Life in La Cruz

The Honcho has been berthed at the Marina Riviera Nayarit for the last week, where we have done some routine maintenance and given the boat a thorough washing. Weve also taken time out to socialize with fellow yatistas and enjoy the local culture here in La Cruz. In this town, the local culture is a very pleasant mix of Mexican food, art, music and society on one hand, and the whole expat sailing community on the other.  The sailing community consists of people who are following the dream of traveling by boat to foreign destinations. Most are Yanks or Canadians, a few Europeans, and the occasional Aussie or Kiwi. Im fortunate to be fairly fluent in Spanish and have enjoyed becoming acquainted with some of the locals who live and work here in town. Both groups seem to be happy with their lives and are very friendly. One of the most pleasant surprises for me is meeting young Mexicans who are university students. I love hearing their ideas and opinions regarding their lives. Overall, they seem to be quite optimistic about their futures as well as the future of Mexico. I think their optimism bodes well for this country, in spite of the widespread poverty and the ongoing drug wars in some areas.

The Honcho has sailed almost exactly 2,000 miles since leaving Long Beach and I am happy to report that the boat has performed very well throughout the voyage and has done everything weve asked of her without complaint. Once a fuel filter became clogged and the engine wouldnt start.  Another time, we took a wave over the bow with the window over the galley open. Sea water ran into the stove burners and clogged them up. Aside from that, the boat just keeps on keeping on. I brought a Baja Filter from Long Beach, but didnt use it at first because it appeared that all the fuel we bought was clean. I was wrong about that, so now I use the filter whenever we fuel up. It slows down the process of fueling, but I think its well worth the extra hassle to be assured of clean fuel. If youre getting ready to head south, pick up a Baja Filter at your local West Marine store. Its cheap insurance.  Overall Im very happy with the boat and all of its systems. Of course were only about halfway through this voyage, and only the little half at that. As we travel north into the Sea of Cortez, well be visiting more deserted anchorages, and more primitive places, so reliable equipment and self sufficiency will be necessary.

Part of the reason were hanging out in La Cruz is the upcoming XIX Regata Internacional, otherwise known as the Banderas Bay Regatta March 10-12. Ill be sailing aboard a Beneteau 42s7 called Tivoli in that event. It should be a lot of fun and Ill post a report on all the festivities after the regatta.

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Five Weeks in La Cruz

Weve been enjoying our stay in La Cruz for the last five weeks, spending most of this time hanging out with friends and getting Finisterra reprovisioned and ready to head further south.  The boat is ready to go and the weather looks good for a Thursday afternoon departure so around noon well slip out of the marina and set a course for Cabo Corrientes. After rounding the cape Finisterra will head for Tenacatita where well spend a day or two before moving on to Barra de Navidad.

Scenes from La Cruz:

Philos Bar used to be the local hangout for the cruising crowd but as more and more people from colder climes, especially Canadians, call La Cruz home in the winter, the music has evolved to accommodate their taste.  The place is open during the daytime, but is usually pretty empty until around six in the evening, so there plenty of room for Philo to park his motorcycle.

Philos is basically a big palapa with a thatched roof. This is the view looking straight up from "our" table. 

Cruisers still inscribe boat names on the wall at Philos

On another note, the cruising community is always in a state of flux with boats arriving and departing every day. Some stay on the hook in the anchorage, others stay in the marina, some spent a few days or weeks in both places.  Finisterra stayed in the marina because I had several projects I wanted to finish. A new arrival, the Swan 60, "Thor" also elected to stay in the marina.

Brand new Swan 60. There is a 2011 Swan 60 listed on Yachtworld for $3.1 million. My guess is that this one came off the showroom floor for something more than that.

Designed by German Frers, the 60 is a good example of Nautors evolution from heavier to lighter boats, with perhaps some Italian influence since the firm was acquired by Leonardo Ferragamo in 1998. Drawing courtesy of Swan Yachts.

Over the last couple of weeks while I was busy varnishing the caprails on Finisterra, Thor was a few slips away with a crew of four or five guys getting her ready to sail. It was always interesting to wander over around sunset and have a look at their daily progress.

This boat has only four winches. All sail controls, including the vang and cunningham are managed by pushbutton.

