Re: [Paddlewise] BAJA

Hi Steve,

I drove down to Baja from Sept 22, 2002 to Nov 9 2002.  We supported 
ourselves and camped in tents the entire time. It was amazing. We are 
beginner kayakers, so anything I list below can be done by anyone. Also we 
speak very little Spanish, but still got by fine.  We took two folders a 
Feathercraft Kahuna and a Klondike. Both where great and handled everything 
we got into. The kahuna was very stable and we fished and snorkeled off it 
without any problems. The Klondike is very stable and is a great double and I 
even fished from it as a single at times.

The Klondike is for sale if anyone is looking for a great double.

 I think November is a great time. If you plan to dive or snorkel, you may 
want a wetsuit though. We did start using wetsuits the last week or so, for 
snorkeling more then an hour. Even in November the sun is intense, so 
sunscreen and a way to make shade are important.

October was great, no snowbirds yet. November we started to see alot of RVs 
heading south. January I suspect would be busier. 

I used a travel club to help me with the permits <A HREF="http://www.vagabundos.com/">http://www.vagabundos.com/</A> . 
I recommend you get the tourist card, fishing permits, and car insurance. I 
was only asked once to produce them, but it was worth it.

The paved road Mex 1 was in great shape, narrow, but easy to drive. The dirt 
roads where usually very washboard but almost any vehicle can get to any of 
the campsites. I drove a 2 wheel drive pickup and only got stuck once. I 
would have made it but just went to slow to shot through a soft patch of 
sand. We used the Baja Road map from AAA and found gas everyplace they said 
we would. 

Get the book Baja Catch by Neil Kelly and Gene Kira. It was very accurate and 
we caught fish everyplace it said we would. Almost everyone I meet down there 
had this book.  

The best lure we had was a Yozuri blue and silver (the sierra killer), then a 
large silver spoon (general purpose) , then a red and gold 4 inch minnow 
(Dorado killer).  Buy all you fishing gear before hand, it is very expensive 
in Baja. Buy long steel leaders, with black swivels. Make sure you buy good 
quality leaders with strong snaps, I had a fish bend the snap part straight 
out and lost him. Also bring a few extra split rings and hooks to replace or 
fix any of your lures. We never caught anything over 20lbs, but I was amazed 
how much damage their teeth did to my tackle.

We used white gas stoves (ie coleman camp fuel). White gas is very hard to 
find and very expensive when we did find it. Propane seems tobe everywhere. 
Purified water is everywhere and cheap 0.10/ gallon. Almost every major town 
has an internet cafe, slow but good for email.

Our favorite place for the whole trip was San Lucas Cove, 13 miles south of 
Santa Rosalia. Santa Rosalia was our favorite town. The best campground there 
is Playa Dos Amigos, which is just south of San Lucas a few miles. The 
campground is very new, has the best palapas and has hot water showers and 
flush toilets. The owners (Maria and Santos) took care of us like family, 
they don't speak much English.  Your vehicle is very safe here while you go 
kayaking. Isla San Marcos is about 5 miles from here.

The Baja Catch book picks San Lucas cove as one of their top ten places to 
fish with a small boat.  We caught everything, by trolling north or south of 
the entrance around 1 to 2 miles.  Go north until you see a lone cactus on 
the shore, go out until you see the water change from green/brown to blue and 
paddle in a large figure eight with your silver/blue minnow. Once we located 
the fish we caught 10 to 15 in an hour. The cove has a wreck in 10 feet of 
water at the mouth, the mangroves have crabs you can catch, and clams 
everywhere. You will not go hungry here. 

We spent very little time in Bahia Conception. Mostly because we meet people 
that had been robbed at santispac and at coyote. Also most places have 
terrible facilities, this is the big tourist area and it shows. Ecomundo is 
the exception. This guy is a little eccentric, but the place was safe and he 
has very good advice on where to go and what to see.

Our second favorite spot was Ligui Beach, about 22 miles south of loreto.  
When you drive off the main road into Ligui you will see a sign for Ramone 
Tours. Stop talk to ramone, he is a very honest hard working fisherman. He 
has a very nice palapa built into the side of a hill, ask him if you can stay 
there and offer him some money. He wouldn't take money for the use of the 
palapa, but he did bring us fish, shrimp, and lobster, which we bought at 
very fair prices.  

The official Ligui Beach has a Cross on the rocks at the south end. Ramones 
beach is the next beach south. From here it is 2.5 mile paddle to the south 
end of  Isla Danzante. The south end has a submerged rock garden, that comes 
out during low tide. The snorkleing and fishing around here was amazing. We 
would take off in the morning and the prevailing wind would blow us back to 
camp. It was great. Just south of the rock garden, we would drop 8 oz spoons 
250 to 300 feet down and Yo-yo them off the bottom and catch some type of 
bass and trigger fish and a few yellow tail. About 100 yards off the beach 
Ramone showed us where to find very large clams.

On your way down or back stop at San Ignacio which is between Guerroero Negro 
and Santa Rosalia. I don't remember the name of the bed and breakfast we 
stayed at, but as you drive towards town it will be on the left hand side, 
before the La Pinta hotel. They rent yurts (round tents) that have wood 
floors and real beds in them, the nicest bathrooms in all of Baja. The place 
is right on the lagoon, which is a nice freshwater paddle, we caught carp 
using dates from the palm trees there. The owners are a couple from Canada, 
very nice and for $45/ night you get a great room and terrific breakfast.  We 
slept three people in one so it was very economical and a nice break from 
sleeping in the tents. The mission here is one of the best in Baja.

Another place we visited off the beaten path is the national park Sierra De 
San Pedro Martir. It is high up in the mountains, we visited on Nov 6 and it 
got down to freezing at night. However, the place is amazing, you go from 
desert to a huge Pine forest. They have one of the best observatories in the 
world and you can tour the telescope in the mornings before noon.  The view 
from the top of the observatory (over 9,000 feet up)  is amazing, you can see 
both the pacific and the sea of cortez. There is so little light pollution 
and low humidity, the stars you will see at night will take your breath away. 
Be sure to camp in the middle of an open area. Unlike most of baja, this 
place has tons of fallen wood and we were allowed to build a fire.  

I have never been into astronomy, but all of Baja has such little lite 
pollution, you will see tons of stars. We meet up with another camper that 
was into astronomy and he pointed out so many stars and meter showers. I 
would recommend taking some type of book on astronomy with.

Wind : everyone is right about the wind. It will come out of now where in the 
afternoon. We skipped Bahia De Los Angeles one the way down and back because 
of reports of wind over 30mph for days. When you leave camp, make sure 
everything is secured down, most of the time though it was not to bad and 
helped keep the bugs down.

Bugs : Bring deet. someplaces no bugs, others we got devoured at sundown. 
Always put on long pants and sleeves right at dusk. 

Driving : expect to average 45 to 50 mph. The roads are good ,but don't drive 
much at night if you can help it. Remeber the days are shorter in November so 
not as much daylight. Sun sets around 5:30 if I remember.  We did hear of a 
few people getting speeding tickets, but we never had any problems, but I 
didn't speed much.

Best of Luck

Robbie Stewart
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