We wanted to check out Todos Santos. See the beach scene. The tourist scene. The art scene. The food scene. ✔️✔️✔️✔️ The first pics are of Cerritos Beach Hotel aka, Desert Moon. The surf scene was surprisingly, to me, very busy. Cool beach with whales 🐋 breaching and spouting in the waters beyond. We then cruised through beach neighborhoods and McMansions. Niki got her bike ride on the beach. Then headed up to Todos Santos for a leisurely day of being a tourist. It is a beautiful town. Amazing good food and friendly people. The Airbnb we’re staying at is sweet! Looks like a pile of construction debris from the street. But is really nice once you go around. Tomorrow, back to the mountains!

We woke to the sound of a guy talking on a microphone from the plaza. First thought was, do they really blast out 6:00am Sunday service here? But as I listened while we got ready to go, I never heard any mention of Jesus or anything Lord related. We left the hotel and rode over to the plaza for start pics and to see what was going on. What was happening was a triathlon. So free a few start pics we were off. We rode through the sprawl and outskirts of town. Rode by street dogs and horses. Through neighborhoods that Cabo’s good fiscal fortune had not touched.

Twitch a welcomed turn off the highway and on the gravel road, we were on our way to the mountains. The sandy road wasn’t bad. I think Friday’s storm helped firm the road up. The climb wasn’t bad and the heat of the day was still holding off. We made it to the first pool in good time. Unfortunately, the beautiful oasis was littered with cow or vaca shit. And there were other, all animal, signs of shit. So still having plenty of water and eating a quick leftover slice of pizza, we moved on. The riding went by fast. Stopping for snacks and coverage from random shade trees. Finally we found our water spot to filer, make lunch and have a break.

After lunch we made our way through the last of the mountain section. The heat was was working me, but the riding was good. Out of the mountains and down on the coast we were greeted by strong winds from the Pacific. The gas in our tank was pushing empty so we opted for Cerritos instead of pushing to Todos Santos. Riding our way through the maze of abandoned resort hotels and surf bum vanlife communities, we found a hotel and place to eat. Even caught the OT of the Superbowl. Good day to start the trip.

Time to reassemble the bikes and get them packed up. But first, breakfast. Then a haircut. And shopping for a mascot. Then bikes. But first, fix a thorn that was still in my tire from last fall. Mmm…bacon! And after, play tourist. Eat at a mom and pop cafe. Shop for food for next couple days. Visit the plaza and watch the kids dance. Then go out to eat and watch a great cover band. A band who did an excellent job covering tunes from Galactic, Sting, Bob Marley and others. Old Town San Jose is pretty sweet. And finish off with some pics of Hotel Colli. Our bags are stored safely away.. we’ll be up early to hit the trail. Tomorrow, 60 miles. Or 20? We’ll see?

Kids rehearsing before the nights show.

Drove down to SLC the night before. Typical winters drive of snow, black ice, and wind. But the eerie absence of animals. Last winter really took a huge toll on deer, elk and pronghorn. We woke up to a snow storm in SLC. But the roads were cleared and easy to find long term parking. Flight was super fast, one movie and a couple episodes of Cheers. We landed in San Jose del Cabo to humidity and rain. Not expected, but welcomed. Rest of the pics are from our first night. Old Town is busier than I expected, but a lot of fun. Our hotel, Hotel Colli, met expectations; clean, quiet, centrally located and will store our bags while we’re gone.

Bikes are almost packed. Gear is mostly packed. Course is pretty much decided on. So we’re right on schedule. Go to “Ride Map” to find our RSS icon and see where we are on trail.

Possible route. Mostly correct. Till it’s not.

route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45461460?privacy_code=OMJi8uvhDTqVJi7kkW5xvCfRh5JpSZyW

Focus of the trip:
Adventure together. Embrace warm temps and sun. Ride bikes. Embrace a new to us culture. Eat and drink well. Ride single track. Swim with the fishes, snorkel. See new above ground and below water flora and fauna. Smile. Relax. Have fun. Reconnaissance for future trips with friends.