Self-Guided Jungle Tour



Heading up the Estuary

Pelicans Perched in the Tree Tops

The Pretty Estuary

We spent three nights anchored in Bahia Tenacatita and enjoyed meeting other boaters that were anchored in the bay and had fun participating in some of the organized activities like beach bocce ball.  Java thought the balls rolling around in the sand were for her benefit so we kept her occupied by throwing her Frisbee along the beach.  We dipped in the ocean from time to time to cool off , taking Java with us so she could ride the surf, so cute!  Java also went with us on our dinghy ride through the lush mangrove lined estuary.  We saw brightly colored little red crabs and lots of birds, especially pelicans, herons, and egrets.  As we continued up the estuary, the channel became quite narrow with trees and brush squeezing the sides of our dinghy and branches closing in overhead.  We had to stop the dinghy several times and raise the outdrive to clear away some limbs in the water, a real life adventure like in the movies!  The channel finally opened up at the end of the two-mile estuary where we discovered a picturesque landing for dinghies.  A trail that once led from the landing to the ocean beach nearby is now closed due to an on-going local land dispute.  As a result, access from the estuary is no longer permitted and the area is now fenced.  That being the case, we turned around and headed back through the jungle, Leonard had fun practicing some of those speedy panga maneuvers on the way back.  Later that day we visited a couple aboard their sailboat who had invited us over for drinks and snacks.  Robert and Virginia are about our age so we ended up talking about the hippie days.  I must admit that Leonard and I were just pretend hippies but these guys were the genuine article.  They had lived on “The Farm” in Tennessee, a well-known community farm that still exists today, growing crops to benefit the common ownership as well as charitable organizations world wide.  Interestingly, Robert came to the conclusion that trying to make everything equal for everybody just doesn’t work and has long since moved on with his own business ventures.  We are always pleasantly surprised by the fascinating and interesting people we get to meet while boating!



The Estuary Starts to Narrow!







Enjoying the Adventure

Picturesque Dinghy Landing