West Coast Express

Hey all
I'm sitting on a very uncomfortable chair at my campground in Loreto on the east coast of the Baja. Here's some pictures, I will add comments later, maybe tonight or in the morn, my ass is killing me from sitting on this metal seat for 2 plus hours.

Mexico has been great, no issues what-so-ever. It's pretty great down here so far.

Long Beach, it's sort of... long

Classic Southern California, was cool to roll up to this car show

My serene California State Park campsite, highway and Amtrak within 20 meters

San Diego tall ships

Both these modes of transport are heading down the Baja. The truck is being piloted by very well prepared Norwegians the bike by a numbskull

So I rolled down from Chula Vista (southern San Diego) about 15 miles to the border, across the border and through Tijuana all in about 2 hours. TJ was very tame on a Monday morning. Mexicans are just like us they want a little bit of suburb happiness. If you can see it, you need both red and blue satellite dish to be happy.

Awwww he wants a hug!

Poland's is bigger

That's the toll highway down there, I'm heading up to the hills on the freebie where the bikes are supposed to go.

These last shots are from the road to Ensenada. I did the full haul from the border to there on the free highway. I've since found out most people hop the fence and take the much wider, large shouldered, more flat toll highway. Either way it was a nice long day.

Figured I'd have a beer and I found wifi on a curb near my campground

Took a 60km detour to go to this 'blowhole'. Apparently the second largest in the world. Nice hilly ride out to it.

Turned out to be less of a blow 'hole' and more of a crack in the rock. It wasn't that impressive and I was complaining that it wasn't worth the ride out.

It was just waiting till I had my camera out and I was as close as I could be

Soaked me and my camera. I can't say enough about my little cheap Canon, it was a quick and inexpensive replacement for a much nicer Canon that couldn't take a similar dousing.

The restaurant and store that ran this campground in the middle of nowhere. This place must be nuts in the busy season, for that night it was just me. Felt like a horror movie, waiting for some machete wielding dude to either come hack me or share a drink at the pool bar.

Next Baja trip, BAD ASS VAN

With horns!

Had dreams about that freaky dog

Mexican wine country, watch out Napa these boys are serious

Decided to ride the 3.5km down to this beach for the night. Turned out to be 3.5 miles and was actually more like 5 miles on a pretty rough road. Beach is called Shipwrecks, surfers like it.

These were my beach dog pals, Lazer and German Sports Car. They wanted cool fast names, or cookies

Screw you boat

Beaches namesake

Woke up to a shitload of fog

German Sports Car (GSC) wants his damn cookie

I took the dirty legs shot after I was surprised by two dudes in full camo with guns came out of the fog and started asking me questions in Spanish. I've since been told the problems around the border are because of the proximity to the States (duh). South of the border the military run the show, and they're everywhere. Can be a bit intimidating having a 18year old with a M16 asking you questions in a foreign language but they've been super cool with me.

So this sign was much funnier a day after I took the picture. Set my tent up in the back of this hotel, had my shower, ate and fell asleep earlier than usual only to be woke up by this little shit dog that was sniffing around my tent. I grunted and it barked and went away. Fast forward the next night, laying backwards in my tent, head on the foot of my sleeping bag and mat thinking 'wow, I really stink and so does my gear'. Then as I leaned forward I noticed my tent stank too. That little jerk dog pissed on me while I was sleeping! So my dog can't shit on your grounds but your dog can piss on my house. If Lazer and GSC were there that wouldn't fly.

scene of the crime

One of the many grocery stores I stop at, this one had more than chips and cookies

Some points on the map you aim for to get food or water turn out to be just this, a sign in the desert

First night in desert, free camped off the road, awesome place

Lots of straight road

Second night in the desert, another free camp another great night

All this sleeping with cactus was bound to get to me, second flat of the trip. About 10 cactus thorns through the rear tire

Crossed into the Southern State of Baja. From previous trips to Mexico I will say they always have the largest flags.

Classy parking lot campground. I'm a big vehicle

Hung with these Baja 1000 dudes, slept beside their trucks. Awesome guys from Nebraska, Colorado and Michigan. Dude from Michigan says "I've been to Canada once, place in Ontario... North Bay it was called" of course it was.

The Mission in San Ignacio, met up with two other couples, one Canadian one Spanish that are making me look weak and doing Alaska and Whitehorse to Argentina. Damn them

These were all from San Ignacio a little Oasis in the desert. A little river and palm trees and everything but the dancing girls.

Long roads, time to try different angles

Last shots are of a church in Rosalita. Church was designed by a dude named Eiffel. You may know him from some other work he's done. Apparently he got around.

Modern arcade, at night kids mob these things

GOOD LOOK!!!

funny how death adds colour to the landscape here

Campground in Mulege. Nice little town, hung out for a couple days

I ate so many damn tangerines, they were sooooo good

Mulege has been hit by three hurricanes in 10 years, keeps going but it must be hard. People still build their places on the water (well the foreigners do).

Not a church going man myself but they are definitely the center of any Mexican town. One thing I do like, their doors are always open

This is Sandra, she shared the campground with me. She got her name from a previous campground tenant from Texas that was not well liked. Sandra will be the special guest at the owners daughters birthday in December. mmmmmm Sandra