FUN-travel: Baja Wilderness & Whale Adventure – Guerrero Negro to San Diego
March 21, 2015 by Susan Clarke
Our Last Day
- We awoke at 7:15 to a good sign; the morning sky had patches of blue mixed with the clouds. That gave us a better chance of flying out early with no glitches. This morning Sophia had prepared scrambled eggs, refried beans, and cheese quesadillas.
Our Motley Group
- We got packed up and departed at 8:30 for the short drive to the airport. When we arrived I started shooting video of the airport and a soldier came over and wanted to take my camera from me. Apparently that was a “no-no.” My camera read that my card was full and I showed him and shrugged my shoulders. That was good enough and I sheepishly walked over to our plane. (As it turned out, when you view the video, it actually did film the vibrant painting on the hangar).
- By 9:15 we were airborne and quickly got above the clouds. We moved our watches back and landed in San Felipe at 9:45 to gas up and clear customs. Once gain we had a relatively smooth flight and at 11:45 we safely touched down in San Diego. It was great to be home and six days felt just perfect for our getaway.
Trip Recap – Las Animas is located in one of the most remote, untouched, unspoiled
locations in all of Baja Mexico. To have your own private beach and hiking trails is rare these days. Not to mention how so much of Baja is overflowing with massive hotels that eat up every inch of land. Baja Airventures is the only provider of trips to both sides of the Baja peninsula in one trip.
- That being said, this is a wilderness retreat, not a resort. That would be an oxymoron. Only two of the eight yurts have actual stucco walls with nice laminate flooring and ours was pretty soundproof. The others have plywood floors and a canvas cover with a domed skylight. We were told they were noisy when it is really windy. There is no running water and a shower consists of a 5 gallon bag, filled with heated water that you pump with your foot. There are no flush toilets. We did have a porcelain one, however, it was not working so we had to pour water into it to make it flush. The other yurts have dry composting toilets. The power comes from solar energy or the backup generator.
Slice of Paradise
- All in all, it was very comfortable and the food was very tasty. We love Mexican food and I am sure they would cook anything you asked them. Having wine as an option would have been nice.
- As far as Guerrero Negro, you really need to go out in the lagoons more than once to get the full experience. If we were on our own we probably would not have done that, which would have been a shame. There are plenty of hotel options if you choose to do that.
Pangas
- In case you missed the news, the week after we returned, a Canadian woman was killed near Cabo San Lucas when a gray whale breached. And that seemed to validate why the lagoon is better than the open ocean for viewing.
Lessons Learned –
Travel is VERY personal!
- My Two Travel Motto’s:
- – I want to be surprised and not PO’d
- – It’s 5 o’clock somewhere and I want to be somewhere by 5 o’clock
Regina Up Close & Personal
- For Surprised – We knew we were going to see an abundance of gray whales but had no idea they came right up to the boats so you could pet them.
- For 5 o’clock – I don’t want to have my entire day planned and filled from early morning until night. It’s just too much. And we had to option of doing any or all of the planned activities.
- Stuff happens – You have to go with the flow so “planned spontaneity” is key on trips like this.
- Size matters – When it comes to rooms, cabins & beds. I now check on those prior to making reservations.
- Over the top – We have been fortunate to have been able to travel as much as we have. Now we are only looking for trips that are “on steroids” and out of the norm. This definitely qualified!
