Our Final Days in Baja

After leaving Cataviña, we headed to Vicente Guerrero, a longer leg, but much better highway overall.  210 kms took about 4 hours to drive.  This is pretty typical in Baja.  Friends of ours commented that the trip from the top to the bottom of Baja California should take about 20 hours one way, according to Google Maps.

Well, let me tell you, even with good roads, you can average about 45 - 50 kmh. Road construction, driving through towns and slowing WAY down for topes (think of parking lot rumble strips) in towns and schools zones, along with military check points  all bring the average speed down.

We often had to follow a variety of slow moving vehicles before we could find a safe place to pass (unlike local Mexicans who pass up hill around blind corners).  Sonya commented that she wasn’t sure why they even use “no passing” signs down here!

You can probably guess by the picture of the tractor, we were in an agricultural area.

In fact, the covered vegetable and fruit crops stretch on for miles and miles.  Much of the produce lands in the grocery stores throughout North America as the quality is excellent and includes many organic offerings.  The produce is inspected and tested at the border and if there are problems a truck can be held up for days - not good for business, so every effort is made to employ good growing and harvest standards.

While we were at Vicente Guerrero, tail-gunner Dave spotted a field of tempting ripe strawberries that he wanted to raid.  Fortunately, he quickly realized that this may not be the best of plans, given our lack of understanding of the Mexican legal system!

While we saw many beautiful scenes and country sides, there were some areas that needed some attention.  Lisa pointed out this yard as we were driving by.

This reminds me a little of the show Sanford & Son, for those of you old enough to remember.  The difference,  this junk may eventually slide down the hill!

On our second last day, we made it to the Ruta Del Vino, (the wine route) in the Valle de Guadalupe. The drive is very similar to one that you would make as you head south from Kelowna to Oliver to Osoyoos, with entrances to vineyards every few hundred meters.

We were given a tour of the L.A. Cetto winery, the largest one in the area. It was founded by an Italian, Angelo Cetto back in 1928. They have over two thousand acres in the immediate area, with additional locations in Ensenada and Tijuana.  They have more than 300 international first placings for their wines.  In fact, the grapes of the Napa Valley owe much to the original vineyards of the Valle de Guadalupe, because the original NAPA stock came from here.

The fermentation area has capacity to hold more than 1 Million litres of wine.  This is one of four locations for the L.A. Cetto winery, still a family owned organization.

We tasted five of their wines, all of which were excellent.  (Thanks to Dan Goy for the picture.)

Who knew Mexico had such good wines!

You should look for their wines in Canada as well as other producers from the area.   I don’t think that you will be disappointed.

After our tour, we headed back to our campground at Rancho Sordo Mudo, a Christian-based residential school for deaf children in Mexico.
The founders, Ed and Margaret Everett, believed that deaf children did not have to become beggars, and so they teach them to read and write as well as Mexican and American Sign Language, along with a trade for their future.  The work is now carried on by their sons, Edward and Luke.

Sonya spearheaded a collection of food from our fellow campers for the school. It is funded entirely by donations, so our fellow campers were generous in their giving.  (Thanks to Dan Goy for the picture).

Together we were able to provide a dozen bags of groceries as well as a cash donation to assist in the running of the school.

During the night, we heard the rain coming down on our RVs.  Collectively, we all wondered how we were going to get our rigs out of this campground, as the entrance had a steep sand slope from the highway.

Dan lined us up and we each took turns running up the hill onto the highway without, timing our runs between vehicular traffic!  We all made it out in one shot! At the beginning of our tour, Dan promised us “fun" and “adventure", reminding us that these were two separate words.  This qualifies as the latter!

Here are a few photos to give you a taste of our last drive to the border.  As you can see from the first picture, we had more road construction to get through - this time with the added joy of rain and mud!

This has been an incredible experience and we highly recommend Baja Amigos, and here is why:

Travelling with Baja Amigos has provided us with a truly unique opportunity to experience Baja Mexico and to develop an appreciation of its people, culture, economy and geographic diversity.

This opportunity exists because Dan and Lisa:

• have spent years creating and perfecting just the right mix of travel time, destination locations, excursions and relaxation times.
• have created incredible preparation material which is invaluable as you provision for the adventure, something we had never done before.
• run the wagon train adventure with fun, humour, and many opportunities to develop friendships with fellow travellers on the road, all with due regard to safety and security.
• are people of true integrity in all that they say and do, as evidenced by the deep relationships they have with community members wherever we stopped.

All of their qualities make for the very best experience you will ever have.

Dan and Lisa are THE consummate Wagon Masters!

We are all now safely back across the border.

We wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.  We are taking a time out and  will touch base with you again in 2017!

