The beach along the malecón in La Paz is narrow and the water is shallow -- not good for swimming. But within 20 minutes of the town are beaches of greater charm and a few of magical splendor. The first one we visited was Pichilingue -- not a spectacular beach in itself but featuring a big palapa-roofed restaurant next to the water with sublime seafood. I had some stuffed clams there that were memorable -- Nora gave a very high rating to the piñadas.
Adults can sit in the shade of the palapa roof, eating and drinking exceptionally well, while their kids frolic in the ocean, which makes for a pleasant afternoon. Harry and Nora went kayaking and Lee made friends with a panga captain who offered to take us on a tour of Espíritu Santo island for a price far lower than we'd pay if we arranged the trip in La Paz. We checked on this back in La Paz, found he was right, and came back the next day to sign up for the cruise.
On a different day we spent an afternoon at Balandra beach, which was truly breathtaking. It curves around a shallow bay, which you can walk across to visit the famous mushroom rock, an iconic landmark of the area.
There's a reproduction of it in the central square of La Paz, across from the cathedral:
Smaller reproductions can be bought as souvenirs, though I really can't imagine who would buy such a thing:
Some American tourists in La Paz told us that the rock had actually toppled off its stem a few years ago and had to be bolted back together -- which turned out to be true.
For previous Baja California trip reports, go here.
[Original photos © 2007 Harry Rossi]