We didn't see any fireworks from our secluded anchorage outside of Manzanillo. We heard them for a few minutes at midnight then went promptly to sleep. We intended to begin our overnight passage at dawn to Zihuatanejo area and were more excited for this than staying up late.
At dawn, the weather forecast looked optimal for a motorboat passage (i.e. no wind) 190 NM down the coast and we saw no forecast for wind for the next 7 days so figured we might as well go. Our passage was uneventful. We made very fast time averaging 8.2 knots and arrived at our destination of Isla Ixtapa (also called Isla Grande) early the next morning. We did manage to sail a few hours with our code zero sail (our light air sail).
Along the way we passed the very busy industrial port of Lazaro Cardenas at 3 am. This port is Mexico's only protected port with the capacity to receive ultra large container ships (which apparently 15,000 containers/ship). It was an eerie sight as there appeared to be several refineries there with red flames emitting from smoke stacks and clouds of strange smelling exhaust -- probably filled with things we should not be breathing. Other than Dan needing to talked to a Chinese captain on the radio to ensure safe passing, it was uneventful. I was excited for a minute I might get to translate in Chinese -- but he spoke good English. (See more about this interesting facility: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G91f_4R1YO0)
When we arrived at Isla Ixtapa, it was quiet. There were only 2 other sailboats there and handful of pangas. It was early in the day when we arrived and when we woke up from a morning catch up nap (after our overnight passage) we were surprised at how the busy the beach had become.
By 4 pm there were 30 or so charter boats in the small bay with us. All jockeying for a place to drop off their passengers for a swim in the refreshing 85 degree clear water. We had put out 75' feet of chain in 15' feet of water. Which is overkill, but our normal. We like the reassurance that our boat will be there when we return.
HOWEVER, when there are 3 to 10 power boats anchored within our 150' turning radius it can quickly be a different story. Power boats tend to have less 'under water' than we do with our heavy keel and big displacement. So we move around differently -- more with the water and current. Power boats with their high structures and windage -- move with the wind. So when the wind and current shift or the wind dies altogether it can be mayhem! We spent a good 2 hours fully entertained with boats swinging in and out of spitting distance. There were people in the water swimming everywhere between the boats. There were panga's bringing food out to boats from the beach side restaurants. There were ski boats pulling people on water toys weaving around us which just added to the entertainment and chaos. By 6 pm, we were again back 3 boats in the bay.
We took our paddle board in to the beach the next day and had lunch with the owners of the two other sailboats. The beach was tremendously busy. Many Mexican families were enjoying their holiday and all the beach activities. We went for short hike around the island. We swam. It was very pleasant. After two days on this very entertaining beach we were ready to head into to town. We had depleted our fresh vegetables and it had been a week since we left Barra. Our last night at Isla Ixtapa was uncomfortable.
The swell and wind waves were inconsistent making the boat move about in weird ways. We woke up every few hours to adjust things in our cabinets to stop the banging and clattering. When the sun came up we were ready to pick up our anchor and go in to Zihuatanejo. Its a short trip. It only took about 90 minutes.
As we came into Zihuatanejo we were pleasantly surprised at how beautiful and how different this place was compared to other places we've passed thus far in our travels to Mexico. The green hills, no big high rises and strangely only 4 other cruising boats. It was charming already and we hadn't set foot on the beach. More on that next time....
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