Nasty Trail

Cabo Pulmo 191120

In the morning Amanda and I drove out to the bench trail head with Joy and Karen. We wanted to look for birds in the morning and lizards when it warmed up but as we started up the trail a group of chatty senior citizens came up on us from behind. We couldn't get far enough ahead they wouldn't come up later and scare away the wildlife and talk over the faint bird calls so we hung back and waited for them to pass while we scanned the bush for birds.

It never got warm enough for lizards but we saw some verdins and black throated sparrows gathering bugs. Back home, November was much too late for birds to be having babies but things were wacky down here. There was water running in the ravine and pouring off in a little waterfall partway down the hill.

At the top of the trail we saw the eponymous bench and when we reached an untravelled fork in the road we headed off into the wilderness following the 'nasty trail'.

The trail took us down into the valley and was so overgrown in a few places we wondered if we had veered off onto a cattle path. The number of insects, mostly grasshoppers and beetles, increased as we walked. It would have been fun to collect one of every type of grasshopper. There were tons of different species in a variety of colors including a really pretty one I failed to photograph that was mottled burgundy with turquoise wings.

The trail went deeper and deeper into the wilderness, doubling back and turning away every time we thought it might loop back towards town. Down in the valley the vegetation was thick and we had to clear the trail of fallen cactus limbs and duck under spiderwebs spun across the path. Eventually the trail turned and we met the cows that had been churning up the sandy trail. We also recognized the arroyo we had explored a few days before. As we approached the sandy river we saw Joy and Karen through a gap in the trees below us and Amanda cautioned me to be quiet so we could scare them. She let out a big roar from the bushes along the path and Karen responded with a roar of her own.

It remained overcast and cool the rest of the morning and we only saw a single zebra tail near the end of our hike.

Back at the house I was sitting on the veranda when a dishevelled looking man came by below and said "Buenos Dias". I said hello and he started asking if we could spare anything to give him. He took a while to get to the point and I asked him if he was looking for food and he said, "yes or shorts."

I told him I would go in to ask because I knew we were taking stock of our supplies and we had some extra food we were trying to decide whether to leave with the house or throw away. Karen gave him some granola, cans of corn, and jalapenos and Rian brought out a bag of uncooked spaghetti and a jar of pasta sauce. Before he handed it over he asked "Are you sure you want this stuff?" "Yes! Yes I can cook!" Joy gave him an old pair of her shorts.

A little later we changed and headed out to do some snorkeling. Karen wanted to drive out to Arbolito but Amanda objected to the bumpy washed out road and I objected to the 40 pesos/person fee so we ended up walking down the beach. The water was clearer but the beach patrol was out telling swimmers not to swim too far out (or perhaps too near the lucrative snorkel spots).

After our swim we returned to the beach house above the dive shop with Rian for beers and cheesecake. Rian wanted a tequila and asked the waiter which one he recommended. "Don Julio" he answered without hesitation and then went off and returned with a fancy square bottle and a stupid grin on his face. He gave us a spiel about how it was something 70 years (aged? established? we don't know) and poured a half glass for Rian to sample. Then with a huge grin on his face he poured the full glass and watched Rian finish it with one gulp. I don't know why people turn so jolly when watching someone else drink strong liquor.

Kayla mentioned she might come out to meet us after her online meeting so we hung out for a while. They had the television tuned to the mariachi channel and as they worked in the kitchen they sang along. At one point the waiters put on the ellen degenerous show and laughed as she asked a guest look through a phone book for a muffler place. I tried to record this music and chatter but the audio is pretty faint.

Back to the house and then back out for tacos, daiquiris, beer, and margaritas. I didn't get anything because I was starting to get sick of beer but I ate the two roasted jalapenos from Amanda's plate.

Then some packing and back out once again to Titos for dinner. I ordered the grilled fish with raspberry jelly (the same dish I'd had at the buffet) and we hung out with the chill dachshund that lived at the restaurant.

Andrew came around later in the evening and taunted Amanda by saying he'd seen an American oystercatcher and a harris hawk. She scowled and asked him to describe the pertinent features.

Back at the house we continued packing and Amanda pulled me aside to tell me she wanted to go swimming but didn't want to get her clothes wet. I agreed to come along for some skinny dipping.

Though the houses went right up to the water the beach was dark so we stripped down, put our clothing on the seawall, and waded out. I noticed lights in the sand as we walked in the shallows and when we waded out into the water it lit up with bioluminescent particles that sparkled around our bodies as we treaded water. It sparkled and flashed like we were vampires in a teen romance movie.