Time on the road

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Loreto to Los Cabos


Chris wrote:
Look, its my love mission at the Mission of Loreto


This we see quite a bit of, a bunch of guys on there 500's cruising from mainland across to Baja and the heading off into the desert with their tents and stuff for a couple of days, coming out to refuel...not a bad life.

This is the view down the "Malecon"(main drag) from our Hotel, La Mision, in Loreto, a fantastic hotel in a wonderful little town.

This dog (look in the water) swam all the way along this bay, about half a mile, and does it regularly and then he heads out to sea even further to try chase the pelicans, doggy style.


I just liked the colors!!

This is the promenade in Loreto. You walk down the road under these arches and go into the shops on either side, where you can buy anything that is authentic Mexican ware, some really nice stuff too, but fortunately we are on a bike.


Another one of the Malecon in Loreto.


This is our hotel in Loreto, La Mision.


This is one of the ocean views on the way south from Loreto. If we could, we would stop every half mile and spend a night.


For some reason, whenever we get onto dirt roads, Missy clamps her knees to my side and her fingernails into my shoulders.


These guys are busy organizing a vintage Baja race, old style, for TV. They invited me and some of my Buddies to go and do the race next September, any takers out there?


Admiring the machine!!!


Oops, the clamped knees and fingernails in the shoulders again. No Pain No Gain.


Notice the "99% inglish speaking guide"


This was a beauty pageant in the center of town on the basketball courts in Puerto San Carlos. One of those things you do and know you will never do it again, but it was good fun.


I would say , maybe 10 years old and strutting her stuff.


Leaving Hotel Brennan in Puerto San Carlos, a nice clean cheap little place, would definitely recommend it.


Another little shack in the middle of the desert with antiques on the walls that must have been worth a fortune and nobody really cared.


Oh, it's the tool.


This is the original Hotel California from the Eagles in Todos Santos, Baja. They used to stay here in there heyday and so they wrote the song about this place, pretty cool.


Ella and Chris, great people, at Marquis los Cabos. I would say that this is the best hotel I have ever been in and I will go so far to say that should anyone out there want to have an extraordinary experience, then come and spend 4 days here, you will definitely come back!


Now for some shots around the hotel...




















This is wonderful Carla, who kept us entertained in the evenings and at dinner. She knew the words to every song she sang by heart and we sat there and requested songs all night, she did not miss a beat. A memory like I can only dream about.

Melissa wrote:
We pulled into Loreto after riding through the heat. Our mesh jackets and pants did their best to keep us cool, but it was still a very hot ride. Looking for a hotel, we came to the malecon, the promenade along the beach, and I spotted a beautiful hotel called La Mision. Brand new, with a pool that beckoned us in. The hotel was out of our self-imposed ‘budget’ but I threw caution to the wind and negotiated a good rate. The room had central air (by now a real luxury) and crisp white sheets and duvet. I never wanted to leave. The next morning we were approached by Maribel, the Time-Share salesperson associated with the hotel, who invited us to breakfast to hear a presentation about the hotel. When speaking with her boss, Manuel, it turned out that the new Director of Sales for the hotel was Alfredo Rosas, who used to be a client of mine from my Amex days in Destination Marketing, when he was based in Los Cabos. What a small world. After a nice reunion and chat with Alfredo, the next day we headed south. We had been told to spend the night in Lopez Mateo, a good way-point on the way to Cabo. However, when we arrived there, this small village that subsists on the winter-season whale watching tours was empty. Not a hotel to be found. So…we decided to ride on. The heat was extreme, so we stopped at a small roadside restaurant to get some water. A red truck with Colorado plates was parked there, and when we began to chat with the 2 Americans there, Ken and Michael, they told us they were in Mexico mapping out a course for a televised race they are producing featuring vintage motorcycles and cars. Michael was from Los Angeles, and is a former producer on “The Amazing Race”. He advised us to send a videotape to CBS and audition for The Amazing Race….wouldn’t that be a kick!
The road brought us to Puerto San Carlos, on the Pacific Coast. When we entered this small town we began to look for a hotel. The roads were largely sand and dirt, and when riding down one of these dirt roads, we hit some soft sand. The front of the bike began the now-familiar wiggle, Chris tried to put his legs down but I knew we were going over. As we were struggling to get the motorcycle upright, a car stopped and Raul, a friendly local guy who was on his way to work, stopped to help us. Raul told us about a hotel that was owned by an Irish family, called Brennan’s. He was worried about us getting tripped up again on the roads, so he called his friend who worked at the hotel to come and guide us there. His friend showed up in about 2 minutes and off we went. That night we were walking through the small town, and on the outdoor basketball courts a band was playing, and crowds of people sat expectantly in a semicircle around the stage. We asked what was happening. Turns out that the Sea Turtle is very important to this pueblito, and conservation of the Sea Turtle an important cause. This evening was the crowning of “La Reina de La Tortuga” or the Turtle Queen….a beauty pageant of little girls and teens! We settled in for a great evening, with music, cheering, and lots of fun..including a dancing turtle. The next night we spent in La Paz, an unforgettable experience at the Oasis Hotel. For $30 a night we got an air conditioner with a broken face, one dim light bulb, wild television and a hotel full of Mexican guests cheering the victory of the Mexican soccer team over the Americans.
The next morning we set off for Los Cabos, riding through the cool, artistic surf town of Todos Santos. My friend Ella, whom I met during my Mexico City days, is now the General Manager of a beautiful hotel in Los Cabos called Marquis Los Cabos. Wonderful, zen hotel right on the ocean, with amazing views, great service and so many great details. We spent the first night here sharing lots of laughs and good times with Ella and her husband Chris. Great, great people, and we have so enjoyed being with them. On Friday I head home for a few days to check on things, and Chris will soldier on…we’ll meet up in Acapulco to resume our journey!

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