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Sunday, March 15, 2026

Feb 28, 2026-Tenacatita Cruise plus Engine Project and Cartel war

wingssail images Leading Swan Fun

Javier was head down in the engine compartment fitting a new shaft coupling. He was quiet for a moment, not unusual because Javier usually goes about his work with quiet competence. But this time was different. He grunted and then said, "It doesn't fit, I have to go back to the machine shop and have this re-machined." 
This wasn't the first time that we had a setback on the engine and drive train project we embarked on in July, after I got back from my spring cruise, there had been plenty: parts which were unavailable, replacements which didn't fit. It seemed endless. But we got through it. Engine work

By the end of August the whole engine project was completed and my car was also finally fixed right. That too was a bit of a struggle. "I have no more ideas senior, maybe Jose over in Mescales can figure it out." That's the polite way of saying ,"I no want to work on your car any more." One car mechanic after another thought he knew what was wrong with the engine and transmission only to fix that with no results. Fair enough, so I trekked over to Jose's shop in Mescales. But eventually, gradually, the car got better. And there were a ton of other nagging projects to be addressed. I never took time to write about it all, I guess I was just too busy to update my blog. Sorry to leave you in the dark.

But then November rolled around. Racing season was on the horizon.

Time to line up a race crew.

One day Terry stopped by, surprise! "Hey Terry, great to see you, want to come aboard. What's up?" It turned out that Terry wanted to rejoin the crew, as fore deck. SUPER! That's one down. Mark and Linda joined. Vicki came back. Then Arjan. The crew came together. A group of women signed on and became good friends and when they helped Terry and Geoff on the bow the began to call themselves "the foredeck bitches" Racing was good in December and January. When we dominated in the Punta Mita race we all partied hard.

Happy Crew Tequila Sandy came aboard for several weeks as live aboard crew and she and I sailed down south to Tenacatita to participate in a couple races there. Sandy

Sandy has been great as crew and companion but not the whole crew could make the trip.

I needed a full crew and particularly a jib trimmer and I didn't have one. At the bar the night before the race that came together too. Vicki called me over and said, "You should meet Joey, he might want to sail." "Hi Joey, I'm Fred, I hear you might be interested in sailing?" "Yeah mate, I might be." I liked his down-under accent immediately. Auzzie or Kiwi, they are often great sailors. "What do you like to do on the boat?" "Anything, bow, trim, steer, what ever." "Great Joey, we are in the anchorage. Be on the boat tomorrow at 11:00." So that's how we got our jib trimmer and he was really good. We won that race too.

Vicki says, "First Place" Now we are back in La Cruz. I am sure there are more adventures to come. I'll try not to wait so long to update you.

Cartel Wars UPDATE: FIRES AND DESTUCTION: When we arrived back in La Cruz the whole Banderas Bay area was in shock. The day before the drug cartel had struck back at the government and community for the arrest and death of the drug cartel’s leader. Cars and buses had been burned in the streets and in Puerto Vallarta every OXXO store has been torched and burned to bare bones. People were in lock down, airport was closed and most businesses were closed. The streets were empty. But by Monday everything was quiet. Traffic had resumed. We got the car started and went to the store. It was busy. By now things are normal. No civilians or tourists had been killed, but it was a big fight between the government and the cartel. We don’t know who won or what is next. But for now, life goes on as normal. Fredrick Roswold, SV Wings, Mexico

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Fred Roswold, SV Wings, Mexico

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posted by wingssail at 10:02 AM 1 comments

Saturday, February 22, 2025

Feb 20, 2025-Cruise to Tenacatita

wingssail images-fredrick roswold

It’s 1:30 in the morning and pitch black outside. Instruments tell the story
We’ve jibed over are heading east towards Tenacatita It’s rough and instruments are glaring out the story: we are still seeing over 27 knots of wind out of the north and 7.6 knots of boat speed. We are sailing with just a reefed main and no headsail and the windvane is steering, as it has been all night. Renee has been on deck as I worked on the broken bilge pumps but I finally finished , went on deck, and took over the watch. Renee is getting some rest. It’s about time. Frankly, we’ve overstood and that’s on me. We should have jibed two hours ago. 

