Mexico, Part II

Last Friday (6/10) Travis and I left for Mexico at noon. The surf forcast was dismal but we had been planning the trip for a few weeks and both still wanted to go. We didn't waste any time getting out of TJ and didn't stop until we got to to Rosarito. Neither of us had eaten lunch so when we pulled into the taco stand on the street, the guy running it was in for the sale of the day. Tres tacos y una coca I blurted out, Travis said the same. After three tacos each Travis ordered two more. I looked up at the menu and asked, ?Que es una mulita? It turns out a mulita is two corn tortillas with carne asada, beans, cilantro, onions and guacamole with cheese melted all over it. I ordered two and Travis changed his order from two tacos to one taco and one mulita. Having satisfied our hunger and expanded our knowledge of Mexican cuisine, we got back on the road. A short time later we got off the toll road and took the free road, exploring surf spots and noting which ones were near hotels. We arrived at Salsipuedes around 5:30, set up the tent, suited up and surfed until the sun set. It was a fun session with chest high set waves to entertain us. We got out and made a fire and sat around eating donuts and apples until we ran out of wood. Some yokel in a 4Runner tried to blaze up a dirt road without looking and got stuck. Without looking or thinking he gunned the engine to to back down and jammed the corner of his truck into the hillside, unable to move forward or back. It was dark by then and we watched and listed as someone tried in vain to tow him out. We speculated that alcohol and bravado were involved and had little sympathy for either.

We got up late the next morning and discovered that the swell was gone and the extreme low tide made Salsipuedes unsurfable. We finished the donuts packed up and headed north looking for somewhere that was breaking. The guy in the Toyota was still stuck when we left. We ended up at k58, or La Fonda, depending on who you ask. La Fonda has been called the HB of Baja because like HB on a big day, if you get caught inside, it is a long way out. Right from the beginning La Fonda lived up to its reputation. I struggled mightily to get outside then sat up and rested once I got there. The set waves were coming in overhead. It was hard to believe that just a bit down the coast it was completely flat. I thought I picked my wave carefully, but after a big drop, it closed and I had nowhere to go and no chance to pull out. I jumped into the whitewater and took my beating. I recoverd and started the long paddle back out. I thought I was going to fare better on my second wave. It was a bit smaller, and I got a good drop then rode the open section a ways before I saw it closing from the other side. I dove through the face of the wave and started swimming out immediately, but the pull on my board dragged me toward the beach. I finally recoverd my board and started to paddle out, only to get pounded back almost to the beach. By this time my arms were like rubber and my upper back between my shoulder blades was begging for mercy. I conceeded and went to the beach. I decided on my way up the sand that I was going to get my third wave and sat on the sand to recover. After a few minutes I picked up my board again and paddled out. I kept getting pounded, but I just put my head down and kept paddling. After what seemed like forever I stopped and looked up. The whitewater was behind me and I could finally rest. I looked around and saw that I had drifted a few hundred feet south during my ordeal and I seemed now to be in a rip current. I started to paddle again, this time north parallel to the coast. As I went, I saw a dark fin directly ahead of me. I see fins a lot and can usually identify them readily as dolphins, but this was darker and smaller and moved differently. I pulled my hands and feet onto my board and hoped I looked a lot bigger than him. I didn't see the fin again, but I paddled like hell to get back to the crowd. Just as I reached them another determined soul was crashing through the final wave on his way out. He burst through yelling and shouting like a man determined. The fin and this guy had taken my mind off the surf, so I didn't see the outside set coming until it was too late. I got knocked back inside and after I recovered I sat up, thoroughly defeated and unwilling to battle back out. I caught a crappy wave to make quota and didn't ride it very well then caught some whitewash to the sand.

We made one final stop for shrimp tacos then set cruise control for home. Another successful and adventurous trip to south of the border. On the way home, Travis proposed that this be the summer of Mex. I think it will be.