A Time Warp in the Baja Desert.

As we traveled Baja California, we found ourselves meandering from the Pacific coast to the Sea of Cortez coast at the whim of Highway 1 and its remote gas stations.

There’s no surf in Bahia de los Angeles, but we found ourselves ensnared by the beauty of the place for a few days longer than we had expected, having only come here as a fill-up stop to make sure we had all we needed for our next, more remote trip, on the Pacific side.

We stayed here exactly 5 days, 4 more than we’d planned, 4 of which were free of charge due to Gabriel’s amazing negotiation skills and willingness to work.

We were completely entranced by the pace of this place. Sure, the whole desert of Baja works on a rhythm different than the rest of the world, but this place especially felt like a wormhole stretching the fabric of space time.

After helping out the groundskeeper in digging a hole for a porter potty, Gabriel found that physical activity was a great way to pass the endless hours, so he built a rock bench next to our campground facing over the bay to the sunrise. He found a perfectly triangular rock that he plopped in an almost ritual manner in front of the bench.

Lost in Space-time

It wasn’t long before we became half consciously hypnotized by the sun’s arc across the sky drawing the rock’s lengthening shadow  over the sand, so every hour we placed a new stone to mark the time. The morning hours seemed to drag on forever, lazily and tediously dragging themselves closer to the stone. But as if the stone had some sort of magnetic field only shadows respond to, the sun-ghost found itself speeding its way through the midday hours, only to drag on again in the evening.

All cyclical and rhythmical phenomena played tricks on our perception of time: the ripples, the time coming and going, the birds’ feeding schedules. It was all as timeless as the beginning of creation and as immediate as the moment just passed. We didn’t know how to fill the seconds, but the hours flashed by. We were at once at a standstill, slow motion and sped up.

At night, the stars shone brightly in the infinite cosmos in a way that only authenticated the feeling of having entered a different space-time, or at least having stripped a layer off of what we think is reality. There were almost no spaces between the suns of other galaxies. Planets were nearly outshone by some stars, and satellites were eclipsed by a ceaseless display of shooting stars.

We did our best to capture what we could of this confusing spectacle, and the video below is the result of the passing of 5 hot suns and 5 cool moons in a perfect and beautiful arc over our heads, from horizon to horizon. A time warp in the Baja California desert.

It’s best enjoyed with a good sound system, or at least headphones, as some of the bass plays a key part in the editing.

Landscapes of Bahia de los Angeles

Thanks for stopping by :)

5 comments

  1. Very well put together…. spent so much time there and our twins had the run of the place.

    La Bay will always have an important place in our hearts.

    Saludos,
    See you on the mainland!

    1. It’s hard for that place not to leave an impression isn’t it?!

      Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment Frank, much obliged!

      :)

  2. Jade–beautiful! A special place! Night skies like I hadn’t seen for many years–mesmerizing! I’m now sititng on the Aegean north of Bodrum, but ur vid transported me right back to Baja. Can’t wait to return next winter; wishing all well Blanca wise. Thanks for sharing.

    Ps –what’s the music?

    1. Hey Mark!

      Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to drop us a line! The Music is by the Barr Brothers, a lovely Montreal-based band. These are the two first songs off their album “Sleeping Operator,” the intro called “Static Orphans” and the song “Love Aint Enough” I’m glad you asked, I forgot to mention in the text.

      Baja is truly special. Turkey sounds nice, never been to that part of the world, one day maybe!

      We are no longer in Baja, so Blanca is only affecting us with a bit of rain here in Mexico City, but my thoughts are with everyone in Baja.

      Thanks again and have a great day!

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