A bit more about El Fuerte before we leave. It was established in 1563 by a Spanish conquistador, Francisco de Ibarra, the first European explorer of the nearby Sierra Madre mountains. The city was an important gateway for travelers to what we now know as Arizona and California. It also served as the chief trading post for silver and gold miners. End of history lesson.

After breakfast we reboarded our van to travel to the Sea of Cortez area. As we left town we visited a local fort built by the Spaniards in the 17th century. Most of the trip was through the rich farmland of Sinaloa where the saying is:  “ The soil is so rich they plant one peso and one dollar comes out”. Main crops are potatoes, marigolds for chicken feed, tomatoes, corn and even sugar cane.

We stopped for lunch in the town of Obregon at a place called “Tips” which is a local hamburger place! Needless to say almost everyone in our group ordered burgers and fries!

It took most of the day to reach our destination, the seaside town of San Carlos where we checked into the Marina Terra hotel, located in the marina area. After checking out the place we gathered at the hotel dining room for dinner, but on the way there we found ourselves listening to a local mariachi group entertaining another tour group staying at the hotel so we joined them. They were good!

Tomorrow we will be doing some local sightseeing, including a visit to the Ocean Mabe pearl farm to learn how they are grown and obviously peruse the shopping.