Buffalo Snort and Bodegas San Rafael

La Bufadora translates into Buffalo Snort. This is a blow hole at the end of the peninsula that juts out from the estuary. Of course, this being a popular tourist destination there are lots of bodegas and souvenir shops lining the route to the blow hole. A blow hole is formed when two points of land are so close together that the water must shoot up it as the swells roll in. Some blows are very small and others are very high. It was truly and neat thing to watch. Just as we arrived, we met up with a small group of Escapee's we had traveled with to Rocky Point. It was like meeting long lost friends!

  

Our lunch was a unique dish made from clams. Fresh clams were pried open, the clam chopped and placed back in the shell along with butter, onions, tomatoes, some kind of sauce and cheese. It was then heated over hot coals until the cheese was bubbly. Wow, this was really good!

After lunch we drove to Bodegas San Rafael which is about 46 miles east of Ensenada on the other side of the mountains. This vineyard is owned by the same family that operated the cantina Housong's in Ensenada. This is a working winery with no tasting room or other public facilities and we are some of the very few people to be given a tour They have over 250 acres of grape vines that are hand picked by 14 people and turned into 8 different wines filling 3500 cases. The owner was a great tour guide, even offering us some tastes of wine straight from the barrels and stainless steel tanks. He even uncorked a keg of brandy for us. The owner's son created a special meal for us while we sat on the terrace outside their home and watched the sun set. Of course, we ate early, while wearing our winter coats and gloves and we were back in the RV by 8 PM. But it was a very special evening.

Ensenada, Mexico

It rained all night and most of the morning! What a muddy mess getting back onto the highway! It was only about a 30 mile drive into Ensenada and we were supposed to go on a whale watching tour just outside the bay but the water was too choppy, the wind too strong and the temperature too cold. So we ate an early lunch at the fish market and did some shopping. We stopped at Housong's Cantina which was established in 1892 and still has the same floors and bar and possibly the same pictures (HA!). The great-grandson of the original owner will be preparing dinner for us tomorrow night.

It was a short drive to Estero Beach RV Park where we camped on the estuary just off the bay. This is a resort community so there was a swimming pool (too cold), hot tub, laundry, showers and board walk with lots of lovely homes lining the walk. We enjoyed a contributive dinner where every dish was either pasta or rice but tasted very good. It was very cold, we sat around wearing heavy coats, gloves, and stocking caps to visit.

Again, we ate early and are back in the coach before 8 PM.

3 Wineries - 3 Wine Tastings

We crossed the border at Tecate and stopped for our first wine tasting at Casa Pedro Domecq Winery. They gave us a tour of their facility which included a walk thru their 'cave'. This included many historical items including some original stone jars used by the Spanish to make wine. Even though all the grapes are grown and harvested here, all of their wine is bottled and distributed in Mexico City. But, they have kept some of their better wines in their cave along with some vintage grape processing equipment such as presses and bottlers.

We crossed the highway and drove about 2 miles down a dirt road to LA Cetto Winery where we will spend the night in their parking lot. They are the largest and most popular winery in Mexico. After the tour and wine tasting we went back to our RV's for a short nap and then planned to walk to the next winery only 1/2 mile down the road. But the weather changed our plans -- it poured down rain! This is the first bad weather we have had since we left home. One of the rigs on this trip is a small Rialta which is almost like a conversion van. All 11 of us piled into the RV and we rode down to Casa de Dona Lupe in the pouring rain.

This winery is very small and they produce more than just wine. Not only did we taste four wines but we tried over a dozen jellies made from fruits and peppers and had some very good pizza for supper. She also had honey, all kinds of hot sauces, cheese, several varieties of breads, hand lotion, and some other home made items. It was still raining when we left. By the way, we ate supper at 5 PM and were back in the RV before 7:30 PM. Of course there is no television here and no internet!

Harvest Host

We left Palm Springs around mid-morning on Saturday for the three hour drive to Potrero RV Park near the CA/Mexico border of Tecate except that we didn't go there right away. We stayed in a campground 20 miles away, which is where we left the Jeep. The town is called Boulevard and the campground is called Sacred Rocks Reserve. About half of the people there worked for Par which is an electrical company based near Sedalia but we did not have any opportunity to visit with any of them. The park has a nice hiking area of which we took advantage.

