Exploring Baja: A 21-Day Camping Adventure

Our Baja trip began in March 13 when we hopped in the camper and started our drive to Loreto. The highlights of the trip included spending a couple of days in the desert to photograph the cirios and cactus and a six day kayaking trip out of Loreto. Those events are covered in separate blog posts. For this post I’m going to describe some of the other highlights of the trip.

We spent our first night at Kern River Campground just east of
Bakersfield. The highlight here was breakfast. We fired up the Dutch oven and cooked up a mushroom and brie breakfast strata, one of our favorite camping meals. Needless to say, the leftovers provided us with breakfast on several days.

From the Kern River we moved on to Anza Borrego Desert State Park where we spent two nights in the Tamarisk Grove campground. Most of the spring wildflowers were gone, but we did find a few cactus in bloom.

From Anza Borrego we headed south and crossed the border at Tecate, an easy border crossing, although we did have to walk across the street to the bank to pay for our tourist cards (Forma Migratoria Multiple, FMM) since the credit card reader at the immigration office was out of order.

We passed through Guadalupe about noon so we stopped for lunch at Tacos del Valle for some delicious tacos, our first meal in Baja.

We reached Fidel’s Palapas, just south of San Quintin, about 5:00 PM, our intended stop for the night. Fidel promptly appeared to collect 300 pesos. Fidel’s has hot showers, running water and electrical hookups, although we didn’t make use of the water or electrical.

From Fidel’s we headed to Cataviña where we spent two nights in the Cactus Wonderland. From there it was on to San Ignacio where we spent one night at Paraiso Misional, our favorite place to camp in San Ignacio. It’s a lovely spot in the shade of palm trees, with hot showers. Then on to Loreto where we had two days to explore the town, having some fabulous food, dining with live music at Baja Haay and enjoying the vibe of the town.

From Loreto we embarked on our six day kayaking tour exploring some of the islands, poking along the coast, paddling, snorkeling and doing a bit of hiking. Before leaving Loreto on our return trip we made a stop at a water vendor to fill our water tank.

We were happy to find that one of our favorite restaurants, Nomadico’s, was open. We stopped for a delicious lunch. Joann had a yellowtail tostada and I had a scallop tostada with a pineapple coconut smoothie. On our last night in Baja we camped at Guadalupe RV park and took advantage of the hot showers. We crossed the boarder again at Tecate, camping at Sycamore Flat Campground in the Angeles National Forest. From there we checked out the Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve. The flower display was past its prime, but we did find a few clusters of flowers. Then it was on to Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park before making the final leg home. We were back home on the afternoon of April 2 having logged 2820 miles over the course of our 21 days.

More photos are available in an online gallery.

Unforgettable Six-Day Kayaking Adventure in Loreto

Our six-day kayaking adventure begins on the morning of March 22 when our guide picks us up at our hotel and takes us to our launch site, a beach, Playa El Quemado south of Loreto. Actually, we had met our guide the evening before for a briefing and to provide us with bags for our gear. We booked our trip through Paddling South/SeaTrek.

We were surprised to find that we were the only two guests on this trip, which meant we had rather personalized support with our guide Jorge and the boat driver Adrian. We had opted for a skiff supported trip, which meant that our gear went by panga and we had cold beer and fresh food.

At 10:15 AM on March 22 we were on the water. It’s about a three-mile paddle to Isla Danzante where we made a stop at Honeymoon Beach (Playa Luna de Miel). A gorgeous beach with clear turquoise water. We did a short hike here to a panoramic vantage point. We then returned to our boats and paddled to a beach further south, Playa Arenas, where we set up camp.

We spent two nights camped at Playa Arenas. On the second day of the trip we paddled to Isla del Carmen where we had lunch, put our wetsuits on and got in the water to do some snorkeling. Whenever we stopped, up went the tent to provide us shade from the sun and, of course, a cooler with cold drinks. Paddling to and from Isla del Carmen and snorkeling made for a long day. It was 5:30 when we returned to camp. Having logged 12 miles, we were feeling a bit tired.

