Feb 8, 2013, Old Harbor, Mazatlan
Photos on facebook

Yesterday we moored and settled in.  Today we went ashore to sign in with Club Nauticia.  From reading the cruising guides and conversations with other sailors, we had assumed that this whole anchorage was called Club Nauticia.  When we got ashore we discovered that that was very much not the case.  We landed the dingy at the small building that had been pointed out when we picked up the mooring to discover there was no one there.  Eventually we were directed up the street to another complex where a large sign on the wall declared that this was Club Nauticia.   We finally tracked down someone in charge, checked in and paid $35 for a weeks privileges,  included were dingy dock, bathroom with hot shower, wifi room, 24/7 security, barbecue and dance floor.  We were the only people here.

 One half of the complex is storage garages.  Almost all of them have a home cut in the door with a trailer hitch sticking out.  This part at least seem to be doing well.   The other half is the entertainment area, a large pavilion with a sunken dance floor in the middle and a build in bar on one side all covered in while tile.  Off to the other side is the barbecue area.  The pavilion is covered with a rusting tin roof held up by concrete pillars designed to look like palm trees.  It looks like it was built in the 60s and must have been very ritzy in it’s day.  You can imagine the rat pack hanging out after a day of sport fishing, eating and drinking and singing and dancing.  Alan and I are tempted to bring our ipod, buy some steaks and throw ourselves a dinner dance.   Today it is marred by crumbling concrete and rusty gates.  Bathroom doors are falling off of their hinges and wind blows through the one dirty shower.  But the plumbing works, the water is hot, at least in the women's and the people are nice.  Although the office manager is almost never around, there really is a watchman there 24/7 who lets us in and out on our numerous trips into town.

Turns out that our mooring is not part of the Club but belongs to another man at the office where we first landed.  Bill lived much of his life in San Diego and now owns a small building with a dock and a few moorings here and would love to take some business away from Club Nautica.  Trouble is, he only has the dock and a small office and bathroom, none of the faded grandeur of the Club.  He is also almost never there and although he promises to leave the gate unlocked, most of the time we cannot get from the dock to the street.  Nonetheless, Alan decides that it is worth paying for the mooring, given the soft muddy bottom and the frequent winds.  Even with two payments, it is still much cheaper here than at the new marinas.  And we are within walking distance of town.

Now that we are officially checked in, we decided to celebrate with a cold beer.  A short walk up the street brings us to a waterfront bar which looks like a good spot.   The beer comes with a saucer of salt and limes. There is a bar at one side where a man is making cerviche.  We order some to go with the beer and it is delicious, a huge mound of shrimp cooked in lime juice and covered with tomatoes, onions and cucumber, along with chips and hot sauce.  Of course with all that food we need more beer.  The bar seems to be full of crew from the harbor tour and sport fishing boats.   After a while a band shows up and serenades everyone with not-very-good but very loud music.  We sit and drink and eat and look at Rhapsody in the harbor and enjoy the good life.