Touring The Bays By Boat

We have been playing tourist while here in Huatulco. Big time. We are trying to see everything we can this time around and to get to know the area better.

We recently took one of those 7 hour tours (if they had said 3, we would not have gone!) of the bays and beaches in the area. The tour included stops to snorkel and to eat.

Luckily, the boat was not too crowded. We had an excellent guide who explained everything in Spanish and English. Other than the four of us, the other passengers were all from Monterrey. The guide made many jokes about how cheap the people from Monterrey are. I think more than a few of the passengers were getting annoyed at hearing that all the time!





Pulling out of Santa Cruz bay, which is just down the street from us.




Looking back at the beach area. This is a nice, safe place to swim. If not a little boring.





This boat followed us for quite a ways and then pulled on ahead. I had no idea that he was connected with our tour. I just thought it strange he was following us so closely!




The view from the boat to land was interesting. We passed many beaches I had been to and got to see the islands from a different perspective.

This is one of the many lighthouses that dot the coast here.

Look closely at the following picture. We were to see this repeated over and over. One or two people out on these rocks. No boat or visible means of transportation around. I can't believe they actually swam out to these rocks. And why?

Here's one of the beaches we are making no attempt to get to this time around. Playa Cacaluta. It is where Y tu Mama tambien was filmed. Remember when we there in January?

We had to make our own shade on an old turtle nesting spot. This beach is totally unswimmable but you can snorkel around that island in the distance.

Over on the left you can see the enclosure pictured above.

Another one of the beautiful beaches, accessible only by boat.

I thought the bird poop on this rock was pretty.

Here we are entering Playa San Augustin for a snorkeling stop. We didn't get off the boat since we had just been there the day before!

See the two beach chairs? We were just behind them, where there appears to be a second level palapa.

Luis decided to just go for a quick swim off the back of the boat.

When we got to Playa Maquey, I actually rode on this boat to get to shore for lunch!

Here's the proof! (Luis is on the left. He rode on my boat in case I needed to be rescued or something!)

Again with the mysterious people on the rocks.

I love this next set of pictures. Oh, to be young again. With the captain's permission, while we were anchored, Luis got the opportunity to jump off the much higher front end of the boat. The pictures tell it all!

Not to be left out or behind, his girlfriend, Ashley, took her turn. She was just a bit afraid of hitting the anchor rope though and really made a leap to keep away from it.

I supposed feeling that his Latino Machiso had been challenged, Luis made another attempt. We told him not to since he could hurt himself. He did it anyway.

Turns out that with the angle he hit the water, he only temporarily injured one part of his body. Painful enough to keep him from doing it again though! He got no sympathy.

We ate a restaurant owned by another new friend here, who also owns the restaurant Ay Caray! in downtown La Crucecita. This place had the same name.

View from lunch back out to the water.

The menu.

Today's fresh offering of fish, lobster or stuffed pineapple.

The boat that made it all possible.

Maguey is a lovely little beach and very, very popular. We could not even get near it the first two weeks we were here. Too many tourists buses with 1000's of tourists clogging everything.

I have no idea where the owner of this valuable collection has gone off to!

Everybody finds something to do at the beach when not in the water.

We saw a lot of this too.

No lack of things to buy either.

Back in Santa Cruz harbor. This is a very typical view of condos built into the sides of hills everywhere.

If you ever in this area, I would highly recommend that you take one of these boat tours of the bays. Interesting and fun. At one point they even turn and head out to open water. This is to give the passengers a chance to view turtles and dolphins. We saw both. At one point, a dolphin swam along side our boat. I had never experienced that before and it is was magical.