Why is it that it aways seems to be stormy and problems happen when we start out on a passage? I can’t tell you how many times on the first night out of port I’ve been head down in the engine compartment trying to get something fixed or something sorted out while outside the wind is howling. Right now it is as dark as the inside of a cow and Wings is sailing fast through the black night. It is pretty scary for the crews I’d guess, they are often new to sailing, especially sailing at night, but they have always turn out to be tough. Renee is. 

We don’t plan it that way. Usually we leave port during the day, often by lunch time, but even then things happen. 

This time when it got rough we found water in the bilge and the pumps decided not to work. In the end the boat was not found to be leaking, it was just left over water I missed, and after I got the pumps all running we were fine. 

We made it to Tenacatia at sunrise. 

Tenacatia Bay is beautiful. We had a day of rest and then while Renee did her workout routine and went for a swim I went about lining up some crew for the race. 

I keyed the mic on my VHF, “Hi, this is Fred on Wings, may I speak to Dave?” 

 “Speaking” 

“You interested in racing?” 

“Yeah, I think so, I’ll let you know.” 

Bingo! I got the best guy in the bay. Others good sailors soon followed. By race day I had a full crew and a great one at that. Renee was navigator and everyone else just sort of fell into place. We practiced; it went well. We were ready. 

Speeding across the bay in the dingy on race day with the flags for the Race Committee Renee and I must have been a spectacle. Anyhow the pre-race excitement around the fleet was tangible as crews were being ferried to the race boats and those already aboard were busy rigging. 
Here come the race flags

021

In this race trash talk is encouraged and the teen and pre-teen girls were already into it. 

“Hey you guys over there with Jim, look out, we are going to leave you in our wake” 

“You just think so, beware we have secret weapons.” Then the water ballons broke out. 

But we had none of that, we were serious (in a fun sort of way) and it paid off. While the kids played around with the radio and threw water ballons we sailed with intensity . Renee called the start perfectly, Dave called trim (he was the star) and we all worked as a team. We knew the weather leg in this bay, with its persistent right shift, was similar to the pattern we knew well from Banderas Bay, and it was the key to this race. We played it exactly the same as going to Punta Mita, rounded the top mark first and led the rest of the way around. A great day for Wings. 

< Fred Steers Ready to Tack
Wings finishes first
Next stop Barra. We weren’t so lucky. The race there, the Flamingo Cup, is a very well attended charity event and we were keen for a repeat but we missed the entry deadline and were not allowed to race. Dang! 

But Renee and I were invited to sail on John and Donna’s Carmanah, a great custom C&C race boat from the late 70’s with an excellent record. John wanted to work the foredeck so he turned the helm over to me. We sailed hard and finished second, missing a possible first when the spinnaker tack line failed on the final leg. Congratulations to Baja Fog. 

Renee fights with the mark
After the race we volunteered to pick up some of the inflatable marks. Renee had to fight to get them fully deflated for the ride back to the marina.

 
I may have cut it a bit fine at the start however and we may have been a second early. I didn’t think so and we were not called by the RC but anyhow a competitor notified the race committee after the race. He was sure we were that we were over early, and he complained, “They should be thrown out.” 

The RC asked me, “Fred, were you guys over early?.” 

“Could be, it was close” 

“Did you go back” 

“No, we didn’t hear any radio hail or see any recall flag., so we figured we were good” 

That was true, but how could we have heard? The radio was filled with a shouting race announcer and the trash talk was in full force, and there were no flags. We heard nothing so we went on, and I acknowledged that. 

It was a deciding moment. We could have been disqualified. But the complaining skipper allowed us to exonerate ourselves by buying him a drink at the bar, Whew! 

So that was Tenacatita and Barra this year. All that was left was the sail home to La Cruz. 

Cruising main, reefed, and a small jib.

Charging with the small jib

Renee and I had a good sail then, all night again, with the wind on the nose (wouldn’t you know it?) and a bit more breeze than we wanted but not too bad, and the rounding of Cabo Corrientes in the morning with flat water and a nice brisk cool wind, was glorious. 