Sunday morning I walked the sacred maze. It is made of rocks and has what they call 11 circuits. It is meant to be a place of quiet meditation that will help to bring you closer to your God. We left the campground late morning and stopped in a small village for lunch after checking out another state park.

Harvest Host was started by a couple who have traveled the world in an RV. They would travel for 2-3 month, park the RV, fly home for several months and then fly back to their RV to continue their adventures. Harvest Host contacts wineries and farms or farmer's markets and asks if they would be willing to host RVer's in their parking lots for one or two over-night stays. Then they sign up people to become member's of Harvest Host. These member's have access to the list of Host wineries or farms and can contact them to make arrangements for their stays. The hope is they will take in a wine tasting or buy some of the goods offered for sale. It costs nothing for the hosts and an annual membership fee for the members. They also offer caravan tours like the one we will be taking and some that are longer in far away countries like France or New Zealand.

Their caravan tours are designed to be a personal adventure so they only want 4-6 RV's. This tour has 5 RVs plus our leader's. We had a nice cocktail get-acquainted hour and gathered after supper around the campfire.

Good Friends, Good Food, Good Golf

Our friends from Missouri, who winter in Palm Springs, were very happy to see us and they had fun things planned for our stay. We played golf at two beautiful courses -- Silverstone Golf Club on Wednesday (a PGA course) and Terra Lago North on Friday. Both days were quite warm. We did not play our best golf but we sure enjoyed the afternoons. We paid for the twilight rate both afternoons and just barely finished 18 holes at Silverstone and had to stop after 17 holes at Terra Lago due to darkness. We ate dinner out both of those days and had some very good meals.

Thursday morning we hiked up Tahquitz Canyon. It was a moderately strenuous hike up to a lovely waterfall. This area was originally settled by the Agua Caliente Cahuilla Indians and evidence of their complex community are still in evidence along the trail. That afternoon, while John worked on the computer, I went shopping. For dinner, we had reservations at The Zin, An American Bistro. This is our very favorite place to dine while we are here and that meal was no exception! It was a fair and warm evening, perfect for a stroll along the boulevard street fair.

When we left Palm Springs this morning the temperature was already nearing the 80° mark. We drove south thru El Centro and then into the mountains near the US/Mexico border to Boulevard, CA where we are spending the night. Since we are over 3500 feet elevation, the temperature here was 67° when we arrived and is at 34° as I am writing this blog. Quite a change from what we have gotten used to. We only have about 20 miles to go tomorrow to meet up with Harvest Host and our caravan for the Wine and Whales Tour in the north part of the Baja, Mexico.

Back in the USA

We thought there would be a mad rush and lines of people trying to get out of the park early this morning so we thought we would wait until after lunch to depart. But we were wrong. Most everyone left around 9 and then it was very quiet. We were ready to go, and got tired of waiting so we left about 10:30. It is a relatively short drive to the border (62 miles) and they didn't hassle us or board the coach at the crossing so we made it back into the USA easily and early.

Our trip to Palm Springs was either going to be a long day and arrive very late or we could stop someplace en-route for the night. We picked up the Jeep in Gila Bend, transferred all our stuff back into the Jeep and took off. Just outside of Gila Bend we saw a sign about Painted Rock Petroglyph Historic Site and it showed that it had camping. We could find nothing about this campground in any of our camp books so we took a chance and drove the 11 miles to this place. And we are glad we did! It is on BLM land so we were dry camping (no water, electric,etc) and there were very few people so we had LOTS of space. The glyphs were neat, the desert was . . . desert, the sunset was magnificent and the stars were beautiful.

We drove into Palm Springs on Tues. afternoon, cleaned the coach, went to the grocery store, ate a super dinner that John grilled and met up with our friends to round out a very nice day.

Wine, Margaritas, Fun

Saturday morning we rode our bikes to the 8/12 to get emails and newspapers and then lazed about the RV until lunch. Then we rode the bikes to Don Julio's Restaurant where they were having a wine tasting and an Arts and Crafts Sale. It was mostly Americans, who are either living in Rocky Point or there for the winter, selling items that they made like jewelry, chocolate candy or home made jelly's or coffee. The wine tasting was in Don Julio's which is a lovely, old style restaurant. We tried 5 different wines from Mexico and bought two bottles. They were pretty good wines.

