Baja California,

I am high and dry in Mexico at the Baja California peninsula.
Crossing the border took me 3 hours. Most important reason for this was the Dutch numberplate, not the attack on America. Within 50 metres you enter a completely different world. The cities are hectic, little deals on the streets, dust, noise and a language that I do not speak. After 100 kilometres there is a military control post, and men with huge guns are ready to shoot you off your bike. But is not as bad as it looks, and after 5 minutes I can move on. Being Dutch has its advantages, Americans are less popular, and soccer is always a grateful subject to talk about. "Olanda cancelar el munde" (even I can understand that). Yeah yeah, I know, soccer sucks ! In the evening I put my tent up at a beautiful high place near a little hotel, with a view at the Pacific. Because of the trouble in the U.S. I am the only customer and together with the 3 staffmembers we do odd-jobs around the house. In return for this my stay is free. I fix the electric because it was "Mexican style", which means a real mess. I also repair toasters and other electric toys.
My computer passed away, due to the vibrations in the back of the motor . After hours of delicate work, I find a loose component. Fortunately I can solder it, and my little typewriter works like new again ! Every evening I walk all the way down to collect a bucket of mussels from the rocks to make stew. It is quite a tricky job, this way I nearly drowned 12 years ago in Australia when an enormous wave dragged me into the ocean. I was used to the swimming pool and the Ijsselmeer. How was I supposed to know !!!

Baja California is the longest peninsula in the world, with 1300 km of mountains, beaches and wide open spaces. The Pichao del Diablo is with more than 3 km high the highest mountain and has an observatory. The temperature at the peninsula is, thanks to the Californian coldwaterstream on the Pacific coast, quite mild. In the winter big grey whales pass here to mate and bring forth their youngsters in the various lagoons. They swim almost 10.000 km from the Bering sea between Alaska and Russia. Imagine that we would have to cycle such a distance to see your sweetheart ! In that case I would end up in a convent ! On the other side of the Gulf of Cortes it's quite a different story, and it can get bloody hot there. The different capes at the south coast are during summertime regularly ravaged by Hurricanes.
I am particularly interested in the enormous cacti, well- known from the old Western movies, that can reach 20 metres ! Also it is a paradise for off-road drivers here, because everything is free accessible. It is even allowed to pass by the great farms, as long as you close the gate behind you. The Baja 500, 1000 and 2000 are world-famous races with motorbikes and cars. They start in Ensenada, a city about 100 km from here.


I run my rounds on the beach and take it easy because it is still burning hot on the mainland and Central America is in the middle of the rainy season. I just prefer driving in the sun.