Reports just in from Vic (GOPC staff) & crew. They are traveling from S. California to Patagonia, Chile. Read more on their BLOG: http://southbound-horizons.blogspot.com

Vic taking a hot spring shower in San Lorenzo

>> MORE PICS

1.19.08 – Chuck, Hola and greetings from Baja. Andrew, Anthony and I are down in Todos Santos… about 50 miles or so from Cabo San Lucas. We have spent the last 12 days or so bouldering, surfing and slowly making our way south through the Baja peninsula. We are planning on taking the ferry mainland in the next few days. – Adios, Vic

vic_tent.jpg

2.4.08 – Sunsets, sunburns, fish tacos, agavé fields, granite boulders, surf wax, fresh tortillas, papya and unexplored canyon walls… from hidden beaches to booming cities, we have made our way south through the rolling green hills of northern Baja into the sun-baked, boulder-strewn desert of central Baja, with its massive Cordón cactus, dusty roads and shells of trucks rusting into their final resting places. Here many days were spent with chalked hands, sore finger tips and wounds patched with climbing tape as the crew discovered untapped problems, hidden in the maze of the Cataviña boulder fields. Then it was off to the Sea of Cortez with its rocky peninsulas, beachside palapas and gorgeous islands within paddling distance. The wind blew strong, but our Black Diamond Megamid (thanks GOPC!) stood fast, sheltering us from dusty gusts. Moving south, the sun got hotter, the surf got better and we soon found ourselves on a ferry to mainland Mexico, with backpacks full of clothes washed in the ocean and cans of black beans, to visit with friends and family, explore the rivers and rope up on Mexican rock. With over 2,000 miles on the odometer, we rolled into the surf town of Sayulita, on the Pacific coast where towering palms, beautiful waves and friendly people were there to greet us. Here in Sayulita fate was on our side in meeting a traveling artisan, selling jewelry on the beach. He invited us to his home in Guadalajara where his crew of friends, putting up hard 5.13’s in the deserted climbing areas outside of the city, gave us a one week tour of the rock around Guadalajara which would put any guide book to shame. The experiences with the people here in Mexico have truly shaped our journey as we venture towards Central America and the vast unknown of overgrown rainforests, rutted roads and stretches of untouched landscape. – Vic