Carbon fiber standing rigging. Each shroud is made up of multiple thin pultruded carbon/epoxy rods encased in a synthetic jacket such as Spectra fiber. Shroud terminations are usually machined titanium fittings. Here they are connected to under-deck chainplates.

I love it when excellent design crosses paths with superb craftsmanship.

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Leaving La Cruz

Time is slipping by here in La Cruz but weve been making progress getting the boat ready to head south. The dinghy has been packed up and the outboard motor serviced and secured on its traveling bracket. All systems energized and tested, fresh water tanks filled, the hull bottom scrubbed and weather updates downloaded. Speaking of weather, we are expecting wind and bigger surf than normal in the next couple of days, then possibly some rain next week. Until now the weather has been a continuous string of perfectly blue skies, temps in the 80s and refreshing breezes off the bay. Were ready to leave and expect to be out of Banderas Bay by Monday...or Tuesday....maybe Wednesday.

One of the most interesting aspects of our life here in La Cruz is that cruising people and boats arrive and depart daily, most are headed south, some north, and some are gathering here for what is called the Pacific Puddlejump. Then there is the contingent for whom Banderas Bay is the destination. The Puddlejump is organized by Latitude 38 magazine. It is a group of boats that depart from points on the west coast, headed for French Polynesia. A large contingent of which get together and sail from Banderas Bay to the Marquesas Islands. At around 2,900 miles, this is the most convenient jump from North America to the easternmost outpost of French Polynesia. There are currently 77 boats registered in the fleet, ranging from 33 to 65 feet long. There are other boats making roughly the same trip at roughly the same time, but choose to travel alone instead of with a group. Either way, it sounds like a lot of fun.

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Cats in La Cruz

We spent a couple of days anchored outside of the harbor before moving into the Marina Riviera Nayarit. As soon as we got into the slip I started on boat projects, one of which was to have the hull and deck polished and waxed. Another was to have the teak cap rails sanded and re-varnished.  Finisterra is all bright and shiny now.
 I also had a refrigeration specialist take a look at our freezer system. Ironically, its been working flawlessly since we got here so there was little he could do to diagnose the intermittent problem. We checked all the basics, which I had already done...all good. He did leave me with some ideas about what to do if the problem recurs. The engine also needed servicing and it now has fresh oil and filters, and is ready for the next adventure.

Now that the chores are done, Ive had some time to cruise around the marina, renew old acquaintances, and check out all the boats that are here. There is no shortage of cruising cats in the harbor. They range from Profligate, Richard Spindlers venerable 63 foot cruising cat to the beautiful new Sig 45, Vamonos.

Note the big daggerboards on Profligate (pronounced PRO-fliget)

Profligate was one of the boats that were "embargoed" by the Mexican government. A couple of days ago it, along with most of the other embargoed boats, was released by the Mexican government. So it appears that this controversy is coming to an end.  Profligate is a modified 63 Kurt Hughes design. Perhaps not the prettiest cat in the harbor, it is a functional and practical boat that gets sailed a lot.


Another interesting design is the 50 foot "Kalewa". This boat has a successful racing record and I believe it has also done at least one Pacific crossing. Ill leave it to you to judge the aesthetics of this boat.

Racy, spacy Kalewa

Extended transoms with what appear to be kick up rudders on Kalewa. Notice the swoopy contours of the deck house and lack of lifelines. A very interesting boat.

This Sunreef 70, Blue Guru, is the queen of the local multihull fleet here in La Cruz. Sunreef Yachts has established itself as a leader in the luxury multihull market.

 Blue Guru

Note the massive proportions of the S-70 and the composite boom.  

This Lagoon 470 is much better looking than the brochure suggests. 

Lagoon is well represented in La Cruz with at least three of them in the harbor. The 470 is the best looking of them.

This Lagoon 420 isnt quite as pretty as its big sister. Yellow for the sunscreens probably wasnt the best choice of colors.

Tigress is a Prout 50. 

The most interesting boat in the harbor is the SIG 45, Vamonos.

Sig 45 at speed. Courtesy of Yachtworld.com

Concave bow on the Sig. 

Sig catamarans are designed in France and are usually built there, but Vamonos was built in California by Westerly Marine. With tiller steering and a wide open bridge deck, this boat stands out from the more cruising-oriented boats in the harbor.

The paint scheme on this meticulously maintained 45 qualifies as art.

