th, 2008 I threw off the dock lines at my Marina and started my voyage. I didn't make it very far that first day because the seas outside the Golden Gate where too nasty so I pulled into a marina in San Francisco. Yes, technically I did leave if only travelling three miles. I have not added up the total miles that have passed under my keel but my guess would be a distance that if I were in a car I could have traveled from San Francisco to New York or at least close to the East Coast. Many adventures along the way. Some were not enjoyable but 99% of the adventures were wonderful and memorable. You can look back at my older blogs to read about the good, bad and ugly adventures I had.

So now let me bring everyone up to date so I need not feel guilty any longer.

Ixtapa was not one of those memorable locations. The marina we stayed in was expensive and there were very few sailboats. There was only one other sailboat there with people aboard. They are now beside me in the marina at Santa Cruz. Other than the crocodiles and the Tsunami that went through it was somewhat boring. You ask yourself; How can he say, with Crocodiles swimming around his boat and a Tsunami that went through and tore off two dock be boring? My response can only be that this is what happens when you have new and sometime exciting adventures day after day. It is like drugs. You must take more each time to get high.

After leaving Ixtapa, we were off to Acapulco. Acapulco was a place to be seen where you could possibly meet movie stars and other wealthy people. That was back in the 50s and the 60s. Now it is just another large city with a lot of traffic and noise. There are still many gringos there but few if any are rich and famous. There are so many gringos that one must stop to ask where you can find a Mexican to practice your Spanish.

I took a couple of photos one of which is of a business that was thought to have gone broke many years ago and were out of business. Woolworth. My mother spent many a day in that store when she lived in San Francisco during the war. I guess they moved out of the States and went down to Mexico. Just a reminder. You can expand a photo by placing your mouse over it and double clicking. To return to the original photo, press the Esc button. For those of you that are computer challenged, and I know who you are, this is the button on the top left on the keyboard.



















There are beautiful beaches in Acapulco which is its attraction. Spring break for the college kids here is a big hit. One thing that I may not have noted before is that Mexico must be the one country in the world that enjoys the most miles of unspoiled beaches on its coasts. As I have sailed south here on the mainland I have seen coastline covering a distance of 40 or more miles with uninterrupted and unspoiled beaches without a single golf course or resort.























Puerto Escondido was our next stop. This is a very popular location for surfers. I promised my son Steve I would stop there to check it out for him however we only stayed there for 30 minutes. It is good reason why this is a popular surf location. I was at anchor about 80 feet from the beach at a water depth of 45 feet. I couldn't get the anchor to hold so we pulled anchor and headed for plan 'B'. Plan 'B' turned out to be Bahia Angel. This is yet another small fishing village however the developers are moving in so there are a number of big expensive homes and resorts. The anchorage was small with swell coming around the point so we along with the other two boat there dropped a stern anchor to hold us into the waves. We stayed there three days and enjoyed the quiet location. On the way to Bahia Angel we had a number of giant turtles pass us by on their way west. I had stopped the boat at one point to go swimming and while Oriol was in the water a turtle came by. Oriol swam up to it and went for a short ride. We also saw a whale close by as we approached the bay. I wasn't able to get a good photo with his head out of the water. The size was about the same size as my fist if not larger. There must have been at least 100 turtles that we saw floating by the boat.



















This is part of the village where we were anchored. A good place to swim to shore for a cold beer or two, or three....


















One of the friends I met that came by to say hello. He wanted to know if I had any fish to spare. Sorry, all I have is coke and beer. WHAT! you promised me some fish yesterday!!!



















This is a seen that you often see around small villages where women are carrying produce or bread to sell to individuals or small restaurants.




















Here she is. Still looking good as she sits at anchor a short distance off of shore.




















Next stop was Santa Cruz. As I mentioned earlier, this is the last place we anchor and go ashore in Mexico. It looks like we will be here for two weeks as we wait for the weather to clear south of us. Once we throw off the dock lines, we will be sailing 4 days non stop until we pull into Bahia de Sol in El Salvador. This is a great area where tourists are welcome and you see many but you don't see the big hotels and resorts you see in many other locations around Mexico. Zoning regulations here do not allow buildings taller than 4 stories high. This keeps out the big U.S. developers since the return on their investment is not good enough. You won't see any photos since it is just another city without any special buildings and areas of interest.

