She slapped me with little provocation !

Day Nine: Bahia Asuncion ... Lounging (cont'd) -

Stan was wrapping my ankle and telling fishing stories... I was intent on capturing some of this excitement ...









Shari and David were planning their day...





... and more cats came to the rescue... Baja has its own population of bobcats. They are slightly larger than an average housecat, are slender, have tufted ears, short tails, and their hind quarters are a bit taller than the front. It is not uncommon at all for them to breed with domestic cats, resulting in a fair number of domestic cats with short tails that are a bit jacked up with the bobcat lift-kit on their rear drive units...

I have seen them several times over the years and consider myself quite lucky for that experience....each time being on the peninsula that creates Bahia Concepcion.

If you ever get to Coco's Corner and Coco is there, ask him about the bobcats breeding with his cats....

Shari has one of these crossbreeds, and to make it all that more exotic, the cat is a Siamese bobcat.....



Now, while I like dogs....I LOVE cats....

Dogs are great as long as someone else owns them. Dogs have trained people to throw sticks and balls, they have trained people to pick up their poop, and they can't usually look after themselves too well...

Cats are cuddly at times....if you leave them at home for a several-day ride the worst they will do is poop on your pillow or ignore you when you return home.... They cover up their own poop, can catch their own food, and don't slobber .

These are only some of the reasons cats are cool.

I know this to be true, but what was even more comforting was knowing that David felt the same way and has two cats that he loves more than he will admit to

So, when this Siamese bobcat was only too eager to soak up my affection and attention....well.....it was a mutual thing...

She would sometimes just wrap herself around a leg in that way that cats have of staking claim to you...before she would crawl up my leg as if it was a tree...knowing that I would quickly pick her up....so she could then perch on my shoulder like a parrot...




With one or both of my legs up, she saw the situation as her own Excellent Ubication..



Looking for the best ubication....



Once having located herself excellently, she was soon joined by "Rover".

This dog looked like a Weinmarner (sp?) crossed with a Pit Bull, but seemed placid enough at the time...




With that mournful-hopeful look, he wondered if he too might be welcomed...



He was nice enough and he elicited the token ear-scratching and chin rubbing any dog deserves...and I would throw a stick for him, but not just at this time....as I was laid up with a sprained ankle and a cat on my lap

While dogs are not as intelligent as cats, they do have some smarts....and this guy figured out how to cash in on the love-fest...

He approached the cat and wormed his way in by doing that flea-catching bite thing with his front teeth.....and the cat ate it up...






Having established this permission, Rover went to work...






The cat was loving the grooming attention, despite having her soft coat disheveled with slobber and swirls in her fur that were like random brush-cuts waxed up like a 50's teenager

After Rover figured his job was done, the cat tidied herself up a bit...



Who said it would be boring sitting around instead of riding....???

Day Ten: More lounging around in Bahia Asuncion ...

The morning layer of clouds burned off by a bit after 9:00...



Juan and Shari are having an addition added to their house and are planning two more B&B rooms as well as a larger room for social gatherings ....something Shari is fond of and good at.

I heard the workers hard at it, and checked their work out after they left....things were moving forward quickly...














After surveying the construction progress, I hobbled back to my perch in the sun...







By this time, Shari and David were taking her truck over to his lot to do some stuff....

David was ready to roll...




And he would likely deny he was thinking, "Geezuz, Shari takes as long to get going as Ged !"




But Shari had to do some voodoo on her truck to make it sing...



Her voodoo was working...and they were off...



The two days at Shari and Juan's was relaxing for me. She fed us great breakfasts...and at one time it was discussed that B&B might well stand for "Beer and Beds", and that the advertising for their place could expand to cater to a variety of tastes and travelers.

This evening she managed to get us invited to dinner at the home of some friends. This couple are also Canadians and have a pottery business in Creston, BC ... a situation that now allows them to winter in Asuncion and do their work in Canada during the summer season.

