The trip for us actually begins at our home in Magalia on Thursday, March 5. We had made arrangements with another couple, Bobbie and Bill Lucas of Palo Alto, to accompany us in our recently purchased Dodge minivan, take the drive to Cabo San Lucas in a leisurely manner spending time exploring the little towns and sights along the way instead of driving the thousand miles in two and one half days as we had both done in past trips. We had met Bobbie and Bill at our timeshare, Cascadas de Baja, and found them to be a most congenial couple with many of our same interests. For example, Bobbie is a photographer of some note and Bill is a auto enthusiast. He had bought Bobbie a lovely Porsche 911 Targa a year or so previously. I have been attempting to persuade Bobbie to expand her photography interests into the computer world, but she has not yet made that plunge, although recently did purchase a PC.

It had been raining in the upper Sacramento valley almost steadily for weeks as a result of El Niño, and Becky and I were looking forward to sun - we knew we would find it in Baja, as I had checked the weather in La Paz several times the previous week on the internet and found it to be "sunny, temperatures 70° - 80° F."
 
 

Day One: Palo Alto to Chula Vista - Friday

An uneventful trip from Palo Alto to Chula Vista for the first overnight and Mexican insurance, and an initial money change operation. Dinner at The Butcher Shop, Chula Vista. A 1950's time warp. The place is all red velvet with little "honeys" in abbreviated costume serving tables. Extreme portions of politically incorrect (health wise) food. Good though; we had all forgotten what that tastes like. Fat is good!!

One of the things that travelers to Mexico must do prior to entering, is to obtain Mexican insurance, as one's US insurance is not applicable for travel in Mexico. It is not particularly cheap, either. Full coverage for our 1997 Dodge Grand Caravan minivan was $380 for 21 days. In addition, we bought some pesos and were shown an exchange rate of 8.85 pesos per $, but an additional 12% "service charge" was added, making the real rate more like 7.6 per $. Caveat Emptor, as this was the worst exchange for the entire trip, and in the good old USA to boot!
 
 

Day Two: Chula Vista to Cataviña - Saturday

Breakfast at the Holiday Inn and off to the next night's stop and the first taste of Mexico. We had a minor scare just as we were beginning the journey, as the van "locked up" in first gear with a very strange indication on the electronic gear display. It smelled like a computer problem, so I stopped, turned off the ignition and restarted the car. Everything returned to normal except the "Check Engine Soon" light came on. It stayed on for the first day of the trip, but by the second day it too returned to its normal "off" state. Hmmm .... something to worry about in the desert...

We drove through Tijuana and Ensenada with no problemas, and made a lunch stop in El Rosario at Mama Espinoza's for fish tacos. This is the start of the real Baja as the "new" Trans Peninsular Hiway, which opened up the Baja to tourism in 1973, begins here. The car was filled up at the Pemex station, as I had a feeling that if petrol weren't available at Cataviña, we could be stuck big time. As we were taking care of fuel, Becky and Bobbie were approached by some small children attempting to sell little woven bracelets made by their momma. Neither Becky nor Bobbie had any Mexican money, and both felt guilty for the rest of the vacation about this incident until their guilt was assuaged at the return stop.

As it turned out the feeling we had about fuel availability was prophetic indeed. After we reached the boulder fields and stopped for photos, we continued the short distance to Cataviña and discovered that the Pemex station, open two years ago, was now abandoned. In its place were Mexican entrepreneurs selling petrol from 55 gallon drums in 5 gal. increments. We took advantage of that opportunity. That evening, we dined at the La Pinta, the only hotel in the tiny settlement of Cataviña, unless one were to include the Rancho Iñez; a place that brings a new meaning to the concept of "primitive."

We had breakfast across the street at a Palapa restaurant run by a delightful and friendly lady and filled up the car from the 5 gal. can. We drove on down Mexico 1, past the turn off for L.A. Bay, where, once again, the Pemex station was abandoned. When we reached the next Pemex station, 20 miles from Guerrero Negro, cars were lined up onto the highway - we continued (after a pit stop for the guys) on into town - the ladies made their pit stop at the La Pinta outside of town. We gassed up in Guerrero Negro, a rather prosperous and active town, known for being the largest producer of salt in the world, and continued on to our lunch stop at the oasis community of San Ignacio. Here we had a terrific carrot-squash soup and fresh fish at Tota's. Our waiter was a young Bert Reynolds who had witnessed the eclipse of 1996 on Isla Margarita. Bill had a chicken burrito - 100% chicken inside. We continued on to Santa Rosalia, the old French copper mining town on the Sea of Cortez. There we stayed at the El Morro Hotel, a bit run down, but the only one recommended by AAA. Because the lunch was still with us, we passed on dinner, and retired early

