Life at Paradise Village

We are still at Paradise Village, mixing chores, exploring, socializing and relaxing.

Chores

Of course the first thing we did was to wash the boat. It was surprising how much salt was on the deck after the passage from Puerto Los Cabos, as well as a few dried squid, one of which got excited and inked before his demise.

As we were having problems with the engine and fuel during the later part of the passage from Puerto Los Cabos, Rich installed a new fuel pump and replaced the fuel filters.  Usually he replaces them after 300 hours of engine operation but he decided that while we are in Mexico we should do it after 100 hours. We have run the engine a few time since and everything seems to be a-ok. We also cleaned the oil pan under the engine and put in new 'diapers' so if there is a leak we can identify it early.

I have been working on polishing and waxing the stainless as well as compounding and waxing some of the deck as I do the stanchions. While it is rewarding to see everything nice and shiny I do realize that this is never ending and that I will be doing it again in the future. I am using a new wax which I hope will increase the time between polishing.

I am pleased to report that our mail finally arrived here at Paradise Village, on Tuesday, 12/27. After returning to Seattle it was sent on to Sarah in Portland. There was a little delay as Sarah's address was incorrect on the package but the error was corrected and it arrived shortly thereafter. We thank her for culling through the mail, removing the offending medications, packaging it back up and sending it on to us. I now have my new driver's license, ATM cards, as well as the new boat document. Of course there were a few bills but nothing major or unexpected. Rich was able to take his prescription containers over to the farmacia and get them refilled for about 2/3 of the cost in the states. Now we just have to work the paperwork with the medical insurance folks.

Exploring

We forgot to check out of La Cruz before arriving at Nuevo Vallarta on Tuesday, 12/20. We took the ATM bus from Paradise Village to the main highway, crossed the highway, dodging traffic and caught the bus to La Cruz and Punta de Mita under the overpass. At La Cruz we walked down the hill to the marina, stopping to see the crew of Convivia at the taco stand and then on to the port captain to get out check out papers. Then we reversed the process back to Paradise Village and took the water taxi from the Paradise Village Marina dock over to the Nuevo Vallarta dock to visit the port captain and have our check in paperwork stamped. All in all a simple process.

On Friday, 12/23, we took the ATM bus into Puerto Vallarta to walk to the Malecon. The Malecon is a wide walkway along the waterfront. On one side is the beach and on the other there are shops and restaurant. The walkway includes statues, planters and benches for sitting and enjoying the view and people watching. We stopped at an italian restaurant and sat on the second floor overlooking the Malecon and had great pizza. We continued our walk, checking out the shops and the statues. In the older section of town we walked along the shops where proprietors promised not to sell us time share condos but instead they had good stuff to sell us. It was an interesting marketing scheme. There are many buses going in and out of town but only the ATM buses go to Nuevo Vallarta and Paradise Village. We walked most of the length of town back past the other end of the Malecon looking for an ATM bus stop. We finally ask a woman waiting for a bus and she gave us directions, three blocks in the current direction, turn right and go two blocks, then turn left and go two blocks. We did and we arrived at the ATM terminal and got our bus.

On 12/26, we took the ATM bus to Marina Vallarta. We had spent some time here 10 years ago. There are more buildings surrounding the marina and a new golf course. We were please to find that the small restaurant that served fish and shrimp tacos was still there and the tacos are as good as ever. The marine store is now almost across the street from the marina and it a lot larger than before. We were able to purchase replacement zincs for our Maxi-prop. We walked down to the Galeria Vallarta, with some more upscale shops and a movie theater. I got Rich a new pair of sunglasses. We also checked out WalMart before heading back.

Socializing

We enjoyed sundowners and Christmas eve dinner with Heidi and Joe of SV Huck, whom we met in San Diego and also did the Baja Ha-Ha. Wednesday night we had Constance and Tim of SV Midnight Lady over for drinks and latkes. We had met Constance on the dock and struck up a conversation as they are from Victoria, BC and had spent some time in the US. This morning we met Kellie and Terry of SV Noah. They had found our website of our first trip and commented about our first check-in to Cabo San Lucas. They even sent us a new flowchart of check in at Ensenada, very funny. They are from Pt. Roberts, Washington.