Their home is relatively new and is pretty darn nice... (this pic is in its earlier stage before being painted)...



While my day was lazy and as I didn't have the mindset to be checking out the area more, I was reminded of the importance of having more time to be in each place so as to be able to soak it in more than just pass through it.

Ahhhhh, back to thinking..."How can I arrange to spend 6 months in Baja and not just 2-week stints...?"





Day Eleven: Bahia Asuncion to San Ignacio via La Bocana and Abreojos...

David and I packed up the bikes



and bid Shari adieu...posing for the usual pic...



The coastal road south was fairly good but had enough of that sand stuff that gives me the puckers in anticipation that its wiggle factor on the front tire is going to make the tire have a conniption that will spit me off the bike....and this was sporadically raising my anxiety level in regards to further hurting my ankle....

But my worries only slowed down my pace and I could see David's dust trail far off in the distance. I felt bad for how my accident was affecting his ride...although he didn't say anything along that line. He was contending with a developing cough and what seemed like a cold coming on while we were in Asuncion, so he was getting the stuffing knocked out of him in his own way...

The ride took us through some coastal areas that looked like they offered miles and miles of good beach riding....but we stayed to the road as we were destination-bound more than in an exploratory mood.

As David got to Punta Abreojos before me, we got separated in the town for a bit before catching up with one another. I figured out that he would be waiting for me somewhere, and when he wasn't at the Pemex, I plunked around before I found him a short ways away.

We found that the road to Hwy #1 was paved from Abreojos and we dialed it in until DAvid took me for a short detour to a cool estuary camp called Campo Rene.

No one was around, but it offers cabins and sometimes I am sure the restaurant is open...



This area supports fishing and is located at the west end of Estero el Coyote.

75 kilometers of good pavement brought us to Hwy #1. The ride was windy in some places and at one point in time I rode through a "dust devil" twister about 40' in diameter that was hurling marble-sized rocks around in a manner that wasn't fun to be in for too long. We made it back to Rice and Beans in the early part of the afternoon and David commenced to pack up for his drive back north to San Diego where his wife was caring for her mom.

He was eager to get going and wanted to make it at least to Guererro Negro before dark...



The end of our journey was upon us and it somehow seemed too quick, despite us both having developed some physical malaise.

I couldn't really do too much to help him aside from staying out of his way....he was organized and was managing quite well without my most excellent direction and advice-giving...



I had grown fond of his company and felt as if I had made a friend. It was a sad feeling to have it come to an end , but I had a sense that our paths would likely cross again...

We shook hands goodbye and it felt as if we both stifled a good-bye hug...

I waved the final good-bye and headed to the bus to see if there was any beer to be found...

I found a few and was sitting in front of my room when a dusty bunch of motorcyclers pulled into the parking lot....and headed towards me....

The Bus Boys were back a day early with a lot of excitement and a ton of stories...

One door closes and another opens ....

Ross, the "If you can see it on Google Earth, you can ride it" trail boss deserved his cigar...



While Lev reached for a chip...




While Reid massaged another smile onto El Mur (Mr. Happy from my '05 Baja ride)




And the smiles told only a small part of their good-time ride experience...



Brian got to relive his head-on crash with a Honda Civic every time he touched his injured ribs while fondly admiring the stable...




While Randall nursed his injured ribs from a distant vantage point...



The mood was certainly one of revelry and most suitable for the occasion.

As the evening progressed, a dusty bunch of KTMers pulled in to R&B and set about to getting some rooms and dinner.

As is not unusual, our conversation soon led to learning one of them, Kip , knew our friend, Al Perret, and that we were both going to Bahia de los Angeles the next day in hopes of visiting with Al.

This crew were from Colorado and their trip report may be found at:

http://rockiesriders.com/index.php?topic=278.0

The margaritas were flowing, the smiles and laughs were abundant, and the whole Kamloops Bus Gang was having fun...

And as we were not quite ready to red-eye it straight back to Canada, we all agreed that the next day would be the relatively short drive to Bahia de los Angeles.