Saturday evening was our Sunset Cruise. We went out on a catamaran that could hold about 120 people but there was only about 70-80 on board. We had all the free margaritas we wanted and they served some chips, veggies and dip. Then they started playing some great music and a few ladies started dancing and before you know it I was out there and pulled John in for a few dances. We had a great time. Almost missed the sunset!

We joined three other people for supper on the Malecon and then walked back to the RV park, stopping once at Latitude 31 for a beer. We met the owner who was a real character and fun to talk with. This is about the latest we have stayed up in a long while.

Sunday was another lazy day, a little bit warmer but still enough of a breeze that we didn't sit on the beach. I did some laundry, John rode his bike, we visited with new friends, and napped. Supper was the closing banquet, a catered dinner by a local restaurant. They ran out of food just before we got there so we had to wait another 30 minutes for them to go back to the restaurant to prepare some more. We joined a large group on the beach around a roaring campfire after the dinner. The fire was built in an old washing machine tub. What a neat way to recycle.

Bird Island

What a trip we had today! The winds died down and the sun warmed us up. We left the RV park at 8 AM to go on a boat ride about 15 miles out in the Sea of Cortez to a group of large rocks called Bird Island. We rode on a cabin cruiser/fishing boat with two cabins, kitchen (galley) and flying bridge. There were only 9 passengers, the captain and his mate/brother-in-law. A little over half way out, we spotted a large area of splashing, rough water. The captain immediately turned the boat towards this disturbance. It was a huge pod of dolphin! There must have been a thousand of them. We cruised slowly among them, watching them jump, race with the boat, running in and out! It was truly awesome! I hated when we had to move on.

Bird Island not only has thousands of birds around it but is also the habitat of sea lions. As we approached the rocks you could hear lots of barking. The sea lions were everywhere! Some had even climbed up on some pretty high crags of rock, we don't know how they got so high. The bulls were mostly sunning themselves while the pups were cavorting in the water. Some were just barking just to hear their echo off the rocks, others seemed to be challenging each other. We cruised around the island and then anchored just off shore. John and another lady took kayaks out to float near the sea lions. The pups were the curious ones and would swim out toward the kayak in groups but never got closer than 10-15 feet before diving and swimming under the boat. One sea lion was swimming along and came up right in front of John. I think the sea lion was just as startled as John was!

While John was kayaking, I got the binoculars out to look at the birds. I looked at cormorants and seagulls and there were lots of them but some others kinds of birds as well. Some of the baby birds were covered with downy white fur and seemed bigger than the mother bird that was feeding them. We had lunch of burritos and cerveza on board the boat and then headed back to Rocky Point.

But the captain wasn't done showing us a good time. He stopped and strung 6-hook line on several rods and showed us how to fish with it. We were catching some type of rock fish 2, 3 or 6 at a time. They threw these in a live well and used them as bait fish. Then John, another guy and the captain started fishing for some big fish. The captain hooked one first. He caught a 36 pound Gulf Grouper. That was exciting. Then John and this other guy caught a round flat fish with teeth that the captain called a Lady Finger. It was about 10 inches across and gave John and really good fight. Great Day!

We got back in the park in time to share a carry-in dinner with our travel group. We're tired now!

Fishing or Not

John was scheduled to go fishing today with 12 other people but the trip was cancelled due to high winds, high waves, cold air and clouds. To say the least, this day is probably the worst weather we have seen this whole trip.

So instead of fishing we rode bikes and walked today. We rode our bikes to the convenience store called 8/12 (like a 7/11) that has pretty fast wi-fi. That involved drinking lots of coffee and 2 free donuts. Then to the fruit market before going back to the RV. We then walked to the Malecon for lunch at a nice seafood restaurant. Our waiter thought we were newly weds or lovers! He brought us candy, complimentary tostadas and guacamole. Then on top of that we shared a fish platter with a variety of preparations of seafood. I had to get a to-go box.

The walk back was good for the full tummies. We then rode our bikes to get eggs, then back to the Malecon to get some shrimp. These have to be the biggest shrimp I have ever seen. The guy we bought them from said they were almost lobster! Ha Ha! 8 shrimp weighing 1.5 pounds, and costing only $12.

