Magico

Driving towards Todos Santos, I admitted to Andrew I was feeling some trepidation. This is the magical place we stayed for 6 weeks last time...what if we arrived and the town had changed, what if the RV park we'd stayed at had closed, what if the people we knew had moved on? We had many great memories of the residents (and resident dogs) of little El Litro RV park, of the local pub, the amazing beach, the cute town square and ambience. You know the disappointment when you return to something you love and find it gone.

As we drove into town, everything was as we remembered it - and better. The cobble streets, already charming, had been improved. The baseball diamond, ravaged by the 2014 hurricane, was repaired. And as we sauntered into El Litro (to scope it out before pulling in) we were greeted by Molly's wagging tail, long-time resident Pablo and Sylvia, the operator.

The park was packed, to the point that the only spot was a totally exposed patch of dirt sandwiched between two big rigs. Talking to Sylvia, I realized their back lot, which has been filled with hurricane debris and unusable 2 years ago, was clear and empty. "Can we stay back there?", I asked. "Sure", she said. "There's just no services." Having a rig equipped for boondocking, we don't need to hook-up to power or water or sewer. As long as we can use the bathroom and hot shower, we're happy! So our first week here is paid for at a whopping $35 Cdn!

We've set up camp in a lot surrounded by palms and bamboo. It's a 5-minute walk to the town centre with pubs, restaurants, and shops, and a 10-minute walk to the deserted yet jaw-dropping beach. This is one place where being on the beach wouldn't be desirable, as the crashing waves create so much noise we can faintly even hear them from here. Raising a tequila toast to Todos Santos and El Litro, our home for the next week (or more)!

Glorious Bahia Concepcion

The morning of Christmas Eve day dawned early with blessedly sunny clear skies over Bahia Concepcion, and we were awoken early by annoyingly cheery young Albertans who decided to greet the sun with guitar strumming and bad Jason Mraz imitations.

This is our first day in the real heat. First day in swimwear, going in the ocean, taking the kayaks out. It is absolutely glorious. We are on Playa el Requeson, one of the smaller but more popular beaches along Bahia Concepcion because of it's isthmus leading out to a tiny offshore island, creating shallow bays on either side. When the tide goes fully out, one can walk to the island. We kayaked around the island and loaded up on firewood on its opposite side, only accessible by water.

It's only taken us eight driving days to get here from home, and we'll relax for a while before doing the two more driving days to get down to Todos Santos near the southern tip. We can go into the cute little town of Mulege for a day, and also visit the bar at the next playa along the stretch - Buenaventura owned by American expat Mark who we partied with last time we were here. We'll be able to easily kayak to Mark's and avoid the two km roadway that isn't safe for walking nor driving along after a few cervezas.

As we sit here on the beach, vendors come by with trinkets and blankets, but the best salesmen are the fishermen. We just got a huge bag of fresh camerones (large shrimp) for the equivalent of $14 Cdn.

Fidel's south of San Quintin

First full day in Baja, and sadly overcast and rainy most of the day. Morning was clear and our previous night's stop in Valle de Guadalupe had water taps, so Andrew took pains to thoroughly clean the exterior of the truck and trailer - getting rid of all the gunk from driving south through the US. But today's drive just added all the mud and dust back, and then some. The poor trailer, that we've finally christened "Moby" like the great white whale, looks brown!

At least we had a nice morning with some exercise after sitting on butts for so long. There is an empty beach miles long in front of our RV stop with rolling sand dunes perfect for walking and hiking.

Pictures will have to wait...it's taking too long to download on this wifi. Other pics on Facebook and Instagram at mobsworld :-)

Over the Border...

Potrero is the staging ground for exodus - there is a county park here that many use to shower, shave and get organized before crossing the border at Tecate. It was our first shower since leaving!

What a dramatic change in the temperature these past few days! Woke up this morning and able to don shorts and flip-flops for the first time. Cross the border into the Valley de Guadalupe and we are soaking up the 26 degree afternoon sun. Time for short shorts and a tank top!

Crossing at Tecate was thankfully seamless this time. We drove down to the border without the trailer first, parked and walked to the Immigration Office to get our tourist visas. No problemo. Got our trailer and drove through the border with our cards ready - they didn't even look! A few questions about the trailer - the border guard seemed very curious about our portable blackwater tank and that it wasn't stuffed with narcotics or guns - and through we go. What a difference from the experience two years ago when we were shuffled around offices and parking spots and getting pointed at by border guards with exasperated expressions! Phew! Even the road is better now. They are doing major upgrades to MX highway 3 so it is wider and smoother, with just a few gravel construction zones.