I decided to go inland for a change and visit an old city of Oaxaca. This is a colonial city that has the streets and architecture that reminds one of Spain if you have every been there. Very European. Parks, sidewalk cafe's, narrow cobble stone streets and colorful people and buildings. I was there on a Friday which was a holiday of sorts. Each Friday during lent women around town give you a cup of flavored water from rice, pumpkin, are tea from the front of their homes or booths that are set up. This signifies the time that Christ was on the Cross and asked for water. Also there is a tradition where young men and boys gather flowers to give to girls and women that they know or meet along the street. At the end of the day, the girls and women meet on stage where there is a band and many people looking on. The person with the largest amount of flowers is crowned queen for the week. You can probably guess correctly if you assume she is the hottest of the group.


Enough of that for now. Here I am waiting for my bus to Oaxaca. This turned out to be a 9 hour bus ride through the mountains. Switch back turns every mile. I swore I could see the license plate at the back of the bus on some of the turns. The bus was comfortable, air conditioned and they played movies throughout the trip. Unfortunately, the movies were dubbed in Spanish with no sub-titles.


















I took this photo as I began my walk around town. Building painted these colors are rarely found in coastal towns that I have visited.



















This is part of a large square in the middle of town where most of the days and evenings activities are seen and heard. Many people are just sitting around enjoying the shade from the trees and the company of friends and family.




















This is one of many sidewalk cafe's in and around the city.



















I have taken many photos of churches as I have visited many villages and towns around Mexico. They are all beautiful, artistic and rich in colors and screens. This is an entrance to one of the offices off of the main church.
























I always enjoyed photos of the beautiful churches in Mexico. It doesn't seem to make a difference if they are in a small fishing village or a large city. This church is just off of the main square in Oaxaca.
























This was in a small alcove off of the main floor. This is one of many, each with a different scene.
























The alter




















These panels of etched glass are near the front entrance of the church.




















This is a closeup of one of the panels
























A short distance outside of the city are ruins that go back to 600 BC. The photos do not do justice to the area so one must visit it to get a real sense of the architecture and the people that lived and built this place. It was built of top of a small mountain and before they could begin to build, they had to cut the top of the mountain off so they could have a large flat area to build on. This took them 200 years. There was no Home depot around to buy jack hammers. I won't comment on the photos below. Hopefully it will give you some idea what it is like if you were to visit it in person.


















































































































Several streets were being repaired in town. They were laying underground utilities, first pulling the cobblestones up one by one, next lay the underground utilities, and finally laying back each stone again one by one. Full employment.




















There is always someone that wants their photo taken.



















Finally! That is it. I am caught up and as the result, you are also caught up with me and where I have been and seen. I hope you enjoy this because it took me about 8 hours over 4 days to complete. Very slow network connections here in Mexico. Everything down here is slow and easy so why should the networks be fast.

Today is Friday. I hope the winds calm down from 50 KTS by Tuesday. If they do, I will set sail for El Salvador. Those of you including myself that thought I would never get out of Mexico are about to be proven wrong.

This fall, in all probability, I will be going through the Panama Canal. I will need four line handlers so invitations are open to come down and join me on an adventure that very few people experience. You could be one of those chosen few.

In the mean time, be safe out there.

Denny

Manzanillo and Ixtapa

I am going to see if this works. The further south I go the harder it is to finda working internet with enough speed to post photos.

I am currently in Ixtapa. This is a tourist are with many hotels and condos. The marina is expensive so my stay here will be short. Oriol, my crew mate, and I are resting before our next long sailing leg which will take us to Acapulco. We should be out of Mexico in no more than two weeks is the weather holds. Then we will be at anchor enjoying and visiting a new country which is El Salvador. The anchorage will be in the Bay of the sun.

Knowing that I like adventures her is a photo taking at the docks in the Ixtapa Marina where I am now at. There are two lessons that I have learned here will walking the docks. Carry dead chickens so you can make it to high ground. If a crocodile gives you a look, throw him a chicken and move on. Hopefully you don't run out of chickens before you reach the top of the docks. The second lesson is do not allow small children or animals to walk the docks alone. Crocodiles have bad eye sight and is they see something small on the dock they think it is a chicken or a turkey. They especially enjoy turkeys.



















