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Graham
Senior Nomad
Posts: 558
Registered: 6-16-2006
Location: San Diego and DeTour, MI
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I just returned from five days camping in the San Pedro Mártir with Pili my corgi who just loves the place. I was shown around the cabañas by the
very friendly and helpful park rangers.
However, I preferred to camp and was all alone for four nights. Last Saturday two big groups arrived, one a church group and the other from the
Scouts. They filled the cabins and the adjacent campgrounds and it was actually kind of fun and charming listening to their distant singing and
campfire activities. The staff did a super job hosting so many folks, over 100, and restoring the camping area to its near pristine beauty the day
after they departed.
But unless you have special permission, it seems camping is now restricted to the area around the park entrance.
Most campsites have tables, benches, grills, trash bins, fire pits, and well maintained "composting" toilets.
It was surprisingly warm for April. I’ve been in the park in June and had my water freeze, but on this trip the temps never dropped below 35-40
degrees at night. Even so I had to keep the corgi snug in her sleeping basket.
We hiked a lot with no rattlesnake worries at that elevation –but I saw two on the road driving up - and saw several coyotes and dozens of deer.
We’d work up a good sweat and were glad for a rest in the shade, or in Pili’s case a cooling roll on a lingering patch of snow and a little icy treat.
There are a couple of new observation towers close to the park entrance. The furthest is about a two mile hike and you have a great view of the park
and of course Picacho Diablo towering over everything.
And Pili enjoyed dashing across the meadows beneath the domes of the observatory.
The staff at the park really appreciated Mike’s volunteering with his telescope and sharing with the visitors the wonders of astronomy. It was
obviously a big hit with the Easter crowd.
There’s also a new visitor’s center due to open shortly with lots of information and exhibits about the San Pedro Mártir.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64480
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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GREAT photos Graham!!!
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astrobaja
Senior Nomad
Posts: 952
Registered: 5-22-2006
Location: near San Pedro Martir Park
Member Is Offline
Mood: beam me up
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Hi Graham!
Thanks for posting the pics, they are lovely! It was my pleasure to do the public outreach volunteer work for the park for semana santa! I used to do
a lot of that sort of thing back in Canada for scout groups and public events so I really was missing it!
Question for Graham: did you notice a lot of cattle up in the park? Someone mentioned to me that they saw around 80 of the buggers around the
tasajera!
Of course they are not allowed officially anymore up in the park, and in talking to a couple biologists they do untold damage to the parks ecosystem.
Last year the park told the Coyote Melings that they had to get their cattle out of the park, which apparently they did, but they either intentionally
missed some or they have wandered back.
Please people if you visit the park make a point of mentioning to the park staff that you do not appreciate the cattles presence!
This park is one of the last old growth areas in all of north America and is host to many endemic plant and animal species, cattle have no place here!
They should just round them up and sell them or donate the meat to a food bank.
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and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable.There is another theory which states that this has already happened\"
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Graham
Senior Nomad
Posts: 558
Registered: 6-16-2006
Location: San Diego and DeTour, MI
Member Is Offline
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Hi Mike,
Drove by the road leading to Baja Dark Skies and wished I had time to visit and see again your wonderful place. In fact one of the rattlers I saw was
right there on the road outside the gate.
I don't remember seeing any cattle at Tasajera but I did spot one or two in the Vallecitos meadow... trying to blend in with the local wildlife.
I recall when I was in the park for the summer of 2001, the then park director wanted the cattle out for the reasons you mentioned and he was
explaining to me the delicate politics involved in persuading the ranch families whose cattle had been migrating to the park every summer for 100
years.
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