Part III
Day 5 = Tourist day in San Ignacio — 221 Miles
Today we will go on a bit of a different tour and add some Baja wildlife to the mix…how about Humpback Whales! If you have never been whale watching get ready for this! We will leave as a group from San Ignacio to the Pacific Ocean side of Baja and enjoy a day of whale watching, food/drinks and a life altering experience!
It was a rest day!!! Finally, a day I didn’t have to set an alarm for! Yeah, I’m not really an early morning person. Getting outta bed before 8 am isn’t my favorite way to start the day. Now, I don’t have much by the way of pictures for this. I do however, have a load of video! I am just slow at figuring out what I have, getting it edited, and getting it up loaded. So that is coming, I promise.
VIDEO PLACE HOLDER
Day 6 = San Ignacio to Mission Santa Maria — 342 Miles
Today will be our longest day but we will get to take it easy on the pavement. However, don’t let that fool you. This time of year the desert flowers are bursting and we will get to travel through some of the most beautiful inland mountain, desert and farm towns in all of Northern Baja! Get your cameras ready for some fantastic inland photos! The fun does not stop there…when we get to our hotel, Mission Santa Maria, we will have an opportunity to ride our motorcycles on the beach! If you have never done this it is fantastic! We will eat a gourmet meal at the hotel restaurant and enjoy cocktails in the bar after this long awesome day!
Awe, Day #6! What a day and a night to remember!
Yes, the flowers on the trip were great!
There was also the new experience of getting barrel gas from a guy on the side of the road in Catavina.
Yikes!!!!
The road into and out of Catavina is not the best, but it is still pretty.
But the best part of the WHOLE TRIP was the riding on the beach at Hotel Mision Santa Maria! I had been dying to try it since I watch these guys do it in October.
It was everything I thought it would be!
Yes, we had drag races on the beach. I’m told that a couple of bike managed to get up to 100 miles/hr. I am not that brave. I only hit 60.
I didn’t have any issues getting the bike through the deep sand going out to ride, but I had a heck of time getting it back up off the beach. I also discovered that dirt mode on the Tiger doesn’t turn the traction control off completing, like I was lead to believe. I know what the bike sounds like when it’s pinging off the rev limiter and then the TC kicks in, only to let it go back to the red line… If I had turned it all the way off in Rider Mode I think I would have smacked the red line 3x like I did. It would have been much easier to modulate. Huge, thank you to Dusty who helped me when I was buried up past my axle with the rear tire.
After that sprites where high. There was a great dinner, followed by some time in the bar playing pool.
This of course, lead to some more drinking, which lead to some dancing….
That, lead to some very tired and maybe slightly hung over riders for the next day. 😀
Day 7 = Mission Santa Maria to Coyote Cal’s — 98 Miles
Today we will be rewarded with a shorter ride as we make our way to Coyote Cal’s. When we arrive we will have a choice again of relaxing or taking a ride along the coast. This area of Baja has some of the most beautiful scenery along the Pacific Coast! The terrain can be compared to the Pacific Coast Highway along the California coast between LA and San Francisco. This ride and scenery will not disappoint!
It was a short ride up to Coyote Cal’s, good thing to as we all were moving a bit slower that morning. LOL. After getting organized we headed up the coast to this other well known watering hole for bikers in Baja.
I opted to get myself organized and repacked since I was heading out earlier than the group the following morning. So once I had that done I went for a walk to check out the tidal pools. There was a fair amount of sea life in the pools, too.
It was a relaxing evening sitting around the pool table this time. Getting a few good drinks from the bar. They served up a great dinner there too.
Day 8 = Coyote Cals to San Luis Rio Colorado — ~292 Miles
This is where I parted ways with the rest of the group. They were heading back to the states and I was heading over to San Luis Rio Colorado to meet up with the boys. So I could drive the support truck while they raced the Sonora Rally. I had decent ride in front of me so I left early.
Bummer! The rain washed a fair amount of the dirt off.
Since I was alone for this section, I was able to stop and take more pictures. It was more laid back than having to hurry to catch back up or stay in front of the group.
The toll road I took to get to San Luis RC was great curvy fun!
Not bad views, either.
Well, that’s all there is for this part of the trip. It now becomes about the Sonora Rally and supporting the boys.
http://west38moto.com/boxed/discover/discover-baja-7a/