Monday, March 30, 2009
Ensenada Mex thru Indio CA
Tuesday March 10th we left Rancho Santa Inez stopping on the way at Mamma Espinosa’s for breakfast. The drive was beautiful over mountains and desert to Ensenada where we returned to Estero Beach RV resort where we had stayed on our 1st stop down.
We had a happy hour and dinner at La Terrazas Restaurant where we welcomed Jack Bowen who had had transmission trouble on the way and left his motorhome along the road to be towed in later.
Wednesday was spent gassing up and spending pesos getting ready for our entry into the States. We had our motorhome and car washed. It was DIRTY!!
In the evening we had an Ice cream social and Tom Stlamack showed my pictures on his projector before the movie of the evening “Wild Hogs”.
Thursday the Montagues and us went to Buffadora to do a little last minute shopping, Winston bought a ring and Carol found a necklace. I finally found a whale tail necklace, I wanted a whale tail pin but happily settled for the necklace. We had to be back for our fairwell diner that was moved to Ensenada from Tecate because the restaurant we were to have it at burned down. We fired up the grills and every one cooked their own meat and were provided a beautiful Mexican plate to eat our dinner on. After dinner we watched Tom Angelini’s photos and the caravan leaders presented plaques and certificates to all.
Five of us decided we would not follow the caravan to the border but would spend the extra money and take the wide toll road to Tecate, and get there before everyone else. WELL, that was a mistake! We missed the turn and ended up in Tijuana. No one wanted to cross there so we weaved our way through the city EEEYOW! And ended up in Tecate after the caravan, and 40 dollars poorer from the tolls! The border crossing went very well and we were in the Escapee park in Aguanga 2 ½ hours later.
Our friends the Kuhns were in Hawaii visiting with Bev’s daughter. We took advantage of the down time, ordering and installing a new water pump. When they got back on Tuesday we had planned a outing to Anza-Borrego state park to see the wild flowers in the desert. Unfortunately a water main broke under their shed and they had to stay home to direct the digging, We went alone and on the way we saw Tom and Judee Stalmack’s airstream motorhome parked at the Warner Springs air strip. We stopped to chat and learned that they were there to take a glider ride, so we stuck around to watch them go up, then proceeded to the desert. The flowers were beautiful but the rangers told us they were waning and some were completely gone having been eaten by worms.
Norm gave Melinda Green, a vender we met at Quartzsite, who lives in Murrieta, two massages. She came to the park twice and we bartered for jewelry. I am going to try to sell some Pandora replicas which is one of her lines. The real things are so popular and there should be a market for these beautiful fakes! She is also into buying gold and thinks we should learn more about that! I’d rather wear it.
On Thursday while Norm was giving her the second massage Lowell and I went to the Warner Springs air strip for what we thought was going to be an airplane ride over the area with a friend of Lowell’s, Kip, who is the current president of the jojoba Hills board of directors. When he showed us the plane we were going up in, gasp and said “I thought this was to be an airplane ride” he told me that was an airplane! It was the same glider the the Stalmacks had gone up in the day before. We were pulled up to 7000 feet then released to glide effortlessly through the sky over the mountains. We could see the Salton sea and Ansa Borrego to our east and should have been able to see San Deigo to the west but it was not quite clear enough to see all the way to the ocean. Kip ask me if I was up for a rollercoaster ride and I said I’d try it once. We dipped up and down and it did feel like you were on a rollercoaster which at that moment I remembered I didn’t like! I soon told him once was enough but felt proud of myself for being brave enough to try it. It was a breathtaking experience and I am grateful for the opportunity to try it.
Friday the 20th we moved to Indio staying at the elks club. We met the Stalmacks for dinner. They were staying at the Outdoor Resorts in Cathedral City.
Sat, Norm went to Desert Hot springs for a dip and I caught up on some shopping. We will be leaving the area tomorrow for Yuma.
Sun23rd
We spent the night on BLM land near Yuma and went into Algodones on Mon to get another pair of glasses The ones I got in Jan worked out fine so I decided to get a smaller pair of frames. The price is right! We also got two bowls to match the two Mexican plates we got at our fairwell dinner. A successful visit and we spent one more night in Yuma..
