HOW YOUNG DO YOU FEEL?

Originally Published the Week of April 26, 2016 in Western Outdoor Publications

“We love Baja and I want to bring my family, but I have a 6-year-old and I don’t think he’s old enough yet. “

 

“My dad is 85 and he has always wanted to fish in Baja, but he thinks he’s now too old. “

 

I get comments like this all the time. Too young. Too old. Whatever.

 

But, it’s a common question as the parameters of Baja visitors change. Although it is still “la frontera” (the frontier) and there’s more than enough ruggedness in the Baja to go around. There’s no debating that this is not your grandfather’s Baja.

 

For better or worse. It’s a kinder-gentler Baja.

 

There’s no doubt more families; more kids; more wives and girlfriends are now coming down. And they’re not just here to splash poolside at posh resorts; drink infused martinis; go to spas; and line up at the all-inclusive buffet lines.

 

They’re fishing; surfing; off-roading; zip-lining; scuba diving and grabbing their vacation by the two-fisted-double tortillas. The spirit of adventure is far from dead. It’s just that nowadays, there’s a safety net.

 

If your car breaks down now, the vultures won’t start circling overhead. There are very few roads that don’t have a gas station or convenience store nearby. And…Walmart probably has your part.

 

If you run out’ve water or ice, it’s no longer an emergency. (Well, maybe running out’ve ice IS an emergency to SOME people!)

 

But, you simply walk down the hall to the ice machine. Or call the front desk.

 

Boat radio goes out? Grab you multi-satellite cell phone.

 

You get my drift. No pun intended.

 

Mistakes, accidents and quirks of nature, are much more forgiving in Baja than back in the day. Back then, venturing to the Baja was sometimes about like going on safari.

 

You carried enough parts to rebuild your car or boat engine. You had everything from cables to belts and hoses to air filters.

 

You strapped on enough extra jerry cans of gasoline to cover those long stretches of desert highway. Or build a big enough bonfire if you had to signal for rescue.  (That actually happened to me once…but that’s for another story).

 

This was Baja in the year “BC.” (Before cell phones).

 

You brought a first aid kid that would have made a trauma team proud. And you never went anywhere without duct tape, some rope, shovel, some rope…and the simple necessities like toilet paper!

 

Hope hoped for the best. Planned for the worst.

 

Usually, for most of us, nothing happened harsher than bad hangovers, mosquito bites, a touch of Montezuma’s dance, a dinged surfboard or a few flat tires. But with each trip, we always left with a lifetime of memories.

 

In that respect, it hasn’t changed THAT much!

 

But, back then it was good to have a just a bit of madness in you; a pirate spirit and it didn’t hurt to have a hearty constitution.

 

However, now Baja truly is accessible to everyone. There’s stuff for everyone to do.

 

So, when I get a question about someone’s age and the ability to visit Baja, it’s not an issue of how old you are. At least not chronologically.

 

I have 4-year-olds who have the time of their lives. I’ve had 92-year-olds who outfish and outlast the “youngsters.” Conversely, I’ve seen “30-somethings” that should have stayed home and had no business down here mixing it up.

 

It’s not how many rings on your personal tree trunk; crow’s feet at your eyes; or candles on your cake. To me, it’s how young your heart is.

 

If you’ve got enough “play” in your heart and in your spirit, Baja has a lot to offer.

 

If you still don’t mind the occasional skinned knee to go along with a good laugh and believe a little sunburn is a small price to pay for a little adrenaline rush or a memory of a lifetime, then you can never be too old or too young.

 

If you think you can break away for a few days to a place where everything is not climate controlled and hermetically sealed…where you might only get 1-bar on your cell phone…where you might not find your favorite diet soda…where nothing and no one moves faster than they have to…where there’s no happy meals but you love the greasy street tacos cooked up by a smiling amigo in a threadbare New York Yankees shirt…you’re gonna do just fine down here.

 

Believe me, there are some folks who can’t handle that! I’ve seen them freak out down here!

 

If you can handle miles of beach that has no lifeguard station; dusty cobblestone streets; unfettered sunshine on blue waters; friendly people who speak a different language, but say more with smiles and their eyes then you’re used to…

 

Then…

 

…Don’t ask about how old you need to be. Ask how young you want to feel? How young do YOU feel?

 

I’ve always believed that we don’t stop playing because we get old. We get old because we stopped playing. Come down and play!

That’s my story!

Jonathan

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Jonathan Roldan has been writing the Baja Column in Western Outdoor News since 2004.  Along with his wife and fishing buddy, Jilly, they own and run the Tailhunter International Fishing Fleet in La Paz, Baja, Mexico  www.tailhunter-international.com.  They also run their Tailhunter Restaurant Bar on the famous La Paz malecon waterfront.  If you’d like to contact him directly, his e-mail is riplipboy@tailhunter-international.com  or drop by the restaurant to say hi!

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Jonathan Roldan’s

Tailhunter International

 

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Website: www.tailhunter-international.com

U.S. Office: 8030 La Mesa, Suite #178, La Mesa CA  91942

Mexico Office: 755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico

Phones:

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http://fishreport.jonathanroldan.com/

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“When your life finally flashes before your eyes, you will have only moments to regret all the things in life you never had the courage to try.”