I must say that the food that Jorge and Adrian prepared was excellent. We had fresh fish, fresh fruit and vegetables, and of course tortillas and beans. We were well fed.

The trip was billed as a kayaking, snorkeling and hiking trip. We had several opportunities to get in the water and marvel at the coral and tropical fish as well as a couple of opportunities for short hikes to explore the plant and animal life. For photography I had my recently purchased iPhone 17 which I kept in a dive case whenever we were on or in the water.

I had a few issues with the camera, seemingly having a mind of its own and changing modes on me. It took me a couple of days to get the hang of getting the camera to behave, but in the end, I was quite happy with the results.

On the third day we broke camp and paddled to a beach on the peninsula where we stopped for lunch. The intent was to camp there, but Jorge decided that the beach was not suitable, so we put the kayaks on top of the panga and motored to another beach, Playa Aquililla, a few miles south. Our last two nights were spent on a lovely beach four miles further south and our final takeout was at Playa San Cosme.

Here’s a map of our track over the six days with color segments representing different days. Over the course of trip, we did not see any other kayakers, and only an occasional fishing boat off the coast. It was a week of paddling and camping on remote and secluded beaches with amazing sunsets and sunrises. We did not spot any whales or turtles, but we did spot several pods of Pacific Bottlenosed Dolphins as well as a variety of birds. Overall, it was an adventure of peace and tranquility and an opportunity to be close to nature. More photos are available in an online gallery.

Camping in Cactus Wonderland

After a night on the beach at Fidel’s Palapas just south of San Quintín, we were on the road shortly after 10:00. About noon as we were contemplating lunch, we found Restaurant El Sacrificio. One thing I like about traveling in Baja is discovering places to eat.

North of the border it’s franchises surrounded by acres of asphalt with young kids behind the counter. When you order a Big Mac, you know exactly what to expect. Here it’s small family-run establishments by the side of the road with the charm of rural Baja, with posters about the Baja races and local treats. The food always seems to be delicious. We were the only guests for lunch. Excellent food and the opportunity to practice my broken Spanish. After lunch we were back on the road.

Shortly before reaching the town of Cataviña we pulled off onto a dirt road and explored possibilities to camp. We had camped here three years ago on our previous trip.

I wanted to return to spend a couple days exploring the desert. One of the apps we use for navigation, iOverlander, suggested that there were several locations suitable for camping. We explored a couple of dirt roads before settling on a spot. It was just short of 3:00 when we parked the rig.

This would give me two sunsets and two sunrises for photography. Temperatures were also more pleasant in the morning and evening, running about 65 degrees at sunrise. By mid-afternoon the temperature was 85 in the shade and 95 inside the camper. During the heat of the day we pulled out our journals and books and hunkered down in the shade.

Sunset provided some interesting photo opportunities with the cactus and cirios silhouetted against the western sky. Sunrise was not near as interesting. About 20 minutes before sunrise there was a faint glow of color which only lasted about five minutes, and I was not inspired to do much with the early morning light.

We did see a number of cactus in bloom as well as a few ocotillo with their spray of red flowers looking like flames on the tips of their thorny branches.

With the dark night sky, I was inspired to try my hand at astrophotography to see if I could capture part of the Milky Way. I think the resulting image of the cirios silhouetted by a cloud of stars is quite interesting. You can view more photos in an online gallery.

Aurora Borealis Adventure: Tips for Your Fairbanks Trip

In early January it looked we might have the opportunity to see the Northern Lights. The solar activity was such that people were reporting good aurora viewing. We marked out five days in the middle of February and started planning, choosing Fairbanks as our destination. There are a number of options for viewing the aurora. You can book through an agency that will cover all your needs in posh accommodations, or you can piece together a tour on your own. We put together our own tour.

A vibrant display of the Northern Lights with green auroras illuminating the night sky, surrounded by dark clouds and twinkling stars above a snowy landscape.
Aurora Borealis

Our trip would include three nights in Fairbanks, a ride on the Aurora Winter Train from Fairbanks to Anchorage, and two nights in Anchorage with relatives. I’ll write more about that part of the trip in another post.

