[Main Page]
Dive trip to Baja.
Punta Banda & La Bufadora.
WHEN:
September 12 to September 16, 2002.
WHERE:
We stayed at Campo La Jolla on Punta Banda, BCS. Click here.
WHO:
Rich, Marc, Matt & Lori, Michelle, Jeff (Jeffx4), Mike, Rick, & John.
Here's our stories:
Michelle's picture
of everyone (Except John) while we had lunch in La Bufadora.
Let me start off with part of what Michelle's story is about how all of this started out.
Thursday, September 12, 2002 - A first occurred for me... not only was I on
time to the rendevous point (a.k.a. Camp Pendleton Rest Area), but I, or
actually we (a.k.a. The Tres Amigos = me, Jeff (a.k.a. Jeffrey, Jeffrey,
Jeffrey, Jeffrey and Mike (a.k.a. Shrek) arrived first. I know, amazing -
but please hold your applause. We joined Rich (a.k.a. Elder Woody), Marc
(a.k.a. Sparky), Matt (a.k.a. Forrest Gump), Lori (a.k.a. "Always on my
List," ever helpful and GLOW wrestling pal) and Rick and commenced our trek
to the land of cold water, sand, Tequila, sun and Chicklets. [An Aside -
Remember the game Frogger - Similar to Rich's freeway driving] Before the
"Out of the Country" rules could apply, we secured ourselves with Mexican
Insurance (its true value unknown and fortunately untested) and had our
"Last American Supper" at Outback Steakhouse. [An Aside - The Place was
really packed]
This is a great start to our story, let's just say Michelle has a "Way with words". Now
for part of Matt's Story, for a bit more detail about our "Border crossing".
There were NO red lights at the border, although we did have a slight detour
before getting on the toll road. Someone (no names mentioned here) took a
wrong turn and we ended up on Revolution Boulevard in Tijuana. The Tijuana
strip hasn't changed much except for one thing: we noticed an Internet café.
It caught us all by surprise.
Michelle had this to add...
Rich's Baja Scuba Diving Tour included an add-on, a tour through
downtown Tijuana, with our posse looking much like a Chevy Chase sequel -
National Lampoon's Mexican Vacation.
Back to Matt's rendition, makes me look more sane...
We finally made it to Campo La Jolla after midnight. Most of us were tired and
decided to go to bed while a few of the others decided to go look at the ocean
water.
It must be mentioned at this point, that Michelle learned a lot about
going into the water getting her pants all wet, as Michelle put it...
Ever ready to have fun, Jeff, Mike and me
trekked to the beach and waded in, guarded with the warmth from hard cider,
a creation of Mike's.
LESSON LEARNED RULE #1: Do Not Wear Your Only Pants
Into The Ocean (even if they do zip off into shorts) - NOTHING dries in
LaBufadora, Mexico.
Here are a few shots of our "Our Scuba Shanty Town":
Michelle's picture.
These two shots are Jeff & Mike (Jeffreyx4, Shrek) and Rick doing his best
to "Protect the camp". As you can see, other than the fact that these people
were a lot of fun, from all of the "Tanks", you would think it would be easy to
find us here at Campo La Jolla.
Michelle's pictures.
After a night od sleep and able to "sleep in" (Right?)... How did Michelle
put it?
Friday, September 13, 2002 - As best said by Matt, we were woken up by the
noise of "Mexican Roosters," (a.k.a., a pack of wild dogs). Despite
comments for an early start, we relaxed a bit and some of us enjoyed a
breakfast of Campions - cookies...
LESSON LEARNED RULE #2: Bring A Beach Chair With You To LaBufadora, Mexico.
Time to go diving in Arbolitos Cove, let's start with what Michelle
recalls...
Dive #1 - Arbolitos Cove, Mexico
[An aside - Add-on #2 to Rich's Baja Scuba Diving Tour - the off-roading
that takes place in order to arrive at the dive sites] Almost an adventure
itself, I have decided that I hate DIRT. Rich, Lori & Matt dove together
to acclimate Matt with his new drysuit. Congratulations Matt. Rick, Mike,
Marc, Jeff and I enjoyed a very cold dive adorned with kelp, sea anenomas,
Lingcod and much more. Despite the cold temperatures and lack of
creatures, the dive was beautiful. To look up and see the sun shining
through the kelp was outstanding. Diving in a cove also allowed us all to
excel with our navigation skills. Believe it or not, Mike did not get
lost.
LESSON LEARNED RULE #3: Bring A Dry Suit When Diving In LaBufadora.
Warm Water Is Nonexistent, Even When You Add Your Own Personal Heating
Element To Your Wet Suit :(
LESSON LEARNED RULE #4: Bring More Than One Towel With You While Diving in
La Bufadora Mexico because NOTHING Dries in LaBufadora, Mexico.
