| Pages:
1
2
3 |
travelfar
Newbie
Posts: 7
Registered: 9-20-2020
Member Is Offline
|
|
Am I Crazy?
I am brand new to this forum and I hve never traveled to Mexico beforeI could use some help. . Here is what I have in mind:
My wife and I will be travelling the Southwest USA pulling a fairly lightweight pop-up. I have always enjoyed visiting other countries and getting a
taste of the culture, cuisine, etc. More importantly, I have always wanted to see the whales, and even to kayak in the vicinity.
My wife and I are pretty good paddlers (actually, I work summers as a kayak instructor). We would need to rent kayaks or possibly hire a guide.
The idea is to pull the trailer down and camp for maybe three or four nights in late January. We could take a day or two to paddle, maybe another day
to just chill. Find inexpensive bars and restaurants.
Biggest concern: Is it safe? We don't want to worry about cartels (who would). Likewise we don't want to risk robbery or petty crimes. And of course
Covid. Are people taking appropriate precautions? Do you, or would you feel safe at this time?
Are the roads safe for pulling a trailer? I will probably use a 4Runner or similar to pull it.
I heard Los Barriles is a good place to rent kayaks. Do I need to go that far south to see whales or could I get away with stopping sooner like
Loreto? Will whales be in the sea of Cortez or only the open ocean?
And what do I need to know about camping in Baja? Electric and water hookups would be great but bathrooms would be necessary.
What about Cabo Pulmo, is that good for camping? Good for seeing whales?
I think that's more than enough questions for one post.
Thanks for all your help.
|
|
|
mtgoat666
Select Nomad
Posts: 17338
Registered: 9-16-2006
Location: San Diego
Member Is Offline
Mood: Hot n spicy
|
|
The best places to see gray whales are guerrero negro, Laguna San Ignacio and Magdalena bay, in feb and March. You can’t kayak, you go out in
pangas (each trip a couple hours long.
For good trailer camping at San Ignacio, check out kuyima. About 10 miles of washboard dirt road, but trailer can make it if you go slow.
The whale camps are going to be limited to 1/3 capacity for the whale season, due to the covid, so reserve space early, they will probably be booked?
You can see some whales on sea of Cortez (fins, humpys, sometimes grays), but kayak probably not be fast enough to catch up to whales in open ocean.
You can kayak out to see migrating gray whales pretty up close in San Diego. Launch at mission bay or La Jolla shores and go 2 miles out, in January
or late March/early April, there are lots of migrating grays passing by and about 2 miles offshore is best spot to intercept and be failrly close in
kayak as they pass by.
Woke!
“...ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.” “My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America
will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.”
Prefered gender pronoun: the royal we
|
|
|
TMW
Select Nomad
Posts: 10659
Registered: 9-1-2003
Location: Bakersfield, CA
Member Is Offline
|
|
It sounds to me like you would want to visit LA Bay, Bahia de Los angles. There are whale sharks that are as friendly as they get. Plus the water is
better (smooth) for paddle boats and kayaks. The bigger gray whales are on the pacific side and come into Scammons Lagoon just south of Guerrero
Negro, Laguna San Ignacio and at Magdalena Bay southwest of Constitucion. Normally you rent a boat to go out to see and pet them.
As far as safety goes it is as safe as any place you can go just use common sense. Don't walk down a dark alley at 2 am. Don't insult the bartenders
wife or girl friend. You get the point. Don't drive at night for a couple of reasons. You don't want to hit a cow.
All camp grounds have bathrooms and most have showers. Some have water and electric hookups. A good book to use as a reference is Camping Mexico's
Baja by Mike and Terri Church. Just remember things change especially with the virus pandemic.
Speaking of the virus pandemic the border is closed to tourist as per the government but people are going anyway and no-one is stopping them. So you
take your chances and see what happens. I would suggest you wait until a vaccine is available but that's just me.
|
|
|
David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64490
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
|
|
Stand by for lots of opinion...
From me, I will say that you are likely to have a great time and will return to Baja many times, as most of us Nomads have.
