You guys and gals will remember my good buddy Mike, whom I met on one of the CSC Baja runs a couple of years ago. It was a chance meeting…we stopped to buy bottled gas from one of the roadside entrepreneurs in Catavina and I noticed one of the bikes had a set of jump wings on the tail box. We had been on the road a few days already and I wondered why I hadn’t noticed the Airborne insignia before, and then I realized it was because I hadn’t noticed the bike was a BMW GS, not a CSC RX3 (that’s how much the bikes look alike, I guess). I looked around and there was Mike (a new face in the crowd), waiting for fuel just like the rest of us. You meet the coolest people in Baja, and you meet the coolest people on motorcycles. I liked Mike immediately.
Mike is a former US Army Paratrooper (my kind of Amigo), an adventure rider, a good friend, and one hell of a guy. You’ve seen him here on the ExNotes blog before. Mike lives on his motorcycle (a big BMW GS) and travels all over, working as an untethered project manager and writing regularly. It’s a cool (and an enviable) lifestyle.
I received an email from Mike yesterday offering this guest blog, and I wanted to share it with you.
Joe,
Thought this would make for an interesting story for your blog. I know its been an interesting story for us! Let me know what ya think. Few colorful pics for it as well.
Hope you are doing well. I am sure you are fully prepared. 🙂
Mike
PS. Be cool if we could get Chris Hansen to read the blog “take a seat over there, would you like some lemonade” HAHAHA
Locked OUT Abroad- Mexico- Extended Stay
My girlfriend, Bobbie Surber and I both work remotely, so in late February we thought a 4-6 week adventure moto trip through Baja would be a great way to kick off spring. We could get some great riding in, explore camping along the beautiful beaches, and really just clear out the cobwebs from any winter blues and lack of activity we had been experiencing.
The trip started out great in San Felipe in a wonderful off grid solar AirBnb casita, with a lovely host (we only travel Saturday and Sunday as we are heads down working Mon-Fri in AirBnBs). We continued camping, riding, and staying in AirBnBs all through Guerro Negro, Muleje, La Ventana, Todo Santos, and Loreto. We were spending a week in each location to fully absorb the unique cities, people, and culture while soaking up the incredible desert roads, ocean views, and all while meeting new riders that will become lifelong friends along the way.
As we had just arrived in Loreto on March 15th we really began to notice the COVID-19 virus was really starting to ramp up in the United States to the point travel alerts were being issued globally and we began to see fellow travelers from Canada and the EU being requested to return home by their countries.
In Loreto, we were still a solid 3-day ride away from the US Border when on March 19th a Level 4 travel advisory was issued to either return to the United States or hunker in place for an indefinite period. At the same time people in America were hoarding toilet paper and individual states were beginning to “shut down” one by one. We took this quite seriously and given what information was being provided at the time a team decision had to be made by us. It was a long 2-3 days of going back and forth in open dialogue between both of us on different ideas, plans, and solutions. None of which either of us were thrilled with.
We both agreed returning to the United States was not a wise decision, however, we did not want to stay a 3 day drive away from a border crossing in the event there was a health emergency for either of us. We decided to reach out to our 1st Baja AirBnB host in San Felipe and she graciously offered her casita up for us to hunker down in which would place us within a 2 hour drive from the US Border should there be an emergency where one or both of us may need to return home. This seemed like a perfect staging area. The virus seemed to be less in the Baja, perhaps due to lack of testing, but nonetheless it was a peninsula so geographically it made sense that the impacts would be less. There was also an abundance of supplies (to include toilet paper, which I am still confused as hell on why there was a run on that particular item).
So now to our current state of affairs. We are in self-quarantine in San Felipe with our new AirBnB friend, Victoria and are continually evaluating the situation in the United States looking for a safe opportunity to return home, and are quite frightful for the new reality we are returning to. Confident in both our analytical and decision making abilities I am looking forward to writing Part II of this, hopefully sooner than later.
