Have you ever heard of Baja California's La Bufadora?  Are you a fan of spectacular marine geysers?  

La Bufadora is located about 5 miles west of the small village of Punta Banda, in the general vicinity of the beautiful Baja California city of Ensenada, which is a major tourist attraction.  The ocean waves crash into a ocean canyon, bored into the rocks through the eons, and crash skyward through a narrow gorge nearly 80 feet!  If you're a fan of ocean blowholes, you'll recognize that La Bufadora is the second highest natural marine geyser in the world, followed by the highest one, which happens to be located in Hawaii. The Mexican government has designated the area around La Bufadora as a special protected zone, and it enjoys special status as a national resource.  And indeed, it is, as it draws tourists from all over Mexico, the U.S.A., and the world.

 

Left:  Waves crash at La Bufadora, up close and personal.  Note the moss growing on the rocks due to the constant drenching.  Right:  From the cliff above La Bufadora, you get the effect without the potential shower.

La Bufadora is easy to find, as all you have to do is head south from Ensenada on Mexican Highway 1, a.k.a. the Transpeninsula Highway, to a road junction called Maneadero, just a few miles south of Ensenada.  From there, you take the very clearly-marked road to the right (west direction) which will lead you to Bufadora.  La Bufadora is actually located at the extreme west end of Punta Banda, but the whole region around Bufadora and the small town of Punta Banda is known as Punta Banda.

On Monday, April 18, 2005, I woke up in my motel room in Ensenada and sort of drowsed in bed, thinking about what I wanted to do to entertain myself.  I got to thinking about Bufadora, recalling the last time I'd visited the place was way back in 1970 on a High School field trip.  Now, I realize that I'm dating myself, but I am a realist!

Left:  Looking into the canyon before the next wave strikes.  Right:  The ocean wave hits the rocks and you get, well, instant spray!  No wonder vegitation grows on the rocks around La Bufadora.

I headed south on Highway 1 and turned east at Maneadero, in the direction of La Bufadora and Punta Banda. The country isn't spectacular and could best be described as ranching or farming country, as various row crops and animals were much in abundance.  At the small town of Punta Banda, just past the road that leads north to the Estrero, I noticed a small, brightly painted restaurant on my right that had a sign outside that advertised menudo.  Well, it was around 0830 and I hadn't eaten, so a stop for a breakfast of menudo seemed like the thing to do.  Read the complete article about my outstanding dining experience at  Loncheria Rosita by clicking on the highlighted link.

When I arrived at La Bufadora, I noticed things had changed a bit since my last visit, back in 1970.  Yes, the famous blowhole was still there, but a makeshift village of souvenir stands and small restaurants had sprouted around what was, in 1970, empty, desert land.  I paid the $20.00 (pesos) to park and hiked the 100 meters or so to Bufadora.

La Bufadora is something else.  As the waves crash against the shore, a marine geyser shoots skyward, at times as high as 80 feet, drenching everyone and everything in the vicinity with seawater.  You can get a pretty good idea of the range of this thing, as the surrounding rocks are wet and are encrusted with moss and marine life. There's a walkway that leads to it, complete with stone protective railing and you can look down into it and await the on-rushing waves and the drenching that will follow.  I checked it out, but I didn't stick around, as getting drenched in cold saltwater on a cool April morning didn't appeal to me.  Instead I took the easier route; I hiked on the cliffs above the blowhole to watch the action and take photos.  

 

Left:  A fishing boat passes the end of Punta Banda, as tourists admire the view. Right: Main Street, La Bufadora, looking down the row of restaurants and other vendors.

Of course, I wasn't disappointed as with every wave that hit the shore, a geyser followed.  I probably sat up on the bluff for about a half hour watching the action, and did my best to capture in my digital camera a group of American tourists get creamed by the waves.  It didn't happen, as they were able to anticipate when a big one was going to hit and move out of the way.  The trouble with trying to capture this action with a digital camera is you have to leave it on all of the time, as in the case of my camera, it has a "boot-up" time of about three seconds and by then, you've missed the action.  So when you leave it on, it "eats" batteries, big-time.  I got a lot of photos, but not exactly what I wanted.

Watching all of this action and attempting to catch digital images is thirsty work.  So I hiked down the trail and decided to spend a little time at the Habana Banana, a combination restaurant, nightclub and bar.

   

Left:  Habana Bana from mainstreet, La Bufadora.  Jose waves at me as I snap the digital photo.  Right:  Jose watches as Cindy uploads (computer talk) one her many ceramic veggie ristras to the front of her shop.