Heidi and Joe of SV Huck

This afternoon our friends, Phoebe and Reg of SV Three Sheets arrived so we gave them a tour of Paradise Village and spent the afternoon with them enjoying nachos and drinks on the beach. They told us about their stay at Los Muertos in 35 knot winds and their visit to Isla Isabella.

Relaxing

On Christmas day we grabbed our beach towels and our books and found a palapa on the beach to hang out for the day. The waiters even come to your palapa and take your order. What luxury!

We are having chaps made for our dingy to help protect it from the ultraviolet rays here in Mexico. We will take the dingy to their shop next to the marina on Monday and hope to pick it up completed on Wednesday. So, our stay will be extended a bit before we leave and head south.

We want to wish everyone a Happy New Year and that 2012 will find you healthy and happy.

Feliz Ano Nuevo 2012

Mexico - extremes

20 41.670 N, 105 17.665 W

We are now at Paradise Village Marina in Nuevo Vallarta. We were here 10 years ago prior to heading off on the Pacific Puddle Jump 2002. Comparing it to Bahia Santa Maria, is like night and day.

Bahia Santa Maria was a large bay with no 'civilization' other than the wooden structures of the fishing camp on the hill overlooking the bay which are not even occupied all year round.

Paradise Village is like a city in itself. There are multiple hotels, condominiums lining the beach side. There are breakwaters on both sides of the entrance to the river where the marina is located. Across from the marina are large private homes with docks as well. They offer 'jungle tours' on a pange that goes up the river. There are signs warning you not to feed the crocodiles. Crocodiles? Affronting the marina are new villas, many of which are for sale. Paradise Village includes a shopping center complete with McDonalds, Subway, Dominos Pizza, Starbucks (this is new since we were here last), a grocery store, several restaurants. shops and a courtyard for eating including a large McDonalds style play structure for kids. Beyond the shopping center is another complex than includes a hospital with emergency room, offices and a casino. In between shopping center and some of the hotels is a small zoo with birds and 3 Bengal Tigers. Two cubs were born recently and there is another large zoo with more tigers in the middle of the golf course. Half way down the marina is the Vallarta Yacht Club. They were just starting the ground preparation for this 10 years ago. The yacht club includes a restaurant, bar, swimming pool, hot tub and shower facilities.

Ten years ago we would wake up to the sound of Simba, the lion, roaring in his cage at the small zoo. One of the villa owners felt that Simba's roaring was disturbing the peace, including their dogs so Simba is gone. Katmandu was always a little intimidated by the roaring.

There are many more hotels and resorts filling in the coast of the bay. Many of the tourists we see are Mexican. Of course the Westin and St. Regis resorts at Punta de Mita are famous for recent visitors such as Charlie Sheen, Lady Gaga and Courtney Cox. The Mexican press denies that Gaddafi's son wished to relocate here from Libya.

It is all a far cry from Bahia Santa Maria.

Adios

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Anchored at La Cruz

20 44.920 N, 105 22.236 W
We anchored this morning at 8:30 am just a short distance from the breakwater for the marina at La Cruz. After settling the boat, taking showers and having some breakfast we were ready for a long nap.
The best thing about passage is arriving at your destination, everything else can sometimes be distant tenth place or more. It is no fun to be sleep deprived and with the confused seas of the second day and night it was hard to sleep. We were on the same tack the entire trip which made it easier but the short choppy seas were not fun. We are getting better on stowing items so they remain in place during passage. I did not expect a piece of moulding on the port side above the settee to fall down but as it was not glued or screwed in but only on by friction I should not be surprised. We got quite a shaking. I did manage to read and finish two books. We also had many porpoises join us on the second day for over an hour. One jumped right in front of the boat over eight feet in the air. Very impressive. The first day we saw almost no signs of life.

Last night when the winds started to diminish we decided to motor a bit. Rich switched us over to the forward fuel tank. Shortly after starting the engine, it quit. We started it again and it ran for a bit, then quit. We suspect that we either got some bad fuel or some other cause. As we want to save the fuel in the aft tank which seemed to be okay for when we arrived, we unfurled the staysail to sail instead. We were only doing about 3-4 knots but that was okay since slowing down meant we would be arriving at sunrise and it would be light so we could maneuver more comfortably.

