BajaNomad - Sierra de San Francisco..day trip

Sierra de San Francisco..day trip

shari - 2-27-2013 at 09:36 AM

I have wanted to visit La Sierra for many many years and finally got around to doing it earlier this week when we had a 5 hour wait in Vizcaino for some test results. My only regret is not bringing my camera along so these photos are from my phone...dang...but you will get the idea.

The turnoff is about 15 minutes south of Vizcaino with a superb new paved highway winding up through the mountain range almost all the way to the ranches. The views of the valley, mountain cactus and deep canyons are spectacular…you can see all the way to San Ignacio lagoon! It was so windy up there all the road signs had blown down.

The paved road however does end a few miles short of the village and becomes one of those baja “challenges” not for the faint of heart. You need a high clearance vehicle with good tires to make it the last half hour to the top as the goat path is very rocky, narrow and rough.

There are a few small ranches you pass before you come to where there are “cuartos” or rustic rooms for rent and a beautiful dining room for visitors with photographic displays of the cave paintings and handicrafts for sale made by the ranchers.

A mile up the “road” which I called a burro path, is the main village where you register to see the cave paintings and arrange trips down into the canyon or the shorter tour to see the cave close by called El Raton.

Most of the families are Arce’s and relatives of my husband so it was enjoyable to meet them and see how they live…which is like something out of a wild west novel. Many of them are guides to take mule pack trips to see the famous cave paintings, and others survive by raising goats and making cheese. We bought 2 kg for 100 pesos from this smiley Arce! That is Gary's truck in the background who organizes tours from their B&B Ignacio Springs...we ran into him taking 3 french ladies for a trip to the canyon.

One family are leather workers and make to order shoes, boots, polinas (leather leg protectors) for riding, key chains, lariats etc. They live perched at the edge of the canyon as their families have lived for generations, with the main transportation being burros & mules which I understood much better after hobbling over the bad road…certainly more suited to beasts than trucks.

They are very gracious, humble folk with big smiles…although some of the old timers still avoid the camera lens as if it would steal their soul if they looked into it.

We visited the families and found out how to book a trip to see the cave art. Of course the easiest way is to arrange a trip through an outfitter who organizes everything for you like food and gear, but you can do it yourself by calling in advance to let them know you are coming so they have the beasts ready for you when you arrive. You must bring food & water for yourself and your guide for the trip. Here is Ramon Arce Mata getting ready for a trip showing me the map at Rancho Guadalupe

The most popular trip is to arrive at the ranch in the morning, get the gear packed onto the burros, mount the mule they choose just for you and ride off on a 2 night adventure. That first day, you ride a couple of hours then stop for lunch at a ranch and rest up a bit before you ride on to the place you will camp for the night. The trail down into the canyon is on the left of this photo.

.

The next day you will visit several caves and see some of the most magnificent cave paintings in the world and return to camp for a dinner and campfire like in the days of old. Then after a hearty breakfast, you begin your ride back, have lunch and a rest before heading up the canyon and back to the ranch. The guides can take 3 people each and cost 200 pesos a day and pack burros and mules are 150 pesos each a day. Here are some of the noble beasts that make this trip possible.

If you aren’t up for riding a mule for 2 days you can visit the cave close to the ranch to see what cave paintings look like. It is an incredible place to visit even if you don’t descend into the canyon.

The number for arranging trips is 615-156-4782

here is a photo just for David K..viva toyotas

[Edited on 2-27-2013 by shari]

TMW - 2-27-2013 at 10:05 AM

Except for the first pix which looks a little fuzzy the rest were great. Excellent report thanks.

elgatoloco - 2-27-2013 at 10:35 AM

Thanks for the report and photos are great. Have always wanted to drive up that road since first time I saw it. Wish I had done it before paved, but happy for the folks getting an easier ride up. Question about the El Raton cave, if one was to head up for a last minute day trip one could see said cave without a lot of pre-planning? Yes? No? Maybe?

:dudette:

David K - 2-27-2013 at 10:45 AM

Thank you Shari... great photos and details that help those of us who have not yet been up there to see what is the set up. (Nice Toyota photo with Baja Nomad and 'got baja?' stickers, too)

The map looks like right out of Harry Crosby's book, and that helps visualize the area of the closest caves. As noted on the map Cueva Pintada was originally 'Gardner Cave' named (by Mexico's national archaeologist Dr. Carlos Margain) after Erle Stanley Gardner, who did so much to make the outside world know of this treasure... back when there was no auto road to San Francisco de la Sierra, just a two day mule ride on El Camino Real, or arrive by helicopter!

