Ixtapa - Zihuatanejo, Mexico | Zihua-Ixtapa . com

History, Archaeology and Photos

Zihuatanejo, circa 1970

Looking toward road to La Ropa, 1969

Zihuatanejo background

The name Zihuatanejo stems from the Nahuatl "Cihuatlan", meaning "the place of women". In pre-Columbian times, the Tarascan leader "Calzonzin" settled in the area and constructed the rock barrier on Playa Las Gatas (named for the harmless whiskered cat sharks found there) to provide a sheltered swimming area and harbor for the women and children, and that barrier continues to protect the beach to this day. With the arrival of the Spanish, the name Cihuatlan was transformed first into"Ciguatan" and then into "Ciguatanejo". Zihuatanejo’s current name form has only been in use for the past couple of centuries.

Above: Las Gatas, circa 1970. Visit Las Gatas as it looks today...

Over the years, Zihuatanejo was a often a stopping point and haven for Spanish fleets, pirates and privateers. It was known largely as a fishing village through the late 1800’s, and in the 1920’s the export of fine woods from the area began to augment the local economy and attract more people to the region.

Through the 60’s and a large part of the 70’s, Zihuatanejo continued to be a sleepy fishing village, frequented by a very small number of tourists who were looking for, and found here, the uncut jewel of the true Mexican atmosphere rather than the glitter of the larger resorts that were rapidly developing in the rest of the country.

In 1968 the Federal Tourist Agency Fonatur began developing it’s project for what today is Ixtapa in what formerly was a large coconut plantation. It lies some 6 kilometers to the north of town and is separated from it by a hill. Despite Ixtapa’s proximity, Zihuatanejo has retained much of it’s original flavor. Since it’s first hotel was constructed in 1971, Ixtapa now offers approximately 4,000 units of accommodation, as opposed to slightly over 1,000 in Zihuatanejo itself.

 

Before the advent and growth of Ixtapa, a small airstrip was located back of town, near the water control canal (which didn't then exist), between Zihuatanejo proper and the neighboring town, Agua de Correa. Those were the days it took 6 or 8 hours to get here from Acapulco, and most of the bridges along the highway were non-existent - river fords, back then, were the way to go and of course we never dreamed of driving here during the rainy season. Those were also the days when, upon arriving at Agua de Correa from Acapulco along the coastal road, we always felt grea, great t relief - Agua de Correa was the LAST TOWN before hitting Zihuatanejo it was the sign that we were only 15 minutes away from and our beachdestination itself!

 

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Old Centro Zihuatanejo

Downtown Zihuatanejo in the late 60's and early 70's, was, for the most part, an unpaved collection of a few blocks along the bay shore and the road leading into town. The main landmarks in town at that time were the pier, the basketball court and the open-air movie theater situated on Cuauhtemoc Street.

 

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Old La Noria

Anyone who visited Zihuatanejo prior to 1999 will have seen the old footbridge that forever gave direct access to the people of the La Noria and Puerto Mio to the downtown area, who otherwise would have had to walk around the whole stretch of backwater.

Built of wooden planks on crude stilt poles sunk into the entrance to the backwater that is said to one day be converted into a Marina, the footbridge, back in the 60's and 70's, was always surrounded by fishermen pulling in their catches and repairing their nets. A particular memory of crossing this bridge during those years was to see very large catches of hammerhead sharks stacked beside it.

In the spring of 1999, this wonderful bridge was replaced with a modern concrete overpass allowing small boats to pass underneath. 

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Old La Madera

La Madera Beach, circa 1970. Madera Beach today

Madera Beach, separated from Playa Municipal (Town Beach) and Playa la Ropa on either side by rocks and crags, earned it's name from a lumber yard that once was stationed there, milling tropical hardwood lumber for export.

The below series of photos shows Playa Madera between approximately 1970 and 1972, when Madera Beach was actually "on the outskirts" of town rather than being surrounded by buildings and commerce as it is now. Back then, access was gained from town by walking along a rough and dusty footpath over the small hill. Hotel Irma existed and a couple of the first bungalow rentals were also in existence, but still, it was a solitary beach somewhat removed from town. At the time we were here then, going to La Ropa was almost too hard and far to reach... there was basically nothing there except for a couple of simple enrramadas, stretches of long, solitary, white-sanded beach and a long, dusty unpaved gravel track to traverse to get there.

 

Photos from 1972