Tag: Camping

Celilo Park – Train Horns and Wind Storms on The Columbia River Gorge

Since Memorial Day was coming up and we don’t make reservations we had to be a little creative in where we could stay. First I tried all the national forest campgrounds in Northwest Oregon and Southwest Washington. There were 500 campgrounds including primitive. Amazingly every single spot in all 500 parks was reserved for the weekend. So then we started looking for first come first serve sites. We’d be arriving on a Wednesday so we’d beat out most people for those spots. Unfortunately there were very few spots, maybe 6 total, some of those a ways out of the way for us. Then I came across a COE park called Celilio right on the Columbia River Gorge, it looked beautiful, nice trees and grass in an area that is pretty desert like, they said they had spots for 30 or 40 campers and they were all first come first serve. It sounded perfect but there was one warning, there were two train tracks about a 100 ft from the parking area and since the entrance crossed the tracks they had to lay on the horn as they passed.

When we got there on Wednesday there were only only three other campers that were there and we got a pretty sweet spot where the back half of the trailer would be shaded by trees but the solar panels at the front would still get light basically all day. It was a pretty nice sunny day with maybe only 10 mph winds when we got there and and we walked around and checked out the park.  It has a set of bathrooms but unfortunately the water spigot is chained shut. One nice thing that they offered were free life jackets to borrow they even had one Zygi’s size, so we planned to go kayaking.

Unfortunately the weather changed for the worse the rest of the time we were there, it was generally pretty sunny but unfortunately the winds were a steady 20 to 30 mph with gusts to 40 mph for the next few days. The Columbia River Gorge is famous for it’s wind and therefore famous for it’s wind surfing. In fact someone had set the sailing speed record on one of them in the Gorge, clocking in at over 70 mph. However a few years ago that was beat by a 75 mph run done by a specially designed carbon fiber racing sailboat. Anyways we did get to see some of the wind surfers but it seemed like it was even a bit much for them some of the times. Therefore with our solar panels cranking out more energy than our batteries could take we figured we’d take some time and enjoy a bit of tv (I’ve got all of The Amazing Races on my hard drive 😉

After a day or two of that we were bored and were able to find a spot where there were enough trees and bushes that if you were sitting down you could get out of the wind. I setup a tarp on the ground over there and let Zygi zoom around and play with the grass, sticks, pine cones, and rocks. It was a great way for him to let out some energy.  Zygi didn’t seem to mind the trains too much. Sometimes one would scare him but then we would say, “Chooooo Choo!” with a smile and he would be ok.

 

We attempted to visit The Dalles Dam. Victoria had read on tripadvisor that you could take a tour of the dam and ride on a train from the visitor center. Unfortunately when we arrived the dam visitor center was closed and we didn’t get any dam tour.  After a quick google search, we then discovered that they didn’t offer the train ride anymore since it derailed with a few tourists on it. Sooo we just decided to walk around the dam visitor center and take the dam trail as far as it let us go.

We did have one successful day while visiting the area. We decided we needed to get away from the wind and trains and check out Tamanawas Falls. It was about an hour drive but well worth it, even on Memorial Day weekend with hundreds of other people. On the way, we saw magnificent views of Mt Hood since it was a clear day. We hiked 3 miles out and back to see Tamanawas Falls. It was pretty cool because you could actually hike and sit completely behind the falls. That part was too rocky, slick and steep to climb with the baby so Victoria stayed behind while and I climbed back there and got a few photos for her.

The classic northwest forest was amazing to be in after days in the desert looking part of Eastern Oregon. Even with all the people, we were able to find our own area of the river to have lunch by climbing down off the trail a little bit. It even had a little pool area where you could get in the water. Unfortunately it was the coldest water I’ve ever been in, straight snow melt from Mt Hood. My feet and calves were numb before I had the chance to go any further so I just rinsed off there and got out carefully so as to not hurt my feet. We both loved the trail and I can’t imagine how much nicer it would be on a calm weekday.