As we rounded Punta de Mita there are some rocks we need to avoid. Unfortunately the C-map charts show these in different positions than the Navionics Gold charts on the IPad. Which is correct? Not knowing we tried to avoid the rocks on both charts. We were successful and did not hit anything. Not sure if more information was better or worse.

Tomorrow we will listen to the morning net and then go into La Cruz for a reconnoiter. I need to buy more time on our Telcel Amigo Internet plan for the IPad. It expires today.

Adios
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Almost there

21 14.994 N, 106 29.538 W

We are still on our way to Punta de Mita. We have been sailing most of the day as the winds built from 5-10 knots to 18-22 knots, from close hauled to beam reach to broad reach, all on the same tack. The waves are off the aft quarter making it very rolly and lots of splashing as the waves hit the side of the boat and go straight up in the air.

We have had many porpoises visiting us today, some staying for over an hour, lots of jumping and high leaps into the air. We also saw a turtle. Not sure where he was going, maybe to French Polynesia.

Looking forward to anchoring and getting some sleep. We have about 60 some miles to go.

Adios

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Passage to Bahia de Banderas

22 32.833 N, 108 45.492 W

Just past nine o'clock this morning we were on our way our of the harbor. We had just made a stop at the fuel dock to top off the aft fuel tank and the starboard water tank. So we are all 'tanked' up so to speak. Twice the engine just stopped, once as we were approaching the fuel dock and later as we were leaving. It was a little disconcerting. Rich had replaced the fuel filters while we were in La Paz which would have been our first suspicion. It is now past 5:15 pm and the motor has been running constantly since then without a hiccup so as they say in the movie, "Shakespeare in Love", "It's a mystery". We have been coming across more of these mysteries.

The winds have been light all day, anywhere from 0.0 to at maximum of 7.8 knots. We are motorsailing with the main so that helps our speed and we are putting it in the bank.

As we left Puerto Los Cabos we saw some fishing boats and we had an AIS target of a cruise ship but since 11:00 am we have seen nothing other than a boobie that flew by and a cup of noodles container. The horizon is clear. No green flash at sunset due to low lying clouds in the distance. I hope that the evening is just as uneventful.

I did manage to finish one book and have started another but had to stop when the sunset.

We have traveled 65 nautical miles and we have about 210 nautical miles to go.

Adios

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Puerto Los Cabos

23 03.620 N, 109 40.345 W

We arrived back at Puerto Los Cabos on Wednesday afternoon. We are again on the long pier that does not have power but that is okay, as the rates are cheaper. In fact, if you want to stay a month, the cost is the same as for staying 10 days. There are several sailboats here but most of the cruisers are not Baja Ha-Ha folks. As they recently arrived from coming down the coast, the idea of staying here for a month is pretty appealing, especially at this reduced rate.

On of the boats here is Reunion with Dennis and Marta aboard. We met them at Scarborough Marina in Australia. They also shipped their boat back on Dockwise as we did with Windarra. They sold their original Reunion and bought a different boat and renamed it. Dennis is an excellent craftsman and the boat is gorgeous.

On the way from Los Frailles we noticed that the autopilot was making a groaning sound as it controlled the rudder. It did not skip a beat and it held the course with no problem but there was a lot of groaning. We checked the autopilot and ran the 'at dock' tests with no problem we feel a lot better about the operation of the autopilot.

Later we joined Marta and some of the other cruisers at happy hour.

Today we took at taxi to Soriana's. It is a large store similar to Walmart with a great grocery section that is on the way to the airport. We did our shopping and returned to Windarra. The dingy is now deflated and mounted on the foredeck. We bought a new outboard motor mount for the aft pulpit and Rich tried to install it but the steel tubes of the pulpit have a curve near where the previous outboard was located. The new mount is larger and will not accomodate the curve, so the new mount will not work. Rich put the old mount back on. We will have to make our own mount. The new one will become a swap meet item.

Tomorrow we will make a crossing to the mainland. We originally planned to go to Isla Isabella and then on to Bahia Banderas but based on the gribs we think a wiser course is to head straight for Bahia Banderas. We will have a chance to stop as Isla Isabella when we head north, next year on our way back into the Sea of Cortez.