Well this is not going to working. The site I am using is too slow. I promise to add photos and their stories as soon as I find a reliable network.

I the mean time I continue to enjoy this life style, the people I meet and the experience of the new and different cultures. Central America will be much different and will be South America when I touch soil there. I am still planning on going through the Panama Canal which should happen this fall but plan are said to be written in sand at low tide. That is what is nice about retirement, you don't have to plan. Just go with the flow.

The boat continues to test my ability to fix stuff and so far I have been up to the challenge because the problems have been small ones even though it sometimes takes a while to find the source.

I am sorry but that is all I have for now. Until later be safe out there.

Barra de Navidad

OK, I know, It has been too long since last blog. My only defense is that when I am having too much fun, there is little time for work. So feeling bad about this, I am today,,,,,, creating my latest blog for all (or most) to enjoy.

I am currently in an anchorage called Barra de Navidad. There is everything here that one would want to do as a tourist. Everything from a Grand hotel that is not only beautiful but expensive to the normal small stores and places to eat and drink. There is a large bay of which you enter through a narrow and shallow channel where boats set their anchor or if you have the money to spend you can go into the Grand Hotel's marina and enjoy the life of the rich and famous. I chose the anchorage for the down trodden and poor.

There was a significant storm that blew through here the other evening. Winds were clocked at 60 kts. I had to move two time because my anchor was not holding. Not much sleep that evening for anyone. Today is sunny and warm with a slight breeze.

Barra de Navidad is about 200 miles south of Puerto Vallarta. One of the stops along the way is call Tenacatita. There is a small and short river that runs through the Mangroves where you see and hear several birds and an occasional crocodile. The day we went though there were no crocodiles looking for handouts of dead chickens or sailors. Photos to follow. I stopped at a couple of other anchorages going south but only spent a day at each since there was little there to do and the boat rocked and rolled most of the evening. The names of these two anchorages are Ipala and Chamela. I took a few photos which I will add later.




































Ipala is a small fishing village with little night life. Yet another photo of a great sunset. They never end. Life will not be the same once I return to the city and find these a rare occasion. I almost forgot, I found crew while in Puerto Vallarta. I am soory to say it is not a young hotie but for the women reading this you may find him as a hotie. He is 33 years old and from Spain. Not much sailing experience but is quick to learn. He is enjoying himself and so far we a getting along. He plans to sail with me down to El Salvador and possibly to Panama. I will find it much less stressful with someone else that can take the helm while I sleep.




































I did go ashore in Clamela and became entertainment for the children. It was close enough to shore so putting the outboard on the dinghy was not necessary. There I am, rowing to shore, waiting and watch the wave pattern. Finally I saw my opportunity to make it in before getting dumped. As I am rowing for everything I had the little shits are swimming in front of me so I must slow down and change direction around them. This slows me down enough for the next big wave to reach the beach and me. Over and out of the boat I go. I recover and drag my wet As%$%s to shore with the laughter of the little shi$%$%ts behind me. I go up to a little palapa to get a beer and some fish and dry out. Going back to the boat was uneventful.

Next stop is Tenacatita and the river run.

Here is my new crew, First mate. His name is Oriole.




















Now having an attractive first mate I decided that I must do something to also attract women. Knowing that several women in LA get Botox and silicone injections to fill out their lips, I decide I would try it. While it looked good on paper, it didn't work in practice. They used too much silicone. No Regina, you are wrong. A woman did not slap be across the face. It was an allergic reaction to something I ate.



















Here a a few photos of the river run.


















































Here is a short movie while going down the river.






That is it for now. I will add photos and stories from Barra after we reach Manzanillo which is a few miles south of here. Until then, be safe out there.

