Thursday, December 27, 2007

LA to Cabo in 2 days - The Story

Every road trip needs a mascot. The Abominable Snowman was ours for this trip. Yes, those are 2 cans of Tab. Couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the 6 pack in Ralph's down in LA. Haven't seen that stuff since 1980.

















Water... check. Passport... check. Cell phone... check. ipod... check. Toothbrush, paste and floss... check. Beano... check. Mascot... check.

The sole purpose in making this trip from Los Angeles to Cabo San Lucas was to deliver a 4 Runner loaded with house hold supplies to my brother-in-law's father-in-law which makes him my uncle-in-law. So, we loaded up the truck, picked up some Tab, hung up the abominable snowman and threw the dog in the back... see ya.

Jerrod knew this spot to stop and take a brake... looked like an awesome spot to pitch a tent and fly a kite too.





Daisey Dug a hole.














... and barked.












This is Jerrod's 3rd of 4 Toyota 4 Runners he has "Baja'd" out. He even got personalized vanity plates. He meant for it to read baja 4 runner, but opps, he ended up by accident getting it with baja 4nr - reading baja foreigner. Fitting I suppose.




One tree worth taking a picture of.


















Jerrod likes to drive up on stuff to pose for a picture. It's what real 4x4 dudes do.



We stopped at Mama's for lunch... this is where all the Baja 1000 people stop to eat made obvious by the wall of stickers.

We drove all day and into the evening and finally stopped in Guerrero Negro for the night. We watched the Terminator with Spanish subtitles during dinner and back at the room.





A simple room with two beds, bathroom and funky ceiling stucco... made it feel like a cave.

Got up before the sun and headed off down the North road to Scorpion Bay. Saw a bunch of cactus, of course.

Jerrod had just had a new front windshield put in before the trip, but I guess it wasn't sealed properly or the North road and all it's glory opened it up or something. We heard an unfamiliar sound of air rushing in and realized it was the window... Pushed on it slightly and the whole thing almost popped out. Right before we left LA I was walking through Jerrod's garage and just happen to pick up a roll of duct tape I saw on the floor. Just thought to myself, you can always use a roll for something just when you need it most... Jerrod normally prepares very well for such trips, but this wasn't a camping trip, just a delivery, so he didn't pack this kind of stuff.
Good thing I did. A new phrase about me was born, "I'm only half as dumb as I look."


After sealing the deal, we were attacked by cows. Thank goodness for Daisey, she chased them away in grand style. I couldn't get the video rolling quick enough to catch it though.


This was the lead attack cow. Her other 2 henchwomen were right behind her in "V" attack formation.

This is Tomas Aguilar. The section of the North road we were on seems to run through his property and he feels he has a right to put up a fence, stop people and ask for a toll of sorts. He keeps a newspaper clipping in a plastic bag to show you that he was once in the newspaper and that the road goes through his property. Seems he'll take anything from money to food or water. Jerrod told him we were going camping and would be back in 2-3 days to give him something... psyche! Tomas got hood winked. I suggested we just shoot him, but Jerrod didn't have a gun.


This is a donkey... I think. We had a very unenlightened conversation about the difference between a horse, donkey and a mule. Never did figure out if this was a donkey or a mule?

Jerrod was supposed to take this picture making it look like I was holding the cactus up with my fingers, but he blew it.


We got stopped at a "safety inspection" check point and they searched the truck and found nothing. After watching them "search" I'm quite sure I could bring 3 tons of cocaine across the boarder.... not that I would, just that I could.




We stopped in Scorpion Bay for lunch at the Cantina. Jerrod had an orange soda and I had 1 beer.





On our way out of town, we were half way looking for Cassandra's boss, Crissy whom we knew would be somewhere in the area. On the first street we grove down, in less than 2 minutes of not really trying, we drove past the see through gate and I thought I saw Crissy's daughter whom I'd never actually met, but knew what she looked like. We stopped the truck and peered in. On the back of their truck I saw a Live Water Surf Shop sticker and figured this had to be them. Sure enough it was, we stopped, helped them unload their truck. Seems they had only just arrived 20 minutes before we stopped by. They showed us their place, but we had a long ride ahead of us out the South Road and we were soon back on the road.

This is dog #1... I didn't catch their names.

This is dog #2, again they didn't reveil their names. Very secretive dogs.

We nearly hit 7 or so cows like this one, but I put the camera away at this point because it was all the same scenery and you can only see pictures of cows, cactus and dirt for so long until you've had enough so...

We arrived at my aunt and uncle-in-law's new house in the Cabo area and played ping pong and slept. Next morning I got on a plane and went home... the end.










Wednesday, December 26, 2007

LA to Cabo in 2 days - The Videos

We almost ran over probably 7 or so cows over the 2 day trip. We saw some that well, didn't make it... yuck. It was hard to tell from a distance if they were bulls or cows... much confusion. You see the cows in Mexico also have horns... who knew?

It doesn't look like much to any real 4x4'er because the slope doesn't look all that steep, but it was. Maybe I should have tilted the camera for better affect?

Jerrod was talking about some thing he had heard that a tangerine needed to be travelling 60 mph rolling along the freeway before it would explode... so we tested his theory... he was wrong. We were only travelling 50 mph when this test was made.

In the name of science we conducted another experiment to prove Jerrod is a genius... or not. If you look closely in the mirror, the tangerine exploded into smitherines instantly. Not a trace could be found... even if we bothered to look.Why ruin this video moment with a comment?

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Canadians Sail in Winter Too - DEN 55

I feel bad for our European and Scandinavian friends who have to put their boats away for winter. But not us and apparently not the Canadians on the west coast near Vancouver. Scott has sent his latest photos for us to enjoy, criticize, and dream about taking our own boats out again. He's not even wearing foulies!!!



















I keep telling Scott he needs a traveller, but he likes the cockpit open. He tells me he has a tiller extension... I can't imagine sailing a Folkboat without one.




















Scott says he's got his boat balanced to weather where he can leave the helm for 4 seconds... not bad.























He's changed the numbers on Per's old sail to DEN 55, the original numbers issued to this boat.
Looks a lot like the archipelago of Sweden and a whole lot of fun for Mid December. I want to see some shots of Mid January. Maybe with an ice berg or two around you.

Saturday, December 08, 2007

Sailor's Kid Folkboat Mobile


Cassandra, Annika and I went shopping downtown this morning, then on the way back Cassandra wanted to stop on Chestnut St. and I didn't. So, we went our separate ways and I ended up down on the boat with Annika. There is always something to do on a boat. If anything, cleaning can always continue. It was a beautiful day today, around 60 degrees and very little wind and partly cloudy skies. I propped back the cover and put Annika, who was asleep in the rear of the cockpit, and I began doing what guys do when they have an hour or so to kill on their boat and after a half an hour or so, Annika began to stir. I was right in the middle of some little project I had created and I needed a distraction for her so I could continue. Out of necessity, I designed the Sailor's Kid Folkboat Mobile. It started out with a few shackles attached to the baby carrier and soon grew into a very funky design with anything I could find including a 2 wheel block. She loved it. Sweet, I have a daughter who can be entertained with spare boat parts. Life is good.