Friday, December 24, 2010

Christmas in Victoria AND GETTING IN THE MOOD IN MAZATLAN

The house might not be as decorated as it has been in years past but i think the tree looks right at home! And you can not forget one of Bandit just cause i know you guys miss how cute she is!

We did numerous Christmas activities this year, 















after all of this we were in the Christmas mood.

Sunday, November 28, 2010

Day of the dead part of a display at EL CID


Houses decorated for Halloween

To Hot to cook inside plus the corn did not taste like Taber Corn



El Cid Lobby and Marina Staff ball Game. Our Friend Poncho pitching he is pretty good



Saturday, November 20, 2010

What Have We Been Up To

Since arriving back in Mazatlan we have been to a few Venados Baseball games, also a ball game with the El Cid employees from the Marina (they play in a commercial league). We took about 70 picture and had them printed for them. It made us a big hit with the players.



 

At the end of October we took part in the Day of the Dead activities which included following 3 beer carts ( were they were giving out free draft beer)pulled by donkeys around the old town. Included in the parade were fire works and lots of people in costumes.









Two weeks ago we took the overnight bus (12 hours) to Guaymas and met up with our friends on a boat called the Murray Gray and sailed 200 miles down the coast to Topolobambo, got on a bus and then a train and toured the Copper Canyon for a week. The trip also included a 60 km (one way)ride on a very rough 4 wheel drive road that was made from a donkey trail. Big drop off the edge and saw a few vehicles that had gone over and were still there. We then returned to Topolobambo and sailed another 200 miles to Mazatlan.

Today was a large Parade celebrating the 200 Anniversary of the Mexican Revolution. Lots of school bands and loud music.







More info to come as soon as Debbie has some computer time, but from what you can see we may need to go back to Victoria for a rest.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Back In Mazatlan


Arrived back here on Tuesday afternoon. The Westjet flight only had two empty seats so it would seem that the snowbirds are starting to migrate.

The boat seems to be fine, no issues with any systems yet and it was very clean (they washed it the morning we were coming back). We are not in a big hurry to put the cockpit enclosure or sails on yet as it was a year ago today that we sat thru the tail end of Hurricane Rick. Even though it has been a quiet hurricane season for the Eastern Pacific there is still time to get kicked with a storm. The temp is hanging around 30 degrees but the humidity has not been to bad. We are also back playing our favourite game.Try and find the stuff you but away 6 months ago and cannot remember were you put it. Kinda like Christmas when you find it.

It feels like one is coming home when we get back here.The staff are all glad to see you, and there are a few cruiser friends hanging around. And one can afford to go out for drinks and dinner.

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Home in Victoria

We are now home in Victoria after spending a few days visiting family in Vancouver and are trying to adjust to 5 to 10 degree(C) temperatures. Wood stove is on and blankets are in use. We are catching up on yard work , house work , mail and friends in Victoria.

Dolphin Tales has been left in Mazatlan at the El Cid Marina again for the summer. We spent a fair amount of time getting the boat ready to leave and cleaned, checked or repaired anything that needed attention . Debbie also got a chance to use her sewing skills to repair the leach on the genoa. It had started to come undone and then the stitching let go for about 6ft.after it caught the spreader tip when cleaning the sail.





Sunday, March 14, 2010

Back In Mazatlan


We are now back in Mazatlan, same slip we had before which is nice, and the same neighbours. We made a rather quick trip from La Cruz due to the rather unsettled weather. We did get picked on by one squall just off Chacala. We were about a mile or so out of the anchorage and got hit with 35-40 knots in 80 ft of water on a lee shore. We did manage to make some progress off the shore and ride it out for a  couple of hours until we got into the anchorage and set a stern anchor (but that is a whole other story). we had  really wanted to get close to this area.  

Our next stop was in San Blas at the marina downtown, new marina and we paid about $15 a night. 






Then a 25 hour motor sail / motorboat ride to Mazatlan with winds and waves on the nose.  We met the
 skipper of a power boat called Patty M they also berth at El Cid right behind us. They left San Blas the same time we did only to arrive 12 hours earlier then us.

And yes Debbie is working on pictures.

