Big Day in Sta. Rosalia

We decided to make a day trip to Santa Rosalia on Wednesday. This is a fairly large town in the Baja with lots of history. It's background is as a mining town first established in the 1800's by the French for the purpose of exploiting the rich copper deposits in the area. The town still reflects their influence in the architecture and layout. This is a "working town", with very few tourist amenities. Kind of refreshing. My guess is that it is similar to moderate towns this size on the mainland.

But first- don't forget your seat belt for the drive up there. The 60 mile trip has Burma Shave-types of signs reminding drivers not to drink, drive with care, and even obey the signs!


This is an overview of the town as we approach it from the south. It's built on a mesa and bluffs overlooking the ocean. The day was perfect - temperature in the high 60's and a light breeze.

Along the coast is the ore refinery - still existing from the 1800's. Lots of machinery still present. They knew how to built 'em in those days.

Another view of the extensive works. It is being made into a museum by the government.

Old mining shovel and crane.

On the top of the mesa, overlooking the town, is the hotel. It is still in operation having been renovated.


More mining relics in the front court yard of the motel.


The interior court yard gives access to the rooms, which are nicely decorated. It looked like visiting business men and government officials were the principal residents. No tourists were around.

Mimi plays with a parrot in the court yard.

The lobby and interior are decorated with artifacts and furniture reflecting Europe.

The star attraction is the little locomotive with the company's name - Boleo Company.

Back down to the main part of town for lunch. A little hotel has a nice restaurant that specializes in roast chicken.

Really gooood roast chicken The best I've had in years !

As we were leaving the restaurant, a rather unkempt Mexican came-up to me. I was rather surprised, as most folks just go about their business here. He was speaking in rapid Spanish, and I thought that he was "Putting the touch" on me. Unusual. Another gentleman who was washing a car nearby came over to translate. A gringo had just died on the waterfront ! We thanked the man and drove over to see what was happening.

Apparently an old couple who live down here part-time had come into town for some business. As the wife went into the immigration office, he waited in the truck. Suffering from an apparent heart attack, he was slumped over the wheel when she came back. Dead. The police came, and brought a community liaison who spoke Spanish and English equally well. She was consoling, and advising the widow on how to proceed. Mimi talked with the widow for a while, and we determined that she was in good hands, and waiting for some friends to arrive from Punto Chivato where they lived. We proceeded on with our tour, somewhat in shock, though. You just never know...

We drove back up the mesa road to the highest point in Santa Rosalia. This great view is near the water tower, and the spot where our friend, Tioga George camped for months at a time. His little garden is still partially there, but needs maintenance.

Back in town we stopped at the Bakery, established during the French colonial time, and still selling French pastries. They are more Mexicanized now - not as sweet and a heavier dough.

Near by is the town square, and very comfortable place to hang-out.

Part of the square consists of a long European type of building. Likely used by the Boleo Mining Company for offices, now used by local government bureaucrats.

The town has lots of young people, who were on the streets as school let out. Seemed like nice kids - not acting obnoxious at all like American kids that age can do.

Just a shot of a street in Sta. Rosalia. Lots of trees for shade and decoration. The streets are very clean.

Also lots of truck and taco stands. We are always careful where we eat. Never indiscriminately.

This is the church that Eiffel ( of Eiffel Tower fame) designed.

The interior reflects the elaborate iron and steel structural work.

The road out of town overlooks an old mine shaft with it's elevator head still intact. This is Tioga George's logo, painted on the side of Miss Tioga, his motorhome.

That evening was a full moon. This is the silhouette of a crane on the beach.

Hasta luego....

Lazy Days on the Beach

Been a few days since our last post. Things have slowed down here a lot, and with the weather being on the hot side, torpor sets in. Our friends Bob and Diane left for B.C. a few days ago. We inherited their fire ring (an old washing machine drum) as well as some fire wood. Moved the ring by our campsite and went about recruiting more firewood from the other palapas. We now have enough to last us until time to leave.

Cooking marshmallows is a favorite pastime in the evening around the campfire. Here, they sell giant marshmallows - about the size of a major league baseball. We were discussing them, and found that they provide multiple stages of eating. Put one on a stick and cook it. The crispy skin slides off, leaving a smaller version of itself. You keep repeating this process until you are down to the stick. Done carefully, you can get four "crispy skins" from one marshmallow.

