One of those days which does'nt go to plan...................................
I had a nice easy start to the day as we took off south towards Chamala, an easy 45 miles ride down the coast. Lifted the anchor at 7.30 am motored out of the small Ipala anchorage, raised the main with a single reef and waited for El Tiburon , a lovely Tayana 47 to do the same. They soon caught up and off we went followed by another boat from the anchorage. We set lines out the stern to catch a Tuna. Darryl had the audacity to announce today he was going to catch a fish , instead of letting them fall off the line as he normally does.
30 minutes later the plan somewhat changed. El Tiburon announced they had engine problems over the radio. I circle them a few times, with no wind at all. Then they announce they think the engine has seized. Discussions then take place over the options, can't sail anywhere as there is little or no wind. Tow them back to the anchorage................possible but only a temporary solution, go south but Manzanillo is the only place where any work could be undertaken, or tow them back to La Cruz. Only issue with that one is "Cabo Corriantes" and trying to get round mid afternoon, when he winds come up.
First issue , get a tow line aboard. I continue to circle and make up a bridle for the stern of Alex II. Darryl joins a few ropes together, makes up and bridle and I make a slow pass, as I approach their bow Darryl throws me a line. This is quickly fixed to the bridle and we have an unbillical cord between the yachts. We see off in the distance a yacht with both sails up and heading north. We try and call him on the radio to see if there is actually some proper wind further out. Unfortunately he does'nt respond. Darryl suggests we head offshore to give us some sea room and also to see if there is any wind. We slowly, at 2-3 knots get 6 miles offshore and no Wind. We decide to parallel the coast and make for Cabo Corriantes which we estimate t o get to around 2.00pm. This is actually the worst time to try and round the Cape. Anyway we plod along, sea state is OK , some swell but after a few adjustments and putting some anti chafe measures in place we make headway. After 5 hours we draw parallel with the cape and think , Ok once we get into Banderas Bay the afternoon wind should come up and we can probably sail back to La Cruz.
Not today, no wind at all. In some ways this is good because the calm seas make the strain from towing much easier for the boats to deal with but it does mean motoring. I gradually increase the revs to get us up to around 4.0 knots and about 1.0 knot of drive from the main sail, so we are managing between 4 -5 knots. However, this means we are going to hit the busy La Cruz anchorage at 8 -9.00pm. As we get closer we start calling for help. Several boats respond and some are relaying to others. Ben on a yacht called Jace offers to guide us in through the darkness and then jump in his dingy with a strobe to pinpoint the "hole" in the water we are going to anchor El Tiburon in. There are 50+ boats in the anchorage and we are aiming for the outside. The background shore lights make it difficult to spot the anchor lights until we are in pretty close. I switch on the radar and pick out the targets. Ben on Jace flashes his cockpit lights and now we have a target, we edge closer. The plan being to swing around the back and approach the anchorage up wind and on the outside. Ben is now in his dingy and strobing the spot. We slowly make the turn. Engine revs are knocked down to idle , El Tiburn has no brakes. We close up on Ben and El Tib grinds to a halt in the exact spot, drops his anchor and is safe and sound . I make one more circle and drop anchor next to them. Ben zooms over in his dingy and hands me a beer !!!!
After 12+ hours of towing , I was shattered, not really from the activity but from the mental strain of the whole thing. I grab some food, have a shower and sink into my bed. Next morning, Darryl arranges for a Panga to come out from the marina and tow him in. I am circling in my dingy just in case a push is required at the right moment. Within 20 mins El Tiburon enters a slip at the dock with a number of helpers and onlookers. Needless to say the whole thing had been followed the previous night on the VHF radio by most of the anchorage and marina.
So that's 2 boats rescues in the space of two months...................it's time for some plain and simple cruising.
I slept soundly all night and for most of the next day !!!!
Obviously Darryl and Sarah were grateful for my assistance and asked if there was anything I wanted. I settled on a tube of Wasabe. ( scarce in these parts ). Actually they also took me out to dinner and refilled my diesels tanks.

So I am back in La Cruz and planning to head south again , maybe in a week

PS. I asked Darryl how long it took him to undo the knot from my bridle to his tow line.............after 12 hours of pulling a 47 foot boat , it had pulled pretty tight..........................he answered with a smile 30 minutes !!!