Rest days in La Bufadora

The area referred to as La Bufadora means blowhole in Spanish and is essentially a marine geyser that spouts every time a wave blasts through an area of underwater caves sending a spray of ocean water and a thunderous roar. According to WikiPedia, “folklore describes a baby whale entering the underwater cave over a century ago and becoming stuck. The spout of water is from the whale’s blowhole.”

La Bufadora is located on the Punta Banda Peninsula in Baja, Mexico. The peninsula is just south of Ensenada, Mexico, which is about an hours drive south of the border. Most American tourists don’t make it much further than Ensenada or Rosarito, making La Bufadora a bit of a retreat from the shot bars and pollution.

Jen and I headed from LA down to Ensenada, where we picked up fellow Austinites, Sean and Kristen, and cruised down to La Bufadora to Casa de Candaele(link below). The Casa was this solar-run, U-shaped house that rested on a mountain top overlooking the ocean. It was on several acres and had very few neighbors. We ultimately had the area to ourselves, which included crazy tide pools, lagoons, cliff-bands towering over the ocean, little private beaches and a Bocci court (of course we used it).

The crags were deceiving. They looked like perfect climbing spots, but would crumble in your hands as you applied any sort of pressure. The tide pools were amazing though. They were like little underwater gardens spread all along the beaches. Each pool had its own diverse set of sea life.

Although we only saw a few, in the distance we always heard the constant “barking” of sea lions off in the distance. It sounded like there must have been a beach full of them, but we never ventured far enough to find them. We did go fishing one of the days and caught a fish that I have yet to identify. Stay tuned for that.

The Sunsets were madness. Each night the sky would explode with color over the ocean and the mountains behind us with all the succulent plants would contrast against the brilliant colors. Some of the best sunsets I have ever witnessed.


On the way back, Jen and I stopped by Porto Nuevo to sample their famous lobster and margaritas. If it wasn’t for the heat we may not have ever left.

Links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Bufadora
www.casadecandaele.com