Yakfishing
Junior Nomad
Posts: 72
Registered: 3-2-2007
Location: N. Hollywood, CA
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Mood: Onshore wishing I was offshore
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Ojo De Liebre and Bahia Concepcion Trip Report
I’m back from an eleven day trip to Baja with my girlfriend Lori. Here are the highlights and lowlights:
Day one: 3/14 Looong day with a 14 hour drive from LA to Ojo De Liebre. It went smooth as planned. We stopped and did the TJ shuffle to get our
tourist cards before sunrise and headed south. With the exception of hearty breakfast at the Jalisco Cafe in Maneadero, we pretty much motored
straight through – only stopping for gas with ice cream/Red Bull supplements. Arrived at the campground at the lagoon before sundown.
Day two: Went out on a panga to see the whales at 10:00. It was perfect timing – the morning was cool and overcast, but the sun broke as we were
preparing to leave the dock. We initially had the boat to ourselves, but a late arrival by a Mexican family spanning 3 generations – grandma, mom, dad
and 4 year old son – rounded out our group. Grandma was the most excited by our adventure, with the little guy being somewhat afraid of our close
encounters. It was amazing! With the later departure, our panguero was able to get info on the location of some friendly whales from an earlier boat.
We all had an opportunity to touch these guys – they were like 30 ton puppies wanting to be petted. We encountered two pairs of mother and baby. Per
the panguero, the youngsters were probably one year olds.
We spent the rest of the day hiking around and exploring the area. Except for the Mexican family and a Canadian couple staying at the palapas near the
Visitor’s Center, we had the campground to ourselves.
Day three: We packed up the tent early and headed out. When we stopped at the gate to sign out with the security guy, he handed us a piece of coral
covered in salt crystals – an unexpected and kind gesture. Uneventful drive to Bahia Concepcion with lingering signs if last fall’s hurricane – road
detours and bridge construction. We weren’t sure where to camp at BC. We did some research and there are plenty of places, so we weren’t concerned
about finding something. We ended up staying at the first place we stopped – Los Naranjos at the upper part of the bay near Punt Arena. We got a
“palapa” there for $10/night. Palapa is a pretty weak description for our plush accommodations. It was actually a new 20’x 25’ cabin with concrete
floor, front and back door, stucco and wood sides with screened windows, plus a bathroom with a sink and flush toilet. Right on the water. Nice!
Day four – nine. Hung out, explored the area, and kayak fished. One of the highlights was delivering much needed school supplies to one of the
elementary schools in Mulege that’s near the river and subsequently was flooded by the hurricane.
The kayak fishing was not great, but we had fish for dinner each day I went out – bay bass fish tacos, trigger fish ceviche and fried catfish(!!) My
first day out, I found a hot spot for catfish. I’ve never caught saltwater cats before, so I didn’t keep any – not sure if they were good to eat or
not. I asked some of the resident gringos living at the camp and was met with puzzled looks – they hadn’t heard of any catfish in the area. A day
later, one of the local gringos said he had just caught one, cooked it up and it was delicious. Armed with this new knowledge, I headed out and fished
in a new area with little success. I then went back to the catfish hole and had fun catching a couple dozen before paddling away from the still hot
bite. I kept 3 for dinner and they were fantastic – sweet, white, mild flesh that tasted great with the improvised tartar sauce that Lori made.
We went for walks up and down the beach and into the cactus forest (is that the right term?). To the north we went past Bob and Susan’s Playa Frambes
project. Lots of other construction in the area with additional lots marked off for future development. Our timing was good because the day after we
were there, another couple was walking on the beach in the area and the guy needed stitches and shots after being bitten on the leg by a dog.
Our hikes into the cactus forest behind the camp were amazing. I could not believe how green it was. In addition to the cardon cactus, there were
flowering shrubs and vines, plus an incredible variety of birds, bugs and a few rabbits. It was great to see a pristine area without trash and with
the staghorn-like cores of the dead cholla (?) cactus remaining intact and untouched. I love it when it feels like you’re the only one who’s been
there. Springtime in the desert is so beautiful.
We were living in close proximity with other beach dwellers. The good news is the long-timers use solar to power their rigs. The bad news is the short
timers did not get the memo and some ran their generators past 10 pm. Loud music caused a disturbance one night with the Mexican polka music (that’s
what I call it) playing REALLY LOUD until almost midnight. It’s hard to complain to the owners of the camp about the loud music when they’re the ones
responsible for it!! Per the long-timers, Armando does this on a semi-regular basis and there not much you can do about it.
Day ten: Headed out early for the first leg of the long drive home. Stopped in Santa Rosalia to see the Eiffel designed church and go to the bakery.
The church was open, but it was 7:30 and the bakery didn’t open until 8:00. Lots of miles to do, so we hit the road instead of waiting. Original plan
was to stay in San Quintin, but we were ahead of schedule, so we kept going and got to a hotel in Punta Banda before sundown.
