yep Sacremento down....not up north. Maybe I'm reading the map wrong.
Lewis and Clark, et. al - 2 months and 8,000 miles in a FJ40.
- Thread starter tglaser
- Start date
tglaser
Observer
Oh yeah - looks like I broke one of my own rules - told a fish story w/o posting a fish picture...here's to all that.
As to my route - the story has just now reached the southern tip of Baja -we'll worry about CA when we get there. Of course there are a million amazing things to see, but every project has some constraints, right? We chose the things we wanted to see the most and flipped a coin on the rest...much more to come. Cheers!
As to my route - the story has just now reached the southern tip of Baja -we'll worry about CA when we get there. Of course there are a million amazing things to see, but every project has some constraints, right? We chose the things we wanted to see the most and flipped a coin on the rest...much more to come. Cheers!
tglaser
Observer
Dropped Sarah off at the airport and turned around and headed back to Los Barriles. I said my goodbyes to Paco and his family and headed back North.
At this point I was still planning to take the La Paz ferry to Topo - but later that day even, my mind had changed.
A friend I was planning to visit near Monterrey got in touch with me and said " I know you're smart and capable, etc but it's just not worth it right now. Matter of fact, 27 people were killed just yesterday a few kilometers outside the city. You really should visit Mexico, just not right now."
I thought long and hard about it - after all, the whole reason I went on this trip was to see interior Mexico - but what he said made sense. Didn't want to unnecessarily risk my life at this stage in the game. Still have a long way to go...so I regrouped and decided that I had never seen the West coast of the U.S. and didn't know when I would have the chance to drive it again. That sealed the deal. Not too much heartache about it, that's just the way it was.
Here we go. North to TJ and then up and up. First sign I saw was this - should have seen my jaw drop.
I had a copy of The Surfer's Guide to Baja and decided to check out a Pacific beach - Punta Conejo. The road off the highway was hard to spot, so I had to turn around, and the 10 miles to the water felt more like 20, but when I got there, man was it worth it.
Great, big waves and miles and miles of rocky beach with only a few other souls around. I met a couple SoCal surfers who had been coming down for 20 years or so - they had sweet stories and we cooked up an agreeable dinner and a few cold ones. Awesome time. Oh yeah, and cold. The wind coming off the Pacific had a little bit of nip to it...
That's the shower/cow trough in the background... :sombrero:
At this point I was still planning to take the La Paz ferry to Topo - but later that day even, my mind had changed.
A friend I was planning to visit near Monterrey got in touch with me and said " I know you're smart and capable, etc but it's just not worth it right now. Matter of fact, 27 people were killed just yesterday a few kilometers outside the city. You really should visit Mexico, just not right now."
I thought long and hard about it - after all, the whole reason I went on this trip was to see interior Mexico - but what he said made sense. Didn't want to unnecessarily risk my life at this stage in the game. Still have a long way to go...so I regrouped and decided that I had never seen the West coast of the U.S. and didn't know when I would have the chance to drive it again. That sealed the deal. Not too much heartache about it, that's just the way it was.
Here we go. North to TJ and then up and up. First sign I saw was this - should have seen my jaw drop.
I had a copy of The Surfer's Guide to Baja and decided to check out a Pacific beach - Punta Conejo. The road off the highway was hard to spot, so I had to turn around, and the 10 miles to the water felt more like 20, but when I got there, man was it worth it.
Great, big waves and miles and miles of rocky beach with only a few other souls around. I met a couple SoCal surfers who had been coming down for 20 years or so - they had sweet stories and we cooked up an agreeable dinner and a few cold ones. Awesome time. Oh yeah, and cold. The wind coming off the Pacific had a little bit of nip to it...
That's the shower/cow trough in the background... :sombrero:
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tglaser
Observer
We drove up from Conejo to Loreto - crashed there for a night - then on to a remote surf beach called Punta Rosailita - cold Pacific winds made for good sleeping on top of the cruiser weather - met some folks who've spent the last 30 years trekking backcountry Baja and learned and shared and solved all the world's problems around a campfire that night - also heard about some little known cave paintings deep in the canyons a few hours backtrack and decided to if I was going to call myself an Adventurer I'd better earn my keep. Snuck out early the next day and headed South toward a place on the map called San Pablo - Jesuit mission ruins from the late 1600s - was quite a chore getting there - two hours off the highway - through two different ranchos with questionable, drawn-in-the-sand directions from the campaneros I passed - finally found the ranch house and met the most amazing people - Eduardo and his son Eduardo and his wife Eduarda. These are the kind who don't see other folks very often and have no reason to be mistrusting or otherwise unpleasant. The son loaded me up and took me on a mule ride through the canyon to the ruins - they're closed to the public from this route - but I've never considered myself to be the public.
FourByLand
Expedition Leader
The Cruiser looks absolutely perfect in every photo from sitting on the hood with your babe to being nestled deep in Mehico among the Cacti!
It's all about the journey.
It's all about the journey.
BajaRunner
Bandito
Always great to see pictures of Baja. Its my favorite place in the world, and brings back memories and excitement of the thought of going back!
tglaser
Observer
This is mostly pulled from memory, and it happened only a few months ago. I sent some quick emails to my friends and family - some of those are pieced in here, too. I think I was purposely impressionable as well.
