Banderas Bay, La Cruz, PV

One of the hardest parts about being an Expat is missing friends and family. So we are grateful for Zoom and the opportunity to see so many of you so often. Although we’ve been in Mexico nearly 10 years already—where have the years gone?!—We have yet to create the same kind of close-knit community we…

What has Due West and crew been up to this Spring? Never a dull moment aboard Due West that’s for sure. For starters (no pun intended), we had hoped to get out cruising for a couple of months. But best laid plans…the universe apparently had other plans for us this spring…  Santa delivered the heavy…

In mid-October, Kirk held down the fort at Casa Kines and aboard Due West while Heidi took a trip to visit her parents. She also saw one of her favorite cousins, Nan, before she and Erik moved to Germany for a year. We will miss them while they’re away, grateful for Zoom! Tikka did NOT…

Mexican Independence Day and the Charros parade If you missed our blog post earlier in the year about attending the International Charro Championships, you can read it here to learn more about Charros/Charras (Mexican Rodeo Cowboys and Cowgirls) and their importance in Mexican culture.  Charreada (similar to US or Canadian rodeos, but with so much…

We can’t believe that Tosh-Love has already been gone for over three months. He has left such a big hole in our hearts—and such a quiet home. Gratitudes to everyone who sent condolences and your favorite Tosh stories, our one-in-a-million boy touched so many hearts. Although Tikka has always been quiet as a mouse (practically…

With a huge hole in our hearts, we said goodbye to Tosh-Love on Saturday, June 1st. Sadly, his cranium bone cancer got the best of him. We lost the best first-mate ever. And we’re forever grateful for the 9 1/2 half SHORT years “Tashi Delek” graced our presence. If you knew him, you know his…

Marina Vallarta hosts the racing fleet during the MEXORC Sailboat Regatta held every other March in even years. Above, Due West (in her shade canvas at left) hangs out among the big boys. The local MEXORC race is preceded by a big International SDYC Puerto Vallarta Race, where sailboats race from San Diego nonstop to Puerto…

Visiting Vallarta seems to be on everyone’s radar this year and we’ve had more visitors this past winter than all the years we’ve been in Mexico combined! So much fun to at least 24 of you! Apologies if we missed getting a photo of you in our blog. Most people don’t come to Vallarta specifically to…

We hope this holiday season finds you happy and healthy, despite the chaos and sadness around the world. We continue our 30+ year meditation practice every day, sending peace, love, and healing energy around the globe, and to all of our friends and family. And we love our beach yoga tribe sending group energy to…

In the good news department—cuz we could all use some good news these days, right?!—we, along with Tosh & Tikka, and s/v Due West “marked ourselves safe” from last week’s Cat 4 Hurricane Lidia. This is our fourth hurricane experience, and enough is enough… but maybe that’s the price you pay to live in paradise?…

One of the things we love about being in Puerto Vallarta is how many friends and family happen to come here to soak up the sun on their vacations. And while they may not be coming specifically to see us, we love the opportunity to meet up with them, share a meal, go whale watching,…

What an amazing night we had last night! We got turned away from the beach where we had originally planned to watch the fireworks, (closed for a private party). A bit disappointed, we punted and blended in with a group of revelers who were headed into an adjacent hotel beach. With so many people, the…

Since we’ve been getting Due West spit-and-polished, we thought we might as well give her a new blog too! While we’ve really appreciated all that Sailblogs has had to offer over the years, it has been very cumbersome to use. So Heidi is hoping by having a new WordPress blog, it will cut her blogging…

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays to all of our family, friends, and readers near and far. We had hoped to slip our lines last week and sail a few days south to Barra de Navidad by Christmas. Since the town is named “Christmas” we’ve heard it’s a fun place to be. But apparently, Neptune has…

Happy December! We moved back aboard Due West on Thanksgiving day, and are grateful to be back home from our condo-sitting gig during hurricane season. Tosh and Tikka were super happy to be home as well, and got right back into the swing of boat life faster than we did! Although Kirk spent all of hurricane season…

One of the best things about being in Puerto Vallarta is it’s international airport, with easy flights to and from the US, so lots of friends and family have been able to visit us. And honestly friends and family are really the only things we miss about the US… Well, maybe Trader Joe’s too! Luckily…

Happy Summer! We continue to re-live our amazing Cuban adventures, and feel so lucky to have visited just before the US once again slammed the door hard on Cuba, claiming that they are instigating unrest in Venezuela and Nicaragua. But if you have visited this small Caribbean nation, you’d know that’s not very likely. If…