Bucerias

Bucerias is on the Pacific Coast in the state of Nayarit north of Puerto Vallarta. It is located at the southern end of the Riviera Nayarita, 200 miles of coast stretching from San Blas in the north to Nuevo Vallarta south of Bucerías (link). We spent two weeks here in March.

The beach at Bucerias looking north to Cruz de Huanacaxtle

Founded in 1937, Bucerias was known as a place for diving and fishing (link). With a population of 17,000, it has cobblestone streets; brightly painted homes; a lively Saturday market; and shops, art galleries, restaurants and services to satisfy tourists and expatriates (expats) alike. We rented the downstairs of a duplex two blocks from the beach.

Courtyard of the house we rented

Cobblestone street to the beach

Bucerias has attracted expats from the U.S. and Canada.

Upscale house

Balcony garden of a modest house

The beach at Bucerias is part of 42 miles of beaches that encircle Bahía de Banderas (Bay of Flags). You can walk forever on the beach -- and maybe see one of the humpback whales that come to the bay in the winter to give birth.

Condo on the beach

Deserted house on the beach

Spend any time on a beach in Mexico and you will be approached by vendors, musicians, activity arrangers and others trying to separate you from your pesos. We were eating dinner in an open-air restaurant on the beach when these musicians showed up and serenaded Rande with Guantanamera ("woman from Guantánamo").

Musicians serenading Rande during dinner

Just up the road from Bucerias is La Cruz de Huanacaxtle, which is named after a cross made from (or carved into) a large Huanacaxtle tree (the name comes from the pre-Hispanic Nahuatl language) (link, link). La Cruz was a small, fishing village with one pier until the yacht harbor (Marina Riviera Nayarit de Cruz) was built in 2008; the resulting development has "modernized" the town (link, link).

 Commercial fishing pangas in Marina Riviera Nayarit

The marina has 340 slips ranging from 31-400 ft, a dry dock, the largest (150-ton) travel lift on Mexico's West Coast and is equipped to service superyachts (link). [This is the marina where Eric and Charlotte Kaufman outfitted their sailboat Rebel Heart before they left on a voyage across the Pacific Ocean with their two daughters (link).]

This superyacht was lifted out of the water for maintenance in dry dock

Commercial fishermen land their catch at the Mercado del Mar (fish market) in the harbor. On several mornings, we bought fresh dorado and yellowfin tuna for $160-180/kg MXN ($6-7/lb U.S.).

Mercado del Mar (fish market); fresh dorado (center) and tuna (left) on the table in the foreground

Pargo waiting to be weighed in

Dorado waiting to be weighed in

Like many Mexican towns, Bucerias has a weekly market, which takes place on Saturday in the Arroyo del Indio. The arroyo runs from the beach up into the hills to the east and the lower reaches are used like any other road in town. Early in the morning during the week, I would my mountain bike several miles up the arroyo. 

Beginning of the market where Highway 200 crosses the lower end of the arroyo

Rande buying fruit

Man selling parakeets

The arroyo has several side channels and the market extends up each of them. 

Housewares in one of the side channels of the arroyo

Huichol family selling weavings, yarn paintings and bead work (the woman is beading a small wooden horse)

Herbs (ortiga = nettle; toronjilo o meliza = lemon balm; herba del cancer = cancer herb)

Market restaurant

Bucerias means “place of divers,” however for the two weeks we were there, the bay was experiencing a red tide and there was little diving. I went snorkeling twice near Punta de Mita at the northern end of the bay. The visibility was less than 4 ft inside the bay and 10-12 ft north of Punta de Mita. Very disappointing.

North side of Punta de Mita

Fish camp north of Punta de Mita (fishermen live in the tent under the leftmost ramada)

Iguanas are common in Central and South America, but we were amazed at how well-adapted they are to urban environments. Several of them lived inside the walls surrounding the house and others came over the walls to feed on the landscaping and drink from the pool. Mexican spinytail iguanas (Ctenosaura pectinata) grow up to 4 ft long and are endemic to western Mexico. They are are diurnally active, social lizards that prefer rocky habitats with holes and crevices; they're good at climbing trees and swimming, and they're primarily herbivorous (link). This large male lived on a rock pile in the back yard. 

A 3-ft spinytail iguana in a head-bobbing display (males head-bob to show dominance and interest in females)

Green iguanas (Iguana iguana) grow to 5-6 ft long and range from southern Mexico to South America. They are diurnally active, herbivorous and live in trees (arboreal) often near water (link). This iguana ruled the block wall around the house; smaller individuals would move out of his way, but not until they were within about a body length.

A green iguana traversing the block wall around the house

A green iguana on the block wall

A green iguana behind the air conditioning unit

After a week of city life, we were ready for something more laid back. We took a day to drive around Bahía de Banderas past Los Arcos and Mismaloya and stopped at Boca de Tomatlan. We walked around the village writing down phone numbers on Se Renta (for rent) signs. We met the owner of a B&B who introduced us to the owner of a small posada (inn) who showed us around the inn. A couple days later we reserved a room at the inn.