Thursday, February 11, 2010

UPDATE TO FEB 11 2010

UPDATE TO FEB 11 2010

We have been a little slow with the blog lately, but we are all fine and in the La Cruz Marina (Puerto Vallarta) waiting out another tropical trough after beating our way back from Manzanillo. The trip was mostly uneventful saw another whale, with the exception of a surface trough that smacked us in the Bahia de Navidad lagoon with winds of 60 knots and heavy rain. At one point the dingy was half full of rain water with the night's rain. We were ok on our anchor but a few boats dragged however nobody got hit by dragging boats. However a boat in Tenacatia and another in Chamela did get hit by lightning. The lighting storm was spectacular and went on for 3 or 4 hours before the wind and rain hit.








After leaving Bahia de Navidad we did one night stops at Tenacatia, Chamela and Punta Ipala before getting to the La Cruz marina to wait out the second of those tropical troughs that are very unusual at this time of the year.   We also got to see rays jumping in Punta Impala









Debbie will post more about our land trip etc,

Thursday, January 14, 2010

LAS HADAS AND MANZANILLO

LAS HADAS AND MANZANILLO

Amber the cat has been a very good guest. But we feel we should get her to owners.
We pulled up anchor from Carrizal around 8:30 it looked a little gray but nothing to concern us. Even listening to the weather there was nothing out there. Wrong !!!!!!

We have now experienced our first Mexican squall. I always thought a squall was over in 10 minutes we had about 1 ½ hours of dark skies, building seas and winds. In fact we even took a greene right through the cockpit with Lynn taking a great amount of it all over him at the wheel. Winds of 32 knots and at on point we thought the dingy was going to be airborne.






We managed to get in to Las Hadas right behind the breakwater and very close to the swimming floats meaning we are protected from the swells no matter which way the wind blows. All around the bay are hotels, condos and timeshares, but no hawkers. Most of the Hotels will let you use their pools and internet (if it is working) as long as you are purchasing food or alcohol. It's like staying at a full service hotel with out the cost of the room.




We attended a circus in Manzanillo with Bill and Janet from Optical Illusion This circus was more of a Las Vegas dinner show, lots of show girls, sexual dances and men in loin clothes. We saw more male butt then we needed to and some of the ladies must have been thinking this is the worst wedgies I have had in a long time. We both agreed that the circus in Mazatlan was aimed more at families this one just kept us laughing.


We also attended a Botanas Bar. This is a bar that is only opened from 3:00pm to 8:00pm you purchase your drinks and they supply you with all the appies you can eat. Soup, tacos, tostadas, totopos, and fresh veggies, way to much food. , There was an 11 piece band plus 2 singers and was very loud , but this is Mexico. To pay the band they sold numbers for $1.00 with the prize being $100 (Mexican money), to pick a winner they throw a dart at moving wheel with 20 numbers on it. Janet from Optical Illusion won three in a row and donated the winnings to an animal spay clinic

TO PUNTA CARRIZO

TO PUNTA CARRIZO

We headed over to Melaque by bus for all of 50 cents to catch a taxi ($5.00) to the secret beach, just outside of Melaque here we spent the day with Annie and Glen. The secret beach and anchorage is really Playa Custecomate it is just about enclosed by the craggy mountains and rock formations at the entrance. There were 8 boats tucked in there and all said the snorkelling was wonderful and the bay was not to rolly but you have to be very careful coming in as there is a big reef that you skirt coming in. We think we may try this place on our way back north.

When we left to go back to Barra Annie's friend offered us a ride. Little did we know we would be traveling Mexican style, yes, we had 4 people in the box of the truck and 6 in the cab. Good thing there were no police, cause we are sure that being white we might have got a ticket.

Murray Grey decided that they wanted to leave a day before us so they pulled out only to have engine trouble before they even reach the mouth of the lagoon. It was a Chinese fire drill as only 2 or 3 boats had there dinghy's and motors in the water. In all 7 dinghies brought the Murray Grey back in to anchor. See what happens when they try to leave with out that 36ft Dolphin Tales trailing behind them.




We just about had the anchor up when we got a call from another boat asking us to make a deliver to Optical Illusion. It seems they were in Manzanillo and would like their Kitten Amber back. We went in circles till they packed her up and we loaded her on board

Well time to get the boat ready to leave and to head for our last southern stop before we head back north to Mazatlan. We had a nice sail from Bara all the way down to Punta Carrizo where we stern anchored for the night. Bonnie on Murray Grey had been fishing all day I think it was 4 caught and only one saved. So we had our first meal of Dorado, it was very good.    We spotted this rare bird we will have to ask Bonnie what it is