Day 4.
Catavina to San Felipe.
After a long day on the bikes we woke up refreshed in the Mission Catavina Hotel. The outstanding setting of Catavina may have had something to do with it. Mission Catavina is quite the place in the middle of nowhere.
Before we headed out it was time to change the filter skin. This was the first time I had changed the skin on the trip.
Time to get gas! My bike had died on the 2-lane highway into Catavina the night before when it ran out of gas because I had forgot to switch the petcock to reserve. During the day this wouldn’t be a big deal but travelling through the desert at 50mph with no ambient light when your bike shuts down along with your headlight is f**$#n scary!
We met this interesting dude while getting gas. He is from the U.K. He told us he had been living with $0 (yes zero with a 0) for a few years now. He would find work (metal worker by trade) wherever he was and trade work for food, clothing, shelter, whatever it was he needed right then, but never money. I think he had it pretty good. I work to give all my money to my wife who only gives me shelter occasionally and rarely feeds me. He had been living in a flat in London the past 2 years and he said he made metal sculptures throughout the city. He told us owning a bicycle was a big deal. He now had to rely on other people because he had a bicycle. If something went wrong, he would have to rely on someone else to fix it or to get the necessary parts. It seemed he was having a mental crisis over this. He was heading over to the hotel to see if he could work for a couple of days to get enough food and water to continue his journey.
Since he was so in tune with the most basic human necessities, we sprayed the god given dirt into his teeth via our rear tires as we yelled “Get a job ya bum!” and sped off on our internal combustion engines that we were so thankful for.
At least he was able to Brexit…
We headed south in search of a trail that would take us to the east side of the peninsula. We had excellent instructions on how to find it. “Go south until you see a huge pile of rocks, then look for a wash on your left.” Umm, this is Baja, thanks a lot, very helpful.
Well, it actually was helpful, and we were able to find the route fairly easily. We had a gradual climb up a double track to lead us to this Vista.
We headed down this road which dropped us into a canyon below.
Looks like Musquin has staked out his claim for next year when he retires after KTM drops him and Suzuki is the only one who offers him a contract. I wonder how Mathilde feels about the move?
We made our way down the wash. Then it opened up into a fun, fast, twisty, sandy road.
Elbows in for aerodynamics!
We popped out on the “new” highway and headed south. We were headed to Coco’s Corner. Since we were on the new highway we bypassed Coco’s by accident. It took us a few miles to realize it and we turned around went to the “old” highway and found Coco’s. Unfortunately, Coco wasn’t there. He was visiting Ensenada. He did have cold beers stocked and waiting for us.
We left Coco’s and headed north towards Gonzaga bay.
These guys are getting away with Gerry’s gummy bears.
We stopped for lunch at Alfonsina’s.
After lunch we headed north towards San Felipe. More spectacular views.
We made it to San Felipe and went and saw our friend Stefano at Condor Baja Tours.
We asked Stefano about a place to stay and he recommended Hotel Georges. We booked a room and headed to the Malecon for some drinks and dinner. I picked up a few trinkets for the ladies and we headed back to the hotel.
But what about Doug?!
Well, Doug is still alive. I received a message from him stating that he had stayed the night at the truck stop, not without incidence. I won’t get into that here. He rode north on the highway back to San Quintin. He saw a truck with a trailer with a couple of bikes on it filling up at a gas station. He asked the guys if they were heading north and would they be willing to give him a lift. They said yes and yes. They were heading to Ensenada. Doug hopped in.
Now, one of these guys in the picture is famous. You have heard (of) him, trust me. If you know who it is, DM us and tag 2 people on Instagram at Ariete-u.s.a with the correct answer for your chance to win a pair of goggles! More details on Instagram.
Need to rewind? Here is DAY 3
