As the cold relief set in I felt a sudden fluttering on my calf and looked down to see a small tarantula exploring my leg before I swatted it off.
“You’re like a jungle god,” Armando joked. “You call all the creatures to you.”
“Right?” I responded, smiling to conceal the unraveling of my inner constitution.
Before long we were mounted up and meandering through miles of dirt mazes until we came to a clearing where dense jungle relented to a rocky outcropping with prime views of the seaside village of Litibu far below. Smoke rose from a small patch of land maybe a mile inland.
“Farmers are getting ready to plant crops,” Armando said, pointing at the small inferno.
A few more miles of dirt stood between us and the outskirts of Sayulita, a seaside town known as much for its surfing as it is for its pulsating art and culinary scenes.
Parking on the edge of town, we did our best skin rejuvenation imitation with cold rags to rid ourselves of dirt that now caked seemingly every square inch of skin.
A brief stroll through Sayulita’s color-rich streets ensued, as did a pitstop at the town’s famed Chocobanana, where we gorged on the local specialty of frozen bananas covered in chocolate, nuts, and coconut shavings. It was a delicious conclusion to a tour that revealed an entirely different side of Nayarit than the beautiful beaches and quality surf for which it is renowned—and it's one I hope to enjoy again in the very near future.
Read more about everything the area has to offer here and pencil in your next memorable getaway.
