On a short jaunt out to Las Conchas the other day I came across plows, which is not necessarily something to report on – plows in the Winter…but this is the beach! The plows were pushing sand into banks along the side of the road, which was being grated following all the recent rains we’ve been experiencing in Rocky Point. If you squint your eyes at around sunset, you can almost imagine the newly plowed sand banks as snow.
Yes, driving around Rocky Point this holiday season should be an adventure. The road from Sonoyta down to Rocky Point is fine and when driving down from the border it is truly spectacular to observe how green it is (well, for us it’s green)! The ocotillo throughout the Pinacate Reserve seem to be bursting, and the rest of the desert has received a green dusting of holiday color…also a result of the unusually persistent rains we’ve had since about mid-November.
The rains have also taken their toll on the city streets so be sure to use utmost caution around town as Rocky Point has been taken over by potholes, and some of these potholes (as described by one of the local Spanish newspapers) have sprung potholes. Though the city trucks have been out filling these holes on nearly a daily basis, further road work will be needed in order to address the holy-road landscape. Curiously, in some cases it’s worth staying on unpaved side streets as the sand absorbed most of the moisture. Some particular areas to keep an eye out for rain-worn streets:
• Entrance to town (by the first and second stoplights as you come into town and on the side of Aurrera)
• Blvd. Josefa
• Calle 13 (plus, there’s new road work going on at the corner by Sushi Sun so plan to find alternate routes out to Playa Bonita area – I recommend No. Reelección or a trip down Calle Luis Encinas)
• Blvd. Fremont near the intersection with Av. Sinaloa
• Blvd. Juarez by the train tracks (following the stop sign near Cosmos)
• honestly… just be careful about everywhere you go!
Then there’s the Old Port…sigh… While it is exciting to see construction crews all over roads leading into the Old Port, I know we’ll all be ecstatic once work is done in this part of town. However, once you maneuver through the detours and one-way streets (yes, potholes and all), a trip around the malecón is worth it as that’s where the best streets are these days (from just up from Flavio’s to the hotel Viña del Mar) and of course businesses there need our support! If you’re patient enough to follow the maze and find your way back to the main entrance, it’s also worth a trip to see progress on streets, sidewalks, and curbs throughout the entire Old Port.
So, if you’re driving around Rocky Point this holiday – be patient, be safe, and please pardon our dust! Happy Holidays!