The highlight of the dive however, occurred while I was washing my scuba gear off.
Busy completing the task at hand, I missed the unveiling of a NAKED Mexican
sea urchin harvesting man.
NOTE: Missed opportunity #1 to see a new "private" and I missed it!
After diving, we traveled into LaBufadora and had lunch. We toured
the town and visited the Blowhole. We returned to camp with the idea that
we would relax and plan a night dive. Rich, Matt and Jeff traveled into
town to provide us with our liquid refreshments for the evening. Does it
surprise anyone that one of the essentials for Rich Parker's Famous
Ultimate Margarita's involves liquor that is bottled in a container the
shape of an anatomically correct female profile?
[An Aside - Hence, the a.k.a. Elder Woody]
Lori, Mike and I stayed at our Shanty Scuba Camp and
rested, talked and began the inaugural WWF Match.
LESSON LEARNED RULE #4: NEVER Wrestle Shrek. No Explanation Needed...
Rich and Matt joined us and Rick and Marc went on their Adventure Dive #2
for the day, which from what we heard incorporated off-roading, diving and
HIKING. The later being the unplanned portion of the adventure... We all
had dinner at Celia's in LaBufadora, minus Rick, who went on a road trip to
Ensenada, the true agenda of this departure unknown to us. After dinner we
embarked upon Dive #2 of our Baja or Bust trip...
.
Michelle's picture.
I need to add here that Arbolitos Cove is what I call a "Working Cove"
because this is the place where the local fisherman & Urchin Divers go out
of and bring their catches into. Here are a few shots of Arbolitos Cove...
I need to add here that Marc & Rick did a 2nd dive while Matt, Jeff & I
went into town, as Michelle put it above. So to get the story on this dive
and Marc's story, Click here
Back to Michelle's story...
Dive #2 - Arbolitos Cove, Mexico - Night Dive
[An aside - Add-on #3 to Rich's Baja Scuba Diving Tour - Night
Off-roading... Not intended for the weak and/or undisciplined, probably
not for the intoxicated either]
As promised to Mike, since he was only
adorned in a 3/2mm surf wetsuit, our night dive was relatively short.
Despite the coldness that ice cubed Mike, the remaining divers, Marc, I,
Matt and Jeff all contended that we were warmer than on our earlier dive.
NOTE: Underwater warmth can be determined by one factor, when you pee.
Baby lobsters were caught and released and Jeff had fun becoming Jeffrey
Dundee, Lobster Hunter.
We returned to camp and enjoyed a somewhat burning, somewhat
smoldering campfire. The firewood was courtesy of Matt and Lori.
Saturday, September 14, 2002 - Breakfast... we had a real breakfast.
LESSON LEARNED RULE #5: Bring $1's , $5's and $10's to Mexico - NO ONE has
change in LaBufadora.
John joined us and showed me, what I considered after
sleeping in my tent with the sand and attack dogs, his Mexican castle
(a.k.a. - the house he rented for the weekend). Okay, at first I thought
that he was a little high maintenance but in hindsight, count me in for
next time...After breakfast we returned to Arbolitos Cove.
Dive #3 - Arbolitos Cove, Mexico
The entire gang dove. Rich led us on an underwater adventure through the
kelp beds and along the walls. Again, the sunlight sparkled through the
water and kelp, creating an underwater wonderland. I had the privilege of
going rocketing through the chute with Rich.
I need to add here that this was a very enjoyable dive and we had a LOT
of bottom time, Lori did really well on her air supply and most of us just
hovered in the kelp, right at the thermocline. Very good dive, one of our best
during this trip.
We returned to camp, got our tanks that needed filling and brought
them to Dale's Scuba Shop in LaBufadora. We returned Celia's for lunch and
drinks too. Yeah, I said drinks, Elder Rich allowed us to have a drink...
Thanks dad. Maybe I should not be thanking you, in hindsight, that event
may have been the nexus of the events that followed... We decided to dive
in the bay right in LaBufadora.
Dive #4 - Arbolitos Cove, Mexico
Again we had our entire gang, minus John on this dive. Unfortunately, this
dive was less than desirable. However, I did do my longest headstand ever.
Sommersaulters watch out. There is a new trick in town. Jeff got sick and
almost fed the nonexistent fish & Marc surfaced with him. Rich, Lori, Matt
and Rick decided to surface due to the lack of reef, marine life or
anything remotely interesting to look at. Mike and I decided to tough it
out and navigated in. Sand dollars and sand was all that was available for
our viewing pleasure until... The highlight of the dive occurred while we
were all changing over but... it is not my story to tell, however... NOTE:
Missed opportunity #2 to see a new "private" and I missed it! And this one
was up close and personal... Are you, as the reader, beginning to detect a
pattern here?