Here is Dr. Margain's map from the early 1960's with his names for the caves:

Erle's book on that expedition:

The 2000-ish movie 'Bajo California: The Limit of Time' was an excellent Baja theme film on a man's quest to return to the home country of his late grandmother: San Francisco de la Sierra, from his California home, by truck and by foot.

Once again, thank you Shari!

Baja Bucko - 2-27-2013 at 11:47 AM

El Gato Loco-

You will have to get a guide to see Raton....stop at the hotelito and talk with Chico-he can arrange things. Also at the hotel there is wifi for anyone needing a taste of the outside world. Raton is rather disappointing as the caves go and really does not prepare you for what is hidden in the numerous canyons of SSF. That last piece going in to SF is a real b-tch....even worse if the driver has rolled a truck down the side of a mountain in Baja once already(

).

The hotel can be very cold so bring a warm sleeping bag-it is a good place to R &R after spending days or weeks muleback in the range. Sometimes there is even hot water! Chico's wife can cook a meal sometimes for you or you can pay to use the kitchen.

You are at altitude so remember warm clothes. I always have my down vest. Bring color books and crayons for the kids, maybe hand lotion or shampoos and work gloves for the grown-ups. Candy is NOT a good thing to offer....diabetes is rampant and the kids' teeth get enough of the sweets. The drive up is incredible-stop and look down over to the eastish at Cueva Obscura-a mysterious black hole that is a wonderful painted cave site--but that takes mules and a few days. From way up there you see Laguna San Ignacio and the town of Vizcaino and get cell phone service too (Mexican ph).

elgatoloco - 2-27-2013 at 12:13 PM

Baja Bucko - Appreciate the info. Have always enjoyed your stories about your mule adventures, you are an inspiration! We do have a multi-day mule trip on our bucket list but we are heading down in next couple of weeks for a look at the whales in SI lagoon and I am thinking a quick drive up the mountain for some views and El Raton may be a nice diversion on way back north. We will definitely take all your suggestions to heart, we stopped giving out candy long time ago for very same reasons you mentioned.

Thanks again! :dudette:

Whale-ista - 2-27-2013 at 01:08 PM

thanks for the Information- I have been wanting to visit baja's caves for years. and where to I get some of those Nomad stickers for my truck?

(those roads/trails are not for the faint of heart, but not sure I'm up for 2 days on mules... )

bajacalifornian - 2-27-2013 at 01:20 PM

Thanks for sharing Shar . . . like being there, I enjoyed your trip. Thank you for the time.

bacquito - 2-27-2013 at 02:49 PM

Thanks, so great

ecomujeres - 2-27-2013 at 08:24 PM

The road before it was paved was definitely not for the faint of heart. My partner had to peel my hands off the steering wheel once we arrived at the Hostal/Albergue! We were driving a tank of a truck, 3/4 ton, wide as the road in some parts it seemed, and with a tendency to lose traction at the sight of a rock or patch of sand.

The most fun part was when we met another truck coming the other way and he wouldn't stop at the place we could have passed each other, so I ended up having to back up about a qtr. of a mile to a wide spot along a very narrow stretch with drop off on each side.

I was so happy to return this past Fall and find out that there was only a few miles left unpaved and that the Rancho was already in sight when we hit the dirt. Of course, it took us about 4 hours because there were two of us botanists in the car this time and my ever-patient partner/driver/dogs body to drive us, so we got her to stop at every new outcrop of green on the way up so we could examine the plants, identify and photograph them.

And it doesn't seem to matter what time of the year it is up there. It's bloody cold! We stayed over night twice (late Feb. and early May) and I've never been so cold, even when I went totally prepared the second time. Our day trip was actually quite lovely in October, though the early morning on the way up was cool and foggy.

But it's not to be missed, however you might spend the time. Chico and Yadira are great hosts.

One other thing of import to add for would-be travelers. Don't expect to be fed while there. Yadira will cook for you, but they don't supply the food. So bring in whatever you want to eat. You can cook in the kitchen or hire Yadira to prepare your meals.

Bajaboy - 2-27-2013 at 08:37 PM

Any idea how many miles each way are covered in the 3 day trip?