We're home
There is a lot more to this story, the photos at wingssail-images tell the rest of it (or most).

Click here to go to wingsails-images and see the photos. 

 Fredrick Roswold, sv wings, Mexico

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posted by wingssail at 3:40 PM 1 comments

Monday, March 06, 2023

March 1, 2023-Tenacatita Trip

wingssail images fredrick roswold
Judy takes us out

I’m on watch and I’m just sitting on deck, watching. I guess that’s what you do when you are on watch; you watch

It’s midnight and we are running down wind in a strong breeze. We have a reefed mainsail and a small jib polled out on starboard jibe. The windvane is steering. The boat is fast. I’m seeing 10’s on the speedo but I don’t like it. The waves are big and the boat is rolling and swerving and the ride is a bit wild. I’m just waiting for something to break but thankfully so far nothing has.

We need to jibe towards our destination, Barra de Navidad. Judy’s watch is starting and she is getting ready to come up. I tell her, “Turn on the deck light, I have to go forward and we’ll jibe”.

Using the wind vane we turn the boat to the new heading and get the mainsail across. I put the preventer on. Now we need to get the pole over and the jib to the new side as well. I’m going forward to do that. I’m clipped in and I mostly crawl to the foredeck because the motion is wild.I shout directions to Judy. She handles the lines from the cockpit. On my hands and knees I deal with the pole and barely avoid getting conked as it swings around. The motion up here is extreme and it is exhausting just to stay on board, even though it’s only for a few minutes. I compete my task and retreat aft

Now the boat is jibed, the pole is out on the new side, and we settle down, there is 62 miles to go; less than 10 hours. By daylight the wind drops, then shifts to the south. We go close hauled and start tacking. It’s only 10 miles to go now but the wind and a strong current are against us so it is painfully slow. We’re tired and a bit frustrated. It takes three hours to get to Barra.

Judy and Mike from Honu catch our lines. It’s good to see them. Hugs.

wingssail images ros bingham
Flamingo Regatta

The next week goes pretty good. We hang out with our friends and enjoy the Barra de Navidad experience. There are parties and drinks on the Malecon, which prove exceptionally strong and I barely avoid getting tipsy. But we have fun. I am busy planning the races next week for Tenacatita and meanwhile I’ve got to prepare for the single race in Barra, the Flamingo Regatta. I need to line up some crew. I get a bright young guy named Imas to grind and I get a guy named Cliff to do the main. Both are new to racing. Greg and Gloria also join. Greg is my jib trimmer. Gloria is doing halyards.

The Flamingo Regatta doesn’t go exceptionally well for us, 9th place out of 22. We start last, as our start time requires, and pass 15 boats, but the wrong sails for the light air and some weak crew assignments prevent us from doing better. To win we need to pass 22 boats but we don’t. We normally expect to do well and a lot of spectators thought that we would too and they bet heavily on us. We’re sorry we didn’t perform for them but their bets make money for the charity. It’s OK, we have the second highest number of bettors so we made good money for the regatta even if none of the gamblers made out on us.

Next we sail to Tenacatita. It’s supposed to be a rally but the other boats were worried about strong winds and left earlier. We sail alone. Nice sail though; there were no strong winds to worry about. Tenacatita is fantastic. Great anchorage, great weather, and many of our friends are here. The Tenacatita Race Week looks like it will come off as planned except only two races ins

tead of three.

Three days of racing seems to be too much for many of the competitors so we are cancelling the third Race.

John Knape image
Close Racing

But what good racing it is. I’ve wanted to race in this bay for decades; it is beautiful, the wind is nice, and the sailing is outstanding and here we are on the starting line with six boats. A great start gets us off the line at speed and we are first to the top mark (which is the sailboat Karvi). The spinnaker work is good and we romp around to the finish. First Place!
>Day two the breeze is up; 19 knots. We set the small jib and again have a good start. Nobody can touch us upwind in this breeze either.

On this beat we get the rare sight of a very near whale encounter. I am steering but due to the people sitting on the high side I can’t see the water off to our side. They start telling me of a whale nearby. Suddenly a large humpback whale breaches within 50 feet of our boat, next to us. After landing it swims directly towards us and then dives under our keel. Within a few feet of us its tail slides out of sight. I half expect to feel our keel hit the whale but it does not.

