Skip (Richard) Haugh is my cousin that lives in San Diego and yearns to fish and surf. He takes an annual trip to Loreto, MX that sits ¾ of the way down the eastern side of the Baja Peninsula, and on the Gulf of California.
The late French explorer Jacques Cousteau once called the Sea of Cortez the “world’s aquarium” and it is thought to be one of the most diverse seas on the planet.
I flew to San Diego, then the three of us drove the 720 miles to Loreto with Skip’s boat in tow, stopping for one night about 2/3 of the way there. The arduous journey was rewarded with remarkable sights and experiences.
Day one was on the boat fishing as Skip and Larry angled the hot spots that they knew while I drove the boat. Eventually, I took my hand at fishing and caught a nice one. They caught and released all day with the goal of keeping only Dorado, similar to Mahi Mahi.
We had a great day on the boat (7 hours) while drinking copious amounts of water, applying sun lotion, and NOT drinking the beer that I forgot to pack in the morning. Actually, the plan was only a few beers because the hot sun required lots and lots and lots of water.
Day two was a scuba day for me while Skip and Larry ventured out to the open sea. Scuba revealed incredibly colored fish in water that offered visibility to about 15 feet. After scuba, I restocked the kitchen while they finished fishing.
Day 3 was another adventure in the diverse sea that revealed the incredible colors, shapes, and variety of sea life. Finally, when we debarked our daily fishing journeys, the pelicans swarmed our boat to consume the bait that we would no longer need. Experiencing the sunrises each day is something I will not forget, as well as the adventures in and on the Gulf of California.
