Van-Tramp adventures 2016

[masterplumber]

Don't trust the GPS. People drive off old bridges all the time. Lol. But seriously I always use a map and GPS and common sense combined.

Reminds me of the episode of "The Office" where they end up in a pond, because the GPS said to turn there!

 

[Van-Tramp]

Mulege part 2
http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/mulege-part-2/

After leaving the zombies and oranges, we moved to the only campground within walking distance of the town for a single night of exploring Historic Mulege. Huerta Don Chano Campground served us well. At first we took up a normal pull-through RV site with electricity, but after surveying the tent sites we moved to this site (above) surrounded by banana trees.

The rest of the day involved strolling out to the light house and beach for lunch, checking out the local shops and Mission, then finalized the night at a local hotel where a Mexican Buffet was the evening meal. After just a single night in town, we both agreed that Mulege has been one of our favorite towns in Baja. Small enough to still me “Mexico” yet with enough things to keep a person entertained for a while.

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Some Instagram on the blog... http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/mulege-part-2/

 

[Van-Tramp]

Bahía Concepción – Playa Santispac
http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/bahia-concepcion-playa-santispac/

We had a single night we could spend off-net, and the timing could not have been better with Palya Santispac just 15 miles south of Mulege. Here we were able to camp directly on the beach of clear waters and leave the van doors propped open for the entire night and into the next morning… until the local vendors started showing up at 7am, at which time any open door was a potential sale no matter how naked the gringos were… or so we learned.

We did visit the local watering hole – right on the beach itself – and had ourselves some of the meanest margaritas ever to exist. We barely made it back to the van, where we drunk-BBQ’d up some buffalo wings (not sure how that happened without some form of injury) and sat out to watch the stars before turning in… unsuspecting to the vendors in the morning.


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[highdesertranger]

waaaay cool. highdesertranger

 

[rvpopeye]

Some very inspiring photos.
I suspect others will be following in your footsteps.

I don't understand why people keep spending good money on those GPS devices.
I tried one out on a trip from Maine to Death Valley and was SOOOOO glad I still had my old trusty maps !!
The only way I use it now is to confirm I'm still on a route I chose reading the maps......usually travel solo , no co-pilot.....

 

[Van-Tramp]

Entering Blaja
http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/entering-blaja/

After only  single night in heaven, we spent a whole work-week in Loreto in the tiniest of RV parks, packed in like sardines, and dreaming of getting back out of town and too the beaches.

This town of 14,000 souls just wreaked of most things you want to get away from when living/traveling in a van. Still, we did what we could to stay happy, mainly by going into the historic town to each just about every meal which consisted of 100% mediocre foods. We are clearly in touristy Baja now… “Blaja” if you ask me.

[img=600x400]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/riviera-del-mar-rv-park2.jpg[/img]

The RV park would have fit a half dozen rigs in the USA, but here they packed in 20+. Many of the larger rigs could not even open their awnings it was so tightly packed. And if you were unlucky enough to have a slide-out, you were assured to be near-touching the slide-out of your neighbor. Not what I had in mind for Baja camping.

Still, on the final night a glimmer of good times came to town. Carnival was the happening thing through out Mexico, and on Friday night Loreto had their little version of it and it was cute as heck. Just like the county fairs from my childhood, and the best tacos I have had in all of Baja. And that was it, Loreto’s memory will be of that small carnival and the best tacos in the world.

More Instagram embeded images at http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/entering-blaja/

 

[Van-Tramp]

Puerto San Carlos
http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/puerto-san-carlos/

We bolted from Loreto on the East coast of Baja and, within no time at all, arrived on the West coast. Although Puerto San Carlos was never really on our agenda, the thought of spending a work-week in Ciudad Constitucion, 20 miles inland, did not sit well. It sat so badly in fact, that we drove straight though to Puerto San Carlos and did not regret it.

