SVSoulsticeAdventures: February 2019

Bahia Tenacatita, La Manzanilla and Cuastecomate

Hola again! Last time I left off we were in Paraiso and then we had the easy 22nm passage south to Bahia Tenacatita. Normally this bay is described as having turquoise waters and that is what we expected after Paraiso but unfortunately, the water temperature changed and so did the clarity. We noticed darker water and even considered this to be a “red tide”. Our friends who just arrived in Chamela said the water temperature was 79 degrees and dropped to 74 in a day. We are not sure what kind of upwelling has occurred but we also noted multiple remnants of vegetation from estuaries in the open sea as well as in the anchorage. There were also multiple brown slicks I will call them, suspicious for an algae bloom. Boo! Our lovely Mexico had changed but that was ok we could adapt.

When we arrived to Bahia Tenacatita there were multiple other boats, motor, and sail, that I would guess upwards 25 boats. They are all anchored in front of a lovely white stretch of sand and on the east side was a resort called Punta Sirena. This group of cruisers is well organized as well with a net on Channel 17 every 9am. The usual routine we found on every net is to discuss in order: 1) Medical emergencies 2) New arrivals 3) Departures 4) Current folks in the anchorage 5) Weather and 6) Activities for the day and upcoming activities 7) Bilge talk - aka boat issues and asking on the net for help with something. SV Harmony, Virginia and Robert, have been sailing over 30 years and stay in the bay for most of the season. They organize daily bocce ball, card games and walks on the beach. Virginia has written her most popular book, “Harmony on the High Seas,” in addition to two more books. They focus on relationship maintenance while cruising. Stephen and I did read the first book prior to me even considering this trip. He was for “cruising” all along and he invited me to read this book after he purchased it at the Richmond CA boat show. Once we did decide to cruise, I did participate in the Richmond Boat show two years in a row and did meet Virginia and Robert and even had drinks with them one night out. They are truly a lovely couple who still display a loving, respectful marriage when you meet them. They just are truly kind and thoughtful to one another and it shows when you spend time with them. It was a treat to see them in the cruising environment and not at a boat show.

Once we got in the bay, we saw SV Zissou, Mel, and Tris, as well as Peter from SV Dawn Treader. We had a great estuary day trip with these guys. I did post a time lapse video of us in the estuary on FB and give credit to Mel who did the video. Mel is a photographer and videographer. She is on Instagram and you should follow her because she is very talented. I know I wish I could document our trip as well as she is on her Instagram page. Check out SailingZissou.

The mangrove estuary had some wildlife, mostly birds but no crocodiles for us to see. Another dinghy did capture a baby cayman picture. It is was not buggy and about 2-2.5 miles long that terminates right to the beach in Tenacatita. Mel and Tris went in their dinghy and Peter went in his kayak. The entrance to the estuary is always exciting! There are crashing waves and it takes some timing to have an UNEVENTFUL passage in and out. We saw some guy gun it in with his bow very high in the air. He said he flipped it yesterday with his girlfriend who noticeably was NOT in the dinghy with him today. We all got in and out safely, it does require good timing and patience. This is true for any dinghy landing with surf/breaking waves.

Stephen and I also enjoyed a great snorkel to an area called the “Aquarium.” We saw needlefish or pipefish we think, multiple stingrays, angel fish, triggerfish, all kinds of great tropical fish. The visibility was moderate as I mentioned early on. We got there by dinghy as it was around the corner from our anchorage in Tenacatita proper. We dropped the dinghy anchor out and went to two different areas. I actually wore a wet suit to be comfortable and be able to stay in the water longer. We then took a swim to the beach with our dry bag with some pesos and enjoyed a great coconut water and a delicious seafood roll. This was on Valentine’s Day and it was a great start to the day. We then met a previous coworker of mine in La Manzanilla for dinner with her husband.

Very randomly on our 2nd day there, Stephen and I took a 7-mile walk to La Manzanilla from our anchorage. You can either sail over, anchor, and dinghy into La Manzanilla from where we were, taxi over, or walk. We chose to walk and take a taxi back. When we got into town, we stopped at the first palapa we saw and got a coconut drink. I took my phone out of my bag to take a picture of our surroundings and I got a text from Sharon Brown. She was a hospice nurse I worked with at Carson Tahoe Hospital. She said that she and her husband were in La Manzanilla and she had no idea where I was in Mexico but wanted to say hi. I thought, jeez, did she watch us walk into town. Seriously, I did not even know the town La Manzanilla until a few days ago, let alone even set foot in the town. We literally had been in town less than 30 minutes before her text arrived. Sharon and her husband, Chuck, have been coming to La Manz for over 5 years now and they love it. We did arrange to meet for dinner on Valentine’s night at Lora Loka, a local restaurant they favor and had a great time. I could not have planned that if I tried. So all you folks visiting Mexico just send out a text and who knows maybe we will be nearby!