Back to the RV and then on the bikes to the 8/12 so we could call the kids using Skype. That's over 8 miles on the bikes today and 3 miles of walking. I'm pooped!

City Tour and Charity

We had a really busy day today with an all day city tour, nap, catered dinner and charity auction.

Russ Black is an American who has lived in Puerto Penasco for 13 years and owns his own tour business. 25 Escapee's piled into two 15-passenger vans to explore the whole area in and around Penasco. We drove past some really nice and expensive beach homes. Russ noted that some of these homes could be had for $1.5 million or you could divided it up among 12 individuals with each owning 1/12th of the home. The recession has hit this tourist area much harder than in the US. Many, many high rises have been started but not completed or completed but never occupied. At the end of the sand road was a an example of one such building.

Our next stop was at CEDO - Center for Education on the Desert and Ocean. This organization not only works to keep the oceans and deserts clean but educates people and children about why we should take good care of this earth. Across the estuary from CEDO is a local business that raises oysters. This particular business is run by six women who buy oyster seeds, plant them in boxes in the estuary and 9-12 months later have several thousands of the best oysters we have ever eaten. As the seeds grow, they must be sorted out and reset into different boxes. This is seven day a week job. We got to taste them raw and steamed and boy were they good! Unfortunately, they are for local sales only. We will never see them in the US. So to top the oysters, we then went to a local Tequila distillery where we learned how Tequila is made and then got to taste some really good stuff!

Lunch was at JJ's Cantina on the peninsula called Las Conchas which is about a 10 mile drive north of town past Sandy Beach where 10-12 high-rise condominiums and hotels/resorts are located. We were not impressed with JJ's but it was a nice drive.

On our way back thru town we went thru the Malecon area. Russ gave us a couple of recommendations for dinners here.

We arrived back at the RV park in time for naps before the catered dinner. Our trip leaders had contracted with 3 different restaurants to provide small plates so we could sample the variety of foods available in Penasco. There were bacon wrapped stuffed peppers, bacon wrapped hot dog covered in a tortilla and then deep fried, fish, shrimp and pork taco's. We also had Margarita's and cerveza (beer) which loosened us up for the charity auction. This group asked us to bring in-kind contributions that we bid on to raise money to give to local children's home. We came away with a very nice bottle of Port.

Bordom Sets In

The Escapee's have scheduled tours all week long but because we signed up late our tours don't start until tomorrow. The wind has died down somewhat but it is still pretty cool even though the sun is shining. I talked John into a long hike up the beach this morning. The sand here is very soft, even near the water line. The town gets its name from all the rocks and reefs that line the shore. So at low tide there are some areas with solid footing as long as you pay attention as to where you are placing your feet. Both the soft sand and scattered rocks makes for a very vigorous walk. We walked for about 40 minutes one direction and we think that was about one mile.

There were many beach front homes along here but not very many of them seemed occupied and some were pretty run down.

The rest of the day was spent doing nothing until about 4 pm when we hosted a cocktail party. When I say host all that means is that we provide the site and some tables while everyone brings their own drink and a snack to share. Another couple joined us for dinner at an pizza place called Al Capone's.

Bike Tour of City

After a lazy morning we decided to ride our bikes over to the Malecon and do some "shopping". John's idea of shopping is to walk past all the shops, ignoring the sales people and looking at restaurant menus. Actually that worked pretty well as it all looked like stuff tourists buy to remember their trip and non of it would fit in our small RV.

Lunch at the RV and naps before we headed out on the bikes again and made the grand tour of Pto. Penasco. We found the downtown area, then rode past the largest grocery store called "Lays". We also found what used to be known as "The Dirt Road Mall" which now has a concrete street and street lights and has a large sign proclaiming it 'The Mexican Rodeo Drive". The shops along this two block long street are more of the artistic variety with the touristy ones peppered among them. As we left this area we followed a road that paralleled the railroad tracks. On the opposite side of the tracks were cardboard shanties while we biked past small homes with a few mansions scattered around. Almost all the side streets are dirt and sand. Only the main roads thru town are paved with sandy ruts up to the curbs. We biked about 14.5 miles but since it was mostly level roads, it wasn't a difficult ride.

