This one’s a little rough but that is poignant because leaving Bahia was a little rough. If anything, Bahia was a place to stay. As if it was pulling at me to look into ownership and see if it was possible to have a trailer on a lot and what kind of existence could I have there. Those thoughts still exist.
From time to time as I would be about town for items and errands, a vantage would open up and allow me to see into the valley south of town and the one dirt road leading out of it. I would stare down that busted dirt road with a touch of intimidation. I had spent about 680 miles getting to Bahia, and it in turn was a reality-hole like few other things I’ve experienced. It was a dreamlike oasis on the edge of the Sea of Cortez. Everything was seemingly perfect. I had become an addict of the slow sun baked days. I didn’t touch my bike. I ate and drank. I walked about. I walked to the store. I took naps. It was that ideal Mexican siesta one reads about.
Up until the bay of LA the riding had been relentless and punishing. In fact the entire thing is simply that. Every day in the northland there is more climbing than might be assumed and the trudge of it on the loaded bike was consistent, across all the days. And so in talking to Garro about the route south of BoLA I knew it wasn’t going to be fun. Ultimately he said to stay in Bahia and fatten up, which was a wise thing. It was going to be that kind of ride to get out of there. And the two days it took to extract myself from it was just that. The route had been used by the Baja 1000 earlier in the year. I would pedal the entrenched ruts and rubble that is left in its wake. All I can remember is how I clasped the handlebars with my ratted old hands and pedaled a jarring 5mph across hundreds of miles of race course. The section heading south from Bahia was well chopped and rutted and would make next days tentative in mood. Other than making miles and getting somewhere, the views were the only respite from the grovel.
In the end I would escape. It took a few days but I would circle around to Rancho Piedra Blanca and then out towards HWY 1 and San Ignacio.