Santiago - 10-28-2012 at 07:45 AM
Hook: if you would, I am curious on how you feel about your decision to retire on the mainland side vrs Baja. It's been a few years now and am
curious about how you feel about?
And would you agree that good pitching beats good hitting?????
Hook - 10-28-2012 at 09:48 AM
Good pitching beats BAD hitting by a mile.
The main drawback to the mainland, IMO, is that the unfenced, open spaces of Baja are pretty rare. So, if you are the type that the land toys are
paramount, Baja is better.
Of course I am a boater/fisherman and I passed the point of wanting to launch my boat each time I wanted to use it. I passed that point, probably at
age 50, in retrospect.
I also dont enjoy getting pounded on lighter boats when the afternoon chop comes up and you're 30-50 miles offshore. I do enjoy the feeling of being
offshore and trolling or baiting fish, moreso than inshore fishing. I require a boat that is certainly too heavy for shore launching. I like the
predictability of a good launch ramp.
So, over here in San Carlos, I launch when the fishing gets good and put it in a slip for a week or two, then yank it. I get to experience the marina
scene for a week or two, stroll the harbor, eat chips and salsa and drink beer while someone I hire cleans my fish. It's never the same person; I
spread it around and it is very appreciated. I never hire a captain, though. I enjoy boating as much as fishing, actually. I'm not paying someone to
take that thrill from me.
Fueling is on the water at a fuel dock. Diesel was 3.19 cents for the good, high sulphur stuff, yesterday.
In San Carlos, a town of maybe 3000 in the summer, maybe 6000 in the winter, there is no shortage of Mexican wrenches who can perform the repairs,
outside of routine maintenance, that I choose not to do. Generally, repairs around town are 40.00US/hour. This is not an inexpensive Mexican town;
that is probably high to some. But when I left SoCal in 08, my diesel mechanic had just raised his rates to 115.00/hour. I'm ecstatic.
Volvo parts (I have an older Volvo diesel) arent plentiful but, being only about six hours from Tucson, there is ALWAYS someone I know coming down or
going up each week, it seems.
So, between the gringo courier service and the stocking of SOME parts, I am not left waiting for weeks for parts.
I have retired comfortably enough, financially, that these expenses are within my means.
The most significant drawback to boating over here, IMO, is the relative lack of islands like Baja has. There isnt a single island over here you can
anchor and explore. For that, we cross to the other side. Takes me about 5 hours, cruising at about 17 knots. We make it a week long affair. Fuel up
in Santa Rosalia and head south, usually.
I would also give the nod on fishing to Baja, but not really by much. Reliable YT fishery in the winter, reliable pelagic fishing in the summer.
Beaching camping on Baja (probably 95% of all my vacations, from 69 to 2000) from the Cape to TJ (mostly at BOLA and Chivato) was great. But when I
started getting close to retirement, I knew I no longer wanted to rough it. And since I retired at what seems like a relatively early age (55), I
wanted to retire in an area with lots of physical and social activities.
San Carlos has been an area for gringo retirees since the 70s. Because of that, retirees have created some great organizations. I remember mentioning
all the activities we had engaged in about a year after we arrived. Ceramics classes, yoga, pilates and zumba, cooking classes, gym memberships,
aquatic exercise classes, horseback riding, ATV "clubs", bicycling clubs, fishing tournaments (not big on those, personally), hiking clubs, golfing
(we have a rather natty course in town), kayaking and on and on. Lots of card playing, too, but I find cards boring. My wife found an outlet for her
desire to teach yoga.
We have three professional baseball teams within 1.5 hours drive. Cheap tix. One is only 20 minutes away.
The one activity I saw missing was my great love; baseball, as most know. So, I started a softball league the first year I arrived and served as the
Commish for it's first three years. Co-ed, slow pitch, modified senor softball rules. It has become WILDLY popular; so much so that we have had to
limit enrollment, even with dues of 150 pesos per year. We play twice a week on a GRASS field on the grounds of the old Club Med!
The league has spawned an incredible amount of progressive appetizer and dinner parties, kayak get-togethers, golf tournaments, ATV rides, etc. I have
had three couples tell me that, until the softball league was formed, they were considering leaving San Carlos. The fun of playing and the social
activities that spun off it are what keeps them here now.
We both love restaurants and there is no shortage here, of any price range. Cantinas, too, of course.
Along with the relative proximity to the US border on a highway that is actually MUCH BETTER than the toll road between TJ and Ensenada, Guaymas is
about 20 minutes away. Just far enough that there is no sprawl in between, really. And close enough to take advantage of shopping like Walmart, Sam's
and Soriana's. Machine shops, big nurseries, chain auto parts, etc. Home Depot opens in less than a month.
