San Juanico (Cortez) daytrip

Paula and I went up north of Loreto to San Juanico for kayking this morning. Headed up the hwy, with the obligatory stop at the kilometer 25 military checkpoint. For those heading north they have been relatively thorough; I had to write my name on a clipboard while they checked the truck, including climbing inside the camper shell and checking under the hood. The car in front of us got the same inspection.

Having failed to find guns, drugs, endangered species or anti-Loreto Bay propaganda, they waived us on.

We left the highway at km marker 48. There are three different turnouts there, but they all join together to cross the fenceline. The road is in good shape. Now I've found that if you ask three different people "How's the road?" you'll get three different responses. We found this road "washboard rough" but well travelled. We were driving a 1991 Ford F-150 4x4 pickup, standard wheels and tires. We did not need 4 wheel drive or high clearance on this road, there were no steep hills (but that would come later) or sand traps, no surprises and no need for fancy driving.



There is a fork in the road after 7 miles from the highway, for now, we took the left fork. This took us to the end of the arroyo and it's estuary. We could hae explored the branch roads here but continued on to the main road that ended at the San Juanico fish camp. We launched our kayaks there.

From the fish camp, the shore sweeps in a curve to the north to Punta Pulpito; we paddled south around a point. About a mile, one leapard grouper and several triggerfish south, we stopped at a small cove with an excellent white sand beach:



There was a road to this beach...hmmmm....
Paula went for a swim, I wrestled with some fish-won some, lost some-then we headed back to the fish camp as the afternoon breeze began to make its appearance.





We loaded up the kayaks at the fish camp, pausing to help a woman and child catch some goofy fish that seemed sick or injured and wanted to beach itself. When it got close, they'd whack it with a plastic baseball bat, which only drove it out of reach. So I waded in and grabbed it for them. I wouldn't eat it, but they're the experts, I guess.

So we drove back the way we came, to the fork 7 mile in, and this time took the other fork. This road soon climbed steeply up the hill over the arroyo. 4 wheel drive seemed appropriate here. But the road, though steep in spots and rough, was maintained, probably because at the other end there is at least one very nice house. While the 4 wheel and low gear was helpful going up and down the grades, the road did not demand a high clearance vehicle or any fancy driving.

But before it reached the beach we were looking for, it came to the shoreline further south where a fork looped back up north to the beach we had visited. But this beach was nice too, although today exposed to the wind:



And, there is another fork before these beaches...I expect that it goes toward Mangeles. For another trip.

There are some large rocks close to the tall cliffs, just enough space to work the kayak through, and it is really cool back there. Great sounds, lots of crabs running close on the rocks, a slight feeing of danger... and it really is spectacular coastline, Soulpatch.