An interview with Nan Lippard at Turtle Camp Puerto Vallarta in Boca de Tomates, right near the Puerto Vallarta Airport
La Jolla de Tuito Bed and Breakfast Gets a new Location
Uber Wars Continue in Puerto Vallarta
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Hello fellow travelers, welcome this episode of the Puerto Vallarta Travel show. I am your host Barry Kessler and I am just so happy to be introducing you to my favorite vacation destination, and maybe even yours, Puerto Vallarta Mexico.
That music you were just listening to is performed by Alberto Perez, the owner of the La Palapa Group of Restaurants. Those are La Palapa, Puerto Vallarta’s Oldest Restaurant on the famous Los Muertos Beach, and The El Dorado Restaurant and Beach Club right next door so you can enjoy that fantastic view of the Los Muertos Pier all lit up at night in beautiful colors, or
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during the day in its grand splendor for breakfast, lunch or dinner, seated with our toes in the sand right at the water’s edge. It’s so romantic, it’s so, Puerto Vallarta my friends.
This week we are going to camp. That’s turtle camp at Boca de Tomates where we will meet an incredible lady who saves the giant sea turtles Nan Lippard but before we meet Nan, let’s see what’s happening this week in Puerto Vallarta the 9th of February, 2019.
Uber Wars Continue in Puerto Vallarta
Last week I reported that Jalisco Governor Enrique Alfaro was going to revoke the permit for the Ubers and this week on Tuesday January 5th, local agents and police began pulling over the Ubers at checkpoints around the city and ticketed the
drivers and towed their vehicles away. This created a shortage and even though all this was happening, service actually continued, only at a very slow pace. Most of the drivers were scared to go out and as a result, the higher prices kicked in on the platform, so everyone was up in arms Tuesday.
That was followed by a big demonstration staged by Uber drivers where they staged a blockade, and blocked major roads for over an hour, causing many to miss their flights, others disembarking from the cruise ships to be late, it was a big mess.
Thursday things calmed down and were back to normal, but there’s a planned pow wow for Friday to see what can be worked out. The platform is up and running today, so we will wait here on pins and needles, and keep an eye on the situation.
And speaking of situations, there is still a propane gas shortage in town. Deliveries are slow and folks again have been lining up at propane filling stations in Ixtapa, Costco, lines, and more lines so be aware. Gasoline is still available in the Vallarta area but there are shortages all over Jalisco and central Mexico I’m told.
Humanitarian Brunch at Corazin de Nina Every Thursday and Tuesday Morning
Corazon de Nina has 2 Humanitarian Brunches a week during the high season to accommodate all of you who want to see the wonderful work they do and from their Facebook page…..
Every Tuesday and Thursday, 9:30 Am (please be on time). Come see how far we have come – thanks to your love and support! Donation $250 pesos. Please RSVP to lisaatcorazon@gmail.com – NOT ON FB. Blessings,
CORAZON FAMILY
So, check out Corazon de Nina when you come to town and have brunch and meet some great people.
Art Walk 2019
Remember that every Wednesday from 6 till 10 in the evening till May, there’s the art walk downtown, from the Banderas News…
Puerto Vallarta, Mexico – Over the years, Puerto Vallarta has become a very important art center, with more galleries than any other Mexican coastal destination. An important contribution to Puerto Vallarta’s art scene is the Centro Historico ArtWalk which, this season, is celebrating its 23rd year of spotlighting the downtown area’s many fine galleries.
The 2018-2019 Vallarta ArtWalk season kicked off on October 31, 2018 and is set to be held every Wednesday from 6:00 to 10:00 pm through May 29, 2019 at twelve participating galleries in the city’s historic center.
Featuring art in all mediums – paintings, sculptures, fine ceramics and jewelry – the purpose of the art walk is to provide a pleasant atmosphere for art collectors, art patrons, local residents and interested visitors to discover the great variety and exceptional quality of art available here.
So don’t miss the artwalk. I have a link to the event in the shownotes and it goes till May, so have some fun and take a walk. As if you don’t do enough of that when you come to Puerto Vallarta right?