We put our focus back on sailing and get to the top mark first. We set the big symmetrical kite and head off almost directly downwind. The other boats are sailing higher but we are sailing deep with the pole back and the sail is pulling well. Every minute we are gaining.

Then comes the jibe. We need to jibe to get to the next mark. In the breeze it needs to be well done but the crew is new and we’re short one person. Then I spot a snag at the end of the pole which would be a big complication.

I chicken out and say, “We’ll set the jib, take down the kite, we won’t try to jibe it.

That is successful but we’re much slower without the spinnaker. Now the boats behind who still have spinnakers are catching up. What can we do? Those boats gain inexorably and the group of closes up. Brainwaves, the nearest one, gets by. We still have the last upwind leg and as we turn the corner toward the finish we again do well and start to regain what we lost but at the finish Brainwaves is still leading and they cross us. We finish second but are in third place on corrected time.

Third place is OK. Two other boats got places ahead of us and they are really happy. We’re happy too, because they are happy. Everyone is a winner, Tenacatita Race Week is a success.

wingssail images fredrick roswold
Upwind in a Blow

Two days later we are heading home to La Cruz. The weather doesn’t look good. We see projections of brisk northerlies and worse the following several days. Not wanting to be pinned down we head out.

The forecast is wrong. The wind is very strong: 25-29 knots against us. That is true wind. Over the deck we are seeing 34 knots of wind. We only brought the racing mainsail and with one reef it is too much. We are overpowered. The boat is sailing fast and pounds into the waves. In trying to slow it down the sails flog. This is unpleasant. We are passing Chemala at 4:30 PM. We could go in and get out of this rough weather but the next day is forecast to be worse. We decide to carry on. The sailing continues to be very difficult however.

By 10:00 PM we decide to take down the mainsail. This is also difficult and dangerous. Our mainsail is not attached to the mast; only a bolt rope holds it on. When it comes down it comes free of the mast. In this breeze the danger is of losing it overboard, a very big hazard.

I go forward and pull down the main with two hands and try to hold it onboard with my foot. Judy handles the lines aft and controls the helm (and injures her arm when the waves briefly take control and yanks the helm over). But we do it. The main is down and lashed to the boom. We now sail with just the small jib with still over 50 miles to go, all upwind. We are surprised how well the boat sails with just the small jib. It is a lesson we are just now learning after 38 years. Wow!

With this configuration the sailing is much easier and, while the wind does not ease, we carry on with little trouble.

By noon the next day we round Cabo Corrientes and head for La Cruz but the wind is dying and we sail slowly.

We arrive safely in La Cruz at 9:00 PM. The Tenacatita trip is over, successfully finished.

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Fred & Judy, SV Wings, Mexico

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posted by wingssail at 12:46 PM 2 comments

Sunday, July 14, 2019

July 14, 2019-Back to Barra

wingssail images-fredrick roswold
Tucked in at Tenacatita

We spent a couple of few weeks bouncing back and forth between Tenacatita and La Manzanilla, going to Tenacatita if the winds were forecast to be northerly, and over to La Manzanilla if they were forecast southerly.

The problem is that neither anchorage is safe in all winds. In reality what we’re up against boils down to two things: We are cruising in Mexico during hurricane season and there are few good anchorages. During this season the winds can be northerly, southerly, easterly, and westerly, any direction, really, and we don’t like to be caught in a lee shore situation so we watch the weather closely to try to anticipate where the wind will come from and we move if we think we need to.

Despite all this we have enjoyed the peace and quiet of being anchored by ourselves in Tenacatitia. Our only company has been the wildlife. Recently we had a school of Jack Crevalle, which are pretty big fish, (36”) hanging out under our boat. When they took off after some of the smaller fish they made a lot of racket, splashing and sometimes running into the boat with a bang. There is also a pair of dolphins, big ones, who have been giving themselves back rubs on our anchor chain. Now that was startling!

