changes in latitudes

CHANGES

events are for cruisers, and include three fun races, the annual opening of the Punta Mita Yacht & Surf Club (complete with the popular carbon fiber paddling initiation of new members), as well as the Annual Water Balloon Drop. It all takes place December 12-16th, and is sponsored by the Riviera Nayarit Tourism Department, Latitude 38, the Marina Riviera Nayarit, the Vallarta YC, and Paradise Marina. Catalina Liana of Marina Riviera Nayarit, who will be aboard Profligate for the Ha-Ha again this year, can answer all your questions either during that event or at pr@marinariviera.com.

Since we're on a roll for cruiser events in Mexico this winter, we should mention that Latitude will again attempt to create a Tenacatita - Barra Sailing Festival just after the start of the new year. There would be a feeder cruise down from Banderas Bay, followed by sailing fun, socializing and other nonsense at Tenacatita Bay, followed by a fun 'race' down to the Grand Marina and/or the lagoon at Barra de Navidad. We're still working on details with the 'Mayor of Tenacatita

The Isla de Navidad Marina in Barra would make a great place to end a fun Gold Coast cruiser rally/sailing festival. We'll try to make it happen.

Bay', Robert Gleser of the ex-Alamedabased Freeport 41 Harmony, and the folks at Grand Bay Hotel Marina in Barra. Stay tuned for news.

Next on the Mexico calendar of activities is perhaps the greatest cruiser fundraising success in the world, the

LATITUDE / RICHARD

Zihua SailFest. Now in its 14th year, the six-day fundraising fiesta for the education of disadvantaged children in Zihua will be held February 2-8. It consists of cocktail parties, benefit concerts, live & silent auctions, sailboat and dinghy races, a kids' beach day, seminars, a chili cook-off, street fairs, regattas, school tours, work parties and more.

Nearly $64,000 U.S. was raised last year — with generous help from grants from the Bellack Foundation, event volunteer Jane Fiala, cruiser/donor Pete Boyce of Northern California, and the Rotary Foundation. That was enough — along with donated labor and materials — to create 10 new classrooms and benefit more than 400 disadvantaged children in eight schools. When properly supervised, a little money goes farther in Mexico than in the United States.

More on other cruisers' events in Mexico — the Vallarta YC's Banderas Bay Cruisers' Regatta, the La Paz Bay Fest and Loreto Fest — in upcoming issues.

One of the most famous sea caves in

MARINE BATTERIES

Available at the following local marine chandleries and service distributors:

ALAMEDA The Boatyard at Grand Marina Star Marine Svendsen's Chandlery

BENICIA Cruising Seas Services

EMERYVILLE Mathiesen Marine

MARTINEZ Martinez Bait & Tackle

OAKLAND Outboard Motor Shop

OAKLEY Big Break Marina

RICHMOND Swedish Marine Bay Marine

AMERICAN BATTERY • Hayward, CA • (510) 259-1150

BEST COVERAGE MARINE INSURANCE

More active cruising boats than any other marine agency in the Western Hemisphere.

CALL

(866) 463-0167

or visit www.bluewaterins.comGet a Quote – It's Worth It!

CRUISING SOUTH? Need Power? We Can Help!

PACKAGE DEALS!

Sales and Service –

• HO Alternators & Pulley Kits

• Wind Generators

• Solar Charging Systems

• Watermakers

FIRST WATCH MARINE

(619) 916-1730

www.sandiego.marinesmartenergy.com

BAY MARINE DIESEL

Marine Inboard Diesel Repair Surveys • Personalized Instruction

Cummins | Ford/Lehman | Hino | Perkins Universal | Westerbeke | Yanmar

DIESEL MARINE ENGINES

Marty Chin, Owner – (510) 435-8870 Email: Baymarinediesel@comcast.net

Page 136 • Latitude 38 • October, 2014

IN LATITUDES

the world is the Blue Grotto of Capri, which extends over 150 feet into the beautiful towering island off the coast of Naples. Sunlight passing through an underwater cavity and the seawater creates the beautiful blue and emerald colors. The entrance is only two meters wide and two meters high, so you have to duck when you go in on one of the many tourist boats.

The grotto azzura was enjoyed by Roman emperors, then avoided for centuries because it was home to sea monsters and witches. After publication of a German book about it in the 1830s, it became a tourist attraction. Alas, the Blue Grotto has become one of the many places, such as Yosemite, that is being loved to death. As one reviewer wrote, "It took us four minutes to get to the grotto by boat, but two hours waiting in line for our boat's short turn inside the cave itself."

A graduate of the University of California at Berkeley, Jim Gregory of the Pt. Richmond-based Schumacher 50 Morpheus is a smart guy, so he came

up with a better alternative to a hoi polloi tour. He swam into the grotto before it 'opened' for business one morning. Locals commonly swim in the grotto after it 'closes' at 6 p.m.

Unfortunately, Jim and his wife Debra were unable to come up with a similar crowd-avoidance scheme during their later visit to the Vatican Museum at St. Peter's Square in Vatican City. "I am a bad tourist," Debra confessed. "I hate tours and will not take any in the future. The Vatican Museum is full of amazing things, but when you're packed in with 33,000 others and have to follow the one and only allowed path, you just can't wait to leave."

Our sentiments exactly about standing in line, and at the Vatican Museum in

Suddenly-famous Hidden Beach at the Marietas Islands. As Yogi Berra once said, "Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded."

particular. One of the great things about traveling by private yacht is that you get to visit really great places that haven't yet become famous or even widely-known yet, and thus you can often have them to yourself. Take Hidden Beach, the now-famous swim-in beach at the Tres Marietas Islands off Punta Mita. After the publication of one particularly flattering photo of it, Hidden Beach suddenly

MEXICO TOURISM

After hours pick up and drop off available.

Specializing in Sail Repair and Used Sails.

2021 Alaska Packer Place, Alameda, CA 94501 Dominic Marchal • (510) 239-5050 www.marchalsailmakers.com

Start Line Strategies

Winning Legal Strategies For Yachting

12+ years America's Cup Experience Sponsor & Venue Arrangements • Crew Contracts Vessel Shipping Logistics • Charter Agreements

Ashley Tobin (925) 324-3686 • amtobin2@gmail.com

HAWAIILONG TERM DRY STORAGE

Clear Customs at our dock

Available Now!

TOLL FREE 888-458-7896 www.gentryskonamarina.com

The friendliest boatyard in Hawaii

156°1'30" W 19°40'20" N

www.MarineLube.biz

October, 2014 • Latitude 38 • Page 137