Anyway - Drinking, swimming and Round 2 of the WWF wrestling was
undertaken. Before I go any further, I should emphasis the DRINKING
part... Lori, "always on my list," joined Mike and me for the LaBufadora
Marathon swim (entering the water while the sun was shining and departing
well after the sun had retired for the day) which incorporated the WWF
wrestling match. Again, in hindsight, I am sure that there is some rule
out there that prohibits the use of alcohol around water but... Despite
even my most earnest of efforts, I do not remember much of the remainder of
the evening. I do, however, remember John on the beach, something about a
hot shower and being extremely COLD. Otherwise - my memory and ability to
disclose the events as they unfolded is prohibited. However - I do
remember the following: tequila, apple juice, Woody, playing with fire
cause you to wet the bed, chattering teeth, Lori's niceness, Jeffrey,
Jeffrey, Jeffrey, Jeffrey, "right behind you," Turtle, Turtle, Turtle, "I
gotta pee," Lori, Rich and a scuba tank by the fire, blankets, blankets
getting burned, the recitation of the entire Forest Gump movie, someone
being four years old...
Sunday, September 15, 2002 - Sunday AM = Sleeping in. The campsite looked
like a tornado passed through... Breakfast.
Dive #5 - Camp Rhino, Mexico
The dive was at an unknown location that we called Camp Rhino... Something
about a group of guys, on top of the cliff above the ocean, holding hands.
Maybe a Mexican version of the Halley Bop experience. The 4x4ing was a
real experience to reach this site but the dive was worth it. The steps
down were a bit challenging but I would not say that they were worse than
all the steps at Crescent Bay or Cress. Just my opinion... I do have
youth on my side. Rick decided against the dive and got an early start
home. Although Lori did not dive, she helped her fellow divers by carrying
down weights and fins. The dive was great. The entry and exit were a
little tricky due to the rocks but beautiful. After existing, I got to
enjoy all my fellow divers (All MEN) rolling around on the rocks in the one
foot surf zone. If you should doubt the accuracies of the foregoing
statement, Lori saw and enjoyed it too.
We all went and had lunch at some undesirable place in LaBufadora. I
will spare you all the details of that lunch and Marc, if you say anything,
you are off the list forever. We returned to the campsite and the Tres
Amigos packed everything up. After showering one last time in the always
cold salt water, we headed off. Arriving home around 9:00 p.m., our
Rich's Baja Scuba Diving Tour came to an end.
Matt's Story:
We all met at the "Meeting place" (The Camp Pendleton Rest area) at 7:15 PM.
Before crossing the border, we stopped for GAS and the "last US meal" at Outback
Steak House. There were NO red lights at the border, although we did have a
slight detour before getting on the toal road. Someone (no names mentioned here)
took a wrong turn and we ended up on Revolution Boulevard in Tijuana. The
Tijuana strip hasn't changed much except for one thing: we noticed an Internet
café. It caught us all by surprise. We finally made it to Camp La Jolla after
midnight.
Most of us were tired and decided to go to bed while a few of the others decided
to go look at the ocean water. Friday morning we were all rudely awaken by a
pack of barking dogs. This is what some of us were calling a Mexican alarm clock.
After that rude awakening we decided we were already awake and it was time to dive.
Rich showed us Albolitios Cove for the very first time. This cove is a place were
the locals like to fish for sea urchins. I hear Japanese folks really like them.
This was my very first dive in a dry suite, so Rich hung out with Lori and I to
show me how to do dry suite diving. THANK YOU RICH!! The viz was about 30 feet
on this dive, but I did not see too much because I was more concerned about getting
comfortable in a new piece of gear.
After we packed our gear we headed to La Bufadora for lunch. I think most of us had
tacos and beer. It was a real treat. Afterwards we got the waiter to take a picture
of us all. Hopefully we can get these on Rich's web page soon. Then we decided to
shop around to do what tourists normally do to try and talk the Mexican vendors down.
One of them was yelling "Hey Amigo, buy something you don't want or don't need!"
Haha!! At least he was honest about it. We went to see the blow hole. (there is
always one person who gets the wrong idea, isn't there?!) The blow hole is where the
water surges up against the rocks in a certain area to create this big spray of sea
water straight up in the air. It's a treat to see.
Back at camp we hung out for the afternoon and decided that we would go back to
La Bufadora for a quick bite to eat before going back to Albolitios Cove for some
night diving. Actually, I think some of us caught a few Zs because of the dogs
that woke us up so early. The restaurant we decided to eat at had good food and
good service. Rich and I ate this incredible dinner that was shrimp wrapped with
squid with a clam sauce on top. YUM! YUM!
