Baja Road Trip, Camping, & Cruising - In One Package

All in One Package?

Ahoy, you Baja-Bound Adventurers. Here’s a tested boating suggestion for you. We’ve done the following many times in Canada, all over the western USA, and most importantly…….Baja Sur.

I always enjoy sharing thoughts on things Baja-related, and I think this could be a good idea for anybody interested in driving down the peninsula with camping & boating fun in mind. Whether you’re a single, couple, or small family, this might be a good option for you to consider. Plus, you could save money on motels, charter boats, moorage fees, RV parks, etc, etc? All that and have an experience of a lifetime…something your children will remember forever. All that’s really needed is a love of boats and the water.


Here’s what I used for many years. You decide if you’d like it, too.

Meet my MacGregor 26', a trailerable sailboat, & best selling cruising sailboat …with the innovative water ballast system and optional large outboard. The 26's are designed as a power sailor with most of the emphasis on POWER. The draw of these boats for me is the huge cabin, trailer-ability and the fact that with a 50HP motor and a power speed of 22 knots, you can literally run away from weather. And…you can use it as a RV camper on the highway…or the beach. Try that in a regular sailboat.



Hah! I remember one trip trailering my Mac26 down to Baja from Up North when we often used the boat as our camper for the night. That certain night was in the parking lot of a Red Lion casino resort in Elko, Nevada, where we played some poker and got an okay from the management to park our ‘camper’ in the lot overnight. Sometime in the middle of the night, the night guard came around, climbed our swim ladder, and shined his flashlight around the cabin. Co-pilot gave out a hearty shriek, which got me jumping up. Gave us all a bit of a start, but managed a good laugh from it. I think we scared him as much as he did us!

Well, one time in a parking lot was enough for us after that and we stuck to boat-camping in the countryside as was our usual choice. Much quieter. Mmmm…like that flowered pasture in Wyoming and waking up to sheep grazing all around us…taking a shower with our sun-bag hung off the mast end…the rancher showing up just then….Co-pilot shrieking again….ah, those were some times!

This is/was a big company and MacGregor has been building sailboats for some 40 years and claims to have sold more sailboats than any other manufacturer. With a focus on trailerable pocket cruisers, MacGregor developed the first water ballast system for their 26-footer in the late 1980s. The invention was ingenuous: fill the ballast tank when you launch the boat to give it stability when heeled over under sail, then drain the ballast when you pull the boat back out on the launch ramp, making it much lighter for trailering with an ordinary car.

I first bought a new Mac 25’ in 1985 with the newly invented swing keel system, used it from Canada to Baja, and then traded it in on a re-designed 1991 Mac 26’ with the water ballast, which I find to be the best of all worlds for the trailer sailor. The Mac 26’ trailers with no ballast so you can pull it with a smaller tow even through the mountains and hilly regions of Baja.

I have always loved the idea of camping on the water, or on some sandy beach islands, and this cabin is spacious for that reason. MacGregor’s pop-top really got me. I’m over 6 feet tall and don’t much like crouching all the time. Safety features such as enough foam flotation (making it unsinkable) and the ability to self-right helped seal the deal.

Here’s some more info that makes this boat so unique, especially for a road trip to Baja. The keel disappears into the hull so launching and retrieving is easy. You don't have to back so far down the ramp like you do with a fixed keel. I've seen a number of cars stuck in ramp slime because of that. I've also seen many trailer wheels go off the end of the ramp because the boat needs 3 feet of water to float off the trailer. Also, a disappearing keel makes beaching the boat possible. Pull ashore on your favorite sandy beach whether it’s on the mainland or on your own private island. I’ve done this dozens of times in Conception Bay and gunkholing down the Cortez. The look on your Co-pilot’s and kid’s faces when you pull up on your own deserted island is priceless. Paradise found!

The water ballast keeps the boat stable. I've sailed mine in winds over 30 kts and have never been knocked down. If it takes too much wind, it rounds head to wind, even if you fight it like I am doing in the photo below. I've crossed a couple of the Great Lakes, trailered it to huge lakes in Far North Canada… and sailed the SOC coast of Baja with no problems. I sailed it frequently within the Bay of Conception, out and across Mulege Bay to Punta Chivato, and circled the islands of San Marcos and Tortuga.

POINTING HARD TO WEATHER IN MY OLD 25' (with swing keel system)



Note: In the summer of 1986 I actually won a race on our lake in Minnesota skippering this MacGregor 25’ with the swing keel. Of course it may have helped that I was the only boat in my class…..Hey, I managed to sail across the finish line, right?

CALMER BAY SAILING..I love those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer…and sailing.



FULL SAILS! A solid sailing boat, built tough enough….just don’t try for Hawaai.