Well, sir, yer do'n good - no one I know, can do a better "photo-journal" of Baja, and catch the magic of a place that has seduced me for all these years!

Thank you for sharing your talent.

El Mur.

Thanks for the ride report Ged!

KLR....

This story isn't done yet....

Good job Ged, you make me proud to be your riding partner.....dt

Day Eleven: San Ignacio to Bahia de los Angeles...

Back on the bus Thursday morning after loading up the bikes...



But this time we had a wounded bike. Tom, a rider from Vancouver, BC was down with some other BC DualSport members on their bus ( a reasonable facsimile of Jed Clampett's rig) and his 650 Beemer ruptured in the middle of the No Wimps Trail between San Francisquito and Mulege.

He was at Rice and Beans when we first arrived 12 days ago with his 650 strapped together with tow straps....the frame broke where it mounted to rear of motor...so we brought the POS back to Vancouver for him...



We needed to explain this ...



The ride north was industrial with a good mood in the bus....fuel and tamales at Jesus Maria...



When we arrived at Bahia de los Angeles we looked for our friend Al Perret, but all we found was his casita with a 525 KTM parked outside with a 3 lb hammer sitting on the cement beside it...anyone who knows Al appreciates that this is the only tool he carries in his toolpack . A freshly poured pad of cement nearby indicated he was somewhere in the area...and a local who drove up to show his wife his day's work of fresh cement told us Al went to do some shopping at Guererro Negro and would be home later.

We turned the bus around and headed to the Costa del Sol motel, our preferred accommodation in BOLA....



We got a few rooms and a few guys slept on the bus....but made sure to use our rooms for showers and the usual "Let's stink up this guy's room" etiquette:huh

Some guy was staying there and had a 950 or 990 and that attracted a bit of interest...

Reid was so impressed it seemed like he was ready to crap himself right there



The owner wandered out of his room before long and was willing to give Reid his autograph....Reid reached for his wallet for the autograph but the guy refused the gesture



A crowd was forming and the energy was soon reaching a frenetic pace...




...and then El Mur appeared out of the bus and and proclaimed that KTM's are crap....eliciting the usual response from the gang...



or maybe they were just grinning at his Capri pants :eek1

The 950 guy introduced himself as Paul Olson, an accomplished motohead who is up to his neck in bikes:

http://motoworks.biz/


Dinner was up soon and most folks turned in early...



As we were eating dinner, the Colorado KTMers arrived and settled in after their hard day's ride.
Again, their ride report is at:
http://http://rockiesriders.com/index.php?topic=278.0


Breakfast was a boisterous activity...Al showed up with his wife, Diana ...




and had a lot of folks to choose from for company...



here he is with Kip...



While we didn't really want to, we all knew it was our last day in Baja and we needed to saddle up for the long drive home...40+ hours straight through to Kamloops....

I might even prefer to ride in soft deep sand than spend 40+ hours on the bus

My ankle was still bothering me and I was thinking that I wanted to get an x-ray of it as soon as I got home...

We made it to the Tijuana border crossing at about 9:00 pm on a Friday night and managed to miss the bus lane and ended up in a line-up that confounded the border guards....but that all worked out.

I spent the next two days with my foot resting on a cooler or laying down...starting to wrap my head around the notion that another Baja trip was coming to an end and there were some roads I still wanted to check out....

Next time...

Al Perret. Haven't heard that name in forever. Used to live in Kamloops, learned to ride there, as a matter of fact. That was back in the 80's. First dirt then road bikes, never realized how lucky I was until I moved away, when it came to riding. And skiing at Tod Mtn.

Sure do miss it. Would wander for days up towards Bonaparte, really liked the riding to the northwest.

Good trip.

D,
Al has a place up at Tod (now called Sun Peaks) where he is for the summers....and a place at Bahia de los Angeles for the winter.

He still outrides everyone and continues to Race Baja 1000 every year....and his team wins their class

Cool. Tough life for him.

