Baja California Painting and Photo Expedition
The Cataviña Ecosystem, Cave Paintings, and the Gulf of California
This adventure will be a once in a lifetime exploration. I'm very excited to offer this trip along with Photographer Eileen Mandell, Ellen Parry, Director of Baja Rancho Art, and Raul and Caroline Aguilar, owners of Rancho Bellota.
We will spend time exploring and painting on location, hiking, and winding down at our hotel for merry drinks, great food, and excellent conversations. You will be picked up at the Tecate border for ease of travel. No worries about driving. Raul will guide us thoughtfully through the wondrous terrain.
The botanically rich Cataviña ecosystem includes incredible boulder fields and indigenous flora – gigantic Cardon Cactus (Pachycereus pringlei), Boojum (Cirios), Mexican Blue Palms (Blue Hesper Palms), and Elephant trees (Bursera microphylla) – are just a few of the species we’ll capture in photos and artwork. We will spend 1½ days hiking and exploring the creative possibilities of this area before traveling further south to the magnificent Cave Paintings in San Francisco de la Sierra and the Mission town of San Ignacio.
The mission has been in continual use since it was founded in 1728 and sits on a charming plaza in the center of this small town. We’ll have time to stroll the town and capture its spirit in our art. Then we’ll head north to the breathtaking Gulf of California, spending a night at Gonzaga Bay before heading to San Felipe and Ojos Negros for artisanal cheese tasting. We will spend our final night relaxing at Rancho La Bellota, then cross north at the Tecate border, avoiding the crowds and traffic of Tijuana.
This adventure will be geared to artists and photographers who want to explore unique sites. While in Cataviña we will drive out to different locations to paint, draw, take photos, hike and relax. Raul, our trip guide and Rancho La Bellota host, will ensure we see and taste the true flavors of this visually rich and culturally diverse region.
