TWO HAPPY CAMPERS

Playa Tecolote to Maranatha RV Park //

The morning air is perfectly still with calm, crystal clear water to match. There’s not a cloud in the sky, and the temperature is a perfect seventy degrees. It’s tempting to stay another day, but Mark has a dentist appointment in La Paz. Just as we’re about to drive away, a playful pod of dolphins right off the coast keeps our eyes glued to the water a few minutes longer.  

Restocking groceries, going to the dentist, and getting breakfast takes us around the city of La Paz today. We’ve been here many times before, but today, after visiting so many other cities in Mexico this year, we’re seeing La Paz in an entirely different light. It’s one of the cleanest cities in Mexico we’ve seen, the community is physically active with many runners and cyclists on the street, and so far today, we’ve not seen a single stray dog. The roads are wide and well-maintained, and getting around is easy. Mark and I often talk about the idea of moving to Mexico and how we have no idea what one place we would choose to call home. Today, La Paz feels like a solid contender.  

Our stop for the night is at an RV park on the outskirts of the city. We’re here for one reason, and that is to get caught up on the long-overdue chore of laundry. Campestre Maranatha is a popular stop for many Baja campers, and we’re used to seeing a great deal of activity here. When we pull in today to a sparsely occupied campground, it feels as though the Baja camping season may be winding down. We drive to the back of the property and join the other stragglers that have yet to make the journey back north. Once again, our neighbors are mostly Canadians and Europeans.  

It appears as though most people are here for the same reason we are, and it takes hours for a washing machine to free up. Once we get our two loads going, it takes several more hours to complete the chore. Maranatha’s laundry room has become infamous among anyone that knows for having the longest wash cycle of any machines on the planet. Ours take two hours, while another woman sighs in exasperation as her load has taken three. Parking near the laundry room at Maranatha means watching campers come and go every so often to see if their laundry is finally done. It never fails; every campground in Mexico has its quirks.  

By the end of the day, we decide on our next stop. We’re going to head to a remote but highly sought-after beach that two years ago was so overrun with travelers that we left after one night. Is it truly the end of the camping season in Baja? We’re going to go to head to Agua Verde tomorrow and find out.