11/24/01
Hello all - I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving - I joined about 20 other cruisers here in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle for a pot luck and had a great dinner followed by live music and dancing. I arrived here with girlfriend Tammy after she flew into Mazatlan to join the boat for a couple of weeks. We spent a few days there and then proceeded south, stopping in Matanchen Bay/San Blas for several days. While there, we made an inland day trip to the ancient village of Mexcaltitan, the supposed starting point of the Aztec's search for their promised land within the Valley of Mexico. Leaving the boat early, we caught a local bus for the 4 mile trip into San Blas, where we picked up another bus that would take us to the fairly large city of Santiago Ixcuintla. After a two hour ride, we arrived there to find a number of collectivos (vans used as small buses), all with various destinations written on the windshields. Finding one that said "Mexcaltitan" and determining that it was leaving in a few minutes, we climbed aboard with several locals carrying everything from sacks of rice and fruit to beautiful fresh-cut flowers. The forty-five minute trip out of Santiago took us through vast agricultural plains with plenty of water provided by the Rio Grande Santiago, Mexico's longest river. Arriving at the water's edge, we were greeted by a number of pangas (small, open, outboard powered boats) waiting to ferry all and their supplies across a great marshy lagoon to the small island of Mexcaltitan.

Within a huge river delta, the island itself is almost round, slightly elliptical and honestly not much larger than 6 or 8 normal city blocks. Originally settled in 1500 BC by Indians moving south along the coast, it is acknowledged that from here in 1091 the Aztecs (who called themselves Mexica's) departed on their 200 year long search for another island within a lake where, according to their Shamans, they would see a great eagle, perched atop a cactus, with a snake in it's beak - thus the symbol which is depicted on the flag of Mexico today. Whether these wandering aboriginals actually saw this scene, or simply grew tired of searching after so many generations, they claim to have found just such a place near what is now Mexico City.

The few streets in Mexcaltitan are laid out as crossed spokes in a wheel with a single street running around the circumference of the island. Other than the open central plaza, there is no land remaining that hasn't been built on and all the buildings and walkways are elevated several feet above the dirt streets, since during the rainy season the river waters rise enough to flood the streets, turning the village into a miniature Venice where the residents go about in small dugout canoes along the flooded streetways. It was a vastly interesting trip, and we came away with a new understanding of Mexico's heritage. Two things remain in my mind from the visit: the museum on the plaza depicting the history of the village and really all of Mexico as it is today; and the inexpensive cervezas and meal we enjoyed there ! I would have thought with the difficulty of transporting goods and the isolation of the island, prices would be higher than average.

We left the island in the afternoon to retrace our journey back to San Blas and SECRET O' LIFE, waiting at anchor in Matanchen Bay, and then departed the next day for Bahia Chacala, 30 miles south. One of my favorite stops on the Mexican coast (and described in a 1999 report), Chacala continues to remain a fairly sleepy beach village, although there is now a public telephone on the main street ! The south point of the bay rises to the edge of an old volcano at an elevation of about 500 feet. We spent one afternoon hiking to this vantage point and marveling at the views. Another afternoon was spent with bare feet in the sand, under the shade of a palapa, enjoying fresh shrimp, garlic style, and cold beers. Ahhhh - now this is what cruising's all about!

Leaving Chacala, we moved further south to the enjoyable anchorage of Punta de Mita, just inside the northern tip of Bahia de Banderas, the large bay with Puerto Vallarta situated on the southeastern shore. The next few days were spent in Banderas Bay with an overnight visit to the charming village of Yelapa, although I came away the next day feeling it was somewhat overrated. Sadly, the following day was Tammy's scheduled departure from Puerto Vallarta, so we moved on over and anchored in the old Entrada, the only anchorage available close to PV. Unfortunately, after spending an hour plus running stern lines ashore to fix the boat in the anchorage, we were approached by the Port Captain who advised the anchorage was closed and we would have to leave. This left no alternative but to move 18 miles over to La Cruz, which we did and had the anchor down there by 2000 hours. The next day it was a simple matter to catch the bus into the airport and see Tammy off on her return to the chilly northwest. The weather here is cooling down (now in the 80's) along with the humidity and it's feeling like another enjoyable Mexican winter. Time has been slipping by and now I'm preparing to head further south to Tenacatita and Barra de Navidad where I hope to find a quiet anchorage and a little time to myself. I also plan to continue on down to Zihuatanejo by Christmas. Any of you with itchy feet to travel, check flight info for Ixtapa, Mexico - Alaska Air among others has daily flights.