We launched the dingy one day and did a river run, chased some birds, and visited the hotel at the end of the canal. We finished the day off with a great Rollo de Mar (rolled fish fillet with shrimps and almond sauce inside) at the La Vena restaurant.

After a few of weeks we ran low on provisions and we went back to Barra de Navidad. The marina is nice, sort of pricy, but the lagoon is the one great anchorage we know of around here. After doing provisioning and filling the water tanks, fuel, propane, etc, we went out to the Lagoon and anchored.

wingssail images-fredrick roswold
Ready for the BBQ

Here we feel safe from winds of any direction.

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Fred & Judy, SV Wings, Barra de Navidad

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Wednesday, June 26, 2019

June 26, 2019-Evening in Tenacatita

Tonight we are, as my friend Jim Watson would say, “tucked in”. We’re behind an un-named headland in Tenacatita Bay. “Tucked in” means being as far back behind the point at you can get so as to obtain the most protection possible for any kind of wind which might arise and that’s where we are tonight: right back against the shore behind this headland.

Here we have protection from winds from the west or north or south, and SE as far east as 140 degrees, but not more east that that.

The forecast however included the possibility of SE winds, possibly strong (no exact direction given) and tonight the wind has gotten up and it’s from the SE. Right now the wind we’re getting is from 130 degrees, so it’s hitting us and has been blowing here behind our headland as high as 18 knots. But that 130 degree wind is a refracted wind. Outside the wind must be from around 150 and blowing 20 or more. Here, “tucked in” behind this headland, it curves around but loses its punch. The waves don’t come in with any kind of power here either. We can see them sweeping by out in the bay with whitecaps showing, but in here they are lame ducks.

So we’re sitting OK, at the moment.

Our bail-out plan is to leave this little corner of protection if the wind comes in stronger or it gets too rough. We can sail across to La Manzanilla town, 2.7 miles away, which looks to be protected from the SE, although we’ve never been there. We can see the lights of La Manzanilla tonight and earlier those lights were shrouded in clouds and mist and we knew it was raining there. Now it is clear over towards Manzanilla and the light rain we had here also has passed and the wind is dropping.

It’s good that the rain has passed and the wind is dropping. Going to Manzanilla in the daylight would be one thing, going there in the dark, for the first time, in a rain storm, would be something else. We’re hoping that this lull lasts.

I am on deck, writing this, and I smell the aroma of soap wafting up from below. Judy must have taken a shower. The wind has been cool but it is still humid and a shower would be refreshing. I might go down for a rinse off too, and if it remains calm here tonight we will both relax and have a good night’s sleep.

Fred & Judy, SV Wings, Tenacatita, Bay, Mexico

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posted by wingssail at 3:40 PM 0 comments

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

May 29, 2019-Making a Mop in Tenacatita


wingssail images-nikk white
We Depart Tomorrow, With the Breeze

For over two months we waited for the Mexican residence permits, for Immigration to finish the paperwork. On any day of those two months could have come the call, “Please come to the office now…”, so we were stuck; we couldn’t really leave Banderas Bay, our plan to go on a cruise was on hold. We accepted the delay, after all, this place is as good as any other place for us to enjoy the peace of the Mexican Spring when most of the tourists and migratory cruisers have departed and the streets of the town are quiet.

wingssail images-fredrick roswold
Pta Mita Fleet Play Mexican Train

We made the best of it by sailing along the coast to Punta Mita a few times, only a couple of hours away. We could always get back if we needed to. The fresh spring winds made sailing the rugged and beautiful coast a joy. We anchored at Punta Mita and friends anchored nearby, their boats a welcome sight rocking gently in the swell. When the surf permitted we all went ashore and played Mexican Train Dominos and drank margaritas at a Punta Mita bar. We had a good time.

At least four trips we made along that coast, and we sailed hard each time and then took two days to recover our aching bodies, but they were aches we relished. Sailing muscles were used, and they felt good.

Finally the day came and Immigration was finished with us. Free! Free! Free!

Do some last minute shopping, put away the car, pay the marina bill (oops, we forgot that one!) and cast off all lines.

Sailing out of the Bay to go to Tenacatita can be a great trip if there is wind and you do it right. Leaving first thing in the morning doesn’t cut it; no breeze then.

