Down to Mexico Part 2
La Paz is a tourist town along a very beautiful section of the Sea of Cortez. Very popular with sail boaters the bay is surrounded by timeshares, condos and resort hotels. Our hotel was right along the water, which has a beautiful esplanade that allowed one to enjoy a quiet walk next to the bay. A walk with lots of opportunities to stop at seaside bars and restaurants.
I had hoped to spend a full day in La Paz; but again, our abbreviated schedule required that we move on, so off to Cabo we went. Cabo San Lucas is only about 150 miles from La Paz, so we enjoyed a fairly short day and got into our hotel, the Mar de Cortez (http://www.mardecortez.com), about noon. A nice small hotel, with a great little restaurant/bar attached the hotel had a nice pool, friendly staff and a room that only cost $40 a night. A relaxing afternoon, including a massage, a visit to the “Cabo Wabo” bar only a block away, fostered a good night’s sleep. By morning we were set for a day of sightseeing in Cabo.
After reviewing the many options available to tourists we decided to do some whale watching, Chad had never done this, although I’ve seen a lot of whales over the years. So we booked a tour on an old (1885’s) sailing ship, the Sunderland (http://www.thecabopirateship.com).
Leaving early in the morning, we sailed down toward the end of Baja California past the famous Lover’s Beach and arch. No sooner did we clear the heavy harbor traffic than we came upon three humpback whales that put on a spectacular show. The ship’s crew said that in all their whale watching tours, this was the best display they had seen and I certainly couldn’t argue. The whales breached (jumped out of the water), tail slapped, spy hopped, fin waved and performed virtually every other behavior young mating whales can perform. The show was breathtaking and went on for several hours.
The ship itself is a nautical historical treasure. Built as a commercial cargo and fishing vessel for the North Atlantic, the wooden square-rigger harkens to a time of “wooden ships and iron men”, and was a thrill to sail. After a very pleasant morning on the water, we walked the mile or so back to our hotel enjoying the view of all the mega-yachts that filled the harbor. The harbor in Cabo is lined with fancy shops, jewelers, a Harley-Davidson dealer, restaurants, bars, coffee boutiques and all the other trappings of an upscale seaside resort. I found the town a little touristy for me, but still a very nice place to spend a couple of days. I wish we had more time to explore all that Cabo had to offer.
The return trip home was pretty much a repeat, in reverse, of the trip down, although there were a few differences. On the way down to Cabo we had passed 8 or 10 military checkpoints along the highway. Being on motorbikes, they just waved us through without much thought; however, on the way north the military was careful to check every vehicle thoroughly, and while the soldiers were unfailingly polite and pleasant, they did check the side cases and all our luggage, to make sure we weren’t smuggling anything. Still, the delays were minor, rarely taking more then a few minutes to clear the checkpoints. The other difference was the weather. We had been very fortunate in that the southbound weather was nearly perfect. Cool, clear, calm, and really a delight. However, on the way back, the wind picked up and we had strong head and crosswinds. Both our bikes handled the wind just fine, but my poor little GS does suffer as far as fuel mileage goes in strong headwinds. In fact my mileage dropped from a typical 45-50 mpg to about 35-40 mpg. Now with a tank that holds 4.2 usable gallons (about 16 liters, according to the owner’s manual) and a distance of nearly 185 miles between fuel stations, the ride from Bahia de los Angeles to El Rosario was something of a cliffhanger. Of course, I did have my four liter reserve, but that wasn’t the point, the question was if I was going to need it. When we finally pulled into the PEMEX station in El Rosario the bike took 16.2 liters—it must have been on fumes when I finally reached the gas station. Still, considering this was the most “nerve wracking” thing that happened, we don’t really have any complaints. In fact, this was a great trip and one that I can highly recommend you try, just do it in January, February or March and avoid the heat.
Some final thoughts on our travels in Mexico
You should check the companion article (which will be published tomorrow) for some information of specifics of traveling in Mexico, but I want to address one issue that is on everyone’s mind—security. This is the one concern people must have mentioned to us, half a dozen times, about traveling in Mexico. We see on TV stories of drug gangs running rampant along the border, bandits on the highways, corrupt police and military harassing tourists, and just confiscating their cars or bikes. Well, all I can say is that Chad and I had no more trouble in Mexico than one normally has in the US. Yes, security is tight. As I mentioned there are military checkpoints along the highways, and one should always be careful about where you park your bike, and your surroundings. There are bad parts of town that only an idiot would venture into, but all this is true in the US as well. All the hotels had good security for the motorbikes, the roads were well patrolled, the drivers courteous, the road surfaces in good shape, the people friendly, the food good and I drank the water in the major tourist cities without any problems, although we did use bottled water in small towns and restaurants.
The bottom line is that you should not hesitate to visit our neighbor to the south. Traveling in Baja California can be great fun and is as safe as traveling in any rural part of the US. Baja California relies on tourists, and they won’t prosper if they develop a reputation for crime and dangerous roads. I know Chad and I enjoyed the trip and I plan on visiting Mexico again soon.
Check back tomorrow for “A Guide to Mexico”.