Puerto Vallarta

Sorry it has been awhile since last blog. My only excuse was to collect enough photos to make it worthwhile. That was difficult since my camera went to the deep 6 on my way down from Mazatlan. Count that camera number two that has been eaten by the sea. I can't find a water proof camera down here so if anyone wants to buy me a camera for my birthday, they are welcome. :)

I have been in Puerto Vallarta for about 10 days. Tomorrow I will throw off the dock lines again and continue my trek south. Technically I am in La Cruz which is on the north side of Banderas Bay. Banderas Bay is about 40 miles across. Puerto Vallarta sets on the east side of the bay.

The weather here has been much nicer than what most of you have had lately. The temps during the day have been in the high 70's to to low 80's. EAT YOUR HEART OUT! Not all days have been pleasant. One day last week there was a local area storm and I saw my first water spout that went by within a half mile of the marina. I have a photo that I will post later.

The area is a good place to visit if you want to hear some good music played by local musicians and cruisers that get together and play at small clubs. An if you want to shop, you can go to Walmart. I went there to buy a replacement camera. Across the road from Walmart is were the cruise ship anchor. Would you believe that I saw several people that had gotten off of the ship and headed straight for the shopping area. Women dragging there husbands along with them. You have never seen so many men that looked like they were headed for their own execution.

These are some photos of La Cruz. This is a small community and you don't see that tourists that you find in PV. You do see a lot of cruisers however. I ran into several cruisers that I have met in Mexican water since I began my voyage.

This is the Marina at La Cruz
















Photo looking out into Banderas Bay.
















This is a very popular place for tacos.
















Local Talent. This will be me in another 15 years!
















Water spout. This would be called a tornado if it were on land.
















A small mission in the village of Bucerias.































This is a restaurant where we eat lunch on the beach.































Those of you that would rather be here than at home, raise your hand.
















I am sorry that I don't have more photos. Photos that I had taken on my way here didn't make it on to my computer before the camera was toasted.

I should have some great photos and stories to share at my next stop when I have access to a network. That will be Barra de Navidad. My daughter Robin and here husband Hector are meeting me there.

Until then be safe out there.

Mazatlan Departure

Here's a thought. Why don't I create my last blog for 2009 and the end of the decade. I don't have any exciting adventures to report or photos of shark attacks but a review of some of the things that I have been doing while holding up here in Mazatlan for a couple of months.

Time go fast in this cruising lifestyle. I arrived here in mid- November after a summer of playing in the Sea of Cortez. I needed to pull my boat out of the water to do some scheduled maintenance before starting my journey south to the Panama Canal. Panama Canal?; Did he just write that he is going to the Panama Canal? That is correct. It is time for new and exciting adventures. Next year from now I will be on the Atlantic side off the coast of Mexico heading for Cancun and then onto Key West Florida. From there I am going to play in the Carrib. for a couple of years before returning to the Pacific side. THEN>>>> I must decide if I want to continue to the South Pacific and Australia or start my slow return back to California after revisiting my friends that I left behind in Mexico. So that is your birds eye view of my plans for the next two years all of which is up for change. There are many factors in cruising where you find yourself having to make changes to your plans or simply choosing to change plans because something better has come along. Well that is enough of that for now. Let me see if I can update you on current events.

The cruisers here got together for Thanksgiving and Christmas for pot luck dinners that were very successful. The food was traditional holiday fare and everyone enjoyed themselves.

In addition to that there have been some benefits for poor children down here through the Salvation Army where we cruisers raised over two thousands dollars for the orphanage. Today I helped make 300 hundred sandwiches along with bottled water to give families food and drink that live near the garbage dumps in Mazatlan. Each day they spend 12 to 14 hours digging through the garbage for eatable food that has been thrown away or recyclable material that can be sold to help buy food or shoes for the children. Next time you here someone in our country that is on welfare complain how bad they have it, ask them to come down here to see how some of these people have to live. It is sad enough to see the adults struggling but it is heart breaking to see the children having to suffer and not understand why when they see people that have everything.

I have a friend that I met in La Paz that is joining me tomorrow and if sailing with me for the next two months. Having someone else along is always more fun and I can get more sleep when having to do those 1-2 day crossings. My daughter and her husband are also meeting me in Barra de Navidad for a wek in February. It is great that my son and daughter have taken the time and expense to meet me dow here instaed of waiting fro me to come home to visit. It is more fun here!.