After staying five days so we could avoid any problems with finding a spot we were ready to leave and I had a friend I wanted to visit from the old college dorm days, Ron from 2N! Therefore we decided to stay at an RV park we had stayed at before in Portland. It’s a very nice park just off the river and only a mile from a light rail station to take you into downtown. Next up, our return to Portland!

He get’s his feet from his dad…

Bulls Bend CG: Drivin’ Down the Scary Dirt Road to Heaven.

Victoria was looking for a boondocking spot near Bend Oregon using the Days End Directory and was having trouble finding something that sounded good. So I broke out my Oregon Benchmark Topo Map book to look up the National forest and BLM land in the area to see what they have for primitive campgrounds or even dispersed camping. I found an awesome sounding spot called Bulls Bend Campground in Deschutes National Forest. They said it would fit up to 50 ft trailers, had excellent cell service, was rarely used, and was beautiful as it was on a particularly tight oxbow in the river so we would have water on three sides of us.

We first stopped in at La Pine St Park which offered free dumping and fresh water.  I can’t rely on the gauges since they have never worked but I can now kind of tell how much water we have (70 Gallons)  based on the sound of the water pump but nothing I can do about the grey tanks (20 gallons each), the black tank is huge (70 gallons I believe) and we can go weeks so we don’t worry about that one. It’s no fun to run out of water or fill up your grey tanks when you’re out in the middle of nowhere. We conserve our water, shower every few days or wash off in the river or lake if we’re by one. Sometimes we will use that water for washing the dishes.  We honestly probably could have made it but why chance it when it’s free, and pretty much on the way?

Then it was time to head down to the campground. There was a nice large gravel road that we turned on, but wait a minute they have it gated off…  I talked to someone else who was doing the same thing and he said they lived there and came out all the time and the gate was never closed. He however did mention there was another way in and he didn’t want to try it in his 4×4 Toyota and 20 ft bumper pull. So after several very awkward turns around (I’ve gotten much better at least) we found the road in.  It was very narrow, just wide enough for our trailer and we had no way to know if we could make it. Was it tall enough? Was it wide enough the whole way? Did the turns have enough space? Was it all hard packed or were we going to find soft sand? We tried to call the ranger station to ask these questions but conveniently they are closed on weekends, very helpful…

We sat there for a good five minutes discussing what to do. Victoria didn’t want to go, I said screw it I want to stay here and we’ve been looking for this place for an hour. The whole way it was just tall enough that we got a few light brushes on the roof, just wide enough that we on a very light brushes on the trailer, just rough enough that we weren’t sure if our dishes would still be in the cabinets and the turns just wide enough that if I was any longer we would have sideswiped trees. But we did make it!  We had a beautiful spot on the river and the only visible damage was a plastic piece pulled off the bumper which I quickly screwed back in to space.

A view of our camper looking back from the river. Even with the trees we got plenty of solar power.

There was only one other person staying there in a jeep.  We saw some other people drive through all just in cars not another RV in sight much less a 35 ft fifth wheel, lol. The spot was beautiful and the oxbow was so tight that at one spot the river was ten ft away from itself. We thought about getting the kayak out and just floating it, do the 10 ft portage and do it again. Unfortunately we didn’t have a life jacket for Zygi and the current was running strong, so we decided against it (We bought one in the next town so we’ll be ready next time).

So we mostly just hung out on the river and enjoyed the beautiful weather. Even being parked in the woods we got plenty of solar power, no generator needed, as designed (I do have a 2000 watt champion inverter generator just in case, I’ve had to run power tools off the generator before but that’s the extent in 3 years of living on our fifth wheel). We also had excellent cell service as mentioned so we could talk to family and friends, post/work on articles, and plan our next spots. We also walked the closed road. There were four small trees blocking the road. It might take a half day for two rangers to clear. The least they could do was post a warning on the website that the main road is closed and that large RVs are not advisable except for the brave ;).

