Cabo Pulmo

Cabo Pulmo is my new zombie apocalypse hold out location. Does everyone have one of these? Well they should. If the CDC has a zombie apocalypse emergency plan (They do), you should have a general idea of where you'll head once your neighbors start coming over to eat your brains instead of borrow your sugar.

This Baja town of 111 people is about two hours from the closest city of any size. Half of the drive is on a mountainous highway, the other half is on rough dirt roads. This means there will be very few potential zombie locals, as well as a low number of zombie tourists from Cabo or La Paz or wherever. I'm picturing undead with cold, blue, drooping skin, wide brimmed khaki hats, ripped Tommy Bahama shirts, and Tevas with socks, maybe fanny packs. Poor bastards were in the middle of an all inclusive vacation when the sickness spread.

Cabo Pulmo is a nature reserve both on land and in the surrounding ocean. Since receiving its protected status in 1995, marine life within the park has increased by an amazing 463%. Originally the local fishermen were pretty upset about being forced to change their ways of life but many quickly saw an opportunity in transferring their ocean knowledge to other endeavors such as scuba and snorkel guiding for tourists excited to see the amazing change in marine health. Other fishermen soon realized that the increasing biomass within the marine reserve was spilling over to unprotected areas nearby and they could therefore continue fishing, often more successfully than before, just outside the borders. This is an absolute victory in marine conservation, something that I am passionate about, and a blueprint for the protection of other regions. It also means that during a zombie apocalypse there would be plenty of protein. Yeah, I know it's protected and for good cause, but when the world as we know it is ending I'll do what is necessary to survive.

I'm not sure about the fresh water situation in Cabo Pulmo after the fall of civilization. It's in a desert but there may be wells. I'll be looking into that. Wow, really nerding out here, huh? Okay, moving along...

I heard from some dive buddies of mine that the diving in Cabo Pulmo is fantastic. Since that's kinda my thing, I planned on checking it out after I left Todos Santos. It's on the other side of Baja, about two and a half hours away. There are a couple small rented cabanas in town, but I wanted to camp, which I heard was very possible. Once I arrived in the early afternoon I had a solid lunch at one of the three or four restaurants in town before finding a dive shop that could take me out the following day.

I then set off to find a place to pop a tent for the evening. After some searching I found the perfect spot at the end of a long, wide, white sand beach. At the other end of the beach there were some travelers in RVs and tents but I was interested in solitude, just a boy and his dog. There was a large rocky headland to the south which protected from wind, and the water was a stunning turquoise blue. The mountains to the west caught the evening's setting rays of sun and turned the sky and land alike to vibrant shades of purple, pink, and orange. I was truly in awe of its beauty.

I set up my tent and gathered firewood while Carlos, or "Los" as he now prefers ran around happy as a pig in shit to be off leash, prancing through the sand and taking the sticks that I was collecting to wherever he willed. As the sun set I lit a nice little fire and roasted hot dogs and heated a package of pre-cooked lentils I had before a dessert of toasted marshmallows. I listened to music, read, and chatted with Los like he actually understood me before turning in early.

I woke up early after a night of restless sleep in which I used two Mexican Blankets as a sleeping pad. I'm pretty much The Princess and the Pea when it comes to mattresses so I was quite achy when the alarm went off. I packed up camp and made coffee with my awesome turbo boiler thing (I fucking love REI) and headed to the dive shop.

The two dives were average I would say. I think it was just an off day unfortunately. A storm had come through a few days before which decreased visibility to about 30 feet. There were some fish, even a few that were quite large, two white tip reef sharks, a tiny frog fish, and a few moray eels and sting rays. I saw none of the large swirling schools of jacks I had seen in pictures, or hammerheads or bull sharks. It doesn't help that I've been lucky enough to work as a dive guide and instructor in some amazing places or that I have visited many more prime dive locations. An embarrassment of riches has risen the bar for me. At the end of the day though, a day spent underwater always ends up in the plus column.

After the dives I had lunch and a beer at a restaurant on the water in town before heading back to my campsite for more of the same activities from the previous evening. In the morning I took my time packing up before heading to La Paz to catch the ferry to mainland Mexico.

I felt then, and still do today that the simplicity, solitude, and beauty of my two days and nights in Cabo Pulmo made for an experience near the top of the list for this entire adventure thus far. I think it's safe to assume that it will be a little more stressful once I have to think about fending off zombies.

All photos are of my camping area from different vantage points at different times.

Todos Santos

The rolling hills of the desert of Baja gave way to two weeks I planned to spend on the rolling seas of Todos Santos. Although I had never been before I made the decision months ago to spend more extended time there than anywhere else during this adventure. I heard good things about it, knew there were good surf breaks, and simply had a generally good feeling about it. So yeah, good.

