Just another day on the Baja..

Our destination is the cave paintings at Santa Domingo, about 30 miles west of Loreto. 

We first head up the mountains from Loreto about 20 miles to the Mission San Javier.

 The road, which was just recently paved, snakes it's way up through the rugged Sierra Giganta. Along with the paved road came electricity to the town which had survived for over 300 years without it, until 2011. 

The mission and the town were built by the Jesuits in the early 1700's. Along with the mission, they built an elaborate water system with dams and aqueducts and irrigation for date palms, fruit trees, olive trees and vegetables. The ordeal of building the road and bringing supplies over the unrelenting terrain is almost unimaginable. But seeing this breathtaking oasis, one can understand the choice to build the town here. 

The trip to San Javier before the paved road would take between 2 and 3 hours, bouncing along the rocks and dirt, weaving in and around arroyos and river beds. Now the trip is an easy 30 minutes. 

Just past the mission, the road returns to it's natural state of hard packed dirt and rock. We pass small ranchos with neatly harrowed rows of onions, corn and stands of olive trees and orange groves. The road now meanders in and out of the arroyo, the clear water glowing with green hues of angel hair algae. Ducks paddle through the reeds as egrets stalk their prey and road runners scurry in front of our vehicle. All around us the mammoth peaks guard the way.

Ten more miles brings us to Rancho Santa Domingo, the home of our guide Humberto and his family. We are welcomed by Humberto's wife Christina and his two cute daughters, about 6 and 8. The greet us shyly with smiles and outstretched hands as they introduce themselves to us. We know Humberto from previous visits, he has a kind and weathered face, he clearly enjoys seeing visitors. 

A couple on a motorcycle join us, they are Canadians now living on mainland Mexico and this is their first trip to the Baja. 

We follow Humberto down the road, park the vehicles and head up a steep talus slope made up of red and brown volcanic rock. After about 20 minutes we crawl behind some cactus and scrub to a large cave. The cave is strategically placed, very hard to see and has a good view of the valley below. The entrance walls are covered with paintings of fish, whales, octopus and snakes. Rows of cups, animal skeletons and more adorn the rock. Inside the cave, which is about 40 feet by 60 feet are artifacts, stones hollowed out by years of grinding grains, cutting tools and more. The 8 foot ceiling is layered with soot from years of fires for warmth and cooking. Off to one side is a platform, which we assume was for sleeping. Humberto tells us this was a winter home, as the west facing slope would be too hot in summer with temperatures reaching over 110 F. We sit and gaze about the valley, contemplating what life was like 7,000 years ago, and what happened to these people, where did they go? We try our best to disturb this unique place as little as possible in hopes it will remain for future generations to enjoy and wonder.