I fell asleep to the coyotes howling and woke with the morning doves. The night was quiet and the moon lit our surroundings. While having breakfast, the couple we gave our extra fish to came over to chat. This was not his first trip down the Baja and gave us some good information.
Baja is this amazing strip of remote land. It's crazy to think that not far to the North is some of the most expensive property in the US. The entrepreneurial spirit is alive here, but there's just not enough tourists to sustain most businesses.
Traveling is slow even on the paved sections. You find yourself driving on everything from nice wide bike shoulders to rally car driving curves with no shoulders.
To get to our destination for the night, we would experience the unpaved section. A piece of Road called Hwy 5, was never completed with asphalt. The RVs are few and far between. This section reminds us of the wilderness and freedom of Alaska. Minus the bears, salmon, and water.
Just South of the next military checkpoint the payment ends. Apparently funding was cut after the bridges where complete. Hwy 5 turned into multiple roads that intertwine. The intersections were barricaded for the most part although locals have come out and removed some of the dirt and gravel piles to allow everyone to use the new road. Think of it as a choose-your-own-adventure. We would pick the least rocky forks in the road. It's odd to be driving a single lane sandy road below a new bridge and gravel road. We saw the impact of a low clearance car on a rock and followed the oil drips to a family of 5. We gave them extra water and paper towels and waited with them under a bridge until a semi truck came by for the father to hitch back to the military crossing.
A few miles farther was Coco's Corner. A rest stop in the middle of nowhere. An old crusty Americano with 2 missing legs greeted us. He came down here in the 1950's and never left. Bras and women's underwear line the walls and ceilings. Beer cans strung together creates his property fence. He offers food, cold drinks, and a free safe place to camp if you miss judge your travel time to the next town.
The multiple road choices continue. We cringe seeing the few RVs and trailers that attempt this crossing. One caravan was pulled over with a flat tire. The semi trucks don't seem to mind. Have you ever seen a semi drive on a sandy road? We made a poor choice choosing a fork and sound ourselves needing to maintain a higher than normal speed through the deep sandy curves. Lola slid in the sand. Baby powder sand engulfed the car including the windshield. Happy to have AWD and a higher clearance SVU.
We made the crossing back to Hwy 1 and stopped at a pullout for a quick lunch. We have lost our Baja guidebook somewhere in the mess of the car and didn't know where the next town was. Turns out, the next restaurant was 10 miles away. There was Swedish couple there who were taking a break while cycling the length of Baja. They had already been down to Cabo and now zigzagging the peninsula. I gave them some clementines and bananas.
Another military checkpoint... I had no idea there were so many. No complaints about those. It makes me feel safe. The soldiers are friendly. The questions are the same. Where did you come from? Where are you going tonight? They don't ask for identification, but do have you open all the doors of the vehicle. They enjoy helping us pronounce the name of towns and aid our limited Spanish.
Jesus Maria, the next drive thru village had the best restaurant we have seen so far. Too bad we were starving and had a crappy veggie wrap in a turn out earlier. Our car is so full of crap that we lost our guidebook, but did remember that Coco told us to get gas here because the gas in Guerrero Negro was bad. As usual someone was there to pump your gas and wash your windows. Seems to be a tourist thing because the locals don't get the Same treatment. A guy pulled into the station in a small truck with a horse in the bed! No trailer. Just a truck bed with a fence around it and a horse inside.
The last few miles into town kept Shadow on his toes. The potholes are hard to see from a distance. Even though you can drive a decent speed, you need to slow down for the potholes.
Upon entering Guerrero Negro, we passed a agricultural check point. You are suppose to give up all your fruit here. We didn't realize that. We lost the book, remember. The soldier let us through with our clementines, but requested a required donation to have your car sprayed.
Our plan was to stay in an actual RV park in town, but it was not exactly what we were expected. Super small sites and loud street noises. It was the only one in town. Noise is a much bigger deal in a tent than an RV. The owner Tom told us we could camp on the beach about 20 miles away. A quick stop at the grocery for dinner items and we were off for a nicer place.
In order to get to the camping area you had to pass through the largest salt mines in world. Natural estuaries fill with salt water during the daily high tides and evaporate leaving salt for workers to scoop up. Driving in you would swear you needed a winter coat. The whole area looked as though it was covered with 3 inches of snow. The salt was that white. We we stopped at the security gate where they took our names and vehicle plate number. Another 10 miles on a salty road lead us to the beach. Thatched roof cabanas lined the road with fire rings and garbage cans. This was more like what we wanted.
Our tent barely fit inside the cabana, but with the wind this evening we wanted some protection. As the sun set the wind calmed. Steamed cabbage wedges, cornbread cakes, and the thinnest pork chop slice you have ever seen grilled with garlic and onions. A perfect dinner under the stars.
The mice came out after dinner looking for scraps.2 house mice and a larger hamster looking thing with a curled tail 3 times longer than its body. His short arms and big back feet made him look like a miniature kangaroo.
No comments:
Post a Comment