Not for Shell Island Haters

We did our annual Shell Island trip 6-12 to 6/18. Air temperature high of 95 and low of 69. Water temperature 78-80 degrees. It was very humid, made nights very damp and sticky. One day of moderate winds, lowered our canopies and used trucks as wind shield. Had a wonderful week of sun, sand, warm water, beers, margaritas, bloody mary and ate too much food. Looking forward to next years return.

We crossed Mexicali border around 9 am. Needed to get our tourist permits stamped. After crossing border we were not able to find any open parking spots. The immigration guys allowed us to double park right in front of their office (all three big trucks). They scanned and stamped all of our passports. All adults had to be present for this process but kids did not need to. Parents were able to sign kids permits for them. This process took about 30 minutes to complete. As usual (like every other year) military checkpoint north of San Felipe, never asked for tourist permits.

No one got stuck getting on to the Shell Island this year. My HEAVY RAM 2500 Diesel fully loaded with 7 day of camping stuff floated on soft sand just fine at 17 psi.









































Few video links






[Edited on 6-27-2015 by hayb]

[Edited on 6-30-2015 by hayb]

hayb

That's quite the camp, anyone else out there or did you have it all to yourselves, fish ?
Thanks for the pics n report

Quote: Originally posted by deanfootlong

nice report. thanks for posting the pics! We were there just a few weeks before you guys and had a dead whale carcass wash up on shore. It was interesting. Was it there when you guys were there by chance? Also, did you catch anything from shore that's worth mentioning?

Quote: Originally posted by David K

Very nice indeed! We hope to make it out there the 4th of July or later in July on our vacation. Did you access the beach next to the bridge (1984 road) or over by the fishing camp on the original road? Happy Times!

Quote: Originally posted by bajaguy

Great looking Yellow Lab......how old???....M or F??

Quote: Originally posted by BajaRat

That's quite the camp, anyone else out there or did you have it all to yourselves, fish ? Thanks for the pics n report

Quote: Originally posted by hayb

Quote: Originally posted by David K   Very nice indeed! We hope to make it out there the 4th of July or later in July on our vacation. Did you access the beach next to the bridge (1984 road) or over by the fishing camp on the original road? Happy Times! We did used the beach access by the bridge, it was bone dry. Last two days were 18 ft tides and getting off the Island was not an issue. By the way we registered 119 F at the border crossing at 3:30 pm. Thanks for all the info you provided for our trip.

Heres the whale.

Friend of mine is poking at its head with a shell.

Thanks for sharing! One of my favorite places

Quote: Originally posted by norte

looks like a pretty place. Anyone ever tell you guys its unlawful to drive on the beach. But then I guess most of Mexico (and its Gringo guests) ignores the law.

Do these guys look like Gringo’s?

With all due respect. You are adding nothing but negative energy to this post. Please find a better way to spend your time. Better yet, just in case you haven’t read the subject line “Not for Shell Island Haters”, find a different post. I am sure you follow and abide by all the laws in Mexico when you are in Baja. But we’ll never know.

Quote: Originally posted by hayb

With all due respect. You are adding nothing but negative energy to this post.

Quote: Originally posted by soulpatch

Quote: Originally posted by norte   Ignoring the law show no respect. Respect for the country you are in and its people. And then there are others, well just shows what happens when in-breeding occurs. Maybe. Ignoring the law is entirely cultural..... maybe they are doing it out of respect for the culture and just trying to fit in estilo Mexicano. Well, a sure way to get someone to listen to you is to put them down. Peace

Quote: Originally posted by soulpatch

So, I guess the moral of the story is, if you do drive on the beach, do it slow, don't be an ass, pick up yours and somebody else's trash and enjoy it while you can..... Peace

Quote: Originally posted by norte

I knew I could rely on you to recommend people break the law.

Quote: Originally posted by David K

It's an island, not a beach... lol. A joke, but not good enough for you? Mexican fishermen also drive it to launch boats and set nets, so it isn't just a gringo deal. Does that make any difference? Driving on the beach didn't kill that whale. Do you care? Would you see the whale or the beach if we didn't drive on sand to get there? Thank goodness people like hayb and deanfootlong continue to share so we all can see more of Baja, despite the potential harassment by the holy-than-thou Nomads. Speaking of laws, do you obey the 80 KPH speed limit on miles of endless deserted highway? Relax, live, share, peace, love, and fish tacos!

