BajaNomad - Solo trip to that place that no one talks about...

Solo trip to that place that no one talks about...

bajaandy - 6-15-2014 at 09:55 PM

Six days in central Baja, solo. Wasn't really going to try to leave anything behind or do any soul-searching, but those things happened anyway. Wasn't really looking for fish, but found some. Ate well. Got a little surf in a relatively surfless area. Did some outstanding off-roading, using 4x4 to reach a place that very few have ever seen, much less camped at. Hope you enjoy.

The old brown Ford felt right at home in the Baja desert.

The cactus were in bloom.

My camp at Whale Bone Beach.

I tried to make camp livable.

Yum.

I ate pretty well.

The view was pretty awesome.

So was the fishing.

Did I mention that I ate well?

And that the fishing was pretty awesome?

Alas poor Yorick, I knew him well...

And that thing about eating well... again.

Is this beginning to become a theme?

It was a singularly spectacular Baja experience.

watizname - 6-15-2014 at 10:01 PM

Poor Baby. :biggrin:

Hook - 6-15-2014 at 10:44 PM

GPS points, maps, and Google Earth shots, please!!!!! :saint:

If you caught that calico off the shore, that's a darn nice catch!

jbcoug - 6-16-2014 at 01:15 AM

Andy, your trip looked outstanding! Tell us more. Where,when, etc. I'm done working in five days and your trip is exactly what I want to do. Don't hold back, we want details.

DENNIS - 6-16-2014 at 02:02 AM

Great trip report.
Thanks.

MikeYounghusband - 6-16-2014 at 05:15 AM

Gotta love it..... Good job.

bajaandy - 6-16-2014 at 06:03 AM

Hook, yes that Calico came right off the rocks. That one I ate. I lost track of the C&R. Sandies also.

jbcoug, the trip was last week. The area was the central Baja Pacific coast, sometimes referred to as the Seven Sisters area. That's as specific as I'm gonna get. The point is, find a dirt road and follow it. Adventure is sure to be at it's end.

[Edited on 6-16-2014 by bajaandy]

Hook - 6-16-2014 at 06:13 AM

From whom did you buy/trade for the lobbies? What was the agreed "price"?

I miss good, fresh Pacific spinies..............

Hook - 6-16-2014 at 06:17 AM

I have other questions.

What do you think the daytime highs were in the areas you were in?

What percentage of days had cloud cover more than 50% of the day?

What percentage of days had winds above 15 kts?

What was your estimation of the water temps?

I am intrigued by the area but it always seems like the best weather/water temps is August/ September and I am usually NOB. But I am considering the area for an early November trip.

shari - 6-16-2014 at 06:46 AM

yup...gotta love central baja for kazillions of empty beaches, excellent weather, great fishing...etc etc. Pretty cool whale skeleton...what was it in it's former life?

We have 90% sunny days...wind starts to be normal in June so less windy days and the mornings are always spectacular and water temps are above normal these days...nearly 70...air temps around 80....truly a paradise for a certain type of Baja oficianado. I wouldnt live anywhere else!

[Edited on 6-16-2014 by shari]

bajaandy - 6-16-2014 at 06:59 AM

Shari, I signed in to Mi Casita's guest book right under your name. Must have just missed you on your way home.
Hook, I decline to answer your lobster question because I'm not actually sure it was legal. Let's just say arrangements were made. (I could tell you that Neptune himself came striding out of the surf with his trident in one hand and a pair of lobsters in the other and gifted them to me, but that would just be ludicrous.)
Daytime highs, maybe upper 70's.
0% of the days had cloud cover more than 50% of the day. Typical night and morning low clouds and overcast burning off mid-morning.
Breezy every day, maybe reached 15kts once or twice. Only one day was it dead calm.
Water was mid to upper 60's. A bit cool in a long sleeve spring suit. Could've full suited it.

[Edited on 4-6-2015 by bajaandy]

David K - 6-16-2014 at 07:12 AM

Perfect. Glad you had a good trip!

Whale-ista - 6-16-2014 at 07:18 AM

excellent! Thank you for posting. A reminder of why we go south...

MMc - 6-16-2014 at 07:23 AM

Nice report! Thank you for not giving us the directions. Some of us get some us don't, Glad you do. I love to do the solo trips too.

Idea for the Pismo clams, chop up the meat mix with onions, tomato,fresh peppers cilantro, garlic, lime juice. Put it all back in the shell and add a bad of butter. When the liquid bubbles, pull off the fire (the shell is very hot) eat. you can play with recipe until the fish come home. I like it over pasta too.

