Kayaking and San Francisco Playa

We woke up Tuesday morning to a gloriously calm day on the bahia in front of the condo.  Friends down the street invited us to go kayaking with them and it was delightful.  They each had pedal kayaks and we had the paddles only.

There was hardly a ripple in the bay at sunrise.

Since I couldn't bring my camera (or I'd be sure to fall in), I copied a picture of the boat from the Internet.  We are thinking of buying a kayak and really enjoyed seeing all the different kinds that the Andersons had. 

This was the kind of boat we were in.  It is a sit on top kayak which is easy
to get in and out of, very fast on the water but it was a little heavy for
us to get in and out of the water.  They had kayaks with pedals which
we liked a lot but that makes a kayak even heavier. I think inflatable
may be the way we go.

Afterwards, we met at Palapa Griega for lunch.  Not a great
picture but that is Lynne and Dave Anderson with us.

 So, you may be bored to death with my beach pictures by now, but here are some more to savor:

One of our favorite things to do is to grab our books
a bottle of wine and a few snacks and go to the beach for
sunset.  This is at San Francisco Playa.

And what makes us most happy is watching Boo cavort
in the waves.

Jim and Boo playing and having a conversation.

A very happy couple we just met from Ohio, living the dream!

The gulls, too, enjoy a good sunset.  They all face the sun.

My $2 umbrella-I haven't figured out what to attach it to yet.  But it is pretty, you have to admit.

Nary a soul, once again.  I think we saw about 6 people
total tonight.

Thar she goes!

The pelicans are still busy fishing.  They skim a few inches
above the water and then fly up and do a nose dive to catch
their prey.

Boo is cold and ready to hit the road.

My beautiful husband even looks more so at dusk!

Lights are coming on "downtown".  Time to go

San Carlos Wildlife

Dolphin racing our boat

Twin dolphin power

Pelicans descending on leftovers

Adult (left- pinkish throat) and baby pelican

Pelicans are everywhere!

Pelicans and gulls

Osprey on Christmas Island cactus

Snowy egret

Great Blue Heron

Boobies

Check out those blue feet on the ones at the bottom left!

Cochorit Playa

It was a rare cloudy day for Gail and Harley's last day so we decided to drive over to Cochorit Playa which is just beyond Empalme.  Cochorit is known for its shell collecting.  We had a good idea of what we might find going through Empalme, as the streets were lined with little shacks selling all kinds of shellfish-we think mostly clams.

Cochorit looks like it used to be a beautiful place.  The beach itself is sandy, strewn with shells and reaches for miles.  The businesses along the beach are now all ruins, a result of the downturn in the economy and tourism.  If Boo hadn't had such a good time running in and out of the ocean, if the shells weren't lovely, and if the walk wasn't pretty delightful, it would have been very depressing.

There was a loon out there teasing Boo by bopping in and
out of the water.  Boo was sure he was going to catch him!

A nice walk while collecting shells among the ruins

The ruins of a once glorious beach town

The shell collection

The heart rock collection

Spanish Class Retreat

Saturday began with a trip into the El Corral Car Wash--the Honda has sand everywhere from all our beach outings.  This is a funny little place where a sweet little lady named Zulma washes your car by hand.  We thought the sign and the concept of the place was pretty funny, though we did not partake of the ribs.

"El Corral De Mi Casa"

"Car Wash and BBQ Ribs"

That evening we joined a caravan of 15 cars to head out into the countryside east of Guaymas to attend a picnic for the Spanish class members.  We drove for about a half hour through an agricultural area, making many, many turns until we came across this beautiful orange orchard which seemed to extend for miles.  It was the beginning of the land that one of Arnold's Mexican student's families owned.  Arnold is Jim's Spanish teacher.

Acres of orange trees

Entering through a pathway of beautiful bougainvillea trees

The Hacienda

One of many little hideaways on the property

The back of the hacienda had many cages containing beautiful
roosters and chickens, ….

…an adorable dog family….

…. turkeys…..

….doves and many other variety of creatures like peacocks
and rabbits and who knows what else.

Arnold and Jim cooking carne asada

Arnold's kids and Jorge

3 countries mix in the back yard

Some of the last to leave

When we got to our car, the battery was dead.  Luckily,
there were some hangers on-Debbie and Gary Wild,  Keith
and Donna and John-who helped us out with a jump start.
We think that Zulma must have hit the overhead light
switch when she was cleaning the car this morning.

Kite Boarding

La Salsa Beach Bar is the place to go to enjoy happy hour and watch the kite boarders on a windy day.

This is where the kite boarders hang out,
appropriately called The Hang Out.

  

This girl was just a beginner and had a terrible time getting
up on her board.  She would get on the board over on the right
side of the picture and then float the whole way down the beach
and have to walk the kite back.  I asked how old she was because
I was wondering if I should give it a try sometime.  She said
she was 32 and, once she found out my age, said, I wouldn't try it,
if I were you.  I'm going to take her advice.

Exhausted and heading home

The kites are all different and just beautiful.

This is 52 year old Donald Gray who is well known for jumping.
Boarders get up many, many feet on a good day, much like doing
snowboarding tricks but on the ocean instead of on snow.

Lorena Robles entertained us while we watched the kite boarders.

Staying for the sunset which was just glorious, as usual.

Boo was much more into the sea gulls and the other dogs
hanging out on the beach!

Words can't do justice.