The Slow Baja Winter Expedition 2024 - Day 1

When my good friend & travel buddy Michael Emery of the Slow Baja Podcast called and invited me to join him on the inaugural Slow Baja Winter Expedition it was a no-brainer. He would be leading a group of Baja enthusiasts on 7-day Baja road trip to San Ignacio, Baja California Sur and back to the border. He asked that I helped with the "sweep" at the back of the pack.

I later found out that Baja amigo Matthew Schnitzer of Barbers for Baja (if you don't know all the good they are doing for the children of Baja, click on the link and help them!) would be going along as well so we could kick off Baja Beisbol, I was100% in! I needed someone to road trip with me so was excited when my brother Mike and my good college friend John decided to come along on what would be an epic and memorable trip south of the border.

The group Emery was leading included seasoned Baja travelers and as well as newbies to the peninsula. Each day would be different and exciting. The experience consisted of visiting the various landscapes of the Baja peninsula from the Pacific Ocean to the Sea of Cortez, and the deserts and mountains in between. Driving dirt roads, ranch stays, seeing the friendly whales of San Ignacio, enjoying simple campsites, a visit to a 17th century mission, delivering baseball gear to the kids of Baja through Baja Beisbol, and meeting the wonderful people of Baja which made this an unforgettable journey. The added bonus was the people who we traveled with on those seven days. Everyone seemed to easily flow together and made for a "relatively" smooth trip (more on that later). We all enjoyed the "Slow Baja" bond.

Follow along as I post photos plus a short description of each day's experience.

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Day One

We met up with some of the group on the US side of the border at Tecate. We then crossed together, had our passports stamped, picked up our FMM cards and then headed south on Highway 3 to Valle de Guadalupe. We met up with Michael, Matt and the rest of the group at Tacos del Valle for a quick bite to eat. Pretty good tacos too.

Now that the group was whole, we traveled together to our destination for the night; the amazing Rancho La Bellota in the hills east of the wine country. Our cordial hosts, Raul & Caroline Aguiar, greeted us and arranged camping spots for each vehicle. Soon after, we were led to a delicious "lamb on a spit" dinner family-style in the ranch dinning room. After eating, a bonfire awaited us along with drinks and conversation. It gave us the opportunity to learn more about each other before we headed out on our journey together. 

 What a special place. Highly recommended!

 

Tacos del Valle

Rancho La Bellota
 
 
Baja Bound Insurance

Rancho La Bellota cabins
Our ranch-style meal

Our host, Raul. Notice the Tequila Fortaleza hat ;)

Day 2 - https://bajavisitor.blogspot.com/2024/04/slow-baja-winter-expedition-day-2.html

 

Rancho La Bellota - https://www.facebook.com/bajarancho.labellota/

Tacos del Valle - https://maps.app.goo.gl/SG8MGinobcZQ2JzR7

Barbers for Baja - https://www.barbersforbaja.org/

Baja Bound Insurance - http://www.mexonline.com/bajabound.htm

More photos and information on:

@BajaVisitor Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/bajavisitor

BajaVisitor Community Facebook Group. Join at 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/735042030177279

 

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