In Search of…. #6 Pole Line Road Washout

I wanted to see exactly where the bypass to the washout was that cut the route from the end of the Pole Line Road south toward San Felipe. So off we went via La Ventana.

La Ventana is more than just a store on the AAA map and Hwy. 5. It is just what its name is; a window west through the mountain range to the interior valley. The easy access to the road from Hwy. 5 is where the arroyo draining the “window” crosses the highway at N31deg 43.863min W115deg 03.880min Datum NAD27 Mexico. This is a few tenths south of the store. The road is in great shape because the mine just north of the Hwy. 5/Hwy. 3 intersection uses it for access to their water pipeline from their well in the middle of the valley to the mine.

The new graded road, jogs left just before a ditched airfield, while the old road continued west a few more tenths before jogging left. After hitting the west bound pipeline the road and pipeline follows the old road out to the middle of the valley. As the mountains are cleared, you cross the north/south race course and continue to the middle of the valley where the well is. At the well, the road turns left, south, to go up the hardly recognizable Arroyo Grande. Here, Arroyo Grande does not live up to its name; just a diffuse, sandy area of many little washes.

Knowing we wanted to stay near the right side of the wash, we followed a fainter track south, a little west, off the main tracks and were soon rewarded by having a two foot bank of the deepening arroyo on our right side. When we came to the crossroad and cairns on each side of the Arroyo Grande western bank go-up, I started breathing again and confidently stated “Yep, I knew it was here”. Never let them see you sweat. West Bank Go-Up at N31 37.543 W115 15.713.

After going up the west bank, the rough, seldom used road turned north against the side of the hill. A treat here is a wide spot with a cut-off pole from the Pole Line Road in it. This used to be a pit area for the Baja race.

Continuing a short distance around the end of the hill and you come abruptly to a vertical arroyo bank where the road was cut at an angle into its side. Whoa! This was the washout we were looking for, and it had no protection for anyone not knowing it was there. The 15 foot drop might not hurt, but the sudden stop sure would. We put large rocks across the road so people would be sure to turn north along the arroyo bank where someone had put cairns. Washout at N31 39.111 W115 18.051

In just 300 yards right, north, there was a nice go-down at N31 39.259 W115 17.986. After re-building it a little just in case we had to get back up it, over the falls we went, making a u-turn to drive back up the arroyo to rejoin the road at the bottom of the washout. Climbing out the far bank of the arroyo, in 300 yards we came to the bottom junction of the Pole Line Road where you make a decision at N31 39.060 W115 18.208. Our choice was either to go straight west into the mountains over the Pole Line Road backwards (No, no, not today), or turn right, north, to get to Hwy. 5 near Ejido Saldana. Smoothing down our pinfeathers, we headed north and were soon on Hwy. 5. We took the free road (Hwy. 2) over the Cantu Grade (you modern kids call it the Rumorosa Grade) to Tecate and crossed Monday with a terrible wait while the six cars in front of us were waved through.

Here is Jeep driver Dale as a traffic cop:

Going down!

Even Heeps can make it! Go Dale, GO!

Out of the wash

Thanks Neal, love your map.

This should be your WBAG point.

Barry A.
The only thing that might slow you down going from Arroyo Grande west and north is the bad hill that in the normal direction is the last hill coming out of the mountains and heading over the plains to Arroyo Grande. The approximately location on the Baja Almanac is 31deg 37min 115deg 20.5min

It serves as a watercourse and sometimes get two foot holes in it. Easily fixed with a little work. The first pic of the hill below is Marian driving her Jeep down it in 1989 and the second is Marian driving our old Tacoma w/Pop-top a few years ago when we showed the route to Ken Cooke. It was in pretty good shape then.

The washout is not in Canyon Jaquegel but in a completely different canyon, name unknown.

ROUT (Road Out) is concerned with an arroyo crossing a couple of miles past the washout where the road crosses a wide wash (Arroyo Jaquegel again). The road across the arroyo has been washed out and the far bank road was not visible, so I walked over to where I knew it was, GPSed it, and drove to it. Life was hard before GPS.

Here is Marian in 1989 in her Jeep.

Here is Marian on the same last hill a few years ago with Ken Cooke.

[Edited on 3-21-2007 by Neal Johns]

Neal/TW----------Ah ha---------that clears up things considerably-----thank you.

That "road" (????) in the pics is one tough road, it looks to me. A real challenge. My hat is off to Marian---------We will have to set up some kind of "contest" between Marian and Meredith when it comes to driving the roads too rough for me (us??) to attempt------------birds of a kind, it looks to me.

Great graphics!!!!

Tnaks again. Barry

Here's a ROAD!




Here's where it goes:



Here's where it ends:



Just beautiful!!! Just BAJA!!!!

Here's another nice road...if you look off to the right at the rock face angle you get an idea of the incline--and it was slippery...and it was at the top of a 1,000' mesa.

Pretty soon, no more Yucca trees!

God, I hope they don't find a use for boojums!!!