However, bad stuff happens everywhere including your own home state. You must choose if fear will keep you locked at home or not.
Check out the Nomad Trip Reports forum and read how others have enjoyed themselves in Baja.
My signature links below will provide some travel ideas, too.
|
|
|
AKgringo
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5819
Registered: 9-20-2014
Location: Anchorage, AK (no mas!)
Member Is Offline
Mood: Retireded
|
|
I saw whales once in Los Barriles in March. Two humpbacks put on a show just past where the kiteboarders were playing. I commented to one of the
residents that I thought the whales were all on their way north that time of year, and was told that some of them stay around most of the year.
True or not, I don't know, but it was incredible good timing that had me in the audience that day! It is not something you could count on.
If you are not living on the edge, you are taking up too much space!
"Could do better if he tried!" Report card comments from most of my grade school teachers. Sadly, still true!
|
|
|
JZ
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9268
Registered: 10-3-2003
Member Is Offline
|
|
See the whales at San Ignacio. Via panga.
Kayak at Loreto. Loreto and the surrounding islands are just amazing. You can have a panga take you and the kayak out to some of the more distant
islands. Lots of videos on YT of kayaking in the Sea of Cortez.
Other kayak spots are Bahia Concepcion and Bahia de Los Angeles. Those are more primitive places compared to Loreto. Would recommend spending one
night at Conception and a day paddling before heading on to Lorteo. Someplace like Coyote Bay.
At Loreto places I would recommend are Isla Coronado, Agua Verde, Isla Dasante, and Isla Carmen. January can be very windy.
Show your wife the video in my sig to get her excited. I've taken my kids down since they were 4. Pretty safe. Just use common sense. Travel in
the day time, don't camp alone near a larger city.
[Edited on 9-20-2020 by JZ]
|
|
|
SFandH
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6929
Registered: 8-5-2011
Member Is Offline
|
|
Jeez, I wish I was as optimistic as you guys about the safety issue. There's too many meth heads roaming around wide awake in the middle of the night
looking for whatever they can find.
We used to camp by ourselves in remote areas in our truck camper. No more, there's safety in numbers.
|
|
|
tiotomasbcs
Super Nomad
Posts: 1837
Registered: 7-30-2007
Location: El Pescadero
Member Is Offline
|
|
Contact a Travel Club like Discover Baja or Vagabundos del Mar. buy a couple Travel Books. The wind blows on Sea of Cortez side all winter. Most
whale viewing sites are on Pacific side and have rules and regs. Nov and Dec are awesome for most all activities. Just don't bring all your best
friends! ps best to camp where there are other campers for Safety as mentioned by SFU!
[Edited on 9-20-2020 by tiotomasbcs]
|
|
|
SFandH
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6929
Registered: 8-5-2011
Member Is Offline
|
|
OK Tio.
I think you meant STFU!! 
[Edited on 9-20-2020 by SFandH]
|
|
|
JZ
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9268
Registered: 10-3-2003
Member Is Offline
|
|
Here is a fantastic place to go. You take a panga about 7 miles out of San Evaristo.
You couldn't get the camper in there unless it was one of those offroad types.
|
|
|
JZ
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9268
Registered: 10-3-2003
Member Is Offline
|
|
Another cool video.
I think the sand stone shots are from Puerto Gato: 25.303967° -110.948100°.
The arches look like Isla San Jose: 25.096897° -110.710349°
The big cave looks like Punta Pulpito which is just South of Concepcion: 26.517684° -111.446177°
[Edited on 9-21-2020 by JZ]
|
|
|
shari
Select Nomad
Posts: 13033
Registered: 3-10-2006
Location: bahia asuncion, baja sur
Member Is Offline
Mood: there is no reality except the one contained within us "Herman Hesse"
|
|
in January the only place you may see whales is in Laguna Ojo de Liebre just a few miles south of Guerrero Negro is the turnoff for the camping area.
AFter that if you want to come down to camp at CAmpo Sirena in Bahia Asuncion, its super safe and friendly...google it for photos etc. or see www.bahiaasuncion.com
Central Baja is very safe and has many beautiful places to camp...in the palms in San Ignacio is pretty and quiet except for the dang bull
frogs...hahaha.
