larry
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Sinaloa and Sonora--Looking for input
I am driving the entire length of Baja in January, then coming back up to La Paz to take the ferry to Topolobampo/Los Mochis. I am planning to do a
combo of tent camping and motels. Cannot find much info about camping spots, beaches, places worth visiting in northern Sinaloa and Sonora heading
north.
Does anyone have first hand experience in this area that can give me some info?
Thanks, Larry
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JZ
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San Carlos is where you want to stop at in Sonora. Lots of hotels and you can also camp on the beach there.
You can go 30 miles above San Carlos and camp on beaches out in the middle of nowhere in really cool bays. Search Google Earth for Ensenada Chica for
example.
The are a couple San Carlos forums. One is at sancarlosmexico.com
Video I shot around San Carlos last month. The last image is from Ensenada Chica.
https://youtu.be/GKTBVCIQ_z8
[Edited on 12-15-2016 by JZ]
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Hook
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What time do you get off the ferry in Topo? Is it in the middle of the night? If so, I would just book a cheap motel out along Hwy 15 and hunker down
till daylight. It is not considered a safe area to be driving around at night; especially looking for camping spots.
Then, make for San Carlos for some very good beach camping, though not on the scale of the great beach camping on Baja (at least in terms of
solitude). The coastline between Topo and San Carlos is low and flat and rather uninteresting. Kinda like Guerrero Negro, but with more vegetation.
Once you get to the San Carlos area, the terrain is a bit like Loreto, with uplifted volcanic outcrops and mountains right up to the water,
interspersed with sandy beaches. Very spectacular, but it is hardly "undiscovered". There are plenty of gringo homes, here and there. But there is one
free camping area that is in close proximity to the services of San Carlos.
What are you driving?
There is one possibly interesting area, between Topo and San Carlos, that I have never been to; Huatabampo. It is about 2-3 hours south of San Carlos
and is south of the town of Navajoa. It has a small boat basin and there is supposedly a motel/RV park/restaurant combo called El Mirador. Google it.
It is actually closer to the town of Yavaros, which is where the small boat basin is. So, that's a possibility, if you have daylight to explore it and
then head to San Carlos, if it turns out to be undesirable.
https://goo.gl/maps/tcWh6uef7iv
[Edited on 12-15-2016 by Hook]
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larry
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Thank you both--helpful. And very nice vid JZ!
[Edited on 12-15-2016 by larry]
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wilderone
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Depending on how much time you have and your interests, if you head east from Hermosillo, you can visit the Parque and Basaseachic falls (I've camped
there), and further into Chihuahua. I've camped in the pine mountains outside of Madera - Anasazi ruins sites in the mountains, as well as a
hotsprings place where you could camp. Also Cuaranta Casas Anasazi ruins in the area. Then north on Hwy. 28/10 visiting Mata Ortiz pottery village
(cheap accommodations there incl. meals), observe pottery making and visit potters' homes for the best art pottery in North America. See Pacquime
ruin site, camp in the hills to the west. Pretty cheap hotels in Casas Grandes; cross in Douglas. You can visit Bisbee and Tombstone, camp at Saguaro
Natl Pk. en route home.
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JZ
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Another thing you should strongly consider doing is going to see Copper Canyon. It's about 1.5hr NE of Los Mochis to the start of it at El Fuerte.
Trains do tours of it, etc. It's supposed to be spectacular.
If you don't hit it up consider going to Alamos on the way to SC. I haven't been, but have heard many good things.
[Edited on 12-15-2016 by JZ]
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larry
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Really glad I asked. Those are great suggestions JZ, and I think I am going to take them. Thanks to everybody.
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bajagrouper
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Here is a story about 2 surfers who got off the Topo ferry and started looking for a place to camp.......
http://edition.cnn.com/2015/12/15/asia/mexico-australian-sur...
I would be very careful solo camping along the west coast except around San Carlos....good luck.
Upon entering Navajoa you will see signage for Alamos......
I hear the whales song
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carlosg
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Mood: Just like in Baja: No Bad Days...
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Back in the mid 80's and early 90's I did some hitchhiking-tent camping around Guadalajara, Jalisco and visited Michoacan and Nayarit as well, however
I WOULD'T even consider it today, doing it today is CERTAINLY looking for trouble just like "bajagrouper" shows in the link he includes, when you
mention Sinaloa... that's a whole other dimension of violence, that's the mother load for trouble just as Michoacan, Guerrero, Tamaulipas and some
other states in México.
Me and my family just did a car trip to Veracruz and drove it from North to South and then to México City, I was very concerned about our safety
before going but after our trip and not encountering any trouble at all, the only thing I can say is that either we were very lucky or we did the
right thing: travel ONLY during the day, don't stop for ANYONE on the road and keep your eyes PEELED... ALL THE TIME!!!
Be safe NOT sorry, be diligent on your endeavor and remember that the rest of México is not like Baja: NO BAD DAYS.
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