[img=474x267]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/IMG_8274-1024x576.jpg[/img] [img=474x274]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/IMG_8270-1024x593.jpg[/img][img=474x316]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/IMG_8283-1024x683.jpg[/img]

We settled into a camp at Villas Mar y Arena where we had the place to ourselves.  We took the afternoon to walk around town – twice – as Kerri wanted to explore just about every street on the map. A quaint bakery earned a total of 26 pesos from us when we bought practically half the store. Then we walked some more. And then a little more. Finally we walked the same distance back to our camp where we had a quick dinner, prepped up two simple cocktails, and took a seat in the patio area where Kerri fell asleep in my arms as the sun set in front of us.

More embedded Instagram photos at http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/puerto-san-carlos/

 

[SaltySeaWitch]

Beautiful! Thanks for sharing.

 

[Van-Tramp]

10 miles of dirt pays off
http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/10-miles-of-dirt-pays-off/

With the weekend comes the time to get out of town and back into the places we came to Baja for. Enter El Conejo, a nothing place (barely even on the map) located 10 miles off the main highway and down a washboard and sandy road. So when Kerri said to go there, I gave her a bit of a side-glance and then blindly took the unmarked dirt road leading towards the ocean, 10 miles away!

Sometimes you just have to blindly follow. If left up to me I plan things out too much and lose out on the excitement of being surprised by something. Man did that advice pay off on this day with yet another afternoon and evening of blissful ocean-front peace and quiet. Yet again the rear doors faced the water and did not get closed the entire night. Kerri loves the sounds of the waves so much that I am sacrificing our own security of locked doors to keep that smile alive. What love with make you do…


We played on the beach, ate a fine van-cooked meal, and watched the longest sunset I have ever witnessed that night. In the end we only got to spend a single night out there, but it was worth the 20 miles – round trip – of dirt road.

[img=474x267]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/IMG_8334-1024x576.jpg[/img] [img=474x271]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/IMG_8294-1024x586.jpg[/img][img=474x267]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/IMG_8323-1024x576.jpg[/img]

More embeded Instagram photos at http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/10-miles-of-dirt-pays-off/

 

[Van-Tramp]

The kite surfing side of the family
http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/the-kite-surfing-side-of-the-family/

In a flurry of discussion the decision was made. We would skip La Paz on our Southern route and instead visit it when we head North. I mean, we have to pass through it again no matter what, so why not? This, in turn, freed us up to drive the few extra miles to La Ventana where @_followthewind (my nephew and his girl) have been hanging out for a few weeks kite-surfing.

[img=474x268]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/IMG_8372-1024x578.jpg[/img] [img=474x474]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/IMG_8389-1024x1024.jpg[/img]

La Ventana was not easy on us, or at least me personally. It was flippin’ hot, flippin’ windy, and the Internet sucked all sorts of balls. The camp area was no where near level and full of poop, but in the end no one ever showed up to take any payment from us either. Free makes up for a lot of unlevel-ness and a bit of poop too. I still have no idea what campground we stayed at. There were no signs, no logo… nothing. I am not so sure it was even legit, but considering how many others were camped there… why not?


On the plus side, the company we chose to keep made it all worthwhile. Besides Cameron & Jacqui (@_followthewind) we got to hang out with Josh & Jenna (@travelamateurs) and Chris & Jen (@theglobetrol) who were both waiting for the wind to die down enough to take the ferry over to mainland Mexico. During the multi-day wait, Cameron & Jacqui showed us around the local eateries and bars as a group.
The beach and waters were amazing though. The dogs agree! We spent many a day chasing sticks into the waves (Byron) and playing fetch-the-rocks (Moose) on the beach.

[img=474x316]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/IMG_8405-1024x682.jpg[/img]

Not that any of the bad stuff matters. We came to visit with family and I am happy we did. We even got to meet some cool new travelers and check off another gringo-town off the list of places we wanted to see.

More embeded Instagram photos at http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/the-kite-surfing-side-of-the-family/

 

[Van-Tramp]

Hot days in Todos Santos
http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/hot-days-in-todos-santos/

Now that we are in (or near) the tropics, the heat laid it on thick and Kerri’s ability to do anything came to a staggering halt. Eventually she just laying in the van until the sun began to set. Late enough in the day, and once the heat let up we walked into Todos Santos, visiting the main artist strip, and then stepping one block off to find things a bit more… well, native. It was here that we found a cowboy-hat wearing Mexican standing in a side alley, beside a rack of animal skulls, frying up some type of brain-tacos. Kerri was all over them of course while I ate the regular asada-type. I feared this may be the time that she was going to pay dearly for her choice in food, but all went smoothly in the end.

