Full Moon Rising : Loreto
Once again, she slips from under cover of island and sea, shimming up the sky toward the heavens .. lighting up everything in her path .. Full moon rising …………… How sweet the night …
Full Moon Rising …..
Category Archives: Baja Living
sometimes there’s waves …
.. and they all went out to play ...
.. and sometimes there aren’t .. and sometimes, there are wondrous swells with seemingly nothing in between .. the magic of the ocean is never lost upon me .. nor her beauty, her wealth, her immeasurable value in protecting life as we know it ……..
Homage to the Home Planet
Earth Day-Loreto Pride 2011
Earth Day – Loreto Pride were celebrated on April 10, 2011 with a community cleanup of the Arroyo Candeleria. The event was sponsored by the Waterkeeper Alliance, Parque Nacional Bahia de Loreto, Loretanos por un mar lleno de vida, and Eco-Alianza de Loreto. A.C.
As in years past, the arroyo had been used by those less educated about the affects of garbage as a dumping ground for unimaginable waste. During the dry winter season, the arroyo serves mostly as a road from Mex 1 into the beach front community, but in the rainy season, it can/does become a roaring torrent, pushing everything in its path into the Sea of Cortez. Hence, the need to remove the accumulated refuse, and save the waters from unnecessary pollution.
Discarded Refuse in the Arroyo Candeleria
There was grousing in the community about ‘cleaning up “that” place again’ … accompanied with ‘they’re just going to fill up up with trash when we’re finished’ … but the choice of the arroyo was the right one. Intelligent and needed, no matter who caused or created the refuse. At the end of the day, it was the sea that won – and those who live near it and call upon it for their livelihood.
Waste management is an on-going concern for every community, not only pickup, but what to do with our collective garbage once it leaves our doorstep? It’s not only a residential problem, but a commercial one, as well. The nuclear fuel crisis in Fukishima, Japan heightens awareness of exactly what we humans create, and the havoc we face in disposal. Batteries, florescent tubing, toxic motor oils, paint thinners, industrial cleaners, acids …substances poisonous enough to cause serious and even deadly harm to man. We create them, we use them, but what do with do with them when we are ‘done’?
On Earth Day this year in Loreto, something wondrous happened. Over 200 school age youth arrived at the registration desk, ready to put their energies into their community. They were not the creators or the garbage mess, nor did they necessarily live in close proximity, but there they were, ready to put muscle and heart into protecting the waters that they love.
Over 200 Local Youth Signed Up to Help with the Cleanup!
Rubber gloves and contractors trash bags were disseminated at both registration, and along the cleanup route. There was a water truck to make sure that everyone was hydrated, and multiple pickup trucks to cart the collected refuse to the dump – where is should have been deposited in the first place.
They brought friends, cellphones, and great attitudes. In fact, I don’t think the arroyo has ever been cleaned as quickly as with this small energetic army! There were expected ughs and gags. I mean, not only garbage but dead animals were in the mix.
Some of the things I personally picked up : plastic, plastic, plastic (remind me NEVER AGAIN to use a plastic bag to carry something)((when it sits in the sun, plastic doesn’t degrade, it merely hardens – so that when you go to pick it up, it breaks into millions of itty bitty pieces of plastic!!)), dirty diapers, plastic bottles (yes, more plastic), tin cans, empty food containers, partially full food containers, cigarette boxes, broken and unbroken bottles, cardboard boxes, broken plastic cracks, broken trash cans, toilet paper, Kleenex, more plastic bags wrapped around cactus and trees, building materials, old bits of rubber piping, florescent light bulbs shattered into millions of pieces –
SIDEBAR : As I sat in the dirt trying to pick up as many tiny fragments of glass as possible, I was struck by the beauty of the sunlight on the shards, and my thoughts was – wow – if I were a fish or a dolphin or whatever – I’d be attracted by the shimmering beauty and for sure take a bite! Sudden – or maybe agonizingly slow – death.
… and still more : old bricks, broken tiles, trashed appliances – and/or parts of appliances, motor oil cans, paint cans, foam cups, foam bits and pieces, school books, notebooks, papers, cigarette butts, plastic trays (does the uses of plastic never end?), plastic water bottles, lamp shades …… There was more – over 30 filled trucks and trailer trips to the dump!
