Hola,
My wife and I are into our second year cruising the Sea of Cortez aboard our 28' sailboat, Siempre Sabado. This is our first trip to Puerto Peñasco and, indeed, it seems that very few cruisers make it this far north. We are here specifically for Circus Mexicus but also want to explore PP a bit. Mis preguntas...
1.) I see a few bus stops along a few of the streets. Since we are on foot, we like to ride the local bus when possible. Does anyone know anything about their schedules and fares?
2.) I see by the posters and such that Circus Mexicus will be held at Wrecked At The Reef on Sandy Beach. But I'm having a heck of a time figuring out just where that is. I can find Sandy beach on the RPGazette map but WATR doesn't show up on Google Maps so I'm not certain just how far out it is. A taxi ride from the Fonatur Marina (our temporary home), I'm sure.
3.) Any insight into what we can expect to pay taxis?
Hola,
My wife and I are into our second year cruising the Sea of Cortez aboard our 28' sailboat, Siempre Sabado. This is our first trip to Puerto Peñasco and, indeed, it seems that very few cruisers make it this far north. We are here specifically for Circus Mexicus but also want to explore PP a bit. Mis preguntas...
1.) I see a few bus stops along a few of the streets. Since we are on foot, we like to ride the local bus when possible. Does anyone know anything about their schedules and fares?
2.) I see by the posters and such that Circus Mexicus will be held at Wrecked At The Reef on Sandy Beach. But I'm having a heck of a time figuring out just where that is. I can find Sandy beach on the RPGazette map but WATR doesn't show up on Google Maps so I'm not certain just how far out it is. A taxi ride from the Fonatur Marina (our temporary home), I'm sure.
3.) Any insight into what we can expect to pay taxis?
Thanks for the help. Maybe we'll see you around.
-Steve & Lulu
Wrecked at the reef is on sandy beach between the resorts and cholla bay. Any cab driver knows where it's at. Just say "the Reef". I do not know where the marina your staying at is but cabs are usually pretty cheap. We are also going to the show. Expect 4+ hours of RCPM music. It's such a good time.
First off I want to say, I am extremely jealous and envious of you!!! Sailing the Sea of Cortez would be something epic, how cool is that?! If you are already in town and you're staying at Safe Marina, sandy beach is the beach with all the big resorts. Obviously you cant miss those, Wrecked at the Reef is on the West end of all the resorts on sandy beach. Cabs can be a little pricey IMO and from the Malecon or Safe Marina area you can expect to pay upwards of $20 one way. Im not a huge fan of the cabs in Rocky Point because they scare the hell out of me but if it is your only mode of land transportation then you obviously have no choice. I know absolutely nothing about the local bus schedule however. Maybe Roberto or SeaDweller can help you out... good luck and remember, WE GOT HEAVEN ON A PAPER PLATE!!!
Chari... they jack their prices way up to $20 if you are going anywhere near Cholla Bay or in this case to Wrecked...
sryoder maybe we can meet up and I can take you on a tour or give you some info to help out... also the local busses aren't what you may be thinking when it comes to busses... most of them are just converted vans... send me an email to [email protected] on when you have time and I'll come down to Fonatur Marina (public marina) and talk with you...
Cab rides are 2 dollars anywhere in Penasco. I'm not sure where the previous poster got his info.....
Cab rides in town are $20.00 Pesos per person. Sandy Beach is a different story and it is considered a tourist zone and you will always pay the gringo rate which suddenly becomes $20.00 per person. Taxis are great for when you are staing in town, I would not consider them an option to go or come from the Sandy Beach area.
Cab rides are 2 dollars anywhere in Penasco. I'm not sure where the previous poster got his info.....
How snoody are you LADY?! I mean seriously all I can do is SMH. Dont try and discredit someone and be WRONG while doing it, lesson one. Two, Im not just some previous poster, I've obviously been on this forum for more than two years now, enough to not be PREVIOUS POSTER. Thirdly, why even attempt to answer a question that you dont have the answer to?! "I never go to Sandy Beach...". This NOOB asked a very specific question, how much should I expect to pay from the marina to Wrecked? I answered his question with a very concise and CORRECT answer! "...all I know is from the Mirador to the Boo Bar", well thats obvious. Get your shat straight before you try and cop an attitude!
Wow Joe, way to escalate this thread! I don't think Chari was being snoody or condescending. Let's lower the temperature and get ready for a great weekend in Penasco. 7 more hours!
