It has been nearly a week since we last updated, and in that time we have criss-crossed the mountains on the Baja Peninsula, endured some agonizingly straight roads, and stayed in some very interesting places.  These places included a very welcoming RV park, and cement pads outside of two different elementary schools.  We reached La Paz near the bottom of the long Baja peninsula after nearly 1000 miles of desert riding.  In La Paz we were welcomed by two amazing hosts: Jerry and Celine.  These two not only put us up for three nights, and fed us delicious dinners and breakfast, they also hooked us up with an amazing snorkeling tour in the waters around La Paz.

I will just briefly include a few photos from our last few days before La Paz.

Now, on to the main story of the post: our amazing snorkeling trip.  Six of us, the Philtrons, Tyler, Menno, Kate, and Spencer, joined a father-son guide pair (Leo and Israel) on their boat.  We headed out to the Marine national park of Los Islotes to snorkel with stunning fish and friendly sea lions.  It was doubly incredible because there were so many schools of brilliant fish of all types, and the sea lions were inquisitive, playful, and not at all hesitant to swim right up to us.  On numerous occasions they swam within two feet of us and frolicked endlessly with each other.

After that, Leo and Israel took us to a picture perfect beach for more snorkeling.  While here we saw numerous puffer fish and even a zebra moray eel.  It was another incredible spot.

We stopped two more places before the day was out: a coral reef for more snorkeling, and a spot just offshore where the whale sharks are known to stop and feed.  Sure enough, we found some whale sharks!  We were able to jump in the water with them and swim alongside, but the water was so murky that there were no good pictures to take.  You’ll just have to trust us that the whale sharks are big animals!

After the trip was over we were all exhausted.  Our incredible hosts picked us up from the marina and took us back to their house for home-made chicken curry and apple crisp.  La Paz really is heaven!

After a final good night of sleep, we packed up the next day and left to catch the ferry to Mazatlan, where we are right now.  The ferry terminal was about 12 miles north of town, and there were no signs guiding us there.  Luckily, there was really only one possible road and we had no problem locating the terminal.  The boat was somewhat industrial, and we stashed the bicycles in a weird room full of switches and control mechanisms.  It seemed secure though, so we didn’t worry about the bikes at all.  The ride to Mazatlan took about 18 hours, during which we alternately napped in comfortable chairs and slept in our tent on the deck.  Thanks for the Dramamine Mom, neither of us got seasick!

Now we are relaxing for the afternoon in Mazatlan while we gather supplies for the road ahead.  We found a reasonably priced hotel right on the boardwalk in old town with FOUR beds, wifi, AC, a pool, and tons of character.  All for less than $15 each.  We love Mexico!