Puerto Vallarta Excursion

We decided to bus into the city of Puerto Vallarta with the crew of Evergreen. It is a big city and it took us two buses to get there, but we had a wonderful time.

Sand sculpture

The Malecon along the El Centro district was beautiful.

Lots of shops, restaurants, cantinas, and tourists for sure.

We enjoyed the nice long walk and the sites along the way. 

More sand sculptures!

Several sand sculpture artists displayed their amazing work - just leave a tip if you liked what you saw.

Interesting chairs

The Malecon is also lined with very creative bronze statues - they just get better and better as you walk along.

Ride'em Cowboy

You just can't stop taking pictures of them - as you can tell.

Fortunately for you, I only posted a few of the photos!

Henry enjoying the view

Another wonderful part of Mexico, not many "NO" signs.

So have fun playing on the statutes!

Church on the plaza

And, of course, the beautiful La Iglesia de Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe church on the plaza.

The exterior is beautiful; the interior is amazing!

After all of the walking and sight-seeing, the gang needed a break and some refreshments.

Always easy to find a place - just be sure to negotiate your cerveza prices before ordering!

Lunch time - whew!

Doug shopping?  Not!

The Mercado Flea Market is an excellent place to shop for souvenirs and all kinds of cool Mexican stuff.

Never accept the price quoted - bargaining is part of the shopping experience.  Just start walking away...

Isla Cuale

The Isla Cuale was my favorite find - lots of shopping along the the river.

Be sure to have a margarita at the River Cafe. Beautiful setting and Happy Hour is from 2pm - 6pm every day!

Olas Altas

We finally made it to the Zona Romatica... The beautiful old town of Puerto Vallarta.

Fisherman Statue - loved it!

We are definitely going to have to return and explore this area further.

More shopping and restaurants in an old world setting. Next time - the gang was pooped.  Being a tourist is hard work.

Our return trip: 3 buses and a nap!

Living life in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle

We really enjoyed being anchored out in La Cruz (on the hook as the cruisers say)!

Anchored in La Cruz

We have a wonderful view, it is quiet, plus we have a whale show almost everyday.

What could be better than that?

There is a pod of humpback whales that cruise Banderas Bay - looks like a Mom, Dad, and a baby.

La Cruz Church

Best show ever: watching (and hearing) the humpies breeching. 

It gave me goosebumps - I just wish I could have captured it for you.

Superbowl shenanigans

We are settling in to life in La Cruz and meeting lots of new folks, plus hanging out with our good buddies on Evergreen and Rainshadow. 

Always something fun going on when they are around.

Fishing with style

We have been exploring the town.  There is lots of shopping, eateries, and lots of gringos.

With all of that comes higher prices of course - welcome to the big city!

Dancing at Philo's

One reason that La Cruz is so popular with the cruisers - live music - all sorts of live music.  From rock-n-roll to flamenco and lots of dancing.

Almost everynight, there is something going on. 

We have bonfires, seminars, movies in the amphitheater, and the circus even came to town

The Circus came to town

The crew of La Loupiote put on two wonderful shows - hanging and dancing from the rigging of their boat.

They are traveling through Mexico on their way to California earning money along the way.

Hopefully, you will get a chance to see them - they are very entertaining!

Banderas Bay

We are still working on projects, provisioning, and meeting lots of the Pacific Puddle Jumpers.

There are still lots of things on our project list, but all looks good to sail south at the end of February.  So excited!

Bahía de Matanchén - San Blas

Well, our crossing from Isla Isabella was exciting, but what a beautiful day to be on the water!

Captain Doug

Just after leaving Isla Isabella, we hooked a Dorado - he was a beauty too. Just as I tried to gaff'em, it stole the hook.

One that got away!

We were so sorry to see our dinner swim away!

Evergreen cruising along

We were dodging fishing nets along the way, including the one that grabbed us.

Doug hopped in the water to release the line - a good excuse to get wet – but the line had all ready slipped past us. Good!

It was really nice to have s/v Evergreen cruising along beside of us. This Buddy Boating thing definitely has its benefits!



Sunset Bahía de Matanchén

We all made it safely to Bahía de Matanchén just in time to enjoy a beautiful sunset off the point.



San Blas Plaza

The next day, we hitchhiked (cruisers transportation) into San Blas.  Very nice of the locals to take us to town, but a tailgate would have been a bonus!

San Blas is a beautiful old town. We did some site-seeing, shopping, and had a very nice lunch.



Peaking into the New Church

San Blas has two churches on the plaza - the Old Church and the New Church (of course).

They are both amazing and right next to each other.




The Old Church






The Old Church was built by the Spanish in 1769 and was closed in 1872 and the bells silenced.

This inspired Henry Wadsworth Longellow to write the beauitful poem "The Bells of San Blas".

Statue on the Plaza

We spent a couple of days at Bahía de Matanchén and then traveled south to La Cruz, where we are currently anchored. We will probably be here until the end of March.

There is lots of excitement in La Cruz these days.

Hanging at the beach bar with Evergreen

There are approximately 110 boats registered for the Pacific Puddle Jump and most of them are hanging around here. 

We are working on projects, attending seminars, and lots and lots of socializing!

Isla Isabela

What an amazing place! 

Where'd you get those shoes?

We were fortunate to be able to anchor for the night and explore the island!

Most of the time, the weather is too unsettled and cruisers have to sail on by.  

I would have hated to miss this one!

Mom, Dad, and Babies

The island is a national park and home to millions of nesting birds and iguanas. 

And, with no natural predators, they are all thriving and not a bit afraid of us. 

Baby Frigate and Family

Of course, the mama birds squawked a lot when we approached the nests - and there were lots of nests and lots of babies in all different sizes.

We tried to tiptoe around them, but the silly birds built their nests right on the trail!

Male Frigate showing is colors

My favorites were the Blue-Footed Boobies, but there were also Red and Green-Footed Boobies too and lots and lots of Frigates.

The Frigates looked way too big to be nesting in those trees!

Doug talking to the birds

Isla Isabela is a volcanic island, with a fish camp on the south end, a crater in the middle, and Las Monas (rocks) on the east.

There is also a group of researchers studying the Boobies - a 30 year project. 

You wouldn't think there would be that much to study!

Famous explorers - not!

We tried to hike around all of it with our amigos on s/v Evergreen, but had trouble finding the trails.

Green Iguana - really?

Some explorers we are!

We deserved a break

And the best part, hanging with friends on a beautiful white secluded beach.

Did I mention that this cruising life is pretty cool? Well, it is!

Next... sailing over to Bahia Matanchen.