Maybe you're getting the picture. I did not want the tough-it-out, off-the-grid, lonely-windswept-beach or jungle-outpost type of retirement. I wanted
a measure of the comforts and activities that I'd gotten used to all my life. I also knew I wanted a relatively warm, sunny environment. That
eliminated all the Pacific coast of Baja and the northern Gulf area in the winter or anywhere that was not on the grid.
So, we have HS internet, water in the street out front, CFE ELE, ETC. Nice to have unlimited water for 230 pesos/month with a vege garden and
landscaping. No water meter.
Easy propane delivery, easy septic pumpout, when needed.
Probably some are thinking that all I did was find a cheap copy of Newport Beach to retire in. But that's not really the case. We live in an area of
1/4 acre lots called Ranchitos Campestre and virtually all our neighbors are Mexicans. We live in what some gringos sometimes derisively call the
Mexican Section of the Ranchitos. Dirt roads, occasional arroyo wash outs, half completed buildings with bare ladrillo exposed. A little more
character than Newport, IMO. We fit right in, I guess. A 33x45 covered cement area with a 35 foot travel trailer and an outdoor kitchen. A 16x22 foot
casita with NO living room. Just a bedroom and a bathroom and bodega area. And then a 32x38 garage with a 16x20 foot palapa on top that is our living
room. It's outdoor living. Less than a mile from the water. I didnt want to live on the water. Attracts too many people walking and hanging out, salt
not good for the garden, everything dank each morning. I like dry air. And SOME privacy.
So, to conclude, I went for AAA; Angling, amenities and activities. I researched and never found a place in Mexico with all this. Mexico was really
the only choice.
-Ajijic/Allende? No ocean. GOTTA have an ocean.
-Sayulita? Gorgeous, but too psuedo-hippy and too far south. No close marina either.
-Barra de Navidad? Mebbe. Never been there. Do they have all these activities?
-La Paz, BCS. Too big and too far south.
-East Cape, BCS? Maybe the closest competition, but the land was too expensive for me and you were basically beach launching and anchoring out, unless
you could afford Muertos, which I cant. I dont think it has the variety of activities or amenities we have here.
-Mulege. This is where we always figured we would retire. But after visiting San Carlos for the first time in 2000 or so, we appreciated the
amenities,the activities and the easy boat towing and launching. Jungle Jims and the odd fishing tournament sounded like the extent of the organized
activities. Not our scene. It was San Carlos after that.
I keep mentioning "too far south". I didnt want a multiple-days drive on a single lane road from the US and I didnt want dependency on an airline. I
guess Hwy 1 just wore me down, eventually.
Now, we have learned that the last commercial flight from the States to Guaymas is being discontinued. We never used it but we know many who did, even
at its exorbitant pricing. Truly, the one thing that has kept San Carlos from becoming much bigger than it is, given its relative proximity to the
border, is this lack of viable commercial air service.
I aint complaining. About any of this.
However, we do leave most years for a couple of months of living on the road in a truck camper in the US. August and September. Fishing seems to drop
off those months, anyway, over here.
Questions, Santiago? I dont want to get too much more under the microscope, though.............
[Edited on 10-28-2012 by Hook]
woody with a view - 10-28-2012 at 09:58 AM
WOW! I bet he's glad he asked!
SR Hook
captkw - 10-28-2012 at 09:58 AM
Hola,,I have the past 4 or 5 yrears had a lot of older custermers move to that area and all have said to me that they need a good boat tech there (san
carlos) and that the only guy there is a drunk and that there is a LOT of gringos boats with no one that has a clue about electronics and how to
repair and service boats with proper tools,parts,know how....... are you saying that there is now a real boat mechanic/tech in san carlos/gmas area
???? K&T 
PS volvo & volvo penta makes the most diesel's in the
world and The best !! when your on the highway and see a semi with the stribe accross the grill thats a volvo !!!
[Edited on 10-28-2012 by captkw]
Hook - 10-28-2012 at 10:15 AM
For the MECHANICAL stuff, there are decent mechanics. Do they have the proper Volvo, Cummins, Yamaha, Honda tool for the job? Not always. They have
their workaround.
For electronically controlled engines (outside of CATs, as there is a dealer in Guaymas), it can be tough. For repair of electronics like like FF,
radar, etc, there are shops.
I think I know who that drunk could be. The three main guys: Luis, Frankie and Omar arent drunks, though. And the skippers on lots of the boats in the
marina, do work on the side.
But remember, greater expertise and parts are only six hours away by car.
