Thank you all for giving us a pretty decent spring break here in Peñasco last month – sorry to those of you who had to wait in line at the border, but thanks for coming down and supporting our community. We should have a pretty good April with the kickoff being Semana Santa. This week is always a fun time to get out and about and people watch. Watching the Malecon become a parking lot reminds me of my cruising days in Balboa – that is, back in my youth, when I thought it was fun to sit in a car for hours moving an inch an hour. These days, I park a block or two away (for a quick escape) and hang out at a local establishment with a cold beverage to watch all the fun. Same goes for Calle 13 at night. Tons of shenanigans and lots of fun happening, and for many, many years, again, in my youth, I walked up and down the boulevard bar hopping with friends and family. To be honest, that happened pretty much all the time lol. I still hit the top of Competition Hill every few months, but watch from afar during Semana Santa: the mayhem and somewhat organized chaos is a sight to see. Competition Hill is on the way to Cholla Bay – look for the big hill with tons of vehicles, people, and a lot of dust. It is definitely worth a gander if you’ve never seen it during this time of the year. Afterwards you can head out to the patio at JJ’s Cantina and watch people scramble to move their vehicles at high tide. It always amazes me how many people park in the bay and then wander off, only to come back to find their vehicles stuck in the mud or completely submerged. That must suck. I wonder if they don’t know about our severe tide fluctuation, or just forget about the time? Probably a bit of both. Same goes for a few of the estuaries, though I think those people just get stuck out there and then have no choice but to sit and watch as their vehicles get swallowed up by the tide. Very expensive mistake. Pretty sure Mexican (or American) insurance is not going to cover that. If you know better, do someone a solid and let them know that where they’re leaving their vehicle is probably not a good idea – if they ignore you, then you can record and post to social media. I never had to learn the hard way, though my friend Heather and I did sink my neighbor’s sandrail out behind Cholla Bay back in the 90s – before telephones and many full-time residents. We tried for hours to get it unstuck and decided we had better get help as dusk approached. We headed over the dunes and walked, for what seemed like miles, to the nearest house with a light on. Like I said, this was back before phones, so we begged the lady at the house to give us a ride home. She was very nice to help us since we were covered from head to toe in mud. She was absolutely smashed, and we thought we were going to die on the drive from Las Conchas to El Mirador, but thanks to her, we made it home safely, and my parents called off the search party. After a cerveza or two for Heather and me, a few of us headed back to Las Conchas to try and rescue the sandrail because if we left it overnight, no doubt it would not be there in the morning. We could not find it, so back home we went, where we proceeded to drink our sorrows away and try to come up with a plan to pay Pablo back for his sandrail. I have to say I was pretty surprised when we found it the next morning. Took 14 of us to get it unstuck – by hand – since we couldn’t get a tow vehicle/winch anywhere near it. Needless to say, we never borrowed his sandrail again! Good times. Oh, and Heather was driving, but in her defense, I did tell her to “go down there and do donuts” – so there’s that.

Have to say that my last trip down Hwy. 8, the latter part of last month, was the first time in probably a year (or more) that I didn’t let out an audible groan. The highway was in very good shape – a very pleasant drive – don’t think I had to dodge a pothole until I got to the ranchito road. We did receive news in February (I think) that our local and state governments will be making a large investment for Hwy. 8 improvements from Sonoyta to Peñasco, so can’t wait for that to begin. Hopefully, right after that, they can start on the plans they have for expanding the border on the Sonoyta side 😊. It’s good to dream! More good news: the city is getting a new dump, there will be more water flow to the residents of the city, and there will be consistent trash collection. And, as you’re probably aware, our border is open again until 10PM on Fridays through the first part of October.

I’m going to speak for the entire city now when I say THANK YOU! for coming down and spending your time and hard-earned dollars and pesos in Puerto Peñasco. Happy Easter, and get ready for summer. See you at the beach!