It will be chilly on the gulf side that time of year and actually warmer on the Pacific side!
|
|
|
bajaric
Senior Nomad
Posts: 605
Registered: 2-2-2015
Member Is Offline
|
|
I would say if it is your first time in Baja, towing a trailer might not be such a good idea. Getting lost in Tijuana is rite of passage, almost fun,
in a way. Getting lost in Tijuana towing a trailer would be like a bad dream that you could not wake up from. Plus more things to go wrong; flat
tires, catching an edge on a narrow highway, clipping a semi....
If you just gotta tow that trailer, plan out a route very carefully, and stay in established paid camp grounds with some semblance of security.
Parking a nice shiny rig on the side of the highway by yourself overnight is just asking for trouble. In remote areas you can camp by yourself
without worrying too much, as a long as you get far away from population centers, on rough dirt roads that a gang of sketchy meth heads in a mini van
would be unable to traverse. Another reason to not bring a trailer.
As mentioned, whales can be seen only in certain seasons, and require that you go on a organized tour, unless you are on the shoreline close enough to
see them when the migration is taking place. There are a few such spots on the coastline north of Guerrero Negro, and elsewhere on the Pacific side.
|
|
|
del mar
Banned
Posts: 1057
Registered: 7-23-2016
Location: the cantina of course
Member Is Offline
Mood: lil' fuzzy
|
|
to drag the pop-up down for 3 or 4 nights sounds like kind of a hassle to me, but regardless have a great trip and try to camp around other folks
|
|
|
JZ
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9268
Registered: 10-3-2003
Member Is Offline
|
|
Cross at Mexicali and not Tijuana.
Mexicali is much easier to navigate than TJ, and the drive down MX 5 is faster and more enjoyable. It avoids all the stop and go travel in the little
towns on MX1.
3-4 days is way too short though.
|
|
|
AKgringo
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5819
Registered: 9-20-2014
Location: Anchorage, AK (no mas!)
Member Is Offline
Mood: Retireded
|
|
One and done?
Fifteen replies to a request for information, and the O.P. is still stuck at one post. Travelfar....are you still here?
If you are not living on the edge, you are taking up too much space!
"Could do better if he tried!" Report card comments from most of my grade school teachers. Sadly, still true!
|
|
|
David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64490
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
|
|
Much of Highway 1 south of San Quintín narrows to 19 ft. with no shoulder, on a raised levee
Photo by jrbaja
|
|
|
Don Pisto
Super Nomad
Posts: 1241
Registered: 8-1-2018
Location: El Pescador
Member Is Offline
Mood: weary like everyone else
|
|
Quote: Originally posted by AKgringo  | | Fifteen replies to a request for information, and the O.P. is still stuck at one post. Travelfar....are you still here? |
my god someone with a life outside of bajanomads!
there's only two things in life but I forget what they are........
John Hiatt
|
|
|
LancairDriver
Super Nomad
Posts: 1587
Registered: 2-22-2008
Location: On the Road
Member Is Offline
|
|
| Quote: Originally posted by AKgringo | | Fifteen replies to a request for information, and the O.P. is still stuck at one post. Travelfar....are you still here? |
Maybe just consolidating Information on posts before asking questions? Geez, don’t write him off yet, he only posted this yesterday.
|
|
|
travelfar
Newbie
Posts: 7
Registered: 9-20-2020
Member Is Offline
|
|
| Quote: Originally posted by AKgringo | | Fifteen replies to a request for information, and the O.P. is still stuck at one post. Travelfar....are you still here? |
Definitely. I am enjoying reading the posts. Thanks everyone for being so helpful. One thing I will have to do is get a map and figure out where all
the place names are.
I guess 3-4 days is a lot of hassle for such a short trip. I will think about staying longer or parking the trailer in So Cal and either finding a
motel or tenting.
|
|
|
| Pages:
1
2
3 |
![[*]](images/xmbforum/default_icon.gif){kind=icon}