Habana Banana is one of those kind of places where a person can linger all day.  I wasn't hungry but I was in the mood for a beer or two.  They many awesome seats that are semi-outside that face the street, where you can watch all of the tourists and all of the action.  There is nothing I like better to do than to sit in a place like that and drink beer and watch people.

  Photo:  Friendly waiter Jose greets me with a smile.

It was a Monday morning, before the lunch rush and the place wasn't busy.  Hector, the friendly bartender had time to chat with me, in between watching a Mexican soap opera on TV.  He told me that he'd been working at the place for two years and really liked it.  He also told me that he was born and raised in Mexicali, but came to the Ensenada area because he didn't like Mexicali's heat.  One thing that I noticed that was quite interesting as they posted the beer prices as $2.75 (U.S. dollars) for one beer, and $3.00 for two beers.  Only in Mexico!  So to me, that was a no-brainer; I ordered two Tecates.  

 

Left:  Hector, the friendly bartender stand beside the bar.  Right: At the moment, business was slow at the bar, so Hector takes a break to watch a Mexican soap opera on TV.

So I sat and sipped my beers while watching all of the action.  I also had the opportunity to chat with Jose, a very friendly waiter and hawker.  When he's hawking, he stands on the street in front of the place, displaying the menu and telling potential patrons the virtues of the place.  However, like many of the Mexican restaurant workers I've observed in my travels, he likes to come inside and chat.  So with me sitting and watching all of the action, chatting was an easy thing to do.

Left:  Atop the hill, above La Bufadora, I look down upon the "city" that has sprouted around the blowhole.  Right: Looking east, toward Punta Banda, from the hills overlooking La Bufadora.

Next door, there is a small shop by the name of Dulceria Cindy.  They specialize in selling homemade candy, but they also sell souvenirs.  I watched the owner, Cindy, hang up ceramic ristras, you know, the simulation of dried veggies tied-up in a string.  I made a mental note, when I finished my beers, to purchase one for our kitchen.  (I did and its hanging in our kitchen.)  I was very impressed by Cindy, as she wasn't pushy like many of the other vendors.  I realize that all of them need to make a living, but as I'm strolling down the street, I don't appreciate somebody trying to push me into their store.  I realize that pushy vendors are part of the Mexican culture, but despite the fact that I love Mexico and Mexican culture, that is a part that I can do without.  

Perhaps the most interesting sight I observed while sipping my beers, as I ordered another round, was the garbage collectors.  Garbage collection at La Bufadora is done the low-tech way that I remember as a young child, guys jumping off the truck and unloading 30-gallon garbage cans into the back of a truck.  However, at Bufadora there is a twist to that method:  They use a flatbed truck with plywood sides on the bed to hold the garbage in, and the guy that jumps out to empty the cans rides in the truck with the garbage!  I couldn't believe my eyes...

 

Left:  Cindy is putting up her wares as a tourist looks on.  This photo was taken from Habana Banana, as I sat at the counter drining Tecate and observing the street action. Right:  Garbage collection, La Bufadora style!  Photo taken from Habana Banana.

After sitting around Habana Banana for an hour or so, I said goodbye to Hector and Jose, as I wanted to hike around a bit before heading back to Ensenada.  I hiked up the street, staying near the middle to minimize contact with the aggressive vendors.  Bufadora's "strip" of vendors is probably about a half mile long.  On this early Monday afternoon, none of them were very busy, so they put extra effort in their attempts to "hawk" me into their stores.  Except for buying the ceramic ristra at Dulceria Cindy, I didn't purchase a thing.

 

Left:  Desert vegitation grows on the hillside above La Bufadora.  Right:  This is actually a small island at La Bufadora populated by pinchones, or more commonly called, pigeons.

On the road back to Ensenada, in the small town of Punta Banda, the government has erected a couple of speed bumps that are especially vicious; they required me to slow down to about 5 mph to avoid destroying the underside of my Camry.  However the speed bumps aren't necessary a bad thing, as they give you the opportunity to get a peek at a cluster of roadside vendors that have set up shop near the bumps.  I noticed one that had several large pots, cooking over a wood fire, and I just had to stop to see what they were cooking and check out the operation.  I was greeted by two lovely ladies, Margarita and Elena, who sell canned vegetables, olives, bottled salsa and homemade tamales, in an operation known as Tamales de Margarita.  

When you're visiting the charming city of Ensenada and you want to have some fun, take the drive out to Punta Banda and La Bufadora.  The blowhole is amazing, the scenery is beautiful, the vendors are entertaining and the people-watching is great.