Mulege to Cerritos

We spent the night in the small town of Mulege, just a mile from the coast of The Sea of Cortez.  A very quiet and tranquil tourist town, Mulege was the perfect spot to get some rest.  I woke up early that morning, took a walk around and was greeted by a dozen "Holas" and "Buenos dias".  

Before we got on our way to Los Cerritos, we took this dirt road, which lead us down to the beach.  Flatter than flat, the ripples rolling into the beach brought something different from your average stoke, but something that I have been searching for:  A piece of mind.  No rolling ripples of wet thunder, just glassy, tranquil beauty of a coast that gets forgotten by us surfers. 

South East Asia?

I've never seen the beauty of Thailand or Vietnam, but my brother, who spent plenty of time that way has.  I showed him the picture above, and instantly he replied, "Yeah, that looks like Phuket in a way".  Without expectations for this side of the Sea of Cortez, I was at times caught breathless by it's beauty.  The water was clean and smooth, the air was clear, and the aroma of the desert crossed with the sea filled my lungs with life.  I'm not trying to blow hot air up you know what, but truthfully, if you ever travel between Muluge and La Paz, stay and camp for a few days, it could be totally worth 36 hours of your life.  Wee didn't, I regret it.  

El Burro Bay, half hour from Muluge

El Burro Bay once again, just to the left of the picture above.

Cactus + Sea

It really tripped me out how The Cortez played as background to the lush green of all the cactus while driving along the autopista.  I kept looking twice, as if I was seeing something that wasn't really there.  The autopista would take us inland for half hour jots, but return us back to coast of The Cortez, and there I would be, looking twice again.  

Somewhere along the streets of La Paz.

Five hours later we ended up in La Paz.  La Paz is probably the biggest city on the Cortez Coast.  We spent a day in La Paz a week later just before we jumped on the Baja Ferry.  It felt more like a town than a city, not having it's fair share of sky scrapers and all.  That day, we didn't spend much time in the town, other than to top of our gas tank and grab some eats.  A kid in Cerritos a few days later said that that beaches in La Paz are full of Sting Rays due to the tranquil waters.  He advised me to walk flat (also called the Sting Ray/ San Diego Shuffle back up north) if I planned to swim on that side of Baja.  I wasn't having any of that.  I still have symptoms of PTSD from my encounter with a Sting Ray a few months back.

Must of been an important guy. - La Paz

Say that street name five times.  - La Paz

We got lost and turned around in La Paz for a bit (We would have do done better not following the signs to Todos Santos). We found our way to the autopista and headed west to Todos Santos.  An hour later, we pulled up to this...

Los Cerritos

MC knew I was craving to surf after 2.7 days of driving and zero water time.  So I went straight for my board, wax and board shorts, put on some sunscreen and caught some delicious 4-6 foot swell.  I surfed til it was pitch black.  The waves just kept coming and coming.  At one point, I thought "Man, there is some size, it's almost pitch black, and I don't really know this break at all...  But I've surfed big S.F. O.B.  So I'll survive."  So I just kept going at it.  A few locals stayed out with me and we exchanged waves with each other til probably nine in the evening. 

I took this just before I ran out to the surf with board in hand.  - Los Cerritos

I see other things besides horses and cowboys...

After my session that night, I dried off for a bit and than hit the sack, only to wake up to more swell, more swell and more swell...  

Next blog:  "Four days in Cerritos"