December 13, 2015. From Baja's West Coast (Pacific Ocean) to East Coast (Sea of Cortez)

CAMPGROUND:  Loreto Shores RV Park. Absolutely perfect.  Full hook- ups, wifi, beautiful showers and toilets.  Swimming pool. Beachfront. Very friendly people.  5 stars. $26/night

LOCATION:  Loreto, Baja California.  On east coast, Sea of Cortez.  

WEATHER:  Sunny, highs in low 70s

Today's first stop was a jackpot......gas station, ATM, and beer store!  With a full tank, cash, and michelada ingredients, we hit the road....

Our destination today was Bahia Concepcion which had been recommended to us.  We had a long drive across the peninsula, west to east coast.   Once again, we were in the high desert with lots of cacti and rocks.  The terrain is similar to Arizona's. After driving hours through the desert, we came to this  oasis.  

A cute town called San Ignacio settled here.  We drove into the town square where mass was just starting in the mission church.

Since it is Sunday, the square is quiet.

We finally crossed the mountains and approached the Sea of Cortez.

We came to the city of Santa Rosalita.  It is an old European mining center.  As we neared the city, the highway forked.  There was no signage, so we went right.  Wrong!  This took us into town.  So, at the next fork, we went left.  Wrong again!  This time because it was an unmarked one-way street!  We had to back up and wind through the narrow streets of the city.  At least we got to see their mission church, designed by Eiffel, of Eiffel Tower fame.  Trying to get back to the highway, we turned left, only to discover it was another unmarked one-way street going the other way.  I had to get out, stop traffic, and guide George in backing up and turning the other way.  What a relief to finally make it to the highway again.

We have been intrigued by truckers, the main users of this highway.  They are very courteous on the road.  They blink their left lights when it is safe to pass them, generally right next to the "no passing zone" sign.  They go very slowly up the steep mountain roads.  They do a lot of their driving at night without their headlights on.  We found out that they like to do this to better see the cows that roam onto the highway.  They say that their eyes get conditioned to the dark and they can see the black cows' silhouettes better.  Not sure how well this is working, as we passed 3 dead ones along the highway just today.  We also see many shrines honoring truckers killed on the road.  At this one, the trucker had died in 2000, but the family just happened to be there paying their respect.   Many have little trucks decorating the memorial....

Bahia Concepcion 

 is a set of beautiful coves.  Big RVs line several of the beaches.  We stopped in 2, planning to stay the night, but they have no facilities, or useable facilities at all. 

 So, onward we went until this town of Loreto. We saw a sign for a RV park, and turned off the highway. What a find!  It is right on the beach.  It is gringo land.  There are about 25 RV sites, and several condos, all owned by people from the USA and Canada.  Everyone is friendly, coming out to welcome us. 

DINNER:  More of the chicken thighs we grilled in California with potatoes cooked  in the last of the Thanksgiving gravy, and broccoli.  I want to finish up using everything in the refrigerator, so we can start buying Mexican food.