A breezy kayak beach con cabana goes a long way toward convincing a gringo that he may be in the right place after all. So does seeing at least one small part of the larger scheme (Friday ETFO) work out as planned. I got into a few schools of Machaca, which are members of the herring family that includes shad and tarpon. Apparently they get as big as really large shad. Most of mine were more like small shad, but I seemed to be very easy to please. Catching anything at all in that wierd setting of volcanoes and gale winds was a treat.
Guapote were reputed to be in the area, but none actually appeared anywhere including the hotel menu. The few rocky spots of proper habitat were really, really hammered by waves and wind, all day long. Picture four-foot spilling rollers smashing and reflecting back off a cliff, with accompanying wind that could knock you out with a slipped paddle. Not even a 5:30 start kept me out of conditions at the very limit of my kayaking ability -- the wind howled all night. I know this isn´t exactly wise when boating solo, but I´ll be damned if I was going to stay on the beach. The first day I did a session of surfing (sans expensive rods and equipment aboard) and it seemed to help build confidence. In any event, I wasn´t going to die of hypothermia in that bathwater. Worst case is just to float back to Granada pushed by trade winds, real hungry and sunburnt after three days of drinking lake water.
I´m pretty pleased at myself for getting down to that spot. Being .5 km off the bus route, it was 100% turista-free (excepting yours truly) and quite cheap. I got a lot of Spanish practice and paddled and ate myself into pleasant cerveza stupors. Next move is attempt #2 to get onto a ten-hour ferry ride that promises to be uncomfortable in the extreme. Let´s hope I make it! Otherwise I may even try a route through Costa Rica, we shall see. I´m getting used to the heat and having some fun finally, but I´m still pretty eager to see some tarpon and bass.
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