La Manzanilla is very quaint with local culture but also lots of Canadians and Americans have infiltrated the city. Apparently, the author of the Color Purple has a home there. On our walk, we saw many RV camps along the beach as well. It is a lovely town but as will all towns that start to become populated and with folks who may have more money then, unfortunately, this can price out the locals. This is very disappointing to see because food prices go up as well as housing. I also saw a campsite with just a Canadian flag posted on the entrance. I felt that was extremely rude. You are in Mexico!!! You should have both flags up to be respectful if you want to put a flag up at all. You are a GUEST in THEIR country so have some respect!!! I hope Stephen and I appear to be good ambassadors from the US regardless of our political climate at home. We try our best at Spanish, we, of course, have a Mexican flag on our boat since it is our host country currently, and we are appreciative the gracious Mexican culture who accepts all of these foreigners into their country.

After 5 days in Tenacatita, we felt like we were ready to move on down south. Mel and Tris had already gone as far as Barra Navidad and were returning north again. They suggested we stop in Cuastecomate, the “secret anchorage” as they had a nice time there and did some snorkeling. It is only 11 nm away so we decided we would check it out before we made the trip to Barra Navidad.
Cuastecomate has been a delight to explore. The anchorage only had 2 other boats in it the entire time we were there. One boat was another Caliber 40, SV Rapture, with Greg and Susan. We actually met Greg at the Richmond boat show last April. He and Susan plan to do the South Pacific crossing this year. They gave us the latest information on the procedures for getting the long term visa for French Polynesia. The usual visa is only 90 days but most cruisers attempt to get this extended so they can cruise without the worry of time restriction and also for the safety of weather which delays your itinerary. The other boat, SV Interlude, a Morgan 38 with co-captains Peggy and Don, are really full-time residents there. They have had 12 years of cruising in Mexico and their first year they were supposed to go through the Panama Canal and head to the Caribbean. They never made it obviously but fell in love with Mexico. This is easy to do as Stephen and I feel the same way.

Cuastecomate is a small town the encompasses about 4-5 blocks each way. It is family oriented and Peggy knows most of the local townspeople. Melaque is the adjacent town that is only 2 miles away by road. Stephen and I walked to Melaque and back on 2 separate occasions. The town has a much bigger stretch of beach, multiple tiendas for shopping and food and well populated. It actually shares the same bay as Barra Navidad, our next destination. We really enjoyed walking the entire town and seeing the local town square. We enjoyed some tacos and Stephen LOVES the local pollo (chicken) stands and picked up a chicken for later. You can get a whole chicken grilled with rice, beans, tortillas, and coleslaw for $130 pesos or $6.83 USD.

We did attempt to fish in Cuastecomate but with no luck and due to the change in water temperature I mentioned earlier and the question of a “red tide,” we decided to forget snorkeling since the visibility was so poor. We were successful at ordering a pizza via our Sat phone ( the anchorage had no service) with my best Spanglish from the town of Melaque having it successfully arrive as promised in 30 minutes. I asked them to meet us on the playa (beach) next to the public bathrooms. They thought that was odd over the phone but thank goodness due to the tiny town of Cuastecomate it was an easy find. We took the pizza back on our paddle boards and paddled back to the boat. We have enjoyed Mexican cuisine so much but Stephen saw a pizza in La Manzanilla and couldn’t stop thinking about it. Unfortunately, our pizza was not desirable looking when we checked it out. We realized there was no tomato sauce??!!?? Truly all the pizza I have seen in Mexico does not meet the standards of an American pizza. Stephen wants to keep trying but I will stick with tacos! I am always happy with my tacos!

Next stop is Barra de Navidad. We have been on the hook, aka at an anchorage for a month now, and we will pull a marina slip for some boat chores and laundry. We also will get the benefits of a resort pool :) since it is affiliated with the marina - Yahoo!

Adios Amigos!
Hasta a la Proxima

View from walk from Tenacatita to La Manzanilla

Just walked into La Manzanilla after 6.5-7 mile walk and get our yummy coconut drink. Open phone to see a previous co-worker is in town and had no idea we were even around...

La Manzanilla street shot

Estuary ride

There is a blue heron in there I think

Peter SV Dawn Treader via Kayak. It was not buggy he was doing that more for sun protection

SV Zissou, Mel and Tris, following

Standing on beach in Tenacatita, next to Aquarium ( snorkel area) , rocky behind and to the right

Tenacatita in the background

Little palapa on Tenacatita

That is Stephen's head and arm out there:)

Our friend Dave loves Donuts so we took this pic for him

Boat life in Cuastecomate

Sunset to Cuastecomate

Cuastecomate

This is on the entrance to the Melaque sign - love it! Great message

Melaque

Melaque North Point

Favorite street scene in Melaque

On the right Sharon Brown, Hospice RN now APRN and moved to Anacortes with her Husband Chuck who is an Arborist. Sharon and I worked at Carson Tahoe Hospital together. They come to Manzanilla every year for the last 5-6 years.

