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Dinghy Thefts at South End of Town

Based on recent reports we’ve received from cruisers, there have been a couple of brazen dinghy/outboard thefts and attempted thefts at the south end of Mazatlan, meaning the Old Harbor and Stone Island. This is at the opposite end of town and miles away from El Cid Marina and Marina Mazatlan.

Dinghy and outboard thefts have been reported in the Old Mazatlan Harbor and Stone Island anchorage.

Ka’sala
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The first report came from John Gatton of the San Francisco-based Hans Christian 33 Nakia. He and his partner Linda Hill were anchored near Stone Island in early November and had their dinghy hoisted out of the water on a halyard. Thieves drove their panga right beneath the dinghy, then cut the lines holding it up. They got away with the 12-ft inflatable and outboard motor.

More recently, Max Shaw and Elizaberth Brown-Shaw of the Halifax, Nova Scotia-based Stevens 47 Fluenta reported they were at anchor in the old Mazatlan Harbor near Club Nautico when "someone tried to steal our outboard while it was mounted to our pushpit. They loosened off one of the screws, but the other was locked to the mount, so they were unsuccessful. Our neighbor was less lucky, as thieves stole one outboard from the boat, and tried to cut a second one loose. Fortunately, the second one was attached with metal cord and they didn’t get it." 

We’re not positive, but it’s our understanding that the second boat was Robert and Nancy Novak’s Sausalito-based Oyster 485 Shindig.

We want to emphasize that these incidents are extremely uncharacteristic of Mexico. Indeed, the U.S. Department of State has just revised their travel warnings for Mexico, and virtually all cruisers destinations along the Pacific Coast get a clean bill of health. The only exceptions are certain areas of Acapulco and Mazatlan late at night — and again, only certain areas, and well after dark.

Indeed, the cruising life in Mexico has been very, very good. Well, it was warmer and more humid on the Riviera Nayarit in November than in years past, but that’s Mother Nature’s deal, and it’s been much nicer the last few weeks. But the vibe in Mexico seems great, with the inauguration on December 6 of a new president, followed shortly by an agreement by the leaders of the three leading political parties about the country’s needs. Sort of not like the Democrats and Republicans. Among the priorites: pensions for people over 65, health insurance for single mothers, two new national television networks to compete with the current duopoly, and reducing the power of the feared and corrupt Pemex and teachers’ unions. There was no mention made of continuing outgoing President Calderon’s war on narco traffickers. The unspoken policy seems to be, ‘If Americans want drugs, they’re going to get them, we just don’t want innocent Mexicans killed in the process.’ 

People back in the States still ask us if we feel safe in Mexico. After rolling our eyes a few times, we tell them, yes, we do feel safe. Indeed, we feel a lot safer in Mexico than we do in many places in California. As we spend three months a year in Mexico and three months a year in the Caribbean, we can also tell you that we feel safer in Mexico than we do in the Caribbean. If that changes, we’ll let you know.

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Fort Baker Boat Shed & Marina, situation inside Horseshoe Cove at the entrance to San Francisco Bay.
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