No Lifeguard on Duty!

--We are on the Pacific Ocean side of the Baja peninsula just at the Tropic of Cancer, 23 1/2 degrees north latitude.  The water here is warm enough for swimming but dangerous except for one or two places.  The surf is rough and there is a rip tide.   In some places the beaches are steep and the waves crash right on the sand.  Ann's brother, J, and I went out at Las Palmas on a fairly calm day (see photo, Ann took this thinking this is the last she would see of us), and we got out a little ways we realized the waves were big and crashing right in front of us, pummeling us with white water.   We were glad to make it back to shore.  A couple of weeks later a man drowned at that same beach, he was pulled out past where the waves were breaking and couldn't get back in, the rip tide then pulled him over onto the rocks.

--There is a 6 mile or so stretch of beach between La Poza in Todos Santos and the surfer beach La Pastora where we go running or to watch the sunset/whales, and sometimes the water is very cam and inviting.  Some of the locals call this "killer Beach" so we have resisted the temptation to go in.  A year ago a long time resident and strong swimmer  drowned while swimming along this beach.  It would be interesting to see statistics on drownings in this area.

--There is one beach with a point break, Cerritos, which is good for surfing and swimming.

--Ann wants to go swimming with the whales when they come close to shore and has the idea of tying a rope to her waist, and I would be holding the end of the rope back on shore, so that if she drowns at least we would be able to recover her body!