San Felipe - Bahia Santa Maria

We received a note from our SIL, Aleida, that she was going to San Felipe with Fran’s brother Bobby for a couple months.  We decided to join them!

As has become the norm for us we cross the border at Tecate.  The gateway to Baja’s Wine Trail, but alas we’re going east not south :)

With the early sunsets we elect to take the MX-2D, the toll road, with it’s 3 booths, it's the fastest means of reaching MX-5 and it joins south of Mexicali, avoiding that traffic mess.

MX-5 is a highway in very good condition with speeds posted at 110km (~65 mph).  The road crosses Laguna Salada (Salty Lagoon) for much of the way.

Bar Miramar does not serve food, and as a result was again Covid-Closed.  We did not get our desired Strawberry Margarita, but did stop at Rosita next door for a regular Margarita.  We like to walk the Malecon to loosen our stiff legs and enjoy an adult beverage after the long drive.  OMG check out the size of their Margarita!!!

There are many fun, new to us, ceramic art along the Malecon break wall.

and my favorite, a shrimp

We walked the entire Malecon.  Fran and Bobby together in front of the San Felipe sign, now painted pink to honor Breast Cancer, and neither of us finished that Margarita!

We arrived at the Bahia Santa Maria beach house with just enough time to open it up and clear much of the sand from the rear porch.

In the process of opening things up we noticed a large crack across the front deck.

And the cover from the deck has separated from the house.

Neither Bobby nor I wanted to spend our day taking on the task tearing it down.  We ended up hiring a local laborer and split his cost.

He can’t fix that crack, but we can at least sit out on the deck for another day.

While the deck overhead was being removed we stayed out of the way with one of many golf outings on our Bahia Santa Maria North 8 (we’re still missing our 9th flag).

Fran is without question the best golfer, but this trip she showed off her slice … A LOT!  She spent quite a bit of time in the water hazard, even lost a ball there.

And she still kicked our butts!

Fran stayed behind to kayak, while Bobby and I ran into town, with a long list of supplies needed.  We also went back to Rosita to try their food.  Notice I ordered a Margarita Chica (small girl) this time!

We stopped to fill up the gas can for the generator at 20.99 pesos per liter.  I thought Yikes!, but then realized that is under $4/gallon ... much less than San Diego.

Aleida came down with friends and fresh Tilapia, which was a nice treat for dinner.

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Tilapia, avocado salad, salsa picante

Friends and family around the table.

Armando and Mayra, Bobby and Aleida, and Fran

Here’s a few picks from inside the casa.

The wood spiral staircase took a lot of work to figure out

Living room as seen from the kitchen

Dinning as seen from the entry, Fran likes the Greeter!

And from what remains of the porch.  Looking north and south.

North at mid tide

South at mid tide

We returned home with 6 kilos of San Felipe’s jumbo blue shrimp, a few packets of fresh hand made tortillas, and a couple bottles of wine.

One project I've been plugging away at for the past few years is to correct the wiring.  The house will fall into the ocean before I finish, but it is now down to a single AC point.  Either a single generator or inverter and battery pack.  That's down from three inverters!  And i may stop there, and enjoy what time is left.

It was a good trip, and we're looking forward to the next.