Winter in Baja Day 10: Setting out on a desert adventure

Punta Piedrita -> The desert west of Mulege //

After everyone made their respective breakfasts this morning, we set each of our handheld radios to the same channel and made our way about 20 minutes north to the track we’d chosen for a little desert adventure. 

This would be our first time ever off-roading with friends. Traveling in a group, like anything in life, comes with pros and cons. Mark and I have always preferred adventuring solo, leaving us the freedom to make all our own decisions, change our minds on a dime, and not worry about being pressured in to anything we don’t want to do. But we were feeling hopeful this chosen group of friends would bring more pros to the table than cons. More rigs meant more resources in the event of a breakdown and more people meant more collective skill and brainpower. More of those things, while venturing in to the middle of the Mexican desert, felt like a good thing, and so we were excited to explore some brand new territory and see what we might find. 

The first several miles of our route was nothing more than a dusty one lane road leading to ranchos dispersed throughout the desert. But as the mountains in the distance grew closer, the excitement grew for what lay ahead. After an hour or so the terrain began closing in on both sides and we were finally in the mountains…and subsequently in our happy place. The road was rough but totally doable, we were feeling good and hopeful that we, being the only rig towing a trailer, wouldn’t be the ones to hold the group back. Some steep and narrow sections were fun but not too harrowing and the scenery only escalated with every kilometer. 

Our little convoy of three fell in sync with ease. Potty breaks, photo ops, road inspections, were all effortless. We never felt like we were holding the group up or being held up by them. It was all so easy, and the adventure all the more fun for being shared with people that enjoy these kinds of explorations as much as we do. 

A few short hours in to our drive we veered off on to a side track that led us to a little abandoned rancho with room for everyone to park. We were home for the night…or two or three. 

A sunset hike revealed the expansive beauty and rugged terrain of our surroundings. Cholla cactus grabbing on to the soles of our feet and the dogs paws reminding us how unforgiving this kind of country can be. 

Back at camp we’d formed a little outdoor living space between the three rigs. Stepping back to snap a quick photo revealed a scene that often made me jealous on social media. A group of friends, gathered in their tiny homes, in a beautiful desert, an indigo sky framing the scene and twinkle lights glowing overhead. How incredibly lucky I felt in that moment. 

Another day was bookended with such good conversation I couldn’t even pull myself away for two minutes to grab a blanket. The desert air was cool and dry, a welcome change from the recent humidity. And the best amenity of all, complete and utter silence to usher us off to sleep. It was a good day, a very good day.