Spring Break '08 trip report y fotos

We spent not enough time in Baja for Cody’s Spring break. She and I left San Luis Obispo Friday morning at O’dark thirty and made great time through L.A. and San Diego. We bought pesos in San Ysidro and after topping off with diesel in Maneadero we pulled into the house in Punta Banda at 3pm. After paying $4.19 per gallon in the states, it’s refreshing to fill the tank for under $70. Dern had come down the week prior for the race, so he had everything for our drive to Bahia ready to load when we got to the house.

It felt good to be home.

We pulled into Bahia on Saturday afternoon and left early the following Thursday morning. First things first, we stopped at Herman’s as Cody hadn’t seen him for over a year. It was a short visit with Herman this trip as he ended up heading north for doctor’s appointments.



After touching base with Herman, we headed out to the trailers where EGL y Barb met us only a half hour after our arrival. They were headed up from Playa Rafael and stayed with us for two days before heading north. The five of us regrouped and drove back into town to catch the end of the rodeo. Pepe spotted us right off the bat. Got to see a few of our fishermen friends and watch the last 6 or 7 bulls do their thing.







Sunday we all took a stroll over to Campo Gecko to say hi to Bedman and Emma. Beach Bob and Shadow walked up and joined our group on the patio. We heard there was a west wind before we got there so we cruised though camp. Everything looked like it was pretty much in tact besides Doc’s garage door.

We had a great visit with our camping company, star gazing, betting on the moon, alluvial fans, the rescue of the "Semi Hard", and Barb’s gourmet meals. We were sad to see them go, but will touch base again in a couple of days.

We finally found ourselves in Bahia at the same time as Mary Ann and were glad to see her, Virginia and Esperanza when they stopped by the trailers. Monday morning Mary Ann and Dedo surprised us by walking over to the trailers as we were on our way over to her house. Cody joined us from her daily tide pooling and we had a nice visit.

Cody found some cool animal friends this time around.



She couldn't find this crab in any of our tide pool books.



Monday – Wednesday we held office hours with Pablo, John and Beto from 2pm till 4pm. The meetings are held at Casa Diaz and all matters of the town business are discussed. We would usually check out the fish cleaning station around this time, but the town was quiet. Most people, those camping on the beaches in town, left on Easter Sunday.

Beto is in his mid 40s. He can be heard shouting, "Mama! Papa!" from the days of Papa Diaz.




Tuesday morning we were treated to a Humpback whale passing by. The treat was further enriched when it breached five times as it made its way across the bay. No photos were taken as it was one of those special treats that would have been missed while running for the camera. The water was glassy all day Tuesday, not a hint of wind with temps in the upper 70s. We knew if we left the panga at home, the weather would be beautiful, and it didn’t disappoint us.

Georock hosted an enjoyable evening around the campfire on Tuesday night. There was a game played in which Dern won a $100,000. We taped the winning bill on the wall of our trailer for a keepsake while we wait for the perfect time to spend it on something baja special.

Wednesday we did our Daggett’s drive through to check on our dirt lot on Cardon Lane/way/road, and then spent an hour out at La Gringa. Cody hadn’t been there for a while and was missing the rocks, small shells and the lagoon.



Wednesday night was spent at Pablo’s house for dinner with his family and “Napkin Boy” a two year old who found himself crawling across the dinner table with our group while his mother was in the other room. Once the town electricity came back on, Pablo made a killer cheesy chicken dish with Bob’s Blue Cheese dressing, a real treat in Baja. We talked about all things construction, solar, concrete and heavy equipment connections in town for refurbishing our trailers aka “our resort property” or as we fondly refer to it, "Rancho de Trailer Trash", in the near future. We joked about Dos Pino’s proposed roof top disco and how Pablo should charge for the music from his patio when it becomes the after hours overflow party spot.

Unfortunately Thursday came too quickly. We didn’t have enough time for the days to blend into one on this trip. We were packed and pulling away from the trailers by 6:45 am and back in Punta Banda by 2:30pm, after a failed mordida stop in Catavina and a quick stop for a late lunch/early dinner at Recreo in Maneadero.

We spent the last 2 days of our trip taking care of “stuff” around the house, hooked up with Dennis for another much too short visit (thank you again for the Noche Buena), took in a Sociedad de Vecinos monthly meeting, and passed on the annual Gordo’s Crazy Hat party. We can’t have too much fun the night before hitting the road stateside.

Tomorrow, Sunday, we will load up, each in our own truck and head for the border. I hate having to travel in two vehicles, makes for a quiet ride. We have to stop off in San Diego for a three hour diversion, so it looks like a trip to Squidco, our favorite toy store, and hopefully a visit with good friends is going to help pass the time.

It was a good trip, too short as always as there never seems to be enough time when we’re “home”.

A few more photos:

Rancho de Trailer Trash:


How many more West winds can this post stand?


Who's been eating my cardon?


Our camp Mascots. The birds have built a nest in the dolphin eye.


Last but not least, the sealion car.


The End.
P<*)))><

Posting so many great photos