Timbabiche, Lagoon Exploring

You must love in such a way that

The person you love feels free.

Thich Nat Hanh 

Fishing net storage

Overlooked by many due to the proximity of a more picturesque cove only two miles north, Timbabiche should not be missed, especially if you like wildlife and lagoons.

Here we encounter our first high 60Fs low 70Fs in the morning and out come the long Johns, the long sleeves, socks, and fuzzy vests. For us, accustomed to mid 80Fs to mid 90Fs all summer.

Casa Grande (money from sale of one huge pearl - early 1900s)
Notice cactus growing top right window

This is another small seaside village of only 20 families with a tiny school for little ones; the locals are very friendly and respectful albeit a little shy. About 6-8 pangas line the shore and other than fishing, the school, a very tiny tienda (store), and horses and cattle to tend to, there is not much else going on here. Another quiet ‘pueblo’ with no electricity except for what is provided by few solar panels in each household’s backyard keeping things generally quiet and dark at night.

Small blue home

Quaint yellow school house...

A nice wide beach several miles long is headed by a lagoon about 1 mile long and ½ mile wide where one can, at high tide, spend several hours observing birds, crabs, and the surrounding beautiful desert landscape dotted with gigantic cardons, the cactus locally referred to as their national tree. On the way out, if one plays it right with the tides, you can enjoy a ride down a 30-40 foot waterslide in the kayak. At the other end, the beach is transformed into a very large tall sand dune; from the salty waters of a lagoon to the dry setting of the dunes. Some tide-pools can be found along the way and baby puffer fish seem to enjoy these cozy warm tub-like puddles.


Lagoon bottom cracking at low tide

The tienda is so small we probably carry in our little boat ten times what they do: eggs, olives, potatoes, tomatoes, onions, milk, chips, and a few other odds and ends. Life is simple here.

It is difficult not to want to help everyone in need for they are so friendly but it has been shown repeatedly not to make a difference and in most instances, make things worse. We are happy to show them HOW to fix things themselves or explain HOW things work so they know better how to keep them running but refrain from giving anything away for FREE.

Mike and Nikki exiting lagoon

Mike and Nikki going to land - she's a great kayaking companion

They do like to barter and I believe are proud of it. We have been asked for batteries, lures, hot sauce, flashlights, etc in exchange for tequila or lobsters. Interestingly enough, they will not accept anything already open but would love for us to accept such items. We were offered an already opened bottle of wine for a lure – this offer was promptly declined however.

Bonsai-like mangrove tree

OK I got a thing for bonsais... another picture

As so many other little villages, they live on practically nothing but do not complain and seem happy. Rather than have a dedicated battery to start their panga’s outboard, they take the battery from their vehicle, usually a rusty old pick-up, and transfer it to the panga only to reverse the process upon their return from the sea.

Within Timbabiche lagoon

Of all the small talks we’ve had with them, the most common question is about the winds and if we know what the weather will be like in the next few days. They seem to think we have better weather predictions than them… Little do they know? They are always happy when we give them a three day forecast.

We have car-ports, they have 'panga-ports'