The author’s wife, Kristy Finstad, was one of the 34 people who died on September 2, 2019, in the Conception boat fire off of Santa Cruz Island. A UCSB grad, Chua posted this on Facebook on December 19.
Baja had always been a sacred place for me, even before I had met Kristy. I “discovered” Baja during my UCSB college days on a surf trip with a bunch of buddies. We were so naïve and clueless. But we had a blast, and that trip sparked a lifelong love of Mexico, and especially Baja.
I’ve had some of my most memorable, wild, life-changing, and unforgettable experiences in Baja: swimming with orcas (intense), getting hassled (appropriately) by Federales, sailing through remote islands in the Sea of Cortez (divine), driving (stupidly) straight into the teeth of a hurricane, surfing big waves, spearing huge yellowtail, and getting engaged to Kristy while lounging in a tide pool at our favorite spot.