In less than an hour, we were off for the border. By 11:00, we were having breakfast in La Salina watching overhead surf and enjoying a much needed Bloody Mary. The obligatory ice stop, two unplanned excursions through the back streets of TJ and Ensenada, and we were ready for the drive across the Valle de Trinidad.

We stopped only to celebrate friends that couldn’t be with us in the places that they like most. One thing that stands out from our drive across the peninsula, the military in Baja is out in force. We went through no fewer than four check points where the military inspection units were dug in deep. Efficient and kind, the soldiers that we encountered were clearly there to do a job and do it well. The ‘lawlessness’ that has everyone stateside in a panic was nowhere evident.

We got in to San Felipe just before dark and went straight to Don Jesus Hotel to check in. Don Jesus is the only place I know where you can wheel your motorcycle into the room and sleep next to it. Cool. Drinks and steaks made for a fitting end to a smooth trip across the desert. (Sorry, no pics of the food, but it wasn’t all that spectacular).