Alfonsina to Mulege' - 446 miles
After a great night of drinking beer and telling stories with John and Cari we got our act together and began the trek south to Guerro Negro. John and Cari gave us some great pointers of where to stop and what to avoid. John also let us know what to expect for road conditions on the way to Coco's Corner. The road was freshly graded which was a mixed blessing. It was smooth but the grading had made the road soft and the fresh dirt was soft and made for difficult riding, especially on loaded bikes. Phil and Paul made good time but I had to proceed more slowly to avoid causing more damage to my pannier mounting system. Riding slowly in the deep soft dirt was more difficult that riding fast would have been.
As we neared Coco's, the road became better and I was able to make much better time and closed ground on Phil and Paul. We were very pleased to find Coco at his place since we'd heard that he was no longer there. I asked him about the rumors and, in typical Coco fashion, he ranted and swore that the rumors were all lies. He told us that he had been in Ensenada in the hospital to have is other leg amputated and that the stupid doctor had screwed up by not "filleting" his leg but cutting it square so that there was no flap of skin to cover the cut. He went on about how he awoke in bed to find it soaked with his own blood because of the doctor's incompetency.
We sat for a while and talked with Coco about our travel plans and bought a few beers from him. Phil and I mounted a map of Baja to the wall at Coco's request. He told us the best way to circumnavigate the military checkpoint at Guerro Negro since we had not bothered to get our tourist visas at the border. He also told us to avoid Santa Rosalia because it was full of "putos" (what he calls homosexuals). He then began to make fun of Phil because of his limited Spanish and because Phil didn't understand what he was referring to. Phil thougt Coco was talking about "female entertainment" and made a joke about being interested. Well, Coco took it and ran with it for about 20 minutes.
Coco had us sign is visitor book, although it was a couple of years out of date because someone stole his current one in his absense. When we paid him for the beer we didn't have exact change, so he wrote in is book that he owes us 5 beers on our next visit!
Barrel gas after leaving Coco's. Some sections of Baja have very limited gas supply. The gas stations run out of gas and some of them have never been opened at all. The maps show locations of gas stations but they may not actually have any fuel.
Coco told us that the government is rerouting the road about 10 km west of his place, closer to the mountains, which will reduce his meager traffic to a trickle. We felt bad for him as he has already had a really tough life. We hope that the off-roaders and SCORE participants will continue to help him out. He is truly a one-of-a-kind person. Meeting Coco was a highlight of our trip.
We stopped along Hwy 1 to purchase some gas from the guys pictured above. Paul's bike had a small tank so we had to stop regularly for fuel. I held off until we came to Villa Jesus Maria about 40 miles further south. While we were there we had some lunch and a few beers. For some reason, many restaurants in Baja don't sell alcohol so we rode across the highway to the local beer store where I bought us a six-pack of Sol. We then rode to the restaurant recommended (there were only two to choose from) by the clerk. The restaurant owner didn't mind that we brought our own beverages into his place so we sat and watched traffic go by while waiting for our food. The food was very good and also really inexpensive. About $8 for all three of us.
Phil was complaining about all the time we had "lost" on the dirt roads and at Coco's so I got back on the highway to Guerro Negro and held it at about 90 mph for the next 35 miles. We made it to Guerro in good time.
We were unsure what to expect upon entering G.N. because we knew there was a major military checkpoint there. We stopped for fuel just north of town and spoke with some Americans who gave us the skinny. We were waved right through the checkpoint, as we had been at all the others, and rode into town to a hotel that the Americans had recommended.
John and Cari had suggested that we by-pass G.N and try to make it to San Ignacio (which would have been better) but it was nearing dark when we got to G.N and it was another 11/2 hours to San Ignacio. Their description of G.N. was accurate, a dusty, windy, dirty, shit hole of a town. This was one of two places on our entire trip that made me feel uneasy.
It was a 260 mile ride from Alfonsina to G.N. a long day with lots of wind.
While at the hotel, we met the guys pictured above. They were riding Goldwings and cruisers and were headed south as well. A great bunch of guys that we would bump into several times throughout the trip.
We spent our evening in G.N. sitting outside a local liquor store drinking beer and watching cars go by. The local nightlife was pretty interesting and kept us occupied until bedtime. The next morning we were up early and Paul made coffee in the room for us. Unfortunately, he used tap water without thinking and he and I would share the joy later in the evening. The restaurant and hotel were expensive and not all that great, so I'll not bother recommending it to anyone.
We headed south to San Ignacio since it came highly recommended by John and Cari as well as other people we had met. It was a fantastic place to visit and had one of the most interesting missions of any that we visited.
San Ignacio Mission
The mission dates from approximately 1786 and is still in use today. The walls are about 4 feet thick as is common with structures of this era.
Santa Rosalia
We continued south to Santa Rosalia, mindful of Coco's warnings, and stopped along the malecon to have some chips and beer and to watch traffic go by. This was another theme of the trip. Santa Rosalia was an interesting little town that is home to a church designed by Eiffel. Apparently, Eiffel built the church which was displayed at the Chicago World's Fair. A wealthy businessman from Santa Rosalia saw it and loved it so much that he bought it and had it transported here and reassembled.
Mulege'
We continued south to Mulege' after a short break in Santa Rosalia. Mulege' (pronounced "Moo_la_hey") is a very small town by the river and adjacent to the Sea of Cortez. We found an internet cafe' here and it was our first chance to check in since leaving the States. We found that our cell phones did not work throughout most of Baja and internet service was also hard to find. We rode a short ways south of town to a place called "La Serenedad" that was recommended by some BMW riders that we met in San Ignacio. The resort was nice, right on the sea with small cabanas. We were also able to service our bikes while we were here. It was a 186 mile run from G.N. to Mulege' but with the long stop-over at San Ignacio, it was a full day.
As luck would have it, we met the older guys on the cruisers again and had a nice evening chatting with them over drinks. As luck would also have it, about an hour after dinner our ill fated morning coffee would come back to haunt us. With a separation of about 8 minutes, I then Paul found ourselves in the bathroom puking our guts out. A short while later things got even worse. "2 exits, no waiting!'' Aye carumba!
The next morning, Phil rode back into town and went to the local farmicia. Using primarlly sign language, he explained to the pharmacist our symptoms and returned with the miracle cure. The rest of the day was miserable but we got through it OK. We even managed to service our bikes between runs to the bathroom.
The next morning we rode out to the local mission before leaving town. Some pics are below.
I went in and said a quick prayer for our safe travels and health and we were on our way to La Paz. A very long ride.
