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A year had passed and it was time to get back down to Loreto, BC, Mexico again. I took along one of my oldest, and best, friends, Jim Husbands. Here are some photos from our 5 day adventure.
The Accommodations
I picked a different spot, but very similar to the great accommodations we had in 2006, this year. Coco Cabanas is located on the other end of the Malecon from where we stayed last year. It's just a long block from the Marina, where you will, typically, be boarding your charter boat.
Coco Cabanas is a hidden pearl!
Downside?. A dusty little road that you have to navigate, yet it gives this place the feel of the real Loreto, which is just now getting their main streets, other than the Malecon, paved. Very quaint! Very NOT CABO!
Upside? Bill & Kathy! VERY UPSIDE! Bill and Kathy are/were there whenever you needed them and it was almost "spooky", as they seemed to show up out of nowhere every time you needed something! They're constantly pruning, preening and massaging the place. You never had to look far to find one of them to take care of any of your requests.
In the background of this beautiful pool/Jacuzzi, you see a couple of the 8 cabanas. The whole place looked like it had been built yesterday, everything was like new, yet the fauna and flora appeared to have been there for quite some time. And I think that was due to Bill and Kathy's non-stop nurturing and the fantastic tropical weather.
I mean real nice and real tropical!
The sign, pretty much says it all! Make your reservations early, as you will be hard pressed to find these kinds of accommodations in Loreto for $70.00 a night!
Here is the video & book "library" that was available to the 8 cabanas. I'm talking "eclectic" in both areas! Lot's of "personal favorites" that people brought down and left both in video and the written word. Do not worry about bringing a good book as you will find one there.
Jim just couldn't relax!
Now, this is Baja so don't expect the Ritz! Small bedroom with two beds, separated from the kitchen (Cabanas 1 & 2 only. Others are 1 room. Same size.)
And here's the kitchen. Bathroom & shower to right. Entry door on left. Very adequate!
Shot from entry door. Very quiet yet you meet your neighbors due to proximity of all cabanas to the pool.
This is how close you are to the water/beach. This is looking out of our kitchen window. The marina is just to the right but is out of frame.
The Dining
This is/was our hostess, Carol. She owns the restaurant with her husband Lee.
There are numerous restaurants/bars within walking distance of Coco Cabanas. I only took my camera with me one night and I'm sorry that I did not shoot any photos of the other spots that Jim and I enjoyed, but were not photographed. They were more "local" and the food was very good. That being said. Here are some photos that we took on the last evening we spent in Loreto at Mediterraneo restaurant.
Beautiful on the inside. But we never sat in there.
This is the view we had every evening at dinner. We met the owners of one of those yachts (the 170' one) on our first day there. He was a car salesman! I won't go into details but think "Lexus of California" - 17 dealerships. They were very fun and cordial people and we really enjoyed the time we spent with them. We actually offered to "swim back in" if they invited us out for a drink when they left, but they were pulling anchor. They got a big laugh out of my/our offer though. Great afternoon with some fun people!
I'm talking about a real nice place here. Check out the view! That's Jim sitting at the far end. We ate at these tall tables, up front, every night we were there. Nice breeze too. Was probably 90 degrees but felt like 75 up there.
Here are a few of the waiters. They were a great bunch of guys and girls and you could not turn around without one of them there to take care of whatever you needed. The service was better than 95% of the best restaurants I have eaten at in the United States. I'm not kidding! And the food was wonderful. I do not go to Mexico to eat the beef however, after several people raved about the smoked prime rib, I just had to give it a try. Unbelievable! Probably one of the top two prime rib dinners I have had in my 59 years.
The owners, Lee, behind the bar and Carol, out front, could not have been more friendly and gracious hosts, always hovering around their guest's tables, making suggestions and seeing to their customer's every need. The second night we brought in about two dozen "chocolata clams" (I think that's what they called them) that one of the people at Coco Cabanas had collected, fresh, from a local sand island earlier that day. Lee just grabbed the bag and asked us how we would like them prepared. We asked to have them done "steamer" style with garlic, broth, etc. so that we could compare them to the "little necks" that we were accustomed to eating at home. They brought them out with bread and a salsa-type dipping sauce with clam forks and everything you would expect from the finest restaurant in the USA. We stuffed ourselves on the clams and had no room left for the dinner we had planned on ordering, so we just ordered a small pizza (also excellent) and took most of that home. When the bill came, there was not a charge, whatsoever, for the clams or their service, which was 1st class! Just the pizza and drinks. I'll tell you what. I have never had that happen to me at home. Just fantastic service and friendly, attentive and very personal attention by the owners! Kudos!!!! If you go to Loreto you have to stop by and meet Lee and Carol and please tell them you read it here and say "Kenny King sent me!.
Another great shot. That's Isla Coronado in the distance. We caught our first fish of the trip just to he left (north) of there.
This is a couple that were staying at Coco Cabanas that happened to sit next to us on our last night in town. I told them that I would put their photo on this web page. I regret that I did not get (actually remember) their names. Jim and I had started "tipping-a-few" while fishing earlier that day. (see next photo for proof of that!)
Lee and Carol provided a complimentary "Bananas Foster" desert for Jim and I on our last night in town. I'm not only saying it was absolutely fabulous, but I am also thankful that the flames had extinguished by the time I tried to "CHUG" the desert!
And finally! The reason that we all go down to Loreto.
The Fishing
Bill & Kathy at Coco Cabanas hooked us up with a great "Super Panga" captain, NACHO. (hard name not relate to Mexico) Although the fishing was off for everyone during our trip, I cannot more highly recommend Nacho. His equipment was first class and his boats (we fished the Super Panga the first day and then his beautiful little 23' Skipjack Sedan the second day) were "bristol". He worked hard to get us fish under "cool water" conditions and he really came through the second day with two 40 pound Yellowtail. (see below) And we farmed two others!
Following are just a few of the many photos I took while on the water.
We're ready for anything. Large or small. Bottom line is that we hit a "cold water" thing that was going on and no one was getting much in the way of Dorados, which was our fish-of-choice.
Here's our captain NACHO. His wife made us some terrific lunches. Smoked marlin salad with carrots and fresh corn served on crisp tortillas the second day. (think chicken salad - Mexican style!)
Here's Jim mugging with Jutta, a very good ol' friend of ours from Sunset Beach, where we all have lived and/or hanged out, the last 30-40 years. Jutta bought a lot in Loreto 20 years ago and now lives their in retirement. She was a gracious host while we were there as well as a great person and fisherperson too! This is the second year I have visited and fished with Jutta and am looking forward to my next trip already.
We had to fight the "Humboldt squid" (calamari) while we were making bait each morning. They would grab the Mackerel on the way up and strip our sinkers and caused us an awful lot of grief. And very much fun too. We kept a couple for back-up baits each day.
Here are some of the "Mackies" that made it up and also a few "Sardinas" in the live well on the afternoon of our second day out fishing.
We didn't catch anything worth mentioning the first day but we sure saw some awesome rock structures on the back side of Isla Carmen. Following are a bunch of photos I took on both days. (sans commentary)
This is a dream home that was started 15 years ago but never made it to completion. This place was HUGE! Just a few kilometers north of town.
Here's two happy old men with bad knees, bad shoulders but great attitudes, straining to hold up these 40 pound "hogs"!
Well. I've been home from Loreto for just over 24 hours and I'm already planning my next trip down there. I hope you enjoyed my photos and our adventure!
ADIOS!
Kenny King