Students Created a Demonstration Board on Value of Clean Seas
And when we were done? Amazing. A clean arroyo, just as it should be. Filled with mesquite and paloverde. For a few minutes, we all sighed, smiled, and congratulated ourselves on our work… and then set to thinking how to educate those who do not understand the relationship between their actions and the health of the seas.
The crowd of dusty dirty volunteers headed up the beach to Rancho Jaral, where a celebratory barbecue was held. Hats off to all community volunteers, including the Marine Park, ZOEFEMAT, Hugo Quintero, Tony and Linda Kinninger, Pam and Kent Williams, Mary and Nick Lampros, Catharine Cooper, the students and their participation in the EAL workshop under the direction of Edna Peralta, Program Administrator for Education and Outreach, Horacio Gabrera – Exectutive Director of Eco-Alianza, and Gaby Suarez – Program Director for the new Waste Management Program.
Volunteer Army!
Pick Up
All things trash …..
Filling them up one at a time
Piece by piece
More trash
Bag by bag
Plenty of trash for everyone
Partner Effort
Filling up Trucks for the REAL Dump
Team Efforts!
Making a Difference – Together
One piece at a time
Working Together
Loading for a dump run
Marine Park Volunteers
Cleaning up the Brush
More bags filled
Partner Efforts
Teens in action
Does this need a caption?
Young kids with helping hands
Volunteers Making a Difference
This is not the sanctioned dump
Garbage
Trash Pick Up
Registration
Earth Day-Loreto Pride 2011
Waterfront Estate for Sale in Loreto
View through palms across lap pool
My good friends, the Boyds, are selling their lovely waterfront home. It sits directly across the Malecon on the Sea of Cortez with stunning sunrise vistas of Isla Carmen, shorebirds and nearby marine mammals. Within walking distance to everything, the property has expansive gardens, a heated lap pool, state of the art kitchen, and is primed for expansion into a small bed and breakfast, if an owner should choose. Currently 3 bedrooms, with 2 full and 2 half baths, wine bodega, separate guest casita and extra storage. For more information and additional photos : http://www-loreto-waterfront-estate.com
Osprey in the Hood
Osprey
Delight of delights .. an osprey has taken up morning residence on my neighbor’s roof. The property is adjacent to the shallow estuary created by the carved earth of the arroyo. The heron and egrets are usually morning visitors, along with sandpipers and godwits. Five mornings in a row, however, the osprey has been perched on the rafters above my neighbor’s porch. Could be that the persistent winds have made fishing in the open sea a challenging task, and the shallow tidal zone offers more promise of a meal. Whatever the reason, I am thrilled to have the fish hawk as a morning visitor. I’ve long thought of the bird as a personal totem, and reslish chance to observe his antics more closely.
Osprey 4
Osprey 3
Osprey 2
Osprey 1
Osprey
Great Baja Girlfriends!
Cynthia & Catharine
Figures that I’d meet friends for the ‘rest of my life’ in sleepy towns south of the border. On a surfing safari to San Juanico, a beautiful blonde approached me at pizza dinner, claiming that for sure she knew me. I was taken aback, but she was so emphatic – almost as sure as I was that I’d never met her before in my life!
After a few go-rounds of questions, we figured out that she had been the neighbor of my sister, Claudia, in Sun Valley, Idaho … and since my sister and I look very much alike, the mystery was solved.
Cynthia Wagstaff, as I’d come to know her, lives for most of the year in San Juanico. She is a talented painter, writer (her blog : baja luna) , gardener, designer and explorer of life. Which barely touches on the fact that she is an incredible chef! She has the ability to create a gourmet meal out of whatever happens to be in the icebox or the cupboard – and no matter who drops by, she finds a way to create a feast that leaves everyone raving – and wanting more!
Cynthia’s ‘mom’ to Pancho & Chica – two adorable rescue dogs – who dote on her as she dotes on them. Ball play and stick chase .. long beach walks and adventures. While not a surfer, Cynthia’s an avid swimmer, snorkeler, butt boarder and stand-up-paddler.
You can find her easily cruising the cliff tops and beaches in her bright yellow Volkswagen or her streamlined Subaru. She’s the one with the sparkling eyes and the big broad smile.
