Ciudad Constitucion - 356km north and the antithesis of Cabo.
David's quote sums the place up: "Not one ounce of USA arrived in Ciudad Constitucion!"
Hotel Posadas Del Ryal - "No Abla Ingles". TV "Solo Espanol". Love it! Adventure again after Cabo's early reminder of where we'll be in just two weeks' time!!
Monday - another 123km drive north. Vegetation thinning out and Cacti Forest thickening. 'Breaking Bad Land' as Amanda christens it! We stop and don our sombreros for some desert photos.
Puerto Escondido and the remote Hotel Tripui. "Embraced by the tranquility of the Sea of Cortez and the majesty of the Sierra de La Giganta Mountains" says the hotel's website - forgetting to mention the RV Park next-door and Retiree Housing Estate to the rear! No problemo - David scouts all 20 Bedrooms (none are occupied) and we take Top Floor Room 14 with King Bed, Bath Tub and Balcony overlooking the Pool - although some quick work with the Gerber Multitool is required to swap our CRT TV for the swish new 55" Plasma in Room before we're fully settled in. Still a few episodes of Narcos Season 3 to watch before we break for the border!
25km up the road is the town of Loreto, about which history books say:
"Loreto was the first Spanish colonial settlement of the Viceroyalty of New Spain on the Baja California Peninsula. The town was founded in 1697 by Jesuit missionaries, who found a steady spring of fresh water on this site, as the Misión Nuestra Señora de Loreto. The Jesuits were expelled in 1767, and control of the Baja California missions was given to the Franciscans. In 1769, the Franciscans were ordered to turn over the Baja missions to the Dominican order and accompany the expedition of Gaspar de Portolà to establish new missions in the unexplored northern frontier that became Alta California."
Who knew those spreading God's word to Nueva Espana suffered such turmoil?
Today Loreto is a Tourist town, catering mostly to US holidaymakers. But it does have a small brewery 'El Zopilote' with a great range of Craft Beers. We took a trip north to sample several. David's favourite? Rattlesnake IPA (ABV 5.95%) perhaps an omen of what was to come! Amanda's fave? A charming Mexican Sauvignon Blanc from the L.A. Cetto Vineyard in Valle de Guadelupe - another omen?
Walking back to Hotel Tripuli movement on the road caught my eye. "And that's a snake!" I called to Amanda grabbing her camera for a close-up. "Watch out David!" she called back as it partly coiled itself up ready to strike! "I have to get a photo!" I called to her, crouching down for a better shot. And close-up photo we got.
Back at Room 14 Google (www.californiaherps.com) informed us that this was a Baja California Rattlesnake. Describing it as "Dangerously Venomous", they add "A bite from this snake can be very dangerous without immediate medical treatment."
Did David get too close to the Rattler? You decide!