It seams that the clam mussel never get added back to the mix. They are gone long before the mix gets back into the shells.

Ateo - 6-16-2014 at 07:35 AM

Wow. Perfection.

Pacifico - 6-16-2014 at 07:44 AM

Wow! Looks like an epic trip! Respect!

shari - 6-16-2014 at 08:18 AM

Hey Andy...I would soooooo go with the Neptune story!
Indeed this was a perfecto trip report.

Skipjack Joe - 6-16-2014 at 08:23 AM

That's a nice sandbass.

I didn't realize they have chocolates on the pacific side. They are my favorite clam to eat.

Udo - 6-16-2014 at 08:27 AM

Awesome trip report, Andy.

The Baja trip that we all dream about!

StuckSucks - 6-16-2014 at 08:47 AM

Looks fun! With the help of Google, I figured out you camped at the same place I hung out for the last 1000 - yes, VERY remote, very cool place, zero tourists. Thanks for sharing photos!!

woody with a view - 6-16-2014 at 09:11 AM

those are little pismos..... I kept looking over that way Andy, while tempted I just couldn't leave the heat. Junior is coming last week of august so if you can squeeze one in before school...... otherwise, we'll go find our good times!

Mexitron - 6-16-2014 at 09:13 AM

My kind of trip....beautiful!

Skipjack Joe - 6-16-2014 at 10:29 AM

Quote:

Solo trip to that place that no one talks about...

Oh, that place. I thought you meant, you know, the one up above us ...

ehall - 6-16-2014 at 11:25 AM

Sounds like my kind of trip. Glad you had fun.

Udo - 6-16-2014 at 11:38 AM

At low tide you can scoop them up from the sand at Magdalena Bay.
I don't think it is legal for us Gringos to do that, however.

Quote:

Originally posted by Skipjack Joe
That's a nice sandbass.

I didn't realize they have chocolates on the pacific side. They are my favorite clam to eat.

Kgryfon - 6-16-2014 at 03:27 PM

Nice! So...you didn't mention...how was the fishing? :spingrin:

desertcpl - 6-16-2014 at 03:50 PM

classic Baja,,, great

Meany - 6-16-2014 at 04:37 PM

What a Great trip. Some day.

mojo_norte - 6-16-2014 at 06:42 PM

Nice Truck - 89 ? I have ad n 87 F150 and love it

bajaandy - 6-16-2014 at 07:49 PM

Yeah, it's an '89. Had it since it was new. It's been replaced by an '04 Super Duty except for Baja trips. This is my go-to rig for Baja. Rebuilt 460 V-8, C-6 trans, everything mechanical is good except the exterior, which is exactly how I like it.

bajaandy - 6-19-2014 at 08:07 PM

Driving instructions. Buwahahahahahaha!!!!!
http://youtu.be/k_UU6JKrb8I

Driving Instructions

[Edited on 8-17-2014 by bajaandy]

woody with a view - 6-19-2014 at 08:18 PM

CATCH ONE FOR CURT!!!

Missing

bajaguy - 6-19-2014 at 08:23 PM

The only thing missing on that trip and in the photos is a Yellow Labrador Retriever

Ateo - 6-20-2014 at 06:32 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by bajaandy
Driving instructions. Buwahahahahahaha!!!!!
http://youtu.be/k_UU6JKrb8I

Killer video. SPOT it up at the end.

MMc - 6-20-2014 at 07:39 AM

I thought it was a add for SPOT. Great video, and thanks for not showing all the land marks.

David K - 6-20-2014 at 08:06 AM

Even if every landmark and mileage was shown... the place will still be deserted or crowd free BECAUSE of the ROAD.

It is paved and graded roads you have to fear, not photos or road logs. Bad roads bring Good People, as Mama Espinoza was quoted saying... Good roads bring ALL kinds of people!

Udo - 6-20-2014 at 08:26 AM

You are right, DK.

Even with the co-ordinates, the way there is likened to driving the the dirt road from Kuyimás (San Ignacio lagoon), to San Juanico (just south of Mag Bay).

woody with a view - 6-20-2014 at 08:40 AM

Udo, where your logic (and DKs) fail you is that even after traveling nearly 100 miles offroad from San Ig, when you finally get to Juanico 10,000 dogs, babies, old men and women are all there sneering as they see the new guy's dust cloud coming down the hill.....

edit: no offense to the dogs! :light:

[Edited on 6-20-2014 by woody with a view]

Vince - 6-20-2014 at 09:53 AM

Enjoyed your video, thanks for posting it. I sent it to my old friends, called it OLD BAJA STILL EXISTS.

