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After leaving Chula Vista, we made our way to meet our group at Potrero, about 10 minutes north of our Mexican border crossing at Tecate, BC (Baja California, not British Columbia).
Our tour leaders, Dan and Lisa Goy pictured below, are from the greater Vancouver area and have been leading these tours since 2008. We are their 25th tour to Baja California!
One of our colleagues mentioned that they had only been on Mexico All-Inclusive vacations. Dan pointed out that this too is an all-inclusive trip - we are Included with All the Mexicanos!
Most of our companions (5 couples) are from British Columbia, Dave from Red Deer, and Tim from east of San Francisco.
After having our orientation pow-wow, we geared up to depart Tuesday morning! As can be seen our wagon train clogged up the border. The border guard asked to inspect our trailer. The inspection came to an abrupt completion when she opened the pantry and Sonya’s multitude of tea boxes proceeded to all fall toward her. "OK, you can go", was all she said and we were on our way!
Upon entering Ensenada, we started with what every good trip should start with - a stop at Costco!
Sonya bought 6 huge avocados for $2 - now what? I reminded her we were in a trailer. Here is the solution for you Northerners (should you ever actually get 6 ripe avocados) - peel, mash and add a bit of lime, lay flat in a zip lock bag, remove as much air as possible, and freeze. Yup, works like a darn.
The private security guard touring the parking lot at Costco knows Dan well, and patrolled around our rigs constantly to be sure that no one untoward disturbed them!
Our campground at Punta Banda was about 15 minutes from Costco in Ensenada. Ensenada is one of the only deep water ports in the state of Baja, California and a large tuna farming area. We got settled in and then jumped in the Van for our first excursion - a trip to La Bufadora. This blowhole is actually one of the largest marine geysers in the world. This geyser is caused by the breaking of waves against a cave that is at the bottom of the cliff, reaching a height of up to 65 feet.
Wednesday, we were given a quick tour of the old Riviera (now a cultural centre), shown below, which opened in 1930 as the Playa Ensenada Hotel and Casino.
The opening act in the ballroom was none other than Bing Crosby and the Xavier Cugat Orchestra, including a singer Margarita Carmen Cansino (later known as Rita Hayworth). The hotel was owned by Jack Dempsey and his financial backers. Al Capone was rumoured to be a silent partner. Playa Ensenada was a big hit with the Hollywood crowd until the repeal of Prohibition in the USA in 1933. Quite the history - if those walls could talk!
Next we stopped by Cantina Hussong’s (established by German immigrant Johan Hussong), where the Margarita was invented by bartender Don Carlos Orozco. He made the cocktail for Margarita Henkel, the daughter of the German Ambassador. As the sun was not yet over the yardarm, neither of us chose to have a Margarita. Hussong’s was among the earliest liquor establishments in Ensenada. Their liquor license was and still is #002.
Next stop the fish market - check out the size of those tuna!
Thursday morning we were off to our next destination - Lazaro Cardenas, 210 KM from Ensenada - 4 1/2 hour drive. Along the way, we had an “ Interesting" drive through extensive road construction. Glad we had some basic training with all the Anthony Henday work in Edmonton this summer. However, only occasionally did they have flag people, and we never did figure out what they meant as they would just wave their orange flags at everyone going every direction! It is the only interstate highway we have ever seen with speed bumps and potholes causing you to drive from side to side. The trip brings a whole new meaning to “Share the Road", check out the pics.
Saturday morning November 12 (Happy Birthday Mia!), we were off to Cataviña. Our guide, Dan, gave us instructions that morning. He said that the road is narrow, so your first job is to keep your right wheels on the road! If your right wheel goes off the road, you are off the road and that is the end of your trip! Very comforting words, as you can imagine! His second rule was to stay on your side, as you have to share the road! We went through 2 military check points, one chap inspected the bedroom and said it was very nice! Sonya, feels it is all due to the matching comforter and toss cushions - she is feeling vindicated!
Seen below is one of the better stretches of our road.
Here you can see, we were sharing the road with cars and big rigs alike! As we neared Cataviña, Lisa advised us by radio that we were entering the Cataviña Boulder fields. Although the pictures do not do it complete justice, these should give you a bit of a sense of what we saw.
Time to say hasta leugo for now,
Paul & Sonya