But that’s what most people do, leave at the crack of dawn and motor all morning. We left at noon when the thermal winds started to kick in, stayed high of the rumb line, and then raced across the bay on a loose starboard tack towards Cabo Corrientes, sailing in the high 7’s. Another boat was out, a bit to leeward, I saw them in the distance, and they tacked towards us. It looked like they would almost cross us then they tacked back onto our lee bow. I don’t know the name of the boat, but I know the boat, it is a bigger Benneteau, sail number MEX777 which I believe is owned by the Montemayor family from Mexico City, well known in sailing circles. Our two boats sailed together, side by side, for nearly an hour, exactly pacing each other. It was a good match. I watched the crew on that boat and I saw them watching us, both crews trying to judge who was gaining, who was losing.

Crossing Tacks

Little by little we worked out to weather of them. Finally they tacked over and crossed well behind us and I watched them sail off on port tack towards Punta Mita. They hadn’t needed to sail so far to the south if they were going to Punta Mita and I wondered if they went that far out of their way just for the challenge of sailing against us. I watched the white triangle as it grew smaller against the Banderas Bay shoreline in the distance. I wondered who exactly was sailing that boat that they were so keen as go out of their way to match up with us. I understand it though; they are my kind of sailors.

The wind died as we neared Cabo Corrientes, as it often does. We turned on the motor.

I said to Judy, “Since we’re motoring, and the sea is calm, let’s take a look at that cove out here called The Corral”.

“Can we stay there?” she asked.

“Not to stay, just to look.”

So we motored into the small cove and took some photos. I’ve always wanted to see it. We found it deep, even close to shore, and crowded with Pangas. Might be room for one boat, but it would be tight, and open to a northerly wind or swell. Anyhow, information to keep in mind.

We doubled Cabo Corrientes at 6 PM and motored south waiting for the evening wind to come up, which it did and we sailed through the night. It was gentle sailing, on the wind vane and we used only the mainsail so and our speed was only moderate, 5-6 knots, but it was easy and we could rest.

The following afternoon, under full sail, we charged into Tenacatia and had our usual disagreement about where the entrance was, resolved peacefully when Judy’s view proved right, also as usual.

Now we’re anchored in Tenacatita, with one other boat which we don’t know. Kelly and Deborah are in Barra but we think we need to hang out here for a while; going to Barra would mean more partying and we need to give our livers a break.

Making a Mop

So what do you do when you finally get out of town? Well, basically nothing, except that we made a mop. Not that exciting but you can see for yourselves. Check out the photos.

Fred & Judy, SV Wings, Tenacatita

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posted by wingssail at 12:22 PM 0 comments

Tuesday, May 30, 2017

May 30, 2017-Stops on the Way North

wingssail images-fredrick roswold
Barra de Navidad

We’ve finally turned around and are headed back towards La Cruz. For the last month we have been cruising alone on what is called the “Mexican Gold Coast”; all the other cruisers who were on this coast over the winter months, and there were many, have all departed northward. It has been a good cruise for us, the weather has been spectacular, and the anchorages and towns have been fantastic. We think the boats that have gone north already have missed out on a good thing but maybe they got their fill of cruising this coast during January and February while we were up in La Cruz racing.

Whatever the reasons, we haven’t seen a soul for weeks, so coming to Barra de Navidad on our way north was like arriving into a small frontier town after being in the wilderness; seeing people was pleasant for a change.

There is a lagoon in Barra de Navidad where we like to anchor. The lagoon is one of the few places on the Mexican coast which we’d consider a “bullet proof” anchorage. It can get windy in the afternoon but it is safe from storms. The very nice little town of Barra de Navidad sits on the sand spit which separates the lagoon from the Pacific Ocean. This is where we shop, get laundry done, and enjoy good food and drinks. We don’t put our dingy together when we are anchored in the lagoon; instead we call “taxi aquatica” on the radio and get a ride to town from one of the pangeros (the Mexican men who drive the panga water taxis). During the winter months we can also call “the French Baker” who comes around the lagoon in his boat every morning with fresh bread and goodies. Umm! Delicious! Too bad the French Baker is not here this time of year either.