We're getting little news down here, but I understand that the anthrax threat has somewhat diminished and the bombing of Taliban locations continues. Any local news you want to pass along is appreciated. I hope you all are doing great and looking forward to a joyous holiday season - and some good snow too. Write soon - Terry, still aboard s/v Secret O' Life

12/10/01
Hola from beautiful Tenacatita (one more time !!). The story doesn't change much: cruising on a sailboat means working on boat maintenance and repair in exotic locations without the normal facilities one would have at a dock in the States. The work goes slower and the jobs get stretched out, interfering somewhat with staying in touch with everyone.

It's still fairly early in the season and there aren't a lot of boats this far south yet. Last year I didn't even arrive in Mazatalan until 12/13. The La Paz area just wrapped up their first major "Norther" with winds 25-30 kts for 5 days and we heard the Port Captain had the harbor closed for one or two of those days - makes me happy to be here with clear, calm days and temps in the 80's. Swimming/snorkeling has been great in 80 degree water and I'll be staying between here and Barra de Navidad (10 miles south) until New Years when I'll move down to Zihuatanejo for 5 to 8 weeks. Happy Holidays from sunny Mexico - Terry

12/18/01
Hola friends - and Feliz Navidad !! We're currently anchored in the lagoon at Barra de Navidad and plan to stay here through the 28th or so. I've been busy and time is at a premium right now since I was offered some work last week - been doing 10 hour days for the last five and two or three to go. For you who were in the Barra area 2 years ago - you may recall the big bright finished motor yacht FORGER - she was kept at the marina here and traveled Tenacatita - Careyes - Barra. The owners are in CA for a week and asked me to help their mechanic do some primary maintenance while they're off the boat. Most of the work the last 5 days has been hydraulic - the windlasses, the steering and the stabilizers. Anyway, it's hot in the engine room and I've found muscles I didn't know I had - and they're still screaming !! But, I'm earning some nice xmas cash and getting to see the innards of a real special yacht.

Built in Holland in 1988, FORGER is just under 70' with a beam over 20' and displaces 110 tons. (Secret O' Life displaces 12 tons!) She's plank on frame with aluminum deck (teak over) and aluminum superstructure. The interior is finished posh and in fact the entire boat, including all spaces below decks, is in immaculate condition - if it's not varnished, it's painted white. After scrambling through the entire boat over the last week, I don't even want to guess the value - or the cost to maintain this little ship. She's powered by a single 12 cylinder Mann and runs two Cummins gen sets, alternating port and starboard every week. The engine room has every bit as much space as my entire boat !!! Besides some nice cash, I'm learning a whole bunch too.

Once I get my free time back, I'll hang here in Barra for a while and then mosey on down to Santiago Bay and on to Zihuatanejo for a while in January - February. The weather on this side has been quite nice, but I keep hearing reports that the Baja has had one after another Northers the past few weeks - Brrrrrr. Tenacatita hasn't changed much although Paris Tropical is closed, soon to reopen as an outstation of the Blue Bay Hotel. As always, the beach is beautiful and the cervezas cold. La Manzanilla is improved with lots of activity and the plaza there is finally finished. Barra de Navidad is jumping, with many new places, although there is a definite lack of cruisers because of those who refuse to stop anywhere there is a port captain and fees !! So instead, they stay in Tenacatita and when they need to shop or go to the ATM, they bus over to Barra or bring the boat on the weekend - all to beat the Mexican government out of $15 to check in or out !!

I've enjoyed all your e-mails - please keep them coming. So many friends have made fantastic passages this last year - and more to come. Have a great holiday season and a wonderful new year. For a number of you, I'm looking to share an anchorage sometime this winter - hasta luego.
Fair Winds - - Terry and Secret O' Life