Well... if sryoder can put up with us being sober we can give him and his wife a ride to the show... but at least after we get there all our friends will be partying it up... until the end of the show, then sryoder and his wife will have to put up with us for a sober ride home... NO CHARGE of course...
Sounds like taxis out to Wrecked would be an expensive option. Doubt we'll rent a car as I plan to do a wee bit of imbibing at the shows and prefer to keep my life as uninvolved with the local constabulary as is possible. I'll check out the Russ link and, if that doesn't work out, we'll hitch. Won't be the first time.
Seadweller, I'll send you an e-mail as requested.
Today is going to be a little bit of shopping and recon. We worked too hard on the boat yesterday and need a day off. Also, re: the buses, they look like exactly what we expect. In La Paz they're called colectivos or peseras. We've ridden them in La Paz and Mazatlán. Not the most comfortable ride to be sure, bit the price is usually right and they often beat walking. That is, of course, assuming you can figure out which bus takes you where.
Badfish, the Fonatur marina is on the south (?) side of the harbor, very close to the malecón. Is this the area that is referred to as the "Old Port" in the restaurant guides?
Looking forward to meeting up with some of you and thanks again for the info.
Well... if sryoder can put up with us being sober we can give him and his wife a ride to the show... but at least after we get there all our friends will be partying it up... until the end of the show, then sryoder and his wife will have to put up with us for a sober ride home... NO CHARGE of course...
WOW! Sounds like a great offer to me. We'll certainly take you up on it. I'll send you an e-mail. Thanks!
Regarding my buss and the concert I have a fully booked weekend with a private group so I cant offer any assistance in this matter. I will say that we have had some good meetings with the taxistas union and we are close to coming to an agreement on fair fares for the RCPM weekend. Stay tuned kiddos I will post the rates here as soon as we come to terms.
WOW! Sounds like a great offer to me. We'll certainly take you up on it. I'll send you an e-mail. Thanks!
We are going to be going to the Hot Dog and a Smile party at JJ's in Cholla Bay on Friday Night and you're also welcome to join us for that if you'd like... and our car is pretty much like a miniture version of a Mexican Bus so you'll get that experience as well... only joking we drive disposa-cars down here...
In fact... if anyone wants to bring donations for Esperanza para los Ninos we will have a trailer out at JJ's as a drop off spot for donations... we have been working on this for several weeks with a friend from Minnesota and we have quite a few donations on there way... then we are caravaning to the Childrens Home on Saturday afternoon with the donations and a Birthday cake big enough to feed 100 people...
Thanks! It is strange there are not more slips "So why don’t more cruising boats visit? We very well may be the first cruising sailboat that’s come in here in over a year. What gives? Well, first off, everyone seems to be scared off by the warnings about the extreme tides. This is low tide today, and it wasn’t a minus tide or anything:" In Puerto Libertad can boats dock at that long pier?
sryoder said:
¡Que fantástico! Muchas gracias a ustedes for all the quick and helpful answers. Glad I managed to find this discussion board.
Sounds like taxis out to Wrecked would be an expensive option. Doubt we'll rent a car as I plan to do a wee bit of imbibing at the shows and prefer to keep my life as uninvolved with the local constabulary as is possible. I'll check out the Russ link and, if that doesn't work out, we'll hitch. Won't be the first time.
Seadweller, I'll send you an e-mail as requested.
Today is going to be a little bit of shopping and recon. We worked too hard on the boat yesterday and need a day off. Also, re: the buses, they look like exactly what we expect. In La Paz they're called colectivos or peseras. We've ridden them in La Paz and Mazatlán. Not the most comfortable ride to be sure, bit the price is usually right and they often beat walking. That is, of course, assuming you can figure out which bus takes you where.
Badfish, the Fonatur marina is on the south (?) side of the harbor, very close to the malecón. Is this the area that is referred to as the "Old Port" in the restaurant guides?
Looking forward to meeting up with some of you and thanks again for the info.
We're definitely IN for the Hot Dog and a Smile party. I read that donations of canned goods are welcomed at the party and, as we are soon to return to the States for 6 weeks, leaving our boat in HOT Guaymas, we're thinking about off-loading some of our stores. What better way than to help out underpriveleged kids?
Thanks! It is strange there are not more slips "So why don’t more cruising boats visit? We very well may be the first cruising sailboat that’s come in here in over a year. What gives? Well, first off, everyone seems to be scared off by the warnings about the extreme tides. This is low tide today, and it wasn’t a minus tide or anything:" In Puerto Libertad can boats dock at that long pier?