There is also a marina, largely empty by the way, which is part of the Barra de Navidad Grand Hotel, where we occasionally get a berth for the night but we prefer to save our cash by anchoring in the lagoon. We did however come into the marina for one night to wash the boat, fill our water tanks and play in the hotel pool. The pool is awesome with different levels and waterfalls and water slides and, of course, a pool bar. We had a great time, loved the pool, and the next morning we even got up early and went back to swim laps for exercise. We really miss having a pool like this in La Cruz.


Water Sliding in the Grand Hotel Pool

Leaving Barra, and getting totally frustrated trying to sail to Tenacatita in light, light light winds and lumpy waves, and getting only half way of a 10 mile trip in 3 hours, the motor went on for the rest of the way. At least that way we did get there that afternoon and anchored near Nakamal.

wingssail images-fredrick roswold
Wings at Chamela Islands

The sailing the next day, however, was fantastic. We sailed to Chemela Bay, and upwind sail of 25 miles, and we had moderate breezes, wind shifts to play, a lot of tacks to do, and we arrived at the islands of Pajarera and Cocinas tired and sunburned, but happy. These islands are home to thousands of Pelicans, Frigate Birds, Boobies, Sea Gulls, Vultures, Ibis, Ducks, and many more kinds of birds, and they are all flying overhead all day and making a racket 24 hours a day. We anchored right in front of Pajarera Island and it really feels like nature there.

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At least the Vultures were quiet

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Punta Perula

Now, after four days at Pajarera, we have moved to Perula. This is another nice anchorage with more wild scenery, a quiet little town with a few bars and restaurants, and a great beach where you can walk for miles and miles if you want to. At night, however, the anchorage is rolly.

wingssail images-fredrick roswold
On the Beach at Perula(Chamela)

To be honest, except for the Barra Lagoon, all of our anchorages on this trip have been rough. We can take it, but sleeping is sometimes difficult when you are getting rolled around all night. It will be nice to get to La Cruz and back into our berth in the marina there.

Tomorrow we will set sail for La Cruz.

Click here for many more photos and even another video.

Fred & Judy, s/v Wings, Chemela

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Wednesday, April 05, 2017

April 2, 2017-Tenacatita


wingssail images-fredrick roswold
Tenacatita River Trip

Wings rolls gently to the swell at anchor in Tenacatita. Music plays softly on the outside speakers. The sun is bright but the breeze is cool and the air is clear. It is a grand day in Tenacatita.

This is one of the good days.

This cruise was supposed to be sort of a vacation; find some peaceful places, find some beautiful places, places where the water is clear and the birds sing in the morning, and relax. Days like this morning in Tenacatita.

The problem has been that we've had too few of those days.

For one, we've been dealing with boat problems. Some problems, like the broken head bolt, which we fixed miraculously in a few hours after worrying about it forever, went rather smoothly. The toilet problem was also solved in a straightforward manner due to the fact that we've done it many times before, so that turned out OK too. Still, it was a dreadful morning when we realized that the toilet needed work, that day. We hate that job. On the other hand, the battery charging problem was tough and chewed up about five days in which we worked on every sort of wiring issue we could find, changed out the regulators for the spares (which had problems of their own), and even created a jerry-rigged solution. In the end we ordered a new part which cost a few hundred dollars, only to find, in the end, we didn't need it. The problem was a bad temperature sensor, which we disconnected.

Did I mention the inflatable dingy which won't keep the air in or the water out? Well, we had that too.

So, we've been working on boat problems for most of the last three weeks.

Oh, then there was the Mexican Immigration issue which popped up and which has us anxious as hell in fear that they will deport us or something. Maybe we've solved that issue, we're not sure, but it all weighed down on us when we should have been relaxing.

So, in actuality, we've been stressed out. Sometimes it seems like cruising is not so easy. Maybe not even worth it.

But we're here, and we'll persevere.

