Fun in San Felipe

The drive down Mex 5, or Ruta 5 as I call it, was easy, and the scenery was wonderful.  Often mountains loomed on the horizon to the west, more rock and hills to the east, before finally getting a view of the Sea of Cortez, or Gulfo California.  The landscape was often draped in flowering lavender plants, and while it is all desert, it is always beautiful in that dry, tan-colored sort of way.  Cacti began to spring up, different species though the giant saguaro are my favorite.  This drive includes some of the driest parts of the Baja, but still a wonderful trip.  The road conditions were good, at least to San Felipe, though beyond that, I had already heard that conditions change as you head south out of San Felipe.  I also got to experience the first of what would turn out to be many: an army check point.  They all carried automatic rifles, were not that friendly, and never smiled.  They asked me to get out of the van, and open the back doors.  They poked around a bit, checked under the mattress, but no worries and I was soon on my way.

It took about 3 hours to get to San Felipe, nice little town of maybe 17,000 people.  I went straight to the malecon (waterfront promenade, kind of like their version of a boardwalk), checked out the view, and had my first Mexican beer, think it was a Modelo, with a lime, refreshing.  The exchange rate is pretty favorable, maybe $18 to $19 pesos to the dollar, but some things are pretty cheap regardless.  I paid $30 pesos for that first beer, which in US dollars is a little over $1.50.  I think I can handle that.  There is also a bank in town, so I was able to get some pesos.  I really believe that it is best to have local currency, even in Mexico where most places will take US dollars, as you get a better exchange rate if you leave it up to a bank, and not some vendor or bartender.  For example, I ended up in a bar with some folks from the campground my second night in San Felipe, and drank a "few" beers.  Initially, they asked for $25 US for 5 beers, but when I asked about what it would be in pesos, they said it would be $320 pesos, or about $3.20 per beer.  I'll stick to pesos, local currencies are always the way to go.

There are a few campgrounds in and around town. I ended up at Campo Turistico #1, or simply Campo Uno, mostly because it was at the far northern end of the town.  Simple place with palapas, basically beach shelters stacked one after the other, rocky beach, but nice, a very mellow place.  A few folks stay there all winter, including Billy, a house painter from Washington, who also sings, and plays a mean 12-string guitar.  I also met Dori and Mena here, a couple from Montreal, Canada, traveling with their dog, in a small camper/trailer.  They were especially interested in my Sprinter, and what I had done with the conversion.  Check out their YouTube page, Adventures of Dori and Mena (or something like that).  It was fun to meet them and chat, exchange notes on where to go, what to do, always looking for more information while traveling.  This turned out to be a better than average campground, $300 pesos per night, for pretty tight quarters, and, no hot water, though they did have flush toilets.  There was WiFi in the main building, a small restaurant, but it was slow, and did not always work.  I stayed two nights, and had fun.  I biked a bit, exploring town, and got my paddle board out, Garth from South Africa/UK really enjoyed that, but the water was cold, and the wind always picked up during the afternoon.  And, it got chilly at night, downright cold on the second night, even cranked up my little propane heater (thanks Chris).  The second night, Billy played a local dive Gringo bar, a few of us went for dinner and a few beers, was a fun night.  But I needed to head south, so after two nights, I was on my way. 

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