One Definition of Cruising
10 January 2011 | Paradise Marina, Banderas Bay, MXMost of you are probably familiar with the old saw defining a boat: "A hole in the water, into which you pour money." There's another that's commonly mentioned among the cruising community: "What's the definition of cruising?" Answer: "Repairing your boat in exotic places." We're now living that definition, at least for a few days.
Here's a photo of the quarter berth, during the process of ripping it apart for repairs to equipment underneath. Read on for the full story...
Cruising Without Hot Water
23 January 2011 | Chamela Bay, Jalisco, MexicoApparently there is some consternation out there about what happened after our hot water tank failed. Not wanting to leave anyone hanging, I'll overcome the cruisers' sloth, and give you an update about that and many other things.
At Anchor in the Wind
29 January 2011 | Barra de Navidad, Colima, MexicoWe finally pried ourselves loose from beautiful Bahía Tenacatita after nearly a week among the 15-20 cruising boats anchored in the sheltered north end. The bay is about 3 miles long, book-ended by some impressively jagged rocks at each headland. Near our anchorage was a tidal river connecting to a small lake, so we motored up it in the dinghy --"jungle cruise"!
Road Trip to Colima
04 February 2011 | Barra de Navidad, Jalisco, MXFebruary 4, 2011
Just back from Colima
We decided to do a brief road trip away from the boat. First, this involved trusting our anchor, and the winds, and our systems, and the neighboring anchored boats, enough to actually leave her for a few days in the lagoon at Barra de Navidad. Because we had come in at such a windy time, we had used our storm anchor - the Fortress FX-85. So we are well dug into the mud. A couple of neighboring boats offered to keep an eye on her, so we decided to see a bit of Mexico away from the coast.
Crocodiles!
17 February 2011 | Barra de Navidad, Jalisco, MXCraig’s cousin Gail just said farewell, after a delightful week’s visit. We took her back to some places that we visited before, and we tried some new things, all in the Barra de Navidad/Tenacatita Bay area.
(Here's a baby crocodile we saw while Gail was with us...)
Manzanillo North to Banderas Bay
07 March 2011 | La Cruz, Nayarit, MexicoWe just completed a four-day journey from Manzanillo northward back to Banderas Bay, and what a wildlife expedition it was! We had constant sightings of creatures of sea and air, which made the trip a constant and interesting surprise.
Tsunami in Banderas Bay
From Craig, on the day of the tsunami, 3/11/2011: This is a quick update following the massive earthquake in Japan. The ensuing tsunami did get to Banderas Bay, MX, where Puerto Vallarta and La Cruz (where we were docked) are located. Unlike hard-hit locations in Hawaii, Crescent City, Santa Cruz and others, we were relatively lightly hit here. Sequoia and her crew are fine.
On the Hard
23 March 2011 | La Cruz, Nayarit, MexicoWe discovered, to some dismay, that pea-sized barnacles were starting to populate the bottom sides of Sequoia in increasing numbers. I popped some of them off with a stick, when we snorkeled at Las Islas Marietas a week and a half ago, but there was no way we were going to get all of them.
Emerald Waters, Desert Hills and Windy Nights
06 April 2011 | San Francisco Island, north of La Paz, Mexico
About to Leave for Hawaii
19 April 2011 | La Paz, Baja California Sur, MexicoWe are on the cusp of a change in our cruising: today we "checked out" with three or four different government offices (depending upon how you count).
