wildwahinepaddler

I love turtles!

Well, it took us a crazy 24 hours to get back to Maui from Cancun.  A wild storm blew in the day we were leaving and just as we got on the road to the airport, the storm got increasingly worse!  It rained so hard that it was difficult to see on the highway and then by the time we got to the airport, it started to thunder and lightning!  I had never experienced a storm that bad before and it was scary.  Our flight was delayed almost three hours due to the lightning striking the ground and making it impossible for the jet to be fueled!  We finally got on board and the first thirty or so miles were rocky.  It was a stressful end to a really wonderful vacation in Mexico!  My first day back on my board ended up being perfect though.  Nice conditions prevailed and I paddled down to the boat ramp to hopefully see some turtles.  Just as I was passing Kam III, I spotted my first turtle on the surface.  I paddled over to it and it looked so odd.  It seemed like there was something wrong with its shell….. so I got closer to get a better look.  To my complete surprise, another turtle was actually on the other turtle’s back!  Then it hit me, they were mating!  I was sorry to intrude on their private moment but I stayed there and watched them (don’t judge!).  I have seen turtles mate before but never have I seen one actually under the water…..ON the other turtles shell!  What a surprise for my first day back on the water after our trip to Mexico!  After a while, they separated and for a few minutes I was sitting between them.  Then I paddled on to the boat ramp and the rest of the turtles didn’t disappoint.  Ten turtles surfaced while I was there!  That was a total of twelve for the day!  The conditions stayed so nice and it was great paddling back.  I was hoping my swim would be nice too and it was!  The water is so warm and clear and there were lots of fish darting around the reef.  What a nice day to come back to!  I hope tomorrow is just as nice…..stay tuned…..

Last cenote adventure in Riviera Maya

This morning the sky towards Tulum looked dark and threatening…..and we almost turned around, but thankfully we kept driving!  It was our last day here and I hoped for one more adventure.  A couple of miles past Tulum we found two cenotes right across the highway from each other, called Cristal and Escondido.  Both cenotes are connected by a series of underground caves and apparently a favorite for scuba divers.  We swam in both cenotes and I snorkeled too.  In Cenote Cristal, a baby turtle zipped by my head and then swam down to the bottom of the cenote!  It was so cute.  Cenote Escondido is much deeper and has more underground caves…..a few so dark, it was spooky!  The jungle path to Escondido was longer than I expected and full of pesky mosquitoes.  I got quite a few bites and now I am itching!  The cenote was worth it though.  After we swam in the cenotes, we headed to the beach in Tulum.  It was so beautiful!  I can’t get over how turquoise the sea is and how white the sand is……just magical.  We were having such a nice time swimming in the sea and enjoying the beach when the clouds started to move in and start threatening to rain!  Before we knew it, the rain started to come down so we ran to the car!  I’m so glad we got another great day before our travel day!  Tulum is an amazing place and I look forward to spending more time there on our next trip.  Tomorrow is a travel day to Los Angeles and then Sunday it is back to Maui and paddling!!!!!!!  I really have missed my paddling!  Adios!

Gran Cenote

Gran Cenote in Tulum is an amazing place!  A genuine natural wonder.  We swam and snorkeled in underground caves amongst big stalagtites and fish!  It was amazing.  There were turtles there too.  One of them was sunning itself on a rock!  We couldn’t stay long because the mosquitoes were relentless so we headed to the beach in Tulum.  The beaches in Tulum are so beautiful and that turquoise sea is amazing!  I went for a walk and then swam in the sea.  It was so neat!  I love this beach.  While I was swimming I noticed a big sea bird flying up above and it was turquoise……then I realized that it was the sea reflecting on the underside of the bird!  The town of Tulum is a pretty neat place too.  Only one more full day for adventures before we leave for Los Angeles.  I can’t believe that our three weeks is almost over.  Stay tuned for one more day of Riviera Maya!

