Days 30 And 31: Mulegé To El Rosarito To Loreto (aka It Ain't All Fun But It Sure Is Pretty)

I woke up well before Gonzalo because he was trying to get caught up on work in his tent at night, which meant he wasn't up as early as he normally is.  I decided to take advantage of extra time to make a small fire so we could toast tortillas for our bean burrito breakfast.

I kept this bit of tin foil thinking it might make a good tortilla toaster... I was right!

The road heading south out of Mulegé is by far the most stunning section of Highway 1, reminding me in some parts of the gorgeous riding we had near Gonzaga Bay.  This is what people think of when they think of Highway 1 (little do they know that Highway 1 does not stay on the coast the entire time, but rather crosses the mountains and desert several times).  However, this section of Highway 1 weaves in and out of the mountains offering hard fought but gorgeous views.  We also endured more 100+ degree weather as we wound our way through this landscape.

The first beautiful peek of the Mar de Cortes from the road south of Mulegé.

This is where it pays to push out a few hills to get to these views... the first descent into a picture perfect bay.

A lil bit o' paradise.

More glamour shots.

Gonzalo descends into yet another gorgeous bay.

All good things come to an end as we cross a peninsula towards Loreto... but still, desert views worthy of the climb!

Once we cut inland across the peninsula towards Loreto, it became incredibly hot without the cool breezes off the water.  We had the same painful climbs but with no respite from the heat, and Gonzalo started to overheat and had a bout of nausea.  So we sought out shade where we could to cool down, then continued the battle against the brutal sun.  Then out of the blue, a white car pulled over and stopped... then out of the window came two bold bottles of water... we gratefully gulped them down as the young Mexican guy drove off.  We finally made it to a trucker stop at El Rosarito, about halfway between Mulegé and Loreto, and hunkered in the shade for drinks and a bite to eat.

And by bite to eat, I mean this delicious aguachile made with shrimp and scallops... it's basically like a ceviche with chile and it's delicious when it's 100+ degrees out.  We ended up going back for breakfast... be warned, this place makes everything from scratch so it often takes 20-30 minutes for food to be prepared.

Sometimes, the best places are unassuming like this trucker stop at El Rosarito.  

We decided to call it a day and try to get an early start the next day, so we headed down a dirt road not too far from our trucker stop and found a place to throw up our hammocks... a rare thing in this part of the desert.  We were so exhausted we ended up just falling asleep in our hammocks.

I love hammock time.

The next day, Gonzalo was still feeling a bit off... I could tell because for once I was cycling in front of him and beating him up the climbs.  We made it to the military checkpoint about 20 km before Loreto when Gonzalo plunked down in the shade and told me he wasn't sure he was going to make it.  The nausea was getting worse and mentally each climb was a huge battle.  I was really worried because Gonzalo is a very strong cyclist and not the type to give up.  He insisted that he just needed to rest and that we could push on, so he had a soda and rested for about 30 minutes, and then we continued on.

Just a few kilometers later, Gonzalo pulled into what looked like a tiny market and asked for a soda or cold water.  The guy sitting out front looked at us a bit funny and said they didn't have anything.  We realized it was not a market, but just some guy's house with a very cute puppy named Hana.  Nevertheless, he waved us into the shade of his front porch and offered us chairs.  We explained the situation to the guy and he convinced his friend to give us a ride into Loreto.

Saved by a big Ford pickup!  Gonz gave him some money for the gas and inconvenience and we hightailed it to the first cheap motel we could find.

Loreto is a small but developed town that has a large American expat community.  And for good reason.  It was the first Spanish settlement in Baja California and boasts a beautiful waterfront, abundant wildlife, a freshwater spring that makes this an oasis in the desert, and a quiet charm that is often missing in touristy places.  We decided that this would make a good stop for Gonzalo to rest, get healthy, and get caught up on a little work.  So while Gonzalo rested, I called my mother to wish her a happy Mother's Day, and then headed out to see the town and get information on things to do during our stay here.

The malecon... beautiful waterfront.

Tourist office on the main square is housed in the old state capital building.

The oldest mission in Baja California.

A few travel notes for cyclists:

• The first bay south of Mulegé that is visible from the road offers a basic but beautiful RV park where you can camp for 80 pesos, and also has a nice restaurant on site, complete with a full bar, fresh juice, and sodas.  We ended up just getting a few cold drinks and enjoying the view.  Note that the RV park does not have enough water for big refills, you need to go 4 km down the road to the market.  Personally, I think it would be worth it if you arrive in the afternoon to have the access to the beach there... otherwise, there are other wild camping options if you have a couple hours to bike past the RV parks.

• The last place to get food or water before leaving this gorgeous section before cutting across the peninsula to Loreto is called El Coyote, where there is a market and a grilled chicken stand.  Get the chicken.  No really.  This guy has perfected the craft of carefully frying the skin to crispy perfection separately so that it maintains the perfect crunch, and then served aside the grilled chicken.  Add in a tomato salad, macaroni apple salad, and hot tortillas... drool. 

• Having some spare compression straps really great... I hadn't used them at all up until this point, but we were able to strap each bike upright to the side of the truck with just one compression strap for each bike.  Not only did this save our bikes from any damage, but it allowed us to fit both bikes in the back of the pickup.