We woke up around 7 and begin packing. It was nice to sleep another night in a hotel. I have actually yet to even get into my camping bag (aka the right side pannier).
The bikes had no dew on them, and the weather felt just about right. We packed up, signed out, and were off. There is a small gas station in Mulege, but it only had regular, and my bad boy of a bike needs premium!
We left the town and headed south along the coast of the Sea of Cortez. The ride is amazing as you ride the cliff faces rising up and down coming across small beaches and camping sites. We found one just a few miles after getting gas and had a short photoshoot. No wheelies, crazy sand roosts, or anything else, just a pure simple photoshoot showing the beauty of the bikes and the beaches.
After the photoshoot we were both feeling a bit hungry, so we headed to a small bar on the beach. I had a home made lemonade, while Keegan indulged in his food of choice, chips and salsa. We sat relaxing on the beach, when suddenly a black van pulled up. Two americans got out, a man and a woman. It was clearly a beach owned by the bar, but that did not stop the two of these guys from stripping down naked and going for a dip in front of EVERYONE. Even the bartender told us he had never seen anyone do that there. It was awful. I wonder about Americans sometimes and the way they just go in and assume they can do anything here because it is Mexico? If even the locals think you are loco, maybe you need to sit down and think about what you are doing lol.
We continued along the road and eventually were taken inland. The magic of the sea was now gone, and we were back to cruising through the desert which connected the small simple runway cities. Every time you started bouncing over the speed bumps and reflectors, you knew you were entering or leaving one of these dull towns. They all look the same. We stopped at one of them though for fuel. After fueling up, I walked to the tienda to get us some water. The lady was sitting so I helped myself to the fridge, handed her the money, and we were off. She thought it was pretty funny actually.
One of the towns we went through had a LEY grocery store, so it was actually a little bit different than the normal towns. It also had an Autozone!
After a few hours, the sun was really beating down on us and we were very exhausted. The ride from Mulege was shorter than the other days, but felt so much longer. We rode and rode until we started seeing signs for La Paz and knew that we would soon be there.
When we got to La Paz, we stopped at the first restaurant that looked like it would be full of gringos. Mariscos, palm leaf/ grass roof, and a bbq. We pulled up and two guys were already there ready to ask if we wanted the bikes washed. We said we would pay them each 50 pesos for the wash. Keegans bike looked great, and mine looked horrible, You can guess how I responded when the guy asked me for a tip lol.
We finished up eating and I headed for the Ferry. They do not launch downtown, it was about a 30 minute ride up the coast to the dock. Keegan took me to the edge of town, we said our goodbyes, and I begin my journey to the ferry.
Boarding the ferry was not nearly as organized as you would think it would be. NO signs, no lines, nothing, They charge you 88 pesos as a tax to use the dock (very lame I know), and kinda set you loose. There is also no order for boarding the ferry. They kinda say when you can go in. They helped everyone tie their bikes down, but just looked at mine and walked off, so I was a little bit nervous tying it down. I really didn't want to see her sleeping on the floor the next morning.
It was hard to unpack the bike for the ferry. Once you leave the parking area, you arent allowed there again until you leave. I had to carry both panniers, the helmet, my backpack, and the gopro up with me while wearing all of my gear! I was sweating like a big and worried what the ship would be like. I walked through the door to the stairs and realized it was an escalator! I rode it up, and the main deck felt like I would imagine a small cruise ship to be like. A nice reception area, air conditioning, a fragrance shop, etc. They got me set up with a cabin and a meal ticket, and sent me on my way.
If you are considering riding the ferries, I strongly suggest paying for a cabin. You get your own bathroom and 4 beds :) I only needed one bed, so I let a guy I saw that came in to the boat with a KLR motorcycle share the room with me at no cost. It felt weird inviting a stranger into my temporary home, but we got a long great. His name is Roberto and owns a company that does campsites for programs like burning man. They set up amazing tents and provide food etc for the guests who visit these festivals. He said on average a guest pays $1,000 a night for the tents they set up.
After a lot of walking around on the boat, and a very basic dinner, it was time for bed and to see what kind of shape the bikes would be in the next day. The boat ride took about 13 hours from and was very relaxing once I had gotten over my light sea sickness. I slept like a baby.
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