Monthly Archives: February 2013

Today we take one last look through an alcohol-induced haze at the Cozumel Bar Hop.  One would expect such a tour to be overrun with twenty-somethings who don’t know better.  Incredibly, that was far from the case.  This particular tour was loaded with 40-, 50-, and 60-somethings who didn’t know better.  Actually, most of us did know better, and as a result we as a group imbibed cautiously.  No hangover.  Not even a buzz.  At least not between Ursula and me.  One or two couples were three sheets to the wind, but nobody wound up talking to Ralph in the ol’ Barf Bucket.

As I noted on Monday the tour began in the port town of San Miguel, from which we cut directly across the center of the island to the east coast.  From there we turned southwest and made our way around the southern tip of the island before turning back to the north and returning to San Miguel.  Basically, our route looked like this (with the bonus bar, El Mirador, located somewhere between stops three and four — Playa Bonita and Rasta’s):

The eastern shore has no electricity or much of anything else in the way of modern conveniences.  Bars generate their own solar or wind power and ship in ice and potable water.  It’s all rustic, and it’s all fun.  During turtle breeding season, the roads to the eastern shore are closed all night and cars are prohibited from driving along the eastern roads — apparently the headlights confuse the turtles, and poachers are always a danger.  If you get stuck out here after the sun sets during this time of the year, you won’t get back on the road to San Miguel until early morning.

And here’s today’s final glimpse of the sights you’ll see on this magical Cozumel Bar Hop (click on an image to enlarge) as well as a shot or two of San Miguel just before we set sail:

Starting to get a bit tipsy, yet?  If not, we’ll continue with our Cozumel Bar Hop.  The Cozumel Bar Hop normally stops at four bars on the eastern shore of this small Mexican island off the coast the Yucatán across from scuba diving mecca of Playa del Carmen and just south of the mega-resort town of Cancún.  The Cozumel Bar Hop Big Four are: Punta Morena, Coconut’s, Playa Bonita, and Rasta’s.  As a reward for assembling back at the tour bus on time at each of the first three stops and for not using the barf bucket, our tour hostess added a fifth stop, El Mirador.

El Mirador translates to “The Viewpoint,” and it was here that I snagged some of the best surf shots of the trip, as well as that impressive stone arch over the water.

Here’s today’s sampling (click on an image to enlarge):