I love these installments!  can't wait for the next one!
Thanks again, Mark!
YMMV,

Mr. BZ-so far so excellent!

On Sat, Mar 16, 2013 at 9:04 AM, mark drillock <mdrillock@cox.net> wrote:

> After retiring early for our first Baja night at a Pacific coast beach
> camp about 5 hours south of the border we awoke early to the beginnings
> of another beautiful day. While we didn't plan to drive all that far to
> the next camp I hoped to get everyone used to starting the days early so
> we could make the most of the daylight over the whole trip. Driving at
> night is a no-no and getting to camp while there is still time to walk
> around and explore is a yes-yes.
>
> 30 miles down the road we cleared our first Army checkpoint, without
> much delay. A few miles later we dropped down to a small town that had a
> panaderia (bakery) and a few small stores. The bakery sign said open but
> it wasn't, sadly. The markets were open so we grabbed a few things. From
> there the highway moved away from the coast and climbed through some
> small mountains into the interior desert of Baja. We pressed on, making
> the turn at the junction toward Bahia de Los Angeles on the Sea of
> Cortez. We stopped for lunch, pulling a little ways down a dirt track
> leading into the recently dedicated nature preserve area. The desert was
> greener that usual and wild flowers were everywhere. Clearly there had
> been some rains. The mood was light and things were good.
>
> On the road again, we hit a  hilly area and were buffeted by some wind,
> an ominous sign if it continued. Heading toward the sea, we soon caught
> our first glimpse. Anne and I were happy to see that the water looked
> calm. We all pulled over at a lookout point and surveyed the view of the
> many islands arrayed around the great bay. After a stop in town for gas,
> ice, and beer we headed north along the bay with the pavement running
> out after several miles and our first taste of Baja washboard beginning.
> It was slow rough going but we kept on until we reached the hoped for
> camping beach at the end of the road. We had it all to ourselves, and we
> set up the vans spread in a long line along the best spot.
>
> The Bay Of LA (BOLA) magic was with us, calm and beautiful. Some people
> jumped in the clear water. After a few beers we took the kayaks off the
> roofs and started setting them up for a little paddling and fishing. The
> hungry bass were biting as usual and I even hooked a small barracuda.
> The breeze started to kick up so we had to keep close to shore and then
> cut our paddling short.  Some of the fish were cooked for dinner. It was
> a beautiful evening, things were going well.
>
> We woke early to a fabulous sunrise beginning to show, many cameras in
> evidence. The receding tide was too low for kayaking but we had a lot of
> shoreline to walk and explore. Some combed the rocks and sand looking
> for clams, gathering enough to have a meal later. I hiked a few of the
> small hills, looking longingly at the larger close island to the east
> where I have fished many times from my Zodiac. I hope to one day do more
> of that but it has been a few years. When I got back to camp some others
> were just heading out for walks so I joined them to show where I had
> found my best views. When the tide returned we made another go at
> kayaking but the threat of offshore wind kept us in pretty tight. A few
> fish were caught to go along with the clams collected earlier. We had a
> calm evening and ate our dinners outside. We set up a small campfire
> with chairs for all 19 of us at one point. I can't really put the joy of
> such times into words so I won't try.
>
> Mark
>
>
>
>
>
>
> mark drillock wrote:
>
>> As advertised here a few months ago, the 4th annual Vanagon Baja Whale
>> trip took place last week. This year there were 10 vans from 6 states.
>> Harold and Faye Teer get the long distance award, coming from Virgina.
>> Other vans were from Washington, Oklahoma, Oregon, Arizona, and several
>> from California. I never dreamed that this many vans would join a trip
>> like this but they did and we had a great time.
>>
>>
>>

--
Tom Buese