Mountain Biking Baja

 I'm really enjoying mountain biking here in Baja. Previous visits didn't really leave me with time or the easy access location but since this year, I drove down and brought my bike, I've been seeking it out.

I've ridden SanFelipe, Loreto, LaVentana, Todos Santos - all following the TrailForks suggestions and intel from the local bike shops.

Reasons to bike Baja:

• You don't have to wash the mud off after every ride - it does get a bit dusty but how nice is it to just roll out, ride and get home and not have bike maintenance every ride!
• I only need to wear shorts and a jersey - maybe a bit of sunscreen? But certainly not layers to keep warm and dry
• The trails in Baja are not constantly trying to injure/maim me - why does BC revel in naming trails "Severed Dick", "The penetrator", "Hospital Visit"? :: Here I ride XC Blue trails called "Sunset", "The View", and "Mango Express". So civilized.

However, there are the dogs. God dammed MF barking chasing scare the sh!t out of me every ride. Are there other places where there are so many feral dogs who fight all night and feel the need to defend their streetfront every time I pass. Rant over.

If you ever get a chance to ride in Todos Santos, try out the Sierra Madre trail just north of town. It wanders up/down and through the deset for 3 hours. My favorite so far. Easy 273m elevation gain. Bring water! Start early...

Holiday Family Time

 Well, there has been a flurry of visitors over the last weeks that will extend into January. My brother Bill arrived, quickly followed with Katie, Shannon and Grace. That makes 6 of us so we moved AirBNB to a place with 3 bedrooms and a pool! Luxury!

Whale Shark Adventure

As a Christmas gift, we went on a "Swim with the whale shark" adventure. You know, you watch youtube videos but when you are in the water swimming beside a creature the size of a school bus, you feel pretty small. I was surprised at how hard we had to swim to keep up. This was not the typical jump in the water for snorkeling and the fish come to you....it was hard work! Definitely worth it!

Here is the 10min version I trimmed down from 3 hours. 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1GZOmUa0yMaiYlybGKBehS0qkt6FNdUuq/view?usp=sharing

Other times, we hang at the beach, I sneak away for mountain bike rides, and we fend off the dogs from sneaking into the kitchen.

Baby Turtles?

 

They are pretty darn cute. 

The whole experience of sunset, migrating whales breaching offshore and then the struggle of watching baby turtles attempt to enter the surf. Kind of like me learning to dirtbike, the exhausting floundering around!

Earlier, I rode the KLX over to the mountains. The sandy roads posed no challenges but the arroyo with deep sand and big rocks started to make me sweat!

And of course, some hiking exploring. This area used to be the hub of sugar cane production and export. The old port buildings are fun to climb around…

Should I go down? Of course!

Toosie the explorer. 

Beaches, ATV and more guava

 Hiking in the hills

Is that a camel?

Time for ripping up the sand with Mitchell

Walking into a secret beach through a burnt palm grove

The guava falls from the tree into the blender with tequila

Settling in to Todos Santos

Have a look at our AirBnB

 Todos Santos is located on the west coast, north of Cabo San Lucas. A small artist village sprawling along the coast, with surfing at Cerritos Beach, the Pescadero just north and into Todos. The northern beaches are a turtle egg hatching and releasing site. More on that in days to follow!

We hike, we swim and we explore daily. Yesterday a quick drive up to La Paz and the famous beach "Balandra".

Last night was the first rain I've seen over the years of coming here. Not a hurricane, but a proper amount of water followed by a proper amount of mud on the dirt streets. Love watching Corollas navigate the pot holes....

And of course, we need to stay fed and hydrated!

Guava from Heaven

 Mom and Mitchell arrived! 

A great reunion in the SDJ parking lot and a drive back to Todos Santos wrapped up the travel day from snow to sun. 

This morning we hiked and then swam in some crashing waves. 

Now, I sit in my office writing this under a guava tree that continues to drop ripe fruit. 

Sigh…