I will try to write a position update along the way, depending on the sea conditions. If not, I will post when we stop to anchor in the bay.

Adios

Los Frailles

23 22.725 N, 109 25.383 W

We are back at Los Frailles. It was a rolly night at Los Muertos so we hope tonight will be more relaxing. The anchorage is almost empty, just one power boat and ourselves (I won the guess as to how many boats would be here). We had a nice sail today a broad reach with all the sails out, winds were 10-14 knots, seas were rather sedate. We passed two sailboats northbound, and one container ship otherwise we had the sea to ourselves for 46 nautical miles.

The port side water tank is leaking again. This is one of the items we 'fixed' while we were at Emery Cove. Looks like the leak is in the same general area but we need to take the settee apart to look at it so perhaps at Puerto Los Cabos, our next stop.

It is time to have dinner so I will end this.

Adios.

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Rolly Los Muertos

23 59.228 N, 109 49.723 W

Yesterday was a long motorsail from Caleta Lobos. For most of the way the winds were under 6 knots, but the seas were flat and we had the current our way for most of the trip so it was not bad just boring. The anchorage was rolly last night so we did not sleep very soundly. There are fewer boats than when we were here after the Baja Ha-Ha. The only boat we recognize is Deep Playa.

This morning the winds are from the west but light. We are heading to Los Frailles today.

Adios

Caleta Lobos

24 17.924 N, 110 20.029 W

Saturday morning we prepared to leave the dock, pick up some fuel and head out to Caleta Lobos. As part of the preparation, Rich took a look at the engine. He noticed that there was some salt built up above the starter motor and below one of the salt water cooling hoses and a small drip of salt water. He started the engine and there was a lot more than just a drip. We could not leave in this condition. Unfortunately, curing the problem was a bit more complicated. The hose was not situated properly so Rich has to remove the starter motor just to get access to the hose, then slide it over the connections on each end and put on new hose clamps then reinstall the starter motor. So instead of our 10:30 am departure it was more like 1:45 pm. But after fuel we went to Caleta Lobos for a rest.

Today we spent reading and relaxing. Rich made some brownies (om nom nom). I am reading a book on the discovery of the source of the Nile and Rich is reading about South American history. The weather is warm and we watch the pelicans and boobies fishing in the anchorage. This evening we saw a turtle floating by. There is only one other boat in the anchorage and in fact I think it is the same boat we saw when we first anchored here.

Tomorrow we will head back to Ensenada de Los Muertos on our way south to Puerto Los Cabos.

Adios.

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The mail does not always go through

Since we were going to be in La Paz for a while we thought it would be a good idea to have some of our mail sent to us. We talked to the folks in the office of the marina and they suggest using UPS. So on Nov. 16, we sent an email to our mail service in Seattle asking them to box up our mail and send it to the marina via UPS. That sounded easy enough.

I monitored the tracking of the package as it went from Seattle, Washington to Louisville, Kentucky to Ontario, California, to Tijuana, Mexico, arriving there on Nov. 18. I thought, wow, this is great, we should get the package soon.  The words, “Your package has experienced an exception” on the tracking email did not sound good.

Part of our mail included Rich’s medications. Even though the medications were directly from the insurance company and unopened and with the prescription information, customs in Mexico do not accept the importation of medication. Our box of mail contained a restricted commodity. After numerous calls to UPS, I finally convinced them to send the package back to Seattle.

On Nov. 25, the package was sent from Tijuana, Mexico back Louisville, Kentucky.  Since the package was arriving from Mexico, it had to be processed through US Customs and specifically the Food and Drug Administration and/or department of AG PPQ (I am not sure who or what this is).  More phones calls are made to UPS. So even though the package originated in the United States, and never cleared customs in Mexico, the officials were not sure they should allow this contraband to enter the United States.

On Dec. 5, UPS had obtained documentation and submitted to the Food and Drug Administration and the shipment was released.  The next email indicated that the package was at Seattle but not delivered due to adverse weather conditions but later today I got confirmation that it had been delivered.

It cost over $200 to send the package to Mexico and send it back to Seattle, not including the numerous international long distance phone calls (800 numbers are not toll free when you are calling from outside the United States) and we still do not have our mail.