Yal-Ku Lagoon

Yesterday was stormy so we didn’t venture out.  This morning the sky looked brighter and the sun was shining, but about an hour after I got up, it started pouring rain again!  It rained off and on for the next two hours, and then it finally stopped, so we took off for another adventure.  Since the sea was still choppy from the storm, we went to a natural lagoon in Akumal.  The lagoon was calm since it is protected but the storm surge had the visibility compromised.  Even so, visibility in parts of the lagoon were still good enough and I saw lots of fish!  It was neat snorkeling and looking at the big boulders and reef too.  The water was a comfortable temperature and the mostly overcast skies made the air temperature comfortable too.  The lagoon and park are beautiful with nice landscaping and statues all around the park.  I was snorkeling for the second time, when I came across an unusual sea creature.  It looked like some kind of jelly fish, a pale pink color and about six or so inches across.  I stuck around to look at it, but I kept my distance since I had no way of knowing if it was a stinging jelly fish.  When I came in from swimming, one of the park staff was warning people to come out of the water because there was a  “jelly fish” that had a serious sting and could be deadly,  in the lagoon!  Oh yeah, that is what I saw alright!  I’m glad I kept my distance!  We spent two hours at the lagoon and then found a restaurante in Akumal called “Cuevo del Pescador” and I had a fresh fish and shrimp kebob, cole slaw, and veggies for dinner.  It was really good!  I want to go to the lagoon some other time when it isn’t stormy in the sea and the visibility is perfect.  I think it could be so much better under better conditions.  It was beautiful though!  Hopefully the weather will continue to improve and we can go on another adventure tomorrow.  Stay tuned…..

Amazing place!

Today we spent the day at “Xel-Ha” ……. the world’s largest natural aquarium here in the Yucatan.  It was amazing!  A huge bay for swimming and snorkeling with tons of fish, a river of fresh water that leads to the bay, and many natural cenotes for swimming and snorkeling in!  We hiked through the jungle and climbed hills and swam along the way for six hours….and my legs are feeling it.  The beach along this coast is rough and wild…..and there was NO swimming there!  It sure was beautiful though.  The bay is protected and nice and calm…..what a contrast!  The park had zip lines and bicycle zip lines, rope walks, river tubing, cycling, and a ton of other activities, including an amazing kids playground.  What a nature wonderland!  I loved this place!  We were having such a good time that we almost missed the dinner buffet that was included in the entrance fee.  We barely made it into the restaurante before they stopped seating people!  It was a nice buffet too.  On the way out, we passed the dolphin pools and I was struck with how sad they looked living in captivity.  For the many times I have frolicked with wild dolphins out on the ocean on Maui…..there was an overwhelming lack of joy in those dolphins.  How sad.  Anyway, on a positive note,  the park took in two manatees that were probably going to die in the wild and they are caring for them.  Apparently, the manatees are nearly extinct.  How sad.  It is a beautiful place though, and we thoroughly enjoyed all the nature that abounded there.  I can’t wait to go back on another visit to the Yucatan.  Stay tuned for more adventures!

Akumal Bay

This is the view from my beach chair……Well, it finally happened today….. I swam with about a dozen turtles!!!  I was snorkeling in Akumal Bay just enjoying the fish, when I ventured out farther than last time there and suddenly there was a turtle swimming by me!  I was so excited, but it swam away fast.  Before I knew it, there were three more turtles swimming by me so I hung around.  They were munching on the sea grass and seaweed that was on the sea floor.  One of the smaller ones was digging into the sand to get the sea grass it wanted!  Then a few more turtles appeared, two large turtles and two smaller ones.  I was surrounded by turtles!  The larger turtles were very friendly, swimming right up by me so close that I just had to give them a rub on their shells!  I know it’s illegal, but what are you to do when they come so close?  Oh well, I would just deny it!  Anyway, it was amazing swimming with all the turtles and I just couldn’t bring myself to come in!  There is a great reef out there too with lots of fish.  One of the larger turtles had two weird looking fish attached to its shell so I watched for a while and realized that they were cleaning it’s shell.  They somehow attached themselves on their backs to the turtle’s shell and when the turtle stopped moving for a minute, they quickly turned over and started munching!  They were long fish with a big yellow stripe.  Now Akumal Bay is officially my favorite place now that I know where the turtles are hanging out!  Stay tuned for more adventures!