We've pulled in to relax at an RV park about 40 km northeast of Ensenada, in an area that is marketing itself as Mexico's answer to Napa - the Ruta Del Vino. The neat RV park, complete with orange trees, is run by Christian-based school for deaf children, with donations accepted as overnighting fees to support the school. A win-win.

Across the highway from us is a posh new modern resort with individual hillside cabins called Encuetro Guadalupe where we enjoyed a very nice local Chardonnay.

Night 4 and Day 5

NOTE: These next posts are going to be devoid of pictures and are just details for those that want to know....we are not getting much access to wifi and are just trying to get the info out quickly...!

The deep freeze that is affecting Canada must have pushed cold air as far south as Southern CA. It got to -4 last night staying in Palmdale just northeast of LA and there are remnants of snow and frost on the roadside. Still wearing long pants and coats.

Then, this morning's drive took us over the mountains and into the huge sprawl of LA. Having departed from the I5 yesterday, we choose a path at skirted the eastern edge of LA through San Bernardino. Still the multi-lane highways, flyovers and cloverleafs, and sheer volume of traffic is nuts. At least we've been greeted with temperatures of up to 21 degrees and clear blue skies. We stopped for lunch in a crazily cute western town called Temecula before battling the San Diego traffic en route to Potrero County Park. At only 4 miles from the MX border at Tecate, it's the best stop before the big crossing day.

Encuentro Guadalupe

And ultimately funky Boutique Hotel and Winery 40 kilometers Northeast of Ensenada. From our perch at this very delightful bar, we can watch over Hutchins in the RV park below.

In-N-Out - Over n out!

At Mile 309 on the CA I5, there is an In-N-Out Burger in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by hectares of agricultural fields and scrub. Halfway between LA and San Fran, this fast food joint is supposedly often frequented by commuting Silicon Valley titans and celebrities alike. 

I've always wanted to try In-N-Out, so this seemed like a fitting lunch stop. Apparently everyone else in a 100-mile radius thought likewise. The place was insanely busy!

The burgers certainly looked fabulous, but both Andrew and I agreed this California institution is highly overrated. Boring taste and equally lacklustre fries. Been there, done that. 

From -6 to 11 degrees

Big 9.5 hour driving day blasting as far and as fast down the I5 as we could, with only one directional mishap in the snarl of freeway around Seattle. The temperature stayed around plus or minus 0 degrees through Oregon, but the roads were blessedly clear. The area around Eugene must have experienced a recent ice storm as all the trees were layered in a thick coat of dripping ice, making for magical views during sunset.

Hutchins, the truck, is performing spectacularly - pulling strong and getting amazing fuel economy. Andrew thought he was driving a Prius!

Oregon has GREAT rest stops dotted every 40 miles or so along the I5. They allow free overnight stays and some even offer free coffee and cookies!

We've settled for the night at a nice one 99 miles north of the CA border in Canyonville. It's still zero outside but we're snug in the trailer with the furnace on and a glass of vino. Buenos nochas!

Day 3:

Woke amidst frosty mountains. There are several lower passes in Southern Oregon before going over the Siskyou Summit at 4200 ft a few miles before the CA border. Then the highway winds down into California and the foliage goes from lush to dry. On this clear sunny day we were afforded awe striking views of snow-covered Mt. Shasta and drought decimated Lake Shasta before hitting the flat (yawn) agricultural belt of northern CA.

Andrew made friends with the parking security guards at the Sacramento Walmart to ensure a peaceful night's rest. It's still too cold to fill our water tank so that's necessitated some creative uses of buckets and jugs ;-)

Day 1 - Getting out of the Tundra

We pulled out of the driveway at 1:56 PM - quite a bit later than planned due to last minute prep - and got above the clouds on the sunny Coquihalla Connector. The roads had lots of icy patches and it was -22 outside from Merritt to Hope, but at least it was clear skies.

Used our fancy new Nexus cards to pass into the US at Sumas with ease, got onto the I5 at 7 PM and then to our stop for the night just north of Seattle at Tulalip Casino. This place has a special parking lot just for RV overnights - free! Though it's still below freezing...thank heaven for our furnace. And Andrew's already helped out a fellow traveller who was worried about his LPG warning light flashing - LOL!

Some pics from Day 1:

Ready to "Escape"

Looking outside this morning, it seems hard to fathom that in a mere week's time we will be in California and (hopefully!) not seeing any more of this white stuff. With all due respect to avid skiers and snow enthusiasts, winter sucks! Brrrrr.....our little home-on-the-road is better suited to sun than this:

We're reviewing our checklists and getting our Escape 19' trailer packed. Here's where we plan on hitting over the next four months:

If you have any tips or "must-sees" to share, please do! Bookmark this site to keep up to date on our travels!