Hi there… many of you have been asking… Where are you? What are you doing? All fair questions… We’ve just been kind of in travel mode and away from steady internet connection… and so, somewhat rested… here we are back to catch you up on our travels.
We were determined to make our journey north as short and painless as possible… and, as always, poor old Chuck was full. Chuck, for those of you who haven’t met him, is our trusty steed… a 1999 Ford Ranger… pretty green colour (oh, I guess he’d rather I described him as a ‘husky’ green) with an aging (although functional… if you don’t count each time one of the locks falls off :-) black canopy. For this trip Chuck was so full I had to physically use my shoulders to push in the last of the blankets and the sleeping bag (sleeping bag? you ask… yup, it does get cool in the mornings… even in Mexico… in January). Anyway, besides being ridiculously full with all our “A” belongings (the “B”s are in storage in Mazatlan)… Chuck also had the pleasure of holding up the dinghy (deflated and wrapped in shade cloth) the whisker pole (3” diameter by about 10’ long), and the lime green kayak…. Dressed like this he is the most obvious vehicle in the parking lot… impossible to lose.
Luckily the tires were still round and off we headed, into the dark (again) leaving Mazatlan at 0430 hrs. on January 2nd. We weren’t the only vehicles on the road and (unlike last year) we actually found our way out of the city and onto the highway without getting lost. Thankfully the highways down here are much better than years past and by keeping to the toll highway (Cuado) we feel pretty safe as they are regularly patrolled by armed guards or police or soldiers….
After 10 long hours (which included stopping for fuel, water and sanitarios as required) we arrived in Guaymas, our destination for that night. Now you may recall my description of the first place and the second place we’d stayed in Guaymas on previous journeys…. and, determined not to be upset by ‘bugs’ again… we settled on the Holiday Inn Express, a newer hotel with great staff and a good breakfast. We’d stayed there on the way down (sans puppy) and, after conferring with the princess who bravely offered to sleep in her truck bed, we decided we’d stay there again. Soph was great; no complaints, happy to snuggle in to her fleece bed, she had a good nights sleep (as did we) and was up and raring to go at 0630 the next morning.
Day two (January 3rd) saw us pushing for the border. There is no shortcut for this drive… and we had no choice but to arrive at our place in the lineup at mid-day. For TWO hours we inched forward, casting worried glances at the gas gauge, and praying we wouldn’t run out… (of course, I hadn’t remembered to fill our emergency jerry can with gas… stupid, stupid, me). Anyway, we finally made it up to the booth where a very nice, young fellow spoke with Kathy and asked a few question… (we always have Kathy at the wheel when going through borders.. she’s much nicer than me… fewer sharp corners… and does very well with the questions). Kathy drives and I sit in the passenger seat, armed with my binders of papers.. in order of course, covering the dog, us, the truck, the insurance, and the contents. We were prepared (as always) for the big search. We’ve been so lucky over these past few years… It was no surprise when the fellow told us to pull ahead… into the checking area… and so we did, expecting the worst. But you know, again lady luck was watching over us. There, another nice fellow asked to see in the back… did the usual double-take and sucked in his breath. Accepted my offer to show him our two litres of wine, lifted the lid on one blue bin (luckily the one holding bits and pieces of kitchen equipment from our last galley) and with a big smile said… “have a nice day”. He didn’t even ask to see the dog’s papers which, again, we had meticulously prepared and paid good money for yet another International Health Certificate. You know the day we don’t will be the day they’re asked for…. oh well.
And so, 2 1/2 hours after arriving at the border, we pulled out the other side of the searching area and headed down the road into the US of A… with English road signs and English radio channels (mostly)… on our way to Yuma. Susan and George had kindly said they’d wait dinner for us… and bless their hearts they did. We had a wonderful and delicious meal when we arrived and then tucked ourselves into our new home for the next couple of weeks. We are now ‘official’ guests of the Sun Vista RV Resort in Yuma, Arizona and we live in space #154, a single-wide park model, with a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, sitting room, and even an add-on side room with couch and TV… great for piling some of our stuff into.
It’s taken a couple of days to catch our breath. Between the packing, travelling, and continuing dialogue with folks in La Paz who were determined we should purchase the Catalina 36… it’s been a longish few days. For those of you who are wanting to know.. we did re-think the La Paz Catalina, even had an email form the owner asking us to reconsider.. and we did. We attempted to pick up where we’d left off, but to no avail. Something else has occurred (don’t know what officially) and he has decided to go in a different direction… and so, as of this morning, we’re back to Plan B and looking west towards San Diego and Marina Del Rey to find our new boat.. and rest assured we will…. it’s just about being there. For now, rest up and enjoy life. Kathy’s at the pool as I write this, attending her first water-aerobics class… She should be home any minute, so I’d best get the coffee on.
We’ll be here for another two weeks, at least, having some fun and learning pickle ball…. We hope all of you are doing well… just think… only a few (well maybe a tad more) weeks and you’ll be thinking about spring…. Take good care.. from all of us to all of you… Happy January…. CJ
