Our great sail from Chemala to Tenacatita - some super wild life shots compliments of our friend Susea McGearhart....

2nd stop - Chemala - we really enjoyed this anchorage

January 22, 08 - heading south: First stop, Ipala...

December '07/January '08 in Mexico

Early December - Banderas Bay Blast

Chacala

We wish all of our friends and family could enjoy this rustic little village before it becomes an overbuilt tourist attraction. It’s only about 50 miles north of bustling Puerto Vallarta making it inevitable that sooner or later big changes will come. We anchored bow and stern 250 feet off the sandy beach giving us a perfect view of the half dozen palapa restaurants tucked in under rows of palm trees. The hills around Chacala are thick with the intense green vegetation that one finds only in tropical locations. Although the water is not particularly clear it’s a pleasing green color and deliciously warm and inviting. The shore break is relatively mild and we had a good chance to practice our dinghy landings and so far nothing bad has happened, but stay tuned as we try our skills in more difficult locations. Other Ha-Ha participants have been arriving here so we’ve had a chance to renew earlier acquaintances and make some new ones. All hands agree this is a special place and we’re glad for the opportunity to spend a few days before moving on to Punta Mita where our soon to be finished condo is located. If all goes well we should be anchored in front of the condo around November 29.

Almost forgot! While enjoying an early afternoon beer in one of the Chacala palapas we noticed whales spouting not far off the anchorage so we quickly cleared up the bill and jumped into our dinghy for a closer view of these magnificent animals. (Check out the photos). What a treat…. We were cruising along no more than 125 feet away while four or maybe five humpback whales including what appeared to include juveniles cavorted with each other as they slowly made their way down the coast. Probably a once in a life time experience even for people like us who spend so much time on the water. Since we were low on fuel we could not stay as long as we wanted and headed back for Destiny otherwise you’d be reading about missing gringos out to sea in their little dinghy.

After four days we had to head to Punta Mita. Gilly had a bad infection in her elbow which needed professional treatment. Check out December 3rd's Lectronic Latitude...

To view larger pictures and captions, click on a photo... Also, check out the pictures of the whales..

Mazatlan to Chacala

Our next leg was a 140 mile overnight trip further south to a small anchorage off the village of Chacala. The weather forecast was good so we expected an uneventful trip. On the morning of November 24 we awoke to clear skies but as we were departing the marina black clouds appeared and soon the rain was coming down in buckets. As we approached the dreaded entrance to the harbor mentioned earlier, we soon saw what the guide books were talking about. Large swells coming in and breaking on the jetty but fortunately not yet across the entrance which is so narrow that turning back was not an option. John gunned the engine and Destiny bashed into the steep swells like a high performance Coast Guard vessel and we made out with our hearts pounding away like overworked jackhammers. It was sloppy in the relatively shallow water outside the harbor so we kept on heading out to sea as fast as possible. Once safely offshore we set a course straight for Chacala with Destiny rolling like crazy as we motor sailed with the large swells on our beam. The squalls let up during the day but as darkness approached they were back again with a vengeance accompanied but what appeared to be the whole Mexican shrimping fleet. We spent the night dodging the hard working fishermen and many times losing them to the rain squalls as they moved across our radar. Despite all of this we both managed to get reasonable sleep as we have confidence in each other and our equipment. At daybreak we found ourselves right on target 1.5 miles off Chacala.