Tenacatita

Tenacatita Sunset

Bahia Tenacatita is the most beautiful place the Honcho has visited so far on this voyage. After we arrived here we just sat in the cockpit and enjoyed the magnificent views of the golden sand beaches to our north and east, the craggy rocks to our west and southwest, and the pretty little town of La Manzanilla across the bay to our south, then were treated to a beautiful sunset. Weve been here three days, doing very little except enjoying the scenery and visiting with friends. Wednesday we took the dinghy up the small estuary where there are supposed to be crocodiles but we didnt see any. That was fine by me, as we did see lots of other wildlfe as we motored slowly through the mangroves. In spite of the beauty of the place, there has been trouble here recently. A developer showed up a few months ago with armed guards and bulldozers and chased everyone off the beach in one part of the bay where there had been some palapa restaurants that locals and yatistas liked to hang out, claiming that he owned the land that others thought they owned. Apparently the developer won this argument because we were met with some of the guards a mile or so up the estuary, and thats as far as we got to go.

We were also visited by the Mexican Navy here. Early on the first morning we were anchored in the bay, a boatload of sailors, all armed with automatic weapons approached and boarded the Honcho. They asked for our papers, took pictures of our communications gear and filled out some forms before bidding us a good day. They were friendly and didnt intentionally point their guns at us, but with five of them crowded into the cockpit, it was impossible not to find myself looking down the barrel of one or the other now and then.

Another Approach to Cruising
Weve seen this Nordhavn 63 in various places along the Mexican coast.

The day before we left Tenacatita we took the dinghy across the bay to La Manzanilla, a quaint fishing and tourist village, where we stocked up on fresh vegetables. Located on the southeast side of the bay, it is exposed to the open ocean so going ashore means landing the dinghy through the surf. We stayed dry going in but got a bit damp going out, as the wind and waves had built during the afternoon. If youre looking for a quiet seaside vacation, far from the crowds, but still with a little spice, you might like La Manzanilla. To me, it appears to be Mexican with a Mediterranean twist.

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Bahia Chamela to Tenacatita

We spent four days in peaceful Bahia Chamela. It was a windy passage from La Cruz so the first day in the bay was devoted to catching up on sleep and enjoying a magnificent sunset aboard the boat. The next day we wandered around the village of Perula, entertained fellow cruisers aboard the boat and were treated to a magnificent night of stargazing. There was another boat anchored very close to us so I was up every two hours to make sure we didnt tangle as the wind and current shifted throughout the very dark and moonless night. Around 0400 I was checking our anchor and noticed the Southern Cross low in the sky to the south, then looked the other way and saw Polaris, the north star, not far above the northern horizon, with the Big Dipper circling it. In between was the Milky Way, with its billions of stars and the mighty Orion was directly overhead. I sat for some minutes in the cockpit in awe of this wonderful show.

The following day we motored out to Isla Cocinas, one of several small islands in the southern reaches of Bahia Chamela. We anchored on the northeast side of the island near a tiny sand beach that was crowded with pelicans. We landed the dinghy through the small surf and discovered pelicans nesting in the cactus. It was a wonder how a pair of pelicans could build a nest and hatch their young in the top of a 20 foot tall cactus. Later we circumnavigated the island in the dinghy, returning to the Honcho around 1600.

We left Bahia Chamela around 1000 this morning, motoring slowly out of the bay in almost no wind. Around 1100 the wind filled in, light at first, and we hoisted sails and shut down the engine. Our course took us out past the tiny cove at Paraiso and Punta Etiopia. We sailed well out to sea and as the day wore on the wind built to about 20 knots. With a following sea and wind, the Honcho surfed along at speeds of up to 10 knots, a new record for the boat. We were at the mouth of Bahia Tenacatita by 1600 and were snugly anchored in the upper bay by 1700.

Tenacatita is a lovely bay, surrounded by beatiful beaches and lush tropical vegetation. Were only 19 degrees north of the equator here and it feels like it. Well spend a few days exploring the area, perhaps indulge in a coco loco, and  do some serious snorkeling out near Punta Hermanos.

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