Rich and Lori decided to pass for the night dive and Rick had already decided to
go back to Ensenada for dinner. I had my lobster bag so we decided to hunt for some
lobster. Unfortunately, the two we caught were too short to even think about think
extra large crawfish. We mostly stayed just inside the cove area. I noticed lots of
small crabs crawling around on the bottom and I even saw some baby lobster about
the size of a person's finger. Because the water temperature was so cold, this dive
only lasted about 26 minutes, but all had fun.
Back at camp we all slept well that night due to the rude awakening the night before.
Saturday morning we had breakfast at a small coffee shop outside of camp. John met up
with us this morning. We dove at Albolitios Cove for a third time, but this time we
went out and to the left. I think this was the only dive that John joined us for,
someone correct me if I'm wrong. I must say this dive was a lot of fun. We swam
though a huge kelp forest and several schools of fish. It was great. There were
all kinds of life. The viz was at least 40 feet on this dive. We went back to camp
to pick up more tanks for a second Saturday dive. This time we decided to go to eat
and dive in La Bufadora.
On to the diving part we thought it would be a good dive because there were lots of
kelp beds everywhere, but once we went under there wasn't much to see except sand.
Jeff wasn't feeling well and Marc went to the surface with him. Michelle was actually
standing on her head under water while we were waiting Entertainment for us all.
We all decided to cut this dive short. Some folks claimed they saw a "one eyed eel"
on the way back. As Rich likes to say "you had to have been there"!
Saturday night... it's very difficult for me to write about this event because, Let's just
say, I don't remember much. I swear I am not a drunk and I only drink on occasion.
One of the things I do remember: Jeff's name (I will never forget it now thanks to Mike).
Although I do remember Sunday morning, God my head was pounding from the tequila hangover.
Sunday morning. We decided to try a different dive site. Instead of going right to
Albolitios Cove we went to the left to what we thought was originally Kennedy Cove, but it
turns out Kennedy Cove and El Zepplin are one and the same. For some reason there was a
sign at the fork in the road that morning. It pointed to the left and said something
about a Rhino so we are naming this site Rhino Cove. It was a wild ride on the dirt road
getting there lots of bumps and steep inclines. Rich all had our attention when he
talked about his previous visit to this cove. We debated for a while weather or not
we wanted to dive this site because of the steep cliff, the steep steps going down and
the rocky bottom. Let me tell you it was well worth it. This dive had to be one of the
top 10 dives for most everyone there. The viz was about 60 to 70 feet. There was SO much
life and it was all SO VERY colorful. Ask anyone who went and odds are they won't shut up
about it.
Sunday afternoon, we ate a different spot that some of us would rather forget about. Have
you ever smelled cheese that smells like a dirty rotten wash rag?! YUCK!! I'll leave it at that.
Sunday afternoon we kicked back for a while before saying goodbye to Michelle, Mike, and Jeff.
Rick had already left earlier that day.
Sunday night Rich, Marc, Lori and I decided to go into Ensenada to grab a bite to eat and
walk the main drag. We found a nice quiet little restaurant where we able to talk to one
of the English speaking locals about Mexican history and politics. It was very interesting
conversation indeed.
Monday morning, Rich, Marc, Lori, and I dove at Albolitios Cove one last time. We got to
the site at about 7:45 AM and noticed that there were lots of cars parked and lots of locals
were just standing around. We decided to wait around and check things out. Sure enough at
8:00 AM the locals started launching their boats for sea urchin harvesting. Once the ramp was
clear it was our time to get in the water. This time we decided to go to the right and between
the rocks. The conditions were not as great this time. Viz was only about 8 to 10 feet and
there was a little surge happening, but to quote Rich again "it's better than working".
At Noon we left camp and returned home. We missed the restaurant where we planned to have lobster
for lunch, but no big deal. We had fun at the boarder watching Rich haggle with some Mexican's
for some ice cream and a glass vase, neither of which he ever bought. Once we were across the
border safely, we decided to stop at In-N-Out for some American food for a change. When we got
out of Rich's truck, we noticed that one of Rich's bags was missing from the top of the truck.
It just happened to be the bag that had his dry suite and a regulator. None of us heard or
saw the bag fall off of the top of the truck while it was moving. I felt so bad and bought
everyone lunch and we all chipped in some more for Rich to get his truck cleaned up.
Sorry again Rich!
On a positive note, I think we made some good memories with a great group of people.
Thanks to all and thank you Rich for inviting us all. The End!
Matt Britt
Marc's
LA BUFADORA, BAJA MEXICO
Trip Report
SEPTEMBER 12 - SEPTEMBER 16
This trip to Mexico was my first trip down with Rich and the group. The plan was to have upwards
of 15 people from (SouthCoastdivers.com) caravan down to La Bufadora to spend a few days camping
and diving.
