El Requeson, Bahia Concepcion, Baja, Mexico

Hailed as one of the most picturesque camping spots on Bahia Concepcion, it was an easy decision to spend the night at El Requeson. We arrived at low tide and were able to see the sand spit that joins the beach to the island just off shore. We set up our outdoor kitchen in the palapa beside our camper and we had great views of the turquoise water, as we scrubbed the dishes in our bins of saltwater. After gazing at the star-studded sky, we headed to bed in the hopes of a good night’s sleep. Unfortunately, the wild winds returned and we were forced to climb out of bed at 2am to roll in the awning which was acting as a sail and threatening to go airborne. With bags under our eyes after three sleepless nights, we decided to pack up camp and move on to Loreto in an attempt to escape these windstorms.

Playa Santispac, Bahia Concepcion, Baja, Mexico

We spent two days camping beside the turquoise waters of Playa Santispac on the Sea of Cortes. Bahia Concepcion is a very popular camping, kayaking and sailing destination about two thirds down the Baja peninsula. It was a picture perfect locale, but the grinding of truck gears from the highway kept us up all night and the howling northerly winds whipped sand in all directions. A windstorm raged outside our camper for 48 hours and the 26 feet of our home seemed to shrink with each hour that passed. 

San Lucas Cove, Baja, Mexico

After getting out of the muck and mud at Estero Coyote, we continued our journey south past the town of Santa Rosalia to the friendly folks at San Lucas Cove RV Park. We put the boat into the shallow lagoon right behind our camper and settled in for a few days of fishing the waters offshore in the Sea of Cortes. We caught barracudas and spotted bay bass while trolling, but the waters were cold and murky when Mark went spear fishing off San Marcos Island. 

On our second day out, we arrived at the mouth of the lagoon to witness a multitude of seabirds feeding. Then we spotted a pod of about twenty dolphins feeding just beyond the birds. As we passed by the dolphins, we cut the motor and we were surrounded by seven humpback and baleen whales feeding on sardines. They submerged and emerged anywhere from 3m to 100m away from our little boat and kept us awestruck by their beauty and enormity.

Later, after the sea lions had gobbled all the fish in the area, we headed to the south end of San Marcos Island. We did some great snorkelling off a reef with puffer fish, angel fish, starfish, sea cucumbers, stingrays, sea urchins and clams. 

After packing up the boat, we explored the nearby town of Santa Rosalia with a visit to the famous steel church designed by Gustav Eiffel of Parisian fame. We toured the “French” bakery and feasted on tacos, wandering the streets before stopping at the plaza to let the girls romp. 

Punta Abreojos, Baja, Mexico

One benefit of being “stuck” at the estuary for a week was the vast expanse of beach just 200m away. We went for daily walks along the empty stretches of white sand beach which led to the small fishing town of Punta Abreojos.