A drive to the beach to cool off was in order, but upon arrival the waves proved too hostile to let the dogs venture in, though some sand-digging was enough to keep them from rebelling. We had hoped to release some of the baby turtles at Tortugueros Las Playitas while we were here, but it appeared we were too late. We settled for more sand digging.

[img=474x267]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/IMG_8426-1024x577.jpg[/img] [img=474x267]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/IMG_8528-1024x577.jpg[/img]

Before we could leave town, Kerri just had to eat at La Casita which she had been turned onto by one of her 10-million Instagram followers… or something like that. She had heard that it was the best food in Baja, and she heard correctly. The Ahi Sashimi (raw tuna is some crazy-good sauce) blew my mind – did I mention that I hate seafood – but it was the Brazilian steak in a cinnamon & coffee herb rub drowned in a shallot sauce that did me in for the night. We ate at La Casita once more before leaving Todos Santos. What great food they prepared, and even though it is double that of anywhere else, the two meals and multiple drinks still came out to around $60 USD.

More Instagram embeded images at http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/hot-days-in-todos-santos/

 

[USExplorer]

Come up north to the Cali coast for the spring, the weather is perfect for camping here. 70s and sunny every day for the past week, 50s at night.

 

[Van-Tramp]

We will end up back in SoCal come early April, but have plans to head into Utah and then Colorado by May (my son's birthday and graduation).

Still pretty warm down here, but I really cant complain much about it. As long as we stay on the beaches, the breeze makes everything A-OK

 

[Van-Tramp]

No shirts, no shoes, no duh
http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/no-shirts-no-shoes-no-duh/

To escape the heat of camping in a town, we headed a few miles south of Todos Santos to San Pedrito Beach where we could camp for free and enjoy the ocean breeze.  (Location added to my boondocking sites map). This was the style of camping I envisioned when Kerri and I talked about doing three months in Baja. Free, spectacular views, lots to explore and do… this is how I like my Baja thank you very much! So we set up camp and for the next five days I wore no shoes or socks. Instead I just became one with the sandy beach.

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The beach right out our back door was rocky, not good for swimming, but a few hundred yards down the shoreline was a nice sandy place to jump around in the waves, splashing and diving as much as my inner-child wanted. The dogs joined in, even Moose playing in the surf as he grows more accustomed to water, thanks in large part to Byron.


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Mid-week some of the surfers on the beach invited me to join their friendly game of poker, and I never pass up a game of poker, so I grabbed 100 pesos and bought in! We played poker under the man-made structure (above), in the sand, while drinking Tecates, a beautiful woman waiting for me back in the van.  What more can a beach-bum ask for?

On our final night, Kerri wanted to visit a restaurant she heard about (this is becoming a regular thing, her hearing about good places to eat and us going to them) in town. “It’s only 4 kilometers away”, she tells me, after we started the walk – me barefoot- “but we will take the shorter route“. I advised her that 4 kilometers is about 2 and a half miles, and no mater the route taken two diagonal corners of a square are the same distance apart. So we walked 8 kilometers (5 miles just in case your math-challenged) round trip, me barefoot, to an amazing restaurant where most everything on the menu was organic grown on site and delicious. I ate a half a chicken roasted to perfection with plenty of roasted veggies to boot.

We walked back to the van, in the dark, did I mention that I was barefoot, but the 1 mile walk along the beach, alone, at night was worth every sharp rock and sticker I stepped on. My feet hurt like mad, but it will make the memory stick that much better in the long run. I did get a foot rub out of it later that night. All was good.