Thursday night 9/12/2002: We had 8 people (Rich, Matt and his wife Lori, myself, Michelle, Jeff,
Mike [aka. Shrek], and Rick) caravan down in three cars. Each car had a CB radio in it for group
communications. The drive down took about 5 hours including a stop at Outback in San Diego for
dinner. The group decided at dinner that a 'Snipe hunt' was needed in the 'HONOR' of our two rookie
hunters: Michelle and Lori. More on the hunt later.
We finally arrived at the camp area, Camp La Jolla at around 12:30 am. We quickly setup our area
and called it a night. NO drinking or diving on this night.
Friday, 9/13/02: We started our day when the local stray dog community ran by our camp site at
around 8am, chasing after a police car. I not sure I understand WHY the dogs where chasing after
the Cops (Maybe the doggies wanted some fresh bacon?). After breakfast, the group drove to Arbolitos
Cove where we did our first dive. The water temperature was a balmy 55 degrees. The water WAS warmer,
but Mike complained that the water was TOO warm. Therefore, we prayed to the mitty scuba diving
God in the sky to turn down the temperature in the like spa-like cove. Rich took Matt and Lori off
to the side to "teach" Matt how to use his new dry suit. The rest of use explored the reef structure
and cove to the east. (FYI, Skrek was wearing a 3/2mm wetsuit).
Dive #1: Dive Buddies: The entire group. Time: ??, Depth: ??, Fish: ??, Viz: 25-30ft. After our 1st
dive of the day, the youngest member of the group (I think it was Rich????) decided to return us to
camp for a morning siesta. After about an hour of twiddling our thumbs Rick and I decided to do a
second dive. Everything went 100% according to plan, including our navigation. (Yes, we planned to
exit at the OTHER cove, remember this is MY story!).
Dive #2: Dive Buddies: Rick and I. Time: ??, Depth: ??, Fish: ?? Viz: 25-30ft. After lunch in La Bufadora,
we recessed back to camp for another siesta. We decided we NEEDED to do a night dive. Again, Mike
was having trouble staying warm, so Mike decided he would show off his celebrated swimming skills and
swam laps around us. After the dive Mike had a 'NEW' understanding of the term 'Blue Balls'.
Dive #3: Dive Buddies: The entire group minus Rich and Lori. Time: ??, Depth: ??, Fish: ??, Viz:
25-30ft. Well with 2-3 dives for almost everyone in the group, we called it a night, after some
dinner in town.
Saturday, 9/14/02: Again, Saturday started off with the now famous Mexican alarm clock. The group
made its way over to the local breakfast joint for some nourishment. We swapped stories/lies with
the local Americas for about an hour. John finally arrived from the States and he decided to join
us for some hard core diving. All nine of use headed back to Arbolitos Cove. This time the local land
owner/manager was not real happy with us because we were interrupting his workers with their sea
urchins and lobster harvesting. Rich imparted some of his considerable knowledge on the manager and
we were able to dive the cove again. This time we all headed to the east and had a great time exploring
the "Marina". The highlights of the dive was the "rock chute" and the giant green anemones.
Dive #4: Dive Buddies: The entire group plus John, Time: ??, Depth: ??, Fish: ??, Viz: 25-30ft. After a
quick lunch in La Bufadora and a trip to Dale's stunning dive shop for air and souvenirs, we got
ready for our first and only dive in La Bufadora prime. The entire group minus John (It seems he
had something better to do.) entered the water directly in front of Dale's shop. This was the worst
DIVE of the trip. Nothing UNDERWATER to see, just sand dollars and a few stocks of kelp (Right Michelle?).
The dive was called early for various reasons from boredom to sickness. After collecting all our gear
and the hard working divers we headed back to the camp site for a quiet evening of checkers and chess.
Or something like that, I can't seem to remember, Matt do you remember how the night went? Maybe we
will ask Geoffrey.
Dive #5: The entire group minus John Time: ??, Depth: ??, Fish: ??, Viz: 25-30ft
Sunday, 9/15/02: Sunday morning, got off to a late start as most of the group felt the need to attend
church services after a quiet evening of checkers and chess. It seems Rick had gotten directions
to Kennedy Cove, so we decided to explore for it. When we followed these directions to the best of
our ability, we found that we would also need rock climbing and/or parachutes to work our way to
the beach. So we voted to try another spot. We worked our way east of Arbolitos Cove along some
simple 4x4 roads. (Great job of driving by Michelle). Wow, we discovered heaven, or at least a group
of manly-men pretending it was heaven. Never the less, we had found an excellent dive site. We named
the site, Camp Rhino Cove after the group of guys we discovered. Again, the site was put to a vote
and the entire group of eight minus Lori and Rick, took the "elevator" down to the beach and did a
"Top-10" dive. Lots of color and sea life.
