Puertecitos...a re vist and again 2011

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A long time ago…11 years or so …….I read stuff about a magical Baja port…. Puertecitos. Moon books, The Sea of Cortez, and other readings. It is this town that got me to pack, and head to Baja. Once arriving at this “paradise with blue skies” camp as read about…anticipated …dreamed about… we drove up to it. What a junk yard! Looked like a hurricane hit the joint. I once wrote (as yankeeirshman) here at BN…that “Puertecitos is where the U.F.O.’s dump all their unwanted’s ”. I hated this ravaged replica of a junk yard town.

Back for another visit years later.
Driving into the town…..it is noticeable cleaned up…. though still has some junk..nothing to sweat your eyes. The new highway does not go thru this town …though it is clearly marked at the exit of the highway…..only a mile down the simi paved road. There is a small market there, minimum goods offered. Milk, breads, few canned goods. Water and ice too. This is a place that has a pay phone inside too. A rarity .Ask the clerk to dial you out..and then u pay her. Connection sucks BTW…but it works. Taco stand….never opened. Gas station…lights on! See more about this below.

Entering the camp. Stop at the gate. A young woman with her shy daughter will greet you. The Orrosco daughter lives to the right, in an oblong house. She is very cool…speaks good English. Don’t listen to the stories (as I did) that she is on that broom stick, flying around in a hurricane snatching doggies!

I asked to drive in and take a lookie. Allowed. I drove in and all over the place. Came back and rented space #4. The spaces have power and lights. WoW! Overhead water tank that gets filled up within 15 minutes of your arrival. Clean and cozy.
The shower rooms. Bad mark. No showers. Booths…but no showers. So take a solar shower bag…and it works perfect. The restrooms…no locks on the doors. Please….I’m a shy kind of Viking! The restaurant. Was not opened, did not look open for a very long time. Bring food!

Fishing ramp is great. This is a real plus. Oh….the fishing off the ramp area is totally crazy! I was catching little fillets all day…be a great spot for the kids to fish. The ramp though…at low tide….is extremely slippery. Do not attempt to use at lowest tide….and don’t walk on it!

General upkeep of the camp was very good. No trash. No junk.
The natural hot springs are here. I have never read here that the soaking area has concrete paths leading to them. Be next to imposable for the older folks to get over there….but they sure can with the walkways! So….yes…pay the day fee to use the hot spring baths. No reason to moan about the entrance fee. Plenty of parking there too…no long hikes. Oh yes…see that picture below? Here’s a secret place to access you very own spring bath. As one drives in…look for the old power house on the cliff side. It is near an overlooked that is lined with white pillars. See them steps going down? All the way to the open pool that is seen near the water’s edge……enjoy! Yes…secrets can still exist in Baja..no matter how many times u been there!

Yes….I have retracted all my harsh knocks against this town. I plan to make this place a stopping point. Fees at the gates: $20.00 per 24 hour. It covers the campsite, boat ramp fee, and the springs. Not bad at all. I am sure for a week..it be discounted better.




Puertecitos owned and operated by the late Rafael Orrosco . The kids have taken over since his death, the daughter being head huncho. She went to Hollywood, California at age 19. Went to Los Angeles City College. Got married to a lawyer. Time passed…got married to an Engineer. Time passed. Now…single, smart as a whip, respectful to others…I liked her! Not the wart faced old hag I imagined her to be.

They have done major changes.
The land the owned for generations down north of Gonzada Bay was sold off 1 ½ years ago.

Several of their shrimp licenses has been surrendered to the Govt for exchange of brand new sports fishing vessels. And wow factor are these boats! Sport fishing trips are planned for next year.

It seems Rafael was happy to let the American population of the town collectively make whatever improvements they wanted to make. But now his children have taken a different tack. There have been several lease increases and part of the town has been sectioned off and a kind of restriction policy has been declared by the daughter who now manages the property.

A fence has been built around the American homes and a gate is closed and locked at 10PM every night.
As Explained…..the fence was put up due to heavy theft in the camp. There are security lights at night now with a security patrol. Gates are locked to secure the camp at night but one can yell load enough to get the attention if needed! The lights are a distraction of the camping experience though. Rents were increased due to the “ridicules low rent”.

Any new home sold in the camp must be reviewed by her architect for “home appearance upgrade”. And that is working to what I saw…nice upgrading of the junkers in the camp.

The gas station is under way of operating on a reliable schedule. Getting certified and cleaned up for business 6-7 days a week. It will be closed 2 to 4 daily and maybe on Tuesdays…close completely.

There is still however….lots of work to be done. There are lots of tenant issues. Overall..I talked to 5 folks there…most were happy with the current standing of the camp.












[Edited on 4-8-2011 by mcfez]

Thank you Mcfev, a very nice report, We quit stopping there years ago. We'll change that.

Quote:

Originally posted by Mike99km Thank you Mcfev, a very nice report, We quit stopping there years ago. We'll change that.

Careful mcfez... the fishing 'dictators' may jump on you for sharing a 'secret' spot with a surfer!!

Quote:

Originally posted by David K Careful mcfez... the fishing 'dictators' may jump on you for sharing a 'secret' spot with a surfer!!

Will DavidK......Come on.....it is his very own secret surfing spot. let's not advertise that.

[Edited on 11-4-2010 by mcfez]

Jump ahead in time....

Well...I went back to this camp last week for a overnight stay. Clara was not there.

The bathrooms were a disgrace. Still no showers. Men's side had only one toilet usable....the others either had no secondary lid...or just plain busted. No TP.

It was a bummer dragging my ass on the grass afterward using the john.

Will someone please tell Clara to get the restrooms fixed!

Much less cats this time. I counted 3. Sparky dog counted 2 & 1/2 last time the camp was creeping me out with the vast numbers of cats.

The pier is being worked on...extending it?

The concrete walks to the hot springs has been redone nicely.

Oh...and the old lady that runs the tiny market in "town"......still wont smile. Old Bat.

Sparky loved the hot bath too

Camera shy weren't you and hubby there?! We got there a bit too late...had only a few minutes before the waters got too hot.

Cold up there in Shasta?