Early the next morning, Perry sailed farther up the Grijalva River to attack the town of San Juan Bautista.

It was noon when Perry's squadron arrived at San Juan Bautista, where it captured five more Mexican vessels and bombarded the town.

Unable to garrison the town because of a lack of men, Perry withdrew to Antón Lizardo, an island just south of Veracruz, Mexico.

Petrita was inactive for the remainder of 1846 and the first part of 1847 due to a coal shortage and violent storms called “northers” which occur during the winter months.

Commodore Conner's plan was to have his large warships tow landing craft from Anton Lizardo to Isla de Sacrificios, a distance of a few miles (kilometers).