With accommodations limited to the hulls, the bridgedeck is wide open. This photo courtesy of Yachtworld.com

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Passage to La Cruz

Finisterra departed Puerto Los Cabos at 1130 on Friday, November 28th after five pleasant days in the marina. Conditions were expected to be mostly light air for the entire passage to La Cruz, which would be a nice change from the more boisterous conditions we experienced on the Pacific side of Baja. Our water tanks were nearly empty so as soon as we cleared the harbor mouth I started the watermaker and over the next 18 hours we added 125 gallons to the tanks.

Throughout that day and night the wind remained constant at 15-18 knots out of the north and we made good progress under sail. With light air in the forecast we were thinking of passing to the north of the Islas Tres Marias and stopping at Isla Isabella before turning south to Bahia de Banderas but the seas were still fairly rough, left over from the strong northerly blow of the previous few days, making it uncomfortable to sail toward that island. I was just as happy to leave the Marias to port and sail the more direct route.

Early the next morning the wind backed around to northwest and lightened to about 6 knots, which gave us a speed of about 3.5 knots toward our destination. I fired up the diesel and we motorsailed the rest of the way to La Cruz. I had been watching another sailing vessel on AIS that left San Jose an hour ahead of us. It was a nearly new 50 footer with a code Zero headsail up, which gave it good speed in light air, and it stayed about three miles ahead of us for the entire passage.

As we approached Bahia de Banderas I noticed that the other boat was headed directly for the Islas Tres Marietas instead of the safe channel between those islands and Punta de Mita. By the time we were within about ten miles of the Islas it was pretty clear that their intention was to thread their way through them. As it was a dark and moonless night, and knowing that the folks aboard that boat had never been in these waters before, I called them on the VHF and offered to give them some waypoints in the channel between the Marietas and Pta. de Mita. The skipper thanked me and altered course about 20 degrees and made the entrance to the bay safe and sound. The Tres Marietas are beautiful but there are lots of rocks and shoals around them, and its not a place to be on a moonless night if youre not armed with very good local knowledge. Even then, its better to visit them during the daytime.

Finisterra entered Bahia de Banderas just after 0300 local time. With no wind at all, we motored slowly toward La Cruz, timing our arrival for first light on Sunday, November 30th,  Nevertheless, was still pitch dark when we got there so we loitered just outside the anchorage until the first streaks of dawn appeared over the mountains to the east, then entered the harbor and took a berth on Gangway 10.

It was great to arrive back at our favorite harbor in all of Mexico.

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Plenty of Excitement in La Cruz

We stayed in Marina Riviera about three weeks, which is a week longer than planned. My first priority was to get all the maintenance and repair items on the boat finished. There was not a lot to do, but here in the land of Manana, simple things can take longer than you expect. For example, I needed a replacement belt for the alternator on the engine, a simple part that should be available anywhere.  But after visiting about a dozen refaccionarias (auto parts stores), it had become more like a treasure hunt. I finally located one with the help of my Bolivian/American buddy Ed, in an Autozone store just outside of Puerto Vallarta. You may be wondering why I didnt bring my own spares with me from the US. Well, I did but it turned out that the belt specified in the engine manual does not fit on my particular engine because the standard alternator was replaced with a high output unit.

Lisa updating her Facebook page in her new Bumfuzzle shirt. For more info go to www.bumfuzzle.com

La Cruz is a gathering point for boats waiting out winter storms before heading north to the Sea of Cortez or the US. Boats heading south to Central America or the South Pacific also gather here. It is a perfect place to reprovision, repair and upgrade your boat before heading out to more remote destinations so its a great meeting place for friends, old and new. Of course winter brings lots of Canadians, some by boat but many by plane. Among them are our good friends Judy and Wolf, who we have met in various Mexican ports in the past. They invited us to join them for the Southside Shuffle in Puerto Vallarta. This is a bi-weekly art walk in the heart of the "Zona Romantica". We wandered through the many shops and galleries, sipping free wine and marveling at the surprisingly (to me) high quality art on display.

Map of the Shuffle

A few days later friends from the States, Tom and Mary Ellen flew into town. Veterans of Mexico cruising themselves, they were ready to party and visit old haunts in town. In the evenings we listened to Latin Jazz at Philos and Sax virtuoso Bryan Savage at Osos or played Mexican Train aboard Finisterra. One day we drove into the town of Bucerias for a horse show. The Mexicans do them with lots of pageantry, LOUD music and Big Sombreros. We wandered around the grounds and watched the pageant that preceded the actual competition. Unfortunately, the event was delayed and we had to leave well before it was over.

