Valle de Guadalupe

With storms coming in strong, we decided to give Panchito a little break, stopping in Valle de Guadalupe for a few days. Rainy afternoons + vino = enticing!

Last minute Expedia-searching we found a KILLER deal at Don Tomas Viñedo… Adorable Cabañas, right in the grape vines, for only $50/night….Yes please!

Don Tomas had a gorgeous restaurant (cool construction, open kitchen) that served up the best chilaquiles rojas I’ve ever had, accompanied with fried eggs and house made chili oils. Before we knew it, hours had past over refills of their mouth watering cinnamon coffee.

We befriended the waitress practicing our conversational Spanish and she successfully twisted our arms into generous samplings of their house wines. Pretty sure 4 or 5 came with a tasting, but as we learned more descriptive words in Spanish… “suave”, “dulce como piña”, “àcido como toronja”, “un vino complejo o alegre”…the tastings kept coming! 😉

Finally parting ways, we had an awesome time in the Valle exploring all the back roads. It must have been the rain showers; each place we enjoyed all to ourselves.

A big highlight for me was J’s surprise stop, taking me to ‘The Bodega de Queso” (Cheese Cellar). Walking in, there was sensory overload… a Disneyland of cheese that would fulfill even Ratatouille’s wildest dreams. It was a difficult selection but we did jusssssttttt fine.

Tasty adventure, sampling our way down the line up.. spicy, sweet, aged, stinky haha! We ended up selecting a few ‘favoritos’ and adding in some fresh olive tapenade and moles to-go!

Another noteworthy destination was Vena Cava. Not only were the wines delicious, the architect constructed the winery using old Ensenada fishing boats from the 60’s/70’s… very cool and unique.

We tried to eat at a new restaurant for dinner, Finca Altozano, but all we found was a couch full of perros…Bueno… ¡que lástima! …Some things will just have to wait for future vacaciones!! Dinner picnic in the room it is! 🙂

Rhythm of the Ranas

Our time at the Cañón de Guadalupe went by like a sweet song… rhythm of the ranas (frogs) every night and soft symphonies of little birds in the mornings.

This stay was all about ‘catching up on slowing down’ …

Morning swims in the springs, coffee, hiking, reading, (more soaking in the springs), ukulele-ing, relaxing and trying to absorb the beauty in every direction – mountain ranges and the grand ‘trono blanco’ (The White Throne) in one direction and the canyon desert oasis in the other.

3 days and nights of this lifestyle was like a wellness retreat in a “wings suit” … we felt so relaxed…rejuvenated… invigorated…ready to ‘carpe diem’ the hell out of this 3 month trip! Si… ¡FUERTE!

Directionally Challenged

We all have our strengths and weaknesses…Although it’s improved over the years, with life and traveling, I am OK admitting I can be ‘directionally challenged’ … 😉

Just give me a map and cross your fingers; you might find an entirely new destination… haha!

Finally heading South, everything was going smoothly… easy vehicle inspection and border crossing in Tecate…After the guards questioned the insulation hanging out of the back door, we were on our way!

Pulling off onto the marked dirt road, from my first ‘directions interpretation’, the camp was just 7 miles away.

It was a beautiful sunset as we bumped along the path, slowing down as parts of the way began to get a little … rougher.

As we neared the 7 mile mark, it was clear there were no camps in sight. Luckily there were sporadic signs encouraging us along.

Still in phone reception zone, I tried to pull up additional directions and found the following map:

Yea.. it was 7 miles before two roads rejoined together but a healthy total of 35 off road miles to camp… Saying good night to the last of the sun, we just broke the first rule of the trip… “Don’t drive at night”…

I like to think this doesn’t really count because we were just snailing along beside ranches and olive farms.

As the terrain became more … advanced… Pancho sounded like a shelf of fine china during an earthquake… a wiggling tray of teal jello… well you get the idea.

J was able to maneuver around boulders and creek crossings… a true ‘maestro de manejar’! And, Pancho, maybe he really did have four wheel drive…

Just as we feared we may have to turn around, we found the entrance…

Wooo hooo!

A couple emerged from the dark, guiding us to our site. After burning a little rubber, we were IN!