Dive #6: The entire group minus 2. Time: ??, Depth: ??, Fish: ??, Viz: 40+ feet. Before the dive
Rick got an early start on his return trip back to the US. After the dive, the remainder of the group
headed back to La Bufadora for lunch. Michelle discovered that Mexicans cook with their form of Limburger
cheese. This place was a definite "NO-GO", "A Never Again" kind of place. Well, it was time for Michelle,
Jeff and Shrek to leave for home. Lori, Matt, Rich and I, were left to our own accords. Yes, we were good,
just like little Angels!
Monday, 9/16/02: As a going away momento to our favorite Mexican, "Marco" we tried to donate a ˝
used bottle of "Apple Juice". Well, we tried at least. It was back to Arbolitos cove for more diving.
We worked our way around the small island to the West of the cove. The highlights of the dive were a giant
bat ray and some excellent team work. Dinner was found in Escenada. Matt found a Puerto Nuevo lobster.
It turns out Matt was the only member of the group that had the privilege of lobster on the trip. Sorry Rich!
It seems Michelle decided to look for the Snipes in the ocean, she just keep looking and looking and looking.
Lori, decided, she would have Matt look for the "Snipes" for her. For some unknown reason, he kept looking
at the bottom of plastic cups. I knew "Snipes" we small, but not that small. Well, it was interesting to
see Matt doing his searching. The trip is dedicated to Rich's dry suit who gave it's life in the honor of
some great diving. Again, Sorry Rich!!!!!
Rich's story:
We planned to "Meet" at the "Rest stop" on the 5 South bound on Camp Pendleton at about 7:30PM,
this worked very well indeed, because we were able to make sure all of the CB radios
were working properly and make plans for as we cross the border along with dinner
plans.
We got down to the last US stop around for Insurance & dinner around 9:30 or so and
we had fun at the Outback Steakhouse that had an "Excellent" view of TJ and all of the
"Lights" the US border patrol uses. It was rather funny when someone asked, "So
how far to TJ?" and I was able to point out the window, "There it is...". We also
made our plans for "In case" we got separated going across the border, which
happened because I had to make a "Last second" turn to make the offramp to
the toll road. It was also at this point that I learned that Michelle & Lori
had never been on a "Snipe hunt", so I said, "This is a great place to hunt snipes..."
to which I got the usual response, "What are snipes?". Oh-boy...
We got to Campo La Jolla around mid-night, as I expected and now it was time to
"Set up camp". We all got to sleep around 1 AM or so. Campo La Jolla hasn't
changed much since I was there last time, remember, this IS Baja.
At about 6:30AM we were awakened by the "Wild dog pack alarm", but there was a "Good
side" to this, now we could get ready for some DIVING!! This is why we were here.
"On to Arbolitos Cove" was my CALL, ONWARD!! Let's go diving!!
The road to Arbolitos Cove hasn't even changed much, although the weather was
a bit foggy, everyone was still able to see why I consider this one of the best
places in Punta Banda to go diving. After we paid our $3 per car load for the
daily "Fees" we made our way to the actual "dive spot".
Marc's picture of
Arbolitos Cove,
this shows just how the weather was over cast & foggy.
Arbolitos Cove is what I call a "Working Cove" because of all of the local
fisherman who work from here,
but as long as divers understand this and don't surface in the center of the
cove, then you will be OK. I knew that Matt wanted me to show him how to use
his dry suit, so Matt, Lori and I stayed together on this first dive while
all the others went out on their own as a group. This first dive was about 35
feet and lasted about 35-40 minutes with decent VIZ, about 15-20 feet, But as
usual, TEMPs were COLD, lower 50's, glad I was in my dry suit (More on this
later). Now it's time for "Lunch" at La Bufadora.
LUNCH TIME!! This means I can finally have a beer, because I knew I was going to
RELAX the rest of this day, after all, that was one of the reasons I was taking
this time off of work, to relax... We had a nice view and some great fish tacos
over looking the bay at La Bufadora. Great people, good way to unwind.
I knew we also needed some "Supplies" from the liquor store over near the "Gigante"
back in Ensenada, for some reason, I just knew we had to make a "Stop". So while
Marc & Rick were out for another dive, Matt, Jeff (Jeffx4) and myself drove back
to town for the "Supplies". If there was one thing I forgot to tell these guys,
it was that they give out "Free samples" at the liquor store. Matt made the comment,
"Gee, U can get wasted without buying anything down here in Mexico..." It is something
that surprises many people when they see that at gov't liquor stores. Although we all
commented about how "Tasty" the samples were. There was a funny moment here when
the guy behind the counter made a reference between the "Fox tequilla" and the
plastic mask of Vincente Fox, saying what seemed like, "This is HIS tequilla". We were
also able to get some feedback from the locals about how they approve or disapprove
of the job their Pres is doing, very interesting. Back to the Campo...