ElCap - 2-27-2013 at 09:25 PM

I have done two 3-day trips with Ramon Arce (pictured above), and he was fantastic. Not only is he a great guide, he loves to sing and has a fantastic & booming voice, which you wouldn't know from his quiet demeanor. And he even plays air-palmfrond (think air guitar) if you are lucky. I'll always remember one time when his song echoed back across the canyon - sent chills down my spine. You don't know Baja until you have spent time in those mountains.

Islandbuilder - 2-27-2013 at 09:50 PM

A great report Shari, thank you very much!
It's on the growing list of adventures that must be taken.

Skipjack Joe - 2-27-2013 at 09:57 PM

The guides can take 3 people each and cost 200 pesos a day and pack burros and mules are 150 pesos each a day. Here are some of the noble beasts that make this trip possible.

There rates are very reasonable. Sounds like it might be a cool escape in the summer months.

Hopefully they give you all the time and space that you need and don't feel the need to 'guide' you at every turn.

Baja Bucko - 2-27-2013 at 10:56 PM

These guides are all on a roll and they work when their name comes up. If you have already used a guide, you can request him/her as your head guide on another trip. Don't forget to tip the cowboys who work for you. Bring tortillas and beans just in case what you do have isn't enough. AND always remember, these guys keep YOU safe in their country-they know their mules, the trails, and any hazards.

Being in INAH country you can not just wander off. If you are approved to see caves A and B but then find out there are 4 more caves off the trail aways, you can not just change your plans so put careful thought in to what sites you want to see. Carry a water filter and be prepared for any type of weather. Treat the vaqueros well as they work very hard for little pay and infrequent job opportunities. Going into this range is travel back in time. I call the Sierra San Franciscos my church.....and that's why I keep going back again and again....

In the early 1960's

David K - 2-27-2013 at 11:43 PM

Some of the Photos from the Choral Pepper collection... now at http://choralpepper.com

The first 'outsiders' to visit San Francisco de la Sierra, in anyone's memory there, arrived by helicopter...

Choral Pepper (wearing hat) stands with the young female
inhabitants of this tiny village. Never before have these folks seen outsiders. A three day mule ride was (then) needed to reach San Ignacio from San Francisco de la Sierra.
An auto road was constructed 20 years after Choral visited by helicopter.

San Francisco de la Sierra

San Francisco is much higher and cooler than the surrounding deserts.

When she asked about these walls, Choral Pepper was told they are what remains of the first site of Mision Dolores del Norte. Until then, its location was unknown to outsiders. The mission was moved and renamed Santa Gertrudis.

[The Cochimí neophytes who lived north of San Ignacio were assigned to 'Dolores del Norte', a mission that existed on paper for many years before a site was found by Padre Consag (that would be renamed Santa Gertrudis when funds were donated). The walls at San Francisco may have been from mission times, but the lack of water for agriculture there precluded it from being a mission, it would seem. The locals at the time of Gardner and Pepper's visit truly believed the old walls were the ruins of Dolores, however. Title to the land around San Francisco was obtained by Buenaventure Arce between 1839 and 1854].

San Pablo Canyon begins at San Francisco de la Sierra.
It contains the giant rock art sites made famous by Gardner.

watizname - 2-28-2013 at 09:47 AM

A very good thread. Nice reporting Shari. :coolup:

tripledigitken - 2-28-2013 at 09:56 AM

Shari,

Thanks for posting such great information. Another bucket list item.

Ken

mtgoat666 - 2-28-2013 at 10:19 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by David K
Some of the Photos from the Choral Pepper collection... now at http://choralpepper.com

DK: thanks for link to pics. I found the sailboat pic interesting, could not tell if it was cat boat or gaff rig. do you have pics of the early sail rigs used by baja fishermen? i'm wondering what was the locally favored sail rig in baja in pre-motorized-panga days

shari - 2-28-2013 at 10:39 AM

i think it is a Gunther rig...but WTF is that thing swimming in the water???

mtgoat666 - 2-28-2013 at 10:58 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by shari
i think it is a Gunther rig...but WTF is that thing swimming in the water???

isnt gunter same as gaff?

pic caption said pilot whale

David K - 2-28-2013 at 05:35 PM

It was one of a hundred black and white (and a few color) photos taken by Choral Pepper while she was exploring Baja, often on an Erle Stanley Gardner sponsored expedition. I have a cardboard box full of them... and posted several on the web site I made for sharing her photos. Pepper was the editor/ publisher of Desert Magazine during most of the 1960's.