New Improved Location for La Jolla de Tuito B & B
Last year about this time I took you to El Tuito to meet Matty and Jesse, a couple of guys who run La Jolla de Tuito, a bed and breakfast just across the highway from the town of El Tuito. As it turns out, they have been working on a new place that’s actually right smack dab in the middle of El Tuito. Well I had to check out what they have been up to. So, I hopped on the El Tuito bus at Carranza and Aguacate, across from the Kiosko, and headed up to El Tuito to see what kind of surprise they have created for us so let’s go right now to the town of El Tuito, about an hour’s ride from Vallarta, and let’s talk with Matty and Jesse at La Jolla De El Tuito.
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So, I have some pictures of the place and a map to get you there. It’s right in the middle of town, and a neat place too.
Contact Information for La Jolla de Tuito
- Facebook: La Joya De Tuito B&B Retreat
- Address: Camino Al Serradero 1 El Tuito, Jalisco Mexico
- Telephone: 322-205-1979
- Email: Lajoyadetuitoinfo@gmail.com
- Website: Visit La Jolla de Tuito Website
Map
From there I went to El Patio de Mario, right around the corner and had a wonderful lunch, I interviewed Mario, and I will be bringing that to you at a later date because I have a couple of new places popping up in Tuito and Mayto that I need to bring to you in the next couple of months, so you will have to wait for the interview with Mario. He was great by the way so something to look forward to. After that I needed to get back to Puerto Vallarta where I was in a rush to get to my next interview at Turtle Camp in Boca de Tomates, near the airport.
My friend Robina from the bathing suit place La Serina Reina asked me if I had interviewed Nan at Turtle camp, and I said not yet and she asked…why not? Well, why not is right! I need to get out there, so she was kind enough to introduce me to Nan Lippard, and what a treat you guys. What a complete surprise it was for me. I didn’t really know what to expect. I had seen lots of pictures of people posting on Facebook with little turtles wishing them well waving goodbye to them as they waddled into the surf, but I had never considered checking out this place. I knew where it was. Right next to the airport.
So I thought I would look into these sea turtles, and according to this article from National Geographic, let’s read…
About Vallarta’s Olive Ridley Sea Turtles
From National Geographic let’s read about these particular sea turtles…..
Olive Ridley Sea Turtle
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/reptiles/o/olive-ridley-sea-turtle/
- COMMON NAME: Olive Ridley Sea Turtle
- SCIENTIFIC NAME: Lepidochelys olivacea
- TYPE: Reptiles
- DIET: Omnivores
- AVERAGE LIFE SPAN IN THE WILD: 50 years
- SIZE: 2 to 2.5 ft
- WEIGHT: Up to 100 lbs
The olive Ridley turtle is named for the generally greenish color of its skin and shell, or carapace. It is closely related to the Kemp’s ridley, with the primary distinction being that olive ridleys are found only in warmer waters, including the southern Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans.
Size and Weight
Olive and Kemp’s ridleys are the smallest of the sea turtles, weighing up to 100 pounds and reaching only about 2 feet in shell length. The olive ridley has a slightly smaller head and smaller shell than the Kemp’s.
Nesting Ritual
These turtles are solitary, preferring the open ocean. They migrate hundreds or even thousands of miles every year, and come together as a group only once a year for the arribada, when females return to the beaches where they hatched and lumber onshore, sometimes in the thousands, to nest.
Olive ridleys have nesting sites all over the world, on tropical and subtropical beaches. During nesting, they use the wind and the tide to help them reach the beach. Females lay about a hundred eggs, but may nest up to three times a year. The nesting season is from June to December.
Predators and Prey
The olive ridley is mostly carnivorous, feeding on such creatures as jellyfish, snails, crabs, and shrimp. They will occasionally eat algae and seaweed as well. Hatchlings, most of which perish before reaching the ocean, are preyed on by crabs, raccoons, pigs, snakes, and birds, among others. Adults are often taken by sharks.
Threats to Survival
Though the olive ridley is widely considered the most abundant of the marine turtles, by all estimates, it is in trouble. Its numbers, particularly in the western Atlantic, have declined precipitously.
