Our history begins with the story of our founder, Tim Means. While not a spectacular as that once told by Sevilla, where Baja was filled with women and gold, Tim's story is still quite remarkable.

 

Timothy Means is from Pennsylvania. He went to school to study geology and eventually transferred his passions into guiding river trips through the Grand Canyon. He soon felt crowded amongst the hundreds of visitors each week and decided to head south. He arrived in Baja over 30 years ago, and began sharing his love for this land at first with just a few close friends.

 

There was little infra-structure to support tourism. When visitors first began to brave the frontier beyond the California border into Mexico, they found themselves on the Main Trans-Peninsular Highway, (MTH). The road, which was not maintained at all, sometimes appeared to be a myth and travelers wondered if it even existed. In one of the tales from Bruce Berger’s Almost an Island, he describes such oddities as a man clearing rocks from the road and leaving a sign that said something to the effect of "if you appreciate this, show it with a donation". In wasn't easy to start and run a business operating tours in those days.

 

Another difficulty was finding stores that sold gas and water, some very essential elements in the desert. Car maintenance problems were solved by remembering where you saw an abandoned model similar to yours and returning to extract the required part.

 

Things were not much easier on Tim's mule trips. Mules are prized for their sure footedness and their ability to eat almost anything. But they too, need water, and they travel much slower, leaving the rider more susceptible to the elements. The pioneers of this time cannot be compared to today’s somewhat pampered adventure travelers— it was a different world back then, filled with danger and delight.

 

He soon realized that instead of encouraging his friends and guests to move to Baja, he could invite them to stay for just a week or two, and their lives would be transformed forever. Some travelers returned to their homes and changed jobs to fulfill their dreams, some became more environmentally active, and all left with the appreciation of the simple life that we have all fell in love with in here in Baja California, Mexico.