Any thoughts on this from John and others on that ride?
Cheers!
ort
... this was my first BARF Baja trip, so
I'll throw in $0.02 based on that ...
I was worried about big-group Baja dinners, too,
and was pleasantly surprised at how easy they were
with the BARF Baja crew in 2017 ... I put it down
to the fact that 2017 was the third time they'd
done the same-ish late January/early Feb loop, so they
had experience with the dinner places, and experience
with the group check/tip dynamics (which was really what
worried me the most ... kudos to the folks that
stepped up and dealt with the group dinner check/cash/tips ... they
know who they are ... :laughing)
We were riding in groups because I'd say BARF Baja is mostly
a plated-dirt-bike/non-n00b/tequila crew ... certainly the
handful of "big" bike riders were much better riders than me ...
the two KLR guys mostly left at sunrise to
go an easy KLR way and not feel rushed ...
so that made breakfast and lunch a non-issue ...
we also knew our way around that part of Baja ...
I think the time of year and recent economic/tourist
trends in Baja made the motels easy (and the good planning)
... certainly the nice
hotel in Catavina was empty in late January, 2017 ...
We ride with camping gear,
so we were not feeling any motel or get-there stress ... we actually stayed
more in motels than I'd thought we'd be able to, mostly so we could
be/stay part of the group ... there always seemed to be a room ...
and we probably eased the room/bed issues by camping
at Daggetts and Punta San Francisquito
arty
San Ignacio can be tough for big groups but Rice and Beans
worked well for me for dinner and breakfast ...
I was well into Baja-bliss-mode
by then, and the whole trip everywhere we went
I felt welcome/appreciated by our service providers
even when all 25 of us showed up ... :ride
I'll have to try your big-pannier/empty-luggage rack DR650-style riding
some day ... I go with Dirtbagz (they are small) and a huge
river bag for the camping gear and water I always cary,
and the KLR is a handful in the rough stuff ... :rolleyes
see you at
Lanesplitters,
-- SFMCjohn