SUPer

After our walk on the beach this morning we passed by the Vallarta Yacht Club and noticed a bit of commotion. We went in to investigate and next thing I knew Mike was signed up for the Crocodile Classic SUP Races.

It's named the Crocodile Classic after the crocs that live in the estuary where the races are held - also our current home: Paradise Village Marina. I was surprised by how many people jumped into the water knowing what's lurking in the mangroves. Luckily everyone survived and we had a great day. Best of all, Mike placed third in the sprints - right after two guys from Mexico's national SUP team!

An un-traditional Day

Since it's just plain too hot to bake anything onboard we decided to have a decidedly un-traditional Thanksgiving. Not to mention I had no clue where to buy a whole turkey.

We headed to the beach at Punta de Mita with the SUP. On the way we stopped off at our favorite taco place in La Cruz to have our "Thanksgiving Dinner". Total cost: 12 bucks!

This marks two years in a row that we did not have a turkey. Last year was spent moving aboard Camille. To be honest I don't miss the piles of dishes. Though the leftover sure would be nice to have today.

California

After spending the entire month of October in California we are finally on our way back to Camille in Mexico.  We made the trip up to renew our captain's licenses and while waiting for Mike to be able to take his sailing endorsement test we took a bit of a tour of California. Even though I lived in California on and off for over 15 years there is always something new to see. What an amazingly diverse state.

There were a ton of hoops to jump and endless paperwork to complete but I'm proud to announce that both of our captain's licenses have been upgraded to 100 ton near coastal masters (from 50 tons)! So, who's coming out for a sail with us!?

Update November 1: We are back on the boat and I just added October's budget our expenses page. It is not cheap to travel California during record gas prices!

Mike after SUP surfing some "epic" waves in San Diego.

Cholla Teddy Bear Cactus in the Anza Borrego Desert. Don't they look cuddly?

Joshua Tree in National Park of the same name. See our photo album for our version of the U2 album cover. :-)

Camp fire under a starry sky in Kings Canyon National Park

Mike on a Sequoia Tree in Sequoia National Park (yes, that is a life-size Mike)

Our rented "camper" van (just add air mattress and down comforter) in Agua Caliente Hot Springs

Bee hive and Sequoia tree

Yosemite's Half Dome at sunset

Mono Lake

Buckeye Hot Springs

Wild Animal Park (now called San Diego Zoo's Safari Park). Thanks for a fun day Sandy!

Riding bikes in Venice Beach.

Tons more photos of our trip to California...

Punta de Mita

Story of our trip to Punta de Mita in search of tacos and surfboard in photos.
Click play above.

Sayulita

Yesterday we took a trip over to Sayulita - a quintessential surf-town. The waves were virtually non-existent so we just walked around, had some lunch and a coconut.

But it hasn't been all fun and games around here. Most days Mike has been working on the boat and I've been busy creating websites - most notably the website for my dad's new TV show Travel Secrets Mexico.

Vendors selling Huichol jewelry 

More photos of Sayulita here

We are looking for a bigger boat, so Camille is for sale. If you know of anyone looking for a boat please pass on this link.