Cruise of the Confidence 31-Jan-2014 Bandaras Bay

20-Jan-2014 Chacala to La Cruz de Huanacaxtle20*44.85N 105*22.25W

0900: set the main and pulled up anchor. Winds were light again and just off the nose so we mostly motor sailed. But the sky was clear and the seas were relatively calm. We only had 46 nm to go so we decided to dawdle. 

We hugged the shore and went into Bahia de Jaltemba to check things out.

 There is something that I was not expecting from the coast of Mexico once you got away from the baja and that is the beauty of this entire coastline. The beaches are numerous and the mountains beautiful.

But before I go any further I think it is time for a history and geography lesson. Get out your atlas and follow along. Bahia de Banderas, which means "Bay of Flags" was named when Francisco Cortez arrived here in 1525 and was greeted by many natives carrying banners. Well at least that is the way the legend goes. It is the largest bay on the west coast of mainland Mexico, stretching 23 nm from Punta de Mita on the north and Cabo Corrientes to the south.

Banderas is a beautiful bay with miles and miles of beaches, impressive Sierra Madre Occidental mountains, quaint coastal towns and tropical vegetation. The main towns that are popular with tourists are Puerto Vallarta, Nuevo Vallarta and La Cruz de Huanacaxtle. It is also a popular place for cruisers as their are wonderful marinas, near perfect day sailing conditions and protected waters for anchoring.

1300: we came around Punta Mita and entered the bay. Our original plan was to anchor just inside the point but we were a little turned off by all of the high rises and development on the point. It also has a history of being quite rolling as the swells tend to wrap around the point. We had made such good time getting here that we decided to continue on to La Cruz.

1500: anchor was dropped amongst many other boats. It is a busy anchorage with a lot of room for everyone. 

La Cruz is really the shortened name for the town - La Cruz de Huanacaxtle - and is named for the Huanacaxtle shade tree that is common in the area.

 It is a lovely town and is very popular with Canadians. One can see the high rises and big hotels from Puerto Vallarta but the town itself has managed to stay small and unobtrusive. We had considered moving into the marina after a few days but changed our mind as we did not get a very welcoming feeling from the marina. If we brought our dinghy into town the marina charged us to keep it there. There are marinas that do that but that usually includes use of the showers and laundry. The marina wanted $4.00 to dock the dinghy and another  $10.00 to have a shower. For that we might as well stay at the dock.

We took the bus into Bucerias which is the next town as you go south around the bay. We actually went there to provision at the Mega - a superstore type grocery store. Then we walked around the town and down along the beach. Canadians were everywhere. We found a great coffee roasting place and checked out the outside market stalls. David seemed to be really taken with the muscicians - I think he just liked their outfits, especially the hat with the pompoms.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then back to the boat where David set up my new reading room!

 

So after a few days of touring around and visiting with Mike and Judy and Gunner (their sea dog) we decided to head over to Paradise Village Marina in Nuevo Vallarta where, for the same amount of money, we were able to take full advantage of the resort. The winds were quite calm that day so we motored over. Our timing was perfect, however, as we were able to take part in a bit of the parade of panga's that were going over to Bucerias for the annual blessing of the fleet. You can see how some of the panga's went all out to decorate their boats.

 

The Paradise Village marina is situated at Nuevo Vallarta, around the picturesque canals of the estuary.

 The area is very well protected so it was nice to be at a dock and away from the swell. The resort is rated 5 stars and the marina is rated as the best in Mexico and one of the top 100 in the world. We were expecting it to be a bit pretentious but it really wasn't. We would recommend it to anyone coming by sea or air. But it definitely is not Mexican. As I write this blog I am sitting at a Starbucks drinking a latte and surrounded by Gringo's and Canadian's. I found out Gringo's only refers to Americans. It is a little bizarre to say the least but it is also kinda nice to feel like I am back home - minus the palm trees and 28C temperature. And as I look up I see a couple from Victoria that we had met back in Morro Bay. How bizarre is that!

Some of the pluses from a boater's perspective was the potable water at the dock, secured moorage, pump out facilities, propane fill ups and great showers. David really appreciated not having to schlep water to the boat!

And of course I loved the pools - especially the lap pool - where I managed to work up to a mile a day. There are two other pools closer to the beach, one with lots of activities, especially for kids, and a second quieter pool more for adults and poolside service. But I still liked my lap pool.

We could take the bus into PV which was only 7 km away. There was nothing about PV that was familiar to either of us. And if this was my option as a place to fly into I think I would still choose Mazatlan! But the city is very neat and there is tons of shopping and eating establishments. But when you walk along the malecon (sea walk) all you see are gringos. You hardly even hear any Spanish.

So after a couple of hours of that we headed back to the boat and went for a pleasant dinghy ride through the canals to cool off. We did not see and crocodiles but we saw lots of iguanas.

 

We stayed for a couple more days to provision. David did an oil change on the outboard.  David did a real thorough cleaning of the boat including the stainless. And I went to the lap pool. Laundry was being done at the laviandira so one could say that I basically goofed off all week - except for the workouts at the pool and making dinners! I can not help it if David does not like swimming! So I have to swim for both of us.

And of course more beautiful romanitic sunsets.

I was going to wait and finish the entire visit at Puerto Vallarta and the rest of the bay before posting but decided to post this now. So part two will come next week.

See you then!