Postcard from Bahia San Luis Gonzaga- March 19, 2015

Although it’s Day 3 at Gonzaga Bay, if you get this postcard, we’re no longer in this beautiful spot, less than 100 miles south of San Felipe. Until a couple of years ago, getting here used to be an all-day affair. Now it takes two hours, and the road south from Puertocitos is the best we’ve driven in Mexico.

I’ve been to Gonzaga Bay twice, once while still in high school (a Thanksgiving trip with the Gellmanns), and once in the late 90’s (a Yavapai College geology trip with Wayne Ranney and the usual suspects). Both times we were driven out by the fierce winds the bay is known for. During the geology trip, one of our sleeping bags was blown out into the Gulf, never to be seen again.

This trip our luck is better. The intense winds come and go. When they blow, being in the van is a whole different story than trying to hold a tent together while eating food mixed with generous portions of sand. The bay is beautiful, the birds plentiful, and our few neighbors are old Baja hands, with stories and fresh fish to share.

The Gulf is known for extreme tides, more so when the moon is full or new, as it is now. When the tide is out, it is way out, and Gonzaga Bay offers miles and miles of white sandy beach, the only drawback being several dead dolphins, in various states of decay. These dolphins have proved irresistible to Toby, who yesterday snagged a voluptuous roll before we caught on. A bath and Nature’s Miracle helped diminish but not eliminate his ripe odor.

Before continuing, a correction to last week’s postcard from Banamichi. Sotol is not a mescal. As Dennis Moroney, anxious to protect my reputation as a know-it-all albeit retired librarian, wrote, “Sotol is made from desert spoon, Dasylirion wheeleri, which is not an agave. The taste is different, and unique.” I was misinformed.

The original plan was to drive from Banamichi to Caborca, to visit with friends Paty and Mario Zaragoza. We learned their daughter Cristina had been in a serious car accident in Guadalajara, and was home recovering. All will eventually be well, but it’s a long haul, and Cristi needed to visit a specialist in Hermosillo.

So we headed south, following the Rio Sonora through Aconchi, Baviacora, Mazocahui and Ures, to Hermosillo, and on to the Prescott College Field Station in Bahia Kino. Old home week for Mary, and I was again impressed with the scholarship the college fosters in Kino.

When the Zaragozas were home, we headed north to Caborca, for a while along the lovely Carretera Costera. Catching up with old friends was a treat, and Cristi is clearly on the mend.

We were expected in San Felipe, and spent a long day driving up the coast between the Pinacates and the Gulf, across the Colorado River delta, then south. After an overnight along the Rio Hardy at Campo Mosqueda, we finally made it to San Felipe, and the Cantu Cove cabin of Tony and Sue Norris.

It being spring break in Arizona, the clan was gathered, and we got to meet kids and grandkids, eat San Felipe shrimp, sing around the campfire, etc. Lovely, despite a recent hatch of fierce and plentiful flies.

We’ll leave Gonzaga Bay after one more night of incredible stars (Castor and Pollux, Sirius, not-a-star Jupiter, etc.). After showers at the store, and a drive to see where the pavement ends this month (it will eventually reach Highway 1), it’s back to San Felipe for Tony’s 11th Annual San Felipe Folk and Bluegrass Festival. Flies or no flies, it’s sure to be a good few days of socializing and music before we head home.

As I write the wind has died down, flies have invaded the van, and an afternoon project has emerged. Post lunch, a major “kitchen” cleanup will occur.

One of the pleasures of long road trips is listening to recorded books. Over the last few weeks, we’ve listened to “Defending Jacob,” finally finished “Wild,” and are now enjoying “The Devil in the White City.” In memory, books and landscape become inextricably linked, sometimes oddly, and always pleasurably- “Jazz” with a hot drive across the Mohave Desert, “Behind the Beautiful Forever” with the Canadian Rockies. Now the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago is all bound up with the sounds of shells and pebbles stirred by an outgoing tide.

Thanks for sharing this year’s Mexico ramble with us.

