The 29th cold front of the year heavily affected nautical activity in Cancun and Cozumel over the weekend. The harbor master in Cancun issued a warning on Saturday recommending that vessels under 40 feet in length restrain themselves from leaving their respective docks. For tourists, this effectively meant that most catamaran, and snorkeling trips particularly to Cozumel from Cancun were canceled.
Although, if they still wanted to travel to the island they could do so. As ferry services to Cozumel, and Isla Mujeres continued to be available. Through the weekend, though, the ferry services also saw a significant drop in the number of tourists that used their services to travel to Cozumel and nearby beaches.
Around 350 smaller commercial boats have remained docked from Sunday afternoon onward due to the recommendations made by local authorities. This effectively meant that virtually all of the finishing, and scuba activities that are popular around Cozumel, and Isla Mujeres were a no-go.
In fact, boats that had taken tourists out on tours Sunday morning were forced to return to land. By around 2pm local time there were no recreational boats out at sea in the Isla Mujeres bay area. The authorities have extended the warning to bar boats under 40 feet from sailing out to sea on Monday. The local marine secretary predicts that wind gusts on the open sea will reach up to 34mph. Waves at local beaches were also expected to reach heights of almost 10 feet.
What This Means For Tours & Ocean Activities For The Coming Days
Local authorities anticipated that the rough weather conditions would continue for at least 72 hours from Sunday afternoon onward. However, they tend to evaluate conditions day by day as things develop. Currently, the red flag warning remains embedded on Isla Mujeres, and Cozumel beaches.
No boat smaller than 40 feet has been seen in open waters around those areas since Sunday morning. As things stand right now, it seems that the current recommendations by local authorities of no boats under 40 feet in the water will remain the same at least until Tuesday.
Isla Mujeres authorities have outright banned all recreational water activities in the bay. This includes fishing, snorkeling, and the presence of sail boats in the area. While also extending warnings to boats over 40 feet. These warnings were not taken lightly even by local shipping companies who presumably sail on boats that are larger than 40 feet in length. With the local company Transcaribe, canceling all of its planned trips from Cozumel to Punta Venado.
The current conditions don’t necessarily indicate that activities for next weekend will be canceled as well. In fact, there has been no indication of what to expect from the weather beyond Tuesday.
It’s Not All Bad News For Tourists
The weather may have canceled scuba trips all around the area. That doesn’t mean though, that the bad weather can’t bring good news. For one, despite the high winds, and waves, there’s no heavy rain expected in the area over the next few days. Still, certain spots could get some light showers.
This type of weather though, is said to be highly beneficial to the local fishing industry. Since the winds and the tide tend to force lobsters to migrate towards the designated fishing areas.
Local fishermen, though, are going to have to wait until Wednesday, at the very least, to head to sea, and collect their traps. As we’ve mentioned the current recommendations made by the harbor master of no boat under 40 feet out in open waters are potentially going to remain in effect at least through Tuesday.
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