I booked a house on Airbnb in a neighborhood right in town and it ended up being just right. The home was modern, comfortable, and big. There was a rooftop palapa for stringing up my hammock and watching sunsets, an outdoor shower, and a washing machine, among other creature comforts. I was sharing the home with quite a few very large cockroaches and a mouse who had made a nice little bed in the oven using insulation. I lived in Thailand, Hawaii, and Grand Turk in a previous life so I'm not too freaked out by the critter roommates that make themselves comfortable in tropical habitations, but that didn't mean I was against smashing the massive insects if  I found them loitering too long in the kitchen. I eventually began using a Friday reference pretty much whenever I went in to grab a snack or some water. "How come every time I'm in the kitchen, yo ass in the kitchen?"

Thanksgiving fell during my time in Todos Santos so Kerry decided she would come down for a few days to celebrate. It wasn't what you would call a traditional experience full of football and hot toddys. Ours was filled with whale sharks, humpbacks, and dolphins. Off the coast of La Paz, about 45 minutes away by car, there is an opportunity to see whale sharks this time of year. For those of you not familiar, a whale shark is a shark and not a whale, meaning it's a fish. It's actually the world's biggest fish, growing up to 40 feet long. They have no teeth being filter feeders so they're completely harmless to humans. They're pretty rare and are something of a holy grail to scuba divers. I've seen quite a few in my life but Kerry had never seen one. If you're ever in a part of the world at the right time when seeing at least one is more or less guaranteed, take advantage of it. I was excited that Kerry would have the opportunity. We were able to get in the water to snorkel with three or four different whale sharks. The previously mentioned humpbacks and dolphins were bonuses that showed up during the tour.

After we returned from La Paz we decided we would do our best to make a somewhat traditional dinner. Proper Thanksgiving ingredients were hard to come by but we were able to find enough to make it feel legit. We had chicken, boxed stuffing, yams, gravy, potatoes, green beans, and brownies for dessert.

The first problem we encountered was that the oven wouldn't work. Well, actually the first problem was than when I opened the oven I saw a little mouse scurry away and out through the bottom, leaving his cushy little insulation bed in the corner. After removing that the second problem was the non working oven. No worries, we'll make the chicken on the stove. We won't be able to toast marshmallows on top of the yams, but that's not the end of the world. Moving right along.

Problem number three: In the US if we have gas powered appliances there is a magical endless supply. We don't really think about it until the bill comes, and at least for me, I don't really even think about it then because it's on auto pay. In Mexico the homes have propane tanks. When they run out you have to get them filled before you have hot water, a stove top, etc.. So of course during Thanksgiving dinner, for which Kerry and I spent a good amount of time and money at three different stores finding the appropriate ingredients, the gas ran out. Basically, all that food we half way prepared was garbage and we had no other plans for a proper Thanksgiving. I did successfully half cook the yams which I proceeded to mash with a fork and add brown sugar and yogurt to (I had no milk). I then threw some mini marshmallows on top and boom, Thanksgiving yams. They were tasty. Kerry liked them and said they had a "trashy" taste. I told my friend Chloe back home about Kerry's opinion and she informed me that putting marshmallows on anything pretty much makes it trashy. I had no idea.  I guess I'm not as classy as I thought I was.

Mexicans obviously don't give a shit about the third Thursday in Novemeber so luckily my favorite Todos Santos taqueria was open. We had an awesome Thanksgiving dinner of a baked potato loaded with carne asada, cheese, and vegetables and tacos al pastor.

The rest of my time in Todos Santos was pretty relaxed. My days consisted of waking up early, making coffee and a basic breakfast before heading to the beach to surf and hang out. I even bought my first surfboard, shaped right there in Todos Santos. I also met some French Canadians who were on a road trip themselves all the way from Quebec. They had made friends with some of the Mexican guys who worked on the beach renting surfboards and beach umbrellas. We all hung out quite a bit both surfing and apres surf beer drinking and eating.

Although I enjoyed Todos Santos, two weeks was plenty of time I was excited to first do some camping in a rural national park, then to get over to the mainland.

Kerry releasing a baby sea turtle at the beach near the house in Todos Santos

Da Beach

White Trash Thanksgiving Yams

Carlos "Los" and the sunset

Baja Bound

After leaving San Diego, Charlie the German Shepherd and I took our time getting to Todos Santos, Mexico where I have a home rented for about two weeks until the 7th of December. I gave myself five days to drive the approximately 950 miles because I didn't want to rush. It was more than enough time and I probably could have stayed in San Diego another night. If I'd had a surfboard with me it would have been valuable extra free time as much of the coast of Baja, California is a surf mecca. Unfortunately, I'm still at the dorky, trying to catch waves on a garage door sized board level and driving 1,000 miles with one of those strapped to your roof is a challenge. So I just took it easy, drove a few hours a day and stopped in little towns along the way that looked like they may be interesting.

The first stop was Ensenada. Nothing remarkable here normally but when I arrived Baja 1,000 racers were in town preparing for the race that was due to start in a couple days. There were quite a few "trophy trucks" around getting ready for an epic 1,000 mile off road competition. I had a chat with one of the racers hoping for a podium spot and he got me excited to see a part of the race. I thought he told me it would be starting the next day so if I headed south I would catch it.