Beautiful baby

After a 3 days and nights it was time to move on, we had to get somewhere well in advance of Memorial Day since we don’t make reservations 6 months or a year in advance.

Next, The Columbia River Gorge till the Memorial Day Holiday is over.

  • Author: Tim
  • Editor: Victoria
  • Photographer: Victoria

Crater Lake National Park

We were on the fence on which route we should take through Oregon.  Last time we came through on our way to Seattle we took the coastal route up US 1. We ultimately decided to go up through the middle of Oregon via highway 97 because we really wanted to see Crater Lake and Mount Hood. The drive was so gorgeous passing through Ponderosa pine forests with large snow capped mountains in the background.

Mount Shasta

We decided to camp at Hagelstein County Park in Klamath Falls.  The location was convenient being right off 97 and within an hour of Crater Lake National Park. Hagelstein park is large enough to fit any size rig and fairly nice as far as a park right off a highway can be. Unfortunately the spigot for water was turned off, for whatever reason. Instead you were supposed to use a fresh water spring. So unless you have a water pump system or like using water jugs to fill you tanks with somewhat questionable water, be sure to bring your own water. Good thing we always do. The park was big enough for twelve or probably even more large rigs but there were mostly tent campers and car campers. The best spot faces the pond.  It was entertaining to watch the local marmot go about his work building a nest and ducks digging head first for food. It always makes me chuckle to watch them with their butts in the air and legs kicking while they dig with their beaks underwater.

We got up the next day and drove 45 minutes to Crater Lake National Park, which was absolutely stunning. Because there was so much snow, the north and east side of the park was closed. What was nice was they had it plowed 6 miles of road of the west rim, past discovery point.  The didn’t allow cars, only hikers. So with huge snow banks on each side we got to walk to several scenic overlooks of the crater. It’s not just the crater but the surrounding mountains that really make it something special. We could even see Mt Shasta from there. Bikes really would have been the way to go but we had both of ours stolen in different parts of California over the past year unfortunately, cable cut and all. Homelessness and bike theft is a huge problem in all of California and meth is a serious problem in Modesto.  Bikes are like candy to them.

Crater Lake was formed when a volcano, the highest in Oregon at the time, exploded several thousand feet of it’s top off. The little island called Wizard island in the lake was formed later from much more subdued volcanic activity. The water is purportedly the cleanest and clearest in the world with 140 ft of visibility, that would be nice for diving. This is because the only water added to the lake is from each years snow melt. There are no rivers running into the lake. The lake maintains it’s level by seepage out of the mountain. This also happens to be one of the snowiest areas in the world, receiving 12 or 13 ft of snow a year regularly.

We went ahead and purchased an America The Beautiful Pass for $80 rather than pay the $25 to get into a mostly closed park. This pass allows you to enter pretty much any national land for free for a year including national parks, national forests, national monuments, etc. You also receive half price camping at certain nationally owned parks (which we happened to use at our next spot). For anyone who visits any national owned land regularly it’s a great value.

Zygi and Mama

Next spot, camping in the middle of nowhere southwest of Bend on a stunning boondocking spot.

  • Author: Tim
  • Editor: Victoria
  • Photographer: Victoria

Camping on the Beach at Shasta Lake

Our first boondocking spot was Beehive Point on the beautiful Lake Shasta in Northern California. I found the spot using The Days End Directory which list thousands of free or cheap camping spots, it’s awesome and only costs $10. Unfortunately you have to be a member of Escapees to purchase it, which cost $40. It’s a club for full timers but I’ve never used it for anything but the directory.

The beach is massive (even thought the water level was high!) and you can park any size rig on it.  It’s not very flat though (look at my jacks). However, there are also a couple spots more in the woods if you prefer some shade. The only problem with the area is at the campground entrance. The road is severely damaged with huge washout potholes. On the way in we hit it the wrong way and which caused many cabinets to purge their contents. Thankfully no damage was done and we would totally do it again.  From May 15 to September 15th you pay $10 a night in one of those “iron rangers”. Luckily they hadn’t put it out yet the first night so we got the first night free.