Barry A. - 6-20-2014 at 10:48 AM

Just got NOMAD "Vince" 's alert to this posting-----------WOW, that is exactly the way we did it--------for some 50+ years in Baja!!! My old '69 Ford truck (still running well) has EXACTLY the same seat covers as your truck, Andy. (-:

What a great trip report. In 1996 I gave my '69 Ford to my son, and bought a used 1994 F-250 with a 360 V-8 to replace the '69 6-cyl truck, and it has served me well in Baja with no breakdowns ever. We almost always camped on remote beaches or washes, just like you did.

Yes, the "old Baja" DOES still exist!!!

Barry

motoged - 6-20-2014 at 12:50 PM

Great vid.....gracias :saint:

David K - 6-20-2014 at 04:17 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by woody with a view
Udo, where your logic (and DKs) fail you is that even after traveling nearly 100 miles offroad from San Ig, when you finally get to Juanico 10,000 dogs, babies, old men and women are all there sneering as they see the new guy's dust cloud coming down the hill.....

edit: no offense to the dogs! :light:

[Edited on 6-20-2014 by woody with a view]

San Juanico is at the end of a PAVED road, Woody... Doesn't matter if a bad road is another way there or not. I am not understanding your logic of saying mine fails??? :lol:

Hope you and the wife have a nice weekend... :light:

woody with a view - 6-20-2014 at 04:42 PM

yeah, good roads WHAT?

woody with a view - 6-20-2014 at 05:03 PM

Andy, I'm wearing my Curt shirt to the Pads game tonight! look for me in right center field with the rest of the company!!!

bajaandy - 6-20-2014 at 07:02 PM

Barry, look closely... that truck has YOUR old rack on the camper shell!

Woody: CATCH ONE FOR CURT!!!!

bajaandy - 6-20-2014 at 07:12 PM

By the way, that last part of the video is in real time because I was actually in 4X4 low creeping over that two track. The GoPro video really makes the road look like a cream puff, but I can assure you that it was a pretty rugged bit of road.
Oh, and by the way, right at the end, the first thing I did was turn on SPOT, and if you notice, the second thing was to shut down the cell phone. (Wouldn't work there anyway.) Good times for sure.

MMc - 6-20-2014 at 08:35 PM

I thought it was a spot commercial. I thought of your wife knowing you were safe when you put it on your windshield. (a light turned on) I kinda understand the SPOT thing, but most of the things in my life rescue wasn't considered. If you failed, you paid. My wife met me when, I would go for weeks on end without a word, now it's mostly for days. Hell the last trip I called her every night. It was not that remote anymore

I understand that most family's are different then mine and look at the world with different eyes)

Thinking that spot will save your bacon is like thinking a cop stops crime. They both are good after it is mostly over. I would never consider asking somebody to put themselves harms way for my stupidity, or to save me. I guess I am old school.

woody with a view - 6-20-2014 at 09:48 PM

the kid 2 rows down caught one!

i can't wait until someone bumps into me and sez, "HEY, where'd ya get that shirt?"?

[Edited on 6-21-2014 by woody with a view]

Barry A. - 6-20-2014 at 10:23 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by bajaandy
Barry, look closely... that truck has YOUR old rack on the camper shell!

Woody: CATCH ONE FOR CURT!!!!

LOL--------I DID notice that it looked familiar, but I thought you just had good taste in racks. (-:

Glad to see it traveling again to great spots in "old Baja", Andy. I had forgotten your code name on Nomads as being the one who ended up with MY rack.

Barry

woody with a view - 6-20-2014 at 11:19 PM

Barry, if that ain't weird enuff, i met up with Andy on the road to "nowhere" eggsackly 9.5 years ago and i can vouch for the man..... he was driving that truck even then! i'm a little worried looking at the video cuz i can't see an in dash stereo or multiple other items..... :lol:

bajaandy - 6-21-2014 at 06:02 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by MMc
I thought it was a spot commercial.

Yeah, you said that. Twice.
Cool man! Keep it old school! Been there. Done that. Moved on.
You treat your loved ones the way you choose and I'll do the same.

Barry, I thought you'd get a kick out seeing the old Con-Ferr roof rack back in Baja. It's a perfect place for a spare, extra fuel, stuck equipment, etc. Thanks again for making the sale. I'm glad I was able to make the arrangements to get it down here to Escondido.