Young Girl with proud Poppa. She was one of about a dozen girls in the show. Notice she is wearing a spur on her left boot. This is because she and the rest of the girls in the show rode side-saddle.

The show began with a pageant of sorts, when a dozen or so girls ranging in age from about 6 to 16 rode to the center of the ring and each was called out by name and awarded a big sombrero and a bouquet. Later the men rode out but were not rewarded with any gifts.

Young rider with a brand new sombrero and a bouquet.

Mexican horsemen are called Charros. Notice the young rider on the far left, his hat is almost as big as him. In Mexico, kids learn to ride early in life.

The youngest female riders horse was led by her mom.

Another day we went out for a sail on a friends sailboat and got dismasted. A dismasting is always a lot of work but we had a good, experienced crew and quickly secured the broken mast and rigging and got back into the marina in time for cocktails.

A dismasting is always serious, but this time there were no injuries and quick work by the crew prevented more serious damage to the boat.

A couple of days later we took a cruise out to Islas Tres Marietas aboard Finisterra and were treated to lots of up-close sightings of whales. Before we knew it, another week had flown by and it was time to say goodbye to our friends.

A few weeks ago the autofocus on my trusty Olympus C-740 camera stopped working properly. It would only focus on things it wanted to instead of what I wanted. Im not sure if its fixable, but it was time for a new camera anyway. Ive had the Oly for over ten years and during that time it has traveled over three continents and many thousands of miles with me. Some of the hardest on it were the sea miles, where it occasionally got hit with salt spray or worse. So I ordered a new Olympus Stylus 1 to replace it. The photos you see here were taken with it. As you can see, Im still on the steep part of the learning curve with it.

A double-ender slipped out of La Cruz at sunset

Yesterday we moved to the anchorage outside of La Cruz. Well hang out here a few more days before moving out to Punta de Mita.

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Cabo San Lucas to La Cruz

Three days in Cabo are more than enough, so Finisterra cleared the breakwater of that picturesque port at 10:00am on January 23rd, bound for La Cruz de Huanacaxtle. There was a cruise ship anchored just outside the harbor so the bay was thick with tour boats, paragliders, jetskiers, fishing boats and pangas loaded with vacationers. We picked our way through the crowd and it wasnt long before we were sailing in clear air. The wind, however, stayed light and we began to motorsail again.

A cruising boat struggles to keep his spinnaker full on a light air Bahia Banderas morning.

La Cruz is located on the north shore of Bahia Banderas, about 290 miles southeast from Cabo San Lucas. I plotted a course that would take us 20 miles south of the Islas Tres Marias and then through the channel between Punta de Mita and Islas Tres Marietas, which mark the entrance to Bahia Banderas.

Pretty little trawler in the anchorage at La Cruz.

For the next 30 hours we motorsailed over a glassy sea with winds never getting above five knots or so. With these conditions it is easy to see all the sea life that abounds in this region and we saw so many whales that we stopped counting them and focused more on avoiding running into them. Birds were plentiful and we were entertained by the incredible diving of the blue-footed boobys that fed on small fish that were stirred up as the boat passed by. A bird would dive into the water and swim after its prey under water, usually coming up with a fish dangling from its beak. This is also frigate bird country and we were never without them soaring overhead. At night the boobys and frigates often try to land on the boat. They can wreak havoc on masthead instruments and antennas so we do all we can to keep them off the mast. We had one booby hitch a ride with us for a short while but it didnt harm our masthead gear. Ive found that the best way to keep them off at night is to have a powerful flashlight ready and shine it at the bird just as it makes its final approach to the masthead. During the daytime there is little you can do to keep them off.

An overloaded Freeport 36. If you truly need to carry this much stuff, you may want to consider a bigger boat.

Here is another F36 in the same anchorage. Which would you rather sail?

About thirty miles out of Bahia Banderas the wind turned around and blew hard straight out of the east so we found ourselves punching into a nasty chop with spray flying over the dodger until we reached the mouth of the bay at 0130 the next morning. Once through the pass we turned northward and anchored just off the village of Punta Mita. It was about 0300 by the time we got the hook down and the boat secured.

