After having picked up our guests Forrest and Lyssa in Puerto Vallarta and provisioning for the four of us at the conveniently closely located big supermarkets, we set sail toward Boca de Tomatlan, hoping we would be lucky with good enough conditions to anchor for a night or two.
We had visited Boca de Tomatlan last April and were able to anchor for one night though we didn’t sleep too well that night. The anchorage in this small cove is a bit tricky as the shore drops off very rapidly. We had over 50 meters of chain off the bow, the front of the boat and were hoping to position our stern, the back of the boat, so that we could face into the waves, making the boat roll less. Unfortunately the swell was too strong and the sand bar had extended quite a bit further out which made our keel touch the soft sand bottom twice before we pulled the anchor back in and decided to head for La Cruz de Huanacaxtle on the north side of the Banderas Bay.
We anchored in La Cruz, Nayarit, in calm waters after sunset and spent the next few days exploring La Cruz. Our next stop was Yelapa, Jalisco, a small fishing and tourist town which is mostly only accessed by boat featuring mules, waterfalls, and iguanas. Following Yelapa we decided to exit Banderas Bay and head south to the little town of Perula. During our overnight sail we were able to witness bioluminescence around the boat. A handful of dolphins also swam around the boat a few rounds to get Kiwi excited. It is magical to see the sparkles in the water and look up and see more sparkles in the sky.
After Perula we intended to first stop at Cala Paraiso, which was unfortunately not suitable for a calm anchorage that night. The waves were between one and two meters and going straight into this small cove. So on to the next possible anchorage. The second cove we approached, Bahia Careyes, looked promising as it had little bays facing the opposite direction of the swell. This cove was full of small moorings and lots of small fishing boats, called pangas. No room for us. On we go again. By now this turned into another overnight passage and to top it off, the wind died. This wouldn’t have been a problem if we didn’t have a one knot current taking us back north. Our diesel reserves were running low so we were left to wait for the wind that finally started up again in the late morning.
With low diesel reserves and no confident forecast for wind we decided to skip beautiful Tenacatita anchorage with heavy hearts and headed straight for Barra de Navidad. Once again, the wind was slow and we decided to anchor in San Patricio just outside Barra for two days to enjoy the warm water for swimming before entering the lagoon.
Once we entered the Barra lagoon, we refilled our tanks with diesel at the marina, and anchored in the tropical lagoon. Of course we took advantage of the local water taxis that take people from all sides of the lagoon, including anchored out sailboats into Barra and back. The local French baker stops by most mornings with his boat to deliver fresh breads and pastries to the anchored out sailors.
Our journey will continue to Manzanillo, Zihuantanejo, and finally Acapulco.