The weather forecast showed a week and maybe more of strong Northerlies so we decided to hide at Playa Santispac.
The bay is very well protected from almost all winds and waves, being a large semi-circle inside Bahia Concepcion. Like at many other sandy beaches around here, we had to anchor a good distance away as the waters get shallow closer in.
There is plenty of anchoring room, and we're finding that contrary to further South with all the charter boats, these grounds seem to be more frequented by long term cruisers. One big advantage is they seem to know what they're doing when it comes to anchoring. I don't have to worry about any other boat anchoring too close to us or even on top of our chain. Of course, with only 6 boats in such a wide anchorage, there really isn't any reason to crowd anyone.
The bay and beach aren't the most scenic and spectacular we've seen, especially after spending time in the islands, but there is a fun and relaxed atmosphere to it all. The waters are still as spectacular as everywhere else though.
The beach is right by Highway 1, which links Ensenada to Cabo and is the main artery for the whole of Baja California. That means there is a lot of truck traffic, and easy access for RVs and campers alike. It also means simple amenities like a couple of restaurants, garbage disposal and restrooms, though for the latter we much prefer our own comfort on the boat.
All along the waterfront were RVs of all shapes and sizes, from the tiny car or van dwellers, to the huge busses with multiple pull-out sections and 5th wheelers. Di and I are always keen to meet RV campers: Who knows? Maybe in a future iteration of our nomadic life we'll take up RVing? I've been called an "extroverted hermit" so I'm not sure if I would enjoy the closeness and feeling of being on top of each other I've seen in some RV parks and campgrounds, but the vibe here was completely different and didn't feel crowded or oppressive.
We walked the beach at least twice a day with Princess, our canine ambassador, and got to meet quite a few interesting people as a result. Most notable were a couple from France who'd bought an RV in the States and were cruising the North American continent during a sabbatical year, a couple from Quebec who snow bird regularly in Baja and a German retired couple in an interesting heavy duty converted truck. They even had 2 beautiful huskies.
It was fun to see how this beach created a whole economic ecosystem: Entrepreneurial locals from nearby Mulege deliver potable water to the campers, take garbage and sewage out, rent kayaks and beach toys, as well as sell some produce, and freshly caught fish. We weren't able to buy any; they don't come at set times, and we only bumped into the produce vendor on our first day, when we hadn't brought any money with us.
We did however partake in the local restaurants: We set our preference to Alfredo's, which seemed better maintained, neater and cleaner than the other one, and were not disappointed. Good food at very reasonable prices, and a place to meet fellow cruisers as well.
We treated ourselves to a few guacamole and burger dinners.
The coast isn't very built up, but proximity to the main road means there are more houses and people than we've seen to date. The peninsula we'd anchored behind had a number of nice waterfront houses, some boasting water access on both sides.
Logistics in this mostly underdeveloped desert spot are definitely challenging, but I certainly see the attraction. Rig modern solar panels, batteries and water maker, and one could live very comfortably in such a house, with year round sunshine and water sports.
After a week, I saw a small weather window open. The Northerlies started trailing off, and calling Santa Rosalia marina we were able to secure a spot in this tiny -20 slips- marina. It is the last marina on this side of Sea of California, the last occasion to re-provision before we explore the islands further North and cross over to the continent.
I decided to cut the trip to Santa Rosalia in two legs, with a stop in Punta Mezquetito. We left Santispac during the early morning calm, being treated to the beautiful spectacle of our own wake glowing from bio-luminescence. A nice reward for waking up early.
We reached our new spot just as the wind was making its daily appearance, and launched the kayak to walk Princess ashore.
We found an interesting little community, which we were told later was built as an HOA type sub-division centered around a now derelict and abandoned hotel.
Someone sure had big dreams for this quiet little corner of the coast, building a large hotel on a promontory with gorgeous views all around, a dirt landing strip for small airplanes, and a network of roads around a central plaza serving a number of beautiful beach houses. They even have a makeshift golf in the sand dunes.
I'm going to guess the project was a tad overambitious and failed, though I do not know the exact reasons. Now the hotel is vacant and falling in disrepair, the roads are still visibly maintained up to the houses, but no further, and the whole place feels like the remnants of an expensive dream.
For those who still cling to the dream, I must say they have a wonderful location, reasonably close from Mulege and its shops, yet on a beautiful south facing beach with clear blue water and whales as frequent visitors.
We got lucky and saw a minke whale surface very close to us as we were kayaking back to the boat. We could follow it calmly as it swam slowly by following its trail of bubbles. Every so often a big round bubble would surface, giving away the whale's position, and we'd see it come for air before disappearing again.
I had my phone with me, but safely stored in a watertight box, which Princess had sat on as we all boarded the kayak. By the time I moved Princess, grabbed the box and was ready to take a photo, the whale was long gone. Minke whales are notoriously difficult to photograph anyway as they tend not to show their flukes or even do much at the surface. You're lucky just seeing their dorsal fin, which is why it is used for identification purposes by scientists, contrary to other whales where flukes are used.
We're off to Santa Rosalia, a few hours up North, and looking forward to exploring this old mining village.
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