Bahía de Chamela

Welp, we knew our time on the Costalegre would have to come to an end eventually (for this season anyway), and after leaving Tenacatita Bay, we landed in Bahía de Chamela and the associated little town of Perula, which is truly a little gem on the cruiser’s Gold Coast. It reminded us of San Juanico on the Baja coast in that it was a bit sparse and sprawling, but the street grid was largely undeveloped; the wifi was spotty; there was a handful of Canadians and Americans who have built homes there and visit regularly; and the local people were wonderful. The little tiendas had plenty of lovely produce, fresh tortillas and cold beer, the palapas served delicious ceviche, and we could get our laundry done at one of the hotels (whew!). The broad, open beach made for fabulous, long walks and, of course, stunning sunsets. The dark skies down here also allowed us to enjoy stargazing at its finest from the foredeck of da boat.

We also planned to meet up with Thad and Kristin on She’s No Lady after their month-long hiatus to Canada. Along for the ride on SNL would be our buddy, Ryan, who recently sold his lovely Irwin 38, Flo, so he could start anew, beginning in Mexico (we’re trying to convince him to buy the French bakery in Barra de Navidad, but alas, he seems to have other plans). Ry will eventually join us aboard FL, probably back up in La Cruz.

While we waited for SNL to arrive, we made new friends in Gary and Karina aboard S/V Sea Rover II, Fred and Katherine aboard S/V Sonrisa (which happens to be for sale so they can build a home here in Perula and stay for the long-term), and ran into several other cruisers we’d met in Tenacatita. We’ve found that the cruising community is relatively small and transient – many folks come to Mexico to ultimately embark on the “puddle jump,” which takes them across the Pacific to French Polynesia, others will head further south through the Panama Canal and into the Caribbean, and still others, like us, venture back up into the Sea of Cortez and either tough out the summer or lay up in various safe marinas around the Sea and head home. It’s fun, though, to meet and continue to run into people doing what we’re doing.

Back to waiting for SNL – we moseyed down the bay to anchor off of Isla Pajarera, one of several islands housed within the bay, and do some exploring with the birds, mostly frigates, boobies, and black vultures, that occupy the island. The occupants were totally unafraid of humans, which allowed us to get up close and personal for viewing and taking photos. Based on booby behavior, it was mating/nest-building time, so they were generally focused on each other and not on us. Super cool experience (thanks, Tom on S/V Ellie for the recommendation!).

Another fun thing Jody did while waiting for SNL in Perula was chop the sh*# outta her hair! Wha…what?! There is a story behind this…one of her dear friends, Amy, is battling stage 3 lung cancer (never a smoker, always a healthy lifestyle, so WTF?!); in solidarity with Amy’s fight, Jody walked into a random hair “salon” (actually, it was the only one in town) and had it whacked. It was quite a shock since she hasn’t had hair so short since she was born. Now she looks surprisingly more like her brother, and a lot more like her Mama. So, here’s to Amy. May she beat the sh*# outta cancer!

SNL finally arrived and we enjoyed meals at the Scuba Jazz Cafe, walks on the beach, exploring the local hardware store, ceviche at the palapas, and, of course, euchre (but, the girls lost!). It was fabulous to have our cruising buddies back, along with Ry, and then to see S/V JollyDogs rolling into the anchorage with Mark and Iz aboard was just one big bonus! We are loving this life and just so lucky to be living it!

Regarding the photos, apologies for all the sunset/sunrise photos and the mediocre bird photos. They were just too hard to resist! Also, we’ve uploaded video to almost all of the previous posts, so check ’em out or just go to our YouTube channel!