Birds, Beach Walks, Boats and Buddies

The week has been a typical blend of photography, boat tasks, and socializing with friends.  I was able to get some good bird images this week in the mangroves and elsewhere.  I got to know some other cruisers here as I anticipate some of my good friends leaving for the bulk of the season.  Things are hopping at the Vallarta Yacht Club because they are hosting the upcoming Optimist North American Championship.  Lots of sprucing up and the parking lots are filled with 150 brand new Optimist Prams that will be used in the regatta.   Not to be outdone, the cruisers in La Cruz had a highly competitive 'umbrella' race, which allowed anything that floated, but no rudder or propulsion of any kind other than umbrellas or other makeshift sail.  The event was won by my friend Maureen...with a little help from her husband Bob, of course.
To keep the universe in balance, there have been the usual minor boat tasks to do as well as following up on previous disasters.  I had a local shop take apart the windlass motor to reveal it was cooked even worse than I anticipated. So I have decided to buy a knew one rather than put approximately half as much into a motor that can never be quite 100%.

Nature

Racoon tracks on the beach near the edge of an 

undeveloped weeded lot.

Sea turtle tracks leading up to and back from

a nest in the sand right in the midst of a

hotel's palapas.

Shells as found

Sunrise

Sunset

Bird on a wire:  yellow crowned night heron at sunrise

Black (or green) crowned night heron in the mangroves

Black crowned night heron on my dock line

Green heron chick

Social flycatcher with a catch for the babies

Social flycatcher

Some of the flycatchers frequently roost around the

boats in the marina.  They are less skittish than the

nesters in the mangroves, but it still takes some

stalking to get close.  They will groom only when

they are not nervous about potential danger

from nearby humans.

Yellow crowned night heron in flight

Yellow crowned night heron with a twig for the nest

Yellow crowned night heron chick in the nest

Black bellied whistling duck

Pelican in flight

Wings flared coming in for a landing

This immature brown pelican has been hanging around

near my boat lately.

Friends, Food and Fun

A group of us went to the big Sunday brunch at El Tigre

Golf Club this week.  (Clockwise from the left: Mike, Lisa

Jean Phillipe, Dragun (?), Rudy, Me)

It's a nice spot, but we preferred the air conditioning.

Life is uncertain; eat dessert first!

Everything is all-you-can-eat, including

made-to-order sushi and sashimi.

Bottomless mimosas (or champagne or other

 bebidas) too.   Not bad for $25 including tip.

  
Local Events

Some of the 150 Optimist Prams for the North American

Championships being held at the Vallarta Yacht Club

Five new officiating boats

The start of The Great La Cruz Umbrella Race

My friend Maureen took an early lead and continued

to pull away from the pack to a glorious victory.

The Great La Cruz Umbrella Race

Disaster Recovery 

After I came close to losing my phone 

last week, I found a secure holder at

a kiosk in the Lago Real mall for $5.

Heavy Velcro closure and belt loop mean

I won't lose my phone again (if I use the case).

The burned out guts of my windlass motor.

It was worse than I expected given the motor

would still turn some after it cooled down.

While it could be rewound and salvaged, it would cost over

$400 and would never be quite the same, so I decided to

junk it and get a new one for $900.  Sigh.

This is the sleeve on which the motor is mounted.  Once

I was finally able to remove the motor, the sleeve had

a few scars and rough patches.

In order to make it easier to remount the new motor,

I oil sanded the sleeve three times with progressively

finer grit paper.

Much better!  Hopefully the new motor will slip on 

without any problems!

June 7, 2018

A very mixed week.  Got a few nice photos, some nice walks on the beach, and some fun with friends.  On the project side, my newly rebuilt port proved to be watertight in the first real rain of the season caused by the first tropical storm now going by offshore.  Also enjoyed using the gym and luxury spa at the Palenque Spa in Paradise Village.
On the other hand, while in the cockpit working on the window, I bumped something that bumped something else, that bumped something else that, unbeknownst to me, pressed the windlass switch.  That caused the windlass to try to pull up an anchor that was already up.  By the time I figured out what was happening it was too late:  the windlass had overloaded and burned out.  Not only will replacing the motor be a major expense, so far I haven't been able to free the motor from the shaft.  I've removed it a couple of times before without a problem, but this time it's a no-go.  I've tried the manufacturer's suggestions with no luck yet.  Part of the problem is the lack of clearance and the tight space.  But I still have a few more things to try before the saw comes out.  Stay tuned....

This yellow-crowned night heron landed on

the lawn of the timeshare next to the hotel.

Very unusual because they are normally quite

shy when people are about.

This snowy egret briefly perched on a neighbor's

dinghy.

By carefully stalking, and with the help of some

distractions, I was able to slowly get closer.

Long neck!

All my (black-bellied whistling) ducks in a row.

A sea turtle nest long after the eggs have hatched and

the babies gone.  Only the broken shells are left.

Crab burrow and tracks

No, it's not a sea monster...

Just a dead Mexican (Pacific) spotted snake eel

Another one that illustrates how it got the name.

Sunset on the beach

Sunrise after the season's first thunderstorm

The rain was a product of Aletta, the first tropical storm

of the season.  The yellow X is a disturbance that could

turn into the next one.  Both are expected to go northwest,

so they shouldn't cause anything more than rain and thunderstorms

where I am (just above the small cloud above Aletta).

This is the Red Cabbage Café where ten of us

went to dinner.  Across from the river in a

non-tourist neighborhood in Puerto Vallarta.

The little boy is the official doorman.

While it caters to gringos, the food is authentic sophisticated

Mexican.  Recommended!

Good food, good friends, good vibes!  

(Clockwise from the left:  Mike, Lisa, Cindy, Mark

Tod, Donna, Lou, Bob, Maureen)

This is La Isla, a very upscale shopping mall in Puerto Vallarta.

Designer stores

Lots of waterscaping

I needed to get a special adapter only available at a Mac Store.

WORK!

I've learned to always test resealed ports before installation by

leveling the port and filling it with water on top of a paper

towel that makes even the smallest leak apparent.

Here's why:  this one failed the first time.  

After sealing both obvious and invisible potential

sources of a leak, I retested.  No leaks!

A bead of Sika 1a around the port frame

Reinstalled and cleaned up just before the first rain.

Restored interior wood after installation

No leaks through two rainstorms

The "before."

The big burned out windlass motor

Per manufacturer's suggestion, I'm trying phosphoric acid

to free up the motor from the shaft.  No luck so far.

Tight spaces make everything difficult.

Working in the heat and humidity is taxing, that's

why I get up early and quit early whenever 

possible.

While waiting for the phosphoric acid to do its thing, 

I worked out  in the gym at Palenque Spa for the

first time this season.  It's well equipped and most

importantly, air conditioned.

The daily fee of $3 for marina tenants includes all classes,

use of spa facilities (gym, locker room, showers, steam

room, sauna and jacuzzi), towels, robe, sandals and

ice cold lemon or cucumber water in champagne flutes.

The just-remodeled spa looks much better in reality than

in these old stock photos.   Subtle lighting, soft music...

pretty nice!