We have gone past a pickup truck food stand several times since we arrived. This guy must be good because there are always people around his place so we decided to stop there for a late afternoon snack. I had a tostada with ceviche and John had a shrimp cocktail. Both were made as we watched and were very tasty.

The weather is about 10 degrees cooler than it has been the last few days with high winds. We watched the sun set into the sea before supper.

Puerto Penasco

Today is Sunday and very quiet in the city. I washed a few clothes before we took off on the bikes again. This time we cruised the harbor and found a short cut to the Sandy Beach area where all the condos are located. On the short-cut trail we met a man from Mesa, AZ who loved to talk, we must have visited with him for 20-30 minutes. We found our way to the other RV park and checked it out then had lunch at a little taco stand which had been featured in the local newspaper. Fresh shrimp ceviche and fried shrimp tacos.

A nap on the beach, more laundry, a beer at the beach and fresh shrimp for supper. Doesn't get much better!

Playa De Oro RV Park

Another really warm day, no clouds, light breezes. We rode our bikes around the area this morning and found the Iron Chef competition setting up at a park and then rode thru the Malecon shopping area to check out the restaurants. On the way back we stopped at Latitude 31 Bar and Restaurant to use their free wi-fi. The park has wi-fi -- sort of. There are so many people trying to connect that it won't work at all.

Today is the park's annual free fish-fry. People started gathering on the beach two hours before they even started frying the first batch of fish. They also have free beer and live music. PARTY TIME! A couple of people brought large water pitchers to fill with beer so we didn't have to stand in line much. The fish was served with tortillas and salsa and tasted pretty good. The sun was beating down so the beer tasted really good as well!

After showers, I fixed a really light supper of soup and grilled cheese and we both struggled to stay awake until bed time.

Mexico - Here We Come

The first group left the campground at 7 AM this morning. We don't leave until 11:15 and there is one other group after us. We are all spaced out to depart 30 - 45 minutes apart. As our group of RVs were crossing the border, we got red-lighted, meaning we had to pull over and be boarded by the Mexican border patrol. No big deal.

About an hour later we arrived in Puerto Penasco. The Playa De Oro RV Park is really full so it took a bit of finagleing to get us all parked. An hour later we were on the beach with a Margarita in our hands! Each site has full hook-ups with water that is good to drink and electricity that actually works well. After the sun set, a group of about eight walked to the closest restaurant and had dinner together. By 8:30 this evening, John is snoozing while I blog.

Organ Pipe Cactus NM

What a beautiful day it has been today! We took a 4 mile hike thru the desert this morning. It led up to an abandoned gold mine but the scenery along the way was so pretty. They call this a green desert as they get a little more rain here than in other parts of the country. The bushes all have green leaves and lots of flowers are blooming. Even the cacti look green and healthy.

This afternoon we will take showers here in the park. The water in the showers is heated by the sun, so if you want a hot shower you take it during the daylight hours. There appears to be a line there right now.

We are going to the catered dinner tonight starting at 4:30 PM. Seems pretty early to me to be eating a meal! We will have Indian tacos and margaritas -- yum, yum! Tomorrow we will drive down to Puerto Penasco. Our group doesn't leave until 11:15 AM. It's going to be a long day!

Chapter 8 -- Mexican Connection

It was a short drive to Gila Bend where we stored the Jeep. Almost all the 'stuff' stored in the Jeep is now in our shower -- boat, snorkel gear, fishing tackle box, and bike bag. Since it was noon at that point we had lunch at the Italian restaurant where Prince Harry dined when he was here training to fly a helicopter (or so someone told us). It was actually pretty good food.

It was a short drive down to Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument where the Escapee's Mexican Connection are meeting. Over 50 RVs are going together to Mexico. I got us registered and we then headed to an organizational meeting and we met a few people. There are no hook-ups in this campground but they have really nice concrete pads to park on.

Wednesday dawned cloudy and windy so it was not as warm as we like, but it wasn't bad either. We rode our bikes to the visitor center and back then rested. We had another meeting at 3 this afternoon with more info about charity donations and a pitch for officers. The 50 RVs are broken down into 8 groups. Each group will travel together to Puerto Penasco, Mexico and will camp together as well. We had a nice cocktail hour with our group leaders and got to know those in our group.

John had rented and downloaded two movies for us to watch in Mexico but we decided to watch one of them tonight. Once we start them, we have 24 hours to watch them. Somehow both movies were started tonight so we will have to watch both of them! Good thing we don't have to get up early tomorrow!

One More Day

We decided that we would spend one more day at Usery Mountain Park as it is a short drive to our next destination. We had to change sites but that was not a big deal. After lunch we got the bikes out and rode on the road about 15 miles with fully half of that up hill! My legs feel like jelly! We used up the last of our wood tonight and enjoyed the fire while watching all the jets fly overhead on their way to the Phoenix airport.

One More Day

We decided that we would spend one more day at Usery Mountain Park as it is a short drive to our next destination. We had to change sites but that was not a big deal. After lunch we got the bikes out and rode on the road about 15 miles with fully half of that up hill! My legs feel like jelly! We used up the last of our wood tonight and enjoyed the fire while watching all the jets fly overhead on their way to the Phoenix airport.

Pass Mountain Trail

Saturday morning was spent at IHop with some RV friends over a two hour breakfast. The conversations and food were wonderful. These are really nice folks.

We found a REI store and decided that John's boots were too big so he got a 1/2 size smaller. While we were there, we bought hydration back packs that hold 100 ounces of water and have lots of room for taking what we will need with us on the Grand Canyon Hike. We then did our grocery shopping and finally got back to the campsite at around 3 PM. Our friends in the Born Free came over to our place for supper and some good fun around the campfire.

Today, Sunday, dawned bright and breezy but warm. John wanted to try out his new boots and we both want the experience of walking with heavy back packs. Also, in preparation for the Grand Canyon, we decided to take a 7.8 mile endurance hike. The trail goes around Pass Mountain which is the one we climbed two days ago. There is a gradual rise of 500 feet on the back side and a pretty steep descent down the saddle. This is a very popular hiking trail for bikes and horses as well as walkers. By the end of our walk, I was really dragging! That is a long walk but I made it and now have an idea of what the Grand Canyon hike might be like. We had a nice lunch at the saddle with a pretty view of Fountain Hills and the Goldfield Mountains nearby.

Once we got back to the RV, a shower, dinner and Super Bowl was about all we could do for the rest of the day.

Wind Cave Trail

We spent the morning riding our bikes thru the Usery Mountain Regional Park. This place has a lot of hiking and biking trails as well as trails for horses. We decided that this afternoon would be a good time to go for a hike and test John's new boots.

When we arrived at the trail head for Wind Cave Trail, there were about 8 emergency vehicles lined up in the parking lot and several sheriffs and EMTs standing around. One told us that some lady had broken a leg. Sure enough, as we started the climb, a troop of emergency responders were coming down with a lady in a special gurney made for mountain rescue.

The Wind Cave Trail is about 1.6 miles long one way up the side of Pass Mountain and then it traverses along near the peak to an indentation in the mountain wall that is called Wind Cave. It is considered moderately difficult with lots of switch backs and ascends the mountain about 800 feet. It took us about two hours to make the climb. John decided that his boots did not fit properly and since the store where we bought them has a 100% guarantee return policy, that is what we will do -- exchange them for some that fit better.

Our friends in the Born Free invited us over to their site for appetizers, beer and a warm campfire this evening. We had a good time!

Visit Mom in Mesa

We had a very lazy morning at the campsite and then headed over to John's Mom's for the afternoon and evening. I got my hair cut and did four loads of laundry while John worked on the computer. Before supper we had nice video chats with our children and grandchildren.

Hiking, Shopping and Moving

Tuesday found me shopping with my friends while John went on a very difficult hike with his friend. He hiked Phoenix Mountain it was only about 1.25 miles but had 1,100 feet of vertical climb. He said some of the steps and ledges were so tall even he had problems. At the very top they climbed the last few feet on their hands & knees. I think I'm happy I went shopping.

We invited our friends over to the campsite for dinner Tuesday evening and some fun around the campfire.

The weather has been almost perfect with highs just above 70 and lows near the 50°mark making for great sleeping.

Today found us moving to a new campsite at Usery Mountain east of Mesa. Along the way we stopped at R E I to buy John a new pair of hiking boots. We met up with a group of Born Free owners and had supper at Organ Pipe Pizza in Mesa. Nice evening even if it was so loud you could not do much talking.