South Bound Departure
20 April 2011 | Puerto Vallarta
Erin and Len
4/20/11
After spending a wonderful time in our beloved Puerto Vallarta s/v Maestro has decided to ship south headed for Ecuador and the Galapagos.
Before the festivities can begin we had an extensive check list of pre-departure preparation items. We gave ourselves one week to complete routine items like oil changes, zinc replacements, bottom cleaning, rigging & sail inspection/repair and of course provisioning. We finally threw the dock lines and prepared to take on fuel at Opequemar in Marina Vallarta but we noticed a characteristically full and hectic fuel dock. We opted to more North and fuel up at Marina La Cruz. We left the harbor with cruise ships in our wake and motored into a calm Banderas Bay. As we moved along the afternoon thermals started to dramatically increase the wind speed and after our third frustrating attempt to approach the La Cruz fuel dock in 30 knots of wind we were glad to rest Maestro comfortably. After spending a lot on Mexican petrol we were ungraciously hurried off the fuel dock before we could say a goodbye to our friends Katrina and Rob so we turned out of the basin into a now 34 knot apparent headwind. Erin was preparing the deck for sea and with the motion received her first boat bite and sprained her thumb on the station post. A good omen.
Anchored overnight at Punta Mita was rolly with a southern swell. Great for surfers and great for us because we could wait to leave!
4/21/11
Maestro departed Punta Mita at 0500 with an uncomfortable beam swell and not a breath of wind three hours crossing Banderas Bay. Rounding the potentially turbulent Cabo Corientes we encountered a pod of whales all around us - what an experience!
As we motor sailed southward against wind and current we were alerted when we thought we saw a lobster buoy. (These can be a hazard to sailing vessels and their propellers and are to be avoided at all costs) As we approached closer we notice that it was in fact a sea turtle with a seabird resting on top of it. Next thing you know there were several turtles and bird combinations in less than a quarter mile. These turtles weighing anywhere from 50 - 100 lbs are like underwater mines. Fortunately they have excellent senses and dive rapidly when approached. We couldn't help but think of the days of old when turtle soup was on the menu. Thank god for Costco!
We arrived in Bahia Chemala after a long windless and rolly 12hr day. Even still - we are elated to be at sea and enjoy the sweet salt laden balmy air. The charts for the Chemala area show us as being laid up on land on two separate navigation systems. They are off by a minimum ½ mile. This really requires a vigilant look out for rocks, reefs and other potential obstructions. The anchorage was a busy Mexican Easter weekend full with thumping disco sound system barreling into the harbor. Add that to a full anchorage with Mega Yachts and seadoos made us apprehensive about our stay. With sunset only an hour away we didn't have much choice and dropped the hook. Fortunately it was Good Friday and the music stopped at sunset and we settled into a restful evening.