Urgent request from local boaters

[Hhew]

It’s sounds like our OP got tired and a little disoriented after a long passage and went ashore (maybe in a dinghy) somewhere near Playa de Tijuana, about 1km south of the border. Maybe to figure out where he was at. From memory, PdT has the only lifeguard tower along that stretch. Terrible place to drop the hook long-term, but it’s sand bottom and probably decent holding until the wind and/or swell come up. The lifeguard probably saw him come ashore and called the police because that’s certainly suspicious. Gave him some coffee while they waited. Federales boxed him up and kicked him back over the border via the San Y gate. Sounds like he probably got the cell number of the lifeguard and the boat hasn’t dragged, yet. So he’s trying to get back to the boat before it ends up in the surf. Most of his stuff is still on the boat. That’s my interpretation anyway. I think it’s quite plausible.

[Sglove]

Hhew got it, only they let me go to the currency exchange and a cafe for an hour. Unfortunately, none of it matters anymore.

[Discovery 15797]

Originally Posted by Sglove

I don't have a lot of options. Short story: My sailboat is anchored offshore of Tijuana. I was deported from Mexico. I am in San Diego. If anyone is willing to sail me to my boat so I can retrieve it, I can pay you the 1700 pesos I have left. The consulate recommended I do this if I don't leave the water.

The details are lacking, so if we try to dissect your post you...

a.) ...sailed a boat from the US to Mexico most likely without getting a Zarpe/Clearance (CBP Form 1300) and obtaining the necessary paperwork to clear into Mexico. As soon as you dropped the hook in Tijuana (for whatever reason), you officially "entered" Mexico.

b.) ...were likely deported by Mexican INM because you did not have the proper paperwork (Zarpe, TIP, crew list, etc) to enter the country by private boat. (Either that or there is something you are not telling us.)

c.) ...now want someone to commit a crime and potentially risk jail time and confiscation of their vessel by smuggling you into a foreign country so you can 'steal' a boat that has very likely been seized by the Mexican government.

As a side note, I think 99% of the people on this forum know that whomever you talked to in the consulate is absolutely clueless, or you are misinterpreting what they said. A country's territorial jurisdiction extends 12 nautical miles. You have been deported from that country. If you enter a country that you have been deported from, including its territorial waters, you will likely end up in a Mexican prison.

Also note, just because the boat is still at anchor doesn't mean the Mexican authorities have not seized the boat.

Your only course of action would be to petition the Mexican INM for re-entry into Mexico to retrieve your boat. If your boat has been seized by customs, then you will likely have to hire a Mexican attorney and petition to get it back. You may get sympathy and some advice from the US Consulate, but you violated Mexican law so there is really nothing the US Consulate can do for you.


This thread should be a very good lesson to anyone who plans to voyage internationally. If you don't take the time to learn the proper way to clear out from, and clear into another country, then you have no one to blame other than yourself when things go sideways. Also, for US citizens, although some countries may not require a Zarpe, you just might be a fool if you exit a US port with the intention to sail to an international port without a Zarpe (with the exception of travel between US & Canada).

[malbert73]

Originally Posted by Sglove

Hhew got it, only they let me go to the currency exchange and a cafe for an hour. Unfortunately, none of it matters anymore.

Oh, too bad. Why doesn’t it matter? What happened to your boat ?[emoji20]

[paralog]

Originally Posted by Sglove

I said twice that what I said is what was recommended to me by the consulate in Mexico. It is not illegal for me to retrieve my boat by water.

Try telling that to the Mexican's when they catch you for the second time. I suspect that your boat will probably stick out like a sore thumb when it enters US waters.

[valhalla360]

Unless there is more to the story, at this point, it's probably a lost cause. He doesn't have the money to get the boat back legitimately and the screw ball idea of sneaking in to steal it back is likely to leave him in prison. That sucks for the OP but that's where it stands.

[Celestialsailor]

I suppose you could launch a dinghy off of Imperial beach. Motor the 10 miles and get it that way.

[Letterkenny]

Originally Posted by Celestialsailor

I suppose you could launch a dinghy off of Imperial beach. Motor the 10 miles and get it that way.

That would work or, like I said, probably some folks in Zuniga wouldn’t really care about going or others that live around on anchor.

[Sos]

Originally Posted by Sglove

Hhew got it, only they let me go to the currency exchange and a cafe for an hour. Unfortunately, none of it matters anymore.

Does this mean you have your boat back???

Why doesn't it matter anymore?

A bit more explanation would make it easier for everyone to understand your situation since you did ask for help.

[HeinSdL]

Originally Posted by Sos

Does this mean you have your boat back???

Why doesn't it matter anymore?

A bit more explanation would make it easier for everyone to understand your situation since you did ask for help.

Exactly. I can appreciate that during the cry for help there may not be the time to go into every detail but if after the event there is time to say 'It doesn't matter anymore' then there is also time for an addition 5 words to say why not.

Can't stand this communication in riddles, it is irritating, it bases the various answers on assumptions (ass out of u and me anyone?) and it certainly is not seamanlike.

[5BTM]

"Unfortunately" probably says it all.

Sorry to hear that.

[Shrew]

This story doesn't make sense.

There is no place to 'stop' in Tiujuana. In order to be deported, the OP would have had to anchor outside of the surf line, then swim or dinghy onto the beach. Then get caught by local authorities and turned over to federal authorities.

Why stop in an area with no port and go ashore when San Diego was so close??

[wholybee]

Originally Posted by Sos

Does this mean you have your boat back???

Why doesn't it matter anymore?

A bit more explanation would make it easier for everyone to understand your situation since you did ask for help.

No, he doesn't have his boat back. His statement means that Hhew understood what happened.

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by HeinSdL

Can't stand this communication in riddles, it is irritating, it bases the various answers on assumptions (ass out of u and me anyone?) and it certainly is not seamanlike.

Seamanlike or not (and the OP is clearly no seaman), it's poor forum etiquette to start a thread and answer only a few of the many questions from readers and then only with vague responses. Eff this guy.

[wholybee]

It's anyone's guess what happened. Asking for help doesn't obligate the OP to satisfy our curiosity about what seems to be an extraordinary situation.

So, my guess(es). Since he only has 1700 pesos, I conclude that he did not just enter Mexico, but had been there a while. Perhaps much further south. Maybe living aboard, and having managed to fit in for a while without being there legally. Maybe he bought a boat in Mexico and never did the paperwork, and hoped to get it North. Maybe he isn't an experienced sailor, but a drifter who after moving to Mexico moved aboard a boat. Maybe he does have some other criminal past.

So, he gets in his boat and head north, doesn't know how to navigate or know how close to the US he is. Is single handed and gets tired and drops anchor. Goes to shore, for rest/water/whatever. Now he is in trouble.

Those are only guesses, without any additional information. The OP doesn't have to share that with us, but certainly, anyone would be foolish to help him without knowing more about how he got where he is.