The next morning we lazed around on the boat for awhile, then sailed the last nine miles to the anchorage outside of La Cruz, arriving around 1500 in the afternoon. There were 46 boats anchored there when we arrived. We anchored on the southwest side of the group, a couple hundred yards from the nearest boat,  then went ashore where we met friends for drinks and dinner at the famous "Tacos in the Street" restaurant. Naturally just after we got our anchor down, another boat arrived and decided the best thing to do was anchor as close as possible to us in spite of all the open water all around us. Thus began our stay in beautiful La Cruz.

The voyage from Long Beach to La Cruz is for all intents, the first leg of our journey. To summarize it, we sailed just over 1,400 miles, traveled from a temperate to a tropical latitude and traversed two time zones. It took a total of 23 days, and we made stops at Newport Beach, Dana Point, San Diego,  Ensenada, Turtle Bay, Cabo, and Punta de Mita. During that time we had excellent weather, though the winds were lighter than we would have liked. The boat, aside from a balky refrigeration system performed flawlessly.

Here in La Cruz well make the decision whether to hurry south to Panama by May, or spend another season cruising in Mexican waters.

Reunion at Ana Bananas in La Cruz. The crews of Scout, Finisterra, Hotel California and Sirena share a table.

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In the La Cruz Vortex

Sunrise from near the center of the Vortex

Weve been here about six weeks now and probably wont escape what I call the La Cruz Vortex until sometime late in the month of March. The problem is that there is so much to do, friends, projects, inland travel and just relaxing, that it is difficult to leave. Here are a few news items:

1. We spent about ten days anchored outside La Cruz, in mostly picture-perfect conditions. Then a few days ago a large Pacific swell rolled in from the northwest and converted the normally peaceful anchorage to a lumpy, bumpy place, and we decided to return to our old slip on gangway 10 in Marina La Cruz. Here are some interesting boats that were anchored near Finisterra.

This steel cruising yacht is named "Go For Broke".  Notice the outboard motor mounted on the transom bracket. 

Look closely and beneath all the stuff on deck you can just make out what looks like a Newport 41

Much has changed in the anchorage since we were here three years ago but this fine vessel has been here the whole time. I guess its having a little trouble escaping the Vortex. I hope thats not the fate that awaits Finisterra.

 This Dencho-built Peterson 43, a former IOR racer, has found new life as a high performance cruiser.

"Pied-a-Mer", a Seawind catamaran, looks shipshape and seaworthy.  

2. For the first time that we know of, a cruising couple was attacked while walking home from a local waterfront cantina late at night. There were no injuries and the would-be robbers didnt get any money. Still, it was a wake-up call for those of us who assume that our little community around the waterfront is perfectly safe. Now, before everyone jumps to conclusions about the dangers of life in Mexico it should be noted that this is the first and only time we know of that anything like this has happened around here, and muggings, robberies and worse are daily events in Orange County. I still feel quite safe here.

3. We learned that cruising yachts need to have a liability insurance policy from a Mexican insurance company in addition to your regular boat insurance. A standard policy from Novamar Insurance runs about $200 USD. Its important to have this insurance because Mexicos laws are based on Napoleonic Law, which means that you are guilty until proven innocent instead of the other way around. If you dont have Mexican liability insurance and your boat damages another boat or causes some other property damage, youre likely to be calling home from a Mexican jail.  I never liked Napoleon anyway.

4. Since were going to be here in Mexico quite a lot this year, we decided to join the Vallarta YC. Its the racing club here in the Bay so well be doing some fun racing, and were looking forward to spending lots of time in the clubs swimming pool this summer, and perhaps in the bar as well.

5. The Banderas Bay Regatta is coming up March 11-15. This is a cruising boat regatta, but the top boats in the event take it quite seriously, with some boats flying in crews from the States. Ill be sailing aboard Snapdragon, a Beneteau 473 for this event.

6. Sirena, the boat that was dismasted finally had the stump removed and is awaiting a new rig from the states. Fortunately SeaTek rigging is based at the La Cruz shipyard so were confident that the new rig and other repairs will be first class and it wont be long before Sirena is back to her cruising ways.

7. After the regatta, we may stick around for Mexorc, which starts around March 23rd, or we may take a road trip to Gudalajara, Morelia and Guanajuato, or maybe both, or neither...