Love, Toni

Postscript- Back at La Taza, a San Felipe coffee house with free WiFi. We went to the end of the pavement and nine miles further to Coco’s Corner. Coco (who just turned 78) was in Ensenada for a checkup.

Photos:
Church in Baviacora
Products of the Rio Sonora valley. Chiltepin!
Toby in Kino
Kino sunset
Caspian Tern
Osprey along the Costera
Paty, Cristi and Mario Zaragoza. Paty and Mario had just served up a breakfast feast of machaca, eggs, Sonoran flour tortillas, and fresh fruit.
White Pelican and cormorants at Campo Mosqueda
Toby after the dolphin roll and the bath
A spectacular food fight at Bahia de San Luis Gonzaga. The pelican won.
Mary rehearsing in the van
Our camp at Rancho Grande in Gonzaga

Postcard from Banamichi- March 10, 2015

Believe it or not, we purchased no pots in Mata Ortiz. It’s not that we didn’t see beautiful work. Just that we’re no longer into acquiring things.

We loved wandering around Mata Ortiz and the Casas Grandes area, and our stay at Posada de las Ollas in Mata Ortiz. Posada-mates Fabiola Silva and Sterling Trantham were interviewing six or more elder potters each day, so we heard plenty of stories about the old days in Mata Ortiz. As we came to see it, the village where everybody makes pottery is less the result of divine inspiration on the part of Juan Quesada and more a communal outgrowth of pot-looting after the real pots ran out. This doesn’t make the current products any less beautiful or valuable. A controversial topic.

Paquime (the ancient Casas Grandes) was once a Chaco-like center of what the Museo del las Culturas del Norte calls the Gran Chichimeca. At its height, this fascinating site was the largest mud-walled city in the Americas, with an impressive system of water collection and distribution, that brought settled water to individual buildings via stone-lined ditches.

Sunday morning we purchased queso menonite in Casas Grandes Nuevo, then headed north and joined Mexico Highway 2 at Janos. It being Sunday, the sotol distillery was closed. No matter. Here in Banamichi, I’ve been able to sample the local (and very smooth) bacanora. As I understand it, tequila (Jalisco), sotol (Chihuahua) and bacanora (Sonora) are all essentially mescal (i.e. distilled from agave). Other than aging and purity, the differences are like the terroir differences between Syrah grapes grown in California or Arizona.

Highway 2 travels through beautiful open grasslands, back over the Sierra Madre (less daunting this far north), past Agua Prieta (just across the border from Douglas, Arizona), and into Cananea, a busy copper-mining town, where an early 1900’s miners’ rebellion contributed to the 1910-20 Mexican revolution.

We made an early start Monday, leisurely picking our way down the beautiful Rio Sonora valley. The Rio Sonora was the route of explorers and missionaries, who left a string of 17th century towns and churches. Juan DeAnza (famous to those of us who grew up in Riverside) founded what is now San Francisco, California, was buried in Arizpe. You can still see his bones through a glass panel in the church floor. Arizpe was once the capital of northwestern colonial Mexico, which included Arizona and New Mexico.

We settled in for two nights at La Posada del Rio in Banamichi, just across the plaza from where Linda Ronstadt’s Mexican grandparents were married. Not only are these easily the swankiest and most charming accommodations we’ve had in some time, other than a couple of long-term guests who are consulting with the local silver mine, we are the only guests. I am writing this from the rooftop patio, with views of mountains to the east and fields to the west. In Banamichi we see as many horses as cars. Both move at a leisurely pace.

Today we headed south to picnic at Agua Caliente near Aconchi. A lovely spot where scalding spring water is directed into pools of various degrees of heat. The pools were clean and inviting, and we were the only people enjoying them. Great birdwatching too!

After leaving Banamichi tomorrow, we’ll likely be camping for the rest of our trip, mostly in San Felipe and points south, and this may be my last postcard until we get home March 24. Be well, and consider visiting northern Mexico. If you can handle sometimes iffy accommodations, there’s much to see and experience. We’ll be back!