We went to dinner shortly after WE got back, again, since I knew ahead of time that
I was still in "Need to relax mode" I knew I wasn't going on the planned "Night Dive"
that evening, thus being able to down a Margie or two. For dinner here I had what
I think was the best meal of my trip, a Calamari/shrimp "Roll" with an Oyster sauce,
very, very good food at Celia's. Then WE all went back to
Arbolitos Cove for the Night Dive. This was rather funny, one, because I knew the
water would "feel" colder and two, I just knew these guys were going to attempt to do
some "Bug hunting". When they came out of the water, Mike "Looked like" he was frozen
solid, and they DID indeed bring back 2 bugs, about 1/2 legal size, to which I said,
"Come on guys, let's at least get something worth eating..." SO I threw them
back. Then back to camp for some "Shut eye". What? No Snipe hunt?
The next day, we went out for breakfast at the local "Diner" which was just outside
of Campo La Jolla, good breakfast eats... Then back to Arbolitos Cove for more diving!!
On this dive, John dove with us, since we found him looking for us at the "Breakfast
diner". So WE all stuck together on this dive and waundered all over the Cove, a
nice long dive and we covered a LOT of ground, VIZ was very good (About 35+) and it
went down to about 65 feet, although most of us "Hovered" in the 35-45 foot range.
Funny note right about this point, remember how I said this was a "Working cove"??
Well, one of the things this means is that when the divers get back from Urchin diving
they have a place where all the guys change out of their wet suits and they don't
wear a whole Hell of a lot under them, not a pretty sight. Well, I mentioned this to Michelle and
she said "Where? Did I miss it?", what's the term, "Lights were ON but no body was
home"??? U missed it girl... More on this later, and it gets funnier...
I also want to point out at this point that we started hearing about "Michelle's
LIST" and how some people would be ON or OFF her list from time to
time, no one was safe from her LIST... Here too, more on this later...
So what about the next trip down there? Take a look at the Dive Trips
page, I'm already thinking about another one, Wanna go make some more
memories??
Special thanks to all of those who went and here's the link
to Marc's Web Page
If YOU would like more info & want to go with us, respond via Email to
Rich@southcoastdivers.com.
CLICK here to return to MAIN PAGE
Thank You for stopping by.
Random MIDI Jukebox for background music,
click reload for differnet tune.
You are viewer number
Content-type: text/html
since 10-07-2002.
Michelle's picture of everyone (Except John) while we had lunch in La Bufadora.
Michelle had this to add...
Rich's Baja Scuba Diving Tour included an add-on, a tour through downtown Tijuana, with our posse looking much like a Chevy Chase sequel - National Lampoon's Mexican Vacation.
Back to Matt's rendition, makes me look more sane...
We finally made it to Campo La Jolla after midnight. Most of us were tired and decided to go to bed while a few of the others decided to go look at the ocean water.
LESSON LEARNED RULE #1: Do Not Wear Your Only Pants Into The Ocean (even if they do zip off into shorts) - NOTHING dries in LaBufadora, Mexico.
Michelle's picture.
Michelle's pictures.
Dive #1 - Arbolitos Cove, Mexico
[An aside - Add-on #2 to Rich's Baja Scuba Diving Tour - the off-roading that takes place in order to arrive at the dive sites] Almost an adventure itself, I have decided that I hate DIRT. Rich, Lori & Matt dove together to acclimate Matt with his new drysuit. Congratulations Matt. Rick, Mike, Marc, Jeff and I enjoyed a very cold dive adorned with kelp, sea anenomas, Lingcod and much more. Despite the cold temperatures and lack of creatures, the dive was beautiful. To look up and see the sun shining through the kelp was outstanding. Diving in a cove also allowed us all to excel with our navigation skills. Believe it or not, Mike did not get lost.
LESSON LEARNED RULE #3: Bring A Dry Suit When Diving In LaBufadora. Warm Water Is Nonexistent, Even When You Add Your Own Personal Heating Element To Your Wet Suit :(
LESSON LEARNED RULE #4: Bring More Than One Towel With You While Diving in La Bufadora Mexico because NOTHING Dries in LaBufadora, Mexico.
The highlight of the dive however, occurred while I was washing my scuba gear off. Busy completing the task at hand, I missed the unveiling of a NAKED Mexican sea urchin harvesting man.
NOTE: Missed opportunity #1 to see a new "private" and I missed it!
After diving, we traveled into LaBufadora and had lunch. We toured the town and visited the Blowhole. We returned to camp with the idea that we would relax and plan a night dive. Rich, Matt and Jeff traveled into town to provide us with our liquid refreshments for the evening. Does it surprise anyone that one of the essentials for Rich Parker's Famous Ultimate Margarita's involves liquor that is bottled in a container the shape of an anatomically correct female profile?
