The Road to Mazatlan

Monday March 21. Up and on the road. Once we got into cell service range, our first order of business was to get reservations on the ferry from Mazatlan to La Paz, in Baja. We had trouble navigating the website, and finally gave up and phoned. Yes, the lady was happy to take our reservation by phone, and we can confirm and pay at the ferry office in Mazatlan. We sail on Thursday.

We drove the cuota (expensive, fast and relatively boring) road from Guzman back to the coast,

Highway bridge construction and El Fuego de Colima erupting

through Manzanillo and turned north. The original plan was to stop around 3:00 on the coast somewhere there is a shower and other amenities, but driver Mike was on a roll and the place that navigator Sharman had chosen came and went. The highway goes inland after that and there are few roadside amenities until it goes down to the coast again just before Puerto Vallarta. But we lucked out and about 5pm stumbled upon a tourist class hotel in the town of El Tuito. It had a central garden and pool and was we were very comfortable. It took a long time for the hot water to come on, but when it did we took two showers, washed clothes and dishes.

The ceviche at the restaurant down the street was middling, and improved with one of the three salsas they served. Besides the usual cerveza (Pacifico this time, small and expensive--they didn’t have Victoria), we tried a Michelada: beer mixed with Worchester sauce, chili and lime. (Other places add clamato juice too.)

Tuesday March 22. The highway into Puerto Vallarta strings a row of villas perched on the cliff and hillside overlooking the Bahia de Banderas. Old Puerto Vallarta is smaller, much more human scale, accessible and pleasant than Acapulco. The tourist waterfront paseo is beautifully done with lots of

Sculpture on the Malecon in Puerto Vallarta

sculpture, including some masterful sand sculpture on a pocket beach. Down by the shady river is a suite of souvenir stalls and a tequila tasting bar, while two blocks inland is an artisanal market and the regional market, which we decided to save for our next visit. There is no art museum, but there is a string of very good art galleries on a small street running along the base of the hill. The big hotels line the beach in north PV and commercial businesses line the highway all the way to the airport. We found our favorite Mega store near the sports stadium and loaded up on bread, yogurt and produce.

The highway goes around a point of land then up the Costa Allegre in the state of Nayarit. We stopped in Lo de Marcos, where Misty used to live and where my family will go for holiday next December, to check out the digs at El Caracol, the beachside villa where we will stay next Christmas. The rooms and RV parking were all full and the beach was packed, palms to surf, for Semana Santa. The facility is very nice: the rooms all have kitchenettes and just off the beach there is a patio with a kid-sized pool.

The beach at El Caracol in lo de Marcos

No time for a swim, driver Mike is hell bent to get to Mazatlan. We drove up the quota road from Tepic and about 8pm, just 20km shy of Mazatlan, stopped at a Pemex for the night. It was a major layover for truckers and very noisy, but secure and clean and well located.

Wednesday March 23. Today is the big day we have been waiting for: Will the part be there or won’t it? Will it fit and work or won’t it? We drove into Mazatlan and AutoZone was right in front of us, right on the road to the centro. And lo and behold, the part was there! Mike installed it in the parking lot and the AutoZone guy ran the check engine electronics and—yes! It seems to work perfectly! We even got a MX$350 rebate for turning in the old part. The car saga is over. Now Sharman’s next priority is a car wash: the van is covered in dust, outside and in.

Next stop: the ferry office to buy our tickets for tomorrow. After some confused back and forth, we

realized that there are two ferry lines that sail on different days; our phone reservation was with TMC for Thursday, but we bought the tickets with Baja Ferries for Wednesday—i.e. just hours away. So no need for a hotel, and just a few hours for touristing. We went to the contemporary art museum first—pretty modest—then walked the waterfront. Like Puerto Vallarta, the Malecon--the waterfront

The beach in Mazatlan

paseo--is broad and attractively sculptured. Unlike PV, it includes a kids’ salt water pool and slide. We happened to be there in time for the cliff divers of Mazatlan. They had a similar routine to the Acapulco divers, though the cliff was not quite as high and at least one of them was not as good: he hit the water not straight, and it looked like it hurt. Maybe judging the wind is a challenge. We walked through town to check out the Zocalo--which was nice but nothing striking--and bought ice cream. We drove the scenic route back to the ferry terminal.

We got to the terminal about 2:30; the ferry did not leave until after 6. We were in the loading lane when I was told that passengers have to wait at the terminal and board on foot, while drivers have to stay with the vehicle during the loading process. So I grabbed my book and went to the terminal. The problem was I didn’t take any warm clothes for the night at sea. When I finally boarded three hours later I wasn’t allowed on the car deck, I didn’t know where the car was, and I didn’t know where Mike was. Finding Mike wasn’t hard—he was in the cafeteria at the top of the stairs—but getting permission to go to level two on the car deck required three layers of official approval and an escort. He almost rolled his eyes when he explained on the phone that an American woman was ill-informed and needed to get clothes out of the car.

The car decks were pretty empty—more freight than cars—but the passenger cabins and seats were

We cruise across the Sea of Cortez

completely full: lots of families on holiday for semana santa. Mike and I and several other passengers didn’t not get a reserved seat and so camped out in the cafeteria. We were on deck when the sun went down: I saw the green flash! We stayed on deck in the fading light to watch the ship leave the harbor. Passage included a free dinner and breakfast: the cafeteria was crowded and there was a long line. After dinner they showed a B American movie, so Mike and I went back up on deck until it was over. The sea was glassy and radiant in the moonlight.

Thursday March 24. It was a long day. Being offshore with a level horizon in all directions was new for me. Not even any seagulls to watch. I got lots of reading done. The highlight was seeing two

groups of whales in the Gulf of California. The ferry trip was 21 hours; with unloading time and Mike and the car going through customs, then trying to find me waiting on the curb, it was 5:00pm by the time we headed into La Paz.

With the advice of Ioverlander and the Mexico camping book we found a nice, mostly empty, relatively expensive (MX$400) RV park down on the waterfront, walking distance to town. The 84-year-old owner spoke perfect English as her late husband was American, and was eager to show us pictures and tell us all about their 55 years in the business. Mike is very gracious; I was hungry and a little rude, trying to move things along and get my beer and ceviche. I am pleased to report that the restaurant across the street served up excellent fare, including a great Michelada. I am also pleased to report that the shower was HOT.