Hidden Beaches

1-7-22

Boca de Tomatlan is the next beach town south of Mislamoya. I recommend taking a bus or hiring a cab to get there when you are in Mislamoya. I thought it would be a good idea to walk there since it seemed close enough. Walking to Boca from Mislamoya is not terrible, but it was not as nice a walk as I hoped. I had imagined it would be a little more of a scenic hike with ocean views. But it is mostly just walking the edge of a narrow road and hoping that passing cars are aware of your presence. The homes along the way are beautiful, and every once in a while, you get a peek at the ocean. After a pretty tiring walk in the sun, I went straight to the closest restaurant on the beach.

I kicked back and had a limonada and some fish tacos. I watched as tourists loaded and unloaded themselves from tour boats and water taxis. I was trying to find the trail to Los Colomitos from where I was sitting, I could see people head in that direction, but then I would lose sight of them quickly. I did a quick Google search, and it seemed like I would have to go back to the road and walk a little further to get to the trail. This same search said that walking from Boca de Tomatlan to Colomitos would only be nine minutes. Google was definitely lying about this last bit of info. I asked the waiter if it was possible to get to the trail from the beach, and he confirmed that it was. He said the only thing in the way was a small river that was only about knee-deep. I paid the check, grabbed my gear, and made for Los Colomitos.

The beginning of the trail is easy, and it is primarily a paved walkway that takes you along the ocean and around some luxurious homes. The path then turns into the jungle and becomes more of a nature hike. Parts of it can get pretty steep, and there was a least one downed tree that I needed to climb around. After about twenty minutes through the jungle, you finally arrive at the wooden walkway that is so popular in people's pictures.

The beach at Colomitos is a perfect little hidden cove. I quickly noticed that there was no road access. I had planned to take a taxi from there back to Mismaloya. I stayed for a while and got my feet wet. There's a restaurant called the Ocean Grill, and I saw that they had a little dock extending from the building. I approached some of the staff, and they let me know they were closed for the evening, but boats regularly come to the beach. I headed back, and as I did, there was a boat in the distance I could see making its way towards the shore. I got on with another couple, and in fifteen minutes, I was back at the beach in Boca. I paid the driver 50 pesos for the short trip, which was well worth it. The couple mentioned that they had taken the bus from Puerto Vallarta. It's the first and last stop for that bus line, just at the top of the road from the beach. It was already parked and waiting for passengers. I paid twenty pesos and saved my feet from another long walk down a treacherous road at night. If you plan your trip to get to Boca de Tomatlan earlier in the day, the trail that takes you to Los Colomitos continues further to Los Animas beach. The total journey is roughly 2.5 miles (4 Km).