Ken Bondy - 10-31-2004 at 08:07 PM
The northbound trip home was relatively uneventful. We had breakfast at Guillermo?s, left BOLA at about 9 am and were in El Rosario in early
afternoon. We fueled at the El Rosario PEMEX and were hoping to meet Antonio (Baja Cactus) who owns it, but he was in Tijuana for a few days. The
lobster burritos were muy sabroso at Mama Espinosa?s, and we were on the road again for San Quintin. We checked into the La Pinta at about 3 pm.
I know others disagree, but we like the La Pinta chain, particularly the one at San Quintin. The rooms are large, comfortable, and quiet (masonry and
concrete construction), electricity is 24/7, and you can always count on lots of hot water. Plus the San Quintin La Pinta, in my opinion, sits on one
of the most beautiful beaches in the world. All those things are, to me, worth the few extra bucks the chain charges.
The crab dinner at Cielito Lindo is a ritual for us, and it was particularly good that night. Returning to the La Pinta we sat on one of our
balconies and once again drank some Presidente, smoked some Fuente Hemingways, and solved a few more thorny world problems, but this time to the
soothing sound of the crashing surf in the background.
Next morning saw a 9:45 am departure for Rosarito. I always forget how tough this drive is. The long stretch of mountain road south of Ensenada is
stressful, there always seems to be an eighteen-wheeler coming in the opposite direction around every other blind curve. Plus just getting through
Ensenada is a change of life, particularly after a week in the south. But we made it to Rosarito in one piece and checked into the Rosarito Beach
Hotel at about 2:30 pm.
An overnight stop in Rosarito is another ritual for us on the trip back. We catch up on all the shopping and gifts for those we left behind at the
little covered flea market just north of the hotel. And of course we can never resist a steak at El Nido. All that accomplished, we had a good
night?s sleep and we headed for the border at a civilized 11 am. The San Ysidro border crossing was easy (Monday about noon), and we were quickly
across and back in the USA. Home for us is in the west San Fernando Valley, and we were parked in my driveway at 4:30 pm. The total trip was 1208
miles.
There are a few outtakes (bloopers?) that I didn?t mention, mostly out of embarrassment. But they are haunting me, and they probably need to be told.
So here they come.
On the first morning at Alfonsina?s one of the American homeowners graciously tried to charge one of our batteries with one of those large, rolling
battery charge units. They operate on 110v a/c power and we ran a line from our room to the unit in back. The battery seemed to be taking a charge,
so I decided once again to light off our Honda generator and, with its DC battery charging cable, try to charge the other battery. In the whole
ordeal we really had never charged either battery long enough to see if they could be recharged. Well, detailed engineer that I am, I cleverly
reversed the polarity of the cables. It took the battery about 30 seconds to explode. That?s right, literally explode. It was like a rifle shot,
and it blew about half of the top of the battery right off. That got everybody?s attention, and fortunately no-one was hurt or sprayed with acid.
My second blunder came when someone shined a light into the exploded battery and saw that it had water-filled cells. I had cleverly thought that the
batteries were sealed, and had, in the 1.5 years that I owned them, never thought to add water. So it is highly likely that the whole situation was
caused by my own pilot error, in failing to check and fill the batteries with water. The Hummer is at the dealer now getting new cables and new
Odyssey batteries (plus a spare set that I will always carry in the future).
OK I feel much better now having confessed all that. Anyway, it all worked out, we got home safe, the trip was fabulous even with the battery
mishaps, and the cultural shock of returning to my frantic life in LA is fading. I?m already thinking about my next trip south.
David K - 10-31-2004 at 08:23 PM
Thank you Ken... Your confession will cleanse your soul! Let he who is without (automotive) sin cast the first stone!
[Edited on 11-1-2004 by David K]
Good story Ken,
Mike Humfreville - 10-31-2004 at 08:42 PM
and I'm glad you "fessed up" with the full account. It makes the stories so much more real. I, of course, take full care of all my equipment and
never get caught with a problem I can't take care of on my own. Several might disagree with this absolute lie on my part).
When Mary Ann and I got back from Bahia de Los Angeles a week before you arrived I had, amongst others, pictures of ants building a hill just outside
our cabin door. I watched them for days, of our coming and going and dinners and drinks with friends and camp fires fueled by guitar strings. I took
pictures of the ants morning, midday and night and watched their behavior and wondered why???
When we got home I downloaded the pictures and showed Michael and Kevin.
"That's cool," they both said, "but what's with all the pictures of ants?"
I started to explain and was interrupted. "You have time for ants in Baja," they said. "We care about that there, but we're here now."
Welcome home! Thanks for the wonderful story. I'm glad it (mostly) went well (how could we meet such great folks if we didn't have problems?). I
hope someday we cross paths.
David K - 11-1-2004 at 09:35 PM
Photo of travelpearl (Debra) and Mary Ann, behind them the guys (David Eidell, El Camote, Mike, and Desert Rat) are figuring out how to keep P.O.T.
(Humfreville's truck) from falling apart... Between Gonzaga and Puertecitos. After this photo was taken, the front bumper fell off... Mike never knew
it, when it happened!
[Edited on 11-2-2004 by David K]
If I know Ken...
Mike Humfreville - 11-1-2004 at 11:19 PM
He's got a bunch of photos that document the problematic parts of his trip, batteries, etc. We'd love to see them!
!Andle Pues!
But if not, the shots of the whale sharks were spectacular.