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| All roads lead to....somewhere... |
Our off road trip to the bay of San Basilio on the Sea of Cortez begins at 0830 sharp. Twelve fellow beach campers have decided to make the trip, all in four wheel drive vehicles. Two will stay overnight. We load the kayaks the day before, pack a picnic lunch (and one for the dogs), and go through the checklist. Binoculars, First Aid kit, map, extra water, beach chairs, sun tent, extra towels, shorts, long pants, jacket, hat, sunglasses, sun lotion, passports, car papers, tourist permits, dog water bowl, road snacks, life jackets, paddles....what else could we possibly need? It's only a day trip for us!
We have been to this beautiful bay three times in the last four years. There have been two hurricanes in those years, and we notice....hurricanes change things. The first thing this year is that the entrance is no longer the entrance. We find another likely gate and give it a try. The road is clear, and soon hooks up with the original road. Someone has totally blocked off the old road beginning....damage? Property dispute? Family fuede? A mystery.
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| Imagine the hurricane flood water filling this canyon floor! |
We find the roadway in good shape. The signs of the flooding water from October are visible, but the end result is ok as far as finding our way and good surfaces to drive upon.
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| Rancho gate....leave it as you find it. |
We make our way across river beds, along tire track "roads," through cactus forests, areas of white lavendar bush, past palo verde trees and palo blanco (green and white stick trees), through the "sand pit" area which now is nothing but a sandy track, (thank goodness) and finally to the section that in the past has been sorta straight up in grade and slick slate rock ....but magically, it is now an actual one lane road that has been modified by some huge road building machine. Our guess: the last hurricane made such a mess that someone arranged for an earth moving machine / road builder dozer to "fix things." The slate is now pushed over an enbankment and just a memory.
We find the bay as spectacular and beautiful as ever!
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| Check out the geology of these rock formations! |
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| Pinnicle rock formations |
It didn't take us long to launch kayaks and head out to the rock formations toward the mouth of the bay. It's very windy today and usually the wind builds in the afternoon, so, no time like the present to get out there!
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| Kayak dudette |
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| Cruising sailboat anchored |
Steve stops by this boat and chats with the folks aboard. They are from Bend, Oregon and we know folks in common! Chorus of "It's A Small World" ....afterall.
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| We set up "day camp" in San Basilio |
The dogs run the length of the long, long sand beach. It seems there's no end of interesting things to investigate.
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| Wet Beach Boy Sparky |
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| Beach Boy Skipper |
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| Dog meets Fish |
Sparky checks off a few firsts on his list of life experiences: first ride in the back compartment of Steve's kayak, first leap into the water from the back compartment of Steve's kayak, first swim (all the way to shore), first time nose meets fish teeth.
By three o'clock it's time to start packing up. Load the boats, fold the sun tent, find Sparky (again), pull all puncture weeds out of shoes, paws, fur, clothes, and anything that had contact with the beach. We find our way back out the road, past the rancho, over what's left of a dead cow, through the mini canyon and out to Mex #1 for the hour drive back toward Coyote Beach.
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| Rancho |
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| Mini canyon section |
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| What's left of a cow? |
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| Boys will be boys |
The road this year is the best it's ever been. Hurricanes change things. Sometimes for the better!
Now we wonder about some of the other back road trips we've taken in the past. Maybe....better this year?