Back to today. We are anchored in Tenacatita with twelve other boats, most of whom we know. I enjoy being here with them. They are generally fine looking boats manned by young and enthusiastic crews, all of whom seem to love sailing, which is a happy change from the usual cruisers crowds we find in Mexico who apparently have little interest sailing and rarely put sails up. But the sailors on these boats here in Tenacatita do like to sail and the boats show it. These boats are trim and clear and when they come or go they do it under sail.

wingssail images-fredrick roswold
Luna Azul beats out of the bay

We also had had some fun ashore. Yesterday we took a dingy cruise up the river to the lagoon and there we went snorkeling in the "aquarium" like 19 years ago and it is still a great place for looking at colorful fish. We spotted a big octopus swimming and looking at us. The river trip itself is great fun too and I ran it full throttle sliding through the narrow, jungle covered, channel until Judy brought some sense to the situation and convinced me to slow down. Same thing she did 19 years ago.

Today I see a sloop sailing hull down on the far side of the bay. When I put the binoculars on it the I see in the foreground the curvature of the earth and the swells which rise and fall in my view. I can't make out what boat it is but it is a nice sight on starboard tack and making steady progress along the shoreline and out of the bay.

Now Luna Azul, the pretty S&S ketch flying an Australian flag, is getting underway; they have the main and mizzen up while they get the anchor aboard, then they fall off and the sails fill and they make their way out of the bay as well.

So it is a nice day for sailing and several boats are taking advantage of the conditions.

Stan and Sally Honey's beautiful Cal40 Illusion lies at anchor nearby. I've been meaning to go over and say hello, and I do, but it is late in the day and I pause for only a brief time next to their side to chat. It is good to see them; world class sailors.

The next morning Cat-2-Fold, Scavenger, and Shawnigan all leave, all under sail, and after that Illusion follows.

And we like to sail too, so probably, if the breeze looks nice, we will also.

wingssail images-fredrick roswold
Underway from Tenacatita

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Fred & Judy, SV Wings, Tenacatita

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posted by wingssail at 9:36 PM 0 comments

Saturday, March 25, 2017

March 25, 2017-Cruising to Tenacatita.


wingssail images-fredrick roswold
Still Life in Tenacatita

On Sunday we set sail on our 2017 cruise, two weeks to the day after we finished racing.

That was two weeks of shifting sails and loading the dingy, anchors, life raft, installing cruising equipment and doing provisioning. I thought we could get ready faster than that but the time flew by. As it was, in our haste to get away, we neglected some preparations and would have to make them up underway or when anchored somewhere south. Those included checking the water maker and the batteries, and both were to later give us problems, but we were in a hurry.

We departed fully loaded, ready for three months away from La Cruz, at 11:00 with the first hint of the afternoon thermal and the breeze built and we crossed Banderas Bay close hauled on starboard tack under a glorious blue sky. It was a good start to the trip and we and made excellent time, rounding Cabo Corientes in the afternoon.

And it got better.

By nightfall the wind filled from the north and by 9:00 PM we had a 20 knots behind us and it was pure sailing joy, sliding down swell after swell with the water rushing by the side of the boat and the white caps barely visible in the darkness as we swept them behind. The Southern Cross appeared in the sky ahead of us and that warmed our hearts as we thought of the passages we’d made in the southern oceans when that constellation was our constant companion. We clicked off the miles hitting high 7’s and low 8’s, and seeing occasional 9’s; the sails were filled and the sheets taut and untouched as the wind vane steered us arrow straight. It was joyous and very easy sailing. We had nothing to do on our watches but peer at speedometer and contemplate the fine life of a sailor.

On Monday we sailed into Tenacatita Bay on Mexico’s Gold Coast. It was a landfall which we last made in 1998 and it was then and still is stunningly gorgeous. But after 19 years things looked slightly different than what we held in our memories. We looked for familiar landmarks and saw only a few. Then we rounded Punta Hermanos and Punta Chubasco and arrived in the Bahia Tenacatita anchorage and it looked just like we remembered it. We jibed around Roca Centro and dropped the jib then glided under main alone to a quiet spot to drop the anchor. When Wings settled to the hook in Tenacatita it all came back and it seemed like we were just here last year.

Cruising is great again.

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Fred & Judy, SV Wings, Tenacatita

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