Paddling!!!!!

Yes!  It happened this morning……after some rain during the night, the morning lake was calm and glassy.  I couldn’t wait to get out on the lake!  The stand up board I used was lighter than my board so it wasn’t as stable, but I didn’t care.  I paddled for an hour, just me and the lake, and half way through….the wind started to come up and it was challenging.  I was able to stay up and it was a great workout!  Lake Bacalar is amazing!  I saw jumping fish and had water birds sitting in the water by me, much different from the turtles I see daily on Maui!  When I came in, I went for a nice swim/snorkel and saw little lake fish and interesting huge rocks with a spongy surface.  I will have to do some research and find out more about what that spongy stuff is.  Then we went for a nice breakfast and then swam some more!  We had to pack up to be out by noon and prepare for a long drive back to Playa del Carmen.  It was a great little side trip and I’m so glad we did it!  I love Lake Bacalar and we will definitely go there again on another trip to Mexico.  We still have eight days left for more adventures….so stay tuned!

Tranquil retreat

This is a wonderful place to be….right on beautiful Laguna Bacalar!  No television and no phones in the rooms and a nice private lanai to hang out on.  After swimming in the lake, the jacuzzi is a welcome treat!  The jacuzzi sits right on the lake so if you want to go for a swim in the lake, there is a ladder down to the water.  We will definitely come back to this place!!!

Big cenote!

Yesterdays adventure included a trip to a very large cenote called Cenote Azul.  The entrance to it is through an interesting multi level restaurante……but swimming in the cenote was free.  We were told that the cenote is a cone shape, getting deeper towards the center and dropping down some 250 feet!  The darker water is a good indication of how deep the water is.  The water was warm and there were fish in it as well!  After a swim there, we headed into the town of Chetumal which is the capital of Quintana Roo.  Down at the Bahia de Chetumal, the water is very shallow until out quite far so we didn’t go swimming.  The town is bustling with activity and there is a long street with a ton of shopping called “Avenida de Heroes”.  After the calm and serenity of Lake Bacalar, the town of Chetumal seemed chaotic!  After a while, I was happy to get out of the hustle and bustle of the town and back to the tranquility of Bacalar! I was glad to get back into the lake for a swim and a soak in the jacuzzi.  Rancho Encantado is a wonderful place and it will be hard to leave it tomorrow but I know we will be back!  Hopefully the lake will be calm tomorrow morning so I can paddle!!!  I have a feeling I will be paddling tomorrow…..finally!

Lake Bacalar

Okay, so the boat trip was a huge success!  We had a great captain who took us around the lake for several hours to swim, snorkel and sight see.  We visited a cenote that dropped off to 100 feet!  It was a bit spooky to know that the dark water was really, really deep…..no wonder they call it “Cenote Negro”.  The shallow water right next to it is only about 3 feet and there is a dramatic cliff drop off……..I stayed at the edge with the fish!  We got to stop at several spots to swim and just enjoy the lake.  At the end of the trip, we stopped at a place called “Canales de los Piratas”…… where in days of old, the pirates used this canal to enter the lake and shore.  The people apparently built-in some jagged rocks to try to snare them before they got to the land!  The lake has just a few types of fish that live in the mix of fresh and salt water.  While snorkeling, I saw a lot of the fish.  Some of them hide in the mangroves.  Before we headed back, we got to enjoy some special mud there that we slopped on ourselves for a “mud bath” and then rinsed off in the turquoise water!  It was a great day and then we finished the day off with a great massage and soak in the jacuzzi…..and dinner at the restaurant on the lake shore.  This place is just amazing!   Tomorrow will be another adventure!  Stay tuned!