And thanks for reading! I had a Hell of a time and passing the stories along adds a small amount of validity to the entire ordeal.
TurboChris
Adventurer
Hahaha, GREAT write up...had to laugh tho...my family has a beach house just outside Rosarito...when I saw this pic I just about spit my coke on the keyboard...it's about 1 mile from our house!
"
I feel like someone's looking at me. I look up. Damn sure is. It's Jesus. A 300' tall statue of the man who has his hands full with a people gone awry. Baja was already a place of stark contrast - beautiful people with love in their hearts and an AK in their back seat. This place reveals so much in the opening few paragraphs - all the history told and the scars worn with pride. It's hope without optimism, but hope nonetheless. With ************************ watching over it all.
tglaser
Observer
I was about a day's drive away from the Sates but just couldn't leave Mexico yet - decided to stop in Rosario for a couple days - eat some food, check out the beaches and address a couple cruiser-related things before I got back to the land of the free.
Limped the Cruiser into El Rosario that night - front axle making
noises and the brakes gone bad from weeks of wild Baja roads - woke up
early this morning to get in touch with a mechanico and see if it was
still drivable to the states or if by some stroke of luck it'd be an
easy fix. Talked to a friend I'd made a few weeks earlier ago when I came
through - a guy who spent two years in a Texas prison for Repeated
Reentry violations - he told me about a guy who was nearby and abierto
(today's Sunday and the Mexicans are are all in church). Checked it
out and the head mechanic was out asking for forgiveness and wouldn't
be back until 1. Decided to swing through town and see if I could
diagnose the problem a little better - on the edge of town there was a
sign that read "Mechanico General - Frenos y Raditors Especial - El
Techo" - Sweet - just what I needed. I pull up (to his house) and his
wife Catalina comes barreling out to see what this crazy-looking
gringo wants. She's built like a linebacker and has a voice to
match. I tell her in my very best and polite Spanish that I need some
help with the brakes - she says her husband is the best (only) in town
and would be glad to help. I meet Anatacio and we get to pulling the
front left tire off to let the man do his work. Easy he says - brake
pad is worn from mountain driving and no problemo - we can replace.
Pero espero, he says. Un otro problemo. The hub (place where you
lock it into 4x4) needs to be pulled apart, too - OK - we unscrew a
few bolts, pull the thing apart and find a bigger problemo - an
adjustment ring has had its threads crushed during my off-road
adventuring - uh oh. Ever try finding a forty-one year old part in
backcountry Mexico? Not easy turns out. With upside-down smiles on
our faces, we cruise into the house to let Catalina serve us breakfast
- the absolute best chicken quesadillas anywhere - pollo, papas,
tortillas y queso - awesome. We eat, have a cup 'o coffee and hop in
his busted ride and tear off to the closest tienda de partes. First
place - confused looks - second place - sells only housewares - third
place - tries to sells us electrical parts. I skipped a few that were
closed - I'm thinking we'll just hang it up for today - I'll get a
relaxing day in the motel to read/clean myself - but Stacio says OK -
we go to Cardenas. I'm pretty familiar with Baja by now and know that
Cardenas is about an hour away - but Mexicans know no sarcasm so I ask
to stop by the room to feed the pup, put some pants on and grab my
wallet. This guy that I met literally one hour ago puts down
everything he is doing - checks out my problem - invites me in for
breakfast and is now about to drive an (at least) two hour round trip
just to see if there happens to be something open that just miiight
have the part we're looking for. If i was anywhere else, I wouldn't
believe it. But these people are like nothing I've ever seen. All of
'em. On the way to town Anastacio tells me that he has never had even
one day of school in his life - he was born in 1953 and was raised con
muchas vacas en el rancho and never needed it. But his reading is
good - writing the same. He proved it by writing his wife's phone
number in the thck dust on the dash. Genius - this guy is.
Skip to four hours later - when we couldn't find the part at five (5)
more stores, we ended up at a Taller de Máquinas (machine shop) where
they did something beyond my comprehension and somehow welded/cut/made
new threads on my broken part. Same way planes fly I guess.. F#cking
magic. Anyway, we get home - get the part back on and now the whole
neighborhood is standing around watching me dig around in the grease
and Stacio stomp around like Michael Jackson's plastic surgeon. Very
nice. I'm tense - just because my only means of basically anything is
up on jack stands in the middle of the Baja desert - and the crowd is
loving it. Lots of "No preoccupado Tomas" and that sort of thing
going around - and my friend (the ex-con) pulls up with his toddler
son and yells for me to come over and talk to him. Hadn't seen him
since very early in the morning - and he says "A girl in town said she
saw your car here and I forgot to tell you that this guy is the worst
mechanic in town - don't trust him," Cool. Rattles me for a second
and then I tell him "No, no me importa - this guy is solid - I know
him now." He has driven across town to check on me and asks about the
hotel room - checkout is at noon - it's probably 4 by now - so he runs
back across town - gets things straight with my room and calls me to
tell all is well. Not bad for a felon...
