Mexico – January 2009

Passage from Belize

Sailing North from Belize on New Year’s day we start with a land breeze from the west but this is short lived and the wind soon settles in the east. There are a few rain showers but we make good progress northwards in just a light swell. Nearing Reef Point, which we have to round before we bear off, an area of denser squalls is apparent, the wind increases backs around to the northwest, it rains and the seas build quickly. We tack and try to maintain our course.

These squalls only last about an hour then the wind veers back to the east and drops off, the seas go down, the sun shines and we bear off to a comfortable point of sail heading for Xcalack, we are in Mexico.

Xcalack, Mexico

The reef entrance to Xcalack proves to be easy – the waypoint in the Rauscher guide puts us right in the middle of the pass and the 2 leading lights on shore bring us safely between the reefs. Inside it is calm and we find mooring buoys just north of the pier. Fellow cruisers we met in the Rio are also here and we wave as we tie up nearby. We eat lunch, call the port captain and go ashore to clear in only to find being New Year’s day it is not possible. We are hoping to leave early the next morning.

We rise early next day and prepare for departure, I go ashore at 8.00am and complete the formalities. No immigration here but copies of the passport are taken and we pay our 219 pesos.

We leave through the reef pass and head north the promised S/E wind proves to be just north of east and we cannot lay our course for the Banco Chinchorro so after an hour, not being willing to motor sail the whole way we turn around and sail back into Xcalack, we will wait for more favourable winds. The wait becomes 3 days but it is nice enough here; crystal clear water, a secure mooring at no charge and even though the wind increases and blows at 20 knots only a little swell makes its way in.

Finally, patience is rewarded and the wind goes to the south of the east and we leave early as soon as it is light enough to see the entrance. The entrance today is not so easy. With quite a big swell running some waves are breaking in the gap. We make it out but would not want to return. We head north-eastwards towards the Banco Chinchorro.

Banco Chinchorro

Winds being fickle we find we end up motor sailing the last 4 hours but enter the atoll safely finding mooring buoys here as well. No sooner are we moored than we are boarded by the Mexican Navy who want to inspect our boat and check our documentation, no problem they are polite and even remove their boots before coming aboard. They ask for cigarettes, which we do not have.

Banco Chinchorro is beautiful, with clear waters sheltered by the fringing reefs. We swim but do not move the boat to explore among the coral heads further south which we are told afterwards are really good snorkelling. We stay a day and then depart early in the morning for Bahia de Espiritu Santo.

Bahia de Espiritu Santo

Easy sail this downwind and we enter the Bahia on the waypoints given in the Rauscher guide and head into anchor behind the island. There are some shallow sandbars, which we just clear (5’6”) and find good holding and shelter. This bay is enormous and we see nobody at all, this is a remote area and part of an ecological reserve.

Another early start as we head northwards to Cozumel. Swells, as we leave the bay, are big and breaking we presume caused by the 2 knots of current which flow close inshore just here. Winds are from the south-east. We wonder about turning back but find the swells diminish as we reach deeper water and it soon becomes comfortable sailing and we make fast progress for a while. However, winds can be fickle and the wind dies away in the early afternoon so we turn on the engine again.

After an hour the engine falters and dies on us, I suspect a fuel problem so up comes the cockpit floor and I change the fuel filter finding it not very dirty so this not the cause of the problem. I find a slight fuel leak in a fuel pipe connection I try to tighten this but it is difficult to reach. I bleed the fuel lines and the engine fires again. Meanwhile, Sue has been sailing the boat in < 5knots of wind with the cruising chute up together with the current we are making 4 knots over the ground. The wind fills back in and soon we are sailing well again with wind from the S/E and as we reach the sheltered water in the lee of Cozumel sailing is idyllic.

Cozumel

Our plan is to anchor off but we will not arrive until just after dark. As dusk comes we see a line of clouds and the wind backs towards the north, we drop the cruising chute just before it increases to 20 knots + and starts to rain. We now have a problem our planned anchorage is not tenable in northerly winds. We try to call the marina at Puerto Aventuras but can get no reply so decide to head for Puerto Morelos.

We don oilskins, lifejackets and put in the 3rd reef as the wind increases to 25 knots, the boat is safe with this rig and we still make 5 knots through the water, we worry about how much the wind against the current will build a short steep sea. The front passes quickly and the wind backs around to the east again and we make good progress northwards towards Puerto Morelos arriving at the sea buoy at about 10.30 pm.

Puerto Morelos

We can see the lit buoys indicating the channel which is deep enough to take car ferries to Cozumel, the entrance is easy and we find another cruising boat on some moorings just off the town dock. We moor nearby at 11.30pm, we have been underway for 18 hours and have made over 90 miles north, repairing the engine as well, we are glad to sleep in a calm anchorage.