Many governments have protections for olive ridleys, but still, eggs are taken and nesting females are slaughtered for their meat and skin. Fishing nets also take a large toll, frequently snagging and drowning these turtles.
Saving Sea Turtles in Puerto Vallarta, Turtle Camp PV
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So very interesting. Now to get to Turtle Camp, Now you can get there a couple of ways and I have maps, but this day I chose a cab cuz I was late. I hopped in the taxi and asked him if he would take me to Boca de Tomates and he asked me if I wanted to
Contact Information for Saving Sea Turtles in Puerto Vallarta
Like the Facebook Page Saving Sea Turtles in Puerto Vallarta
go to the Estuary or if I wanted to go to the turtles. I said the turtle camp and he nodded and we drove off, from the Romantic Zone where the El Tuito bus had dropped me off. I was running late as usual but I trusted the cab driver would get me to where 
I wanted to go on time. We took the road which turns into a gravel road, traveling alongside the north side of the runway of the Puerto Vallarta Airport, and he dropped me off at the beach where there were a number of restaurants set up selling fish. Pescado Serandiado, grilled whole red snapper like at our buddy’s place El Rio Grande. Some were still open, others of them getting ready to close others already closed.
I didn’t know what to expect. Did I need a ticket? Did I need to pay some sort of an entrance fee or something? That I didn’t
know but I moved along. I walked on down the beach heading south towards where the end of the runway was, it was so cool, I had never been to this part of Vallarta. There was the estuary where the crocodiles lived right there, nice. Well, except for the sound of the jets taking off, and well that’s pretty cool right? There go those jets leaving behind a trail of tears as the 
Americans and Canadians sob as they take off from paradise, but I digress. About 100 yards south, before I got to where the runway was I got to a place where I found the turtle camp. It was nothing like I had expected. A tent, some lean 2’s. In the big tent there were tubs where the baby turtle eggs or waiting to hatch. There was another place that looked like a little mapped
out area where they had turtle eggs buried, and incubating with dates And that’s where I met Nan. I asked if I could talk to her for a few minutes before the group arrived and she agreed but first spend some time checking around making sure that everything would be ready for when the visitors arrived to release the turtles. Nan took a little time to explain a few things to
me.We sat down and we had a conversation about this place Turtle camp so let’s go right now to where the runway meets the sea in Puerto Vallarta, and let’s meet a most amazing lady Nan Lippard, who spends a great deal of her time Saving Sea Turtles in Puerto Vallarta. To Campamento Tortugero Boca de Tomates, you know it as Turtle Camp PV.
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So, after we talked, people started arriving. Just walking up the beach as I had earlier. About 30 of us gathered around, and then Nan began to tell the story to all of us at Turtle Camp. A story she tells probably every day. Her story about the giant sea turtles, about their Quest to save them and promote the protection of them and pass along their positive, ecologically minded philosophy.
While we listen to Nan, when you will hear her talking and giving her Spiel, you will also hear some Spanish speaking tourists who were having the talk translated to them from English to Spanish. You’ll hear that in the background as well. As I said there were about 30 of us that evening in January. And of course, you’re going to hear the occasional airplane overhead although I did my best to limit the noise. So, I want to let you know I’m worrying about your ear’s guys.
So come along and let’s listen. Close your eyes and pretend that you are on the beach right there underneath the runway. We will start off with an explanation of the facilities, then we move on to sitting in the sand and standing around a large plastic tub with about 75 baby sea turtles ready for release as 
Nan explains the procedure and some history. Then she loads them one at a time into small plastic bowls with a little sand in the bottom and a baby sea turtle, newly hatched that day. Then someone, one of her helpers draws two lines parallel to the shoreline eventually,
when the coast is clear and with a signal from Nan, we approach the line and release the turtles, one per person, for their short trip across the wet sand to the waves, lapping gently on the sand. So now I’ve set it
up for you visually, and what’s really cool is as the turtles make it to the water, you can see some of them actually popping up their heads out of the water beyond the surf. It was pretty cool. And the sun was setting right in front of us as well so, a very beautiful, and emotional experience, I have to tell you, so close your eyes, unless you are driving that is, and let’s listen….