Did anybody happen to catch the sound of the GS when it snapped in half...did it go KA-CHING???

KLR,
I think the sound was more like....KKKKRRRRRAAAPPPPPP :eek1:eek1

I love my BMW and all its predecessors, but the 650's have never appealed to me...

The bike is junk as the engine casting and frame castings are both broken...and other bits in there are fokked, too.

The smart thing for him to do is try an insurance claim on his Canadian insurance by saying he crashed in Canada. Mexican bike insurance does NOT cover damage done off of paved roads...

And this damage may not be considered crash damage as much as metal failure, a BMW thing more than an insurance thing.

He may part the bike out....I dunno....

Hey, I need parts from one of those. Got his email?

x2! (and sorry to hear of the break!)

now I know who to blame... er thank.

Sheesh! And I thought the swingarm was the weak link on the G650X !
I guess any cast aluminum bits are suspect - or maybe the engine mounts took a direct hit...

I know how you feel man!

The bus trip back home was relatively uneventful after the Tijuana border tango. We crossed into California at about 10:00 pm Friday and arrived back to winter in Kamloops on Sunday at about 9:00 AM.

While the rest of the gang was ready to unload and stuff like that, I made a beeline to my truck for a trip to the hospital to get a 45th opinion on my ankle injury.
I grabbed my essentials duffle , gave Wayne a ride home, and headed to the emergency ward.
Parking my truck in the lot was easy enough, as was limping down to the line-up in the "Emerge"..... a misnomer if there ever was one !!!:huh

Shifting from foot to foot for what seemed like too long (15 minutes...the longest period of time I had been on my feet since twisting my ankle 10 days earlier...) and with no wheelchairs in sight to use, I finally made it to desk+nurse #1 only to be shuffled to desk+nurse #2....the necessary paperwork was done and I was given some copies to take down the hall to a destination which fokking did not correspond with the nurse#2's directions !!! :huh:huh

Maintaining my remarkable jovial attitude...... I finally found the right door which did not open and I found a set of chairs in the appointed but well camouflaged waiting area...

I visited with the elderly couple sitting there, listened to another guy explain BS to them about the condition of the planet....and after 1/2 hour , was invited into the part of the Emerge where stuff got done.

Explaining the situation with my ankle, I was asked to sit and wait for an x-ray....

About an hour later I was offered a wheelchair to go and get the x-ray....that was all easy enough, and I was wheeled back to sit for another hour before an intern looked at the x-ray and hummed and hawed/

I asked if I could look at it too....and, while he was not too protective of his domain, he turned the monitor so I could see what my ankle and leg looked like....

"Oh!!!", I thought....

"THAT'S WHY MY ANKLE HURTS..."

Dont think side saddle woulda helped after seeing the x-ray

I went into surgery at about 8:00 pm. Rather than having a general anesthetic due to the fact I have sleep apnea (anesthetists get worried about that :huh), I had an epidural and was able to watch most of the surgery in the reflection of the bank of overhead lights in the operating room.

They told me that the IV had some other drugs that would make me forget the procedure (a form of Rohypnol date rape drug or something like that....some amnesiac chemistry).....but I must say I remember it all:

The scrubbing with disinfectant, the incision, the poking around with a pry bar, the drilling, the screwing, the stapling.....what a show.

A ghostly image of their work...



All neatly stapled up... (taken 4 days after surgery)...







Two weeks before the staples came out....so I had lots of couch-time to start this story....




After the staples came out, the doctor said, "No weight-bearing for at least a month....I will see you then, take another x-ray, and tell you what the bone looks like and if you can start weight-bearing then...".

That was two weeks ago....April 14th is the next visit.

I am getting better on the crutches and have returned to work on a gradual basis....but pretty reliant on others for shopping and stuff like that.....can't even drive my truck as it is a standard transmission...



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Holy smokes Ged - when we were talkin' on the phone this winter . . . well, I had no idea. You take your sweet time healin' up there man!