[Edited on 10-28-2012 by Hook]
capt. mike - 10-28-2012 at 10:37 AM
Mulege MArv and Cathy moved from Mulege to San Carlos about 2? years ago. they love it there. Had they stayed they'd be mucking out their house for
the 3rd time. Too many floods in too short of spans for their life.
QUETZALCOATL - 10-28-2012 at 10:53 AM
This was a great topic for me and ya all are very informative-thank you. My wife who was born on the mainland side has been pushing that area to
retire. I however am making my case for lower baja having lived in baja-but in this discussion it appears the mainland side has more pros and is
starting to sway me. Thanks again and please have a great day.
comitan - 10-28-2012 at 11:12 AM
Hook,
Now tell us you don't have enough boat buddys!!!
Here they come, need a new forum for San
Carlos.
mexico proper
captkw - 10-28-2012 at 11:17 AM
The big mex is a big mix.................lots of options and is a great place to visit and check out !! baja is nice!! but is NOT the only
option...two different cool safe places... next for me will be chile,patagonia,argentina.............K&T
Santiago - 10-28-2012 at 11:38 AM
Thanks Hook, very insightful. I believe I've told you that my folks wintered in San Carlos in the 80s and early 90s @ Teta Kawi. I think my last
visit there was in 1993. My Dad leased a lot in the same subdivision as you but never improved it beyond putting in the septic and fencing it. He
left his 15' Gregor in the marina all winter, I still have that boat and the original 15hp Yamaha it came with.
I'm an inshore guy that likes skinny water and that makes the midriff area pretty special.
baja winter
captkw - 10-28-2012 at 11:40 AM
Hola, as a oldtimer in B.C.S. I can say that the winters used to be a lot warmer than today !! in 2010 we had the first frost ever recored in on feb
3rd...and belive me when I tellyou I dont do dates,times.....But I will always remember that !! frost is not normal in b.c.s. .....that was wacky !!!
Globle warming my a$$...................K&T
Osprey - 10-28-2012 at 01:25 PM
Patch, you're right. I'm just caught in a time warp. When I moved here I was 58 and able to be bounced around some. Now at 76 I can't abide the rough
seas for most of the winter/spring.
That will all change after the marina is up and running. I'll be dead and gone when the Four Seasons Hotel and the fancy local golf courses open and
the winds are no longer allowed to blow here by order of the resort owners. I could be wrong about the winds anyway since the sales people deny we
have winds right now.
tiotomasbcs - 10-28-2012 at 02:30 PM
Thanks for sharing, Hook. Comfort becomes more important as your old bones start to ache. Soulpatch, the Tropical beauty of your new area is
awesome. Will you be living in a trailer with palapa or do you plan to build a house? I have loved that area since a trip to San Blas many years
ago! I believe another Nomad posts from that area now & then. I live full time after retiring in Todos Santos area. It is a nice community with
lots of good people; even my surfer buddies! Enjoy. Tio
Hook - 10-28-2012 at 03:22 PM
The 16x22 casita is it, although we are considering going UP a floor and making a great room for computering around and the very infrequent TV
viewing. I'd say we average less that 1 hour of TV per week, though. The trailer becomes the sanctuary when wind makes outside living too
uncomfortable. That's rare.
We actually enjoy having o-nite temps that drop into the 40s occasionally. Feels invigorating after all the heat. I have never seen a day time high
lower than 65 in the four years we have lived here. Usually, even in the dead of winter, it's low-mid 70s.
I thought of a few other things that came to be since we moved here.
One is an actual cinema theater in Guaymas. 90% of the first-run films are spanish subtitled, meaning the dialogue is in English. I prefer
experiencing films in a theater. Matinees are about 2.50US and nights are 5.00. Release dates in the US are virtually the same down here. I'm
anxiously awaiting the new James Bond film like some of you probably are.
We also have a very large, honor system library down here. This is not your typical marina lending library with a hundred paperbacks. There is
probably 1500 titles or so. Volunteers man it on its one day per week it is opened. All donated books by gringo residents, all English. I read
probably 10-15 hours per week now. I really love that.
With a fair amount of crop growing going on in the Guaymas valley, we are starting to see local crops being offered to us that are intended for
export. REALLY good corn on the cob, green beans, decent tomatos and many citrus fruits. This gets us through until our garden begins producing in
late December to January.
The place is not perfect. There are quite a few gringos here. Every garden of Eden has it's snakes.
If Canadians bother you, especially, steer clear. We like them. But we cant keep up with them, when it comes to partying. Not a chance. There IS a lot
of partying, no doubt about it. But it's 50+ aged people, mostly. Tame by most standards.