Tripping from Sayulita to Anclote at Punta Mita is a great way to spend a day away from town. It’s a beach, but it’s different. The waves are different, the boats are different, the town behind the beach is different, and the scenery is markedly different, since you are looking across the Bay of Banderas rather than straight out to the open sea as you are here in Sayulita. Across the bay from Punta Mita, the mountains of the Sierra Cuale and Cabo Corrientes rise in the distance behind Puerto Vallarta and the beaches of the bay’s south shore. The Marietas Islands lie just a few miles offshore of El Anclote, reachable by boat in 15 minutes. In wintertime, whales frolic in the bay, sometimes visible from the beach.
We like to go to Anclote once every week or so, for the change of scenery, and also to ride the forgiving, fun little waves with our kids. There is no better wave for learning how to surf around here—and not just surfing but stand-up paddleboard surfing as well. The crowds are mellow, the waves are soft and easy, the wind almost always blows offshore, and we get to ride waves with our kids. One photo shows me and my daughter Jade on an Anclote wave. She’s on her surfboard, I’m on my paddleboard, and I am one happy dad, sharing a wave with my kid.
As per usual, we followed the surf session with a hearty meal–a big fish grilled sarandeado style, or fillets cooked al mojo de ajo, or shrimp grilled or in a cocktail—you can even order a cheeseburger and fries if you’re kid doesn’t like finny food–at El Coral, one of the many good to great restaurants on the beach at Anclote. With friends we hang out there for hours at a time, at the tables under the palapa, at the picnic tables on the sand, in the lounge chairs on the beach. Boats come and go, taking surfers to Bahia or La Lancha, or whale watchers and snorkelers to the Marietas. Surfers, paddlers, swimmers, and bodyboarders frolic in the gentle waters between the jetties. It’s a beautiful, tranquil place, one worth visiting at least once during your time in Sayulita.