Paul & Sonya

Bahia de Los Ángeles and Cataviña

Driving the Baja involves stopping at military checkpoints with more frequency than you might expect.  These gentlemen come on board to inspect the inside of the RV.  We are not sure exactly what they are looking for, but certainly a part of their inspection is purely out of curiosity as to what the rigs look like inside.

Here is a shot of the military seen up and down the road as we drive.  Yes, they often carry machine guns!

Here is our first glimpse of the bay, followed by a beautiful morning view right outside our trailer.

This is considered one of the most scenic spots on Baja California.

One of the interesting things about this particular beach, is that we have some very lovely, if sometimes noisy, neighbours!  Sonya caught some of them sunning themselves below.

Sonya was chasing these guys up and down the beach trying to get just the right shot.  Sometimes you could swear you could hear them teasing  her saying, “Hah - catch me if you can!”

The evening before we left we had (yet) another Happy Hour.  This one provided extra viewing pleasure because of the near full moon coming up.

The next morning as we were preparing to leave, Sonya caught a spectacular sunrise - one that will stay with us for some time!

The drive to Cataviña was 174 km, which, under normal circumstances, would be a pretty easy drive.  However 108 kms of this drive were complete with some “Dandy Potholes” as described by Lisa, and as evidenced by the following picture with Wayne bobbing and weaving down the road just like Mohammed Ali.

This also included some cozying up to some big rigs.

The outcome of too many of these events can be that your goods, like these tomatoes, just don’t make it to their intended destination!

The only casualty on this part of the drive was that Robert and Corrine lost a wheel cover on their motorhome.  Corrine was at first afraid that one of their bikes flew off the back end.  Luckily this was not the case.

Happy to have made it to Cataviña, we celebrate with another Happy To Have Made It Hour at our rig.

As we are nearing the end of our tour, we thought that we would introduce you to some of our travel mates.

Dan and Lisa Goy

These two are THE consummate wagon masters.  Plus they have written an extraordinary tour / resource book for which even Sonya has no recommended improvements! Dan has such a deep and rich knowledge of Baja he could easily work for the Mexican Government advancing tourism.   Lisa is the radio lady we introduced you to in an earlier entry.  Sonya figures Lisa is so good she could take on a second career as an Air Traffic Controller, but we expect she would only do it in Baja, in the wintertime, near her favourite beach!

Wayne and Anke

Wayne and Anke are from Chilliwack, BC.  These two spent many years in the USA as Wayne went to work for Alaska Airlines after they both worked for Pacific Western Airlines in the Vancouver area (where they met).  They moved back to Canada after he retired.  They have spent years RVing and know where all the great boon-docking spots are located. They have been invaluable in sharing their knowledge about boon-dooking.  They make a cute couple as seen in their picture here.

Robert and Corrine

Robert and Corrine, also from BC (West Kelowna), travel with their steadfast boxer, Bruce, in their Class A motorhome. These two are as approachable as any two people could be and the picture really captures their personalities.  They enjoy our happy hour get togethers to catch up on the day’s events. Corrine is often telling Robert - “hold your line", as the big rigs and buses are passing - especially on the curves.  Yes, I think we all have some version of Corrine’s advise to Robert for those tight spots when you only have 3 inches of the 6 inch wheel hanging on the road.

David

Our fellow Albertan from Red Deer, David recently sold his condo and is a full-time RVer.  The Baja trip is one of his bucket list items.  Sonya noted to me one day that David is the only one among us that does not benefit from the assistance of a co-pilot / second set of eyes on the road (read back-seat driver).  I commented to Sonya, "some of us are luckier than others" - I leave it to you to decide who that may be!

Chuck and Christina

These two hail from Abbottsford and Vancouver and are "travel spouses", as they call themselves. Chuck and Christina are adventurers at heart and have done some incredible touring the world from the time they were young.  They both remind you of the saying - “ the world is your oyster”! They love traveling together and have many future travel plans, including Texas (next), a road trip to Alaska and over to Russia.  They plan on returning to Baja sometime in the next few years as well.

When our rigs are parked close together, Sonya says “Goodnight John-Boy” and Chuck says, “Goodnight Sue-Ellen” (for those of you that remember The Waltons, tv show).

Dave and Deanna

The “youngsters” of this group, these two are as charming as can be and are the life of the party.   They live in Osoyoos where they can enjoy a relatively warm winter and gorgeous environs.  Dave and Deanna have been our tail gunners for a good portion of the trip, making sure that all the ducks are in a row.  Second only to Lisa, Deanna is most often on the radio with, “Is it clear ahead, we have a big rig itching to pass?”


 Larry & Linda

Larry & Linda also hail from BC.  You may recall that Larry was one of the guitarists (actually the lead guitar) of the group Fast Eddie and the Slow Lerners whom we mentioned a couple of posts ago.  Larry and Linda are staying in the Bahia Concepción area until January when they will be picked up by another Baja Amigo tour group.

