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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65287
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Skipjack Joe
billabong - a stagnant pool of water.
tucker bag - bag for carrying food.
jumbuck - sheep.
Lots of billabongs in baja. |
Good ones... I remember another: 'Barrow' (sp?) for a ball point pen... It was the name of the company that made them... like saying Kleenex for
tissue. I guess it was like Bic, here... only we never ask for a Bic when we need a pen.
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lofty
Junior Nomad
Posts: 31
Registered: 1-30-2009
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Its a"Biro pen" ok enough of the Australian slang. You are starting to make me home sick, if you keep it up, it will end up costing me a plane ticket
home. Anyway here are some that may relate to" Baja"
"back o' Bourke" - any remote isolated place
"Backwater" - an unsophisticated, remote place
"Bash" - party
"Bender" - a drinking binge
"Bend the elbow" - drink excessively
"Black stump" - a non-existint place in the middle of nowhere
"Cactus" dead,broken,ruined
"Earbasher" - boring person who talks incessantly
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65287
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Those are good ones lofty!
When did you leave Oz? Are you in America, now?
Do you miss ginger beer?
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Natalie Ann
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2819
Registered: 8-22-2003
Location: Berkeley
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| Quote: | Originally posted by BajaWaverunner
If you have no reservation when you arrive, Antonio is 100% guaranteed to tell you that there are no rooms available even if the place is deserted.
As you start to leave he will magically have a room that comes a vailable but it is best to avoid his BS by having a printed confirmation with you.
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I disagree with the 100% guarantee you suggest. I have stayed at Alfonsina's many times over the years. Never ever had a reservation, never ever had
Antonio do anything other than greet me as a old friend and offer me "my" room - and yes, he remembers which room I prefer if I'm traveling with one
other person and which room if there are 3 of us. He also ok'd having a small dog in the room once so long as dog was not on the bed.
Even if Antonio does like to play the game you suggest with some folks... what's the harm in sitting down and having a beer until your room
'magically' turns up? Lighten up a bit and trust the situation. I guarantee it's a great way to vacation in Baja.
nena
Be yourself, everyone else is already taken.
.....Oscar Wilde
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Skipjack Joe
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8088
Registered: 7-12-2004
Location: Bahia Asuncion
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Haw too speeek Ahstraeeelyan
Dago - Italian immigrant.
'Was called that a lot cause I hung out with the eyetalians.
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Skipjack Joe
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8088
Registered: 7-12-2004
Location: Bahia Asuncion
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| Quote: | Originally posted by David K
Do you miss ginger beer? |
Let's not forget Veggimite.
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bonanza bucko
Senior Nomad
Posts: 587
Registered: 8-31-2003
Location: San Diego
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Mood: Airport Bum
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I guess I'm an Old Timer at Alfonsina's.....been there since 1979. Many others have been there longer. I read some of the quotes here from guys who
thought the price of a room at Alfy's should be lower because it's cheaper in Rosarito or Las Vegas. That made me think that some of you guys would
like and/or benefit from some knowledge of the place.
We built two houses on the beach...first one in 1979-82 and the second one in 1993. The cement for the first one was made with salt water and salt
sand. It was mixed with a hoe in the roof of a wrecked car. The roof of our house was a thatched palapa. We smuggled lumber in there from San Diego
for the house because we couldn't buy dimensioned lumber in Baja....or we didn't know where to buy it. Luckily we had two nice young ladies
(secretaries from the office) who were adventuresome. We taught them how to change truck tires in the sand and how to drive a heavy truck on Mex 1
which was a little narrow then. But they were most useful for getting the loads across the border at Tecate. They put on bikinis and the border
guards never looked in in back.
The trip from San Diego to Alfy's took about 16 hours....it is 275 miles to the Lake Chappala turn off and then it was 55 miles down the canyon to the
beach. The last 55 miles took about 6 hours. We usually relieved the girls at the airport at Rancho Santa Ynez at Catavinia and had a guy drive
those last tough miles....we flew the girls down to the beach....an 8 minute flight vice a 6 hour drive. That was their reward for being among the
most intrepid females on earth. They also learned a bunch of stuff about trucks, tires, airplanes, carpentry, plumbing and small engines that
Gringos of either sex usually don't think about.