“¡Que aventura!” The stars were so bright, you didn’t even need headlamps.. Even in the dark, it was one of the most incredible campgrounds…

Our very own private hot springs, palapa hut and fire pit! Excited and tired, we went straight into the hot springs before calling it a night! … Buenas noches!!

Big Bites!!

I don’t think we bit off more than we could chew; we just took a REALLY big bite…;)

Like many things in life, Panchito projects averaged twice as long as anticipated which pushed our awaited take-off by a week or so.

Gnawing and nibbling our way through; we had an epiphany to stop the “rushed” feelings and enjoy this fine dining experience.

I mean, you need to enjoy the appetizer and entree before that dessert!!! Right?!

Once the floors were in, everything started coming together!

(Still working morning to night with: wall insulation… new siding… cabinets, kitchenette… the bed!)

Some nights were a cold beer and take-out in the van or garage 🙂 other evenings required something stronger… “where’s my whiskey!” Haha

The last few days, feelings of excitement are at an all time high. Completing the final touches; it’s sinking in that we’re having a rad start to 2019! Let the year begin!!

Expanding Horizons

There is something so rewarding about expanding your horizons and embracing the NEW.

Whether trying a new recipe, learning another language, watching video after video of how to properly install insulation and sub flooring… right or left brain…both sides have really been hitting the gym.

We’re talkin’ very mentally toned, if you know what I mean… 😉

We are definitely using our combined knowledge and expertise, but are embracing the NEW on a daily.

Exhibit A: Check out these floor s’mores! Yea!!

Our goal is to complete the flooring in the next day or two. And we think the ‘grey ash’ vinyl planks will compliment Pancho very nicely.

While making strides on the rebuild, we’ve also been acquiring living goodies for este viaje…el interior y la cocina…

Because when it comes to essentials, you can’t leave home without a zester…Right?

¡Buen provecho!

(On this topic, you have to try Picadillo with Plantains!)

Gutted

Dawn to dusk, rain or shine,

Safe to say, it’s been a grind….

Thanks to a lot of hard work and love, especially from J, Pancho has successfully been gutted and is officially rust-free! Wooot!

The floors have been treated, anxiously awaiting their new insulation and sub flooring.

J has developed a passion for auto restoration, I’ve discovered a new affinity for power tools (vroom baby)…

I think Pancho is really rubbing off on us…

We’ve come a long way and are so pumped for this next phase of customizing our dream machine… making it OURS.

¡Si se puede!

Utah: Life Elevated

Ever think a ‘waterpocket fold’ would land in the list of things that excite you? 😉

Well, better add a bullet for this one…

Utah continues to amaze us. J has been more than me, but this third trip certainly was a charm. We really packed it in with this one:

Dead Horse Point State Park, Moab, Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Escalante State Park, Zion National Park…

What’s the longest you can go without blinking?

A trip like this was awesome to scratch the surface, but we were left wanting more… more of each place. There was so much to take in at each location, you didn’t want to miss a moment. And, with some of the back-country dirt roads, you couldn’t really afford to…

As a little girl, I was always fascinated by rocks. I wanted to climb them, collect them, figure out what made them…A roadtrip like this was a dream. Not only the red rocks, but the incredible history and Native American presence in pictographs, arrowheads… aaahhhh!

Pancho was not ready for a haul like this, but our other road warrior, Coco Loco Moco, was up for the challenge. Complete with a rooftop treehouse (as we like to call it); it is arguably the most comfortable ‘glamp’ set up one could ask for. It was a tidbit chilly this time of year, so Mr. Heater Buddy became a close companion.

We weren’t the only ones that were cold..

Pepe, our new fuzzy fellow re-emerged every 5 minutes for one of the nights, to toast his paws by the fire. He was uncomfortably welcoming to the neighborhood which kept me on the edge of my chair for most of the evening, much to J’s entertainment. In his backyard or not, it would have been a very untimely occasion for a spritz of this special outdoorsy cologne. Yep..

Hmmm what else can I say – we were so thankful to spend this special trip with friends, families, loved ones. There were so many happy memories made; I hope when I am older, there will be a special smile wrinkle for this one.