The fishing has been so-so. Mostly triggers and small sand bass. My new project has been called Frijole Rock, a fabled point about five miles down the bay. It is actually an underwater mountain that almost penetrates the surface. Fish love to congregate around it. There are several problems, however. One is finding it. Since it is underwater, there are no markers. No one has the GPS coordinates (or is willing to give them out). I got a description using cross landmarks from one resident. Went down to the area a day ago, and used the fish sonar to try to find it. No luck. One has to be very careful, picking a day of complete calm to make such a long journey in a folding boat. My next move was to go into town to the "dive shop" which has maps of the bay. I located Frijole Rock - and it had GPS coordinates next to it! (26 40 52 by 111 50 04 - don't tell anybody) So now I'm ready - just waiting for the next calm day. Even have chopped shrimp, which are especially good for red snapper.

Sunday is the Great Mulege Chili Cook-off. Held in the town square, it is sponsored by a civic club to raise money. Should be fun. Refrigerator Eddie is hosting a post-chili cook off party on the beach later. Live rock band, dancing, etc. Pictures to follow.
Well, we are starting to talk about returning to the States. We will probably stay another week, then slowly go north. Hopefully the whales are still in the nursery lagoons, as we have yet to visit them. We will stop in San Ignacio, the sister town of Mulege. There is a nursery lagoon near there, so we can spend some time in town and visit with the whales.

Great Mulege Chili Cook-off

Just got back from the Chili Cook-off, and had a good time:

We got to sample all of the entries. This is Head Hunter Chili. Didn't ask about the ingredients.


Mimi in one of her sexier poses !






Geary, from Burro Beach, was the announcer and D.J.



One of the entries, run by a local Mexican family.



Los Amigos Del Ninos, a local charitable group, had a chili entry.

Ted, our neighbor on the beach, is part of Los Amigos, and is enjoying a chili sample.

Purveyors of Purple Haze Chili.

The audience also likes to "Dress up" also.

Head Hunters won Best Costume and Booth.

Can't have chili without some cervesas! Mimi says, "This one's for you, Big Guy".

Souvenir from the Chile Cook Off.

This dog had too much cerveza!

Post Cook Off Party:

Eddies band of irregular players. Not bad!

Good Golly, Miss Molly! Altitude adjustment taking place...

Eddie has a full drum set in his palapa.

Well, that was a full day for us. Now for a quick campfire, and off to bed.

Hasta luego....

Loreto

Loreto is a medium-sized town about 90 miles south of Mulege. It's a nice place to visit, and even spend the nite. We opted to make it a day trip because of the cats in the motorhome. I thought that I would document the trip for your entertainment as well as posterity. These blogs will be saved on a CD for viewing when we are in our rocking chairs in the retirement home. In the meantime, enjoy our little trip there....




The image above is on Mex.1 just below Burro Beach. It shows the "Old highway", which was the only route south through the Baja before Mex.1 was built in the 70's. It's not much more than a path about 6 ft. wide. I imagine a trip down here would be more like an expedition, making only 10 or 20 miles in a day.

One of the major cautions about driving down here is to look-out for things on the road. Driving at nite is a no no. Above is an example of what I mean. Other encounters we had on the drive included a flock of buzzards having lunch beside the road. When they scattered upon our arrival, one flew directly in front of the windshield, obscuring our view completely. I swerved enough to avoid it coming through the windshield. Those suckers are big! Several road construction crews were encountered, as well as a herd of goats. The best thing to do if you have to drive at night is to follow closely behind a semi truck. They always take care of obstacles.



Another type of obstruction are the military check points. These young soldiers are very serious about their job - especially ferreting-out AA and AAA batteries for their MP3 players. The only way to get them to smile is handing a few over. They are supposed to be looking for guns and drugs.

This is the bottom of Conception Bay. Desolate, windswept, and shallow. The Mexican govt. once had a campground here for RV'S. Didn't go over well at all. It's good for a day trip of clamming, although one has to watch out for real banditos, who will break into your car if you leave it out of sight. All dead things in the water end-up here, so there are lots of shells and skeletons of fish and dolphins.



As we progress towards Loreto, we enter a low, flat valley. Loreto is on the left, in front of the small mountain range in the background. My guess is that the mountains provide some fresh water, originally allowing Loreto to grow.

This is the terminal of the local airport. Gotta love a terminal with a palm-thatched roof!

Finally in Loreto. This is a nice, old hotel near the square. It has a swimming pool with a glass bottom that looks cool from underneath. Unfortunately, they don't allow tourists in there to take pictures any more.