A lot of visitors to Alfy's don't know that the runway is under about five feet of water at the high tides twice a month. The tide wets the clay that
has been placed on top of the sand and, when it dries, it makes a good runway. But we can land and takeoff only when the runway is dry so we are stuck
wishing we could get in or wanting to get out about 8 days a month....it takes a couple of days for the runway to dry. An airplane makes Alfy's a
reasonable weekend trip.....it's about 65 minutes from SD to San Felipe for Migration, Aduana and Plan de Vuelo and then it's 22 minutes to
Alfy's....unless you gotta land out somewhere until the runway dries. Now we can use the Rancho Grande strip a mile south but until the 1990s we
slept under a wing up at Catavinia until we could land.
Some dirt bikers think we are kinda mean because we get testy when they do races and wheelies on the runway....guess they think the are in danger of
getting hit by an airplane. No so...if they wanna get killed it's their business. The reason we try to keep them off is that they dig holes in the
clay with their bikes. Those holes become pot holes big enough for an airplane's nose wheel to drop into.....then the prop strikes the ground. That
usually means a new prop....$5000-$10000 depending on type....and an engine tear down...$3000 to $6000....and, maybe, flying a sick airplane out of
the country which produces pucker factors not known by anyone who hasn't done it.
We built our second house with Mexican lumber from Ensenada. The truck trip from there took two days through San Felipe and Puertecitos and each load
cost me about $800 for the truck. We needed two loads for the house. The house was built by two good Mexican fishermen....Vaquero and Chuey....with
supervision by a friend who was there most of the time. Chuey and Vaquero were not carpenters so there are some rough spots in the house. We flew
down from Sacramento every weekend to help/supervise. That is a 1000 mile one way trip...about 5.5 hours including stops at the border coming and
going.
Now, if you think that Alfy's price is a little high please consider the systems that make the cantina and motel run....ditto the houses there. First
is water. The fresh water comes in from a well in the desert twice a day. (Until the wells were dug in the 80s we flew water in from Catavinia in 5
gallon jugs) The well water costs homeowners $5 per 55 gallons. You don't wanna waste it.
Toilets are another problem.....we use salt water in them..... but salt eats up the metal mechanisms in a Gringo toilet in about two days. So we have
to hand fill the tank with a pvc pipe and valve from a tank of the roof. We pump the salt water up there from sand spikes. If the PVC valve gets
left on (100% chance of that by yer basic Gringo) the septic tank fills up and the toilet is inop for about a day. Because of the Gringo factor
Alfy's motel now uses fresh water in the toilets there....another reason for a $60/night stay.
Electricity now comes from solar panels, batteries and inverters.....not cheap....and a system that needs a non idiot to run it and maintain it. We
have electric fridges and freezers now but most of them have to be low wattage and/or 12 volt jobs that cost a bundle and which have to be hauled in
over That Road from Puertecitos. Until recently all refrigeration was in Servel or Crosley gas/propane refrigerators. We gave away our last one a
week ago.
But the biggest thing to know about the houses and Cantina at Alfy's is that every, single, last little thing has to be done by hand...with equipment
and supplies that take days to get there....and by people who know how to do things with no Home Depot or Walmart anywhere near. Alfy's is an oasis
of half assed civilization in the middle of the wild, wild west of Mexico. It used to be an adventure just getting there and back in one piece. It's
still about half an adventure.
Most new comers to the place have no idea what it takes to keep things running and/or to fix them when they are busted. I have had new guys visiting
who took a dune buggy into the desert, got it stuck or ran it outa gas or oil who hiked back into camp about dark and asked how to "get ahold of
Triple A." If a truck, airplane, generator or electrical gizmo goes belly up it has to be fixed with parts on hand or hauled in from far, far away.
I have, three times, trailered a Gringo Newby wrecked dune buggy 1000 miles to Sacramento to get it repaired....made me grouchy!
The new road is gonna screw up the place. But, what we have now is a massive change on what used to be...so the new world down there will be just
another one. The good thing is that some very nice, honest, hard working Mexican fishermen are gonna get rich.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65287
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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WELL SAID!!!
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capt. mike
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8085
Registered: 11-26-2002
Location: Bat Cave
Member Is Offline
Mood: Sling time!
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well said Bucko - most have no idea of the logistics involved in building AND MAINTAINING a small piece of paradise in a no where zona.
i can't wait to touch down in Gonzaga again this spring with any luck.
formerly Ordained in Rev. Ewing\'s Church by Mail - busted on tax fraud.......
