We returned to La Paz after a quick but happy Thanksgiving weekend with kids and grandkids. A few projects remained that needed doing before we took off to cross the Sea of Cortez to the mainland. The "northers" were howling, one followed by another, so we stayed put and worked on projects until a break had a several day "weather window."

Our stay in La Paz gave us an opportunity to meet and socialize with old and new cruising friends. Also, we were in town for the annual Subasta, a major fund raising day put on by cruisers, benefitting local needy children. Hundreds of locals attend this day-long event. The day consisted of a bazaar, featuring items cruisers no longer needed, including clothing, an auction, bake sale, and other foods and drinks for sale. I (Marlene) worked one of the shifts in the clothing sale. The most fun part was when toward the end of the day the prices were drastically reduced. We decided to sell plastic bags for 10 pesos (about $1.00) and let the customer stuff as much clothing as could fit into it -- a great way to dispose of all the "rummage" and provide locals with bargains!

We made a few trips to a local supermarket, CCC, where Santa agreed to pose with us on one occasion. We also enjoyed evening walks along the malecon, occasionally coming upon dancers and other performers so talented that we stopped to watch.
We finally got our weather window break on December 8 and sailed to Muertos, south of La Paz where we spent the night at anchor. Friday morning, December 9 we departed for a 3 day crossing to La Cruz on the mainland. We had lumpy seas for the first 2 days, however by day 3, seas calmed down and we had a very pleasant sail into La Cruz.

We had not planned to stop in Puerto Vallarta on this leg, however we needed to arrange for a boat repair so we pulled into Paradise Village Marina for a few days so we could meet with repair people. Well, no sooner did we pull into PV than we started another round of socializing: a night in Bucerias to hear "Buba and the Bottom Feeders," a fun music group, and the next night out for dinner with our friend, Mai. We also met some new cruising friends, Phil and Nora from Shiraz -- friends of Pat, one of our crew on last year's Baja HaHa.

Finally on December 14, we set sail out of PV but didn't get too far -- we spent the night at anchor at Punta de Mita, the northern tip of Banderas Bay. However, early the next morning, we headed south, not sure if we would stop at Ipala or head straight for Tenacatita. We agreed in advance that if we caught a fish or if we were tired, we would pull into Ipala. Well, as it turns out, both conditions were met, so we had a fresh fish BBQ dinner and a night at anchor in Ipala.

The beautiful Chemela Bay is only one day's sail from Ipala, so we took advantage of another night at anchor in one of our favorite spots. In the morning (December 17), we set sail for Tenacatita and had a beautiful sail all day. Wind was behind us, pushing us along at quite a rapid pace. Friends who happened to be sitting at a palapa having lunch saw Jellybean as she whisked into the bay and later told us that we looked pretty good out there in those brisk winds.

December 18th, we met up with Tammy and Terry on Secret O'Life, John and Linda on Nakia, Chris and Heather on Legacy and invited all to a potluck on Jellybean, with us providing BBQ fish and Margaritas. Everyone brought wonderful dishes; we had a lot of good conversation along with the good eats.

December 19th, we dinghied up the river through the mangrove jungle, along with Phil and Nora (Shiraz) and Alex and John who followed in their dinghy. We walked out to the Aquarium (snorkeling spot), then ate lunch in one of the palapas before heading back "home."

December 20th, wanting to make water and also recharge batteries we decided to motor into Barra de Navidad a few days earlier than originally planned. However, we wanted to stay out for 3 hours, and after 1.5 hours, Roy said we were getting too close and would arrive after only 2 hours. Well, to slow down the boat we turned off the motor and set up the Genoa sail with an ETA of 3 hours. With only 2 miles left, wind picked up, speeding up Jellybean again, so we turned on the motor, took down the sail, and puttered until we headed into the lagoon at Barra de Navidad where we will be until after Christmas.

Next update scheduled for sometime in January when we have access to wifi to upload more stories and photos.