Ah... I just finished a long hard passage. 8 miles in an hour and a half of stunning rocky points and a long long long beach that terminated in the town of Rincon de Guyabita. I spell that wrong every time so henceforth it shall be Guy. This is the first clean city we have been in. Neat streets that although cobblestone are neat with no trash. There are over 70 hotels in the little Corner of Guy. Many are on the beach and from the outside they appear to be very comfortable and clean.

I am not complaining but many of the large towns are old and dirty, the palapas would not earn a D rating in the window, trash and stray dogs are laying in every alcove and corner. Sanitary conditions are poor at best. Most toilets have no seats or paper and to flush you dump a bucket of water into the toilet. Thank god I am a person with plumbing that accomodates these types of conditions. I feel sorry for the women.

Suprisingly, few people get sick from the food and drinks. Even drinks with ice and lettuce or salads do not affect us. I do draw the line at water. Only bottled water Natural. They have a fizzy Agua Minerala but it does not suit my palate.

So Rincon de Guy. Ate an awesome meal, went on the internet and did the San Blas Blogs then back to the boat. It was one of the anchor right on the beach deals and was open to the swell and weather so I was nervous being away from the boat even though I was anchored (not virtual) very well. My last night in Chacala was really rolly and that was my forecast for Guy. So up went the anchor and off to an island about a mile away that looked promising and calm.

Not. Not for a while. Later in the evening things seemed to settle down. The swells were not the problem. It was right behing a tall rock with all kinds of birds soaring around and nesting in the trees. That should have been a clue. Do you know what guano smells like? I do. The smell is still in my nostrils, kind of like if you whiff too much chlorine and you smell it for a while. But it was the attack of the fishermen that got me. At dark I noticed a panga only 25 feet from the boat. Then another appeared on the other side of me while a third appeared to circle me. Well I was ready for em. I have a big old screwdriver and could use that as a weapon. Or I could call Pat who wisely stayed anchored on the beach. Or I could use my 3 million candle power light to blind em or my 25 gauge flare gun. Just like the one that set the boat on fire in the movie Captain Ron. I was ready and on watch for their obvious pincher move. Saw that in Patton and was ready. I sat and sat and watched and watched, never moving in the cockpit so as not to give away my position, which is rather ridiculous because it is only 5 feet long and 3 feet wide. I think they could figure out where I was. So I laid in wait for the inevitable attack. Then the sound of them raising their anchors and the game was afoot. Radio in one hand and flare gun in the other I watched as they motored away at high speed in the direction of the shore! In fact, they were gone so fast and so far not even my 3 million candlepower lantern could see them. Thank you Patton the best offense is a good defense.

Once I started breathing again, now that my position was secure, I realized they were just fishermen and I was anchored in one of their fishing spots. They would not let me get in the way of their work and I do not blame them. They did reappear 4 times during the night to fish in the immediate area but by then the tools for my defense were secured. I slept fitfully , not aware of the the impending attack of the shrimpers.

When I woke up in the morning my old friend FOG was visiting and looked to be staying for a while. As I surveyed the very short horizon I noticed that just 100 yards in front of me was one of the hundreds of shrimper boats. Where the heck did he come from. Patton, where are you when I need you? As the fog cleared from my head I also realized this was a common achorage for these guys who run back and fourth along the coast and dredge for camaron. The picture shows the boat and no, camaron does not grow on the wires, those are pelicans.

I shoved off in the fog for points south specifically Punta Mita at the entrance to Banderas Bay. I will miss Guy and the clean restaurants and streets. I also know now that the shrimpers are sneakier than the panga fishermen.