Mike, that’s an awesome input and we sure appreciate hearing from you. Thanks very much. Your photos and descriptions made me realize just how much I miss Baja. Sue and I would have been down there this month had it not been for this CV19 business. As soon as we return to normal, I’m headed south and we’ll be down there. Ride safe, take care, and thanks again!
Like U Mike, I miss Baja so much, and for sure due to this circumstances is safer. I’m glad U have a place where to stay and definitely was a wise decision. Stay safe and God Bless U.
BTW yep my brain again can’t understand the toilet paper situation like it is going to safe U from.the virus, idiots LOL.
thanks! stay safe 🙂
In contrast to America, life is peaceful here in the Baja with many stores fully stocked due to the sudden decrease in tourism. Akin to America, workers are wearing masks (and gloves when available), public gatherings have been cancelled, and restaurants and hotels are virtually empty. In many ways, it it is a great time to travel, but fortunately the majority of people are taking this seriously and riding this out at home.
Mike,
Glad that you made the decision to stay. I believe that this will be a great opportunity for you to integrate more with the Mexican people and see how they accept and face life’s challenges. It gives one more humility and insight into what is truly important in life.
Thanks. Agreed. In a perfect world we would have stayed in Loreto but just felt it was more responsible (did i just say that??) to be closer to US soil should anything go south.
I wish we where able to stay in Baja. But obligations came into play. Now we find ourselves without toilet paper and stuck in the house. Missing riding.
we will def ride again soon! Maybe a few less margaritas next time, Maybe… 🙂 Stay safe!
Wow – talk about living in the moment and each day an adventure. I admire them and they may end up riding this thing out (no pun intended) down in Baja pretty much insulated from the new plague. As long as it doesn’t go down there they are probably better off than we are. At least they can still travel and go to Mexican restaurants and have dinner and a margarita. Looking forward to Pt 2.
Thanks Bob. We are looking fwd to part II as well. Its safe here until it isnt. ugh. Be safe sir!
Hope you guys stay safe. Thanks for the nice pictures and keep us informed on how you guys are doing down there where you run self quarantine.
Thanks. We are doing the responsible self quarantine now here. Been a roller coaster 6 weeks since entering into Baja. I probably need to expand on a few of the other “incidents” we’ve encountered. Stay safe! 🙂
That is a similar situation that I faced a week ago. I was on a guided adventure tour in Northern Vietnam which offers some of the most amazing mountain riding in the world. It is really a remote area and I read a little bit about the virus but mostly was just enjoying the ride. It wasn’t until I got back to the city of Hanoi that I realized the impact of the situation. The Vietnamese are some of the warmest welcoming people you will ever meet. They love being with and talking to Americans. There is no hatred for us from the war. For them it’s over and they were victorious. I was a combat soldier there 50 years ago and have been invited to the homes of my former enemies but that’s a different story. This time when we arrived at our hotel registration. As we were unpacking our bikes the manager took a u lock and bolted the door shut. My guide is an Australian who has lived in Vietnam for 13 years and speaks Vietnamese said we have reservations but he said no foreigners and to go away. I was able to find another place to stay but on the street people would cover their faces with their sleeves or walk away from us. Restaurants were reluctant to have us come in and would seat us far away from others even though we were wearing masks. My friend heard the people say foreigners every where we went. The next day I went to the airport and paid close to $1,000 to get back to the US.
I would encourage any adventure riders to go to Vietnam because it is a great place to ride but wait until this virus is defeated because right now you will not enjoy the experience.
I have heard Vietnam is VERY strict with this virus. We just rode 3 weeks and about 1,000 miles on Honda Winners there in Dec. I agree with everything you stated about the warmth of the people and the roads. Sadly we didnt have time to go up to the “North Pole” or the Hai Giang loop. Hopefully you got to experience that area. Sorry your trip ended that way, but I am sure you can rationalize the reasons. Cheers and stay safe.
Great read and update from Baja John. Interesting and something to look back at after we get through this event
I can think of a lot of places I would rather be than Mexico .