We left Zihutenajo with mixed feelings. It was a great place to visit, and very cruiser friendly. And yet with huge swells coming in from the south making the anchorage uncomfortable and just about all our friends leaving for points north, it was time for us move south and follow our plan to see the much talked about but little visited Huatulco.
Our first stop was Acapulco and we anchored in about 12 meters on Isla Rocetta just across from the City. The tidal surge made us feel uneasy about leaving the boat, so after one night of worrying, we upped anchor and took of south again. We stopped and anchored in Puerto Escondido – a renowned surf spot. We don’t surf but it still has a great reputation as a really easygoing place to be and really laid back. Unfortunately, it also has a reputation (well earned we found out) for a terrible place to anchor. The water is really deep (over 50’) to within about 200’ of shore- and the wave break at about 50 from shore. So by the time you drop the anchor and let out rode, the back end of your boat is almost on top of breaking waves. We were within about 20 feet of 6-foot breakers. It was a creepy feeling. We had to swim into shore for dinner and then swim back of course because we could not launch our dinghy so close to breaking waves. Needless to say, we there after just one night. The next day was a one-day affair to Bahia Huatulco.
There is actually no Bahia Huatulco; its true name is Bahia Santa Cruz. Huatulco is a name given to a series of bays – none of which is even named Huatulco. So it can get pretty confusing. The official name is Bahias de Huatulco and officially there are nine of them but you can count 11 if you try hard. The next day we motored into Bahia Chahue where the marina is and moored up; went exploring and found we loved the place just like everyone said we would.
The temperature has not exceeded 90 and the humidity hasn’t either – mostly staying in the 80’s but on a couple of occasions dropping to the 30’s. It is almost like being in Arizona or Texas. The wind comes up every afternoon to keep things from getting too hot and the nights cool down enough, so that by 3am, you need to pull a sheet or blanket over you.
The town of Crucelita is a planned community that officially opened in 1986 and so it comes with underground utilities (mostly until you get into the residential neighborhoods), potable water and a sewer system that actually treats the wastewater and doesn’t just dump it into the bays. That way the bays stay looking great, attract tourists and generate revenue. The whole area has gotten a green globe award from somebody. Thus it appears that Fonatur did its homework after botching Cabo San Lucas, Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, etc. It is truly wonderful here. But it is not cheap like other, bigger cities like Mazatlan.
The town appears to be the favored vacation spot for the wealthy of Mexico. We met many pure Spanish descendants and were dumbfounded that they looked just like us but spoke Spanish and English. It was a first for us. We spent a few days on the boat visiting about half the bays, doing snorkeling, swimming and just kicking back. The week of Semana Santa (the week before Easter and a national holiday week) we stayed by the boat because of all the parties and people going out to all the bahias. The town population grew astronomically. Monday of that week was also St. Patrick’s Day and we found Café Dublin in the morning with a walk around town. Mary asked if they had any live music planned, they said “No”, and then she asked if they wanted some. They said “sure”, so she and Bill from Mita Kulu showed up at 7pm and played Irish music for about three hours. The bar has room for about 20 folks but at one point 50 were inside with wild “sort of Irish dancing” going on. They played again 3 nights later but this time the crowd was only about 8 people.
The minute Semana Santa was over, we boarded a bus for a trip to Oaxaca; one of the oldest colonial cities in Mexico and Central America. The Cathedral there is virtually lined with gold; an amazing site. The zocalo (town square) is almost magical as there are people there all the time, musicians stroll the area playing for whatever anyone wants to pay. We saw a stand alone opera singer, four different mariachi bands, two different pan pipe bands, one amplified marimba band, one marimba solo, a children’s band, a full John Souza band, and whole bunches of live entertainment provided by the various restaurants that line the square. We spent time there every night – watching people, listening to music and enjoying the weather – with an average temperature of about 74 until about midnight.
Letting no grass grow under our feet, the first day was devoted to “church touring” within the City. The second day we went to the great ruins of Zapotec culture called Monte Alblan. Here, on the very top of a mountain, 20,000 people lived while lots more lived down below and did all the work, etc. These folks were gone by about 900 AD. The Mixtecs, who lived there until the Spanish came and conquered them, then occupied the City. Some of the findings are 3000 years old. It is amazing to think of these advanced cultures and what they were accomplishing when virtually nothing was happening in Europe.
Next day found us on a “tour” (for $20 – not bad actually) that included stops at a weaving demonstration, anther ruin – called Mitla, a mescal factory, the world’s largest living biomass, and some pools that drain spring water over the edge of a mountain. We had an English speaking guide until he discovered that he could attach us to another tour guide and then he split without a word. It was an interesting day but one we’d do differently next time. Mitla was the official final resting place for all the great ones from Monte Alblan. The one unique thing about it is that the Spanish did not totally destroy it and so it is very well preserved with stone stories that no one has been able to decipher yet.
Thursday we did museums, art galleries (where a giant statue decided she liked Mike), coffee shops, etc. and of course a trip to the zocalo. Friday, we took the local bus to the town of Ocotlan; about 30 kilometers from town with all the locals. The town is famous for its market on Fridays. We’d been to probably 30 or so Mexican flee markets but we decided to try one more and we were glad we did. This was the first one we’d been to where we found livestock for sale with lots of Turkeys! Apparently, the people in this particular area just love raising turkeys while the whole rest of the country eats chicken. We were the only gringos there and had a great time.
We returned to Oaxaca and took in a free concert in the restored 1850 operahouse. Saturday we shopped for stuff and Sunday did the return trip back to “Huatulco”.
We’ve been working on the boat getting ready for the next adventure – wherever that is. The weather has been warming up – May here is the hottest month of the year – and we’re sure we’ll be gone by then.
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