Follow the Rio

Life in La Ventana leaves very little to complain about. The Baja California Sur weather gave the holidays a different feel with warmth, sun, and wind coming in most days. Settling in to camp here was made easy by a friendly bunch of kiters as campground neighbors. The community that sports like kiting and kayaking create is special, in my opinion, and that sense of community pretty much encompasses this whole campground and area. La Ventana does not provide a very cultural experience – there seem to be by far more gringos living here during this time of year than locals. Being discovered as a kitesurfing mecca seems to have created a quickly increasing crowd of visitors, something old-school kiters describe as a relatively new phenomenon.

Yet it’s easy to see why the kiters throng down here in the Winter. An easy lifestyle, relatively cheap living, and a beautiful blue bay on the Sea of Cortez with pretty steady winds are hard to resist, which is why we are still here. Every day has brought highlights: perfect sun and thermal wind, a visit from the adorable Mexican puppy adopted by some camp neighbors, an evening of good margaritas down the street, or local fresh lobster at camp for Christmas Eve. Trips to the corner store for Pacificos & limes or taco ingredients are easy with the bike and basket, and Rio has a campground full of dogs to make friends with. The avocados always seem to be perfectly ripe, and fresh seafood and produce are easy to come by. The sand is also a perfectly coarse consistency that doesn’t stick everywhere, and a sand free bed feels pretty luxurious sometimes when we’re living the coastal life.

Some days the gusty Norte (Northerly wind produced by low pressure in the Four Corners area of the U.S.) will blow in, creating big swell and colder temperatures. The strong wind blows the swell to the South edge of the bay, where is creates decent sized waves to practice kitesurfing on. In the following days it often mellows out with smoother thermal-aided winds. The wind picks up fairly slowly here, and a lot of people hydrofoil kite in the mornings. Mitch decided it was time to learn to foil, and he is picking it up quickly, going out for daily morning sessions. Unfortunately, I hurt my knee kiting right before New Years and have been trying to heal it ever since, so for now I am Rio’s beach pal. Hopefully it heals quickly so I can get back out on the water. As of now we are enjoying life here on the Sea of Cortez while also anticipating the different experiences exploring the rest of Mexico will bring us.

Feliz Año Nuevo!

-Zea