David,

Really???? :

"despite the potential harassment by the holy-than-thou Nomads."

I think pointing out laws is kinda like pointing out spelling errors...

You are sounding like a "hater"...

Maybe I've resurrected a can of worms, but really am/was just hoping for a tip on that turn-off Peace love and tacos - good plan.

Quote: Originally posted by WideAngleWandering

Quote: Originally posted by norte   I knew I could rely on you to recommend people break the law. I kinda feel like breaking the law this weekend. I've driven up and down that highway a few times but I've never noticed the turnoff. I've read it's at km 26? Is it marked in any way? My odometer is off on my truck so I can get close by the odo but not spot-on. Apologies for the thread resurrection.

Quote: Originally posted by David K

Ged, I was responding to Norte on behalf of those here who share. Sorry, you missed that.

Quote: Originally posted by hayb

Quote: Originally posted by norte   looks like a pretty place. Anyone ever tell you guys its unlawful to drive on the beach. But then I guess most of Mexico (and its Gringo guests) ignores the law. You are adding nothing but negative energy to this post. Please find a better way to spend your time. Better yet, just in case you haven’t read the subject line “Not for Shell Island Haters”, find a different post. I am sure you follow and abide by all the laws in Mexico when you are in Baja. But we’ll never know.

Thanks for sharing! One of my favorite places!

Quote: Originally posted by motoged

Quote: Originally posted by David K   Ged, I was responding to Norte on behalf of those here who share. Sorry, you missed that. Meow meow, David, Not sure what you mean by your snide comment...I share a lot on BN....jokes, a conscience, ride reports, thoughtful comments, and the occasional challenge to how some people think....

Aw, Ged........ it's now obvious most of your Baja experience is on your Moto..... you don't fish much. Suckers ain't that good of a catch. You should spend more time going for a quarry that's up to your true tastes. You're going to be confused with a 'troller', which is in its own right a good form of fishing, but look towards better a better tasting plate-full. Current catch is easy to bait, but REALLY hard to swallow.

Quote: Originally posted by BajaGringo

Maybe I'm late to the party but who hates Shell Island? (and why?) In fact, I'm not even sure exact;y where it is other than on the SOC, based on the photos. Out of curiosity I tried a search via google maps and came up empty. Anybody have a good map link?

Not sure if you are kidding?

"Shell Island" is my name for the barrier island sand beach and dunes between Percebú and Bahía Santa María the past 40 years. During the highest lunar tides, it is indeed surrounded by water and shown that way on maps dating back 30 years or more... so yes, it is an island! I first camped on it in 1978 after having walked across the lagoon tom it at low tide from Bahía Santa María for a couple years to collect shells.

An access road was installed from the new highway in 1985 at Km. 26, along with an elevated causeway across the mud flat and a concrete bridge to access the island/ beach even at high tide. That causeway has since eroded lower than the bridge, making it useless.



Pilot's Map showing the island, 1970s.



National Geographic map showing the island, 2008.



My first map showing an access road onto the island, 1978.

Modern Google Earth Maps:













The bridge at high tide (very much an island):



That is the former causeway across the mud flat and road out to Km. 26.




Oh, and the Moon Baja guidebooks recognize the name now, too... See Estero Percebú >>>

Quote: Originally posted by woody with a view

DK will be along soon. I don't get the hate thing either.

Quote: Originally posted by rts551

David is a little sensitive about Laguna Percebu. He claims to have discovered it, although it was a camping area for many well before he ever went there. As can be seen it the maps, it is a lagoon that was dramatically impacted by the hurricane Katerina in 1967.

Quote: Originally posted by David K

Quote: Originally posted by woody with a view   DK will be along soon. I don't get the hate thing either. I think he means those who hate that we call it an island, but not sure why that bothers anyone? Local gringos who began building vacation homes along the coast began calling it Shell Beach... often not driving any further north or south than where the road reaches the beach. The place is a serious shell collector paradise. Only if you drive to either end or try to drive on or off at highest tides do you realize this beach is indeed an island. I think my name is a more romantic one, describes it better, is unique (there already is a place in Baja known as Shell Beach, at Punta Chivato), and may predate the other gringo name by several years?