Day eleven: Again, headed out early for the final leg of the journey. As is our normal route, we took Mex 3 to Tecate. Taking highway 3 is a prettier,
but slightly longer drive. . I hate to going back through TJ. I would rather drive through the countryside than hassle with the stop and go bottleneck
at the border in TJ. The Tecate border crossing was a piece of cake this time – the last couple of times we crossed on Saturday late in the day and we
waited for 1 to 2 hours. This time at 11 in the morning, the line was shorter than an In-N-Out Burger drive thru. We were flagged for secondary
inspection, but the inspectors must have gotten the same training as the Mexican military - a two minute non-invasive peak and poke at our camping
gear and we were off.
Now I’m back at work and fully engaged with all my real world responsibilities. There is still some of the post-trip maintenance work to do on the
gear, but I’m already planning our next trip in Sept. Thanks to all the Nomads who helped make this trip a success with all the info on the boards.
Joe O.
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Yakfishing
Junior Nomad
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Registered: 3-2-2007
Location: N. Hollywood, CA
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Mood: Onshore wishing I was offshore
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Underwater shot
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Yakfishing
Junior Nomad
Posts: 72
Registered: 3-2-2007
Location: N. Hollywood, CA
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Mood: Onshore wishing I was offshore
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"Palapa"
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Yakfishing
Junior Nomad
Posts: 72
Registered: 3-2-2007
Location: N. Hollywood, CA
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Mood: Onshore wishing I was offshore
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Bahia Concepcion Catfish
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Yakfishing
Junior Nomad
Posts: 72
Registered: 3-2-2007
Location: N. Hollywood, CA
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Mood: Onshore wishing I was offshore
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Bugs
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Bajagypsy
Super Nomad
Posts: 1416
Registered: 8-31-2006
Location: BahĂa Asuncion BCS
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Mood: Living the dream
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Great trip report, sounds like you had a blast!
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Bob and Susan
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8807
Registered: 8-20-2003
Location: Mulege BCS on the BAY
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hey!!! we saw you joe!!!!
we eat alot at norm and tonis...
they keep susan alive
you fished every evening on that kayak...
almost til dark
you were a GREAT show...
the poor guy that got bit by the dog was named joe too
he was walking over by punta arena
3 stiches
it was his first trip there
he was norm and tonis daughter betsy's boyfriend
he had BAD luck
he also got sick from the shot
was sore from hiking and...
got a flat tire on the way to the airport
he finally made it home safe!!!
the owners of the dog paid the hospital bill ...
you should have stopped by
next time
september is HOT!!!!
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Ken Bondy
Ultra Nomad
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Registered: 12-13-2002
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Wonderful report and photos Yakfishing. I am really interested in identifying those catfish. Do you happen to have a tight shot of one of them??
Thanks again, ++Ken++
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Iflyfish
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3747
Registered: 10-17-2006
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Great report. Love the pics.
There is a device that is sold online for around twenty bucks the emits a tone that drives dogs away. Next time we will come armed with them. There
are some nasty pero's there!
Thanks,
Iflyfish
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DianaT
Select Nomad
Posts: 10020
Registered: 12-17-2004
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Loved every word of your report---thanks for sharing.
You really describe the special feelings when in a cactus forest.
We also prefer to come home through Tecate rather than San Ysidro, and we live right next to San Ysidro.
Just really enjoyed your report.
Diane
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Yakfishing
Junior Nomad
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Location: N. Hollywood, CA
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Mood: Onshore wishing I was offshore
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Bob,
That was another guy fishing each night. I saw him, too. He was fishing in close. Man, I couldn't buy a bite until I was 3/4 of the way across to the
otherside of the bay and into some relatively deep water ~ 70 feet. I went out early in the morning before the wind picked up.
Ken,
If you send me your e-mail address via U2U, I can send you a another shot that is a little better, plus it's much high res than we can post here.
Joe O.
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Skipjack Joe
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8084
Registered: 7-12-2004
Location: Bahia Asuncion
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baja catfishes
http://mexfish.com/fish/cscat/cscat.htm
http://mexfish.com/fish/comseacat/comseacat.htm
Probably the former.
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woody with a view
PITA Nomad
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Location: Looking at the Coronado Islands
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| Quote: |
it was his first trip there
he was norm and tonis daughter betsy's boyfriend
he had BAD luck
he also got sick from the shot
was sore from hiking and...
got a flat tire on the way to the airport
he finally made it home safe!!!
the owners of the dog paid the hospital bill ...
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sounds like a "story" to be retold for generations!!!!
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Yakfishing
Junior Nomad
Posts: 72
Registered: 3-2-2007
Location: N. Hollywood, CA
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Mood: Onshore wishing I was offshore
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Yup, looks like a Chili Sea Catfish.
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Tomas Tierra
Super Nomad
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Iflyfish
There is a device that is sold online for around twenty bucks the emits a tone that drives dogs away. Next time we will come armed with them. There
are some nasty pero's there!
Iflyfish |
Or you could use a slingshot and marbles...more fun!
Cool report!sounds like fun..
IthrowthejigwhenI'mnotmakingnastyperrosyelp
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Cypress
Elite Nomad
Posts: 7641
Registered: 3-12-2006
Location: on the bayou
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Yakfishing, Thanks for the pics and the report. Super!
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