Wed 25th
Norm searched his hot springs book for some more western Hot springs to hit before we head East. He found one near Phonex and one in Demming NM so we are near Phonex now and he is soaking
Thur 26th -27th we parked at an escapee park in Deming NM for two days. When we pulled in it was so windy it almost blew our door off. Poor Norm, the hot spring had closed so we went shopping at a little mining town, Silver City.
Sat 28th Eastward Ho, and on to another escapee park right along Rt 10 about 100 miles into Texas. We didn’t unhook and took off for Hillsboro Airstream community for the next 2 days.
Hillsboro has many antique shops and a large outlet mall. Unfortunately a lot of the stores were closed I guess a sigh of the economy.
We checked out the park There are 88 villas, 16 very nice brick houses, and 47 open lots. There is also a terraport with about 30 RV spaces all on concrete. There are 13 villas for sale at the time and we looked at 3 of them. They are metal buildings with living quarters, storage, and a roof over the rv, rainging from 24,000 to 90000, a really good idea for someone who wants to downsize. There is a nice clubhouse, but not near the amenities we have at TR. Our two days are up tomorrow Tue 31, so if the weather cooperates we will move on. There is a region 9 rally in Waco, about 30 miles away but we will forgo it to head home.
Take care and maybe well see you soon.
Lois
It all depends on THIS?-----------------------------------------------
More pictures to follow
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Lucky us! Mision De Borja
Our Cochimi Indian guide at Mision de San Francisco de Borja. This is the way he restored the seams in the blocks, with little stones .
Te first picture is of our hitch when we arrived at the campground. We sure were lucky the car didn't come up and tap us in the rear. We lost a pin underneath and came unhooked on one side. We didn't realize it, after we discovered it, the couple followng us said it was back and forth but sort of tracked to the right, and they had never followed us before so they thought it was normal.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Bahia de los Angeles March 4th thru 7th
On our 210 mile trip to Bahia de los Angeles we retraced 168 miles on route Mex 1 until we turned east through a beautiful cacti forest of Ciro (candle) or Boojum Tree.
It’s a most unusual plant growing only in central Baja desert. They resemble an inverted carrot in shape, or a candle. Right now they are blooming and the bloom is golden orange resembling a candle flame. The Ocotillo are also in bloom with their bright salmon pink flowers at each tip. The desert is beautiful right now!
We also discovered that the tree we had been calling a Joshua tree is really a Yucca tree. It looks very similar but has a few more stumps growing up.
Bahia de los Angeles is a small fishing town located on the Sea of Cortez. The electric lines just made it here in 2007, before that people relied on generators with no electric at night. The town is poor and it is the community we chose to give our donations to. We had a nice meal prepared for us by the local ladies at the school where we presented them with school supplies and monetary donations, and one couple from Canada brought soccer uniforms and balls for the whole team. We had collected around $500 dollars and later the owner of the campground (dry camping) also donated our camping fees which amounted to another $452.
The next morning we toured the sea turtle rehab center. They only have 3 turtles in the tanks at this time, two were caught in fishermen’s nets and were stressed, they are being held until the water warms a little. The other one has a fungus and is being treated so he doesn’t infect others. Norm and I went for a drive in the afternoon to La Gringa, about 10 miles from our campground following the sea line north. The area is beautiful and in the future is to be developed into a large harbor. There is an airstrip there but we found no activity, just a few lonely campers. Norm came back and gave 2 massages.
We celebrated Felix and Joann Olshefski’s 50th wedding anniversary on the 7th. One of the local ladies made a beautiful cake, and it tasted good too! I was nearby when she brought it and overheard what she charged for it, $80 US dollars, a bit pricey but good. We also had a pinyatta we filled with goodies and laughed at them swatting at it.
We went on a boat ride to the pristine islands in the bay. We stopped at one of them long enough to view the mangroves and some birds. The wind picked up and we headed for a more protected bay at La Gringa where we dug buckets full of clams and had a clambake when we returned. We could have swum with the sea otters but nobody did as it was windy and cool.
