Baja Peninsula 2

Enthusiastic group ride. Near Vizcaíno.

I stopped to camp just before Vizcaíno, far enough for good camping, but close enough to have cell service. This was the longest time I've been without internet since I've ever had internet. I enjoyed not having internet, but some friends and family were very concerned about me. 

This brought up the question of an SOS beacon. I think that these devices are only as good as the local search and rescue resources. Soliciting help from a passerby is perhaps a more realistic solution in an emergency. So they primarily just give reassurance to worried friends and family. After those 9 days without internet, my mom bought me one, and I agreed to use it. I acknowledge that in theory it could save my life. 

The next day in Vizcaíno, I met Cameron and Declan. Cameron's website reads:

"I'm Cameron. I'm riding a tandem bicycle from the top of North America to the bottom of South America, with the back seat filled by the people meet along the way."

Sticker from Cameron.

He's been on the road for 7 months now, and more than half of the riding he's done alone!

Some sort of old brick furnace.

The furnace must have gotten very hot. This rock appears to have been melted and turned to glass. 

I encountered a desert oasis. A good opportunity to relax, do laundry, and eat dates from the palms.

Many of the dates were bitter and had these little worms in them. I think I accidentally ate a few worms.

I was looking for a place to rest and play my record. The sign spoke to me. 'This is not a high speed road.'

UFO rock.

Along the Pacific coast, I pass an American couple in a car with a newborn baby. They say three other cyclists are just ahead of me.  I ride with few breaks for 2-3 hours, and finally catch up to them. They had stopped for the day at a rancho. 

I asked to use the internet. She said yes, for $50 (2.7USD). I didn't really need it, but felt bad about changing my mind once I realized it cost money. 

I took a shower. Our host made dinner, breakfast, and small talk. 

The cost was $665 (36USD). This is about two days budget for biking in the US.

In all my solo bike touring, this was the first time I'd ever paid for a place to sleep. But wild camping along Baja is abundant, and I had plenty of food and water. There was even a nice stream along this section. So the food, water, shelter is not what I wanted to pay for. More, it was an effort to develop a more social style of bike touring.

Joe and Alan have a mountaineering background, and they've cycled most of South America. Joe has taught high school math, physics, and outdoor leadership. Back in New Zealand, she plays in a 15-person ukulele group. Alan's career was in landscape architecture. After committee work for 12 years, he got bored and did consulting work. With concerns about the morality of his consulting work, he was glad to retire early. 

Becky (late 20s?) manages a concert venue in Salt Lake City. She is friends with a longboarding champion, gave her cat to her mom, and loves her dog more than all the stars in the sky above. When I asked her what the hardest part about traveling is, Becky said "nothing".

We found ourselves riding at different paces the next day, and I didn't see them again. 

Good view.