Baja California Road Tip - Part I

We were sad to say bye bye to the Sandman, but happy to continue our exploration of Baja California. For that purpose, we’d rented a BIG people-carrier (we were, after all, 8 people in total). With JayJay at the wheel, we set our course for Santiago, which is located a couple of hours’ drive south of La Paz. The Lonely Planet guide I read recommended a Baja California road trip, and I can certainly see why. It’s hard to get lost (there is basically one highway only covering Baja California), the roads are wide (which is kinda needed, since the Mexican’s seem to have taken their northern neighbors pleasure for BIG cars – mind you, there’s more need for big 4x4’s here than in a lot of places in the US of A), the driving is quite relaxed and unstressful (this is, after all, Mexico) and the landscapes are magnificent.

After a quick stop for a nice ‘n quick lunch on the roadside, we eventually arrived at Santiago. From there, the plan was to check out some hot springs at San Jorge. After a couple of wrong turn, JayJay asking for directions a few times, we eventually found the place. Lazing about at the hot springs was quite a nice way to finish off the day. After all, the weather does get a wee bit chilly in the evening this time of the year. Chatted away to a couple of friendly Canadians as well.

Accommodation was organized at an ecological farm in Sol de Mayo. Me and Mathilde shared a bigger house together with Gilles, Valerie, Celian and Hector, while Marie and JayJay got a smaller cabin a couple of kilometers away. Our house was quite a marvel. It’s basically all built of stone, giving the place a very rustic feel (even though it’s quite recently built). The eco-part comes from the fact that there is no electricity. So come nightfall, the socializing gets quite cozy & candle-lit ;-)


Naturally we were (or I was at least) starving – so we me, JayJay and Marie made our way to Santiago to pick up some food. Unfortunately there wasn’t a lot of choice at this time, the only option turned out to be a Mexican grill. I was going to write fast food first, but considering we waited for about 1 hour for our burritos, fajitas and burgers that wouldn’t be appropriate, really… But hey, this is Mexico – and waiting there is actually a lot less annoying than waiting say at McDonald’s, since the people are so friendly, smile at you, and just chat away (even if my dodgy Spanish means I only understand about a word in ten). And for me it actually worked out pretty well, since by the time we got back most people were at sleep. So I had an excuse to have a rather consistent meal (I think it was around this time that I acquired the nickname “Como todo” – “I eat everything”).

The next morning we got up rather early, and made our way to the restaurant of the eco farm, where we met up with Marie and JayJay for some very filling breakfast (which turned out to be rather pricey actually…). After this pit stop, we headed back to the hot springs, for a bit more chilling out. It’s a great place to relax, with the cooling waters of the nearby river to offset the heat of the hot springs. A bit like the onsens we experienced in Japan, but with a bit less extreme temperatures. Come to think of it, not entirely unlike a Finnish sauna.

After we’d had enough of the hot springs, we hiked up though the rocky terrain up to a great little pond, etched into the rocks, where we spent some more time lazing about and swimming. Just wonderful, soooo relaxing… For lunch, we decided to try the best place in town, the Palomar. The place is very well known for its seafood, so much that people drive all the way to Santiago just for that reason only. Apparently the place is a favorite of Susan Sarandon’s. And the verdict ? Well, it wasn’t bad, that’s for sure, and pretty good value for money. But I reckon I’ve had better fish elsewhere. Pero, como todo :)

We spent the afternoon at the other main local site, located near our Eco farm, at some beautiful waterfalls. A brisk 10 minute walk down to the restaurant took us to this idyllic place. What followed was more swimming, fooling around on the rocks, taking about 200 pictures of the girls posing, and just chilling out. There is even the “dare you jump from the top of the cliff” challenge that none of us was willing to go for, but thankfully some entertainment was provided by some American. The youngsters eventually jumped in, after a lot of hesitation. Braver than me, I suppose ;-).

For dinner, we had ordered some seafood, including lobster, from the restaurant. After some logistical challenges, and Valerie and Marie taking a bit longer in town than expected (they had some important calls to make – more about that later), we eventually dined. And quite a feast it was, and I certainly enjoyed the lobster. But the bill was again a wee bit high.

That was our last night at Sol de Mayo, and now it was time to split our group in two. Me and Mathilde made our way towards the South of Baja California, whereas the others were heading north to Magdalena bay for some more whale watching. So after some tearful goodbyes (well, not that tearful, the plan was after all to meet up again in San Diego in a few days), Marie and JayJay drove us down to San Jose airport, where we were picking up our rental car.