Tim

Tim was our token American on this tour, which Dan found unusual, as most tours are about 50 / 50 Canadian and American.  Tim hails from just east of San Francisco.  He was a great sport and even tried (albeit in vain) to learn the Canadian National Anthem in English and French as it is often sung at the Grey Cup.  Tim had to learn about real football - 3 downs vs 4, wider and longer fields and one additional player. Tim is a avid cyclist and plans to go to Europe to watch the Tour de France.  He stayed with us all the way through to La Paz, at which point he turned back south when we went North. Dan and Lisa will be picking him up in March.

This has been a wonderful group to travel with, as each helps the other as the circumstances arise, without a moment’s hesitation.  We have enjoyed every day of being with them.

Where has the time gone??  We only have two stops left - Vicente Guerrero and Valle de Guadalupe.
We’ll see you next on the other side of the border.

Paul & Sonya

Mulegé & Guerrero Negro

Mulegé &  Guerrero Negro

After a short drive (38 kms) from El Requeson, we arrived at the Hotel de Serinidad in Mulegé. We are camped in the parking lot - but with full hook ups.  The area is a tropical date palm oasis and the name Mulegé comes for the Cochimi language meaning Large Ravine of the White Mouth, for the river here that dumps into the Sea of Cortes.

Mulegé was once a playground for rich and famous celebrities including such stars as Lucille Balle, Desi Arnez, Fred Astaire, John Wayne and Jane Mansfield (who married her 3rd husband here).  They used to all stay at the Rancho Loma Linda, now abandoned and seen here below.

The stars would arrive via the private air strip, out back behind the hotel.  Unfortunately the developer, Lou Federico, who thought he owned the property since he had purchased and developed the  entire complex, got into an ownership dispute with the Ejido.

Years ago the majority of Mexican land was owned by a very few people.  So, after the Revolution the government engaged in a land redistribution process, creating these “community land holdings - called Ejidos.”  The Ejido is a group of local inhabitants, (somewhere between a communist commune and a first nations reservation in western Canada), who own and administer the land. This arrangement makes ownership, land sales and other transactions complex and unpredictable.

After several years through the judicial process, Lou Federico  lost the ownership claim and the resort now stands abandoned as seen below.  From the picture below,where you seen Dan standing, there is an incredible stonework feature wall that was at the time a continuous waterfall wall.  How grand it must have been!

Below you can see the  incredible tropical backdrop surrounding this beautiful community.  However, the area has had 4 devastating hurricanes / floods in the last ten years!

Apparently, when the palm trees are uprooted by the fast flowing river, they become torpedo-like projectiles running down the river at high speed, causing untold damage and loss of life.  Can you imagine the spirit of this community, to rebuild their town and infrastructure this often?  They truly are an optimistic and determined people!

Next we were off to see the Misión Santa Rosalia de Mulegé, founded in 1705 by the Jesuit Missionaries.  The original structure was replaced by the stone structure seen below in 1766.  In 1768 the Franciscans replaced the Jesuits.  By 1770 the Misión was virtually deserted.  But in 1773 the Franciscans were replaced by the Dominicans!  We have seen this trend in many of the missions in Baja, but don’t know what the underlying rationale for the changing of the guard, as it were!

Being built high on the hill overlooking the town, the Misión continues to serve as a refuge for the townspeople during hurricanes and floods.

On Thursday evening during Happy Hour, a bunch of motorcyclists came roaring into the hotel / campground.  Sonya ran for her camera and said to them, “Line up by your bikes!”, (in her manager / boss voice).  After a puzzled look on their face, they  all complied.

And guess where these guys are from?

You got it - God’s country (or so those of us from Alberta call it!)  These guys had ridden all the way from Las Vegas, and are headed to Cabo San Lucas, where their (much smarter) better halves were flying in to meet them.  They decided to motor on to Loreto rather than staying at Hotel Serenidad, so we wished them Godspeed as they went on their way!

Of course, where there are small children, you find Sonya handing out balloons (globos in Spanish) and me blowing them all up.

But of course, they each get one with smiles all around!

Back on the road to Guerrero Negro - 285 km down the road - or rather up the road - as it is a big climb out of the valley!  The Infierno (Hell) as it is called, has varying grades of steepness, from 6% to 12% at times.  It got so steep that the transmission overheating warning light came on in the truck as we were nearing the apex.  Phew, it cooled down quickly after that, but it was a close call!

Here, we are only about 150 km down the road, and landscape has changed dramatically.

Finally, we found a stretch of straight road!  Woo hoo, put the hammer down (all the way to 80 kmh)!

We got into Guerrero Negro well before Happy Hour.  Check out our new campground - good thing Dan made reservations!

This is just a quick overnight stop before we head to Bahia de Los Ángeles, one of the most scenic spots on Baja California.

