DK, in that photo where the Land Rover is listing to the left in a deep dip, can that hole be filled with those rocks around?
I want to go there with my rig, without my fullsize Bronco in tow.
NOPE... if I wasn't clear before, then let me be clear now: NO 2WD, NO LONG wheelbase, no running boards, no nothing but high ground clearance 4WD
(ie. 9"+ min. ground clearance)... Take the Bronco... that's what it is for, provided it has the best condition tires and a locking differential or
limited slip would be really advised... Otherwise, just too much damage!!!
That gully that is less than 2 miles from Santa Ynez is a good limiter to keep back those who may not be prepared...
ROAD LOG & GPS DATA (Map Datum set to NAD27 Mexico)
The following data was recorded last May, '07 and April, '03.
0.0 Rancho Santa Ynez (Ines, Inez, etc.) in front of the lunch counter: 29-43.757', 114-41.730', elev. 1,826'
Drive out from the parking area by the table and turn right (north) to the SECOND open gate and follow road outside fenced area to behind ranch then
out to cross the wide arroyo.
0.9 FORK, go left (uphill)/ Right goes back into Arroyo Cataviņa (labled Arroyo La Bocana in the Baja Almanac): 29-43.900', 114-41.134', elev. 1,846'
1.8 Deep Gully, steep grade up!
~2.4 FORK/ Rock Pile (continue straight, new track to left made by ejido to ?): 29-45.193', 114-40.627', elev. 2,020'
4.7 Cement Marker to left, on side track: 29-46.404', 114-39.149'
5.6 Arroyo Cataviņa (also called Arroyo San Antonio and Arroyo La Bocana in the Almanac) crossing with palms.
9.9 Peninsular Divide (Punta Final view): 29-46.152', 114-34.971' elev. 2,512'
13.3 The Widowmaker top: 29-44.745', 114-33.141' elev. 1,737'
13.4 The Widowmaker bottom
14.4 Mision Santa Maria: 29-43.891', 114-32.794' elev. 1,628'
15.4 Arroyo Santa Maria, left turn for our oasis camp location at 29-43.697', 114-32.213' elev. 1,386'
15.7 Left Turn out of arroyo for bulldozed grade & El Camino Real (ahead in arroyo ends in palms at 16.0): 29-43.164', 114-31.868' elev. 1,353'
~15.9 'El Camino Real' California mission trail (and peninsular 'highway' before autos!) to left, switchbacks up hill side: 29-43.126', 114-31.753'
elev. 1,413' this Franciscan and Dominican El Camino Real stays high on the ridge above the north side of Santa Maria Canyon. The original mission
trail (used until Junipero Serra ordered a better route made) was mostly in the canyon.
16.0 (from Santa Ynez) End of drivable road heading up towards ridge: 29-43.109', 114-31.645' elev. 1,495'
If you continue to hike up the bulldozed roadbed, the construction ends on the ridge high above the deep Santa Maria Canyon. An Indian trail, which
was the Jesuit's 'El Camino Real' drops down, into the canyon and out towards the gulf. Petroglyphs decorate some rocks at the end of the road
building project: 29-43.033', 114-31.556' elev. 1,615'
Photo of the petros and the view into the canyon from 2003: http://www.vivabaja.com/403/mailedD71.jpg
DK, in that photo where the Land Rover is listing to the left in a deep dip, can that hole be filled with those rocks around?
Please, no trail filling. Some of us want to enjoy the challenge of the trail as is. If you find yourself stuck somewhere and there is no way out
but to move rocks, cool. But to purposely go some place you know you can't go and change the trail to get there is not cool, unless you put everthing
back how it was when you go back out. IMHO only
"Mankind will not be judged by their faults, but by the direction of their lives." Leo Giovinetti
You know after seeing how much worse the road was since my last time over it, I am glad you guys had fun at Gonzaga and didn't attempt to join us at
Santa Maria!
I hear of a road building party being put together for June 16th...?? La Turquesa opened up by Baja Nomads??? Baja Cat, Squarecircle and more????
Since the Baja 1000 will be heading down the Pacific side of the sierra, from TJ/ Ensenada and everybody loves Coco, it wouldn't be a stretch if SCORE
plowed the way clear in La Turquesa so the racers could cross over from the Pacific at Cataviņa or ?, to Pedregoso, down the Turquesa Grade and drive
through Coco's Corner without needing to come from San Felipe/ Puertecitos (which may never see a SCORE race again)!?
On second though, if they wanted to go through Coco's Corner, they could come from the Pacific's Punta Blanca area then across to Chapala to Coco's
and south through Calamajue Wash and on south... No new roads to make...
Originally posted by David K
no nothing but high ground clearance 4WD (ie. 9"+ min. ground clearance)
Hmmm. Don't think the LR3 has 9" of clearance - more like 7.
LR3 has air adjustable ground clearance that raises the rig much higher. Also, you didn't notice the stock tires were not used... I will let Roy
provide the ground clearance details.
My Tacoma suspension/ ride was all stock, the Cooper tires were the same size as the BFGs they replaced, and I have 9 1/2" at the lowest point, much
more most of the area down there... I did grind over many rocks and my trailer light connection got pushed up and behind my bumper!
Originally posted by Roberto
Those are the specs on the car - 7.3" of max clearance. I WOULD be interested in hearing more about his rig.