Another awesome shot Victoria took

The area is absolutely beautiful and only 3 miles off I-5. The lake is surrounded on all sides by mountains and apparently the fishing is really good. We saw a ton of bass boats. Another vessel popular to the area are house boats.  It’s like an RV on the lake. It’s been awhile since we’ve been camping so maybe this is recency bias but I thought it was one of the best spots we’ve ever camped at. We were literally a 100 ft or so from the lake.

When we first arrived it was beautiful but unfortunately the weather took a turn for the worse after that. It got chilly and there was a bit of rain. Our first day it was overcast so we decided to go for a hike. There is a look out tower at the top of Sugarloaf mountain which Victoria thought would be a 3 mile out and back based on the cheesy map the ranger gave us. Unfortunately it’s more like 10 miles out and back so unless you can hike 20 miles in a day or plan to backpack, you’re not going to make it to the top (which we didn’t, lol). Since there’s a cellular tower up there, the road was in decent shape(anything with a bit of clearance could make it.) The road is Forest Road 35N06 and if you just want to do some hiking and get a nice view of the lake there is a place to park once you drive a little past the few houses along the road.

I finally got to test out the Deuter Kid Comfort 2 I purchased used from the Backpackinglight.com forum I’m a member of.  I paid $125 (full price brand new  is $250).  Zygi seems to like it just as much as the front carrier but it has a real backpack suspension to transfer the weight to your hips as he’s a growing boy 🙂 I also ordered the sun and rain roof that goes with it for an additional $30. It helps keep him shaded, dry, or warm depending on the conditions. I’d like to get him some more “outdoors” clothing but they don’t have much of a selection at most places for a baby.

Zygi loves his new carrier

The next day we were more lucky and it was sunny and warm. We got in the lake but I wouldn’t call it swimming, we actually just wanted to wash off. The water is way too cold for two people from Savannah…We wanted to stay longer but with the weekend encroaching Victoria decided we should move on.

Next up Crater Lake, Oregon. Until then, “Buh Bye!”

Marilyn enjoying the sun

Our Next Adventure

Well, Victoria has just finished another contract and you all know what that means, time for our next adventure. This time our adventure is going to be just a tad different, we’re having our first child! A boy due on September 9th we’ll be calling him Timothy Zygmunt Czarkowski. The Timothy of course comes from my father and me. Zygmunt was the name of my polish grandfather who I unfortunately never had the opportunity to meet. Plus Timothy Zygmunt Czarkowski is as Polish as it gets, it rolls right off the tongue, lol.

So, as so many have asked, is this the end of TotalTravelers.com? Are you selling your RV, moving back into your home, and settling down? Absolutely not. As I write this I’m on the flight back to Savannah so we can be with family when Victoria gives birth. We’ll then spend another month or two in Savannah before heading back out to California to pick up the truck and fifth wheel.

From there we won’t know exactly where we’ll be headed but somewhere warm in the southwest is the plan, maybe Palm Springs or even better Tucson where my grandparents live.

We are also planning on going to Alaska next summer with baby in tow. We will take two months to drive there, work a two or three month assignment, and then take another two months to get back south before winter hits again. That’s the plan anyways… we’ll see what happens, lol.

So you probably won’t hear too much from us till we begin our Alaskan adventure. However I do plan to write a few posts about living full-time in a RV with an infant. It’s going to be a challenge for sure! Please wish us the best of luck.