At this phase of planning, temperatures were running -40 degrees Fahrenheit in Fairbanks. We were quite concerned about how we could be comfortable in such extreme temperatures. I found a resource that gave advice on how to dress. I also discovered that we could rent gear from Alaska Outdoor Gear Rental. Not only that, but they would deliver the gear to our hotel and we could drop it off at the airport in Anchorage at the end of our trip.

We booked a tour with Fairbanks Aurora Tours after reviewing a number of outfitters. They cater to photographers. We booked a tour for the evening of February 15 and a second tour two days later with another tour operator as a backup. As it turned out,we were successful on our first tour and we were able to cancel the second tour without any penalty.

Februrary 15 proved to be a long day. We were on our way to the Oakland Airport at 4:00 AM. We arrived at La Quinta Inn about 3:00 PM. We checked in and picked up a huge duffel bag of our rental clothing including heavy, thick, down-filled bibs and coats and winter boots.

Of course, we had to try on the clothes to make sure they would fit. Then at 9:05 PM our tour van pulled up to the hotel. There were ten people on the tour. We were a little anxious about the possibility of seeing the aurora. The weather was overcast but our guide assured us that conditions were looking good. As we drove out of town our guide would stop the van occasionally to check the local weather and the space weather, debating the options as we traveled.

I must say I’m happy the tour guide knew what he was doing both with the driving and monitoring weather. Driving on snowy mountain roads in the middle of the night is not for me. We passed one truck that had slid off the road, and another incident with flashing lights.

It turned out to be a 2-1/2 hour drive. Our guide was very good at entertaining us, lecturing about the physics of the aurora borealis and providing pointers about setting our cameras to get the best exposures.

Just before midnight our guide parked. We stepped out under clear skies and a temperature of just under 0 degrees Fahrenheit. As I was setting up my tripod the waves of color were just starting to appear. It was hard to know where to point the camera since the display was covering the whole sky.

I had come prepared to try to capture a timelapse, but the remote controller failed to function. The battery had succumbed to the cold temperature. Likewise, my iPhone and my backup battery bank ceased to function as well. Luckily my Nikon D850 kept going.

For about 45 minutes we were awed by the waves of color dancing across the sky. Eventually the aurora display started to dissipate. I noticed that everyone else had climbed back into the heated van. I climbed back onboard and we made the return drive to Fairbanks, arriving back at the hotel at 3:45 AM. I’ve included a map that shows the route we took from Fairbanks.

A note to anyone else that might want to plan such a trip: We used the hotel shuttle to get from the airport to the hotel, and Uber to get around town. The hotel provided a hearty breakfast buffet, but there is not much else nearby for dining. The rooms at La Quinta Inn have refrigerators and microwaves, and there were a variety of Ramen noodles and frozen foods available at the front desk. We had a very nice lunch at Pike’s landing one day, but it’s a mile walk in the snow, and not something we wanted to repeat. We ended up buying a few things at the local Safeway and having dinner in the room.

Exploring the Manet & Morisot Exhibit: A Rainy-Day Adventure

What do you do on a rainy afternoon when your house is not inhabitable? While remodeling is going on in our house, we have moved out, renting a house in Mount Hermon. When in town we stay in our camper although hanging out in the camper in our driveway in pouring rain isn’t inviting. So, what do we do? We head to the museum.

Today it’s the Manet & Morisot exhibit at the Legion of Honor. We paid for the audio tour which was well worth the price. I must say that I was not familiar with Morisot, so this was a real opportunity to learn about two of the most influential artists of the age of Impressionism.

The New York Times has this to say:

They were close friends who corresponded often and went to the same soirées, passionate advocates for each other’s art, and eventually siblings-in-law (when Morisot, then in her 30s and facing financial precarity after her father’s death, married Manet’s brother Eugène in an arrangement supported by both families).