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Christmas in La Cruz

Well, what can I say? We had intended to head south for the holidays, but were waylaid by circumstances and friends and found ourselves once again in the marina at La Cruz for Christmas. In the afternoon we went to a potluck dinner at Philos. There was enough food for an army, great music and dancing, and over 500 gifts for local kids in need. One has to admire Philos efforts to help the local children, his excellent and very reasonably priced drinks and food, and the great music. If you are so fortunate as to find yourself wandering down Calle Delfin in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle, do drop in to Philos. You wont regret it.

We are off to Panama in the morning to hang with our good friends, Craig & Liz aboard their 42 foot cruising cat, Salida. In Panama well tour whatever we can of the canal, Grab a flight to Bocas del Toro and, once aboard the Salida, explore the Caribbean side of Panama. Then well head back to La Cruz to get the boat ready to head south...This time we really are going to get out of the bay to explore Mexicos Costa Alegre...maybe.

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Acapulco to La Cruz

Taking our departure from Acapulco, we set a course that would take us about three miles off the point at Papanoa, From there it was a straight line to Isla Grande, which lies just outside of Bahia Zihuatanejo. We stayed fairly close inshore throughout this passage and enjoyed the beautiful coastline in the area. Arriving around noon the following day, we anchored in about 20 feet of water and spent a couple of days relaxing and exploring the island. On February 1st we motored the short distance to Bahia Zihuatanejo just in time to participate in the festivities at Sailfest. It was a lot of fun and proceeds from the event go to a good cause.  You can learn more about it at www.zihuasailfest.com.

The following Sunday, Finisterra departed from Zihuatanejo and set a course for a point about 10 miles offshore as we passed the port of Lazaro Cardenas. As usual, there was lots of ship traffic there, but once again, we managed to get past the port without knocking any ships out of the ocean. During that time the weather was balmy, with scant wind and flat seas. A few miles further on, the wind jumped to about 20 knots out of the northwest, bringing big lumpy seas with it. We banged along with spray flying all night. Its hard to sleep when you have to hang on even in your berth. By the next morning conditions improved and we were able head directly for Roca Vela at the southern entrance to Bahia Manzanillo.   Arriving at La Hadas around 1800, we were greeted by our good friends, Ed and Connie aboard Sirena, who were anchored nearby. They invited us over for a delicious pasta dinner as soon as we had the hook down. Nothing beats a hearty meal and good company at the end of a passage.

There is room for three or four boats in tiny Ensenada Carrizal.

We stayed at Las Hadas a few days, then headed out around Punta Santiago and across the bay of the same name to a little cove called Ensenada Carrizal. For three days we had the cove to ourselves,  There are beds of coral here which attract a variety of colorful tropical fish. With no other humans in sight, we spent a good deal of time exploring this underwater wonderland. One day we took the dinghy out among the wild looking rock formations that make up the southwest part of the cove. With a good sized swell running, we had fun surfing the dinghy between the towering rocks, and managed to do it without capsizing. This cove is reputed to be a drop-off point for drug traffickers, and we heard that some cruisers had been warned by gun wielding Mexicans to leave the place. As long as we were there we found nothing but a peaceful cove that looks almost untouched by human activity.

On February 12th we said goodbye to Ensenada Carrizal and headed northwest to Barra de Navidad, about 18 miles further up the coast. With no wind and a flat sea, we used the three hour trip to charge batteries and run the watermaker. By 1300 Finisterra was at the channel entrance. In the past, we had to be very careful navigating this channel due to shoals all around the area. There is now a dredger keeping the entrance channel clear and is widening the channel between the marina and the town of Barra. We took a berth on gangway B and settled in for a few days of relaxing by the pool at the Grand Bay resort. The marina here used to be very expensive and was always fairly empty. In the last couple of years the slip rates were brought more in line with other marinas in Mexico and consequently there are lots of boats taking advantage of the place. We have lots of friends here and enjoyed a week or more of socializing...a contrast from the solitude of Carrizal.

The marina at Barra is visible in the center of the photo. A small portion of the Laguna is navigable and there are always a few boats anchored in the southwest corner of it. The afternoon winds can be strong here and its not uncommon for boats to drag anchors.

