I’m still processing the year of adventure, travel and personal growth that we have experienced and if asked to say where I am on the spectrum of reflection, I’d say something like “barely scratched the surface” or “merely the tip of the iceberg.”  I think that our year (or to be precise, 11 months) away was the adventure of a lifetime and yet I still feel like it’s a story that is unfinished.  I still feel that tug to go travel again, to (*gasp*) live on the boat again, to see and do more. The world is a huge place, there is so much to see and experience and I feel like the year only scratched the itch. Yet, I also feel like this break, or “return to reality,” as many folks have coined it, is also necessary for our tribe.  A return to a sense of normalcy is a good thing. It gives us all time to reflect, think, process and most importantly to me, integrate everything we learned while we were gone into our lives here at home.

More Adventures Along the Mexican Gold Coast: Tenacatita

Our time anchored in Tenacatita is one of the highlights, and probably our first or second favorite anchorage (tied with Isla Isabel). Not only was the sail down lovely (and uneventful/stressful), the anchorage itself was perfect. Quiet, protected, spacious, *not rolly*, close to shore with plenty to see and do, and we could surf and paddle right off the back of the boat! There was lots of marine life surrounding our boat, dolphins all the way down (and we think some sneaky dolphins swimming in the anchorage at night) and lovely boat neighbors (who once rescued our down duvet after it fell in the water off our boom while we were out exploring in La Manzanilla!)

Our time on the Mexican Gold Coast: leaving Banderas Bay, but first . . . .

It’s been far too long since I’ve set aside time to write about our adventures south of La Cruz–and there have been many! Part of it, admittedly, was pure burnout.  Let me preface this by saying: we have loved our adventures and the experiences we have shared as a family aboard Dakota and on land!  But, at some point, after running down the Baja *and* Pacific Coasts of Mexico for weeks and months, it’s fair to expect some level of burnout by both the adult and kid crew on Dakota.  But before that, let’s go back a couple months…..

La Cruz, Guadalajara, Guachimontones and Tequila: January 10 – 29, 2017

We spent 3 lovely weeks in La Cruz letting it grow on us and us on it. It’s true what “they” say– as a kid boat, it’s *very* easy to get comfortable there what with all of the organized activities for boat kids of all ages, plenty of like-minded and like-aged parental units always up for a cerveza or margarita while we “watch” the kids by the pool, the on-point seminars, the social gatherings and parties, the walkability of the gorgeous and well-appointed marina (so very cruiser oriented) to the lovely town of La Cruz (which is also amazingly cruiser-oriented and cruiser-friendly), and the feel of the community we have there–having friends as neighbors and willing babysitters (WOOT!) and just everything being so easy.  So yea, we got sucked in. But after a few weeks, we felt we needed to get off the dock and go SEE something else.  So, we rented a cheap little car and headed out on a road trip through the Sierra Madres, driving through valleys and hills with acres and acres of blue agave plants (it’s like driving through wine country and the Rockies at the same time!) and making our way to Guadalajara, which we learned is the second largest city in Mexico.