Love, Toni

Photos:
Late afternoon Mata Otiz
Late afternoon Paquime
Curious roadrunner Paquime (today we saw five roadrunners!)
Early morning Paquime
Church in Arizpe
Church in Banamichi
Early morning vultures in Banamichi (there were hundreds, mostly Turkey Vultures, some Black Vultures)
Banamichi street scene
San Felipe de Jesus from Cerro de la Cruz (260 steps)
High water Sonora river crossing to San Felipe de Jesus
Canyon Wren at Agua Caliente
Mary in agua caliente
Red-tailed Hawk near San Felipe de Jesus

Postcard from Mata Ortiz- March 7, 2015

We loved Alamos, enough to look into the possibility of renting a casita some winter. Seems to be doable and affordable, and that’s as far as we got.

Monday we set out for the Sierra Madre Occidental. It’s now Friday afternoon, and what a week it has been. We are currently in the small town of Mata Ortiz (south of Casas Grandes, Chihuahua), staying at a small posada, with just five guest rooms. $64 a night, including three meals!

We pulled into town just after dark, and were guided here by a gentleman who heard me making inquiries of the clueless liqor store clerk. “Sigueme,” he said, then guided us through the dark streets, and hooked us up with Lallo, the owner. Just in time for enchiladas.

From Alamos, we drove back through Navojoa and Ciudad Obregon, then headed north towards San Nicolas and highway 16. It was a paved road, but a bad paved road. 100 miles (5 hours) of continuous washtub-sized potholes, recent landslides, steep mountain grades, and rain. We reached Highway 16 at dusk, and broke our rules by driving the final hour to Yecora in the dark. The van’s wimpy headlights were not an asset.

It was raining when we checked into our less-than-basic hotel and raining when we left. The highlight of our visit to Yecora was an amazing bowl of albondigas soup at a little restaurant barely heated by wood-burning stove. From Yecora we drove over the crest of the sierras to Basaseachic. Despite the steady rain, the occasional views were fantastic.

Basaseachic was worth the drive. Although this is normally the dry season for the falls, the rain made for a spectacular display. We got soaked (by rain, not the falls) at the first viewpoint, then retreated a half mile to Rancho San Lorenzo where we set up camp for the night. We hunkered down, and despite freezing temperatures and 2+ inches of rain, had a good afternoon and night.

In the morning, we took advantage of a brief break in the storm, and walked down to two viewpoints. The canyon was particularly beautiful due to pour-overs and little waterfalls everywhere we looked. The big waterfall was huge, with for a brief moment, a double rainbow. As we hiked back up the well-constructed trail, it began to sleet. A brief cafecita with rancho caretaker Eliasar, and we were on our way down the Chihuahua side of the sierras, then north to the logging town of Madera.

This was a beautiful drive through high ranchland that looks a lot like Yavapai County. After a chilly night in a Madera hotel room with a tiny propane heater, we headed to Cuaranta Casas, one of many ruins in the canyons around Madera and Casas Grandes. As we understand it (ask us more tomorrow, after we visit the museum at Paquime), the people who occupied these caves and Paquime are closely tied with the Mogollon and Anasazi cultures. Although they are now well-protected (visitors must be accompanied by a guide), the caves are terribly looted, making it hard for archaeologists to get the data they need.

The supposedly two-hour drive Cuaranta Casas to Mata Ortiz took us four. This is a village of potters who combine ancient and modern designs with beautiful results. It seems everyone is a potter, and you can’t walk down the street or even out your door without being invited into someone’s home to view their pots. As we are not in the market for pots, this feels a bit awkward to us. So far we have been too busy to accept the invitations. Tomorrow we will visit some potters, making it clear we are only looking, before leaving for Paquime and Casas Grandes Viejo.

Today we drove an hour and a half to Cueva de la Olla, a cave with dwellings and a huge bowl-like granary. This is something we have never seen before.

It’s time for Toby’s walk, and we’ve been told there is cell phone reception on the hill. Enjoy the photos.

Love, Toni

Postcard from Alamos- March 1, 2015

Mary and I are off again, once again in Mexico, with Toby and the van. We left Prescott February 21, and expect to arrive home on the 24th. Our planned route is Tucson, San Carlos, Alamos, Yecora, Basaseachic, Madera, Casas Grandes, Banamichi, Caborca, Gonzaga Bay, San Felipe, home.