The following day some of us went to Mission San Borja, and some went clamming. I went to the mission and Norm chose the clams! The drive up over 22 miles of dirt road was a beautiful trip as there was 3 days of rain recently and the desert plants were blooming. The mission was special also as there is only one family living there and they have dedicated their lives to restoring it. They are ancestors of the Indians who were there when the Franciscans started the Mission. They grow potato’s corn grapes, mangos. dates. tomatoes, and have 12 cows and 10 horses. He digs his garden by hand and plows with a donkey. They get donations at the mission for giving tours and use most of that to buy cement and supplies to do the restoration. One time a year in October they hold a rodeo there and have 3000 prople come for 3 days to party. Angel, out guides name said they rent the palapas to venders and charge for camping and this also adds to their income. Norm missed out on the hot springs at the mission, I soaked my feet in them just to rub it in a bit. The pool was built by the missionaries in the early 1800s with stone walls. It is beautiful but only about 84 degrees.
The clam diggers made out quite well and brought back about half as many clams as the whole group dug the day before. One of our group made polenta for 17 of us and served it with the clams and sausage for those of us who didn’t like clams. It was delicious and something neither of us had ever had.
March 8th and 9th,
Today we traveled 103 miles to Rancho Santa Inez. The campground is just a gravel lot on a working cattle ranch. The cattle roam for up to 50 miles in all directions and are rounded up once a year. We went to a restaurant for dinner the night we got there. The next day one of the Americans who lives on the ranch guided us to a cave painting area and we climbed the rocks to see them. There is an airport on the ranch and he told us before the war on drugs they would have at least 6 small planes land before noon and have lunch there. Now there are none because the government has made it hard to fly into Mexico, even charging for the air space you fly through.
One of our caravaners who had had the misfortune of loosing his transmission 9 days ago finally caught up with us here. He and one other member stayed at a campground in Mulege waiting for it to be rebuilt. The final bill was around $2000. They are just hoping it holds up.
March 10th thru the 13th 225 miles to Ensenada.
Today another member had transmission trouble and someone stayed behind with him. He is a single fellow from Alaska, driving the 1986 Classic motor home like we used to have.
We just came back from dinner with the caravan and he made it here but left his motorhome along the road about 200 miles back. He will arrange for it to be towed here tomorrow to the Chevy garage here in Ensenada, we just hope it isn’t stripped by then. Another one of our group came in late because they had a blow out on a trailer tire. We only have about 80 miles to the border from here and we will be glad to be on American soil! This is a nice campground on the Pacific where we will have our farewell banquet. I think all of us are so glad we came on this caravan but will be thrilled to be back in the states.
On the way today in El Rosario, we stopped for breakfast at a famous restaurant called Mamma Espinosa’s. The place has hosted Baja 1000 travelers for years, and the food was excellent!
I’m going to close now and try to get this sent out. Hope all is good.
Lois
The first picture is of the kids at the school in Bahia de los Angels trying on part of their uniforms
this is one of the sea turtles from the turtle rehab center
As you can see the roads are narrow and a motorhome takes up the whole lane!
More pictures to follow
On our 210 mile trip to Bahia de los Angeles we retraced 168 miles on route Mex 1 until we turned east through a beautiful cacti forest of Ciro (candle) or Boojum Tree.
It’s a most unusual plant growing only in central Baja desert. They resemble an inverted carrot in shape, or a candle. Right now they are blooming and the bloom is golden orange resembling a candle flame. The Ocotillo are also in bloom with their bright salmon pink flowers at each tip. The desert is beautiful right now!
We also discovered that the tree we had been calling a Joshua tree is really a Yucca tree. It looks very similar but has a few more stumps growing up.
Bahia de los Angeles is a small fishing town located on the Sea of Cortez. The electric lines just made it here in 2007, before that people relied on generators with no electric at night. The town is poor and it is the community we chose to give our donations to. We had a nice meal prepared for us by the local ladies at the school where we presented them with school supplies and monetary donations, and one couple from Canada brought soccer uniforms and balls for the whole team. We had collected around $500 dollars and later the owner of the campground (dry camping) also donated our camping fees which amounted to another $452.
