La Paz is the capital of Baja California Sur, a city of over two hundred thousand people on the shore of a wide bay that gave it a pearl fishing industry for centuries. Cortés landed here in 1535, the pearl oysters made the place famous, and John Steinbeck set his novella The Pearl on this coast after sailing the Sea of Cortez with his friend Ed Ricketts in 1940. The oyster beds failed in the early twentieth century, but the city has kept its easy, coastal character, and the seafront walk, the malecón, is where everybody goes in the evening to eat ice cream and look at the sunset.
After the long run down Highway 1 the arrival is almost shocking. You have been riding for days through desert, mission towns and empty coast, and now there are traffic lights, supermarkets, taxis and a proper urban grid. Slow down and use the extra patience, since city traffic here is brisk and speed bumps are placed everywhere, often without much warning. Fuel is easy, and so are repairs and a laundry, which will be welcome if you have been camping. From La Paz the road continues south to Cabo San Lucas and San José del Cabo, or you can drop the bike at one of the ferry terminals at Pichilingue, a few kilometres north of the city, where boats cross to the mainland at Mazatlán and Topolobampo.
The bay itself is shallow and calm, and from about October to April you can go out on a boat to snorkel with whale sharks, which feed in the bay in those months. Sea lions haul out on a rock off Isla Espíritu Santo, a short boat trip away. Both are worth the time if you have a spare day.
Summer here is hot and sticky, and the city is quieter then, with cyclone season running through September and October. In winter the days are clear and mild, which is the better time. Finish the ride at the water, with a plate of fish tacos or a cold beer, and let the Baja miles settle.