Shell Island June 13-17 2013

Our group made annual trip to Shell Island June 13-17. We saw one jeep and two ATV’s in five days of beach camping. The weather was perfect 70-98 F, mostly perfect with cold cervezas. The water temp was around 80 F. The wind speed around 10 mph average with occasional wind guest to 20mph. The nights were cool enough for campfires and s’mores. All of our vehicles made through sand excursions with lowered air pressure (20 psi). Fishing with light tackle gear was great fun. As David K noted on his trip report the water temp was little cool for him. Well two weeks later the water felt like a bath water. Our kids were in the water often and for long periods at a time. Looking forward to next year’s trip! Here are some trip pictures.

I had intentions of adding captions to each pictures but it takes too much time for me.

SHELL ISLE.

Great photos of a great time and not one picture of a TOYOTA

Quote:

Originally posted by J.P. Great photos of a great time and not one picture of a TOYOTA

That's what I was gonna say. I'm sure it's coming.

Wife and I are planting seedlings for future Baja travelers.

I used own a Toyota truck and they are very capable 4WD. However for a 5-6 day beach camping trip like this, we are carrying quite a lot of supplies to be self sufficient. Two fully loaded 150 qt coolers each weighing at least 150 lbs ea, also takes couple of gorillas to unload them. Around 35 gal of water and large picnic table. This trip consists of packing 1/3 of my garage, someday I'll learn to pack lighter and smaller (no kids). One year I even brought the ATV, it did make driving in sand little difficult and it was just too much crap to bring. As you can see below it was ridiculous and never again! As David K points out it does take bit of bravery to drive on soft sand I agree. But if done correctly (air down tires) it is very doable for most 4WD's.



One feedback on air supply if any of you are thinking about using it. For the first time I tried to use a electric pump (HD one connects to battery), well I think it just takes too long for my taste. I am going to stick with CO2 bottle in the future and keep the electric one for backup. It took me at least 50 minutes to pump up my load range E tires to 55 psi. It takes around 15 min with CO2 bottle.

looks fun

The beach is still there and still is a barrier island. But, as mentioned so often by the 666 goat; the beach is dynamic... So what about the hardpan salt and mud flats between the island and the Baja desert?

Yes, actual physical observation over the past 50+ years... a salt flat that gets flooded during lunar high tides, but is otherwise dry... would be flooded more often or always if the sea level was rising, in our lifetime... wouldn't you think?

John W. Hilton ('Hardly Any Fences') describes it as it was in the late 1950's, on pages 61-65... and it is that way still in 2013.

Another Baja example more of you may know, and that is the old Baja main road, along Bahia Concepcion. In a couple places, like at El Coyote, the old road is covered by high tide a few inches, on rocks (not dynamic sand)... as it was in the 1960's when I first went over the old Baja road.

Here is the old road in use, in 2007... as it was in 1966:

Do you have one of those suction tubes I have seen used to get the shrimp?

Any luck catching fish like corbina or croaker? If not, go to either end of the island and try at the lagoon entrance on the incoming tide to the high tide. In the days before we camped on Shell Island, we fished at the south entrance point of the Bahia Santa Maria bay (before that camp existed)...


Mom with a double hook up of corbina, 1967.


Shrimp boat blown inland during the 1967 hurricane, in the back bay between Bahia Santa Maria and Shell Island. It was striped down to just the motor (Franklin) and transmission, over the many years they gave up trying to return it to the sea.

[Edited on 6-24-2013 by David K]

Great photos
When you have such happy campers, you dont need captions!