See you there,

Paul & Sonya

Lovely La Paz

Having left Pescadero, we headed back north to La Paz, the City of Peace, the last stop on our southern loop.

La Paz is an important regional commercial centre with a population of 250,000.  La Paz was noted for its black pearls which were harvested for over 400 years.  By 1941, the pearl industry had ceased to exist due to over harvesting and disease.  The Nobel prize winning author, John Steinbeck, visited La Paz and based his novel,The Pearl, on his experience in this lovely city.

Sonya took a picture of this lady while sitting in the Nuestra Señora de La Paz Cathedral, which was built in 1871.   The lines of wisdom and experience that give the character to her face belie, or perhaps complement, the inner peace you see here.

Next, Dan says we have to go see the Hotel Yeneka and make SURE you have your camera ready.

As you can see (yes this is indoors in the hotel), this brings a whole new level of meaning to the term eclectic decor! On our way out we met the designer / owner of the hotel.

Although he spoke some English he was clearly more comfortable in Spanish.  Sonya asked where he got the decorating  ideas and he said that he saw them in his dreams.  I asked in Spanish if they were sweet dreams or nightmares.  He answered, “Erotico.”  I will leave it to you to translate.

Next we were off to the whale museum.

The skeletons depicted above are those of small dolphins (delfins) indigenous to the area. Notice the human skeleton - perhaps not as well suited to a sea going life!   We learned that the blue whale is the largest mammal in the world, and no land mammal’s structure could support the size that they become.  To put it in perspective, the tongue of an adult blue whale is as large as an elephant.  Yes, you read that correctly!

As you will know, Sonya is mostly a people photographer and can capture some very interesting cameos of people.

As you look at this man, you can’t help but wonder what his story is.  Unfortunately, he never got to where we were sitting, so we could not find out.  We will leave it to your imagination to fill in the blanks of his life story.

Leaving La Paz, we headed back north through our beloved (NOT) construction zones and narrow winding roads.

After getting through this round, I had to get out my screw driver and go around the trailer and tighten all the screws that came loose. Some screws were sticking out a half inch!  It was a 40 minute job in total!  RV manufacturers should use the Baja road system to test the durability of their trailers - certifying them as “Baja Tested”.

Next stop Puerto Escondido, meaning "hidden harbour”.  Bordered by the Sierra de la Giganta mountains it makes for a beautiful setting.  The marina is a site for a planned resort, hotel, condominium and marina complex.  To date, they have spend US$400 Million, and you can make your own determination as to the  value proposition of the expenditures to date from the pictures.

However, Sonya did manage to get some lovely sunrise and sunset photos.

Leaving here, we went back to Bahia de Concepción, with a stay at El Requeson this time.  En route we stopped at  Mirador Frida, a beautiful look out where I took the opportunity to try another warrior yoga pose and Sonya got to play with lighting in these photos.  It is about 8:30 in the morning.

Back in the truck only to find ourselves on a goat path, well, crossing a goat path at least!

Fortunately, neither goat nor RV were hurt in this encounter.  Compare this to a couple of fellas  who pulled in at 1130 at night, after having had two tire blow outs and hitting a cow!  Thank goodness we have our caravan leaders to show the way!

Another tough day in Paradise, as you can see from below.

The next picture bears witness to how hard it is to travel down here, as Dan, our jefe (leader), takes a much needed break!

Although life seems idyllic from our perspective, it is not all roses here.  This is Rosa.

Dan tells us that she is younger than anyone on our trip, but you would not know it from the story written in her face.  

One of the vendors brought her little boy with her, so Sonya had occasion to give him a punching balloon.

Although his mother did not speak much English, she was able to get across to Sonya that she had another child at home.  Sonya understood and gave her another one to take home for her second child.   Shortly after that, we heard a pop, knowing well what had happened.  Sonya brought out another balloon, this time not inflated, and the little guy came running straight at her, buck naked!  This time mama was not blowing it up until they got home!

On our second day at the beach, we got a group together to go to Taco Tuesday at Playa Buenaventura, the next beach over.  The main reason was to see one of our former travel mates that had previously dropped off (Larry and Linda), to spend the winter playing with his band buddy - Fast Eddie and the Slow Lerners!

This band looks like rockers from the 60s who arrived here in the 70s and never left!  Sonya said that she had to find a set of shorts like the ones on the guy second from the left (grey and yellow sarong pants)!  Watch out Geoff, last time she brought you a Burmese men’s skirt as a souvenir!

While the band was playing, Sonya got a little shopping time in, since she is not a big rocker fan!  She found some lovely wares from this lady along the beach.

Fortunately (for me), she had left her wallet back at the trailer, and this time she didn’t have mine!  Oh well, next time!

Now I am off for a relaxing paddle around the island.

See you next after Mulegé and Guerrero Negro.

Hasta la vista,

Paul & Sonya