A lot of people dream of quitting the rat race, going off-grid and live in an idyllic tropical beach town, perhaps start a small business to keep the dream going.
Cheryl Borek Harris actually did that — and then some.
Harris, who lived in Big Sur for 27 years, found property in the tiny Mexican seaside town of Cabo Pulmo on the east coast of the Baja Peninsula about 15 years ago. She’s been going back and forth from the Central Coast to Mexico so she could slowly develop it as an ecologically sensitive site.
Now she is the proud owner/operator of Casa Cactus, a small and picturesque lodging compound in Cabo Pulmo, 5 minutes from the beach and surrounded by Cabo Pulmo National Marine Park.
The property, which sits on the exact center of the Tropic of Cancer and is about 60 miles north of the tourist destination of San Jose del Cabo, is off the grid, using solar power and its own water system to operate.
In the village of Cabo Pulmo there are a number of good restaurants, three dive centers, snorkeling and sightseeing tours, fishing, kayaking, mountain biking and hiking to keep guests entertained. And waterfalls, a water park and hot springs are only an hour drive away.
As for Casa Cactus itself, it is a unique blend of Baja and Bali combined with the magic of living in a marine park. Find yourself surrounded by giant cactus and breathtaking natural landscapes while enjoying incredible views of the Sea of Cortez and sunsets over the mountains.
There are three units, a downstairs Courtyard Suite with a picturesque courtyard, full kitchen, one bedroom and bath. The upstairs Vista Suite has an outdoor seating area under a beautiful palapa, one bedroom, bath, refrigerator, small two-burner kitchen; and the new “Secret Garden” casita, situated in a gorgeous private garden setting with a bedroom, beautifully tiled bath and full kitchen.
Or the entire compound can be rented as one large unit for family and friends.
It’s pretty much everything Harris was dreaming about.
And it’s not as if she’s a wide-eyed neophyte just jumping into the deep end. Harris has always had an adventurous spirit, willing to take chances and do something she’s never done before.
One of her first jobs was working for the Norwegian Cruise Line in Miami, just as the Caribbean cruise industry was in its infancy. She started as a receptionist and ended up as district sales manager.
She moved to California after seeing an ad for land in Big Sur. She flew out and bought 10 acres on the spot, complete with a redwood and adobe brick round house in the mountains in the back of Palo Colorado Canyon.
Harris got a job at the celebrated Carmel eatery Hog’s Breath Inn, working for owner Clint Eastwood for 12 years as a cocktail waitress and bartender.
During that time she met a wood carver who would travel to Bali and teach the Balinese how to carve sea creatures. They brought back the beautiful carvings and began to sell them all along the coast, from California to Alaska.
That gave the enterprising Harris the idea to open her own wholesale business in Carmel Valley, which included the wood carvings, furniture, jewelry and a clothing line, Fire Batik.
Her first big wholesale account was Nordstrom’s, for which she did trunk shows with her Fire Batik clothing designs
She opened her own boutique — Exotica — in The Crossroads Shopping Village in Carmel, which she owned and operated for 17 years. It was famous for “Mona the Frog Lady,” a piece that sat on a bench in front of the store.
She designed and manufactured all her clothing in Bali and sold treasures from around the world, including art out of Mexico and silks from Thailand.
At that time Harris was dating “Tassi Bob,” who was originally from Tasmania and was managing Fernwood Resort in Big Sur. Tassi Bob was an avid fisherman and would bring her to Cabo Pulmo on their vacations.
The unspoiled, peaceful beauty of Cabo Pulmo seemed to call to her, so she decided she would take the plunge and bought the property, making regular trips to Baja to make renovations and improvements on it.
That was 15 years ago and she’s never looked back or regretted it. After all, how many times does one get to live their dreams?
“I’ve traveled around the world and have never found a place that has the combination of soothing, exhilarating and so surprising, all at the same time,” she says.
For information, go to www.casacactus.com