Free, beachfront camping at Cabo Pulmo National Park

We initially only planned to stay 3 nights at Cabo Pulmo. It wasn’t until we arrived to the campground that we realized we had severely underestimated the awesomeness of Cabo Pulmo. The campground isn’t clearly marked but it is the first fenced in area on the beach you see coming into town from the north/east. Surprisingly, we both had cell service and internet in this seemingly off the grid, remote paradise. Not to mention, the cost to camp here is FREE! There are no facilities besides the Sea of Cortez, which is right outside your door or tent flap. Our only fear was having to leave early from running out of water. Thus we immediately began water preservation tactics. We filled up a large pot of water from the sea and used that to pre wash the dirty dishes (then we lightly rinsed them with fresh water). For showers, we swam in the sea. We were able to go ten days on our 70 gallon water tank and could have gone longer (we didn’t run out). We could of bought five gallon tanks at Cabellero’s restaurant in town and manually filled the tanks to stay longer if we wanted to as well.

There are a couple little hiking adventures you can start from the campground. One would be walking down the beach and up to the top of Cabo Pulmo point. Another is a gravel road hike you can access across the road from the campground. The road winds all the way up a mountain and gives you awesome views of the village as well as the east cape.

We were going to go scuba diving but the morning we were supposed to go I was still coughing from getting over a cold. Tim rode the bike up to Pepe’s dive shop and told him I was sick and couldn’t go. Pepe was understanding and even gave us a piece of ginger root to help my cold. You can scuba with Pepe for $100 for a two tank dive. Pepe is a great resource if you want to learn about the history of Cabo Pulmo, he was one among locals that pushed to make Cabo Pulmo a National Park. At Cabo Pulmo campground, you can easily find relics from the fishing village that once thrived. There is a natural reef just outside the campground you can kayak to and snorkel. There are several other reef sites in the area as well.

Los Arbilitos is only about five miles further down the east cape road. It costs 30 pesos a person to park here (15 pesos for the ninos). There is a short trail that takes you up to amazing viewpoints of the cape and then down to little coves where you can snorkel and observe many beautiful fish. You can camp at Los Arbilitos but I only recommend small rigs and four wheel drive. We had a hell of a time turning our fifth wheel around after a fellow traveler recommended we stay here. I nearly had a panic attack after two hours of trying to get ourselves out of there. Just don’t do it if your rig is over 20 feet. Anyways, a couple miles even further down the east cape road is Los Frailes. There are a ton of RV’s full timing it among the bushes in the arroyo. The beach is sandy and wide, if you have a kayak go around the point to check out the sea lions barking and basking in the sun.

Our campsite at Cabo Pulmo campground was the best site to camp in the area, in our opinion. It was next to the only palapa with unobstructed views of the sea. Inside the palapa was signed by the family that built it only 2 months prior to our arrival. We checked out their website, homealongtheway.com, and posted a comment thanking them for the building of the awesome palapa we had been enjoying. A couple days later a large motor home shows up, having a little bit of trouble squeezing through the gate. When I heard the tires overturning in the soft dirt, I ran to get Tim from the beach where he was talking on the phone. Tim and Ol’ Oso (our 1999 F250) dragged their 37 foot motor home through the gate. It was a proud moment indeed. We then realized that the family we helped was the same family that built the palapa! We immediately made friends with them. The whole family, including four kids ranging from 3-9, was really cool and welcoming. It was interesting to talk with them and get a feel of how life would be traveling with children.

It was so hard to leave Cabo Pulmo. Out of all the places we have boondocked this has got to be my favorite, followed by the site outside the Grand Tetons, then Moab. With beach access, a palapa, and internet it felt like a private beach house, but free…for now. I am happy to have had a chance to experience such a beautiful place that I will never forget.