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I really like this place. It was it was a huge surprise to me because it wasn’t this big production. It was a little operation it was, well, tiny but with a huge message. And the people there had big, big hearts they’re not fancy like she said, they had t-shirts for sale, jewelry, hats and remembrances, and you can make a 
cash donation and I hope you all leave something for this organization, but you weren’t pushed hard and there wasn’t this huge hard Sell to get you to donate. You just wanted to donate. It wasn’t hard at all. I loved it I loved the approach. I loved the imagination. I loved the energy and the spirit of these people,
these volunteers. It was a wonderful, wonderful evening. I mean people just wandered out to camp from either side of the airport runway by the way. In fact, most of the people came from the other side of the runway, the south side of the runway that travels between the golf course and the runway, and when I did leave after the presentation, I walked south where I felt it would be safer and better lit than from the north where I came from. I summoned an Uber who at first couldn’t find me, but I was able to guide him when he called looking for me. It was a good thing I spoke Spanish, or I’d still be standing there.
And hey, just remember next time you fly out of Puerto Vallarta before you start to cry, or before you close your eyes and start planning your next trip to paradise, look down below you at Boca de Tomates, and you will see slightly to the right of the runway a little tent. That’s Turtle camp. It’s right there. With Nan and her merry bunch of do-gooders. Humans saving sea turtles in Puerto Vallarta. And if you missed
the experience of releasing your baby sea turtle this time, don’t miss it the next time. Go there and help Nan save the turtles in Puerto Vallarta. Thanks Nan, thanks for all you do thanks to all of your volunteers that you have helping you every day and do please consider if you are planning on visiting Puerto Vallarta coming out and maybe even spending a little time at one of those beachfront restaurants there at Boca de Tomates. Pick up a little trash, or not. Watch the airplanes come and go, and maybe even see a
crocodile. But most of all, join Nan and her Merry bunch of volunteers and help her release some baby sea turtles.
Contact Information For Turtle Camp: Saving Sea Turtles in Puerto Vallarta
Turtle Camp Facebook Page Saving Sea Turtles in Puerto Vallarta
Okay, that should do it for this week’s episode of The Puerto Vallarta Travel Show stay tuned for more on the ground reports from Puerto Vallarta Mexico, with travel tips, great restaurant and excursion ideas and more. Until then, remember, this is an interactive show where I depend on your questions and suggestions about all things Puerto Vallarta. If you think of something I should be talking about, please reach out to me by clicking on the Contact us tab and sending us your message.
And remember, if you are considering booking any type of tour while you are in Puerto Vallarta, you must go to Vallartainfo.com, JR’s website and reserve your tour through him, right from his website. Remember the value for value proposition. His experience and on the ground knowledge of everything Puerto Vallarta in exchange for your making a purchase of a tour that you would do anyway, you’re just doing it through him as a way of saying thank you. It costs no more than if you were to use someone else so do it. Really. And when you do take one of these tours, email me about your experiences. Maybe you can come on-board and share with others what you liked or didn’t like about the tour. Again, contact me by clicking on the Contact us tab and sending off a message. Don’t forget his maps, his DIY tours and his revitalized Happy Hour Board. I have links to all of those in the show notes.
And once again, if you like this podcast, please take the time and subscribe and give me a good review on iTunes if you would. That way we can get the word out to more and more people about the magic of this place. Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Remember I made it easy for you to do just that with each episode I create. But if you haven’t been to my website, you really need to have a look there. I have the links to the places we talk about, interesting pictures and the more all right there in my blog-posts and show-notes for each episode of the show so check them out for sure if you haven’t already all-right? All right.
Thank you Matty and Jesse, check out their new place in the center of El Tuito and see the pictures on my website. And thank you so much Nan Lippard from Turtle Camp PV. Get out there, launch your own baby sea turtle into the Bahia de Banderas, experience the love, the nature, the airplane noise, and donate, donate, and donate some more to this fine cause. And hey, thanks to all of you for listening all the way through this episode of the Puerto Vallarta Travel Show. This is Barry Kessler signing off with a wish for you all to slow down, be kind and live the Vallarta lifestyle. Nos Vemos amigos!
