Autumn in Puerto Penasco, Mexico

As Dean mentioned in the previous post, we spent a quick weekend in Puerto Penasco (Rocky Point) Mexico this past weekend.  It was a fast trip since I was only off of work for two nights.  Fortunately it's only a four hour drive from our house.  Considering that, I'm wondering why we don't go there more often!  As we did last Spring, we stayed with our friend Margie, who owns a beach house there. 

Margie's house is in a gated community, Las Conchas (translated: "The Shells"), towards the east end of Rocky Point.  Most of the homes are very similar to hers, similar architecture and building materials, giving the developement a very tropical seaside feel.  The weather was delightful - mid-80's during the day, 60's during the night (cooler than Tucson at this time of year), and a constant breeze off of the Sea of Cortez.  On our trip to Penasco we carried Margie's newly repaired telescope.  She had taken it to a Tucson astronomy shop for repair on her trip south (Margie also lives in the Sedona, AZ area).  We were happy to pick it up and deliver it to her in Mexico.  Many of the houses in Las Conchas have a rooftop deck, as does Margie's.  While most people refer to it as a 'sun deck', at Margie's house it is an "astronomy deck"!  The city of Penasco is in view to the west, but the Milky Way is easily visible and the location gives a chance to see farther south than we can in Tucson.  Typically we spend most of our time out of doors there, whether it be on the upper porch, along the upper sunning area, or on the astronomy deck. 

 

Dean avoids spending too much time in the sun.  Like many people in Arizona, he's had his occasions of skin cancer - so he's cautious, wears sunscreen, and prefers the shade whenever possible.  However, this trip was an exception with a reason.  Since it was new Moon the tides were significantly more dramatic than at other times.  It was the perfect opportunity for him to do a series of pictures of the tide coming in!  Saturday morning he was out, bright and early, setting his camera up on the beach.  I joined him shortly thereafter.  I tend to spend more time in the sun than is advisable, and consider sunscreen anything more protective than baby oil.  While Dean manned the camera, I was able to wander about exploring tide pools and wading in the water.  I hadn't brought my swim suit along because I didn't think we'd be spending any time on the beach.  The next time I'll pack the swim suit, no matter what.  We spent six hours on the beach, and yes, we both ended up with sunburns!  Dean was doing fine until he took a break and went up to the house for some shade.  His error was forgetting to put sunscreen on his feet when he changed from his tennis shoes to his sandals.  Ouch.  I was burned, but not as bad as I have been in the past - and am tanning up nicely now.  Again....yes, I've heard the lectures about sun damage, etc.  I'll not whine when my time for skin cancer arrives.  Dean was able to get a great series of pictures, and I'm sure he'll be posting them in the form of a little 'movie' in the near future!  We finished off our Saturday on the beach with watching the sunset over the sea, enjoying the breeze and taking time for a picture of the two of us.  You can see the crescent Moon, and even Venus low on the horizon, behind us.

Margie is a wonderful hostess, thinking of every detail.  She places books that she thinks we'll enjoy on our bedside tables, shampoo and lotions in the bathroom, and even a picture of our group on our first visit to Rocky Point on the dresser in our bedroom!  Consequently, people enjoy visiting her at both of her homes!  One of the friends is Jack, from her local Astronomy club.  He was there visiting this past weekend as well, but also needed to have more dental work done.  Like many people in Arizona, Jack travels to Rocky Point to visit his Dentista!  It's a well known fact, here, that a trip to the Dentist is at least 50% less expensive in Mexico and the quality of work is the same.  This trip Jack was having a root canal and crown placement (all for 1/4 of what it cost Dean the last time he had one done!).

Margie spends a month at her house in Penasco every other month.  We won't be able to visit her in December, but plan to visit again in February - hopefully for longer than two nights!