The Salvation Army benefit. I was bar tender. The money paid for drinks went to the kids. Thae last beer was auctioned off. It sold for $700 USD.













The turtle release. Babies are released to go off into the ocean.














Went sailing and anchored off of the main port in a location called Stone Island. These are the cruise ship that visit Mazatlan most days, Harry and Chris were here earlier on one of these ships.












The Opera house where I bought tickets to see the Nut Cracker.















The Nut Cracker Cast.















I was invited along for a drive inland from Mazatlan to visit a small town of La Noria. The village is older than Mazatlan and today many people are artist using leather to make there crafts. As in many towns in Mexico there is always a beautiful church that is the center of the community.









Some examples of the crafts made here.






























Yep, I made yet another new friend!















My days are varied on how I spend my time. I go to Operas. volunteer, and go on tequila tours. Now who is going to tell me that i am not having fun. This was a self guided tour though a very small factory where they bottle no more that 3000 bottles a year. At the end of the tour it is time for tasting. A fee of 25 pesos is charged for the privilege to taste good tequila and you can go back for as many tasting as you like. It is true. I thought I had died and gone to heaven.





















































Well that is it for now. I am going to a beach party tonight for New Years and will dropping the dock lines off next Tuesday as we head for PV.

Happy New Year to all.

Mazatlan December 2009

During my last Blog I wrote that there would be no new blogs until I pulled anchor in January. This proves one more time that I can not be trusted. There have been a number of activities around here that I thought I might share and since my schedule is not crowed that much I would spend this Sunday morning entering a new blog. I should have taken a photo of my boat which is on the hard, which to non-boaters means that it is out of the water being held up, on land, by a number of stands. I need to climb a tall later now to enter my boat which is a lot of fun at two in the morning when I need to climb down to go to the bathroom. I need to be careful not to drink to much!

The marina hosted a Thanksgiving dinner for 120 people. How would you like making dinner for that many friends and relatives? The food was traditional American Thanksgiving dinner and it was very good. Everyone enjoyed themselves. After dinner the band played, we danced, and worked off the calories that we had just eaten.

















The ladies were having a lot of fun while us men sat drinking our wine and beer.



















Finally one of the more courageous men went out to join the women in dance.


















Then there were two ladies that just had to strut their stuff.

















Unlike the Sea of Cortez, there are not a lot of places to explore and anchor nearby in Mazatlan. Their is one popular place called Stone Island that many cruisers go to get out of the marina for a change in pace. There is a great place on shore with a specialty of the house, Shrimp and garlic pizza, which is to die for it is so good. The main harbor is just across from the break water that some of you might recognize that may have arrived here on a cruise ship.

This is were we ate pizza and drank a few beers.


















Cruise ships that arrived around six in the morning.



















Those of you that enjoy and occasional Pacifico beer can now brag that you have seen a photo of the original and still in service brewery.


















Yesterday late afternnon there was a release of baby turtles into the ocean. I had wanted to watch this last year but missed it so I was sure not to make the same mistake this year. The turtles are about 2 inches long and they can move quickly when they smell the waters edge as they scramble towards the beckening waters. It was a very festive environment with fireworks, hot-air balloons, a world famous marathon and a motor cycle parade. The evening temperature was in the high seventies, clear skies and hundreds of people enjoying the evening.

The turtles were given to the many small children along the beach to hold while they waited for instructions to release them onto the sand.
































































And they are off!

















What's next? Who said that I could not be cultured while cruising? I don't always set around drinking beer and huging young beautiful women.

This Friday,with two friends, I am going to the ballet to watch the Nut Cracker. I have always wanted to watch this but always waited to long to buy a ticket finding that all seats had been sold. Where else would one think you could see the Nut Cracker but in Mexico. A cost of a ticket in San Francisco would be $120. The cost here is little less than $20 and the theater is as beautiful as the Opera house in San Francisco. This years presentation is a ballet company from Cuba. Maybe I will get a chance to meet Castro and ask him for some free Cuban cigars and Rum.

Well that is it for now. It is a short blog but one that I hope you enjoy. At least you didn't have to wait until January to see another one from me.

Happy Holidays to all of you and your families and let's hope that next year is a big improvement for many of you over 2009.

Take care and be safe out there.