The Furthest South In Mexcio We've Ever Been

Up until this point Jeff and I have been to a lot of these mainland ports in our many years of Pollak family cruises. We loved the Office in Cabo, Sam got braids in Puerto Vallarta and we remember going to a resort and swimming in the pool in Zihuatenjo. Today would be the first time Jeff and I were heading south to places we have never been before and on our own bottom. We weighed anchor at 8:47a.m. and slowly headed out of the bay in Zihuatenjo. A couple friends radioed us on our way out wishing us safe travels and hoping to see us down the way. The cruise itself was only five and half hours and it was sunny (of course) and we saw lots of sea turtles underway. Sometimes it feel like we are traveling at the same speed. We pulled into the south side of Papanoa due to the swells coming from the north and dropped the hook and soon enough were in the water. Being the only boat here gave us lots of room and a calm peaceful feeling that we didn't get in the big city of Zihua. There were a few houses on shore and we noticed a family walking and swimming a bit but everything was still and quiet and we liked this. From the water the waves looked enormous as they rolled in at eye level and we were just so happy to be swimming off the boat again. It had been awhile. Our program while at anchor is to swim and stay outside until 6pm when we then can come inside, start the gen and crank the a.c. and begin settling in for the night. We like our little routine and when 6o'clock rolls around I'm practically sprinting to fire up the gen and get that cool a.c. going. We made dinner and went to sleep early in preparation for an early departure in the morning. 

Papanoa 

Sundown at Papanoa 

The next day it was up at 0500 and out at 0600 for the long 10 hour day we had ahead to Isla Roqueta Island, a place we just learned from some boaters ahead of us. Isla Roqueta lies just outside Acapulco Bay and is a nice place to stop to break up an overnight passage but many of us were a bit weary of it due to the proximity of Acapulco and all of its 650 boats on the bottom and the sad  hurricane struck Acapulco town and people there. Regardless we set out choosing to believe friends ahead of us. The cruise itself was uneventful. It was cloudy with a cool breeze which was much welcomed. We saw turtles and dolphins and while we made our way into the island I stood next to Jeff watching and waiting to see what we would or wouldn't see. We found a nice spot outside of some mooring balls far enough away from the beach that we felt safe and protected. The overall feel of the place was eerie. The beach was quiet and there was obvious noticeable damage and just no boats to be found anywhere. As the night rolled in the eeriness really presented itself when we could tell which buildings had power and which were completely black. Our friend Kurtis told us when it gets dark to take a flashlight outside and shine it on the water which we obediently did and wow what a show. Hundreds of fish flying through the water jumping and swimming and traveling so fast. It was a fantastic scene and one we would never have known about. 

Early Morning Departure 

Outskirts of Acapulco 

Approaching Isla La Roqueta 

Anchored In Isla La Roqueta 

 Isla La Roqueta 

View of Acapulco 

Freighter in Acapulco

Dilapidated Beach Isla La Roqueta 

Sundown 

View Across from Isla La Roqueta 

When we went to sleep that night I had no idea what was about to hit me. Sometime around 2pm I woke up to Jeff in the bathroom and noticed that my stomach hurt. I didn't think much of it and tried to go back to sleep. I tossed and turned in pain and not able to sleep. Finally it hit me and I made a b-line for the bathroom. Montazooma's revenge. I thought ok good. Now that's done and I can get back to sleep. I wasn't two steps out of the bathroom when I had to turn around lift the seat and throw up. I was in total disbelief. Throwing up? I haven't done that in years and it's usually been alcohol driven. Deliriously I walked back to bed hot and flushed and Jeff was like, "what happened?" I don't know. Puzzled I fell back to sleep just to be woken up and hour later repeating the same sitting to kneeling process. This would happen two more times. What the hell was wrong with me?! I felt weak and exhausted and around 5a.m. after my fourth and final round I told Jeff there was no way I was waking up in an hour to start our overnighter. Baffled he agreed and I spent the entire next day in bed drinking ginger ale and water and sleeping. By the end of the day I felt better and stronger and knew we could carry on the next morning. I'm assuming it's something I ate but don't know definitively what. 