 

[Van-Tramp]

Skinny dipping, blisters, and food poisoning
http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/skinny-dipping-blisters-and-food-poisoning/
 

“Wait, did I only shave one armpit?” – Kerri

An unknown amount of miles on a dirt road, once again rewards the risk with a gem of a beach and town. The tiny town of Cabo Pulmo rests within a National Preserve – the Cabo Pulmo National Park – about 60 miles north of Cabo San Lucas and is home to a 20,000 year old reef – the oldest of only three coral reefs on the West Coast of North America (none of that fact was known to me until this moment). A great place to snorkel, if I had contact lenses (glasses do not work with a mask) which I do not.

[img=474x202]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/IMG_8601-1024x436.jpg[/img]

We camped only a quarter mile out of town, easy enough to walk in, but just far enough out to have most of the beach to ourselves. The beach was raw and ever changing. Waves, angry at times, pummeled the loose pebbles, most smaller than my palm, on the beach. Wave after wave, turning them to sand over eons. The large bank of pebbles separated the water from us, but as the week grew old the rocks became less and less of a barrier to the waves. Day by day, they were pulled out to sea and waves began to top the bank. The sound of a wave hitting the wall was thunderous, followed by an applause worthy of an ancient coliseum gathering as the rocks were pulled into the abyss.

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Even with the weekend of Todos Santos behind us, the memory would be forced into our lives for a few more days. Kerri, before leaving the artist colony, pampered herself with a pedicure, followed by a little shopping on her own in town. The walk, in a new pair of sandals, tore great new blisters into her feet. And now the price had to be paid. What looks like a nice relaxing photo of Kerri basking in the ocean breeze…

[img=474x267]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/IMG_8542-1024x576.jpg[/img]
…has a completely different reality when viewed from the other side.

[img=474x316]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/IMG_8551-1024x682.jpg[/img]

With the beach all to ourselves, we played in the warm teal waters and sun bathed an afternoon away. My tan has been taking hold after a few weeks of beach-life, so I had the bright idea of working on areas not usually touched by the sun. The shorts came off and the clock ticked away. A few more dips and sun bathing, still no shorts, completed the day. And even though I told Kerri, “I do not burn, I just tan” I had not considered that my nether-regions had not seen the sun (or a tanning bed) in well over a year. So, yeah, underwear was not the most comfortable thing for a few days, but all in all it wasn’t too bad.

[img=474x316]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/IMG_8556-1024x682.jpg[/img]
Long exposure night shot from our palapa, bones and shells hang in the view


Though we would not have any extraordinary sunsets, being on the East side of Baja, we did get great sunrises and fantastic golden moon rises over the Sea of Cortez. Jupiter was fast in chase, rising soon after the moon early in the week. Jupiter (top-center) chases the moon (top, out of shot). Jupiter would eventually pass the moon and start rising first – a dramatic race it was spanning the whole week.

In the evenings we would stroll into town to visit each of the local restaurants. On our second night, with a slight sun burn in my drawers, we ate our meal and returned to the van. That night, the “S” finally hit the fan, with Kerri waking to the very realistic possibility of having to vomit and diarrhea at the same time. The poor girl spent the rest of the night squatted in the bush far enough away from the van to offer what little dignity there is in such an affair. I could only comfort her upon each of her returns to the van.

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[highdesertranger]

Van Tramp a tip they make a inexpensive corrective lens that you attach to the inside of your mask. it's like clear tape http://www.scuba.com/scuba-gear-54/028512/Trident-Stick-On-Optical-Lens-for-Masks.html. I don't know what type of corrective lens you use but these are like reading glasses. they work like the reading part of a bi-focal. just thought I would pass it along as they work for me. highdesertranger

 

[BradKW]

Thanks for a very enjoyable pictorial blog...and thanks for not including sunburn pics!

One thing I keep wondering about is if either of you speak Spanish, and if so, how much? Would not speaking any Spanish hinder your travels and town explorations? Thanks!

 

[Van-Tramp]

Thanks highdesertstranger! I will look into those for the future.

Brad, not a lick of Spanish here. Hasn't hampered us in the slightest. It is rare to find a person that does not speak at least some english down here, but when we have it has still been very easy to communicate with them.