All of the Desert Magazines are online for viewing, for free... see the link at http://dezertmagazine.com ('Dezert' is a new magazine to fill in where the original Desert left off, many years ago). The publisher is a Baja Nomad, but not here much... I helped him with a couple of Baja articles when he got it started. Goat, that web site has been online for maybe 10 years, linked on my site... Glad you liked it... I should get some more photos added!

EDIT: The Dezert site is being upgraded... so enjoy their Facebook page in the meantime: https://www.facebook.com/DezertMagazine

[Edited on 3-1-2013 by David K]

mulegemichael - 2-28-2013 at 06:17 PM

shari!!!!!.....we didn't talk about this this past couple of days!!!????...i wanna go there!!

BAJACAT - 2-28-2013 at 09:40 PM

we run out of water on our trip, and we end up filling up the bottles on the water source below LA PINTADA CAVE, nobody die,but yes take a water filter it's a most. We saw all the caves on Ramon's paper one day to go in one day to see the caves , last day to return to Rancho Guadalupe...
IT's crazy that a simple turn on the road will take you to another world,take alot food this guys have a big appetite,you will too if you have to be chassing the mules,and not only that watching over you too, this guys do alot work to make sure you have a good experince,my guide(QUITO),Still calls me from his cell phone,when ever he comes down to San Francisco de la Sierra where he can get cell signal..

Baja Bucko - 2-28-2013 at 10:13 PM

The water coming out of the pipe in the rock beneath Pintada is the finest water on the planet...no need to filter. BUT if you get the water from the arroyo FILTER because a lot of people go into that canyon and there are a lot of goats coming down from R. Sta Teresa.

Baja Bucko - 2-28-2013 at 10:14 PM

Hay BajaCat-when will I run into you up there again? I'm going in next week .....heading to the NE remotest corner for several days...only abt 8 this trip.

David K - 3-1-2013 at 08:54 AM

Teddi... I always enjoy seeing photos of the mission visita of San Pablo. So similar to Mission Santa María... When have you last seen it, do you have any photos?

Here is a picture from 2010 (by XRPhil):

This is the ruin that has been confused as being Mission Dolores del Norte by authors of the last century and INAH!

Baja Bucko - 3-1-2013 at 09:25 AM

Hi DK-I was there last year and then a couple of years ago before w Eve. I had plans to spend an afternoon with a machete trying to hack away at the heavily-overgrown cholla that will soon cause the walls' demise but did not get much done---nasty nasty stuff. It will be but a memory in a few years if the cholla is allowed to eat away at the adobe.

I will probably ride down to it again next year sometime.

Also someone had somehow cut part of the cave art in one placeout and hauled it away....rotten souls!

David K - 3-1-2013 at 09:54 AM

Shows you that putting something in a permit only zone and not making it more visible isn't helping!

The more people that know about and can visit the mission sites, the more they will be valued, and preserved. If nobody sees it or goes there, than it is no big deal to dig a hole in it as it means nothing to anyone, so it would seem!
Thank you Teddi... and if you need help with photo posting, let me know.

Baja Bucko - 3-1-2013 at 10:02 AM

Ooohhhhh ...and the places INAH will NOT allow people to go even heavily supervised with a custodio-that is another story. Its all about politics. There is one place that no outsider (ie tourist or researcher) is allowed to ride in to and it has some of the oldest rock art in the region-nothing like Pintada but just older and more archaic...very very special, in my eyes.

David K - 3-1-2013 at 10:16 AM

Yet INAH says they can do nothing to protect other historic sites from farmers, like San Juan de Dios or the the three Santo Tomas ruins (all three are unprotected).

Not allowing people to see something made by people, that brings money to the locals, is just plain sad.

Baja Bucko - 3-1-2013 at 10:42 AM

The most DANGEROUS thing for these rock art sites is EASE of getting into them.....if there is a road within a mile or two making it accessible.

People do not realize just HOW IMPORTANT it is having these vaqueros in the mountains!!!!! These guys live there and notice every car that goes in and out of an area. If it is very remote and the family is not around ANYONE can slip in and take things from the hills.

INAH does not treasure the mountain folks as it should-it is these people who really GUARD and protect the ranges and if they can not survive in the hills, they have to move to a town, leaving unprotected sites. One friend told me that when a road was built in to a certain area years ago, soon after a truck came in and left with big bags of things dug from the caves. At that time INAH had not done anything to educate and protect and these folks did not understand the importance of these sites.