So far, so wonderful. This comes to you from Alamos, where we have been since Thursday. We leave Monday, heading up into the Sierra Madre Occidental just as a storm blows in. Per Weather Underground, we’ll get plenty of rain (maybe even snow!) no matter we find ourselves. So more lodging, less camping, and we’ll be wearing all those just-in-case warm things.

In Tucson, we had a fun weekend visit with Hal and Liz Kingslein, friends from our recent trip to Vietnam. Monday we crossed the border at Nogales. After acquiring visas and a vehicle importation permit at Kilometer 21, we headed south to San Carlos, and set up “camp” in the carport of Bill and Katie Kluchko’s casita.

Highlights of San Carlos were the views, Napule canyon, the Estero El Soldado, and the great food and conversation served up by our hosts.

Thursday morning we drove through Ciudad Obregon and Navajoa (home of the Martin factory that made Mary’s backpacker guitar!) to Alamos, an old town in the foothills of the Sierra Madre. From the 1700’s through the early 1900’s, the Alamos area was one of the richest silver mining districts in the world, and was for some time, the capital of Sonora. After the mining ended, the town shrank, and the old colonial mansions fell into disrepair. These lovely old buildings are now mostly restored and owned by wealthy Americans.

We are staying in a little casita at a place called El Pedregal. Our hosts David and Jennifer McKay lead birding trips all over Mexico. If you’re interested, check out Solipaso on the web.

In Alamos, we have enjoyed relaxing at El Pedregal, walking the cobblestone streets, morning birding outings (one guided), taking in the weekly Home & Garden Tour, and driving back roads with skimpy directions. This morning’s search was for the sewage ponds (agua negra), generally a great place to spot birds.

When the ponds weren’t where they should have been, all the ranch families hurrying to mass understood my questions. I didn’t catch the finer nuances of their very helpful answers. I got clues like arroyo, huerta, and finca, but didn’t put them together right. Kind of like the Sunday puzzle. After three conversations, and three turnarounds, we found the ponds. This always happens when I’m a bit lost in Mexico, and is for me, one of the enjoyable and memorable parts of most trips.

That’s it for now. Although we’ve had great WiFi so far, I’m guessing we won’t have it again until next week, when we reach La Posada del Rio in Banamichi. Until then, we’ll be in the Sierra Madre, on both the Sonora and Chihuahua sides, watching for birds and topas, swerving around potholes, and trying to stay dry.

Love, Toni

Photos (if you’ve been following us on Facebook, you’ve already seen most of these):
Liz, Mary, Hal, Tina, Stacey

Napule Canyon
Roseate Spoonbills
Katie and Mary
Toby
Bill and his boys
White Ibis
Casita at El Pedregal
Rufous-bellied Chachalacas
Female Elegant Trogan
Violet-crowned Hummingbird
18th century Alamos church
Streak-backed Oriole
Looking for agua negra
Amapa

Postcard from Baja

We arrived home Saturday, as the full moon rose. As with real postcards, this blog post arrives long after bags are unpacked and clothes are washed.
On the return trip, we took more side trips, camped in more remote locations, relaxed, saw more birds (Mary), spoke more Spanish (Toni), and lived off-leash (Toby). All good.
Birds:

Campsites:

Sights:

Toby:

Until the next trip . . .
Toni

Postcard from Todos Santos

It’s been a quiet week here in Baja California Sur. To make a short story shorter, we arrived in Todos Santos Sunday afternoon, and have been relaxing ever since. Walking, eating, talking, reading, all in perfect edge-of-the-tropics temperatures. All the trappings of a lovely week, complete with a few too many Toby-on-the-beach photos. Speaking of Toby, he’s in seventh heaven. No leash laws, new dog friends around every corner, and Jane DeLozier just down the street. The big white guy is Jane’s Palomo.

Beaches here are long and empty. Perhaps because, as everyone reminds us, they’re not safe for swimming.

