ZIHUATANEJO
MEXICO

Zihuatanejo is about 184 miles SE of Manzanillo, 110 miles NW of Acapulco. Well known to cruisers as Z-what or Z-town. This area is a turnaround point for most cruisers that cruise the Mexican coastline. The ones that want to avoid the Gulf of Tehuantepec and the Papagayo winds do not go any further then Z-town.

We arrived late into the season, not many cruisers were around. The surf on the beaches was high at the time. The locals would sit on the beach laughing at the cruisers trying to get to shore in their dinghies. It was like riding a surf board. If you got hit by a wave before you landed on the beach you were doomed. Cruisers were thrown out and dinghies turned over in the water. It was an awful sight some got hurt pretty badly. I’m lucky; Carl can control our dinghy pretty well, when he’s not drunk!

On shore Z-town is a tourists dream, tons of shops and cantinas. In the bay there is a great anchorage. Good snorkeling and scuba diving off Sacramento Reef. It’s a great place to visit, I would return if I get the chance.

I’m not going to write much about Acapulco because we just spent the night there and didn’t go ashore. The fog was real thick and there was a strange smell in the air. So even my pictures didn’t turn out good. It’s real expensive to stay at a marina in Acapulco, so we were going to take a bus back to Acapulco from Z-town to see the divers and see some sights, but it never happened. Maybe next time.