Woody, I thought it was over 10 years ago? Wasn't it winter of 03? I checked a few old pics and found some on a spring '04 trip. I dunno. Oh, and yeah, about that stereo; The old brown truck is mechanically sound, and that's all I'm looking for. The A/C stopped working years ago, so now it has Arm-strong A/C. And the battery kept running dead when I parked it, so I traced it to the stereo and yanked that sucker out. This last trip was blissfully un-marred by any outside influences. Just me and the truck and Baja. I even took two books along and never cracked them open!

bajadentist - 1-5-2018 at 11:52 PM

Hola andy,

I'm just beginning my baja adventures. I went to a place in central baja last summer. My fishing experience was similar. It's like I went back in time. I speared 2 halibut and saw 2 more and decided to let them go because I already had 2 corbina, 3 lobster, and 2 habs. I fed 8 people that day. I couldn't have found the place we camped at without the company of a good friend who had been going there for 40 years with his parents. I went there with a 2wd highlander and did just fine. I had to air down to blast across the sand when I got to the beach camping spot. I drove down the beach just fine. Of course I was with a friend with a 4wd tundra in case I needed help.

I'm not asking you for the exact location of your camp, but I was curious if I'd be able to get there in my 2wd highlander. I haven't hit a road block in the highlander in baja yet, but I'm always considering selling it to get a 4wd...if it's necessary. What are your thoughts?

David K - 1-6-2018 at 01:02 AM

There is just nothing better than a good 4WD in Baja!
You should get a good air pump as well for refilling tires because to not get stuck means to lower the air pressure (2WD or 4WD). It is also great with a tire plug kit after you fix a flat.
Andy is a super cool guy... But, he hasn't posted here in about 10 months. I hope he is still monitoring Nomad and replies to your question bajadentist.

(My dad was a dentist who loved fishing and when a patient told him about fishing in Baja and that he needed a 4WD Jeep to get to the hot spots, my dad bought one, right away, and that is what gave me Baja and four wheeling fever... back in 1965)

yumawill - 1-6-2018 at 07:53 AM

I knew those Lobster personally. For me they would'nt deal. For this guy they jump out of the water and on to his plate. Mezmerizing that "Never Never Land" that is solitude and God's grace.

basautter - 1-7-2018 at 02:59 PM

Very cool! A trip similar to yours is on my bucket list! Maybe in 2019... :bounce:

woody with a view - 1-7-2018 at 04:03 PM

Please keep your reportage to a minimum. Those areas are shrinking yearly.

bajaandy - 1-7-2018 at 05:23 PM

Hola bajadentist...

It gets under your skin, doesn't it? I've often said that Baja steals a little bit of your heart every time you go, and it's trips like this that make it harder and harder to stay away.

In answer to your question, I'd be really, REALLY surprised if you could get there without 4x4. But I've been proven wrong before, so who knows? I can tell you that the way I get to that particular little gem of a place requires 4 wheel drive when approaching from the north. I think there might be an alternative route from the south, but I've never been that way to this particular little slice of heaven.

As DK mentioned, you're almost always better off with 4x4. It just opens up the options. Truth be told, 90% of the time I'm in 2 wheel drive, and most places can be accessed that way with careful tire placement and regulating tire pressure. But it sure is nice to have that ability to switch into 4x4 when you need it to get to those special spots, or to get out of a spot you maybe shouldn't have gotten into.

Long story short, you'll never know if you don't go. (Although I'd suggest maybe going with another vehicle that has 4x4 just to be on the safe side.) Pick a road and drive to the end. Adventure awaits.

PaulW - 1-8-2018 at 10:38 AM

To restate some of the above. All my stuff used in Baja - car, truck, and 4x4 all have the following:
Air for the tires, either CO2 or electric compressor.
Tire Plug kit with extra and fresh plugs.
An aerosol can of crap to put into a tire to plug small cactus leaks.
Lion battery jump start kit.
Be prepared

mtgoat666 - 1-8-2018 at 11:03 AM

Quote: Originally posted by David K

Even if every landmark and mileage was shown... the place will still be deserted or crowd free BECAUSE of the ROAD.

It is paved and graded roads you have to fear, not photos or road logs. Bad roads bring Good People, as Mama Espinoza was quoted saying... Good roads bring ALL kinds of people!

Mama who? Was she a surfer?

mtgoat666 - 1-8-2018 at 11:06 AM

Quote: Originally posted by bajaandy

Driving instructions. Buwahahahahahaha!!!!!
http://youtu.be/k_UU6JKrb8I

Driving Instructions

great video!
gopro?
and what camera setting and software did you use to do the fast motion? i might have to try that for driving video

[Edited on 8-17-2014 by bajaandy]

bajaandy - 1-9-2018 at 05:44 PM

GoPro
Standard settings
MS Moviemaker

Quote: Originally posted by mtgoat666

Quote: Originally posted by bajaandy