So what is a plan if not something from which to deviate? We have made many plans and promptly deviated from them over the last two weeks. I’ll spare you the details of each fork in the road as I try to catch you up on where we’ve been.

For those of you who don't need a travelogue, I'll just say we are having a great time. We've seen some beautiful places and met some interesting people. As each day passes we fall more into the rhythm of life on the road. We've met several travellers doing the same type trip we are doing and its fun to share experiences....sometimes just for a moment, other times for a drink, a meal or an evening.

If you want to know where we've been, here's the catch up travelogue:


Indeed, the wind blew at Punta La Gringa. And blew and blew and blew. Thought we were back in Salida. We were situated in such a way that the wind was coming across the bay and hitting the little van broadside. Buffeted we were. You had to lean into the wind if you went outside.

Finally, Mike and Chet went on a recon mission and we moved the van over a bluff and into the next cove north and were somewhat sheltered from the wind. New views!

Mike broke out the fishing pole and after catching a poisonous puffer fish, caught a sea bass that we filleted right on the beach and cooked for dinner. Delish!

We left the next morning with the wind still blowing and headed to Guerrero Negro. My expectations for this town were low and we were pleasantly surprised at the vibe. It had a beach-town feel and had every service one might need. We took advantage of the services and stayed at a hotel/RV park right in town the first night. Internet! Dinner out! Showers!


Guerrero Negro is located just inland from a large lagoon that is one of the breeding grounds for gray whales. There is a huge salt plant there that is the primary economy for the area, despite the tourists who come to watch the whales. We are a little too early for the whales which start to arrive later in December, but we did spend a night on the lagoon none-the-less. To get to the lagoon, we had to pass through the salt plant....really weird landscape and as close to a snowy scene as we'll probably get this winter.

Being ‘off season’, we had the lagoon to ourselves and it was beautiful.

From there we headed across the desert toward Santa Rosalia. We made a brief mid-day stop in San Ignacio which is a palm-studded oasis in the middle of the desert, situated on an underground spring that makes the town a lush anomaly in the cactus strewn desert. It has an old mission right on the plaza that was once the most successful of all the missions in Baja.

As we drove away from San Ignacio, we both had that wistful feeling when you leave a place you would have liked to explore more. On to Santa Rosalia.

Arriving in Santa Rosalia was a shock after being in so many isolate places. It is a bustling city on the Sea of Cortez, whose link with the sea is more about shipping than tourists on beaches. Moreover, it had been hit hard by recent hurricanes and the seemingly chaotic town was a bit in disarray.


After making a few laps up and down the streets, we realized some of the frenetic feel was coming from so much construction to clean up and rebuild some of what had been washed away. The streets are narrow and crammed with all kinds of shops.

Santa Rosalia is also one of the ports for the mainland ferry. Here we had a decision to make: continue lollygagging south through Baja and miss my brother and his family in Guatemala at Christmas, or take the ferry from here and keep that dream alive. We opted for the ferry, and promised ourselves that we would return to Baja and spend the time it deserves for exploration.

With our ferry plans in place, and with the ferry not leaving for two days we opted to backtrack to San Ignacio (about an hour drive) to really embrace the town. We both felt right about the decision to return and we enjoyed our time there as we knew we would.

We met a great couple from Germany traveling in a Eurovan (our vehicle made friends for us) and we camped together one night in San Ignacio. They, too, are headed for points south and we shared email/blog information in the off-chance we are in Panama ready to ship our vehicles at about the same time.

We arrived in Santa Rosalia for the second time ready for our over-night ferry crossing to Guaymas only to find that because of rough seas the ferry wasn’t leaving until the following morning at 6am. What to do, where to stay? We decided to camp in the parking lot of the ferry terminal—seemed like the thing to do for such an early morning departure. We were not the only ones camped out, but we were among the lucky ones who had their beds with them. Several people had arrived as walk-on passengers and had to spend the night in the terminal. Everyone was a little fuzzy the next morning. The ferry eventually left at 8am for the 9 hour crossing.

We were told Chettie had to stay inside the vehicle for the trip. I had heard some tragic stories of animals not surviving such trips and with tears in my eyes we left the windows open a crack, gave her plenty of water, locked the doors and went to the upper deck to find a seat. Imagine how I felt when she spied me taking pictures of the vehicle and began to whine.

Once on deck we saw another couple with a dog. We worked our way down to the vehicle and freed Chet.

Let’s talk here about rules. The captain of the ship was the one who told us our dog must be inside the vehicle, but once underway we were able to not only bring her with us but actually access our vehicle. We’ve taken several other ferry rides and never, ever have we been allowed back to where the vehicles are loaded.

Besides being a good thing for Chettie, it was a good thing for Mike, who tends to get a little queasy on rolly-polly ferry rides. He and Chettie spent most of the ride hanging out in the van. I hung out on deck, listened to my ipod and chatted it up with some of our fellow passengers, periodically checking in on my three traveling companions.

We were daunted by the prospect of landing in Guaymas, a fairly large port city at dusk. We knew of a couple of RV parks in San Carlos, north of Guaymas, but knew finding it would be a challenge in the dark. As luck would have it, we had connected with an ex pat on the boat who lived in San Carlos and he offered to lead us there. Not driving at night is one of our cardinal rules but the late ferry start left us no choice. It was a huge relief to have PJ guide us to a place to stay for the night.

You still with me? We’re almost caught up.

We spent the next night in Alamos, another one of those places that deserved much more time. Alamos is in the mountains, not at the ocean, and we loved the setting, the town, the vibe, the plaza and the market. We took some time in the morning before leaving town to shop for provisions at the local market with stalls selling everything from meat to veggies.


We are still hoping to meet up with my brother in Guatemala around Christmas and this is why we are pressing south. We are trying to mix a little exploration in with putting miles under the wheels. Mexico is a BIG country and we’ll have to keep moving in order to make the connection.

Tonight we are in Playa Las Glorias, with a great beach out our slider. It is yet another spot at which one could linger for a week or more. We’ll continue our journey as the calendar says it’s still possible.

For requests of 'more people pictures', I'll leave you with this: