The Fritz-Watson family in Cenote Corchito.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Barbara, which entered the Gulf of Tehuantepec just 4 days after we successfully (and without incident) crossed the Gulf, we began reconsidering our decision to sail on towards El Salvador. The decision to stay put was much easier than expected, so we tidied our dock lines and transitioned away from what had been a travel heavy month. We quickly befriended our new dock neighbors, many of whom were returning to the US for summer, several of whom were heading south and a couple of brave souls that are hoping to get north during hurricane season.
Staying in Mexico several additional months was not without its complications. Firstly, I needed to figure out how to renew my tourist visa, which ended up being a complete pain in the neck despite everyone telling me how easy it would be. We also needed to figure out what to do with Tack during a short inland adventure and our longer 2 month trip back to the US. Fortunately, we befriended a local family that owns a grilled chicken stand just a bicycle ride away from our boat who agreed to look after him. The guys that oversee the marina and our lovely neighbors have also been immensely helpful in this arena. Tack is very well taken care of and purportedly getting more love than he could ever hope for.
In June we had ready access to electricity and internet, which meant that I had the ability to catch up on work. It also means we watched a fair amount of tv shows and movies, especially on rainy days or buggy evenings. In the middle of the day when our bodies started melting into our cushions, we took our folding bicycles to Playa Linda where the powerful surf and the beach would play catch with our bodies. A private little palapa was our refuge from the waves on this deserted beach.
A highlight of this month was taking an overland trip to visit our family on the Yucatan Peninsula. On this trip we saw and swam in the Atlantic Ocean, tasted delicious Yucatec dishes, plunged into freshwater cenotes, slept in a real bed, cooked in a real kitchen, toured the beautiful city of Merida, and explored the ruins of Tonina on our way back home. We enjoyed seeing more of this beautiful country and visiting with our family and their friends.
The end of June had us scrambling to ready Serenity and Tack to hold their own while we set out for the US. Needless to say, June was packed!
Here’s a quick review!
19 … nights slept at the marina
2 … nights slept on a bus
9 … nights slept in a real bed
0 … miles traveled by boat
1288 … miles traveled by bus (if we could sail overland it would have taken us two weeks by boat, but it only took us two days by bus)
3 … attempts to renew Harmony’s Mexican tourist visa
1000 … pesos, the cost proposed by hustlers to proffer a “back room deal” with the Guatemalan immigration official so that we could enter and leave Guatemala on the same day (the alternative being to stay overnight in a seedy border town without our toothbrushes)
180 … days allowed in Mexico on a tourist visa
95 … degrees, the hottest temperature logged in our cabin
11:00 … the time at night when the cabin finally starts cooling down
81 … degrees, the coolest temperature logged in our cabin after a good rain
7:00 … the time at night when it’s best to be indoors, to escape the skeeters
4 … average number of new mosquito bites each day (primarily on our feet)
10 … days we left Tack alone on Serenity during our cross country trip to the Yucatan Peninsula
5 … cenotes swam in during our time on the Yucatan Peninsula
31 … Jeff’s new age after his birthday on June 20
3000 … altitude in feet at the height of the Tonina ruins
233 … height in feet of the Tonina ruins (one of the tallest ruins = great view)
25 … total hours spent riding in combis (and let me tell you, they are uncomfortable)
860 … pesos ($66 US) for two of us to get from Ocosingo to Tapachula by an official bus company
390 … pesos ($30 US) for two of us to get from Ocosingo to Tapachula by combi (little commuter buses)
45 … pesos ($3.50 US) for a delicious grilled chicken dinner (hot off the grill complete with tortillas, salsa, black bean puree and onions)
24 … episodes of Deadwood watched over dinner
4 … Harry Potter movies watched on rainy days (or evenings)