Taking a break from the rolly anchorage and living it up at Marina La Cruz
After a pleasant overnight passage from Mazatlan, we found ourselves anchored in Bahia de Banderas, near La Cruz de Huanacaxtle (La Cruz for short). From our anchorage it was only a short 5 min dingy ride into the marina where we had easy access to the village of La Cruz. This area seemed a good mix of resident Canadian/US ex pats and Mexican families. There appear to be many restaurant choices here to keep us happily fed for a long time!
Early this week we had rain. The forecast said there would be heavy rain between 1- 4 PM in the afternoon--and there was none. The evening forecast said ‘rain showers’ overnight. So thinking we were going to be dry for dinner, we proceeded into the dingy at 5 pm for an evening of fun.
We we eager to test out the 2 for 1 Schnitzel at the German restaurant in town. We closed the hatches just in case some rain drops should pass over. As I stepped down into the dingy, I felt a slight shift in the breeze. There had been some heavy swell throughout the day which had wrapped its way around Punta Mita and under our keel, which made dingy boarding a bit more exciting then usual. I felt a few sprinkles of rain drops, but didn't notice any menacing clouds. We headed on our way.
About half way through dinner, the ‘few drips’ turned into a down right full on jungle downpour. Looking out the windows of the restaurant we could see that it was like one of those movie scenes where the rain machine was turned up to ’11’.
We ate a bit more quickly. We could see that the cobblestone street had turned into a 2” river of water. It was only a few blocks back to the marina and the dingy. Our hair and clothes were quickly soaked. We were up to our ankles in warm, brown, muddy water (I'm glad it was dark!) as we walked the 3 blocks back to the marina. In La Cruz the streets are cobblestones and not exactly smooth so we had to walk cautiously to avoid tripping on something or falling in a hole. We crossed mini-waterfalls of water cascading from the cross streets and we walked even more briskly when we saw the storm drains bubbling up adding to the flow. The downpour lasted about 90 minutes from start to finish but had made quite a mess! We only had to walk in it for about 10 minutes, and by the time we got to the dingy it was again back to a drizzle. All was well.
Getting into the dingy and back to the boat was uneventful. Even though, we were thoroughly drenched, we were pleased that our new ‘dry bag’ backpack had held up well and did not get our cell phones wet. It was pleasantly "cool" with the wind chill.
Back on the boat everything inside was dry. We had remembered to close all the hatches except for the one in the shower. No big deal. However we still had some waves. Since the wind had stopped, we were unfortunately facing the 'wrong direction' and were rolling back and forth on each ocean swell. 1…2…seconds to the starboard. 1….2… port. 1…2…starboard.
Now Dan doesn’t seem to have any issue sleeping when the boat is rolling. I think he actually quite enjoys it. I on the other hand have a difficult time with the unusual cadence of noises as the boat oscillates fast for a few wave sets, then slow for a few. Maybe I should count them? Like sheep? Sometimes we roll with more forward and aft, then side to side. We have multiple beds that face differing directions — so I try them all. I’m like Goldilocks. But none are just right. By 3 am, I was able to silence every squeak, situate every misaligned pot and pan, re-tie the dingy in its davits and re-secure the boom. There were just 2 noises I couldn't seem to track down. Dan was still happily sleeping. Eventually sleepiness did prevail.
It is always reassuring to know that the next day or maybe the day after that, the rolling waves would subside--and/or we would find a new place for our house.
As luck would have it, the next day we went into the marina and were able to secure a place for the next week. BONUS we get to run the AC. AND double BONUS we find ourselves able to do quite a few projects that were proving difficult in rolling waves. We also had the town a little bit more accessible in the evenings and it was convenient to explore further.
The marina community has quite a lot of fun activities. Free Spanish lessons, Christmas tree decorating, pop-up Pizza on Wednesday, Friday night movies on the lawn and Saturday swap meet. Many people have made this their winter home.
We've enjoyed meeting with friends from last season (people that did the Baja Haha with us) and making new friends with people that are headed the same general direction as us. Our plan is to spend another week here in La Cruz with a planned visit to neighboring Puerto Vallarta and Sayulito. Onward.
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