 

[Van-Tramp]

Who needs a shower anyway
http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/who-needs-a-shower-anyway/

When we arrived at Cabo Pulmo, we arrived freshly showered. Or, at least we got to shower within the past 24 hours of that day, which is pretty freshly showered by our definition. We spent a week in Cabo Pulmo, and now another week in Los Barriles a few dozen miles North.  Two weeks of beach camping also marks my second full week without a proper shower. It would be easy think that going two weeks without a shower is gross… and well, yea it is, hence my writing about it. Now, I am not saying I (and Kerri by association) have gone uncleaned during the two weeks. The solar shower has been getting a lot of attention lately, and I am grateful we have it at all. On other days I am forced to heat up a bowl of water, grab a rag & soap, and take – what my Mother calls – a “whore’s bath”. Usually done just before bed with an audience of two dogs and and Instagramming girl watching over me (she has yet to take a photo of the show), though she does not admit to the voyeuristic tendencies. Anyway, what I am getting at is – it’s been a long time since I have had a proper shower, and I really want one. Such is van-life.

OK, enough about my grossing you all out with my lack of hygiene…
[img=474x270]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/IMG_8628-1024x583.jpg[/img]

We came up to Los Barriles to meet up, once again, with the families of @Mali.Mish and  @Wandrly, and now Chris of @Go.Wildly who joined up with the two families just after we left them a few weeks back. We took this opportunity as this may be the last time in a few years we get to see the Mali.Mish family as they plan to be on a very different route than us in the coming years. So the week has been a prolonged good-bye of sorts, after spending most of 2015 and so far all of 2016 traveling together through Canada, Alaska, Pacific Coast, and now Baja. Although they were not an every-day part of our lives, we have been within a days drive of them since May of 2015 as we traversed the same route as them – or as they traveled the same as us, which ever way you want to look at it.

That time has since passed, with the group separating mid-week as they continued South while Kerri and I spent the rest of the work-week camping on the beach just out of town (sound familiar?). We await the weekend where we can start our Northern migration to the Encenada area, which is our final major stop of this Baja trip. We will be revisiting some of our favorite places along the way, so it will still take us a few weeks to get all the way up there. Nevertheless, I am looking forward to a new place to explore.

[img=474x173]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/IMG_8632-1024x373.jpg[/img] [img=474x267]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/IMG_8638-1024x576.jpg[/img]


http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/?attachment_id=9450Ironically, Kerri and I both agree that after two months in Baja… well, we miss the forest and mountains of the Rocky’s and Sierra’s. This, we have come to realize, is just hard-wired in our nomadic brains. We are always looking forward to the next location, sometimes at the cost of the present. I can’t wait to get back into Colorado (May-July) and – even more so – the time we are going to spend in Grand Teton later in September.

More images at http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/who-needs-a-shower-anyway/

 

[Van-Tramp]

The push North
http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/the-push-north/

The time has come for us to start heading North, and I must admit that I am happy about it. Surely, Baja has been great (at least parts of it), but I can only take so much desert-camping and beaches, you know. The call of mountains and trees are strong in nomad-brain.
We left Los Barriles, and drove straight through La Paz – making for two times we decided not to stop in Baja’s largest city – due to the heat. Instead, we kept on rolling North, nearly 300 miles, all the way to Loreto. Now, a 300 mile drive in the USA, with it’s Interstate system, is not much of a big deal, but there in Baja the speed limits range from 35 to 55 and the main highway is more akin to what would be a secondary-route in the USA.

We did make sure to stop in El Triunfo Cafe, in the town of El Triunfo – Pop 320 - for a late breakfast and to pickup another loaf of the most delicious garlic-bread.

It took about 9 hours of driving, arriving late in the afternoon, but with enough time to shower (finally) and do a load of laundry before bed. The next morning we drove the short distance to Playa El Requeson,  in the Bahia de Concepcion…


[img=474x224]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/IMG_8655-1024x483.jpg[/img][img=474x194]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/IMG_8680-1024x420.jpg[/img] [img=474x220]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/IMG_8660-1024x475.jpg[/img] [img=474x217]http://www.van-tramp.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/IMG_8672-1024x468.jpg[/img]

…where we had a night camping on the beach by ourselves before pulling into Mulege the following morning where we would camp for the work-week.

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