Whenever Finisterra is in a marina we connect to the 110 volt shore power to keep the batteries full. Unfortunately, our charger/inverter stopped working the day we arrived. There are no real boat repair facilities in this town so we relied on our solar panels to do that work until we could get back to La Cruz where there are lots of resources for this kind of work. So after a week or so in beautiful Barra, Finisterra departed for Cabo Corrientes and La Cruz.

Its about a hundred nautical miles from Barra to Corrientes and for the first 85 miles we motored over a glassy sea, dodging long-lines and trolling for dorado. As we approached the cape, the wind built to about 20 knots on the nose and stayed that way until we rounded it and bore off for La Cruz, another 28 miles ahead. As soon as we cleared the cape the wind dropped to almost nothing and we resumed motoring, arriving at the harbor entrance just before dawn. By 0700 we were snug in our berth on gangway 10.

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Return to La Cruz

Leaving Ixtapa and Zihuatanejo behind, our northbound course took us once again past the busy port of Lazaro Cardenas. Our approach this time was about 10 miles offshore, giving us plenty of time to spot and avoid the ship traffic around the harbor entrance. The wind was very light and we motored throughout the night, arriving at a rough little anchorage called Caleta de Campos around 0800. There is a small bay here called Bahia Bufadero.  It is wide open to the southwesterly swell and we anchored a hundred yards or so outside the surf line and slept for a few hours with the boat rocking in the large swells and the surf booming nearby. Around 1400 the Honcho sailed from Caleta de Campos with a good westerly breeze, bound for Bahia Manzanillo, 114 miles distant.

By nightfall the wind, as it usually does, fell light so the Honcho motored the rest of the way to Bahia Manzanillo. We anchored once again off Las Hadas and spent a couple of days relaxing around the pool and touring the city. Bahia Manzanillo is separated from Bahia de Santiago by the Peninsula de Santiago. Both bays are ringed with broad, beautiful sand beaches and luxury hotels, but we were more intrigued by the old city of Manzanillo and spent our time wandering around the old waterfront town, enjoying the sights around this picturesque area.

Rested and well provisioned, we left Las Hadas, bound for Bahia de Tenacatita, about 40 miles up the coast. We arrived there in the late afternoon and had time to drop the anchor and enjoy a fiery sunset from the cockpit of the Honcho. We did not go ashore here, just relaxed and enjoyed the scenery of the place. This bay is home to a pod of dolphins that seem to enjoy rubbing against the chains of the anchored boats. While the water wasnt clear enough to see them, we could feel the vibrations and see it moving around as they played with our chain. Strange sensation.

The following day we made the short hop from Tenacatita to Bahia de Chamela, anchoring in the northwest corner of the bay just off the little town of Perula. Chamela is about 70 miles down the coast from Cabo Corrientes, the southern border to Banderas Bay.  Cabo Corrientes is known for its frequently rough conditions and cruisers usually wait for predictions of light winds in the area before making the dash around that corner and into the relative safety of Banderas Bay. The winds had been strong the last few days, but with a forecast of light winds in the offing we departed from Bahia Chamela around 1800 so we could pass the cape early the following morning, when conditions were predicted to be fairly calm.

Clearing Punta Rivas, the outermost point of land that protects Bahia Chamela, we ran into a 15 knot headwind and 6 foot seas. These stayed with us all night, making for a bumpy ride up the coast. Tacking in close to shore, the Honcho made the best of it as we slowly worked our way along the rugged coastline, arriving at the cape around 0700 the following morning. Here the sea was still rougher than we had hoped, but as we rounded the cape and entered the southern reaches of Banderas Bay, conditions steadily improved. By 1000 it was calm and we were motoring across the bay with the Islas Tres Marietas and Punta de Mita on our port beam. We felt like we were returning to our friendly home waters with our arrival at La Cruz. But the bay also serves up a breeze now and then, and by the time we reached the anchorage outside the harbor the wind was over 20 knots. With our oversize ground tackle, anchoring in a stiff breeze is a cinch and within a few minutes we were snugly anchored and had time to ponder the large number of boats anchored and bobbing around in the wind before the sun set. When we left here about a month ago there werent many boats anchored here. Now I count nearly 50.

In the evening the wind died down, but the swell rolled us uncomfortably all night long and all the next day. We had planned to spend a few days in the marina anyway, so the following day we upped the anchored and took a berth in the marina, where well stay until mid-March, when weather conditions should be better for heading north into the Sea of Cortez.

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