At 0737 on January 12th we up-anchored and made our way out of Isla La Roqueta and towards tomorrow's destination Puerto Angel. We began our three hour shifts and eased into the long passage to come. At one point when we were about 20 miles offshore Starlink busted us and then there was no wifi which really threw me off since I love listening to my podcasts and binging Gilmore Girls to help my overnight shifts go by quickly. The zero moonlight wasn't much help either. Nonetheless we carried on. At some point during my 12-3a.m. shift I noticed something on the radar. It wasn't a red dot indicating a boat but a fuzzy image like something you might look at when trying to determine if a mole is cancerous or not - irregular shaped, scalloped edges and about 6 miles out. Jeff fast asleep I didn't want to wake him for some silliness that can easily be explained so I continued to watch while not only one but two of these baffling images appeared on screen. As they got 4 miles out I noticed they were on a course right for us. At three miles out and not being able to determine what it was I decided I had to wake the captain and figure it out. It took me calling his name several times to wake up but disoriented he jumped to attention and began looking at the images with me. Neither of us had any idea what we were looking at. As it approached 2 miles out I noticed the bow flag start to flap and as I stuck my head out the door I noticed there was a stiff breeze forming and the wind meter read 20 knots. Wait!? Is this weather we are looking at on the radar? As it approached one mile and half a mile the wind increased to 24 and the rain began. Oh my god it was a squall that was showing up on radar and another one right behind it. In all of our travels we have never seen a big squall show up on radar. Mystery solved captain went back to bed. 

Night turned into day which is always a welcome site on an overnight passage and at 4:28pm we dropped the hook outside the mooring field in Puerto Angel. 

Leaving Acapulco 

Downtown Acapulco 

Passing a Panga 

Freighter Underway 

Sunset Underway

Sunrise Next Morning 

Approaching Puerto Angel 

Puerto Angel 

Many Pangas Moored in Puerto Angel 

Sunset 

Cruise Ship Passing By Puerto Angel 

The next morning still a little tired and the weather not looking perfect we decided on a second day/night in Puerto Angel. It also happened to be Sunday which is p.j. football playoff day on the Tidings of Joy. We enjoyed a lazy day watching football and recovering from the long passage and took our time. 

When we awoke the next morning we felt refreshed and ready to move onto Huatulco. At 0900 we began the weighing anchor procedure and at some point the anchor was pulling super hard and not budging. I told Jeff to stop and he came out to inspect. He thought maybe we wrapped around an old mooring on the bottom and began to spin the boat in one direct then we tried to pull anchor with not luck and then spun the opposite way and still not luck. We were really stuck. Now what? Jeff got on the bow and shouted to a panga captain passing by saying, "Hola hola necessito ayuda!" (Hello hello I need help). A nice young captain stopped and Jeff explained via sign language how our anchor chain was stuck and we needed a diver. The young guy said he could get a diver and would be right back. Stressed out and not knowing weather or not this guy was really coming back or not we sat in the pilot house waiting. Only about 15 minutes later the captain and two other men returned. Two divers who would go down together while the captain maned the boat and the regulator. After not very long both men resurfaced and laughed. They explained to us that we caught a car. There was an entire sunken car just below us and the anchor and the chain were tangled in it. What?! A car! We were totally baffled and very grateful for the speedy efficient work the men had done. Jeff paid them and we thanked them profusely and we were on our way to Huatulco. 

Sailboat Anchored Us Down 

Hotel Disco on Shore

Heading out of Puerto Angel 

 

IX OH ZI

 We made it to Ixtapa and now that the big push to get there was over we could take a few days to settle in before heading out to Ohio. We filled the days with boat chores, exercise and football watching. A taxi took us to Zihutanjo to check in with the port captain where we bumped into our friends on Tiamat. I was happy to have a few days to get the boat put back together and do our laundry before packing. Kurtis on Summer Breeze our boat buddy wanted to take us out for a Merry Christmas cocktail and a bon voyage. After we headed out he most likely wouldn't be there when we returned. After spending the day packing we met at the marina restaurant Fisher's and made a cheers to the holidays and a successful journey.

