El Seri
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Parador Bellavista
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Jorge's Restaurant
Sunset Dining at its best

Kino Bay

Waiting in the Kino Bay Recreational Vehicle (RV) Park's office for a meeting with the owner, Fausto Garcia, a resident RVer entered with a plate of freshly barbecued chicken as a gift for the receptionist. While he was expounding on the unsurpassed qualities of his home-made barbecue sauce a fellow RVer entered and was immediately invited to "come on over and try some". These few words of friendly, easy going banter were my introduction to a relatively small group of snowbirds who, with their Mexican neighbours, enjoy a laid-back lifestyle on the edge of the Sonoran Desert overlooking the Sea of Cortez. This friendly bonhomie was confirmed by the arrival of Fausto Garcia who proved to be a delightfully outgoing personality with an enthusiasm for his home town that was as infectious as it was optimistic - especially with regard to attracting more tourists and retirees to Kino Bay. It is, you see, an end-of-the-road place. (Correctly called Bahia de Kino or Bahia Kino, the anglicized name, Kino Bay, has become an interchangeable moniker among Mexicans and is almost universally used by North Americans.)

To get to Kino one must drive the 110 kms. due west from Hermosillo, capital of the state of Sonora, until the paved road terminates at the Sea of Cortez. One leaves the same way. Perhaps, because of this, it has retained its "down home" charm. It is the closest seaside resort to Hermosillo and, as such, has become a popular weekend and holiday destination for city residents escaping the summer heat of the Sonoran desert. At the same time it is less than 5 hours drive from the Arizona border so attracts US and Canadian snowbirds each winter.

Most snowbirds, however, don't bother to divert from the highway south. Its dead-end location is its drawback There is so much to see in Sonora, the second largest Mexican state, that a 220 km round trip from Hermosillo to see one place can be a luxury for time-constrained travellers especially when one can explore a dozen interesting places in other directions. I should explain. All major roads in Sonora radiate from Hermosillo, and all - except the road to Kino Bay - will eventually take you to just about anywhere in Central and North America. I was one such traveller until I recently bowed to pressure from a number of Kino Bay aficionados and decided to risk a few valuable days on a one-way trip to Kino Bay.

So it was the Saturday before Easter that I found myself taking one of Hermosillo's well maintained, multi-lane highways past the international airport en route to Bahia de Kino. According to my map the straight-as-a dye, level highway looked like it should be an easy one hour drive. It isn't. The highway suddenly petered out and turned into a narrow, potholed, two lanes where defensive driving is mandatory! Its potential danger stems from the fact that it should be safe - no hills or dangerous curves and it is lightly travelled. Looks, however, are deceiving. The straight, flat road lulls one into a false sense of security. Potholes continually test the car's shocks and the driver's concentration, but the lack of traffic sufficiently instills enough confidence to increase one's speed without accounting for the occasional fast moving vehicle or the slow convoys of, diesel spewing, trucks. This combination and the narrow pavement can be deadly so make sure your headlights (and your driving skills) are on full beam at all times.

Fortunately, there are some interesting sights along the way including the irrigated fruit and wine making area that surrounds the market town of Miguel Aleman, and the really good news - the long-awaited four-lane highway is now (apparently) about to become a reality. Watch those house prices jump!

The last few miles to Kino, however, are through desert scrub and one's eventual arrival in Kino is heralded by the uninviting sight of a stop sign and the adjacent Pemex station. To counter this inauspicious introduction take a left here for a side trip to the Mexican fishing village of Kino del Mar (Old Kino) and continue on to visit the expansive estuary with its very attractive condominium development and great views of the bay. Back in Old Kino local fishermen sell their fresh catch-of-the-day from colourful pangas and small huts and a good bakery, small tiendas, craft shops and beer outlets (expendios) can be found. Time to return to the traffic lights, where, turning left one follows the road to the tourist heart of Kino Bay. As the road curves north to parallel the coastline it follows a high sand dune for about 10 kilometres and becomes one very long street lined with whitewashed buildings effectively (and disappointingly) obscuring much of the shoreline.

The somewhat unfavourable first impression is quickly dispelled when one walks through one of the numerous public access points to behold a sweeping bay of golden sand lapped by the calm waters of the Sea of Cortez with the breathtaking backdrop of the distant Baja coast shimmering on the horizon. Perfect! These waters are renowned for their fish, shrimp, shellfish and wintering whales. No wonder the area was "discovered" by gringo RVers and sport fishers.

This coast was Seri Indian territory. They settled here - and on the nearby Isla de Tiburon - centuries ago, but were nearly wiped out by the Spanish conquistadors. The few survivors clung to this barren coastline relying on subsistence agriculture, some hunting and the bounty of the Sea of Cortez. They were expelled from Tiburon Island when the Federal Government declared that island a Nature Preserve. They now live in a couple of villages up the coast and some have migrated to Old Kino itself but their culture is largely intact as can be seen at the Seri Museum in New Kino.

With little or no infrastructure in place it was inevitable that any modern "tourist invader", would have to bring their own supplies and accommodation with them. Thus the first influx of the RV community began and, while most returned home to the US each summer, some eventually stayed year round and began constructing permanent homes. To organize and provide services to the growing RVers, RV Parks were soon established. Today there are a number of well-run sites including the aforementioned Kino Bay Park which includes an extensive and secure storage facility for their guests' many sports fishing boats. A number of hotels, condominiums and private residences offer accommodation to this growing group and this in turn has spawned a few real estate companies to cater to those visitors who are looking for a permanent investment in the community. One such agency, El Seri Real Estate, was begun by Maria de Pinelli after a growing number of guests at her family's Parador Bellavista RV Park enquired about property prices and availability in the resort. Interestingly middle class families from Hermosillo are now buying properties here with the result that Mexican families without a recreational vehicle are becoming a major part of the community

One aspect of life that is different here from larger resorts is the paucity of restaurants. Maybe this is a result of the self-catering nature of the RV community (especially with fresh caught fish a daily feature of their life). Luckily, two of the few restaurants serve excellent food. El Pargo Rojo is popular with locals and Hermosillans alike for its cuisine. Its one drawback is its location on the inland side of the street and therefore no view! This is not a problem at Jorge's Restaurant at the far end of the town. On the beach with a patio attached it serves great seafood with the Sea of Cortez as a backdrop. Dining at sunset is particularly popular and Jorge is a delight.

Finally, three unique places that sum up the community and pioneering spirit still evident in the town. The Club Deportivo (a gringo Sporting Club where everyone gets together for their weekly pot luck suppers); the nine hole dirt golf course in the desert just behind the Club, and, a mile north of the golf course, a brand new Pemex gas station built in the middle of nowhere! (It actually is part of a modern boat storage complex and provides a handy fuel supply for boat owners as well as the occasional vehicle.)

My conclusion can be summed up by the following. I now understand why so many people encouraged me to visit Kino - it can be a surprisingly difficult place to get to, an equally difficult place to love at first sight, but an easy place to be seduced by its people, its ambience and its magnificent bay. I have returned - often!