Puerto Morelos proves to be a sleepy little town which is just developing as a tourist destination, the supermarket is not well stocked we would have liked some fresh produce but do not find any. We are told we would need to go to the main highway to find shops. We do swim from our mooring to the reef and see lots of fish and fair coral. This would be a nice place to hang out for a few days and does have a marina El Cid just south of the town, giving good shelter.

We leave the next day for Isla Mujeres and enjoy a lovely sail north just on the edge of the deep water but well clear of the reef. Fishing proves productive and we enjoy fish for lunch as we sail along in a comfortable wind.

Isla Mujeres

We arrive in Isla Mujeres in the afternoon and anchor in the sheltered waters of the town. We are pleased to have completed this trip north from Belize.

Isla Mujeres, meaning island of women, is an apt destination for sailors but it is unclear whether this refers to a lot of women or to predominantly female Mayan figures found here. The island is roughly 4 miles long by a half a mile wide, it is a popular tourist destination although considerably down market when compared with Cancun.

Numerous ferries and tour boats shuttle backwards and forwards daily bringing hordes of day-trippers to the island who wander around the town, hire golf buggies or scooters to explore the island. Consequently, the main town is full of silver and other souvenir shops and we are entreated to come and look every time we go into town. There is a small but fairly well-stocked supermarket with fresh produce, meats and a bakery. Compared to Guatemala and Belize it is a delight to have so much choice and at reasonable prices. There are big supermarkets in Cancun but need a ferry ride and taxi’s so doubtful if you would save much money by shopping there.

The islands east side is exposed to the prevailing easterly winds and is predominantly a rocky foreshore with constantly breaking seas, by contrast, the west side borders Cancun Bay and is the beautiful turquoise tranquil sea.

This is a stopping off place for us on our route north and we look at the weather but see a succession of weather fronts exiting the Texas coast and heading our way. Not all make it this far but those that do bring stronger winds and a change in wind direction to the West and the north before gradually clocking back to east or southeast. In a strong northerly the temperature drops considerably and it feels cold with temps down to 20C coupled with wind chill from 20 knots of wind.

Westerly or northerly winds make the anchorage off the town uncomfortable so most boats seek shelter in one of the marinas or go into the Laguna Makax which offers total protection from the swell with depths of 6-13 feet. We enjoy the hospitality of Marina Paraiso where Tom and Jose make us very welcome although even this proves uncomfortable with strong northwesterly winds and after we break a mooring line we leave and go into the Laguna Makax.

Getting propane here becomes a challenge in perseverance, first, the marina has our bottle for a week and then says it can’t be filled because it is too small. We hear of a filling “station” at the dump almost at the south end of the island in an old quarry. I walk there eventually finding it but have to leave my bottle returning the next morning this time on my bicycle to find nobody there but a watchman who says return at 1.00pm – so backwards and forwards I go again eventually retrieving my filled bottle after three trips.

We do some maintenance on the boat, (and order spares for the autopilot) from Defender Industries in the USA which we have shipped in via Fed-ex. It arrives in 3 days which really surprises us but we are charged $50 for shipping and another 15% duty, all in all, an expensive spare part but it will make the next stage of our journey much easier.

We go for a swim on the reef just by the lighthouse. There are lots of fish here it seems, the tour boats feed them to encourage them and they swim right up to you but there is a current here and we have a hard swim back to the dinghy. Tales of strong currents have put us off diving here plus it is much more expensive than in the Bay islands, I guess we have been spoilt. We enjoy a cycle tour of the island and find the centre of the island is made up of a number of lagoons surrounded by built-up areas, it is surprising how much of the land is occupied by just local housing it doesn’t appear so built up as you approach from the sea.

Marina Paraiso proves to be the heart of the cruisers scene here with Pot lucks, Superbowl, Barbecue, dominoes and Fawlty Towers viewing nights. It is also the address I use to get my parts shipped to via Fed Ex.

SSB radio reception here is very poor most of the time although we do manage to download emails and weather info daily, trying to keep up with NW net is almost impossible due to interference, possibly from naval base on shore. There is a daily cruisers net here on Ch 13.

Cancun

We have an excursion to Cancun to complete our entry formalities and purchase our Importada for the boat – $50 but valid for 10 years. Cancun, by contrast, is a sprawling town with lots of big hotels more under construction and lots of traffic. There is a good bus service once you understand how it works and of course numerous taxi’s. Lots of big stores, you could be in the US, Walmart, Sam’s Club, Home Depot and Office World to name a few. A few chandlery shops but they are expensive and mainly geared towards motorboat parts and fishing.

We find we have spent a month here waiting for this elusive weather window but are now feeling ready to leave and it looks as though the weather may turn favourable in a couple of days from now so we will prepare for departure. We need to pay for our tourist visa at the bank, visit immigration and the port captain for clearance to leave. Our destination will be Florida but whether this is the east or the west coast will depend on how favourable the winds are.

Roy and Sue Potter

SY Vindomar

See Vindomar’s next report on Belize to the Florida Keys and then on to the Bahamas here.