The next morning we toured the sea turtle rehab center. They only have 3 turtles in the tanks at this time, two were caught in fishermen’s nets and were stressed, they are being held until the water warms a little. The other one has a fungus and is being treated so he doesn’t infect others. Norm and I went for a drive in the afternoon to La Gringa, about 10 miles from our campground following the sea line north. The area is beautiful and in the future is to be developed into a large harbor. There is an airstrip there but we found no activity, just a few lonely campers. Norm came back and gave 2 massages.
We celebrated Felix and Joann Olshefski’s 50th wedding anniversary on the 7th. One of the local ladies made a beautiful cake, and it tasted good too! I was nearby when she brought it and overheard what she charged for it, $80 US dollars, a bit pricey but good. We also had a pinyatta we filled with goodies and laughed at them swatting at it.
We went on a boat ride to the pristine islands in the bay. We stopped at one of them long enough to view the mangroves and some birds. The wind picked up and we headed for a more protected bay at La Gringa where we dug buckets full of clams and had a clambake when we returned. We could have swum with the sea otters but nobody did as it was windy and cool.
The following day some of us went to Mission San Borja, and some went clamming. I went to the mission and Norm chose the clams! The drive up over 22 miles of dirt road was a beautiful trip as there was 3 days of rain recently and the desert plants were blooming. The mission was special also as there is only one family living there and they have dedicated their lives to restoring it. They are ancestors of the Indians who were there when the Franciscans started the Mission. They grow potato’s corn grapes, mangos. dates. tomatoes, and have 12 cows and 10 horses. He digs his garden by hand and plows with a donkey. They get donations at the mission for giving tours and use most of that to buy cement and supplies to do the restoration. One time a year in October they hold a rodeo there and have 3000 prople come for 3 days to party. Angel, out guides name said they rent the palapas to venders and charge for camping and this also adds to their income. Norm missed out on the hot springs at the mission, I soaked my feet in them just to rub it in a bit. The pool was built by the missionaries in the early 1800s with stone walls. It is beautiful but only about 84 degrees.
The clam diggers made out quite well and brought back about half as many clams as the whole group dug the day before. One of our group made polenta for 17 of us and served it with the clams and sausage for those of us who didn’t like clams. It was delicious and something neither of us had ever had.
March 8th and 9th,
Today we traveled 103 miles to Rancho Santa Inez. The campground is just a gravel lot on a working cattle ranch. The cattle roam for up to 50 miles in all directions and are rounded up once a year. We went to a restaurant for dinner the night we got there. The next day one of the Americans who lives on the ranch guided us to a cave painting area and we climbed the rocks to see them. There is an airport on the ranch and he told us before the war on drugs they would have at least 6 small planes land before noon and have lunch there. Now there are none because the government has made it hard to fly into Mexico, even charging for the air space you fly through.
One of our caravaners who had had the misfortune of loosing his transmission 9 days ago finally caught up with us here. He and one other member stayed at a campground in Mulege waiting for it to be rebuilt. The final bill was around $2000. They are just hoping it holds up.
March 10th thru the 13th 225 miles to Ensenada.
Today another member had transmission trouble and someone stayed behind with him. He is a single fellow from Alaska, driving the 1986 Classic motor home like we used to have.
We just came back from dinner with the caravan and he made it here but left his motorhome along the road about 200 miles back. He will arrange for it to be towed here tomorrow to the Chevy garage here in Ensenada, we just hope it isn’t stripped by then. Another one of our group came in late because they had a blow out on a trailer tire. We only have about 80 miles to the border from here and we will be glad to be on American soil! This is a nice campground on the Pacific where we will have our farewell banquet. I think all of us are so glad we came on this caravan but will be thrilled to be back in the states.
On the way today in El Rosario, we stopped for breakfast at a famous restaurant called Mamma Espinosa’s. The place has hosted Baja 1000 travelers for years, and the food was excellent!
I’m going to close now and try to get this sent out. Hope all is good.
Lois
The first picture is of the kids at the school in Bahia de los Angels trying on part of their uniforms
this is one of the sea turtles from the turtle rehab center
As you can see the roads are narrow and a motorhome takes up the whole lane!
More pictures to follow
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
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