NOW they do....a few years back I gave a presentation to the kids at the little Santa Marta boarding school about their history and genealogy and I stressed to them how important their families are in the protection and guarding of some of the most incredible treasures on Earth....their mountain range!

INAH doesn't pay their custodios much and these guys do not have health insurance or any kind of retirement/pensions. They scrape by raising their families on their meager ranchos, raising goats and selling cheese. NO rain-no cheese, animals die, no income-INAH's pay doesn't do much. The tourists that come in to the San Franciscos see a tiny part of the vaqueros' lives and it is a very tough one. Corazon Vaquero romanticized it in many ways but understand, it is very difficult.

IF these cowboys can not support their families then they have to move away to town which they don't want to do-they don't want those drug influences......

So I encourage people to GO VISIT THE sites-support these tiny communities with guiding jobs.

I feel that it is an HONOR to share the trail with the LAST of the Californios-no, it is a privilege to be allowed to spend time with them. They keep me safe (have saved my life a few times.....).

IF the cowboys can not stay in the mountains, the archeological sites will be TRASHED..............it has happened before and will happen again. If it takes 4 days' riding to get there, chances are it will have a vigilant custodio or local guy keeping an eye on things.

JMO.....

Bajagypsy - 3-1-2013 at 11:24 AM

This is something that I think the gypsy may do on our next trip down!

fishbuck - 3-1-2013 at 11:29 AM

Very cool report! Wish I was there! Thanks Shari!

Paulina - 3-1-2013 at 07:57 PM

I SO want to do this. Our main issue is our dogs.

Dern and I both want a pair of handmade shoes. I wonder how long it takes to make them?

I am going to do this trip one day. I would love nothing better than to spend a week up there.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to this thread.

P>*)))>{

In the 1960's...

David K - 3-1-2013 at 08:02 PM

Choral Pepper took these photos when she and others with the Erle Stanley Gardner expedition visited the known caves and also discovered others, as could only be seen by helicopter.
(I will show more photos from the Pepper Collection, I just scanned... in the Baja Photography forum, on Nomad)

BAJACAT - 3-3-2013 at 09:32 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Baja Bucko
Hay BajaCat-when will I run into you up there again? I'm going in next week .....heading to the NE remotest corner for several days...only abt 8 this trip.

Lucky,you that is truly a amazing place,and I can say less about the people there, I left my truck in their ranch for 3 days with my rest of the food and drinks and tools,and nothing was missing when i came back.This year Im going to visit the La Purisima area,maybe next year I will return tu SF de la sierra,,to tour other canyons,but San Pablo canyon is just incredible,it was a pleasure metting you even for a brief time you are a legend there everybody knows you and also loves you,you are and asset to them...have fun in your trip wish I was there,really I wish I was there...

BajaBlanca - 3-4-2013 at 08:21 AM

wow...Les just went to CuevaRaton with his daughter last week. As it is so close to the village, one heads to the village first and then with guide, returns to the cave. No need to book this one in advance .... you drive to it and walk up some steps to see it.

In the book THE CAVE PAINTINGS OF BAJA CALIFORNIA, pg 58-59, Harry Crosby analysed the paintings and says some intersting things:

1. various artists, at different times, seem to have painted.

2, the painted area is 40 feet long and represents a small but choice collection

3. you can see deer, borrego, rabbits, humans and a mtn lion.

4. one of the monos is rare in that it has a largeblack oval where the face would be and this can only be found in 4 other painting sites.

Les and I went to the cave years ago and I remember that the location is just spectacular ... the drive is as amazing as the paintings themselves. Not for the faint of heart - the last part is very narrow and treacherous.

My sister went another time with a guide from San Ignacio and he showed her lots of rock art along the road heading up. Really amazing and beautiful - I myself have only seen the pics.

vandenberg - 3-4-2013 at 12:31 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by shari
i think it is a Gunther rig...but WTF is that thing swimming in the water???

Pilot whale :?:

David K - 3-4-2013 at 04:30 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by mtgoat666

Quote:

Originally posted by David K
Some of the Photos from the Choral Pepper collection... now at http://choralpepper.com

Those were the sail boats of the original Vagabundos del Mar.

David K - 3-4-2013 at 04:31 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by vandenberg

Quote:

Originally posted by shari
i think it is a Gunther rig...but WTF is that thing swimming in the water???

Pilot whale :?:

Wikipedia photo if you want to compare (Pilot whale was written on the photo by Choral Pepper):

Also on Wiki...

"Pilot whales are generally nomadic, but some populations stay year-round in places like Hawaii and parts of California."

[Edited on 3-4-2013 by David K]

David K - 3-4-2013 at 04:50 PM

Neat 5+ minute video of some young folks ride into the canyon from San Francisco de la Sierra... with 'Manuel' (Arce?).

shari - 3-4-2013 at 11:30 PM

the shoe maker takes orders so it's not something he can do while you wait...a simple pair are about 600 pesos...it's quite a process....so you can go and get measured and talk to him about what you want and then return or have someone bring you the shoes.

MexicoTed - 3-14-2013 at 12:31 AM

Wow Shari, that brings back some memories. I had the chance to visit the paintings down in the canyon in the late 90's. I'll have to try to find my photos and post them.

Truly a special place.

elgatoloco - 3-23-2013 at 11:03 AM

We made it up the road for a day trip. Already planning our return next spring for a ride into the canyons. We met some very friendly folks,bought some handmade souvenirs and dropped off some supplies at the school. Took a 'guided' tour of Cueva El Raton. Just a wonderful, memorable day. I always longed to head up that dirt road and can only imagine what it was like before pavement. We spent the same amount of time on the 29K asphalt portion as we did on the 9k dirt/rock/concrete final stretch into town. We stopped roadside on the way down for lunch and the views were as great as advertised.

David K - 3-23-2013 at 12:32 PM

Before that road was built in the 1980's, it was a three day mule ride to San Ignacio or a helicopter to get there!

Baja Bucko - 3-23-2013 at 01:35 PM

DK there are still families today who ride in and out of the Sierra via mule to San Ignacio tho most now ride to someplace a truck is parked and get a ride in. There is one old guy who rides in to San Ignacio w a pack animal once a month.

There is NO reason anyone should complain abt a 4hr mule ride when little Julian Arce, age 4 yrs,rides out alone on his own mule w Dad, Loreto, from San Gregorio to San Francisco, 4 hrs one way and then rides back the same day in the freakin' dark!!!

prema2 - 3-1-2018 at 04:20 PM

I have an itch to take the mules... thanks Shari, how long has it been? Great thread!

elgatoloco - 3-1-2018 at 09:18 PM

Quote: Originally posted by elgatoloco

We made it up the road for a day trip. Already planning our return next spring for a ride into the canyons. We met some very friendly folks,bought some handmade souvenirs and dropped off some supplies at the school. Took a 'guided' tour of Cueva El Raton. Just a wonderful, memorable day. I always longed to head up that dirt road and can only imagine what it was like before pavement. We spent the same amount of time on the 29K asphalt portion as we did on the 9k dirt/rock/concrete final stretch into town. We stopped roadside on the way down for lunch and the views were as great as advertised.

Ha ha! Back to the future! We never made it that following spring. Or the one after that. Or the one after............in a little over two & half weeks, if all goes as planned, I will be sleeping under the stars in the canyon. Finally. Can hardly wait. :saint:

Paulina - 3-3-2018 at 12:08 AM

Quote: Originally posted by elgatoloco

We are excited for you guys. We are planning for spring 2019. Is it too early for you to start planning for next spring?

P>*)))>{

Bajaboy - 3-3-2018 at 08:41 AM

This will be my second trip into the canyon. Hands down, one of the most magical places I've ever visited. Can't wait. We've done a number of day trips now to visit our friends in the area. Such wonderful and friendly people.

One option is to hire a guide to take you to the rim of the canyon from Santa Teresa. It's about 3-4 miles round trip and a beautiful hike. The guide will travel via mule.

advrider - 3-3-2018 at 08:45 AM

Wow, defiantly add that to the Baja travel list!

elgatoloco - 3-11-2018 at 06:41 PM

Quote: Originally posted by Paulina

Quote: Originally posted by elgatoloco

We are excited for you guys. We are planning for spring 2019. Is it too early for you to start planning for next spring?

P>*)))>{

Never too early! We are hoping to do whales and canyon in 2019. Barb is not going on this trip. She wants me to report back on how I think her back will hold up before she commits but fingers crossed. I wish we were leaving tomorrow. Ready to go!