San Pancho

We finally made it to San Pancho on the pacific coast a couple hours north of Puerta Vallarta. It is quite beautiful here and it has been fun hanging out with the family. Last year, we were here for Christmas as well. It is fun to return by way of car; it just doesn't feel as far away when you drive there. The beaches are beautiful and my family has a great place to stay. We are parked on the street next to the house so, we get all of the amenities but still sleep in the truck.

The other night we were sitting out on one of the patios, the living room is outside, and I noticed something slithering along the top of the wall. It was orangish and moving very slowly. Yes, it definitely was a snake. We all jumped up to get a better look. It slithered slowly up the tree that was next to the house. It was quite beautiful but a little disconcerting for those sleeping there. We concluded it to be some kind of boa and it was harmless as we later found out from one of the people who lives in San Pancho. Not to worry.

I also was able to go fishing with my parents with a local fisherman, Pondo. He takes my dad out every year and he is a great fisherman and guide. We had an amazing day out. The sea life we were able to see was incredible. It rivaled a National Geographic episode. The high lights were trolling through the swells amongst a group of about 60 or more dolphins. Colleen and I were on the front of the boat watching as the dolphins gracefully swam a few feet from us. Many times they would swim up and look at us and then dive down again. It was amazing.
Another sighting was of a humpback whale. It sort of snuck up on us as we were fishing. The motor was turned off and we were all looking the other way as we heard the whale surface and blow. As if that was not incredible enough, it surfaced again maybe 60 feet from the boat and dove down showing off its humongous tail. Wow!

The most exciting however was the pod of pilot whales we happened upon. We were right in the midst of them and soon they began to follow us. They are about 20 feet long and look kind of like an over sized dolphin with a similar dorsal fin. There were about a dozen of them maybe 10 feet from the boat and one even went under the boat. The best part was hearing them sing and talk to each other as they swam under us. We were in awe! Collen and I kept whispering, "Oh my God" as they got closer and closer. What a terrific day.

We are preparing for the New Year today and hope all is well back home. It is hard to believe that it is the beginning of 2009 tomorrow. How time passes by so quickly. Ozzie and I are going to head inland next and maybe try to find a nice town to hang out in for a while. We want to find something to do. We will see where we end up.
Best wishes for a Happy New Year!
Lyndi

Here are a few more pictures from the Baja.