Now joined L. Ron Hoover\'s church of Appliantology
\"Remember there is a big difference between kneeling down and bending over....\"
www.facebook.com/michael.l.goering |
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desertcpl
Super Nomad
Posts: 2405
Registered: 10-26-2008
Location: yuma,az
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I think $60.00 a night is a bargain for such pristine place as Gonzaga bay,, heck thats a bargain,, it beats $20.00 a night in Vegas,, Yuck
[Edited on 11-1-2009 by desertcpl]
[Edited on 11-1-2009 by desertcpl]
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65287
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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No kidding!
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Ken Bondy
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3326
Registered: 12-13-2002
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Mood: Mellow
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I absolutely love the place and thought that the $55/night I paid in 2004 was an absolute BARGAIN!!
Antonio y la cocinera:
carpe diem!
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Ken Bondy
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3326
Registered: 12-13-2002
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Mood: Mellow
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I know many of you have seen this before, but for those of you who haven't, and are interested in Alfonsina's, here is a lengthy report I wrote on a
trip we took in 2004 where we were stranded, and eventually rescued, at Alfonsina's. It's called "In Search of the World's Biggest Fish":
http://www.kenbondy.com/images/ProfessionalArticles/Baja2004...
carpe diem!
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Bajahowodd
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9274
Registered: 12-15-2008
Location: Disneyland Adjacent and anywhere in Baja
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OK. So I'm not the first to chime in, but I just had to get in here and agree 100% with what bucko posted. I've stayed in some fairly primitive places
over the years that were quite isolated both in Baja and the mainland. What Alfonsina's has is very civilized. And yes, it takes alot of work and
money to pull that off.
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Ken Cooke
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8964
Registered: 2-9-2004
Location: Riverside, CA
Member Is Offline
Mood: Pole Line Road postponed due to injury
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| Quote: | Originally posted by bonanza bucko
I guess I'm an Old Timer at Alfonsina's.....been there since 1979. Many others have been there longer. I read some of the quotes here from guys who
thought the price of a room at Alfy's should be lower because it's cheaper in Rosarito or Las Vegas. That made me think that some of you guys would
like and/or benefit from some knowledge of the place. |
I brought up Las Vegas as a reference point, not as a price Alfonsinas needs to charge for their rooms. Las Vegas does more business in the gambling
arena, so their rooms become "Loss Leaders." Alfonsina's sells food (when available) and beers, in order to turn more of a profit. Their price is
set in order to turn a small profit, stay in business, and to make needed repairs to their facilities.
Ken
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Desertbull
Senior Nomad
Posts: 558
Registered: 8-27-2003
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nice post Bucko! 110% right on...I hope the road takes 5 more years, but I'm afraid once they get down past the old camper they'll haul azz finishing
it to Hwy 1...
DREAM IT! PLAN IT! LIVE IT!
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bent-rim
Nomad
Posts: 294
Registered: 7-31-2007
Location: Marin County
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Mood: Living la vida mota
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I personally know about 60 dirt bike riders from Nor Cal and we would never ride on a runway and we instruct any rookies we take to Baja not to ride
on runways. There have been times when Rancho Grande was out of gas and pilots have helped us out with gas. I've ridden in groups of 3 to 20 riders
in Baja for about 10 years.
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honda tom
Nomad
Posts: 493
Registered: 8-28-2003
Location: middle calif
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lofty, about 7 of us will be riding the same areas during the 1000 week. We are planning on making it as far down as san francisquito. Keep an eye out
for a couple bikes, an F150 prerunner (blue) and a ranger (utv). we will be at alfonsinas on tue nite and possible thur nite. has anyone been to san
francisquito lately, gas... info? last time there was March 08.
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Ahab
Newbie
Posts: 15
Registered: 11-4-2007
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I stayed in a nice San Felipe hotel last May for $38/night and the beer was $2. There are several secure parking lots. Just ask a cop or hotel
clerk.
[Edited on 11-2-2009 by Ahab]
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Sharksbaja
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5814
Registered: 9-7-2004
Location: Newport, Mulege B.C.S.
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Ahab
There are several secure parking lots. Just ask a cop........
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Now there's an oxymarooon if ever I saw one!
DON\'T SQUINT! Give yer eyes a break!
Try holding down [control] key and toggle the [+ and -] keys
Viva Mulege!
Nomads\' Sunsets
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