The Life Aquatic – after a lot of lovely desert.

Here’s a post for all the visual learners, lots of lovely pictures of the Baja Sur Rollercoaster. We’ve seen various adjectives used for Baja; challenging, unforgiving, cosmopolitan (wtf that means I don’t know)… I’m sticking with Rollercoaster. This last section of Baja has packed a whole lot into a couple of weeks…

This is Adrian’s bike, acquired for free from a variety of sources.  Adrian has lived with no personal money or bank account for 8 years.  He’s 29, grounded friendly and thought-provoking.

A temporary Peloton, heading South towards San Ignacio

This is Huan.  If he had sleeves, his heart would be on them.  Such a welcoming man, host at the Casa Del Cyclista, San Ignacio

Our home for a couple of nights, greenery and water in the desert

Locals, relaxing

Photogenic toiliets, San Ignacio town square

A proper oasis, lake-fed and swimmable. 

Flowers and colours, San Ignacio

Only a light wonk

Jesuit mission, San Ignacio

Starting the salt flats, about 30 miles south west of San Ignacio. Tarmac ends, pace slows

Marked on the map as an upaved road, this 2-day route was our most challenging so far – though some sections were incredible, fast and smooth, natural salt roads

Shortly after a section of dragging fully laden bikes, including 10 litres of water, through some lovely sand 

Takes more than this to elicit a full-on grump from letsgoanddofunstuff though (that would have to wait for the next day).

Wild camp on the salt flats, middle of nowhere.  Looks peaceful, in fact it was incredibly windy and we de-camped into an abandoned building sometime overnight. 

Old telegraph poles being put to good use by nesting Ospreys

Day two started with a very easy pedal on immaculate natural roads, with a tailwind

The easy riding swiftly deteriorated as we climbed back up and away from the coast. Washboard, sand, rocks and bigger rocks. We got a lift for a few KMs and were assured the road improved later on. Rest assured, this was a lie 🙂

With 3 inch tyres and a light load, this riding would have been fun. We’re on 2 inch tyres and carrying the kitchen sink, full of water. You can make out the wiggles, sand and washboard. 23k of this took over 3 hours. 

It goes without saying that at the end of the hardest day, you find the best rest. The Cowabunga Hotel (which is nothing like it sounds) in San Juanico was amazing. 

Scorpion Bay, San Juanico. Until last year only accessible on dirt road, and now the tarmac comes from one direction into town. I know nothing about surfing (which I proved quite effectively that morning) but a 1.7 mile surfable wave sounds pretty impressive…

Art is everywhere in Mexico

Bruce and Jess were following a day behind us – and split a tyre on the rocks on the way in. Bruce searches for solutions in town, eventually coming full-circle and back to gaffer tape for a slight limp onwards.

The new road out towards Las Barrancas, almost no traffic and another beautiful day

In Las Barrancas, a fishing town on the Pacific. Doing our best to learn some Spanish from Allehandra and the team. Swapped some lessons for a bit of WD40 on ALL the local kid’s bikes and some of the adults too.

This guy seemed to be in charge of the town. He opened up the basketball hall for us to sleep in and the Agua Purificado for our refills in the morning. 

Memorials and shrines are regular features along any road. Closer to town, more elaborate…

This dude was apparently walking about 20 miles along Ruta 1, towards Ciudad Conception. Not sure why. 

Heading east and away from the Pacific, the temperature very quickly starts to climb.  Roadside lunch stop with Bruce and Jess in yet another abandoned house.

Any shade will do, mid-afternoon

Bike shoes of Baja 

Finding wildcamp spots is not always easy, this one just needed a little bit of fence adjustment…

Well, this. 

Peekaboo!

All restaurants have personal touches that tell a little story about the owner.  Champion chicken, Jesus, Emilio Zapata.  Heroes of Mexico all, and why not.

Getting closer to La Paz, this is Comitan. Jess and Zoe negotiated something of an Air BnB deal right on the water (with a swimming pool and, most importantly, a washing machine). Amazing. 

Salty adventure look is coming on nicely (Ahem, Prince Harry in 10 years anyone?!)

Murals in La Paz. A really great town, tourists present but no big hotels in the main part, and we’re slightly out of season so it’s quiet. The malecon (seafront) is incredible. 

A treat, a day trip out from La Paz on a boat. A UNESCO world heritage site, the Aquariaum of the World made famous by Jacques Cousteau. 

Rubbish beard plus salt = what do you look like/

Ready for a snorkel with playful sealions

Frigate birds in mangrove trees, getting tropical now.  Steinbeck wrote ‘The Pearl’ set in this bay. The biggest pearl (size of a lemon) ever found here is apparently in Queen Elizabeth’s crown. 

Guests at the home of these amazing creatures. 

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