Carnival in La Paz

Part of the reason we have been traveling a fast as we have was so we could make Carnival in La Paz. There are two towns in Baja where Carnival is a big deal, La Paz and Ensenada, we couldn’t miss it. Since we were coming for Carnival we wanted to stay in town, preferably with in biking distance(no driving!). AquaMarina RV park sounded like the place to stay. However when I called she said they were full but that someone was supposed to leave but hadn’t yet. After two hours driving and I called again and she said to come on, she’d make room. Be careful on the way in because some of the roads Google directed me down were very narrow with cars parked on both sides. Somehow I made it through with a few inches to spare. Instead stay on the main road until the last minute. The park itself was fairly tight and we were the largest rig in there. It took a bit to get this bad boy parked but it was worth it once we were. The park was packed for the whole week.

The park is on the bay and you can go sun yourself on the adjoining property. The best feature is that it is only a 5 minute bike ride from the Malecon (the riverfront) and downtown, where Carnival takes place. The park was also extremely well maintained and had real American style full hookups. A nice bonus was how cool everyone staying there was, including the owner. We hung out and had dinner a few times. Speaking of the owner, she is an older lady with a interesting life story. She and her husband were one of the first people to do live-aboard diving excursions. Eventually they had a 100+ ft boat that she captained. She was the first woman in Mexico with that type of captains license! The diving was slow in the winter so then they built the RV park. We both highly recommend this park but I wouldn’t try it with anything larger than ours (35ft fifth wheel). In fact to get out I had to pull forward to the bathrooms and then backup so I could make the turn out the gate and down the steep hill.

Carnival was definitely worth the trouble. It was a true Mexican celebration, not something put on for tourists. The first part of the Malecon was like an actual carnival in the States, rides and ring toss games and what not. Then there were a bunch of stages(7) playing all night and a ton of food vendors. La Paz has a more mainland feel and we were able to get our first Tacos al Pastor finally. They weren’t as good as in the Yucatan but still fantastic. We also had a stuffed baked potato that had butter, onions, cream, carne asada, corn, peppers, and I’m sure it I’ve left something out. It was 100 pesos($5) and enough to feed us both. Delicious but not healthy 😉 Beers were 20 pesos($1) and 32oz mixed drinks 80 pesos($4). I love Mexico.

There is also a parade the last three nights and it was well worth watching. The floats are all super decked out, everyone is in amazing costumes, and the music is blaring with everyone dancing. The parade is the same all three nights but alternates where it starts.

La Paz is a real Mexican city and a great place to stock up on supplies being their largest city south of Ensenada. The diving and snorkeling is also supposed to be great but we didn’t go as we were still being chased by the incessant 20 mph north winds. Maybe on the way back…. I highly recommend checking out La Paz for Carnival if you have the chance and staying at AquaMarina and checking out the town even if you can’t.

Behaving like adults at the Bay of Concepcion

We decided to stay at Playa Santispac at Bahia Concepcion. It is one of the more popular of the 12 beaches that line the Bay, but it is large enough to fit everyone. We parked our rig right on the beach. Costs 100 pesos a night or about $5. No cell service here. Once again, the north winds followed us here making it too cold to swim or do any water sports despite the hauntingly beautiful and clear, blue water.

One day we drove with our new friends Hannah and Ty to check out a couple of the other beaches. We drove to playa El Requeson. It is a small beach and there is a cool sand spit that you can walk onto a little island. With the strong north winds, this beach is even more exposed than at Playa Santispac though. We also checked out Playa Coyote. There are a lot of snowbirds that come here and set up shop for several months. They take up quite a bit of space, but there is some room. This beach seemed to be a little more protected from the north winds and would be a good choice if you had to camp when the north winds were strong.

One morning we decided to go kayaking before the winds got too strong, While kayaking, we found the hot spring/hot tub that’s fed by the ocean. Unfortunately, the tide was too low and it was way too hot to get in. After kayaking we created a wind barricade with the kayak and RV and laid out in the sun a while.

There are a few snowbirds here and two restaurants. Ava’s restaurant and Armando’s. Armandos has a happy hour from 4-5 where you can get 2 for 1 margaritas for $1.50…niccceeee and strong too. We didn’t eat at the restaurants. Ava’s has wifi and showers you can pay to use, however we didn’t utilize these either. One convenient feature about staying at the beaches along the bay are the people that come around selling various groceries out of their trucks. We bought fresh fish, scallops, fruit, veggies, bread and cakes.

