Los Frailes -> La Ribera //
The encounter we were hoping we wouldn’t have occurs at 7am this morning. After taking a closer look yesterday at the welcome sign that we passed on the way to where we’re parked, Mark and I deduced that we’re most likely not supposed to be camping where we are. Sure enough a park ranger pays us a visit and confirms our suspicions. Unlike in the States, where signs are aplenty in places you shouldn’t be, complete with warnings of potential fines and possible jail time, Mexicans are far more subtle with their boundaries. We appreciate the kindness bestowed upon us by the ranger and take note that we need to pay closer attention to the fine print on any signs when looking for places to camp.
Packing up earlier in the day than expected turns out to be a good thing as we have a lot to accomplish. We exchange hugs and high fives with Josh, Darci & Hannah as today our paths are diverging, though we’re hopeful they’ll soon cross again. In the tiny nearby town of Cabo Pulmo we choose a restaurant based upon which one has enough room for us to park and enjoy a delicious breakfast and lovely conversation with Eddy, the proprietor.
Around mid-day we arrive at Cortez Dog Rescue in Las Cuevas to finally do something I’ve wanted to do for years. We’ve offered to come by and photograph their adoptable dogs and were met with a very enthusiastic welcome. For the next few hours we play with, love on, wrangle, and photograph over 20 dogs. I am simultaneously thrilled and overwhelmed hoping that our efforts help these sweet pups find their forever homes. We leave dirty, hungry, and with no clue as to where we are sleeping. All of a sudden we are hit with several decisions that need to be made (where will we eat, shower, and sleep) and with only a couple of hours of daylight left to figure it all out.
We find ourselves back in La Ribera, the nearest town with services, get some fish tacos in our bellies and then settle at a public beach right in town. While the beach itself isn’t much to write home about, the breaching whales in the distance make that fact feel irrelevant. The question is, will this place be quiet or a hangout for the locals after dark? That is yet to be determined. But at least we have a place to sleep…hopefully.
Our day at Cortez Rescue & Outreach…
Every 15 minutes a new set of dogs would be let out to meet us. Each and every one of them was so excited to say hi. 
This is Dalia. You can read her bio here. 
Thanks to the eye-tracking technology on our cameras we spent most of the day in this posture. 
Meet Valentine. You can read her bio here. 
Say hello to Montana, the jolliest dog in all of Baja. You can read his bio here. 
Trying to love on all these guys and take their photo at the same time wasn’t easy to do! 
This is Doobie. You can read his bio here. 
Another one of Doobie, such a happy guy. 
This is Franca. You can read her bio here. 
Dalia’s sweet face was almost too much to handle. 
This girl melted my heart, I was overjoyed to learn that she’d just recently been adopted. 
We hadn’t quite planned for what a dirty job it was! 
Say hello to Peyote. Oh how I loved his smile. You can read his bio here. 
Say hello to Two-bit. You can read his bio here. 
This is Darbi. You can read her bio here. 
This is Connie, the most inquisitive towards the camera. You can read her bio here. 
Say hello to Cuco. You can read his bio here. 
This sweet face is Eshel. You can read her bio here.
All of the dogs you see here are available for adoption. If you are in the USA or Canada, Cortez will help arrange transportation.
Cortez Rescue & Outreach is doing incredible work for the population of stray and abandoned dogs in Baja California Sur. It was an honor to spend an afternoon with them. If you’re a dog-lover like us and are in a place to contribute, please consider making a donation to help fund and empower the efforts of this wonderful operation. https://cortezrescue.org/donate/
What a special contribution you gave to that organization! All the dogs were so darn cute! I can see that becoming a yearly visit. Great job Mark and Michele!
I would love to do it again sometime. It was a great opportunity to try and contribute a little something to the dogs.
🙂