It all started with an ottoman. A broken brake fiasco south of Mulege had us pulling into Playa Santispac rather than our beloved Playa Coyote beach. We generally think of Santispac as a place for “big rigs” and all of those who want easy access to Mexico 1 rather than those seeking a bit of peace and quiet. No matter. A night on any one of the scenic beaches of Bahia Concepcion is a dream.
We decided to leave the brake fix until the next morning and then I saw it. The tall blond woman in the RV just down from us had an ottoman. A real life, straight out of a living room, ottoman that she was resting her feet on while reading her book next to the sea. A wave of envy washed over me.
A couple of days later, brake fixed and settled into Loreto I spotted that same blond woman and her ottoman. As I viewed it longingly from across the campground we heard “We leave for dinner at 6pm,” the man said as he walked by our camper. “We’ll be there” Jim responded and Dan from Baja Amigo’s came into our lives.
We had heard of Baja Amigos before. Many of you who have traveled through Baja probably have. This company has been leading small group caravans through Baja for over a decade now. This season they happened to be joined by sometimes wagonmasters Mike & Kelly, owners of my much-coveted ottoman.
We ended up camping with Dan and his wife Lisa, as well as Mike & Kelly for the majority of our time in Los Barriles. Frequent conversations centered around Dan and Lisa’s desire to reduce their time as group leaders and more time working on their company. Thus arose their interest in us joining their crack team to lead caravans to Baja.
I have to be honest and say that I initially was hesitant. Over 25 years in the travel and tourism industry specializing in group travel caused my reluctance and the word “group” gave me a bit of the shivers. However, after spending endless hours with Mike & Kelly and quite a lot of time with Dan & Lisa we realized it might just be a perfect side-hustle for us. Yes, it requires that we “must” spend one month a winter in Baja, a true hardship to be sure. And yes, it requires that we buy an inflatable kayak… oh the sacrifice!
We weren’t sure we were planning Baja for next season. For sure our time away from camp will begin with a drive circumventing the US visiting my brother, as many National Parks as we can manage, and a whole lot of friends spread throughout the country. Now it looks like we’ll get to finish up our grand tour with some time back on the Baja. Who were we kidding? Of course we’re going to Baja next winter!
Well, the universe just keeps presenting you with new and exciting options, doesn’t it? 😉
What exactly is a wagon master and what will your new gig entail?
It sure does Patti. Keeps it interesting 🙂 A wagonmaster is simply their name (drawn from pioneers) for the leaders of a group. Dan & Lisa have done an amazing job over the years getting these trips organized to a T but we will make sure everyone is doing ok, make sure they get where they need to be, answer questions, host a couple of happy hours and dinners, sign them up for optional excursions, things like that. I’m sure you’ll hear ALL about it!