Greetings Roberto,
The LR 3 has some 13"+ grd. clearance @ full off-road extension. It needs all the help it can get because at 115" of wheelbase and almost 6,000 lbs.
it is really a very large cage. A completely flat floor makes a large bedroom in this 4x4 casita. Leave tent at home!!
The information I have indicates the EAS (electronic air suspension) of the LR3 allows 13 inches of wheel travel in the rear and 10.75 inches wheel
travel in the front. Different tires could increase or decrease this...
The ground clearance in the (OFF ROAD mode engaged) is 9.5 inches. I assume with LR3 recommended tire setup...
Originally posted by Steve in Oro Valley
Great thread Squarecircle and David:
The information I have indicates the EAS (electronic air suspension) of the LR3 allows 13 inches of wheel travel in the rear and 10.75 inches wheel
travel in the front. Different tires could increase or decrease this...
The ground clearance in the (OFF ROAD mode engaged) is 9.5 inches. I assume with LR3 recommended tire setup...
Steve >>>> With the OFF ROAD mode engaged there are two(2) more stages of increased grd. clearance available that are not driver
selective. These two extra height increases happen only when the vehicle is in serious risk of geting its self stuck. Now ----- How is that for some
unearthly engineering??? Pun intended for this bizarre feature, but afterall it is a FORD. >>>>> Regards, sq.
Well, be it 9.5 or 13 inches... my point still stands that I do not recommend any vehicle with less than 9" of minimum ground clearance, and as Roy
verified with his automatic height adjustment and oversize Nitto tires, he had MORE than enough to not get hung up on the rocks. Anything lower or non
traction controlled 4WD rigs risks serious damage.
To wrap up our Memorial Day Weekend trip report...
We arrived back at Rancho Santa Ynez about 1 pm (4 hours to go 15 miles, LOL). Told Matilda and Oscar about the borregos. Oscar asked if we saw any of
his cattle... yes a few young ones were pasing through our oasis camp. Bring a rake if you come here to clean away the 'pies'.
Roy and Blanche headed south and over to Campo Beluga for another night to avoid the long wait that woukld be at the border this night. Elizabeth and
I went to Hugo Lopez' TACOS MISION to say hi, see his latest paintings, and enjoy some good food!
Naturally we used the new Blvd. 2000 (BC#201) as a easy way to get to the Otay Border crossing and arrived at the line at 8:30pm for a 2 1/2 hour
wait.
The border gaurd was nice, but when I declared the beer and limes I was returning with he got real concerned that limes 'might' be not allowed (they
are)! I mean, how hard is it to look at the list? His logic was that limes are 'like' oranges, and oranges are not allowed!
Anyway, he sent us to Secondary and in just seconds the Secondary gaurd walked up to the truck, looked at the note, said "LIMES?... GET OUT OF
HERE!" Limes ARE permitted. We were headed home!
BAJA continues to be a place of wonder and enjoyment for me and I now get to share the wonders with Baja Angel in person, and you guys on line!
I will make a web page for this trip but it will be tough to select far fewer photos than I have posted in these 6 parts on Nomad to keep the web page
within a reasonable viewing size.
Next trip planned is to El Rosario for the Cultural Festival July 20-22, then the rest of the week we may visit the Seven Sisters and on to Punta
Abreojos, Bahia Asuncion, Bahia Tortugas...???
Gawd I love that place. Gotta get back, soon. Thanks for the log and that camp in the oasis. I will stay there next time!
"The association of flowers and warm-blooded love is more than a romantic convention; it is based upon one of the great advances in the evolution
of life." Ed Abbey
Here's a map I sketched showing the relationship of our camp, the mission, the Widowmaker and the Camino Real.
I did not use a scale, just free hand while looking at a topo for the arroyo locations.
The Widowmaker to the mission is just over 1 mile.
The mission to the arroyo that we drove up for the oasis camp is 1 mile.
The arroyo run down to the fork, where you turn left for El Camino Real (it's at 29-43.126', 114-31.753' NAD27) or the end of the bulldozed road, or
go straight to the dead end in the palms, is 0.3 mi.
As you can see, the Camino Real climbs out of the mission valley to the north, then swings east and southeast along the ridge, above the north side of
the Santa Maria Canyon. It drops down to the arroyo just east of the canyon's east end. The GPS on that end is 29-41.733', 114-28.175' (NAD27)
The Camino Real has been ridden by racer and Dust to Glory producer Kevin Ward on a Honda XR650, but not without damage... and is only recommended to
those on foot or mule hoof! I hiked it up from the Gonzaga side to 29-43.141', 114-30.189' in 2003.
"If it were lush and rich, one could understand the pull, but it is fierce and hostile and sullen.
The stone mountains pile up to the sky and there is little fresh water. But we know we must go back
if we live, and we don't know why." - Steinbeck, Log from the Sea of Cortez
"People don't care how much you know, until they know how much you care." - Theodore Roosevelt
"You can easily judge the character of others by how they treat those who they think can do nothing for them or to them." - Malcolm Forbes
"Let others lead small lives, but not you. Let others argue over small things, but not you. Let others
cry over small hurts, but not you. Let others leave their future in someone else's hands, but not you." - Jim Rohn
"The best way to get the right answer on the internet is not to ask a question; it's to post the wrong answer." - Cunningham's Law
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Mexico InsuranceServices for your long-term support of the BajaNomad.com Forums site.
Emergency Baja Contacts Include:
Desert Hawks;
El Rosario-based ambulance transport; Emergency #: (616) 103-0262
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Limes ARE permitted. We were headed home!
