Ferry Ride from La Paz to Mazatlan

The Ferry Ride was the part of the trip that made me the most nervous.  We have been on a few ferries before - but this one is an 18 hour crossing - going across the Sea of Cortez / Gulf of California - about a 200 mile journey.  We were also loading 9 rigs onto the ship!  The morning of our departure in Tecolote, the wind really picked up and the waves were roaring.  We set out led by the green angels at 12:30 pm.  The ferry terminal was only about 20 minutes away and the drive was pretty - right along the coast.  All 9 of us were lined up in numerical order and we entered the terminal.  The guards checked our trailer vin numbers against our Temporary Import Permits and drug sniffing dogs went into some of the rigs.  We cleared the checkpoint and were then weighed and measured.  We found out that our rig fully loaded was 16,755 lbs!!  Quite a load.  Next, Stu went into a ticketing office to get his ticket and the rig paperwork -- driver passage was included in the ferry fee.  The kids and I went to a different office to get our room assignments.  

The rule was that drivers and pets stayed together and passengers and luggage went separately.  At around 3 pm, Stu took the Airstream, truck, dog and cats to the belly of the ship.  He had quite the adventure as the airstreams and semi trucks were parked about 6" from one another.  It was a tight fit to say the least!  Thankfully, the workers were willing to back the trailers into place for the drivers since they have to be able to pull off once we arrived. The cats stayed in the trailer overnight.  Stu and Buster headed onto the ship.

The kids and I walked to the ferry terminal and they had burgers while we waited to load.  At around four, we were cleared to board.  We had packed an overnight bag for the five of us and Buster's food, water, etc.  The employees had us leave the bag in a holding area.  When we boarded the ship, I asked where we could claim our bag -- they told me that we could pick it up the next morning.  I panicked a bit and was able to convey in Spanish that I really needed our bag because it contained medications and our dog's food.  They were kind and a security guard led me back down to the luggage hold so I could retrieve the bag.  When I went to re-board, they kind of freaked out about me being 6 months pregnant.  They made me write my name and phone number in a notebook and sign that they weren't liable if I had the baby on the boat.  I signed and was told to report to the reception area if I had any problems since there wasn't a doctor on board.  I assured them that the baby and I are both healthy and that there shouldn't be a problem.  They finally let me aboard - but first drove me and the bag into the ship and straight to an elevator where a man helped me with the bag until I was able to reconnect with Stu and the kids - quite nice service!  

Our caravan has four dogs and the ferry only had three designated "pet friendly" rooms.  We decided from the beginning that we could pair up with our friends with a small dog, GusGus.  Buster and Gus get along well.  Each room had four berths - two twins below and twin bunks above.  Our friends Peter and Cathy took Pradit in their room with the two dogs.   Lucy, Jude, Stuart and I were in a separate room on the next level up.

One tricky thing is that the dogs were not allowed to leave the room.  Stu took Buster on the deck for a potty break and was immediately yelled at - but we had little choice in the matter.  The crossing included two meals -- not exactly the best food.  Our friend said it was worse than Navy food from the 70's.  Beans, Rice and Mystery Meat for dinner -- and a pastry and coffee for breakfast.  

The kids LOVED the ferry rooms.  We had a small balcony and private bath.  It was nice to have hot showers after several days at the beach boondocking.  During down time, we took shifts spending time with the dogs.  Our other caravan friends had a big time singing karaoke until late in the evening.  Our friend, Paul, even won the competition!  The prize was a bowl of nachos.  We slept fitfully because of the large waves -- the rooms were freezing cold too - we each had a bottom sheet and thin blanket.  

Morning finally came and we sat around until about 9 am when the ferry arrived in Mazatlan.  The drivers headed to the rigs and the passengers waited.  Stu rolled off the ferry and was told to keep moving, so he turned right and kept getting waved on and on.  He was finally able to link up with the green angels who helped all 9 rigs back in formation.  The passengers waited until were were allowed to leave and then walked to the Airstreams.  At last, we were reunited, were able to check on the cats, and headed towards our campground.  It was a stressful 24 hours, but we made it to the mainland in one piece!  

It took about an hour to get thru the city of Mazatlan and north to our campground.  It is on a beautiful stretch of beach -- about a two minute walk from the campers.  The whole group loaded up for dinner on red taxi pickups with two benches in the bed and ate at a beachside restaurant called "Mr. Loronzos".  Half of the group walked about 20 minutes back to the campground and the other half took a different red truck taxi back to the campground.  A full day to be sure!