TWO HAPPY CAMPERS

Papa Fernandez to Bahía de los Ángeles

No morning that follows can quite compare to the first morning back in Baja.  After nine months away, the salty air, the glassy water, the sand between our toes, the warm air on a late November day, it all hits a little different when we’ve just come from 15 degree nights in Colorado.  

Proof that this land captivates us unlike anywhere else is the fact that we’re not only awake but engaged and excited about life at 5:45 in the morning.  How can you not be when the sky is painted in hues of rose and magenta, fish are jumping from the water in every direction, and sea birds of various kinds are passing by, seemingly on their morning commute?  Nature will not go ignored here and I could not be happier to comply.

You’d think with the level of exhaustion Mark and I have reached through all that the last few months have entailed, we’d be more than ready to prop our feet up and sit still for a day.  Instead, we’re excited to get on the road and seek out a better beach.  While this one is fine, they only get better as you make your way south.  Besides, not far from here is one of our all-time favorite restaurants in Baja and we’re more than ready for some authentic Mexican food.  

We introduce Josh & Darci to this unassuming restaurant in the middle-of-nowhere, an establishment they’ve passed on several occasions without even realizing it was somewhere to stop.  (A sign of any kind might help this place get more business.)  Our meals are everything we hoped they would be and we savor the experience as this year we won’t be passing back by going north, instead we’ll be on the mainland.

A failed attempt to get fuel reminds us that we have to remain diligent of our fuel consumption in this part of Baja.  Not only are stations few and far between, they don’t always have supply.  This particular station had not generated enough solar power recently to run the pumps. Mark & I both laugh when we find ourselves unable to resist a little detour into the desert to show Josh & Darci a favorite spot of ours, even though we’re uncertain when we’ll be able to get our hands on another tank of fuel.

Bahía de los Ángeles becomes our destination of choice for the night.  The area is a favorite among the group as well as the jumping off point of a backcountry route that leads to even better beaches.  When we arrive, we’re happy to find that the one gas station in town has both diesel and gas and that we can erase this concern from our minds, at least for the time being.

Rather than go to the popular beach in the area that we’ve stayed at many times before, we decide to try something different and go to the opposite end of the bay instead.  There we find a quiet beach with one other camper at the far end.  At the other end we settle in and feel right at home.  With our chairs gathered round our makeshift living area, conversation flowing with ease, and dolphins surfacing every few seconds in the background, Mark and I both feel overwhelmed with gratitude, not only to be here but to have managed to align our timelines with Josh & Darci.  Our travels are always that much richer when we get to share them with friends.

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