John originally called Baja, "Mexico, Rev 2" because it was so different from the Mainland. Now that we're back on the latter I thought it would be fun to compile a list of what makes them different for us.
Mainland (November through March):
Butterflies in lots of cool colors.
Birds and beautiful bird song - Tropicbird, Heermann's Gull, Heron Family (Great Blue, Little Blue, Green-backed, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, White Ibis), American Oyster Catcher, Crested Caracara, Black Vulture, Belted Kingfisher, Ani, Swallows landing on Nakia in the Barra Lagoon, Yellow-winged Cacique, and many others we can't identify.
Greenery and thick woods/jungle mean that you need trails and roads in order to do any land hiking.
Higher humidity makes hot even hotter.
Beach landings (actually it's harder during the takeoffs) in the dinghy are often wet unless you time the swell sets just right.
Almost impossible to enjoy a light air sail because of the Pacific swell rolling the boat and slatting the sails.
Larger numbers of transient cruisers (many leaving for the South Pacific or Central America) makes many anchorages crowded (25-50 boats at a time). Large active VHF nets covering just about all areas; lots of radio traffic. Rare to have an anchorage to yourself.
Wildlife - It was nice to see turtles again; we've had fairly consistent whale and dolphin sightings on passages.
Burning garbage and disco noise - Maybe because many anchorages are off of larger towns (especially the favorite hang-outs like Chamela, Tenacatita, and Barra de Navidad).
Baja (April through October):
Desert flora (rocks and cactus) make hiking easier in all but the thickest cactus areas.
Dryer climate makes it a bit easier to deal with the heat.
Air temps make snorkeling and swimming that much more inviting.
Easy beach landings with the dinghy since there's no swell in the Sea of Cortez.
Light wind day sails from one anchorage to another are extremely pleasant on the flat water of the Sea.
Smaller group of cruisers based in fewer areas makes it easier to get to know people. Summer is especially great due to the smaller community. Even the SSB and HAM nets are more fun and relaxed. Not hard to find places to be alone when you want to be.
Wildlife - We had some incredible up close and personal experiences last summer which I'm not sure we'll ever be able to duplicate (squid, orcas, rays).
Fishing seems to have been much better in the Sea.
Linda and John