In Herodotus’ Histories is the following quote, referring to the courier service of the ancient Persian Empire:

It is said that as many days as there are in the whole journey, so many are the men and horses that stand along the road, each horse and man at the interval of a day’s journey; and these are stayed neither by snow nor rain nor heat nor darkness from accomplishing their appointed course with all speed. (trans. A.D. Godley 1924)

Apparently the Persians had not encountered Mexican customs officials or the United States Food and Drug Administration.

Some photos...

Here are some photos for your viewing pleasure...

The best ice cream store in La Paz

Robin of The Cat's Meow at the Thanksgiving potluck

Rich on the beach at Bahia San Gabriel

The remains of a puffer fish at Bahia San Gabriel

Waiting out the Northerlies

24 10.940 N, 110 18.223 W

As the northerlies built in the Sea of Cortez, we decided that hanging out in the anchorage, doing the La Paz waltz and getting soaked going back and forth in the dingy was not going to be a lot of fun.  So, on Saturday, we got a slip at Marina Palmira which is farther west and a little farther from town but it was available. We have not stayed at the marina before so it is a new experience for us. It is larger than Marina de La Paz and there are a lot more mega-yachts but the facilities include a hotel with a swimming pool, which is available for the yachties to use if they buy a drink at the bar, 2 restaurants, a small store/chandlery, a laundry that uses American quarters (6 for wash, 6 for dry) and a free shuttle that goes into town 3 times a day.

Sunday before the winds picked up Rich went up the mast to check the rigging. He wears a climbing harness that we attach to two halyards. I ran one of the halyards to a powered winch in the cockpit and the other to a self-tailing winch on the mast. We use the powered winch to pull him up with the other as backup. It is a lot easier than my grinding him up by hand! Everything looks good. All of the rigging pins are in place with split pins. There are two loose rivets on the mast conduit between the first and second spreader, but not coincident. The port site primary shroud below the first spreader has a deep scratch in the staylock cylinder. We are not sure what caused this but we will keep an eye on it. We may want to order a replacement. In the afternoon I cleaned the cockpit and washed the cushions. I found lots of granola bar crumbs! With the northeries, the temperature has gone down to the low 70s during the day and in the 50’s at night so I put on jeans for the first time since leaving San Diego.

In the evening we went out for dinner with Adam and Cindy of SV Bravo. They were on E-dock with us when we were at Shilshole Bay Marina. They spent the past summer in the Sea of Cortez which we plan to do this coming summer so we want to get some of their ideas. We walked down to the “Smiling Dorado” and enjoyed fish and shrimp soup. We had a great time talking. We were the only patrons and of course we closed the place as well.

This morning Rich and I caught the shuttle and met Reg and Phoebe for breakfast at the Dock Café at Marina de La Paz. I just finished the Game of Thrones series by George R. R. Martin so I am loaning them the series to read. I finished the last book, “A Feast for Crows”, only to find out that he did not finish the series in the last book and has written a fifth book, “A Dance with Dragons”, which I will have to find somewhere. After breakfast, Rich, Phoebe and I went into town to look for an electronics store and then to the grocery store to do some provisioning. Along the way we passed through a small street market.

We also stopped by the main cathedral in La Paz. A mission was first established at the site of La Paz in 1535 by Herman Cortes and he called it Holy Cross Harbor. In 1683 the Jesuits rediscovered this port and named it Our Lady of Peace, but later it was abandon. In 1720 more Jesuits founded a permanent mission of La Paz.

We continued our walk, stopping at an Ace Hardware store and then at the Tiendas Chedraui and did our provisioning. We got a taxi back to Marina de La Paz to drop off Phoebe and then back to Marina Palmira.

Tomorrow we hope to get a diver to check the zincs and replace if necessary.

Tsunami detection system in La Paz

Back at La Paz

24 09.661 N, 110 19.849 W

Last night shortly before midnight, the winds shifted to the southwest and increased to 20 knots. A fetch built up in the anchorage and it was hobbyhorse time. Not the most restful. This morning we decided it was time to leave and now these winds from the southwest were on our nose all the way back to La Paz but at least they decreased over time and the seas relaxed so it was not a hard slog back.

We are back in the anchorage off of Marina de La Paz, not to far from where we were anchored before.

Sent from SV Windarra iPad