Last few days in La Cruz

San Pancho

Last few days in La Cruz

Rick started to feel better within a couple of days. We heard there was some sort of a stomach bug going around the Marina but lasting for weeks. So, Rick got off easier than most or so we thought.

During the last few days we had 30 20L (5 gallon) water bottles  delivered to the boat and Rick poured them into the tanks. It turned out we only needed 23 bottles. So we had to return 7 full bottles and the rest of the empties (we got our money & deposit back). It was a good workout lifting the 5 gallon bottles from the dock onto the boat and to the other side of the boat where we fill our tanks!  When we were in Ensenada the people that delivered the water, filled the tanks for you as well.  I guess we were spoiled there. But at least here in La Cruz, they will deliver the bottles to the boat.  The cost was 25 pesos per 20L bottle if you pick them up yourself or 30 pesos per bottle if they deliver. Either way, it’s very reasonable.

One afternoon, Rick and I took the bus into Bucerias and walked all over town looking for a Motorcycle Rental place. We thought it would be fun to check out a few little towns that we missed on our way here. Finally after walking along the streets in the heat for a couple of hours we found one!  It was not such a big deal to rent one as we anticipated. The rental place just asked to hold onto my driver’s license, then handed us two large helmets and away we went. But, it was NOT a motorcycle it was a Suzuki Scooter.  A little punier than the Harley that Rick is used to riding but it got us around. And, surprisingly enough, we got around in one piece!

Driving along the highway was pretty terrifying to say the least. We were getting cut off and honked at and practically ran over at times. The driving rules are a little different than in the States. For one, if you want to make a lefthand turn, you have to get all the way over into the far right lane then turn from there when the light turns green.  We learned that the hard way. Oh and if you are on a one lane highway and you want to let someone know it’s ok to pass you, you turn on your left blinker. I’m not sure I want to trust that! What if the person’s blinker was accidentally on? Or their judge of distance was a little off? Not a good outcome!  

Also along our ride, I was hanging on tightly to Rick because every speed bump we came across I would fly up off the seat and my large helmet would fall backwards off my head. They have a lot of speed bumps in Mexico! Not only did I fly off the seat a bit but on the larger speed bumps the frame of the Scooter would scrape. As I was holding onto Rick with one arm and holding my helmet on with the other, I took a glance over at Rick's helmet. His helmet was falling apart. The plastic outer layer was separating from the insulation on the inside of the helmet and sliding backwards. As all of these things were happening, I was in complete hysterics. I could not stop laughing for most of the ride. The experience reminded me of being on a scary ride at the fair as a kid  that you’re terrified to be on, sitting with your best friend and you both laugh until you can’t breathe. 

We decided to go into Puerto Vallarta first of all since it was the closest to where we were and hopefully we could get back to our boat before dark. While in PV we went to check out Marina Vallarta (a Marina we almost stayed in) and then we drove a little further into the downtown or Centro and walked along the Malecon (seafront).  We were not that impressed with the area. It was over run with tourists wandering around not paying attention to anything or anybody around them. They seemed to be just searching for food to eat and things to buy, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk looking lost.  But we were in the center of town and  I know there are other parts of Puerto Vallarta that are a little more remote. We just didn’t have time to go any further that day.

It was starting to get late and we needed to get back to La Cruz before dark. It was scary enough just driving in the daylight. We could only imagine what driving in the dark would be like! 

We made it back to the Marina safely. We were worn out from nerves and just laid low the rest of the night. Rick said that the adrenaline rush from riding the motor scooter in Mexico reminded him of rafting down the Colorado River! That’s how intense and nerve-wracking it was for him (being the driver).  I was just the clown on the backseat laughing holding onto my helmet.

The next day we hopped on the motor scooter for another go at exploring. We weren’t going to be on any busy highways, we were just going to be on a windy one -lane road along the coast and mountains.  Rick was still a wreck nonetheless. Cars were passing us on this road at the same time as oncoming traffic. Now that scared me too! There were lots of speed bumps on this road just as you approach any little town, the speed bumps start for blocks before you even get there. And when you go through a town there are cobblestones to deal with. Rick and I said we need to have our fillings checked when we get back home.

We rode as far as San Pancho but made a pit stop in Sayulita. Sayulita was our favorite spot! Such a cute little beach town! It was so clean and it had very attractive little shops and restaurants and villas tucked up in the mountains and along the beachfront. There were lots of surfboards rentals on almost every other corner along with your usual street vendors. But all of the goods seemed to be of higher quality than most places in Mexico we have been to. The beach was gorgeous and the surf was perfect for surfing and standup paddle boarding.

We left Sayulita and moved on to San Pancho (nickname for San Francisco). San Pancho was a quaint little town, very clean and had a gorgeous long stretched out beach, surrounded by jungle and only a couple of open-air restaurants. 

After leaving San Pancho we rode back towards La Cruz and stopped at Punta de Mita and had a bite to eat in one of the beachfront restaurants.  We did not have time to do much more exploring but plan to on our way back up north in the next month or so.  We had to return our Scooter by 3:00p.m. in Bucerias.

When returning the Scooter, the employee of the Scooter Rental shop just came out with my ID, handed it to me, took the keys to the Scooter, asked us if we had a good time and that was it. He was not concerned with the condition of the bike or anything else.  The cost of the rental for 24 hours came to about $40 US. We thought that was pretty reasonable.

That evening Rick, Harley and I went to the outdoor amphitheatre in the Marina with our West Marine chairs to watch a movie they had playing (Thursday is movie night). We watched Concussion with Will Smith and Alec Baldwin. We really enjoyed it. It was also nice to be watching a movie outside overlooking the marina and feeling a slight cool breeze. We recognized several other people we had met there as well. We met a new couple that just arrived. It turns out their home is in Coloma and they keep their boat in Sausalito.

Friday morning we woke up and had planned to leave by noon (check out time). So we got the boat ready and walked into town to pick up some laundry I’d dropped off the day before. It was not ready when we arrived and it was going to be another half an hour, which was going to make us late. Apparently if you do not check out right at noon, you are charged for another day.  We decided to wait and have a coffee at an outdoor café/deli across the street. We got the laundry by 11:30 and walked briskly back to the Marina. By the time we got back the wind had picked up and it was going to be a hard exit out of our slip, so we thought we’d stay another day and leave bright and early on Saturday morning.

Since all of our chores were done and we were basically all ready to leave, we thought we’d just enjoy our day and going swimming at the beach next to the Marina.

When we first arrived at the beach it was quite windy and the waves had white caps on them. It did not look all that inviting to me to swim in. So we just sat and watched the surf and a couple of kite surfers really enjoying the wind! Finally it was getting too warm and we got into the water anyway. There seemed to be a pretty strong current that kept pulling us out as we swam. It wasn’t so easy coming back in. We only stayed in a little while, just enough to cool off.

That evening we went to sleep early because we wanted to get an early start the next day.

San Pancho

San Pancho

A Hairless Dog we saw on the beach of San Pancho

Jungle along the beach in San Pancho

The streets of San Pancho

Sayulita

Streets of Sayulita

Hotel at the end of the beach in Sayulita

Sayulita

Sayulita

Colorful little shop in Sayulita

Rick getting instructions on how to ride a Scooter. 

Along the Malecon in Puerto Vallarta

Streets of La Cruz

Little corner restaurant in Bucerias

A little pueblo in La Cruz