Tatei Haramara, Our Mother the Sea, is the Wixarika name for the Pacific, and the place sacred to the community lies on the coast of Nayarit, near San Blas. Pilgrims walk or travel from the mountains each year to make offerings to the sea goddess, who brings rain, and the coast is part of the long ritual route that also includes the desert of Wirikuta. It is a working shoreline of beaches and rocky points, where the sea is strong and the surf can be heavy. Visitors who come here should remember they are guests at a sacred place and treat offerings and ceremonies with respect.
San Blas, about a kilometre and a half away, is a small, slow, humid port with a lot of history. In the eighteenth century the Spanish built a shipyard and naval base here from which they supplied their colonies in California, and the ruins of the fort of San Basilio and an old customs house stand on a hill above the town. The American poet Longfellow wrote about the bells of San Blas, whose church is a ruin in the plaza. The mangrove estuaries around the town are rich in birds, and boat trips run to the freshwater spring of La Tovara, through tunnels of roots and over water so clear you see fish below.
Be ready for the insects. The sand flies of San Blas, known as jejenes, are infamous, especially at dawn and dusk and on windless days, and they leave painful, itchy bites. Repellent helps and so does staying away from the beach at those times, but the locals say you get used to them. The heat and humidity are heavy from May to October, and the rainy season brings storms.
The road to San Blas is a pleasure for motorcyclists. From Tepic, it drops from the cool highlands toward the coast through a series of curves, with forest, lava fields and tropical vegetation, and the air gets warmer with every kilometre. The surface is generally fine, but trucks, loose gravel and the occasional cow call for attention. Fuel is available in San Blas and Tepic. The seafood is excellent, particularly the shrimp and the fish, served grilled or in empanadas. Winter, from December to March, is the most comfortable season.