Participants Blogs
La Aventura Panamericana - Day Three Blog
By
Nov 14, 2006, 13:21

Loreto to San Jose del Cabo,

Our day started at 06.30. Our journey took us to the outmost south point of the peninsula, a drive of 560 km. of which 106 km were on gravel. The hotel is out of the centre, but the road book leads us back into Loreto village. For the first time in this rally we visited a nice historic town centre, founded in 1697, home to a mission post named ‘Mission the Nuestra Signora de Loreto’. We saw a nice baroque church beside the house/cloister, being a museum now. It opens at 09.00 we only see the outside of the buildings.

It is busy on the road - everywhere we see little trucks with building workers standing in the back on their way to the daily job.

Soon we find our gravel road. At first the gravel is smooth, and we are climbing quickly meeting the morning sun of the ’Sierra de la Giganta’. Suddenly we are in front of the first river crossing of the day. We discover that our Toyota loves wet feet and she is swinging through the water. At the other side of the river we stop to admire prehistoric wall paintings, all in different colours. We are very impressed. I make a faux-pas, when I walk over the stones and fall in the water.

It is a paradise in the mountains, and we are all alone. We pass more then twenty river crossings, the one more spectacular then the other. Do is amazed about the Toyota (as all our Dutch friends are about theirs). But he is often thinking about his white lady, the XK 140. This would have been too much for her!

After 50 km we are in San Javier, the best conserved mission post. After all the poor, sad and garbage filled dirty villages we are surprised when we drive into San Javier. All little houses are clean and white painted, with flowered gardens, along nice paved clean streets. In the nice old church a proud lady tells us every thing concerning the church. Behind the church there is even a real play garden for the children of the village. Do was amazed seeing a big Rotary wheel on the door of a little community house. We are impressed to see the actual influence of a 17the century mission post still has in our days. For kms to come you could feel this influence on the community.

When we came back on the asphalt way, we had nice sights over the Pacific and saw lots of Pemex fuel stations along the road. Not all of them have diesel for Annemiekes Toyota. By the way, diesel is much cheaper here than in Europe. Around 16.15 we arrive in the very attractive hotel of the Marquis.

By Do and Els, car 25.


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