Days of wet weather opens up the laguna in Arroyo Seco

ARROYO SECO, Jalisco, Mexico - We heard the excitement in the village a day ago as several pickups roared out of town towards the lagoon that borders the south end of Playa Grande.

People in the trucks were shouting that la laguna was open and spilling water out into the ocean and wanted us to come and see.

In years past, we've seen the lagoon open to the north and while it has been interesting, this just didn't seem to merit roaring down the dirt road to get there in a big hurry.

We were wrong.

The lagoon opened up to the south this time, and blew through a 10-foot high sand berm to do so. There must have been an incredible amount of water from the lagoon in back to push that much sand out of the way to open it up. And, of course, there might have been some human assistance.

Either way, it was impressive seeing the water pouring out.


Water from the lagoon rushing to sea

What had people in the village sooooooo excited was the fishing at the mouth of the lagoon. It was (and still is as I write this) nothing short of fabulous. And the fish were going in both directions, some getting caught but most swimming to safety.

While standing on the bank, we saw people catching three-foot long fish, and we could also see large fishing swimming upstream, perhaps to spawn.

Families with children were working with nets, dragging in big hauls. It was a fiesta grande for everyone.


Netting fish


Swirling waters, full of fish

Going fishing with the Bear out on Seneca Lake

LODI POINT, Schuyler County, New York, USA - After my fishing triumph at Ballard Pond a couple of weeks ago, (when I caught a 17 1/2 inch bass) I was more than receptive when John Bills (AKA the Bear) suggested that we do some Seneca Lake fishing.

And so one morning last week at 5:30 a.m. Yes, 5:30 a.m., we set out from John's house in Hector with his daughter Jen's boyfriend Karl half-asleep in the truck and John's nice bass fishing boat in tow for a morning of chasing the elusive small mouth bass out on the lake.

The emphasis here is on elusive.

We launched at Lodi Point State Park, heading up the lake to some shallow areas that are supposed to be prime small mouth bass territory.

The emphasis here is on supposed to be.

Karl and I had been warned that summer isn't the best season on the lake. But we had a fine morning anyway on the water, with the only fish boated by John, and barely a nibble otherwise. The small mouth bass he did land was below the 12-inch New York State minimum and so we popped him back in the water so he can grow up to be legal.

We'll do another fishing trip with the Bear this summer, I think. But in the meantime, I think I am going to take my container of worms back up to the farm ponds in the hills for some sedentary fishing from the banks for the not-quite-as-elusive large mouth bass.

And it's quite likely I will take my gear to the ponds at 5:30 p.m, than 5:30 a.m.

Learning the language via the immersion process

EMILIANO ZAPATA, Jalisco, Mexico - It was during lunch Friday that I realized I am living with the poster child for why immersion in a language works so well, when compared to classroom learning.

The Admiral and I were discussing our earlier horseback ride around Ranch Cuixmala (more on that in another blog when I can sit down for a longer period of time to write about it) and I realized that as I was chatting in Spanish, she could understand nearly every word I said.

And earlier in the day, she had asked a question in Spanish of our horseback riding guide using a full sentence, her first since we moved here in December.

Madre mia!


Admiral at taco shoppe in Emiliano Zapata

I started my study of Spanish in the mid-1980s when I was lucky enough to land a spot with a team of five faculty going to Spain on a Fulbright. We had to give our lectures there entirely in Spanish, even though one month prior to leaving, none of us spoke a word of Spanish.

The question and answer sessions were pretty hilarious.

Since then, I have studied Spanish on and off (OK, mostly off) trying to memorize phrases, verbs and vocabulary, but it has only been in the last five months that I have been comfortable speaking Spanish.

The Admiral on the other hand had no prior experience with Spanish but clearly has a ear for it already. Next winter and spring the majority of our time will be spent in Arroyo Seco where Spanish rules completely.

Given the speed at which she is learning, maybe the Admiral will be able to translate for me.


Fishing spot in la laguna

In our travels back from the horseback riding expedition we drove a back road past El Tecuan where a huge, mostly freshwater lagoon borders the sand dunes. The birds and wildlife back there were incredible and we found a half-dozen interesting fishing holes that I hope to show to Scott Noble when he makes his next foray south. Sadly, that probably won't be until Christmas next year.

The fish were so close to shore it seemed as if you could almost walk out and just grab them - which I was quite tempted to try.

Then I remembered what two French amigos from Arroyo Seco had mentioned to me a few weeks ago about that laguna: There are crocodiles in the water there. Max and Julian know it's true because they ran into a couple of crocs while they were doing some snorkeling.

I think I'll stick to rod-and-reel fishing for now.


Croc in La Manzanilla

A day near the ocean in Tenacatita and La Manzanilla

LA MANZANILLA, Jalisco, Mexico - The day after your company leaves is always kind of sad. Who do you go play with? Where do you go? What do you do? What excuse do you have to drink beer with lunch and tequila at sundown?

And so somewhat adrift this morning, the Admiral and I decided that we would go out to our Tenacatita lot and I would cast my lot, quite literally, to try to catch some fish.


Hoping for a dorado - or anything

After the great Arroyo Seco fishing expedition of a few days ago with Scott Noble, Chon and Francisco, I had some hopes that I might at least get a few bites out around the rocks right in front of our property. I had learned (by watching my three amigos) how to get a good cast out far enough to entice a fish.

But the ocean at Tenacatita can be intense. And this morning it behaved like a teenager short on sleep: totally unpredictable.

One minute, total calm, the next, a 6-foot breaking wave would send me scrambling up the sand so I wouldn't get swept out by the undertow.

The whole enterprise only lasted about 40 minutes of casting and scrambling before my line parted, taking my next-to-the-last good ocean lure and ensuring a trip to the Zaragosa Marine store in Puerto Vallarta in a couple of weeks.


Almost the final cast

After fishing, we zipped back to La Manzanilla for brunch at Valentina's Restaurant on the beach where we shared a table with local bon vivants Jane Gorby, Debbie Wulze, and Willy (owner of Palapa Joe's). The beach was full of people enjoying one of the nicer Sundays we've had all season, though the water didn't look very appetizing, even from a distance.

Some 'red tide' was washing in at noon and by 5 p.m. when the Admiral and I took our constitutional along the beach, we saw one patch that was truly ugly and had the distinct aroma of decay. And whether it was the red tide or not, the beach for about a mile was littered with dead jellyfish for the first time since we arrived in December.


Red Tide in La Manzanilla

Jellyfish on the beach

The jellyfish and red tide didn't deter anyone from enjoying the afternoon, though. As the red tide moved from one 50-foot stretch of beach to another, the swimmers just moved accordingly.

With a little luck, the red tide will be cleared up by tomorrow morning when I think I might take a few casts off the La Manzanilla beach with my last heavy fishing lure, (a legacy left behind by Scott Noble). The Admiral and I are pondering whether to head out to Arroyo Seco for a full day of planning and drawing diagrams in the dirt to show where we want to place things around the property: A barbecue for fish, for example.

No rush on that, I suppose.