Hiking outside of Loreto

Written by Carol:

Today we woke up to sunlight softly streaming through the mango tree outside our window. After Mike went on a run around the Malecon, we decided to explore the town of Loreto. It is a sweet, mellow town nestled in some jaw dropping scenery... the Sea of Cortez and the Sierra Gigante mountains. There are also a few vulnerable estuaries, a few of which have been heavily developed. That part gives me a stomach ache.

We saw the very first mission, the inspiration for Father Serra's trek up the California coast, building beautiful missions, enslaving local indigenous peoples. It was interesting for me to see, having studied the missions in school growing up, although also disturbing in terms of its purpose as well.

This afternoon we went on a hike up an arroyo of the Sierra Gigante. It reminded me quite a lot of Canyonlands, though with a different pallate. Highlights included the turquoise, purple, and red rocks hosting a stark backdrop for the chartruse cacti and bright white mesquite, turkey vultures drying their wings after a bath, and stumbling upon the skeleton of a baby calf or deer that was some predators meal.

We also walked along an estuary for awhile admiring the variety of sea birds. We were ignorant as to the name of our favorite, but it had a black body, and bright red beak and eyes... very dramatic.

We cooked our own dinner tonight- beans and tortillas and avocado... not quite as good as some we have bought at taquerias (I think the best burrito I have ever eaten cost me 80 cents and was made of fresh beans and a hand made tortilla in Todos Santos), but very satisfying, nonetheless. Fresh avocadoes cannot be beat!