Rough Roads to Beautiful Places | Todo Bien EP.04
Hello everyone and welcome back to week 4 of Todo Bien! This episode is really near and dear to our heart. Give the episode a watch, then we will see you below for the BTS & images from the episode!
While hanging out in the town of Loreto, we ran into Kirk. We were familiar with who he was but had yet to meet him in person. After a quick meet cute in the grocery store we decided to spend some time camping together and do a little exploring.
View from our “stealth” in town camp spot
Our first stop together was to the tiny little mountain town of San Javier. Though the town is known for its fantastic mission, we found the entire community to be adorable.
Where we filled up on water in San Javier
It was a warm day, so we took our time exploring the mission and town. In need of refreshments, we got lunch and a beer on the square with a perfect view of the mission we’d just explored.
At camp that evening, Owen mentioned that he’d seen an interesting looking road on the map that would take us through the heart of Baja and to the coast. Which was perfect as we were both feeling ready to find some surf. The only catch was that the road was a little known 4x4 trail that helped remote ranchers reach their land.
Sunset on a nearby mountain
Kirk being the adventurous guy we know him to be, agreed to join us on our quest into the unknown! The next day we set off on the long drive, not exactly sure what we’d find along the way!
Kirk doing the first of a few small water crossings
The drive was long and slow going. We had many dry river beds to cross, some of which have seen a lot damage from recent storms. Even though we were never exactly sure if we’d reach an impassible point, we had a blast slowing picking our way through the rough terrain.
Its safe to say that not many people see this part of the Baja Peninsula. There is no real reason to take this road other than out of curiosity. Which is clearly what brought us here. It was fascinating to see the terrain change over the drive.
The one downside of this drive was that we never really found a spot to camp. We ended up stopping at this dry lakebed for the night because we were unable to find a single thing sooner. When the herd of horses showed up, we started to be suspicious that we were on someone’s land. (more on that in a second) They were unfazed and very curious about us, though they kept a safe distance from us at all times. We enjoyed a dinner of fancy feast here.
When we left the following morning, we ran into the land owner. We apologized and tried to convey that we were sorry for overstepping and that we would get on our way.
The second day of driving was thankfully way shorter than the first. In just an hour or two, we started to come down from the mountains into a deep valley. Though we don’t have any photos of it, there were columnar basalt formations that made up the canyon walls. As we got to the valley floor, the arid desert gave way to lush green palm trees. Without having to see the water, we knew we were in an oasis town! All the people in town seemed amused to see us drive by. Which I get it, we stick out like sore thumbs! Everyone was so friendly and gave us a wave.
We spent the afternoon getting lunch and beers at a small inn before going out on foot and chair to explore the bumpy cobblestone streets. We looked around the entire town including the towns small mission church. It felt like time had forgotten about this far flung corner of Baja. It was such a treat to see such a seldom seen area.
Kirk and his good boy, Maddox
Once we were done in town, we headed out to the coast. That is where the episode ends, but we actually ended up spending another week with Kirk slowly moving south along the Pacific coast together. The vast majority of our favorite moments with Kirk were not caught on camera. Like the night he fried up some fish he had bought in Loreto, the deep and often tearful conversations over taquilla and watching Kirk rip up and down a long beach in his van.
Our home on wheels parked on a cliffs edge where we said goodbye to Kirk
It will never be lost on us just how lucky we are to have so many inspiring people come into our lives because of our travels. Kirk is one of those people that having met once, we will always be friends. If you don’t already, give Kirk a follow. You will be clad you did!
Thank you all so much! See you November 26th for episode 5. We are taking a one week break in rolling out the series!
Love, MAK
We’re immensely grateful to our sponsors for making our creative endeavors possible. Their unwavering support has played a crucial role in enabling us to bring captivating stories to life and share them with our audience. Without their generous contributions, we wouldn't have the necessary resources to embark on our journeys, capture breathtaking landscapes, and document compelling human experiences. Our sponsors' dedication to our vision and their commitment to promoting authentic storytelling in the digital age is truly commendable. Every step of the way, their belief in our work has fueled our passion and allowed us to continue creating meaningful stories. We owe our sponsors a profound debt of gratitude, as they’re essential partners in our mission to inspire.
Presenting Sponsors
We’ve now been living out of a flat-bed Four Wheel Camper for 5 years. FWC builds comfortable and durable campers that can fit on any truck. We can confidently say that our FWC is the most comfortable and livable rig we’ve had in all our years on the road! If you reach out to them, tell them MAK & Owen sent ya!
Power and power management are key to living and working full time from the road. Our mobile lives run on a Redarc Manager 30. It’s a state-of-the-art battery management system that charges and maintains auxiliary batteries by incorporating AC, DC and solar inputs. We’re not sure where we’d be without it!
Supporting Sponsors
When you go to travel through Mexico by car, you need Mexican car insurance. Baja Bound is our all time favorite car insurance. We’ve used Baja Bound for every single one of our trips south of the border. We’re proud to have them as a sponsor for Todo Bien!
If you’re looking to get into overland travel, inspiration, education, or gear Overland Expo is our favorite event series that happens all around the US every year. We love attending as there is always something new to learn, innovation to see, and incredible people to meet!
Our entire life is powered by Dakota Lithium. They make the best lithium batteries and are an essential part of our power system that enables us to work from the road! Dakota Lithium makes the biggest capacity batteries for the footprint which enables us to have twice the power in the same footprint.
Tires can be some of the best insurance when you are out in remote places. We love and trust our Toyo ATIII’s to get us in and out safely, no matter the terrain. They’re amazing in mud, moon dust, loose rocks, slick rock, you name it!
