Sailing and Camping in el golfo, Mexico

Hi, everybody.

My friends and I are taking our catamarans down to el golfo again on the 26th of october.

EL Golfo is a tiny fishing village about 90 miles South of yuma. We camp on the beach and sail our catamarans. Sometimes we have sea kayaks, too. Our camping spot is about 10 miles drive down the beach from town, so 4wd or all wheel drive is reqiuired.

This is primitive camping with no facilities, but it is car camping, so we are generally pretty comfortable.

We will leave the valley Friday night and camp at Organ Pipe National Monument along the Mexican Border. In the morning we wake up, cross the border, and head for the beach. We return on Monday afternoon, so you need to be able to play hooky on Monday to join us.

Right now we will have 3 catamarans for sure, possibly 4. If someone has some kayaks, they are fun to bring, too. I will be limiting this trip to 12 people, as that is enough for me. The number of attendees may also be limited by the number of suitable vehicles going.

This trip is relatively inexpensive. You split the cost of gas and Mexican insurance with your driver. We buy shrimp and firewood from the locals, and we camp for free in Mexico(8 bucks at organ Pipe).

Now, just a few items to cover:

We are going into Mexico . Mexico is a foreign country(as in NOT the USA). This means that you will need a valid passport to return. The Mexicans will let you in without a passport, but the bureaucrats on the US side will not let you return without one. You must have a valid passport to join us. This also means no drugs, weapons, or ammunition. Your vehicle will be searched by the Mexican authorities(quickly and politely). They have drug dogs that were trained North of the border. If you are a hunter or a stoner, clean out your vehicle thoroughly before the trip. Mexican prisons suck. If you are busted you are on your own. If i catch you with any contraband(aka drugs, weapons, bullets) you will be told to leave. If you are a passenger you will be left behind on the side of the road. NO exceptions.

This trip requires a significant mount of planning and effort(organizing rides, deciding how many boats to take, etc.). If someone flakes out at the last minute, it creates a headache for the rest. i will be collecting a 50 dollar nonrefundable deposit form all attendees. this will be given to your assigned driver regardless of whether you actually go. This will help defray the cost of an empty seat, yet is not so much money that it will break someone who has a legitimate emergency. I will collect that one week ahead of time.

When you RSVP, please answer all of the questions. it will help me plan things easily.

If anyone has any questions, feel free to give me a call: 480-296-5166.

This will be a blast!

Pat