Day Four: Santa Rosalia to Loreto - Monday

Monday morning, we checked out and had a pleasant desayuno (breakfast) on the water just beyond the hotel. We spent a leisurely hour or so exploring the town and taking some pictures of this very unusual and atypical Mexican town. Heading south, once again, we drove on to Mulege for a lunch stop at a little upstairs cafe where we all had chicken burritos (again 100% chicken inside). We then explored the little mission and the old prison, now a museum, up on the hill and overlooking the town. Driving south, we stopped for a few minutes to check out the Hotel Serenidad as a possible stop on future trips. It passed muster, and we may try it on the way back, depending on time. Our evening stop was Loreto, where we stayed at the Oasis on the esplanade. Dinner was at the El Nido, an excellent restaurant, where I had eaten previously. Everyone except me, had the sea bass - I had the camarones especialidad.

A delightful al fresco breakfast at the hotel and a short tour of the now restored Mission - the first, and considered to be, the "Mother" mission in both Baja and Alto California. Unfortunately, the museum was closed on Tuesday. Bill drove on through the Sierra de la Gigantica and on to Ciudad Insurgentes and Ciudad Constitution, both agricultural centers in the Baja California Sur. The drive to La Paz was uneventful, long and dull, as this is one of the most dry and featureless parts of the journey.

Arriving in La Paz is a real relief as the beautiful Sea of Cortez comes into view. We settled on a room at the Cabaña de Los Arcos, very pleasant inn with an inner courtyard, landscaped in a true Mexican tropical style. Cost was not excessive at $70. We had a lovely lunch down the street at the Terrace, a restaurant associated with the La Perla de La Paz Hotel. Later, we inquired at the desk of our hotel as to a good restaurant for dinner. He recommended a restaurant about 10-12 blocks away called "Bismark," and we, using a small map provided, set off to walk there. The map was not very accurate, and we, although in no way lost, were unable to correlate any street names. Bill then attempted to ask directions of some street musicians and a Mexican gentleman in a van. They were as confused as we insofar as the map was concerned, but knew where the restaurant was located and offered to drive us there in the van. We thanked them profusely, but set out in the general direction once again.

This meal was a high point on the trip to that time. The restaurant, although modest, was friendly with a very long menu. We settled on Ceviche, Chili Rellenos con Queso, Enchiladas, and as for myself, Chili Rellenos con Mariscos. We all agreed that the Chili Rellenos were the best we had ever tried, and as for myself, the Chili peppers filled with seafood in a white wine cream sauce including scallops, squid, oysters, shrimp and clams, to me at least, was the best of the best. Incidentally, the name "Bismark" relates to the ill fated German battleship which, for some reason, is the theme of the restaurant. A cab driver outside had kindly remained to return us the inn, and on the way back proposed that he take us on a tour of La Paz on the following day.

Day Six: La Paz to San Pedrito Beach - Wednesday

Arising at a the leisurely hour of 8:00 AM, we walked down the Esplanade to a small restaurant for a simple breakfast. Our driver, Alberto, was waiting for us when we arrived back at the hotel. He then took us on a tour of La Paz, starting at "Artesanias Cuahtemoc" on Calzada Abasolo No. 3315. The proprietor, Sr. Fortunato Moreno, weaves his textiles, starting by spinning wool at the site, all the way to very making large tapestries. We purchased some of his hand woven place mats and went across the street to a small manufacturer and assembler of furniture items. After leaving the furniture store, we went to an even smaller facility where green ware was made into cups, saucers and the like, primarily as contract items for resale. From there, Alberto took us to the Museum of of Anthropology where the history of the southern Baja is displayed with many local Indian artifacts. Finally, a few blocks away, we arrived at a ceramics facility where some quite modern ceramics are manufactured using a very high temperature process. It was there that we purchased several place settings and some decorative plates. Alberto then took us the the Pedrigal overlooking the Bay of La Paz for a wonderful view and some final pictures. After paying Alberto the modest sum of around $30, we checked out and hit the road for Todos Santos.

Lunch in Todos Santos was at the Santa Fe Cafe, written up in both Sunset Magazine and in the CSAA tour magazine, "Via," where we had a wonderful lunch consisting of Insalata del Mare, Caprese and home-made raviolis in several different sauces. A bit pricey for the Baja at $84 for four, but well worth it. Just five more miles and we turned on to a short dirt road to the beach and a simple beach cabaña at San Pedrito Beach. Only $35, so it compensated for the price of the lunch.