[An Aside - Hence, the a.k.a. Elder Woody]
Lori, Mike and I stayed at our Shanty Scuba Camp and rested, talked and began the inaugural WWF Match.
LESSON LEARNED RULE #4: NEVER Wrestle Shrek. No Explanation Needed...
Rich and Matt joined us and Rick and Marc went on their Adventure Dive #2 for the day, which from what we heard incorporated off-roading, diving and HIKING. The later being the unplanned portion of the adventure... We all had dinner at Celia's in LaBufadora, minus Rick, who went on a road trip to Ensenada, the true agenda of this departure unknown to us. After dinner we embarked upon Dive #2 of our Baja or Bust trip...
|
.
Michelle's picture. |
|---|
I need to add here that Arbolitos Cove is what I call a "Working Cove"
because this is the place where the local fisherman & Urchin Divers go out
of and bring their catches into. Here are a few shots of Arbolitos Cove...
Back to Michelle's story...
[An aside - Add-on #3 to Rich's Baja Scuba Diving Tour - Night Off-roading... Not intended for the weak and/or undisciplined, probably not for the intoxicated either]
As promised to Mike, since he was only adorned in a 3/2mm surf wetsuit, our night dive was relatively short. Despite the coldness that ice cubed Mike, the remaining divers, Marc, I, Matt and Jeff all contended that we were warmer than on our earlier dive. NOTE: Underwater warmth can be determined by one factor, when you pee. Baby lobsters were caught and released and Jeff had fun becoming Jeffrey Dundee, Lobster Hunter.
LESSON LEARNED RULE #5: Bring $1's , $5's and $10's to Mexico - NO ONE has change in LaBufadora.
John joined us and showed me, what I considered after sleeping in my tent with the sand and attack dogs, his Mexican castle (a.k.a. - the house he rented for the weekend). Okay, at first I thought that he was a little high maintenance but in hindsight, count me in for next time...After breakfast we returned to Arbolitos Cove.
The entire gang dove. Rich led us on an underwater adventure through the kelp beds and along the walls. Again, the sunlight sparkled through the water and kelp, creating an underwater wonderland. I had the privilege of going rocketing through the chute with Rich.
I need to add here that this was a very enjoyable dive and we had a LOT of bottom time, Lori did really well on her air supply and most of us just hovered in the kelp, right at the thermocline. Very good dive, one of our best during this trip.
Again we had our entire gang, minus John on this dive. Unfortunately, this dive was less than desirable. However, I did do my longest headstand ever. Sommersaulters watch out. There is a new trick in town. Jeff got sick and almost fed the nonexistent fish & Marc surfaced with him. Rich, Lori, Matt and Rick decided to surface due to the lack of reef, marine life or anything remotely interesting to look at. Mike and I decided to tough it out and navigated in. Sand dollars and sand was all that was available for our viewing pleasure until... The highlight of the dive occurred while we were all changing over but... it is not my story to tell, however... NOTE: Missed opportunity #2 to see a new "private" and I missed it! And this one was up close and personal... Are you, as the reader, beginning to detect a pattern here?
The dive was at an unknown location that we called Camp Rhino... Something about a group of guys, on top of the cliff above the ocean, holding hands. Maybe a Mexican version of the Halley Bop experience. The 4x4ing was a real experience to reach this site but the dive was worth it. The steps down were a bit challenging but I would not say that they were worse than all the steps at Crescent Bay or Cress. Just my opinion... I do have youth on my side. Rick decided against the dive and got an early start home. Although Lori did not dive, she helped her fellow divers by carrying down weights and fins. The dive was great. The entry and exit were a little tricky due to the rocks but beautiful. After existing, I got to enjoy all my fellow divers (All MEN) rolling around on the rocks in the one foot surf zone. If you should doubt the accuracies of the foregoing statement, Lori saw and enjoyed it too.
Sorry again Rich!
On a positive note, I think we made some good memories with a great group of people. Thanks to all and thank you Rich for inviting us all. The End!
LA BUFADORA, BAJA MEXICO
Trip Report
SEPTEMBER 12 - SEPTEMBER 16
We planned to "Meet" at the "Rest stop" on the 5 South bound on Camp Pendleton at about 7:30PM, this worked very well indeed, because we were able to make sure all of the CB radios were working properly and make plans for as we cross the border along with dinner plans.
Marc's picture of Arbolitos Cove,
this shows just how the weather was over cast & foggy.
If YOU would like more info & want to go with us, respond via Email to Rich@southcoastdivers.com.
click reload for differnet tune.
You are viewer number
since 10-07-2002.
Content-type: text/html