Hiking in the Marina Area (9,223 steps or 4.36 miles)

Every morning during the holidays we have tried to get out and do our 10,000 steps. Sometimes we get downtown and include a little breakfast but most times we walk through Vallarta's Marina area. This walk includes skirting the golf course (where the crocodiles roam) and making our way to the beach.

This is a moody beach. Some mornings it's heaped with slippery rocks and soggy sand and other days the waves have acted like a vaccume cleaner and sucked most of the rocks away to their underwater lair. Still other times, like today, there is smooth sand then a hillock of rocks followed by more smooth sand. It's never really an easy walking beach but we still enjoy the expanse of blue water, the waves and the boats.

We generally cut through the grounds of the Marriott Hotel (where security has been very nice of late) to get back to terra firma and make our way to the docks, our coffee shop and all the yachts. It's definitely a pleasant trip but not quite as challenging or interesting as weaving our way downtown. Then there is the famous hike from Boca de Tomatlan to the beach at Las Animas. That's my walking pal Candace's fave hike and she's planning to do it this Sunday. I'm not big on the hills and the rickety wooden "bridges" but the final destination is certainly attractive. I still rather get there by boat!