Baja and Mexican Riviera Weather

As Cat 4 Hurricane Felix, about 200 miles east of Cabo Gracias a Dios on the Nicaragua-Honduras border, gets all of CNN’s attention, Tropical Storm Henriette is about 200 miles south of Cabo San Lucas moving toward Baja California Sur.  She’s expected to soak the entire coast, cross mid-peninsula moving over the Mar de Cortez and eventually bring rain to the parched Sonoran desert near Guyamas.  I wouldn’t be surprised if her grand fanale was a spectacular late summer lightening show here in San Diego/Tijuana.

The last time we traveled in Mexico a week after a hurricane, we found the mosquitos and little pesky flies called ‘no-see-ums’ nearly ate us alive as we tried to camp on Bahia Concepcion just south of Mulege, Baja California Sur.  Besides being blood-sucking agents of torcher, the mosquitos can carry Dengue – a medieval-sounding virus that makes the common flu feel like a picnic in the park.   Unwilling to through in our sweat-soaked towel, we pressed on and drove further south away from the stiffeling Mar de Cortez over to the cool-breeze of the Pacific where we spent a very comfortable week in the charming village of Todos Santos. 

This time, we’ll arrive about a week after the Henriette drenching driving down the mainland’s Pacific Coast to spend just a night in San Carlos before continueing on to Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta during the rainy season (we almost always travel on off-tourist seasons).  While we’ll be able to hide in our air-conditioned van and hotel room and we’re miss the worst part of the bug problem, we’re not out of the woods.

We’re getting prepared for high humidity, hot heat and biting insects.  Our defense is a mixture of DEET, Pennyroyal Oil and rubbing Bounce, the fabric softener, over every inch of our exposed body parts.  While it can’t save us from sweating like pigs (we’ll have to bank on air conditioning, the Pacific Ocean and swimming pools for that) we’ll be sure to let you know how we’ll our defense works against the bugs.  

 Please let us know what has worked for you.  Please!!!

~ by Paul O'Sullivan on September 4, 2007.