I headed down to El Rosario after one night in Ensenada. It's a quaint little town near the Pacific where I had heard of this cool little roadside motel. Sadly, when I arrived all the rooms were taken by Baja 1,000 teams prepping. Luckily right next door there was a perfectly adequate motel called Mama Espinoza's. They even let Charlie stay in the room, which I had been told is rare in Mexican motels. He'd had to sleep in the car quite a few nights due to me sleeping in friend's homes where someone had allergies and a lack of pet friendly hotels. Luckily, Charlie is pretty low maintenance so as long as he gets good exercise in the day he doesn't mind a little car camping. Once settled in at Mama Espinoza's I ran a few miles, showered and went to dinner. The most noteworthy thing that happened in El Rosario is the enchiladas I had at Mama Espinoza's restaurant next door to the motel. They were hands down the best enchiladas I've ever had and of course they only set me back about $3 and were served with rice and beans. If you find yourself driving through this part of the world, don't miss the food from the place.

I left the next morning expecting a stop in Catavina which I was told would be an excellent vantage point to see some Baja racers but before I left, one the racers' support crew told me they wouldn't be reaching that point until late the following evening. I had the day wrong and was actually a day ahead of the race start. When I reached Catavina I momentarily considered staying overnight to catch the action the next day but there is next to nothing to see or do in the miniature town and I would be waiting for close to 36 hours if I wanted to see anything. I decided to keep moving to get to an oasis pueblito I had heard good things about.

Although the town of Catavina has little to keep a traveler leisurely occupied, the terrain surrounding the town is a site to behold. Out of the rolling, stark baja desert, huge boulders begin to appear, between which are some of the biggest cacti I've ever seen. It's quite dramatic and I took advantage of having an SUV with 4wd by going off road for a bit and navigating around some of the boulders on the actual Baja race course.

Next stop was the oasis of San Ignacio. Got in a little late and quickly saw a sign for a B&B with yurts for accommodation. It is run by a kind Canadian couple, and although it seemed overpriced at $65 per night, I was tired and hungry and they were pet friendly so I took it. After a six mile run I sat down for roasted chicken, salad, and other yummies with the B&B owners and the large group of Canadians on a motorcycle tour that were staying there. They were interesting folks and it provided an evening of pleasant and interesting conversation.

I next planned a stopover in Loreto. I think this is a good time to talk about the kindness of others that I've been experiencing. Full disclosure here: I don't have a whole lot of faith in people for the most part. I know it sounds negative, bit I feel like people let you down more than they should. I choose the people in my life very carefully and keep a pretty small number of friends, and don't expect much from most. This trip has helped me getting an ever so slightly sunnier outlook so far. After letting friends know of my plans to drive to Central America and posting about it on Facebook I have been overwhelmed by the kindness and support I've received. I was offered a place to sleep in Northern California by an old friend I barely ever talk to or see, I was offered a place no questioned asked for a couple nights in LA, and I had three places to sleep offered to me by people in San Diego. I've also been offered a bed and local support in both Guadalajara and Mexico City by people I've met on the road.

One of the most heartwarming events was a message I got from a Portland friend shortly after I left home. It said that one of his wife's previous employers had seen that he "liked" my post about driving down Baja. They told him that they had recently purchased a home in Loreto and that if I needed anything at all, including a place to stay, that I should contact them directly. The morning I left for Loreto, despite my tendency to do everything in my power not to put people out in any way, I did just that. Tim and Sherrie met me in the town of Loreto where they were attending a party at a local microbrewery. After the party died down they had me follow them to their beautiful home in an expat community called Loreto Bay. I hadn't had dinner and it was late and nothing was open so Tim made me tacos and gave me a beer. After staying up and talking for a while I was led to my comfortable guest room where they even let Charlie stay. When I woke we had coffee under their rooftop palapa looking over the ocean. They had some previous plans so they told me to stay as long as I liked and allowed me to do my laundry before I left.

The kindness from these complete strangers really felt amazing. They were friendly and fun and didn't make me feel uncomfortable at all in accepting their help. I knew they were just good people happy to do something good for someone else.

Okay, this post is starting to feel a little rambly to me so I'm going to wrap it up here. After Loreto I went to La Paz where I spent two uneventful nights. I watched the Cotto VS. Alvarez fight at a local bar and tried to practice a little Spanish with some of the rabid Alvarez fans (He's kind of a national hero at the moment). Other than that I went to a beach, and ate tacos at least twice per day while waiting for the 23rd to arrive when I would pick up Kerry at the airport and get my first glimpse of my home for two weeks in Todos Santos. I'll try to get a post up about all that in the next few days.

Route from San Diego to La Paz

A Baja 1,000 racer in El Rosario

Catavina Boulders and Cacti

Charlie on a Beach Near La Paz