Date:         Mon, 2 Apr 2012 15:53:45 -0700
Reply-To:     mark drillock <mdrillock@COX.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         mark drillock <mdrillock@COX.NET>
Subject:      Trip Report, Baja Whales 2012,part 3, no mas....
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After the the spell of the fabulous sunrise had waned it was time to
take the tandem kayak down and go for a paddle. Rich and I headed out
into the shallow cove formed by the sand spit and then we went around
the backside of the island that the spit connects with unless the tide
is high. We mostly paddled along the outer edge of a dense kelp that
clung thick in the shallows, spotting some tropical fish and a few
skates as well. In the deeper water on the back side of the island we
saw darker fish and a few fleeting shadows of larger ones. We came
almost full circle around the island and then carried the kayak over a
narrow part of the spit to rejoin our little cove. We parked the kayak
low on the beach to encourage others in the group to have a go, which
everyone eventually did.

Relaxing under the palapa we read and chatted and just watched the show.
A van pulled up behind us and a blanket vendor hopped out and opened his
slider to display his wares. We shook our heads and said no but that
made no difference to him. He spoke english pretty well and had a
polished banter that would have served him well at many sales jobs in
the US. His stuff looked better than I expected and he dug out colors
and patterns to match what he could see of our vans. I was slightly
surprised that no one bought anything and he finally left while
promising to return in half an hour. A little while later another car
pulled up and a vendor with different merchandise gave us a try. This
time a sale was made. Happily, that was the end of it other than the
first guy driving by again later and saying something I didn't catch.

Near lunch time a newish VW Jetta with Mexican plates slowly cruised by
and down to the end of the beach, clearly looking to camp but finding no
available palapas. As they were coming back by to leave I stepped out to
see what was what. Seeing just a young Mexican couple and with no music
blaring from their car I used my crude spanish to offer them one of our
two palapas since we really were only making much use of one. I moved my
van way around to the other side of our camp and the young couple
settled right in to the end palapa where I had been. They had a lot of
gear in that car and spent some time setting up a tent and arranging
things just so, speaking little to each other.

I'm not sure where all the day went but I had a nice long siesta that
helps explain that. The Mexican couple walked back from somewhere
carrying swim fins and some scallops they had caught for their dinner.
Our Kyong showed off a nice bucket of fresh clams, having tested the
waters the day before and found them to her liking enough to gather even
more this time. Rich set up his shower again and I had one, happy to
rinse off the sand and salt of the last couple days. We all sat around
the fire once more, with everyone sharing details of their lives and
relationships as the night got slowly dark.

In the morning we packed up and got our usual early start, needing to do
so in order to make our next intended camp with plenty of daylight. We
stopped outside of Mulege for gas and then swung into the town for some
baked goods and to change some money. A couple hours later we had
navigated up the steep hills to the plateau of San Ignacio and I led the
pack into a semi-famous RV park/cafe/bar/motel called Rice and Beans
Oasis. The place was pretty dead since it was mid-morning and I dickered
with the bartender for 5 hot showers, getting him to cut his first price
by almost half. It cheered him up slightly when I asked whether the
kitchen would be open for any of us to have an early lunch after
showering. It would be and so we did. It all took a while and afterward
I talked to the group about the schedule. I knew there wasn't really
enough time to make it out to the nice camping beach at Punta La Gringa.

Freshened up by the long hot showers and decent food, we hit the road
again and immediately came to the notoriously slow army checkpoint just
at the north edge of town. There was a small line of cars ahead of us
and nothing was happening in any hurry. When my turn came they all but
waved me through without a word and then spent a lot of time on the rest
of our party. Determined to make up some time, we drove the next several
hours without any stops until just past the Guerrero Negro turn-off when
the vast swaths of purple flowers coloring the normally dismal desert
there made me stop. We got a few photos and stretched our legs before
continuing. Another gas stop and another checkpoint stop before we
finally arrived at the turnoff for Bahia De Los Angeles. I pulled over a
couple miles later to talk again about the schedule. There simply wasn't
enough time to make it to the beach camp much before dark and since we
needed to get back on the road early the next day there wasn't going to
be time to enjoy the place. We could either turn back now and continue
north or stay on the road to the bay long enough to see the spectacular
views of it from the overlook before finding a place to camp near the
road. A show of hands decided it, a look at the Bay of Angels was on.

About a half hour later the great bay came into view and we pulled over
into the view point area to get a good look. I was happy to see that the
lighting was very favorable and we spent some time getting photos of the
pretty islands in the distance. This bay is one of my favorite Baja
camping places and I have been out to all the islands in my inflatable
boats. It has been designated a National Marine Park of Mexico and a big
marina development project was stopped, in part due to international
environmental protests.

We drove the short remaining distance to the edge of town to fill our
gas tanks and then turned back the way we came, watching along the way
for a place to pull off and rough camp in the desert. We found one most
of the way back to the main highway and we settled in as darkness fell.
A million stars came out but we went into our vans calling it an early
night after dinner. The night was very quiet and before dawn I awoke
with the sense that fog had rolled in or something like that. It was
misty out and everything was very wet. I went for a walk and tried to
get a good photo of our impromptu camp as it got light out. Enough stuff
was sticking to my shoes to make me believe it had rained during the night.

We struck out early once more, this time for the border and then home.
On the main road we encountered a truck accident at a bad curve and then
another and another. I guess it really had rained during the night, at
least enough to cause trouble. The sky looked like more was coming and
as we neared Ensenada it did. We stopped there to get our last tanks of
$3 gas and then high winds kicked up as water fell from the sky in
buckets. At one of the last toll booth stations we stopped to use the
restrooms and say our goodbyes as the border was not far ahead. But when
we got off the toll road and headed along the border fence for the main
crossing the access streets ahead were too flooded and being blocked by
a police car. We were diverted into Tijuana, to somehow try and find our
way in the flooded streets there. We tried a few streets and made some
u-turns when we couldn't tell how deep the water was. Finally we wound
around and found ourselves in line to cross, a few blocks from the
bridge that leads to the border guard lanes. The lines of cars simply
didn't move. Something was wrong. I finally got out and spoke to the
others, saying I was going to get out of line and go to the other main
crossing point inland a few miles. Everyone wanted to stay with me so
off we went to find our way again in the streets of TJ. Somehow we did
it, everyone staying together as I twisted and turned following a few
signs and my memory from some years before. We got into a line where we
could see the border guards ahead and it moved steadily. We got through
one by one and waited ahead on the US side for the last van, only to
hear by radio that they were headed for secondary inspection so we all
went our separate ways.

It was a fine trip and ended too soon. I am planning to do it again next
March, maybe for a few more days or even an extra week. Thanks to  all
who made the trip into a fond memory of friendly times. Special thanks
to James V for his talented use of his camera to help chronicle our
adventures.

https://picasaweb.google.com/chimivee/BajaMarch2012#5721782974679929938


Mark