Ixtapa Beach 

Downtown Ixtapa

Evening at the Marina 

Friends From Tiamat in Zihutenajo 

Docked Next to Summer Breeze 

Holiday Drink with Kurtis

Flying back to Ohio for Christmas always comes with its challenges weather it's highway closure due to trucks jackknifing, delayed or canceled flights, no rental cars available, you name it it's happened to us and this year would be no different. We got to the airpot at Zihutenjo with plenty of time to spare. We were relaxed and excited and ate food before we departed. As we watched other flights leave we were more then ready to board our first of two flights. As it got closer the board read delayed. Ok, no big deal that's normal. And the delay kept getting later and later. Finally at some point we realised we were not going to make our connection in Dallas and Jeff went to speak to the agent. She explained that a lot of people were going to take the flight out to Phoenix instead and we had that option and then could spend the night in Phoenix and fly out from there in the morning. Phoenix? That was the wrong direction. She also explained we could wait here or they would put us up in a hotel if our flight got canceled but we needed to make up our minds now. We both decided that Phoenix was a ridiculous option and worst case scenario we would got back to the boat and try again tomorrow. Well after waiting 4 hours we boarded our 1/2 empty flight and headed to Dallas. There was one remaining flight going to Columbus that night and if we ran we could get to it with 5 minutes to spare. As soon as we landed Jeff bolted to the front in order to get to baggage claim to first get our bags, go through customs and then begin the final sprint to our final flight. We both ran, dodging and weaved through a very crowded Dallas airport. We flew though the baggage claim line and quickly went though the Global Entry line. Thank god nobody else was in it. The regular line was insanely long. We were huffing and puffing as we threw our bag to the baggage handler and continued our sprint to the gate. It was empty except for the agent and as we scanned our passes we finally sighed and smiled at one another because we had made it. We could relax for that moment. It wasn't until mid flight that Jeff realised that the rental car company in Columbus closed at 1a.m. and we were scheduled to land at 12:45. Shit! Another sprint. I told Jeff to run to the rental car bus and I would stay back and retrieve the bags. Once again he was off. Fortunately there was a line at the rental car place and that guaranteed him that the agent would have to get to him before closing for the night. 30 minutes later he picked me up and at 4a.m. we arrived at my parents house in Lima, Ohio. 

Waiting and Waiting at Zihutenjo Airport 

Finally in the Air

The next morning we slept in late and told our wild tale to my parents who too were in disbelief. Fortunately our time in Lima for Christmas was the opposite of our stressful transit and we spent a lovely week with family and friends sharing meals and sweets and catching up on life. I can't imagine not being home for the holidays. 

Mom's Daily Cooking Tray 

Cousin's Night 

Christmas Eve With Grandma 

Christmas Day at Aunt Alba & Uncle Mark's House

Newest Cousin Sylvia 

Christmas Day 

Friend's Night With Ness & Steph 

Vegan Lunch with Cousin Jason & Kim 

The week flew by probably because every day we had plans but that's what happens when you are only home once a year. On December 29th we got up at 2:45a.m. to get to our 5a.m flight back to Ixtapa. Needless to say from the week and the early rise we were pooped. 

When we got back to the boat sadly Kurtis had left but a new friend Fred the crocodile had made an appearance. The marina was quiet and we took our time unpacking and doing boat chores. Because of the lack of boaters around and us not knowing what to do our New Years Eve was pretty uneventful. We naively thought we could just walk up to one of he marina restaurants but they of course were full. The one good thing was at midnight we got to watch fireworks from the top deck. 

New Years Day we were ready to celebrate and walked up to Fisher's our favorite marina restaurant for some drinks and lunch. I discovered they had 43 liquor which we have at every cousins night and had it mixed with an expresso. Delicious. Like drinking a milk shake. After a very tasty lunch and some drinks we went back to the boat to watch the Michigan and Alabama playoff football game. It was a good day. 

Early Morning Departure From Columbus 

Fred the Crocodile 

Stern View 

NYE Fireworks From Boat 

Jeff's New Years Day Drink 

Happy New Year 

My New Years Day Drink 

Go Blue! 