CHAMELA AND PARAISO
February 2, 2019 - February 10, 2019

Both are a paradise and offer small islands with waves of the sea dancing up the rock walls and explosive white wash to give a powerful display of when sea meets land.

In my last entry, I did mention we traveled 95 nm south to Chamela. We had a fabulous sail on a broad reach and arrived in the morning to find a glorious long tan beach and multiple islands that called to be explored. We spent a full week here enjoying the little town of Perula which included Tuesday night's community center event. Our friend Brian, on Cat2Fold, was playing guitar that night so we went for the show. It was $100 pesos per person for a great taco dinner and a fun evening of open mic. The proceeds go to the school or the local Catholic church. We got rid of some dance build up with other friends, Heidy and Peter, who went with us for the show. In Chamela, we enjoyed paddle boarding, snorkeling walks/runs on the beach and fishing off the dinghy. Stephen was gifted 2 handfuls of tiny squid by a local fisherman at sunrise and he immediately got several hits on his line. The panga fishermen are out every morning and evening. You see the birds crowding their boats as they clean their fish while at anchorage the birds reap the rewards of the chummed water. The live squid bait helped Stephen catch two crevalle jack, one that made him lap the boat twice with 4 rounds around the anchor chain - flashback to La Cruz anchorage when I caught one... He also caught a little unknown white fish and eventually a Queen Jewel, similar to sea bass. We shared our fish with Heidy, Brian, and Peter on a potluck on Cat2Fold in a south anchorage in Chamela. The south anchorage is absolutely beautiful and intimate. There is some surfing for beginners and we were going to check it out but winds picked up our last day in the south anchorage and we decided to move back to the north end again for better protection.

We left on February 10, 2019, in the am to Paraiso as it is only 8 nm away from Chamela. We chose to tow the dinghy and put the paddle boards in our new fancy J hooks. This way we would be ready to play as soon as we got to the anchorage. On the way down, we did see a group of bat rays swimming. We turned around to get a closer eye and maybe even a picture but they went further under water. Often times when disappointed about not being able to capture the beauty of nature to share, we tell ourselves, some things are just meant for us and our memories. It is easy to get caught up in wanting to photograph everything but it is important to put the "phone" down and just relish the moment.

Paraiso has a small anchorage that can only host a few boats. Peter on SV Dawn Treader made the sail with us, it was really a motor, but unfortunately, there was a big yacht in the anchorage. There are other fingers of bays but hazards abound. SV Dawn Treader and Soulstice put out both bow and stern anchors due to the swell and tight anchoring space but Peter came to find he had his anchor mixed with some rocks when he dove it. He did not feel comfortable staying as the swing room was tight and not many outs, so he went on to Tenacatita which is only 22 more nm south. Our plan was to head there any way in the am. We dived our bow and stern anchors and were reassured as both were nestled in sand and no rocks were noted close by. Paraiso is noted as a "gem" in the guidebooks, so we wanted to check it out but we were advised it would be small and only a good anchorage in calm conditions. Winds are going to pick up this Monday and we need to be in a more protected anchorage like Tenacatita. Stephen and I did enjoy our day at Paraiso with some snorkeling and checking out the tiny surrounding islands and secluded beaches via paddle boards.

We will head to Tenacatita/Manzanilla in the am where we plan to spend at least a week there.
Photos below are a mix of Chamela and Paraiso

Leaving Chaamela

Entering Paraiso

Tiny secluded beach next to our anchorage in Paraiso. Pangas were taking some folks to the beach during the day as there is one resort noted on a larger beach on the east side of the anchorage.

Entering via the West entrance of the bay we are going to anchor in for the night.

The resort on the East end of the bay where we are anchored in Paraiso.

The large yacht in the anchorage with us in Paraiso. Peter on SV Dawn Treader was behind the yacht but left because of the potential for a fouled anchored and tight spacing.

This rock with amazing crashing waves was right next to us.

I copied this from someone off their FB page - i love it.

Stephen paddle boarding

Paddle board to check out the islands

Chamela - one sunset eve

Very spiritual pose - ha!

Sea Bass on a bed of fried rice with veggies - ta da!

Heading to the south anchorage of Chamela with Cat2Fold ahead.

Following Cat2Fold, Brian and Heidy to the south anchorage of Chamela

Thanks to Heidy who shot this of us coming back from a fishing mission! The success of the sea bass:)

Tuesday night music at the Community Center in Chamela - Look who is helping with percussion on the right - hee hee. Brian is the tall gentleman with dreads playing guitar.