A high point of our little trip was lunch at the Mita, a small restaurant on the square. Really good food at a reasonable price.

A view of the town square from inside the Mita. In the middle of the day, hardly anyone was around. Siesta time?

We started-off with a nice Caesar salad for two. Soaked in dressing and covered with Parmesan cheese - then sprinkled with anchovies. Mmmmm !

Mimi had a rib eye steak, potato, salad, and some dipping sauce. I had a marinated flank steak. Ordering iced coffee threw them for a loop, but they provided a nice French press and glass of ice so that I could assemble it myself. Mimi splurged and ordered a glass of Mexican wine. So so.

After lunch we walked among the shops, browsing.

A distinctive feature of Loreto is this canopy of trees off of the square. It provides shade from the hot sun as well as beauty. We found a Thrifty ice cream shop for desert.

This blanket begged me to take a picture of it.

So did this pottery!

Upon returning to the car, we drove several blocks east to the bayfront. This is a deep bay, and cruise ships stop here periodically. I think the population of the town doubles when a ship arrives and disgorges its passengers. (So do the prices in town).

We stopped at an RV park near by to say hi to some friends known to hang-out there at this time of year. However, the manager said that they were spending the winter in Puerto Vallerta. O well, time to head home and a late siesta.

Hasta luego...

Waiting....

Slow day at the beach today. The weather is predicted by Geary to start out calm and warm, with the air temperature spiking to near 90. Then the wind comes up later in the morning, churning the bay into white caps and foam. One hunkers down out of the wind, waiting for the afternoon calm to arrive. Good day for a siesta during this time. My big activity for the day is to repair a broken shear pin in the gearing of the bedroom slide out. A PIA, since I have done it before.

Mimi here. My task was to do a trial with Bobbe and Ted's kayak. I wanted to take a leisurely cruise around the bay to see sting rays and to see how my back would handle it. Saw lots of sting rays, mostly in pairs with glints in their beady little eyes. MY back felt great while in the kayak. If you paddle correctly by twisting rather than pulling with your arms, it provides a motion not unlike a machine I used at Spine Zone to strengthen my back. The problem came as I folded myself out of that low kayak at the shore--OUCH! The sitting position aggravated my sciatic nerve and it bit back hard. I dropped immediately to the sand and did some stretches. That nerve is still grouchy! I need an orthopedically modified and well padded seat if I am going to do that again.

Larry and Carol are a couple in a fifth wheel that we met while staying at Guerrero Negro. They were on their way south, with some spots to visit on their way. We invited them to stop by Burro Beach when they turned northward. We were surprised and happy to see them show-up Friday afternoon. These are experienced Baja travelers, having a house in Kino Bay, and also in Colorado Springs. They have a cat, Kino, who is more like a well-trained dog. Wherever they stop, they just let the cat out. He wanders around, exploring, then returns to their 5th wheel. It's amazing to see a cat hop out, get oriented to completely new surroundings in a minute, then saunter off. Pity the dog or other cat in the area, as Kino knows how to "Take care of business".


Larry is a retired "adventurer", having done thing such as climbing mount McKinley (Denali), motoring the Inner Passage of Alaska in a panga, and leading archeology expeditions. He was also instrumental in starting whale tours years ago down here. This morning Larry was assembling his inflatable boat, an indication that he likes Burro Beach and plans on spending some time here. A few hours ago Larry and Carol motored happily out of our cove, and into the bay. As we watched, we could see white caps forming on the other side of the bay. This means that the wind is picking up and will arrive in full force shortly. I thought in my mind, "Should have warned him about the winds". But he's the expert on the ways of the Sea of Cortez, so I kept my mouth shut.


Now it's after 2 p.m., and they haven't returned yet. Wouldn't want to see my worst enemy out on this water. As I write this, I'm thinking that they will have another adventure to talk about after they return. My bet is that they landed on the lee side of an island and took a nice siesta on an isolated beach as the wind blew. Hope so anyway...


It's now 4:00 p.m. and they have returned safely! I was right! They found a nice little isolated beach and spent the afternoon enjoying the water and the peacefulness of nature. Waves? What waves?







Here are Larry and Carol holding supercat, Kino.

This is their trusty Zodiac, #5. Zodiac's are extremely reliable and make a nice Baja water vehicle. They fold up into almost nothing when deflated.

And I did get the slide fixed !

Hasta luego...