A Really Good Day

Saturday, 13 March – La Paz, Bahia Balandra, and Tecolote

1. Suddenly and without warning, Ray collides with his
dream at Bahia Balandra.

2. In Ray's dream, he finds a Palapa and settles down for a nap.

3. Meanwhile Joel, finding a certain lack of motion in Ray's
dream, decides to risk the Teddy Bear Cholla and climb
the headlands above Bahia Balandra.

4. Meanwhile, back in dreamland, the tide runs out in Bahia Balandra.

5. Being Saturday, many residents on La Paz came to Bahia Balandra.
These came by boat.

6. Another look at the water taxi from the beach.

7. The place not to be when the earth shakes. These rather large
rocks are held by a sedimentary material that I can dig out
with my fingers. New Baja Rule: Only walk where there is daylight.

8. Waiting for Ray to wake-up, I decide to lift some big rocks.

9. Oh, .... just kidding.

10. Highway11 running north out of La Paz ends here in Tecolote ....

11. ... at Palapa Azul

12. Having missed the boat (literally) to Espiritu Santo,
we find many varieties of tequila ....

14. ... and fresh clams from the other side of the bar ....

15. ... filled with good things to eat. I don't even like clams
and these were great.

16. Ray and I then walk an unnamed point between
Tecolote and Bahia Balandra.

17. After several tequilas, Ray carefully considers his next step.

18. We find the perfect beach for Boo.
(Ignore the cactus in the foreground)
Yes, we will get one of those boats.

We awoke today with a loose plan to drive up Hwy 11 up the peninsula north of La Paz to Tecolote. The plan was to rent a boat to take us up past Isla Espiritu Santo and Isla Partida to Los Islotes to see the sea lion colony. Our reasoning was that the boats would be cheaper if we could start halfway to the destination.

Before setting out, we returned to Quinta Lupita so Ray could buy the tile that Beth and he agreed upon last night. Being early, there was no traffic and we were able to cross town easily. It was a pleasant transaction.

We then headed north along Hwy 11 which passed the ferry terminal, the petroleum refinery, and some marinas. We passed a number of very nice beaches and inlets lined with mangroves. Being Saturday, the residents of La Paz were out in force to enjoy the natural beauty of the Bahia de la Paz.

As we approached Tecolote, we decided to pull in for a quick look at Bahia Balandra, which appears in all of our travel books. Suddenly and without warning, Ray collided with his dream. If I understand correctly, the bahia, along with many of the beaches along Hwy 11 are maintained by the city of La Paz. There are Palapas (if you don’t know what this is, look at the photo above) along the beach which are used by the general public. Ray chilled on the beach. I hiked the headlands which gave some postcard like views. Ray and I agree that the bahia lives up to the hype in the books. Great place to go.

By the time we got to Tecolote, all the charter boats had left. Tecolote is another piece of paradise. Unlike Bahia Balndra, the road ended at the bar at Palapa Azul. Ray, following his zen teaching, decided it was a meant to be, so we ordered drinks and clams from the waters in front of the bar. We checked out the local camping which we are considering using if we return tomorrow.

After staring at the azul sea for several hours, we drove a short distance directly east of Tecolote. Looking east, you can see a 4WD track that climbs the headland. The track was too much for the Tacoma so we set out on foot. We saw several turquoise coves with pristine beaches, one that I will take Boo too when we come back to La Paz.

We returned to La Paz, got some cash at the Banamex ATM with our bank cards (yes this works – it even gave me my balance in Pesos – which is a considerably larger number), then sat on the wharf where the cruise ships dock to watch the sun set. After several unsuccessful attempts after trying to find a recommended fish market, we returned to the Casabuena B&B to settle in for the night.