As we toured the exhibit, I found myself just as interested in watching people as the artwork. I recall a time when cameras were forbidden in such exhibits, and here people are using their phones to document the work. It’s almost as if the camera-phone has become an essential tool for appreciating art. I became fascinated with the idea of trying to capture the feeling for the experience; people looking at art. Somehow just snapping photos of people looking at art seemed static, so I challenged myself to try to capture images that had a bit of an emotional impact, introducing a sense of motion.

By the end of the exhibit, I had gained respect for Morisot’s work and her view of the world, contrasted with Manet’s.

The exhibit is up through March 1, 2026. It’s well worth seeing if you have the opportunity.

Living at Mount Hermon

As the year draws to a close, we find ourselves living in Mount Hermon while our house in Albany undergoes remodeling. Our adventure here begins on December 1st, when we drove our rental U-Haul truck up the driveway at #6 Pine Avenue in Mount Hermon.

Thanks to our daughter, Amy, we found a very cute house to rent for our stay here, which will keep us comfortable through the end of January when we anticipate moving back to Albany.

Originally, we were going to stay through December with the idea that we would take the pop-up camper on a road trip for part of January. On December 14 through, I broke my left wrist, so I no driving and thus no road trip. We could do worse than have such a comfortable place to stay in such a beautiful location here in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

We’ve been coming to Mount Hermon for over 40 years for church retreats, so we have some familiarity with the place. And our daughter and family live here as well. We are a 5-minute walk from our grandson.

On December 8th Amy hosted a gingerbread party and we were happy to participate. Cutting out dough shapes, gluing them together and decorating the resulting houses with frosting and candy.

On December 24th our son Aaron arrived with his family. We were blessed with having our whole family together for Christmas with both of our kids, our two grandkids and our son-in-law’s parents as well.

With family together we enjoyed hiking through the majestic redwoods, up to the cross on the top of the mountain and exploring the Bonny Doon Ecological Preserve.

And when the rain prevailed, we contented ourselves with putting together jigsaw puzzles. Jigsaw puzzles have been a holiday tradition in my family since I was a kid. More photos are available in an online gallery.

Unexpected Close Encounter: Broken Wrist

On the evening of December 14th, I had an unexpected close encounter with the pavement on my driveway. My toe caught a stump. Wham! I did a face plant on the concrete. When I picked myself up, I had a bloody nose, a chipped tooth, a bloody fat lip, a sprained elbow and what felt like a sprained wrist. I am now wearing a cast for a fractured bone in my left wrist.

The radiologist interpreted the x-ray as “nondisplaced fracture of
triquetrum (cuneiform) bone, left wrist.” I’m including a photo of the offending stump and a photo of the X-ray.

The stump will have to go. It’s the remains of a coyote bush that I took out a couple of years ago, and it has been a tripping hazard ever since.

I won’t be driving for a few weeks, so probably no road trips. We are extending our stay at Mt. Hermon through January while work continues on our house in Albany. I will have plenty to do here since I brought my workstation with my complete digital archive of over 200,000 photos. I am also having fun with a speech-to-text application, Wispr Flow, since I cannot type at the moment.

Windsurfer to Paradise

It was 9:05 when I parked my car at Windsurfer Beach. Early! Way Early! I got across the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge in record time. It was a 20-minute drive when I allowed for 45. As I climbed out of the car, I was hit by a chilly breeze with clouds overhead. I climbed back in the car to wait for my fellow paddlers. It wasn’t until later, when I suited up, that I realized I had left my duffel bag with my lunch and camera case at home. I wouldn’t be using my iPhone for photography today; however, I did have my Olympus TG-5 which I usually carry as a backup camera.

It wasn’t long until my fellow paddlers showed up. Nine of us were on the water at 10:30 paddling out the channel and past San Quentin. We were anticipating a very light ebb current with slack at 1:00, meaning we would be paddling against this slight current. We had a chilly northwest wind pushing us along as we headed towards Paradise Cay. Once we approached the Cay, three of our paddlers decided to turn around. The prospect of a slog into the wind on the return from Paradise was something to consider. Six of us continued on to Paradise Beach.

