25 February 2024 | We are back in Gainesville, FL: Tregoning is in Mersin Marina, Mersin, Türkiye
18 February 2024 | We are in Glenwood, New Mexico: Tregoning is in Mersin Marina, Mersin, Türkiye
12 February 2024 | We are in Morro Bay, California: Tregoning is in Mersin Marina, Mersin, Türkiye
19 January 2024 | We are in Vancouver, BC Canada: Tregoning is in Mersin Marina, Mersin, Türkiye
01 January 2024 | We are in Washington State: Tregoning is in Mersin Marina, Mersin, Türkiye
15 December 2023 | We are in Minnesota: Tregoning is in Mersin Marina, Mersin, Türkiye
18 November 2023 | We are in Florida: Tregoning is in Mersin Marina, Mersin, Türkiye
29 October 2023 | We're in Florida - Tregoning is at B-dock, Mersin Marina, Mersin, Türkiye
21 October 2023 | 7 Oda Kapadokya Cave Hotel, Ürgüp, Türkiye
14 October 2023 | Hotel Aşikoğlu, Boğazkale, Türkiye
07 October 2023 | B-dock, Mersin Marina, Mersin, Türkiye
19 September 2023 | “Chez Jon & Angela”, Near Otterton, Devon, UK
14 September 2023 | Airbnb in Fortuneswell on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, UK
11 September 2023 | With Mike, Grange-over-Sands, Cumbria, UK
03 September 2023 | Ardington House, Ardington, Oxfordshire, UK
24 August 2023 | Near "Chez Joan and Peter", College of Roseisle, Moray, Scotland
11 August 2023 | Andrew's house (not exactly), Lichfield, UK
22 July 2023 | Chez Gail, near the New York Café, Budapest, Hungary
17 July 2023 | Piata Uniri Cozy Inn, Bucharest, Romania
14 July 2023 | Hotel Favorit, Sofia, Bulgaria
Alison misses snorkeling!
18 February 2014 | Isla la Peña, Bahía Jaltemba, México
Photo: Receding ridges on the mainland beyond a boat anchored at Isla la Peña, México
On leaving Ensenada Chacala, we did not want to move very far because Randall was still feeling rather weary and I was now suffering from the nasty cold that he was getting over. So with many humpback whales moving around us, including at least one small calf, we slowly motored just 8 nm south to anchor in the lee of Isla la Peña in Bahía Jaltemba. The small, domed island was covered with trees and was, apparently, a popular roosting site for pelicans and frigatebirds. Many seabirds circled over the island throughout the day but they were especially numerous at dawn and dusk.
It took three attempts to set the anchor because it kept dragging over the ground-up coral sediment when we tried too close to the island's beach but it held firm when we moved a bit further out. Many pangas passed us carrying tourists from the towns that spread around the bay (Rincón de Guaybitos and La Peñita de Jaltemba) out to Isla la Peña. There, they could enjoy the small, sandy beach, snorkeling around the rocks, and dining at the waterside restaurant.
Shockingly, I passed-up on a chance to go snorkeling in the afternoon because by then I had a full-blown cold and needed to nap. Randall and Mike rowed the dinghy to the southwest side of island then explored the rocky shoreline as they swam back towards the beach. Even though the island provided little protection from the swells, it was surprisingly calm in the anchorage all afternoon and I was a little surprised that only one other cruising boat joined us that evening. However, the unpopularity of the site became a little more obvious during the night when it started to get a bit rolly. It was not terrible but none of us slept perfectly and we were not sorry to get on our way again the next morning.