On The Road Again, Driving Ms. Daisy…
Friday, Feb. 16, 2018
Molino Viejo
122 miles
Our Escapees Mexican Connection caravan’s next stop was two nights (Feb. 16 and 17) at Molino Viejo, south of San Quintin. As I mentioned before, Daisy and I were members of the parking team, and we left at 7:15 for our 122-mile drive south through an area of mountains and agricultural fields. The road was the mostly-paved, two-lane Mexico Highway 1. There were some unmarked intersections, curves, and conditions that required a speed lower than what was posted. Most of the side roads were dirt.
We traveled through several small villages and moderate-sized communities on our way south. They often offered cafes, shops, bakeries, motels, auto repair services, and fuel stations with gasoline and diesel. It was a quiet morning. Kids were walking to school and store front proprietors were sweeping the areas in front of their buildings. The kids would wave at us and we would return the gesture.
Here is a view of the Santo Tomas Valley, which is famed for its vineyards containing some of the oldest living grape vines from the Dominican Mission era. These villages are also known for their large speed bumps, called “topes.” I was told about one in particular that the locals stop and drive around. I crept over it coming and going.
From our vantage point in the middle of our travel group, Daisy and I had a good perspective for her to take photos of the RVs in front of us. Sometimes other rigs, such as this semi with a heavy load, became the pacesetters for our caravan, as there were few places to pass. Often we would pass the heavy transports going up hill and they would pass all of us going downhill. When encountering oncoming traffic you had to make sure you knew that our barely wide enough lane might be partially occupied by the large on-coming traffic. One rig in our group had its side mirror torn from the vehicle in a too-close encounter with an on-coming semi.
Occasionally Daisy was able to take a photo in her side mirror of the three parking committee RVs that were following us. This particular stretch of Mexican Highway 1 was unusual in that it actually had shoulders, which often came in handy for avoiding potholes. The group leader would give a shout out via CB radio when hazards were observed so the followers would be able to adjust when practicable.
In this coastal hill country there was no such thing a a straight level road. I paid attention to the road signs.
In the more gentle areas we encountered large agricultural production operations. In the expansive fields, Driscoll strawberries and other fruits and vegetables are harvested and shipped to the US.
And then there are the prickly pear farms.
We passed military installations and a burrowing owl sentry post.
At 11:45 am, the parking team arrived at Molino Viejo, a popular fishing area. We had been assigned a large parking lot with no hook-ups as our “campground.”
This area is noted for its outstanding sport fishery and ocean beaches.
Dumping and water facilities were nearby if needed. The challenge for the advance parking team was to decide where to assign parking areas for the RVs that would be using generators extensively and those who use solar panels and don’t like to hear generators.
The other issue was that there were soft sand locations and if you were not paying attention, you could wind up stuck there. These were not marked. I busied myself marking the do not enter areas for those who would pay attention.
And of course with 43 RVs, there were also various other “special needs” that we tried to accommodate to the extent possible. We finally got all of the groups in and parked by about 4:00, so it was a long day.
We would go through a similar procedure at each of the other locations in Baja California.
Molina Viejo has a fine restaurant and bar that have been in business on this site since 1887. My only gripe was that our first night there they had only one bartender, so there was a long line. Of course he made margaritas and michaladas from scratch.
I watch him make these and came up with my version of the recipes.
Margarita
1 wedge lime
2 tablespoons (1 ounce) fresh lime juice
2 heaping teaspoons superfine sugar
1 tablespoon (1/2 ounce) Triple Sec orange liqueur
1/4 cup (2 ounces) Reposado tequila
Ice
Kosher salt for rim of glass
Michelada
1 Key lime, juiced
4 oz. Clamato Original
1 dash Worcestershire sauce
2 dashes habanero pepper sauce
1 12-oz. bottle of beer
Ice
1 lime cross section
Tajin seasoning for the rim of the glass
Because it took me several servings to get this down, I might be a little fuzzy on an amount or so…
Our parking area was on an inlet that was marshy when the tide was out…
…then filled with water as the tide came in. The following photos show the view from the back of our truck camper.
This is a prime fishing area, both from the shore and by boat.
We had a group meeting at 4:30 pm, then dinner at 6 pm with salsa and chips, guacamole, salad, shrimp cooked with tomatoes and peppers, rice, steamed veggies, and flan. One draft beer was included with our special meal selection.
We enjoyed dinner at the Molino Viejo restaurant. The meal was cooked and seasoned just right.
This was just one of many beautiful sunsets we saw over the Pacific. Yes, the ocean’s name, which means “peaceful,” is fitting for this setting.
Saturday, Feb. 17
On our second day at Molino Viejo, we were glad to have time to relax and walk around the area, which had some great backgrounds for photos.
We liked the statue of Neptune that seemed appropriate for the area.
There was one form of fishing that was interesting to watch. All you had to do from level flight was to invert and dive straight down beneath the surface and pierce your prey with your beak. At least that is the technique that worked well for the pelicans.
We checked out the full service campground next door, which had a great menu for their restaurant. We considered possibly staying there on our return trip in a week or so. They offered full hookups including laundry and Wi-Fi.
We went back to the truck camper and had a late lunch combined with a nap. At 4:30 pm there was a happy hour and meeting describing the next day’s 14-mile drive to a “dunes” campground for 1 night. The interesting thing about this destination was that except for the parking team that would go in advance, the wagonmaster had decided that you did not have to travel in groups. There was a bit of discussion on this procedure, with the consensus being we’d just have to see how well it worked. For us it would mean another early departure so we returned to our camper, fixed sloppy joes and broccoli for dinner, and turned in early.
The evening was just peachy.
At least it was until 10 pm when the local young-at-heart came for their Saturday night party in the lot next to the dock. About 2 am they finished. We slept fast, because we knew Sunday we would be traveling on “potholely” narrow roads.
Sunday, Feb. 18
Destination: Pabellon Beach RV Park
14 miles
Daisy and I had a short, 14-mile drive with our caravan to enjoy one afternoon and night at the El Pabellon Beach RV Park. We knew that the following day we would have a 104-mile trip southeast, over deteriorating roads, into the high desert country.
We left at 6:45 am in order to fill up our gas tank. We met the rest of the parking team at the Pemex gas station 7 miles down the road and arrived at the campground at 7:30 am. The rest of the caravan, not traveling in group format, began arriving at 8:30 am with the last rig in at 10:30am. Getting ready and traveling individually was not a big issue because of the short length of the trip.
Our caravan had the RV park to ourselves, and the cool, sunny day was great for beachcombing. There were a few full-hookup sites and also hot showers available.
There were high sand dunes between our parking area and the Pacific Ocean beach, which provided a beautiful and relaxing location.
We took a walk on the beach and found two almost perfect sand dollars.
.
After our walk, Daisy and I went back to our truck camper for a little rest. I was getting over a cold and Daisy was starting to get it. There are some things we would rather not share!
We weren’t the only ones enjoying a day at the beach however!
In the evening, the caravan provided a tamale feast, with everyone bringing a side dish or dessert.
As the sun began to set I looked frantically for Daisy so she wouldn’t miss any pictures. Then I found her.
I need not have worried. My sun goddess was already in worship.
This was another dramatic sunset over the ocean with the dunes in the foreground.
The only sounds we heard that night were the wind, waves, and wails of the seagulls. We are blessed.
We notched in our memories this isolated Baja paradise as a place to come back to.
The next day another adventure awaited…
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