No paddling today--comings and goings at the beach

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Tuesday, April 2, 2013

In the morning, a cleanup crew from the government came in to collect trash bags and do a pickup of the beach.  I helped them till they were done, which took about an hour.  They recycle the bottles and cans, and gather paper and junk, but leave any leftover food or ashes for nature to dispose of.

This was an example of how the Third World is catching up with the US.  Here at Ligui beach—used mostly by the locals and bordering a national marine park—they have porta potties, plus organized trash pickup.

In contrast—at Hawksnest State Park in Massachusetts also used mainly by locals—there’s neither trash pickup nor porta potties.   So in one respect, Mexico is ahead of Massachusetts.

There was also a departing kayak tour, with two men my age, an American, a Mexican (who lives now in Texas), the guide, a relative of his, and one other person.   They were going the paddle the whole way to La Paz, about 80-100 miles.  Actually, tours to La Paz stop at a point short of the bay opposite La Paz, because south of that it’s very flat, and crossing to Isla Espiritu Santu is too far.

The Mexican guide, who spoke good English, was very knowledgeable.  I asked him if the Sea of Cortez was getting more polluted, and he didn’t think so.  I asked, because for the last two years, the water has been rather cloudy when I swim.  He said that that may be due to the “nortes” (north wind storms) that were heavy this winter, and can stir up the sediments. 

I also asked if the numbers of fish were declining, because I had seen less sealife.  He said that he had also noticed less this year, but he said that it may just be a year-to-year variation of where the most fertile areas are.  The whales shift their feeding areas from year to year to take advantage of this, and so they have been seeing fewer blue and other whales.  He said that since the marine park was established, the fish populations have been rebounding.

When I tried to cook lunch, I noticed the burners didn’t work, so I assumed I was out of gas.  The fridge didn’t show the warning light, but I decided I was out of gas, so went into Loreto to get propane, groceries, and email.  Since Loreto is the main tourist destination in central Baja, there were a number of Americans inside the market, as I suspect it may cater to them.  An aging hippie couple, very darkly tanned—a rather elderly American couple with little sign of being in the sun, and some Mexicans.

I get the sense that more and more Mexicans, if they can afford it, are adopting American consumer habits and a taste for processed foods.  Grocery prices in the supermarket are about the same as in the US.  US-type delicacies (like Breyer’s ice cream, or canned fruit) are much more expensive.  But fresh fruits and fruit juices are less.  For example, a really good avocado costs only about 60 cents US.  Propane was substantially less than the US.

Near sundown, a man came with his family for an outing on the beach.  He had an inflatable kayak, but not a good paddle—so I loaned him one of mine.  Another family was looking for crabs in the lagoon.   They caught one, and showed it to me. The catch them by crushing their heads with a stick about two feet long.  I didn’t find out if the hapless crab was destined for soup or tacos.

I patched a small hole in my kayak, and went for a very short paddle after dark.  It’s very soothing to rock in the wave, as the stars come out.  With no gear in the kayak, is seemed to have regained its youth—floating high, moving fast, and bobbing on the waves.