RE: [Paddlewise] Baja Transportation Question?? La Paz to Loreto & Back Again

From: Mary Zuschlag <mzuschlag_at_attbi.com>
Date: Fri, 18 Jan 2002 16:14:09 -0800
I just returned from Baja but I did a stretch north of Loreto.  I think the
bus is a good option also you can rent a car, but in the past I have found
it to be quite expensive partially because you must purchase insurance.  We
had to end our trip a little early due to the wind and we walked into a
small town, St Nicholas and asked for a ride to our cars. Within 5 minutes
we had a ride and paid them about $50 for the trip.  Generally you can find
a ride fairly easily if you are willing to pay and ask around.  A little
Spanish goes a long way.  If you need more certainity then go with the bus
or a car rental.  Gas was not a big issue for us.  We drove all the way down
and had no trouble finding PEMEX stations.  There are some long stretches
without gas stations so keep an eye on your guage.  Mexico 1 is a good road
it isn't the pothole hell it was in the mid 90s. I don't like to drive at
night because there are no shoulders and the trucks fly through there.

This year I didn't find the seas to be as rough as what Jay describes, but
we had one day of beam seas that were running about 4 feet and by the end of
the day it was close to 5 or 6.  We were about 20 feet apart and folks
completely disappeared in the swells/waves. We rose at 3 am and were on the
water by 6:15 (predawn)usually stopped by 10 or 10:30 when the winds came up
and we started seeing numerous whitecaps.  It was windy every afternoon.  We
had a some gentle morning paddles when the water was oily smooth so you can
get both conditions.

Nols monitors the VHF if they have trips out, they generally monitor channel
23, and of course there is 16, again Spanish is helpful. Keep your schedule
flexible and figure on layover days when you might be winded out.  Our last
2 days were forecasted for strong Santa Ana type winds, and the folks on
shore were worried about us rounding some difficult points. We had already
decided not to push forward.  Get around points early; those areas tend to
be shallow with breaking waves.  Have a great trip!  We had a blast, and I
posted some of my pictures on the web. -- MZ

visit my website: http://www.mzuschlag.com

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Received on Sat Jan 19 2002 - 11:46:31 PST

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