Back To Mazatlan, then to Agua Milpa

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We left the lake and made it back in to Mazatlan just in time for the weekend. Billy Chapman had put the idea in our mind that we needed a video camera. He’d taken one on all his trips through the Amazon. Though our little tidbits of video from our digital camera are fun, we now agree. And then maybe we'll produce "EXTREME FISHING" DVDs...

Mazatlan had changed, night and day. Whereas during the week it's relaxed, the traffic picked up, the prices spiked (read: we were marks!) We went back to the same Hotel Rio, and it had changed as well.

We had heard that there was a whorehouse just down the street from the hotel, but during the week hadn't noticed it. Now that it was the weekend and the Mexicans were off work, our hotel because a brothel!

No kidding, this hotel was recommended by the Let's Go travel guide 2004. Starting that Friday evening we rolled into town we started to notice people going to hotel rooms without luggage. It only took a couple times to figure out what was up. Not cool!

That night we went down to the tourist district and to a beach front club. The cover was $5. We negotiated down to $2. Then they charged us $5. So we told them to give us the money back and that we were leaving. The cover became $0. That's Mexico.

The beach bar was funny. Mostly Mexicans in for the weekend – and few white folks – the latina girls loved dancing, especially to “Gasolina” by Daddy Yankee. $12 buckets of 8 beers.

On our final day in Mazatlan we had breakfast in the historic zocalo.

As we sat at the outside cafe, an American backpacker, Brooks, came walking by. We invited him to join us. He had hitched from Pennsylvania, and had been in the country for a month or so.

Since Barbara was leaving that afternoon for Baja, we invited Brooks to hop in and join the travels.

That night we drove to lake Agua Milpa. Some people say that it’s a great lake. It’s certainly pretty, but the fishing was no where as hot.

We drove all night, slept at the lake in the truck, and got up at dawn. There’s a paved road the whole way, and tourists come in from Tepic and Guadalajara. There is also heavy net-fishing ostensibly for tilapia, not bass.

We caught a few fish, had the restaurant cook them, and then went back to Tepic. Skip Tepic if you can, it’s huge and confusing.

We left Brooks at the crossroads between Guadalajara and Pueto Vallarta, and burned up the road for Puerta Vallarta. Vaya!