At noon we landed at Paradise Beach. With the wind and the fetch coming from the north, we had a little bit of a surf landing. We hiked up the short trail to the picnic tables for lunch. Having arrived without my lunch I was able to bum cookies, candies, and an energy bar off of my fellow paddlers. No shortage of sugar to keep my energy up on the return leg. With a temperature a chilly 45-degrees we didn’t dally long over lunch. We wanted to get back on the water and paddle and warm up.

It was a bit of a slog paddling into the chilly north wind with whitecaps and chop. When every stroke into the wind is an effort it’s hard to stop paddling, pick up my camera, and capture photos. Best to keep the cadence and the forward progress. Once past Paradise Cay, we veered east and found a little protection from the wind.

Shortly after 1:00, the sun started to tease us, which felt really nice. At 2:30, we were back on the beach having logged 9 miles. More photos are available in an online gallery.

Exploring Carquinez Strait: A Kayaking Experience

This week our usual Thursday paddle turned into a Saturday paddle. This afforded the opportunity for a few people who normally work on Thursday to join us. With a club membership of some 700 people (BASK: Bay Area Sea Kayakers), there’s no shortage of people looking for opportunities to paddle. Ten of us were on the water at 10:00 launching from the gravel beach at Eckley Pier on the Carquinez Strait. We were launching on a fairly high tide, high tide being 5.9 feet at 10:00. We would be riding the tail end of the flood current.

The plan was to stay close to shore to avoid any shipping traffic in the channel. Staying close to shore though, we found that an eddy was hindering our progress, so a few of us moved out of the eddy closer to the shipping channel where we found a more favorable current. We landed at the Martinez Marina at 11:20.

We broke out our lunches and as is our tradition several varieties of chocolate were shared. After lunch several of us decided to paddle into the marsh at the Radke Martinez Regional Shoreline. We paddled well up into the Alhambra Creek and under Embarcadero Street before turning around.

On the return leg I was looking forward to paddling through the pilings near Port Costa. They provide some interesting photo opportunities as well as an opportunity to practice boat control. As fate would have it though, my iPhone battery went dead so I was without a camera for the last half mile or so. I need to make a note to keep my Olympus TG-5 available, so I have a camera handy when my iPhone battery goes dead.

On our return to Eckley Pier, we noted that the tide had receded and what had been gravel on our launch was now broken bricks. This proved to be a bit treacherous for walking and carrying boats. We logged 10 miles over the course of the day.

More photos are available in an online gallery.

Dunphy Park to Bayfront Park

With the high tide many of the beaches we like to visit were under water, so we opted for a paddle from Dunphy Park to Bayfront Park, both locations work for high water. A high tide of 4.8 feet was predicted for 12:22.

Seven of us were on the water at 10:30 with three of us launching from the kayak dock just west of the Sausalito Cruising Club and four launching from the beach. I opted to launch from the kayak dock using the slipway with rollers. This worked fine for getting on the water. Simply climb in the boat and slide down into the water. It didn’t work so well getting the boat out of the water. I tried using the roller struts as handles to pull the boat up the ramp, but the rollers would pop out of their sockets, leaving nothing to give any purchase.

We paddled up Richardson Bay, under the Highway 101 bridge and then continued up Pickleweed Inlet as far as E Blithedale Avenue, as far as one could possibly paddle. Then it was back to Bayfront Park where we landed on the bank and pulled out our lunches. As is our tradition, an abundance of chocolate treats were passed around.

After lunch we were back on the water retracing our path back to Dunphy Park. We were back at the dock at 1:30 having logged 7.3 miles. We had flat calm for our paddle, with sightings of a few harbor seals, pelicans and cormorants.

I’ve inlcuded a few photos of the kayak ramp. One has David trying to pull me up the slip with rollers. That wasn’t working so I tried the slip without rollers and that worked. This slip has slots in which you can place the paddle to pull yourself up out of the water. More photos are available in an online gallery.