As far as I can see, the main reason that cruising boats don't come here is due to the warnings about the extreme tides that are printed in all the cruiser guides. Down south, you might get a 4 or 5 foot tidal swing as opposed to 20' here. Cruisers that aren't from Oregon or Washington would probably find this scary. Also, there doesn't appear to be any good places to anchor which is what many cruisers prefer. Certainly no room in the harbor - a shrimper would run right over an anchored boat. And, outside, there are no protected coves. It's a long way from either San Felipe or Bahia Gonzaga to here, and, if you're not sure there'll be a slip available when you get here, well, easier not to come at all.
I'm glad we planned to attend Circus Mexicus and bought our tickets early so we were more or less committed to coming to PP. So far, we really like it and are very glad we came. We'll definitely be buying Puert Peñasco t-shirts so we can wear them around La Paz and get some serious "street cred" for sailing all the way to the top of the Sea.
Not sure what/where Puerto Libertad is. If that's the Fonatur marina, there is one long end-tie that's open at the moment, although it was occupied for the last 18 months.
kinda off topic but @sryoder there is a pot luck by Chari and a great Bird Island trip for charity with Mark this weekend I believe ... could meet some great people .. just throwing it out there
kinda off topic but @sryoder there is a pot luck by Chari and a great Bird Island trip for charity with Mark this weekend I believe ... could meet some great people .. just throwing it out there
Interested in both events. Chari? Mark? Tell us what we need to know.
-Steve
Bring a dish to share, a chair and your drinks and come on over. Mark and Barb are already coming. I'm sure they wouldn't mind picking you up. 6ish. Then we take the leftovers on the boat for lunch the next day. It's become a tradition.....
sryoder -
your posts sound like you'll fit right in with these folks - Ladyjeeper and Seadweller with all the family and friends that come along are top-shelf real folks.
wish we were coming down like planned way before Teri broke her ankle. good news is that she's healing well and should be off disability soon and back to work.....
enjoy!!
Very cool stuff there Sr. Yoder ! Are you one of the Pa. Yoders? I agree about the busses, hard to tell where they go! Yes the taxi's will bump you up the pay scale if you let them but around town 20MP no problem. FYI you can rent a car for 560 pesos for 24 hours if you get the urge to explore around. Rental place is just down Benito Juarez from your location. You would enjoy a trip to the Pinacate for sure. I'm a permanent resident here so give me a hoot si nesecitas algo.
@ sryoder -- I'm really impressed by the pictures you have on your blog of the tide changes! Would you mind if I "steal" them to e-mail to my friends back home? I've tried to take pictures of the tide extremes, but they are from shore and you can just see "water close" / "water far" -- but without anything else in the picture, you can't really judge the distances.
I hope you don't mind, but I sent a link to your blog to a relative who used to do a lot of sailing -- until they lost their boat to Katrina.
$2.00 per ride around Penasco for one passenger is what I pay. However if you are going from the Malecon to the Wrecked at the Reef with 4 people it would be a lot more.
@ sryoder -- I'm really impressed by the pictures you have on your blog of the tide changes! Would you mind if I "steal" them to e-mail to my friends back home? I've tried to take pictures of the tide extremes, but they are from shore and you can just see "water close" / "water far" -- but without anything else in the picture, you can't really judge the distances.
I hope you don't mind, but I sent a link to your blog to a relative who used to do a lot of sailing -- until they lost their boat to Katrina.
Kea,
Feel free to e-mail the photos. Or you could just send them a blog link. Either way.
I certainly don't mind you send a link to my blog to your relatives. That's how I get new readers. So sorry to hear about the loss of their boat. Once upon a time we thought that a smart thing to do would be to buy a boat in the Gulf states and then start our adventure from there. Then along came Katrina and we quickly changed our minds.
Thanks for the use of the photos! Katrina really did a number on Mississippi & New Orleans. We travel to the Mississippi coast quite a bit, and there are still (almost 7 years later) areas where you can see the damage.
You just don't hear as much about hurricane damage on the Pacific side. Maybe that's just because I live in TX and so I always hear about what happens in the Gulf of Mexico.
I finally found you!! It was so great meeting you and Lulu and going to lunch and hanging out on the beach with Barb and Mark. I'm so jealous of your adventure and am looking forward to reading your blog. You make me really miss the great Pacific Northwest though! Still can't believe that we were born in the same town, LOL:) Good luck on the rest of your journey....hope to talk to both of you again sometime!!!