All this to relay to all of you that if ever you are in Mexico and in
need of help - have no fear - things WILL work out. The gods are
always watching and ayudar will usually come from the most unlikely of
places. So forget what you see on the tv and read in the papers -
people everywhere are the same - we all want the same things in life -
have similar hardships - and are all led to a smile by a friendly
face.
Fabbing new front axle part.
Anastacio doing what he does best - improvise!
Next couple days were spent making arrangements in the states and enjoying my last plate of lobster tacos at Mama Espinosa's! :sombrero:
Limped the Cruiser into El Rosario that night - front axle making
noises and the brakes gone bad from weeks of wild Baja roads - woke up
early this morning to get in touch with a mechanico and see if it was
still drivable to the states or if by some stroke of luck it'd be an
easy fix. Talked to a friend I'd made a few weeks earlier ago when I came
through - a guy who spent two years in a Texas prison for Repeated
Reentry violations - he told me about a guy who was nearby and abierto
(today's Sunday and the Mexicans are are all in church). Checked it
out and the head mechanic was out asking for forgiveness and wouldn't
be back until 1. Decided to swing through town and see if I could
diagnose the problem a little better - on the edge of town there was a
sign that read "Mechanico General - Frenos y Raditors Especial - El
Techo" - Sweet - just what I needed. I pull up (to his house) and his
wife Catalina comes barreling out to see what this crazy-looking
gringo wants. She's built like a linebacker and has a voice to
match. I tell her in my very best and polite Spanish that I need some
help with the brakes - she says her husband is the best (only) in town
and would be glad to help. I meet Anatacio and we get to pulling the
front left tire off to let the man do his work. Easy he says - brake
pad is worn from mountain driving and no problemo - we can replace.
Pero espero, he says. Un otro problemo. The hub (place where you
lock it into 4x4) needs to be pulled apart, too - OK - we unscrew a
few bolts, pull the thing apart and find a bigger problemo - an
adjustment ring has had its threads crushed during my off-road
adventuring - uh oh. Ever try finding a forty-one year old part in
backcountry Mexico? Not easy turns out. With upside-down smiles on
our faces, we cruise into the house to let Catalina serve us breakfast
- the absolute best chicken quesadillas anywhere - pollo, papas,
tortillas y queso - awesome. We eat, have a cup 'o coffee and hop in
his busted ride and tear off to the closest tienda de partes. First
place - confused looks - second place - sells only housewares - third
place - tries to sells us electrical parts. I skipped a few that were
closed - I'm thinking we'll just hang it up for today - I'll get a
relaxing day in the motel to read/clean myself - but Stacio says OK -
we go to Cardenas. I'm pretty familiar with Baja by now and know that
Cardenas is about an hour away - but Mexicans know no sarcasm so I ask
to stop by the room to feed the pup, put some pants on and grab my
wallet. This guy that I met literally one hour ago puts down
everything he is doing - checks out my problem - invites me in for
breakfast and is now about to drive an (at least) two hour round trip
just to see if there happens to be something open that just miiight
have the part we're looking for. If i was anywhere else, I wouldn't
believe it. But these people are like nothing I've ever seen. All of
'em. On the way to town Anastacio tells me that he has never had even
one day of school in his life - he was born in 1953 and was raised con
muchas vacas en el rancho and never needed it. But his reading is
good - writing the same. He proved it by writing his wife's phone
number in the thck dust on the dash. Genius - this guy is.
Skip to four hours later - when we couldn't find the part at five (5)
more stores, we ended up at a Taller de Máquinas (machine shop) where
they did something beyond my comprehension and somehow welded/cut/made
new threads on my broken part. Same way planes fly I guess.. F#cking
magic. Anyway, we get home - get the part back on and now the whole
neighborhood is standing around watching me dig around in the grease
and Stacio stomp around like Michael Jackson's plastic surgeon. Very
nice. I'm tense - just because my only means of basically anything is
up on jack stands in the middle of the Baja desert - and the crowd is
loving it. Lots of "No preoccupado Tomas" and that sort of thing
going around - and my friend (the ex-con) pulls up with his toddler
son and yells for me to come over and talk to him. Hadn't seen him
since very early in the morning - and he says "A girl in town said she
saw your car here and I forgot to tell you that this guy is the worst
mechanic in town - don't trust him," Cool. Rattles me for a second
and then I tell him "No, no me importa - this guy is solid - I know
him now." He has driven across town to check on me and asks about the
hotel room - checkout is at noon - it's probably 4 by now - so he runs
back across town - gets things straight with my room and calls me to
tell all is well. Not bad for a felon...
All this to relay to all of you that if ever you are in Mexico and in
need of help - have no fear - things WILL work out. The gods are
always watching and ayudar will usually come from the most unlikely of
places. So forget what you see on the tv and read in the papers -
people everywhere are the same - we all want the same things in life -
have similar hardships - and are all led to a smile by a friendly
face.
Fabbing new front axle part.
Anastacio doing what he does best - improvise!
Next couple days were spent making arrangements in the states and enjoying my last plate of lobster tacos at Mama Espinosa's! :sombrero: