Catavina to Cabo

I think where I left off on the last blog was our arrival in Catavina.   We stayed at the Desert Inn Hotel, and it was pretty cool.  Lots of margaritas, a few beers, and a well deserved rest for both us and our California Scooters. 

Our bikes parked in front of the Desert Inn Hotel in Catavina...several hundred miles into Baja

I was up very early early the next morning…it’s always hard for me to lay in bed on these trips…it’s too much fun being out on the road!

The Catavina Desert Inn Hotel courtyard at dawn

After fueling the bikes and checking that everything was tight, we were ready to roll.   We had agreed that if the group separated (which happens on these trips), our next rally point would be Chapala.   Sure enough, that’s what happened, and Arlene and I waited for John and Simon to catch up to us near Chapala.  Arlene and I had sodas at the only loncheria in town…

Fine dining deep in Baja

We continued south toward Guerrero Negro (it means “Black Warrior” in Spanish, and it’s the name of a ship that sank near there in the 1800s).  We had a great breakfast….including a salad with 1000 Island dressing…

Yep, 1000 Island salad dressing

Arlene and Simon enjoying breakfast somewhere south of Catavina

My Scooter continued to purr as we headed south…

My red Classic on the road to Cabo

I think I’m going to take a break…I chased the kids out of the pool to grill our dinner and I think I’ll grab a beer.  Instead of making more separate entries on the blog, I’m going to keep updating this one so you get a sense of the flow of events…so check back again in a few hours, and again after that.

Later, boys and girls….

Okay, I’m back.   Just had a great dinner with even better conversation…lots of talk about what a great thing Steve and Maureen created with the California Scooter Company and how much fun this grand adventure has been.   On with my description…

We continued down Mexico’s Transpeninsular Highway, and I grabbed this shot of Simon and Arlene headed toward Guerrero Negro…

Heading along the sea plains, with the Pacific to our right...not too shabby for a one-hand-hold photo from the back of a California Scooter

Guerrero Negro is right on Parallelo 28 (the 28th Parallel), which separates the states of Baja California and Baja California Sur.   The town is also a good spot in the winter months for whale-watching tours.   There’s a Mexican Army compound on the highway, and they have this cool whale skeleton right next to the highway…

Another drive-by photo...the whale skeleton in Guerrero Negro

From Guerrero Negro, the highway cuts southeasterly across the peninsula, and we moved from the Pacific side to the Sea of Cortez side of Baja.   That’s a heck of a ride, especially the last few miles into Santa Rosalia.   That’s a 2,000-foot descent in just a few miles, and it’s a wild ride.   No guard rails, and nightmarish drops if you let things get away from you (so you’ll understand if I didn’t grab any shots on the way down).

When we arrived on eastern shore of the peninsula, we stopped for a few shots…

Arlene's Go Go Gear bike...with a John Esposito custom paint job

Arlene on her Go Go Gear CSC motorcycle...that's the Sea of Cortez in the background...don't you think this should be a magazine cover?

Simon, Arlene, J, John, and yours truly...I'm the one holding breakfast! Lynda, if you're reading this, look closely at who's T-shirt I'm wearing!

The bikes cooling their jets in Mulege

My riding gear...it was hot...but the right gear is critical

J has a bunch of water in 5-gallon jerry cans on the big Power Wagon, and I used a trick I learned in the Army a long time ago…I soaked myself in it and then put my jacket on.   The jacket keeps the water from evaporating too quickly, and in this kind of weather, you can stay cool for about an hour before you need another soaking.  It really works, and it worked well for us yesterday.

We continued south out of Mulege, and we soon found ourselves along what I believe to be the most beautiful part of Baja…and that would be Bahia Concepcion.  I’ll let the photos do my talking here…

John's black Classic at the north end of Bahia Concepcion

No PhotoShop here...the water really is this green

Riding our Scooters along Bahia Concepcion on the Sea of Cortez

It’s getting late, and I’m tired…so I’ll call it a night.   Before I go, though, a few cool links…the first is a story about the guys who won our motorcycle design competition.   Check out this latest Daily Bulletin article!  And Simon, as you know, is posting a bit about us on his blog, so check this out, too!   And Arlene is our tweetmaster…if you’re not following her tweeting, you might take a look…she’s been giving updates on an hourly basis on our trip, and you can read her tweets right here!

Well, okay, one last photo…let me jump ahead to just north of Cabo (don’t worry, I’ll come back and fill in the blanks between Concepcion Bay and Cabo in another day or so).  We had someone pull out right in front of us just after we left La Paz…my take is that anybody who would do this has to be a real ass…

I’ll post more when I can…thanks for reading about our adventure.  Tomorrow we turn around and run the same trip, but in the opposite direction…and we’ll keep you updated right here.

Okay, back again….we left our plush digs in Cabo this morning after servicing the bikes…but first, a few more photos from the ride down there…

Arlene and John on the road

Another shot on the road

We missed the bypass road when we passed La Paz, and we found ourselves in downtown La Paz.  It’s a big town, and the temperature was just under 100 degrees.  Simon talked to a nice lady who led us through the La Paz traffic back to the road we wanted.

Simon's new friends...our guides through La Paz

After La Paz on the Sea of Cortez, it was about 70 miles to Todos Santos on the Pacific.   It was a nice ride, and it cooled just a tiny bit as we neared the ocean.

Arlene and John riding in very hot weather wearing full protective gear

Simon on my bike...you gotta love those red suspenders!

We stopped in Todos Santos for lunch.   I grabbed this shot of my bike and I want you to notice the BajaBound.com decal.  They are one of our sponsors, and we are very grateful to Geoff and his folks for their help on this adventure!

BajaBound.com is one of our sponsors...thanks, Geoff and crew!

I wish I could remember the name of the place we had lunch in when we stopped in Todos Santos.   It was great.   Here’s a shot of Erica, our waitress…

Erica, age 22, who served us an excellent lunch in Todos Santos

Okay, guys and gals, this brings us up to speed on the first half of the ride…a run on our California Scooters all the way to Cabo San Lucas.   As you know, we had a great night in Cabo in a very exclusive place (Villa Clara Vista, another one of our sponsors, and you can learn about them at cabovillas.com).   We were on the road again this morning, headed north this time…so I’ll sign off on this entry and say adios until the next blog.