It's hard to believe we've been in Bahia Concepcion for two weeks already! Here are some of the highlights of Week #1:
The first week was full of numerous water activities, reconnecting with old friends, meeting new friends, sightseeing, eating, and trying to cook fish as fast as the guys were shooting and catching them.
 |
| Old friend Clint from CA, new friend Jake from CO, Mike and Stephanie, overlooking the Mulege river. |
One of the first activities, or should I say CHALLENGES that Mike threw down was to dare everyone to jump off a high rock on a nearby island. Mike knew that this would really rib Tom because we all remember very well an incident that happened in Virgin Gorda some years back. Mike had challenged the guys in the group to jump off a very high rock into the ocean. They all climbed the rock, stripped off their trunks and threw them into the water, and made the mighty leap into the sea. All except Tom that is, and he stood up at the top of the hill for at least an hour, starkers, while the rest of us jeered at him. Finally, as the sun was setting, our taxi driver would wait no longer and we started filing into the van. Rather than be left behind, or even worse to climb back down the hill, Tom forced himself to leap; he emerged with all his body parts, but not his pride, intact. Tom's reluctance to jump has been legendary ever since.
Fast forward to now, and frankly I was amazed that Tom accepted Mike's challenge. I stuck my nose in the air and told Mike to take a flying leap, (which he did of course), but guys are different, and Tom felt he had to rise to the occasion.
Mike and his victims dinghied over to the island. They climbed up amongst the squawking, roosting seagulls, trying to avoid their nests, eggs and accompanying insects, to the jumping spot. Mike's son Kelston jumped first...
...then Mike, and then Tom actually jumped. And he smiled about it. And he wasn't even the last one off the rock!
 |
| Tom jumped, leaving our new friend Lam to do the final leap. |
I think Tom's jumping phobia might be cured because today he suggested they go rock jumping again.
A few days after we arrived we all headed an hour south to Loreto to have lunch at the McGuire family's favorite taco place, El Rey Del Taco...
 |
| Savanah wants her taco NOW!!! |
 |
| The chef rocks the carne asada tacos. |
...and to pick up our friend Clint and his daughter Mackenzie at the airport. Immediately after we got back to the villa the kids had to get into the water. So it was back into the dinghy for more rock climbing and jumping.
 |
| Girl power! Savanah leaps. |
When they wearied of leaping Mike tied a surfboard to the dinghy and started towing the kids around. This would be a daily activity, sometimes twice a day, and it was always a hoot to watch.
 |
| Savanah, Kelston and Mackenzie have fun tow-surfing. |
As fun as the Bahia and McGuireville are, there are many other interesting things to do in and around Mulege (the nearest town). You already know about the HUGE excitement of the week, where Mike, Kelston, Tom, Clint and Mackenzie went spearfishing offshore and brought home lots of fresh yellowtail.
 |
| Kelston and Tom with the day's catch. |
But the Mulege area is also very historic and quite fascinating. One day we traveled to the Mulege river mouth, where the wide river empties into the sea. Just north is Punta Prieta, a rocky beach where all sorts of flotsam comes to rest. We had originally intended to snorkel there, but the brisk northerlies had whipped the small bay into a frenzy, so beachcombing became our Plan B.
 |
| Mackenzie and her found treasures. |
After some of us had collected our treasures, and others of us had injured ourselves, AGAIN...
 |
| When he's not getting stung by scorpions Kelston likes to start and then be underneath rockslides. |
...we drove a short way to a fascinating abandoned hotel. The Aero Club was built in 1957 by one of the first Baja Bush Pilots and was pretty much accessible by small plane only. It had an elite clientele of bush pilots and celebrities. John Wayne was one of the many celebrities who enjoyed the hotel, also called Loma Linda. This place has one of the most beautiful views in the area, hence another of its names, Vista Hermosa.
 |
| Big view, big smiles - Syl and Stephanie on the hotel water tower |
In 1996 a small but vocal group of local peasants, ejidatarios, evicted the guests and owners and claimed the land as their own. The ejidatarios, who were granted vast tracts of public and private property by the Mexican government earlier in the century, insisted that they had documents showing they owned the land. (The ejidatarios also claimed other property in Mulege, as well as numerous other areas throughout the country.) They demanded that the owners pay them tens of thousands of dollars in rent before ending their siege. The owners eventually just walked away leaving the hotel to the ejidatarios, who did not wish, or have the money or desire, to continue the hotel, and so the place eventually turned into an abandoned ruin. Even though the ejidatarios were within their rights, the fate of Vista Hermosa seems so very sad as one can easily imagine the hotel's beauty in its heyday.
 |
| The front of Hotel Loma Linda/Vista Hermosa |
We eventually made our way to our favorite beach palapa café La Almeja for a late lunch. The waitress Chatita was absolutely hilarious, somehow an extra plate of Garlic Fish showed up at our table for Clint, who had also ordered the Garlic Shrimp. I guess she thought he was such a big eater he wanted TWO full plates of lunch. By and by it was clear that everybody but me had gotten their lunch. When I asked about my order of Guacamole Chatita shrugged, said they were out of avocados, and pointed to the extra plate of Garlic Fish. "Eat that" she cheerfully suggested. We all had a good laugh over that one.
 |
| Tom angling for a career change at La Almeja. |
After a week of non-stop fun, we sadly chauffeured Clint and Mackenzie back to Loreto for their flight home. We consoled ourselves with some local "Chocolate" clams on the half shell.
But the good news is another friend of the McGuire's from Colorado was coming in on the afternoon flight and we had another week of FUN to look forward to.
Our album of Week #1 can be found HERE.
Just a hint of what's coming in week two: Lots more yellowtail, some food pictures at last, and WHALE SHARKS!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment