"No, it never rains in Baja..."

Although I have heard that in the past we have gone through the whole winter season without any precipitation here in Los Barriles, that has not been the case the last couple years. But I guess rain in November is still very rare, so that makes the last two days special. It made it easier for me to sleep in and relax in bed this morning, listening to the raindrops falling outside. I finally roused myself, strapped on my camelbak, ipod shuffle, and my trusted machete, packed a small lunch, and headed up to Pemex Ridge for a mountain bike ride. I had heard stories of the massive overgrowth on the hiking/biking trail up there and was prepared for the worst. I spent the better part of the morning and afternoon cutting through the cholla, pitaya, cardon and various cacti, and now I am proud to say that the entire network of singletrack here is open for business. The trails are severely rutted from all the rain we received during the hurricanes in September, but they are fun and technical, just the way I like them, and will get filled in quickly as I take our guests for rides this winter.

Before the storms and clouds arrived it had been pretty windy. I sailed most every day this week, using smaller gear every day as the wind increased. Yesterday I extended my lunch break, spending most of the afternoon on the water, and kept coming back to shore to trade for smaller sails and boards as the old familiar rolling swell on the Sea of Cortez returned for the first time this year.

Went out to El Japones, one of our favorite eateries over in Buena Vista, for dinner last night. I have to admit that he still makes the best hamburguesas in town. Business must be good as he has a new concrete structure around the kitchen and all 3 employees are now wearing white shirts and hats. Very official!

Hard to believe we have been open for 2 weeks already. Time certainly flies by down here. I think I need a haircut already...

Careful what you ask for...

The first week of business has passed us by, and our first wave of guests have already departed. The wind returned with a vengeance at about 2 o'clock this morning, but it came out of the mountains from the West and blew straight offshore all day. The wind line remained just outside the fishing boats. It made for very tricky launching and landing, so only the most intrepid, and skilled, sailors ventured out on the water.

Tonight we had one of those special moments when the full moon rises out of the Sea of Cortez just as the sun sets in the Sierra de la Laguna to the West. The cloud cover made for some spectacular colors. Everyone put down their croquet mallets and margaritas and cheered at the sight.

The final shipment of bicycles and windsurfing equipment finally showed up just after dark this evening. The new retail shop is now open. Marlise has been working very hard to get it filled with this year's t-shirts, hoodies, bikinis, and caps. Finch rigged a car stereo to a marine battery in the window of the store, so now we have music playing all day. Everything is settling into place nicely for the season...

Open for business

We officially opened for the 2007-2008 season on Saturday, and, just like clockwork, the wind arrived along with our first guests. We still haven't received all our equipment yet (the first bicycles arrived late last night) but we had enough gear rigged for everyone to enjoy themselves. I took a quick break mid-day to get out on the water myself. I was nervous, as I haven't sailed since leaving Los Barriles last Spring, but I jumped on a brand new Starboard Kombat, matched with a new NP 6.2 Hellcat on a skinny carbon mast, and quickly found myself cruising way too fast out into the Sea of Cortez. I even managed to complete my first jibe attempt!

This past weekend was the annual Carnival in Los Barriles. Each town in Mexico has its own holiday. Workers were scrambling to finish laying concrete on the main street, which is named 20 de Noviembre after the festival, and it was quite amusing to see the last bit of the street being laid out amidst all the food vendors and carnival rides late in the evening. The ferris wheel, a rickety old structure run by a tractor engine, was the center of attention. We all feasted on tacos al pastor made by a family from Ensenada that makes the annual trek down to the East Cape this time every year. And nothing beats a bag of fresh, hot churros after a big meal.

I am glad to announce that the mountain bike trail system is open for business. I spent one long day cutting through the cholla and cardon cacti, moving quite a few trees out of the way, but the singletrack is all rideable. The rain from the hurricanes left some huge ruts down the middle of some of the trail, but it will get filled in soon enough. The riding is very technical and hard for most folks. A nice full suspension bike helps smooth it out considerably. Just the way I like it...

The Vela center is looking great. We have a nice new concrete store to display all our t-shirts, hoodies, rash guards, and other retail merchandise. Finch has installed a loud stereo so we can all listen to music when hanging out on the beach. You can even hear the tunes when you are out on the water sailing, kayaking, or snorkeling. The hotel has a new deck and bar upstairs by the cafeteria, and everything is running smoothly, so far. It has been great seeing all the regular guests again. Many of the other "locals" have been arriving in town, and everyone is looking forward to another fantastic season in this special part of the world.

Settling in for the Winter

Ginger and I made it to Los Barriles in record time. I felt bad leaving the Westfalia in Oregon, but it made a huge difference having cruise control and AC for the drive down the peninsula. We made it all the way from San Diego to the Hotel Malarrimo in Guerrero Negro the first night. Then, in one long push, we cruised into the Hotel Playa del Sol by sunset on Thursday. Had the usual close close calls with cows and dogs, plus one exciting encounter with the Federales outside of San Quintin. I thought for sure that I was being pulled over for speeding or passing that truck on the blind corner, but after following me for about 5km I guess he lost interest and let me go.

This is going to be a very interesting season here at the Vela Windsurf Resort. I am the only American working here this year. I was just getting comfortable conversing more in Spanish. Now I will have to learn some Dutch to communicate with my new coworkers, as Pedro has brought in a whole crew from the Netherlands to help set up the center. As usual, the gear won't arrive until a day or two before we open for business and we will be rushed to rig all the windsurfing gear and build the bikes and assemble all the sail tents and board racks. It is still very hot here in Baja and no amount of SPF30 could deter me from getting sunburnt on the first day working outside on the beach. No complaints, though. The water is warm and the wind is blowing.

The town of Los Barriles has changed quite a bit in the few months since I left. There is a huge new retail plaza at the entrance to town, the hotel has been repainted and touched up, and the main street has been bulldozed and is ready for paving. They hope to have everything done in time for the carnival on November 20th. In the mean time there is no access to the shops and restaurants and RV parks, except by foot or bicycle. All the seasonal fun-seekers will have to set up their temporary homes elsewhere.

It has been nice to see all my friends and acquaintances. Everyone is excited for the upcoming season. There is always a buzz going through town as the Vela crew arrives. It is not unlike a circus act: we show up with all the latest gear, build huge tents and structures, put up flags and signs all over town, then we leave a few months later. My next job is to see what kind of damage the hurricanes have done to the mountain bike trails. I'll keep ya posted...