Belay on!

Mysteries

Pancho is full of mysteries… After researching some ‘do it yourself’ YouTube videos, I felt full of ‘internet knowledge confidence’, deciding to roll up my sleeves and surprise J by removing the old carpet from the van floor.

We did have an idea that there may be more than one layer…

I mean, why pick one floor when you could have 3?! Ha! I ripped out the carpet, to find linoleum, to find old wood… While more work than I bargained for, I felt pretty proud of myself for getting the job done.

Sweaty and smiling, I think I missed my true calling as a construction worker…

Pancho definitely had some past lives… if those walls could talk! Cleaning up the last bit together, we found an old, rusted U.S. Government pen. (Favorite find so far…)

I’d like to think that he was definitely an undercover agent. Such an inconspicuous vehicle you know…

Calling it a day, it was time for Pancho’s first surf trip!

Boards packed up, playing some reggae jams, we headed to our favorite local spot. Wiggling into our wet suits, it was a very good taste of our life ahead.

Vacation Days

Big things happening this week:

Transmission rebuild = complete!

Vehicle registration = complete! (Thank goodness for AAA, saving us hours from the dreaded DMV). It felt pretty good getting those license plates…real official….woot!

Costco run = complete. Ha! No, not for the trip, just for life. In the midst of all this craziness, we decided it was a good idea to do a 21 day sugar detox. Stocked up on meats, veggies, almond butter, eggs…sadly had to skip the wine aisle…next time.

The reality of this trip is really starting to sink in. How often does one get to spend 3 months traveling through Mexico?! It really is a rare opportunity; J is in a unique position to make shift trades and my contract is coming to an end.

It’s crazy (for me) to digest that I only have three weeks of work left. Planning the transition, I have been sharing our plans with more and more people. The reactions have been all over the board: shocked, amused, excited, curious, amazed, skeptical, unsure, annoyed, and my favorite, genuinely happy for us.

The truth is: not enough people take vacations and time for themselves.

“Unlike every other developed nation in the world, the U.S. has no mandated number of days off for employees. About one-fourth of American workers get no paid vacation at all. Those whose employers offer it receive an average of about 10 days a year” – https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/why-vacations-matter/index.html

Even with the average of ’10 days’, over half of Americans do not use all of the vacation they earn.

Being at companies in the past, where vacation hours were accrued, I was counting those hours each pay check to plan my next adventure… I would not leave a single minute.

There are so many aspects of life, work is certainly one of them, but should not be the only one. Take the vacation days, discover somewhere new, go for a walk, lay in a hammock. You won’t regret it.

We are excited to live ‘outside the box’ for this upcoming period and fully experience all that life has to offer.

Cookies

After getting Pancho home safely, we checked him into the doctor for his first operation; rebuilding the transmission.

We have about two months until ‘Mexico go-time’ so we’re tackling the big stuff first. Parting ways, it was time to pack up the bicicletas for an adventure in the Malibu mountains…

Challenge: Phil’s Cookie Fondo.

Course consisted of: Spandex, gourmet cookies, tough climbs, burning lungs, sweat, eye watering descents, beautiful views, and did I already say COOKIES? Yes, at everrrrry aid station…sweetness!

Ex pro cyclist, Phil Gaimon, known for chowing down cookies on serious races, puts on an awesome event! Dressed up like the cookie monster, he organized several routes: Mini Chip, Sugar Cookie, Chocolate Chip and Double Fudge. (The double fudgers are walnuts! 110 miles…eeesh).

We opted for the 50 mile Sugar Cookie ride, plenty challenging with over 3,250 ft+ of climbing. It was a rad day, starting through foggy farmlands, climbing up windy narrow roads, discovering gorgeous, rocky, hilly, terrain sprinkled with horse stables and impressive ranches.

Sweet treats along the way until we found the Malibu coast for the last stretch. Right when you are about to cross over to the dark side, fatigued and in need of more calories, you ride through the finish archways to find a Michelin star meal and cold beer waiting for you. Amazing.

Of course we had to bring home some gourmet coffee…one of the best souvenirs 😊