I’ve taken the grandkids sailing with me (I'm harnessed, they in life jackets) since they were 3 years old. They tell me now that those were the best memories of their childhood. We swam off the boat, cooked, island camped….we slept in the V berth, they in the aft berth.

Now I would be remiss if I didn’t state that the MacGregor is not an offshore bluewater cruiser by any stretch and being the owner of a 26M I would not recommend it. On the other hand it is a very affordable everyman's boat that performs very adequately in coastal waters like the SOC and inland lakes, which is its intended use. It is a very versatile, production, low-priced boat that appeals to anyone who wishes to get in some weekend sailing and perhaps week long adventures. Being trailerable makes it even more versatile and affordable. No mooring fees. It is good value for the price and most owners are very satisfied with them. They are extremely voluminous, sail fairly well and with a 50hp outboard they will get you through most tidal currents and passes without having to wait for slack tide. There are thousands of them out there and they are very popular, an that many owners cannot all be wrong. They are ideal all of Baja on the Cortez side, plus experienced sailors can use them on the Pacific also. I will remind you that they serve their intended use well but they are not intended for blue water cruising. The view from my c-ckpit is the same as the view from the largest yacht. The MacGregor is a great first boat to learn on and go for short cruises of several days to a week in protected coastal waters.

In short, I don't believe there is a better family sailboat for the money. Extremely useful for any boating & camping adventure, whether to Baja or ? All you need is water.



One of my most memorable camping/fishing trips was to a scenic lake in Canada was with my Mac26…where we fished off the stern for a delicious walleye dinner, filleted them on these rocks, after which we then cooked and ate comfortably at our dinette aboard, made Smores desserts at our shoreside campfire, and then went to bed cozily in the boat’s berth listening to the loons & wolves….(or was that the kids?)

I’ve also got some great VHS videos of us sailing Conception Bay and the Sea of Cortez, but am no good at recording them onto DVD’s to post here…maybe after some help. Note: I managed to miss ramming Johnny Tequila’s trimaran ahead of us in this photo.



We missed him by at least this far!





If you’re interested in exploring the possibility….

Because so many MacGregor 25s have been sold over the years, they’re easily found in the classifieds and on the Internet. They’re not confined to a region or two, either, but can be found from eastern Canada to the American Southwest. Moderately priced when new, used versions generally fetch around $5,000 (less for some older boats and those needing work) to around $10,000 for later or upgraded models. The last new ones were about $22,000, which is still a bargain.


Here’s some HOT NEWS just learned this year: After 58 years of production, and 38,000 sailboats, the MacGregors are retiring. Production of the MacGregor 26 has been discontinued. But…thier daughter and son-in-law, Laura and Paul Sharp, have opened a new boat building business in Stuart, Florida, and are manufacturing a boat similar to the MacGregor 26, so you can still buy new if desired.


THE MAC 25’ MADE THE HALL OF SAILING FAME



Designed in 1973 by small-boat maven Roger MacGregor, the 25-footer has proven to be a successful design. His innovations included the retracting keel, pop-up rudder, that pop-up cabin top and an easy mast-stepping system, all of which enhanced its trailer-cruiser mission. The MacGregor 25 was in production for 14 years, with 7,000 boats of that model sold. It was inducted into the American Sailboat Hall of Fame in 2000 for “fostering new enjoyment and growth in the sport of sailing through excellent design.” I’m glad I bought one of those now-famous 25’s back in the day, but am totally satisfied with the later 26M using the water ballast.



Well, there you have it…..something to mull over. I can only add that I’ve had priceless good times over the years with this boat.



And finally, I’d like to share the most important thing I learned from my time spent sailing……

….."Never approach a dock faster than you are willing to hit it."

Macgregor Sailboat

Thanks Jake, and you know as well as I that one can never have too many boats. The Mac 25 or 26 is a great way to explore Bahia Conception. And for an outboard on a M25, you really don't need anything more than a 9-15hp kicker, unless you're pulling a tube or wakeboard. M26's are built for the larger outboard...usually a 50hp for speeds exceeding 22mph.

Take a look at some islands you can pull that camping sailboat up onto a sandy beach. Instant dry land camper. The second week of June will be warm to hot air temps and the water close to shore will be excellent for swimming & snorkeling. Have fun, be safe, and make a report with lots of photos!

Here's a couple of favorite picnic and camping islands.

This is a good one in mid-bay. Although it's best to check for bugs before setting up a night camp. Any bird islands with the telltale white droppings will attract the pesky buggers. Great for day picnics, though.







And this one is one called Sta. Barbara Cove....great clamming here. Use your snorkeling gear and have a ball.



But head out and pick your own...there's lots of island, sandy bays, and other nearby places to explore.

By the way, there'll be plenty of boats to look at tomorrow at the Newport Boat Show.


[Edited on 4-3-2014 by Pompano]