There were a few days of driving between Loreto and Todos Santos, and soon after leaving Loreto for La Paz, we encountered a major road construction delay. Guys we couldn’t see were pushing boulders off the cliff, presumably to prevent same boulders from falling on unsuspecting VW Eurovans. After a night on the outskirts of La Paz, we camped near the truly charming village of San Bartolo, in a campground called Rancho Verde. The place was great for hiking, birding (Mary saw two endemic species, the Xantu’s Hummingbird and the Grey Thrasher), and peace and quiet in the Sierra La Laguna foothills. Great vegetation too!

On to Cabo Pulmo, on the Eastern Cape. This fishing village became a UNESCO World Heritage Site to protect the coral reef, the only surviving coral reefs in the Sea of Cortez. Fishing has been replaced by snorkeling and diving. We camped free in the ruins of an RV park, right on the Tropic of Cancer, and enjoyed a spectacular sunrise on our morning walk.

The bird life was pretty good too!

We arrived in Todos Santos shortly after the start of the annual film festival, and have watched two so-so movies (Quebranto and Un Mundo Secreto) from particularly uncomfortable seats. Other hardships include arriving at a lovely restaurant in the middle of an organic farm, only to discover it is closed Tuesdays. The mood improved when we returned Thursday and ate amazing roasted carrot and ricotta ravioli, drenched in pesto.

Tomorrow we leave our little casita, spend a night at Jane’s, then start the return trip, catching a few spots we missed on the way down, and revisiting others we enjoyed. Travelling companions Mabelle and Carolyn left Wednesday, so it’s down to us in the van.

Love to all, Toni

Postcard from Loreto

Mary and I are off on another van adventure, this time to the tip of Baja (southwestern-most point of North America?) and back. We left Prescott on February 3, spent a week camping with friends at Cibola and Imperial Dam, resupplied in Yuma, and crossed the border with travelling companions Carolyn and Mabelle on February 10.
Since then I’ve been on a digital diet. Other than a couple “splurges” on 5 pesos ($0.37)/15 minutes Wi-Fi, the little RV park here in Loreto is our first internet access since crossing the border at Tecate. So far it’s been a grand Baja road trip, my first this far south since 1975, one year after completion of the Transpeninsular Highway. As you might imagine, much has changed. Other than general growth, most noticeable to me is the development of agriculture, from the vineyards in Valle de Guadalupe to the organic farms around Mulege.   I’m guessing this is due to some combination of access to transportation (the paved highway to U.S. markets) and NAFTA, and imagine the agribusiness we see comes at a cost of depleted ground water.
Our fist night in Baja was on the grounds of LA Cetto, a vineyard in the Valle de Guadalupe, source of 85% of wines produced in Mexico. Although there are many small production wineries in the valley, LA Cetto is more of a wine factory, with trucks and machinery rumbling 24/7. We loved the few wines we tasted, and hope to return for a more extended exploration.
From Valle de Guadalupe, we passed through Ensenada and San Quintin, then on to Catavina, land of cirios and elephant trees, followed by Bahia de Los Angeles, on the Sea of Cortez.

We returned to the Pacific and camped at Ojo de Liebre (Scammon’s Lagoon), where we spent a morning among more whales, mostly mother/calf pairs, than you can imagine. No great photos. Not only did I not bring the smartphone, I was a bit overwhelmed by all the action.   On to San Ignacio, then Mulege, where Mary and I were able to visit the cave paintings at Rancho Trinidad. We had to swim (me) or boat (Mary) a very short distance to reach them. Our tour included an introduction to native uses of local plants. It seems every part of every desert plant we see in the desert can be used to cure something. Lots to learn, and I already forgot most of it.

After a night on the beach at El Requeson, we find ourselves in Loreto. A long day of driving should bring us to La Paz tomorrow. From there we’ll circle through the Cabos and up the Pacific to Todos Santos, where we will spend a week.
The van is doing well, and I am loving our portable 80 watt solar panel. Toby is having a great time.
Apologies for the rushed report. It’s late and we’re planning an early start.

Love to all, Toni