This is a tale of adventure, solitude, beautiful beaches, donkeys, cattle and a dirt road barely fit to be called a road.
It's November In Los Cabos and we have a plan. We are going to spend a day touring the East Cape on Camino Cabo Este to find that perfect secluded beach (and maybe our retirement home)! Ever since our first visit to the area our hearts were captured and now we cant stop thinking about how one day, this will be home. In the mean time we take what we can get when we can and explore our future home area.
This adventure requires a rental...and not just any rental. We need a 4X4. Thanks to the wonderful staff at Secrets Puerto Los Cabos we get all set up with a Nissan Frontier. We also got warned. Do not drive up the East Cape. Drive up the highway to La Ribera and then south to Cabo Pulmo. This route although paved the majority of the way is simply not what we are looking for. We want the adventure. We want the solitude. We grew up in the Canadian Prairies and we can handle whatever the road has to throw at us!
The day starts with my usual latte from the Coco Cafe (Secrets Resorts version of Starbucks only better) and breakfast at the Market Cafe overlooking the ocean and the golf course. Once our appetites have been filled, we load up the Frontier. Towels? Check, Snorkel gear? Check. Sunscreen? Check. Camera? Check. Water? Check. We are ready.
Its about 9am and we hit the dirt excited for the
adventure ahead. Hurricane Sandra has moved on so the sun is shining and sharing in our excitement. after a short distance of washboard dirt road showing the effects the rain from Sandra has had, we are surprised to find fresh blacktop. Well this wont be so bad. Why would they worry abut us driving that short distance on dirt to find fresh asphalt? The answer lay in wait ahead. It wasn't long before we realized we were Not on the road we had intended so we ventured right to get further east.
This was where we were almost introduced very intimately to a pack of donkeys enjoying the sun that had been hiding for the last few days. Don't they know that they should not hang out in the middle of the road just over a hill and around a corner. Good thing the Frontier had good breaks and we weren't able to go to fast because of the conditions of the road.
Our first stop and the beginning of our solitude was Los Zacatitos and Playa Escondita. We could have spent the entire day here and I would have called it a great day but we had much more to explore.
We passed a funky hotel VidaSoul lined with surf boards.
More Secluded beaches with no one or buildings in sight.
Hold on tight and watch this!
Hold your breath. I am not sure how deep this is. Are you ready to push if needed? (We would learn that the answer to that was yes but not for us!)
There was also a campground about right smack dab in the middle of the dirt trail. Although beautiful and you are able to park right on the beach if you want, I am not sure we would attempt to bring our trailer down this dirt path to get to it. It was on the very edge of Cabo Pulmo National Park.
Whats that ahead? More new asphalt. But the adventure is not over yet. There are random small boulder lined up halfway across the road? What could their purpose be? We aren't sure so we maneuver around them and continue on. Up ahead...you guessed it; more small boulders but this time on the other side of the road. This continued on for about 10 km. Standing guard dutifully over the mysteriously placed rocks were some beautiful cattle. There to ensure no harm came to those adventurous souls who dared to tackle the East Cape.
Who would have guessed that the paved portion would be as much of an adventure as the tiny dirt walking path.
Lessons of the day. Don't spend your sunny vacation laying by the pool at the resort as you will miss out on so much. This will always be one of our most memorable vacation days and we cant wait to do it again on our next visit as it was truly beautiful. however, in consideration for those who may want to come visit us when we plant our roots in sunny Mexico, we wont be looking at real estate on the East Cape. San Jose, Todos Santos and Los Barriles however are now top of the list!
The road up to the parking area is a rough gravel road but only 6 km so well worth the bumps and rattles. We parked at the lower viewpoint so that we could enjoy the canyon views and get some exercise on the way up to the falls. And boy am I glad we did. The canyon is spectacular and there were very few people on the trail. The trail is narrow and there are no guard rails so you have to watch your footing but it is an easy hike with very little climb involved.