Despite the gorgeous scenery we decided to only stay three nights. The wind was very strong and, well, annoying. We are going to Ciudad Constitucion next as a halfway stopping point to La Paz for CAR-NA-VALLLLL!!!

San Ignacio, an oasis in the desert

After driving a couple of hours in the desert, San Ignacio was a pleasing sight. It is literally an oasis in the desert, surrounded by thousands of date palm trees. Date palms as is the dates that you can eat. They were all over the ground. The little black ducks that lived in the river at Los Petates RV campground enjoyed them as well. The campground has no hook ups and costs 120-150 pesos a night, or $6-8 dollars, depending on the size of your RV.  Speaking of RV size, in the Church’s book it says “big rigs ok” but realistically there are only a couple of spaces that would be ok for big rigs…and requires good maneuvering skills to get in and out.  We were able to get cell service here. They have hot showers but they aren’t reliable.

One thing you have to do if you come here is go to the mission. It is a gorgeous old Catholic church build in the 1700’s. I believe it was the first mission built by the Spaniards in Baja California. It is free and open to the public. The sound still resonates in the large arches of the church. I could hear the priests of the past giving animated sermons in their efforts to convert the Indians.

In Moon’s Baja book, we read about a hike that takes you to a great observation point of the town. The trailhead can be tricky to find. It starts behind Casa Leree, just off the main plaza. You walk up a dirt road and veer to the right. After pacing around for about 5 min trying to find the trailhead a lady in an orange robe pointed us in the right direction. If you follow the trail lined by painted white rocks it will take you to other nice overlooks of the palm filled valley of San Ignacio.

As far as food goes, there isn’t much of a market so I recommend bringing enough food to cook. You can get cheap eats at a couple of food stands along the main plaza. We ate at the Rice and Beans RV park one night to use their internet and do some business. The owner is friendly and speaks very good English. The RV campground here has all the amenities but it’s simply not as charming as Los Petates.

We stayed two nights in this quaint town most definitely worth visiting. Our next stop is the lovely Bahia Conception on the Sea of Cortez.

Whale watching at Ojo de Liebre National Park

On the next leg of our trip we headed back to the Pacific coast, crossing the 28th parallel – the border that separates Baja California north and south. Because we wanted to do some whale watching, we decided to stay south of Guerrero Negro along Scammon’s Lagoon at Ojo de Liebre National Park. To get here we had to drive about 15 miles through a salt flats working area. Camping costs 100 pesos a night or about $5. There are no hookups but there are hot showers. No cell service either. However, we could see the puffs of the whales’ breaths in the distance from our campsite. The park is only open during the season the gray whales migrate to the lagoon, from December to March, where they give birth and nurture their calves in the protected waters.

They do not allow kayaks in the lagoon so if you want to get a close look at the whales you have to pay to go out in a panga. The cost was 810 pesos or about $42 bucks a person. It is well worth the cost since we got to get so close to the whales. Some whales are shy and will dive when the boat gets close but others are curious and will come up to the boat and even allow you to pet them. Initially it was a little intimidating when the giant mother swam under our small boat. They are large but docile, and even playful, especially the calf. I think the mother purposely snorted water at us a couple times. It was a great time.

When we went into the town of Guerrero Negro to do some business we had the pleasure of trying some of the local food stands. We had some fish tacos of course and we also tried a new taco we haven’t had yet. It is called a Birria Dorado. Birria is a moist, shredded beef stewed in a savory beef stock. The birria is then stuffed into a taco and grilled to a crispy perfection (which means dorado, I think). Man it was delicious. I wish I took a picture but it was so good I completely forgot.

Our next stop is San Ignacio, an oasis in the desert, before bouncing back over to the Sea of Cortez.