Water drop kisses
Afternoon Rainbow
An afternoon storm swept in quietly without much wind or fanfare. The sky had been cloud filled, but toward four o’clock, light grey turned to dark, and heavy drops fell intermittently.
There is such magic in the desert when there is rain, especially when it passes through without floods or washed roads. The afternoon shower was brief, but delightful. Buster and I walked north toward the distant point, laughing at the drops, watching the birds fluff the feathers.
Vulture & Osprey Holding Court
On the branches of a tall cardon, a vulture and an osprey seemed to be holding court. Their watchful eyes searching for food, even at some distance for the osprey from the water.
As the storm passed through, the droplets became heavier, but still felt like kisses. All of a sudden, a rainbow – that magical golden arc of light – crossed the sky in front of me. What a perfectly delightful way to celebrate Friday.
High Flying Politics
It’s election time in Mexico, and that means banners and posters plaster near every empty bit of wall and building. Smiling faces of candidates hang from telephone and electrical posts, and in the middle of intersections. Cars appear to be wallpapered with placards, which increase as the days to election day shorten.
Foreigners are forbidden by Mexican law from participating or interfering in the local political process. So for the most part, I ignore the signs, except to muse on who has the most handsome photograph.
Apart from the signs, there are the automobiles, the uniquely Mexican form of advertisement that consists of a canned speech or slogan blared from loudspeakers mounted to the top of moving vehicles. For the most part, the volume is so high and the speakers of such poor quality, that whatever message is being relayed sounds garbled to my ears. I admit, I’ve finally figured out on Wednesday that the message is for 1/2 off the price of bottled water, but beyond that, I usually don’t have a clue what is being sold or touted.
This afternoon, the speaker volume seemed to grow louder in my neighborhood, and circle round and round. What road could they possibly be on to create such an echo? When I walked outside to take a look, I had a surprise!
Overhead, a small above-wing aircraft, not unlike those used in crop-dusting, was flying in low circles over the city, arcing ever wider to cover all the residences and businesses. It wasn’t insecticides spewing from this aircraft, but political slogans for one of the political contenders, which consisted of some unintelligible message.
A first for me – a political-spraying aircraft. Only in Mexico!
Buster & the Burro
Buster & the Burro
The horses and burros have made themselves at home in the neighborhood. Sometimes they are beyond the fenced perimeter; sometimes the just walk through the gate. The search for green and edible is ceaseless, especially after a very dry ‘rainy’ season. The desert can be a harsh place for range animals.
On our morning walk, Buster and I encountered the burro in on one of the large undeveloped lots. He was chewing on some tree leaves, but when he saw us, he hurried in our direction.
“This is one big animal,” Buster whispered under his doggy breath.
Buster alternately went close and pulled back, not quite sure what to think of being so close to the large long legged, tall ears, fuzzy tailed mammal.
The burro is hobbled – his front legs are tied together – and so he can only take tiny steps or hop. While I understand that this supposedly keeps him from running away – clearly he already has run from wherever he started – it pained me to watch him struggle to walk. His buddies, the other burro and the three horses plus new pony, could be heard braying and naying in the distance near the dry arroyo.
When Buster realized that the Burro was not likely to charge him, he stepped closer for a better scent. I advised that he not stand toooo close to those hind feet, which I know can still wallop a kick. After a few sniffs at the adjacent ground, and a few ‘good-morning-to-you-burro’ barks, we continued on our early walk.
Day Two 2011
Will I ever tire of the sunrise?
Sometimes I think, “enough.” But no, I grab the camera, capture the light. There is always something different. Clouds shifted, glassy seas or wind swept, the sky a range of color fields.
In the stillness, the air gathers in on itself and slowly exhales in rhythm with the sea. It is a song that musicians cannote capture, no matter the longing.
The gathering of seabirds, in search of their first meal. The flap of wings, the throaty call of the heron, the high pitched whistle of the tern. The splash of fish, slap of wave, rustle of palm branches.
In the distance, a rooster reminds his brood that it is once again day. Dogs echo and their woofs and howls call to one another, an ancient language replayed in the debut of another dawn.
Baja Dreaming 
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