Quote: Originally posted by mtgoat666

Quote: Originally posted by David K   Quote: Originally posted by woody with a view   DK will be along soon. I don't get the hate thing either. I think he means those who hate that we call it an island, but not sure why that bothers anyone? Local gringos who began building vacation homes along the coast began calling it Shell Beach... often not driving any further north or south than where the road reaches the beach. The place is a serious shell collector paradise. Only if you drive to either end or try to drive on or off at highest tides do you realize this beach is indeed an island. I think my name is a more romantic one, describes it better, is unique (there already is a place in Baja known as Shell Beach, at Punta Chivato), and may predate the other gringo name by several years? Given your use of vacation snapshots from there to support your conclusion that sea level has not changed, "fantasy island" is an appropriate geographic name. A geographic name name is not official until DF decrees it so, what say INEGI?

I could give a ratzass either way, different strokes......but I like "dirt island"

Quote: Originally posted by David K

Quote: Originally posted by rts551   David is a little sensitive about Laguna Percebu. He claims to have discovered it, although it was a camping area for many well before he ever went there. As can be seen it the maps, it is a lagoon that was dramatically impacted by the hurricane Katerina in 1967. Not a bit sensitive. We also camped at Percebú (well before) when it was a commercial fishing camp before 'Laguna' was added to the name and it became a tourist camp. That was on a return trip from Gonzaga Bay in 1965. We were seeking Agua de Chale and got on the old southern Percebú road by mistake. "Shell Island" is not the lagoon... It is the barrier that creates that lagoon and the "back bay" behind Bahía Santa María (which had no official name before 1969 when Aniceto Madueña named that lagoon/ bay after his daughter upon homesteading the area). Yes, before 1967 it was easy to drive the beach to Percebú from Agua de Chale. After the hurricane, the back bay enlarged, the shrimp boat was washed in there during the hurricane and the south end of the island was cut off from the Santa María bay area.

Quote: Originally posted by Bob53

What kind of shells to you find there besides clam shells?

"Not a bit sensitive. We also camped at Percebú (well before) when it was a commercial fishing camp before 'Laguna' was added to the name and it became a tourist camp. That was on a return trip from Gonzaga Bay in 1965. We were seeking Agua de Chale and got on the old southern Percebú road by mistake."

very cool david that your father let you share the the driving and navigating task.....at 8 years old!

Quote: Originally posted by David K

Quote: Originally posted by Bob53   What kind of shells to you find there besides clam shells? Murex, olive, moon snail, etc.

Quote: Originally posted by David K

Quote: Originally posted by Bob53   What kind of shells to you find there besides clam shells? Murex, olive, moon snail, etc.

Quote: Originally posted by Bob53

Quote: Originally posted by David K   Quote: Originally posted by Bob53   What kind of shells to you find there besides clam shells? Murex, olive, moon snail, etc. No pictures?

I was at Timeout Café in Vista having lunch on my way to an irrigation job when I saw your question. I am not skilled to attach photos from my website to Nomad using a smartphone.

The beach, even if there were no shells would keep us coming back...









That it is an island is clear in this north facing photo... that is Percebú in the distance over on the Baja peninsula, across from the north end of the island.


Here are some Shell Island Shell Photos...































Low Tide! (can you see my truck for scale, above?)









Baja tough guy Ken Cooke even likes to pick up shells!




Campfire time is the best with Nomad amigos!






Percebú in the background as seen from the island.






Looking back towards the island as seen from the road heading to Hwy. 5 at Km. 26

Quote: Originally posted by Udo

got shells?

DK I am surprised no has jumped you about collecting shells. After all it is illegal... The peanut gallery is off their game.

If they are removed from the beach, yes. We collect to photograph them and it is fun exercise... and to see what is different each time we go. The law I break is going more than 80 kph on the long, straight sections of highway in Baja... my bad!



[Edited on 3-12-2016 by David K]