I had always wanted to travel to Manzanillo. In my minds eye I saw rustic fishing villages, a few small hotels, endless white sand beaches....in fact, this is where the movie "10" was filmed! When we rounded the west corner into Bahia de Manzanillo with the white stucko of Los Hadas wrapping itself around the sloping hillside, it had the look of a Mediterranean village. Beautiful! The anchorage was tucked in a small nook of the bay just outside of the Los Hadas marina, surrounded by what seemed like one sprawling resort with a beach here and there. Larger hotels and more beach continued it's way a few miles around to where it merged gradually with the industrial life of Manzanillo. When dreaming of visiting here, I must have been in denial about the large commerical port located at the east end of the bay!!!

During our stay here, we enjoyed great times with friends, swimming in the pool everyday after school, playing volleyball, and the close proximatey to laundry facilities and grocery stores were convenient. Rick & Sydney even went on a zip line excersion into the jungle with a few other boaters! But after a week, we were anxious to leave the constant smog and red smelly water that had rolled in and made the bay uninviting. A quiet cove was calling our name.

We found one of those places where you can just be. The book you can't wait to finish sits on your lap unopened and without notice. No commotion from the boat. Everyone is in their own personal space. I am noticing the color of the water, the swell of the ocean as it gently lifts our boat up, and puts us down, before continuing on & eventually I hear it crash against the steep pebbly beach and surrounding rocks. We swing subtly, back and forth on the anchor chain, giving us a changing perspective from the cockpit. This is Carrizal. An isolated, uninhabited cove just around the corner from Manzanillo. It reminds us all of a favorite gunk hole in the San Juan islands, with a few obvious exceptions. No wet suits required to jump into the 80 degree water. On opposite sides of the cove are magnificent coral reefs, providing us with the most vibrant colors and vast array of sea life we've seen so far. We shared the cove and enjoyed snorkeling & happy hour with our Washington friends aboard Pearl, Harmony, and Wades Away.

It doesn't get much better than this!