Th next day before moving around the corner to Zihutenjo we did some provisioning and Jeff took a walk on the beach. Our time at the marina and in Ixtapa had been nice but we were ready to move along. 

On January 3rd at 12:15pm we made the short 7.5 mile jaunt to Zihutenajo and dropped the hook close to town. Even though we had been in town to check in with the port captain we really didn't explore much and were looking forward to getting to know Zihutenajo. 

Adios Fred 

Ixtapa Beach 

Heading into Zihutenajo 

There Other Panama Posse Boats Here 

Zihuatanejo 

Sunset 

City Lights of Zijuatanejo

The next day we were eager to explore and after breakfast we dropped the dink and headed into town. The surf wasn't bad and we were able easily to get the dink pulled up onto shore with her wheels. We left it and made our way to Anys for lunch. This is the one restaurant all the guide books say to come for lunch for the famous pasole and tamales. Neither of which Jeff or I could eat due to our dietary restrictions. Nonetheless we had a delicious meal. I had a big salad and tortilla soup. Jeff had grilled fish. After we made our way to the first of many coffee shops on my list Cafe Zihuatanejo. It was robust and flavourful coffee and I bought the beans to bring home as well. From the coffee shop we made our way to the municipal market where we bought some produce and tortillas. Overall it was a very nice day. 

Dink on Shore 

Anchored in Zihuatanejo 

Many Panga on Shore 

Anys Restaurant 

The next day we followed the same schedule- slow, relaxed morning followed by dingy ride to town for lunch and coffee. Today we went to a restaurant that Jeff found called Mederas which was excellent. It was right on the beach and you could have a table or lounge chairs and the food was delicious. Jeff had el pastore tacos and I had veggie tacos with some cold white wine. Our view was of the bay and the boat and it felt really relaxing and vacation like. After we got coffee at El Caficito which was in this shaded tree lined setting overlooking the water. Both the view and the coffee was great. We came back to the boat, cranked the fans and had a little more wine. 

Anchored in Zihu

Walking to Lunch on Malecon 

View From Mederas

Sunset

Wine on the Aft Deck 

The next morning around 10am a diver and his wife/assistant came to the boat and dove the boat. We were told because the water is so dirty in Zihu that a lot of barnacles can grow on the boat so it's a good idea to have a diver come and clean it up. When they were finished the four of us rode in the dingy to first drop them off and then to head to shore to meet our friends Dan & Marla from Long Windid for lunch at Bistro Del Mar. This restaurant was right next door to Maderas so we had high hopes. The food was pretty good but it was expensive and empty. Either way it was great seeing our friends and catching up and hearing about what they had been up to since we left them in Barra. After we headed back to El Caficito for my afternoon coffee then back to the boat for football. 

Walking to Lunch 

Visitor on our Flopper Stoppers 

Lunch with Dan & Marla 

The next day was Sunday which means a few things on board- pjs, football and showers. We found some vegan soyrizo in our last market and croisants so Jeff whipped us up his famous scramble for brunch. It was excellent and a nice treat. 

Jeff's Sunday Scramble 

Monday January 8th would be our final day in Zihu. We first would visit the port captains office to check out then hit our final lunch restaurant La Terracita which was recommended by our friends on Serenity. The view was excellent and the food was good too. We grabbed a few last minute provisions from Soriana and then headed to the estuary. While expecting to see birds and a beautiful setting that was very far from what was actually there. As we started getting closer to the entrance the smell of feces got stronger and stronger. Since we've lived in Mexico for over a year this smell isn't all that shocking but the pungency of this was something different. It became so bad that I had to cover my nose and mouth. From a distance I saw a bubbling up and some white foam and then the first one appeared - a little brown piece of poop floating in the water. I pointed and shouted to Jeff in total disbelief and as we looked forward there were hundreds of brown floating pieces of poop everywhere. We quickly turned around and got out of there as fast as we could. Time to leave Zihutenajo. 

View From La Terracita

Anchored in Zihua

Entering the Estuary 

Poop Estuary 

Our Friend Onno Anchoring Next To Us

Tidings of Joy at Sundown