5 DAYS IN BAJA (July 2016): Shell Island, Hwy. #5 to #1, Mission San Fernando, El Rosario, Free FMM details.

DAY 1 (Thursday, July 7, 2016)

Hello Amigos,
We had some vacation time and love camping on the beach when the weather (and water) is warm! June or July is never too hot for us on the gulf coast of Baja! Our favorite beach that is only a day's drive away (6 hours) is Shell Island, about 20 miles south of San Felipe. It is a barrier island sand dune that is surrounded by water at the highest monthly tides. Getting to it other times may require slogging through slimy sea mud! This helps preserve the beach as a rare, undeveloped and natural camping area. That is just what we like... peaceful, remote camping. We bring everything we need... and we don't need much!

We pack up the truck and get out of town by 8:30 Thursday morning (in this case, Escondido north of San Diego). Heading to El Centro was easy then south through Calexico and into Baja at Mexicali (west/downtown). With a lot of discussion that there is need for all trips into northern Baja requiring the "Tourist Card" (FMM), a type of visa for Americans to get, no matter where or how long a trip lasts, we pull over just across the border (on the left) at the INM office. There is a FREE tourist card for up to 7 days in Mexico and a PAY one (about $25 US) for up to 180 days.

The officer speaks perfect English and explains that the FREE FMM must be returned to their office when you leave Mexico (to prove you didn't stay longer). However, the PAY one does NOT need to be returned (as you can keep it for any trips south for the next 180 days). Now, to get back to the INM office in Mexicali or Tijuana may be quite an ordeal because of city traffic and finding your way from there to the end of the line, to drive into the U.S. We planned to return through Tecate, a much smaller border town with easy access to the INM office, which is on the entrance to Mexico street. Not sure how long before we can get back to Baja, we get the FREE ones and see how that works out.

The INM officer scanned and stamped our passports, had us fill out the two-piece FMM, and gave us one part and he kept the other. We were on our way in about 10 minutes. Not one other person stopped to get the FMM while we were there. Nowhere in the next 5 days did anyone ask to see the FMM on our trip. However, we were good to go if it was requested!

Driving south, the road to San Felipe is well signed, but be careful of the lane one sign points to as you approach a bridge... you need to go up the bridge, which is the next lane to the left!

We arrive at the El Dorado Pemex station, about 13 miles north of San Felipe and fill up. The price is 12.90 pesos per liter and the exchange rate is 17.30 pesos per dollar. I suspect this pump reads high, but that is typical in many stations, some believe. Next time, I will go to the newer Pemex a few more miles down the highway. It is 1:30 pm (5 hrs. from Escondido) and we are right on schedule.

The road south from San Felipe to Puertecitos is in pretty bad shape with several holes now, and still a few steep dips... Max speed 50 mph. Our beach access is by Km. 26 and we go into 4WD... the beach is only 1.5 miles away, but there is still some water and mud from the higher New Moon tides of a couple days ago... We slime through it with not too much mess and arrive on the beach about 2 pm. Our camping spot is a couple miles down the beach and requires deflating the tires (as the Tacoma is heavy with two full ice chests and camping gear). Dropping from 34 psi to 20 psi does the trick (sometimes 15 or even 10 psi is required, depending on conditions and tire type). I am running Hankook DynaPro ATM tires and they are excellent in sand.
We are at our spot and setting up at 2:30pm.

The temperature was 100° crossing the desert, but only 95° on the beach. There is a strong south breeze and it makes getting into the water for a swim tough with short, slapping waves at high tide. We walk across Shell Island and take a swim in the calm lagoon on the other side... this is often called Laguna Percebu or Estero Percebu.

The next two days, the midday high temp was only 88° and a much calmer breeze... PERFECT!

In the next installment, I will show you the shrimp boats working offshore and some small jellyfish I have never seen there before.

Here are some photos on Shell Island:



Camp set up


View south


View north


Shells are the reason for the name... and it is not just a beach, but an island!


Elizabeth and I compare our low tide sanddollar and shell collection and we are about even!


View north at low tide, lagoon side.


High tide!


View from the island to Baja, high tide (see Diablo Mountain?)


View south, low tide.


High tide.





Osprey nest on a fisherman's shack remains.



MORE DAYS TO COME... stay tuned!






[Edited on 5-23-2020 by David K]

did the shell island locals leave any new message's for you?...

PART 2 (Days 2,3)

The weather was great, 88° and a light breeze out of the north, then east.
We did a lot of relaxing and swimming/ floating when the tide was halfway in or higher.

As it was, that would be in the morning to around 9 and then again after noon. At low tide, the 14-18 foot average tide height takes the sea so far away and you can walk a mile and only be ankle deep! Twice a day the tide is high and twice it is low... A lot of gravity is at work in the upper Gulf of California!

From the photos I posted above, and the next ones, you can get an idea of how fast the sea level changes... every day!


This is as crowded as it gets, even on most holidays, unless some fellow Nomads come along (like Ken Cooke and edm-1 have)!


One of the locals!


Each day as the moon goes from New to Quarter phase, the tides are less extreme, then get bigger as the Full moon approaches.






Netting for shrimp a couple miles offshore.




Low tide (it can go out much further).

Something New???


About the size of a 10 peso coin... near shore at high tide.









I had never seen any jellyfish on Shell Island in nearly 40 years of camping there. As I would find out (this morning), these were not true jellyfish but floating marine organisms... Here is the answer from Dr. Hans Bertsch (author of Sea of Cortez Marine Invertebrates and a new book mentioned in his reply):

Dear David,
Thanks for the photos of Porpita porpita (Linnaeus, 1758); Phylum Cnidaria, Class Hydrozoa, Family Porpitidae. Although it is in the same family as the infamous man-of-war Physalia, it is not really dangerous to humans. Both are pelagic, frequently washing ashore when the winds are right. It is obviously in my new, in galleys, book, Invertebrados Marinos del Noroeste de México.... Porpita is called "Blue Button," or "Botón Azul." The shrimpers probably had nothing to do with the beaching of Porpita; winds. You just have to be at the right place at the right time.

From Wiki:

Porpita porpita From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Porpita porpita Porpita porpita.jpg

Blue Button Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Subkingdom: Eumetazoa Phylum: Cnidaria Class: Hydrozoa Order: Anthomedusae Suborder: Capitata Family: Porpitidae Genus: Porpita Species: P. porpita

Binomial name Porpita porpita (Linnaeus, 1758)

Although it is superficially similar to a jellyfish, each apparent individual is actually a colony of hydrozoan polyps. The blue button is a Chondrophore, which is a group of cnidarians that also includes Velella and Porpema. The chondrophores are similar to the better-known siphonophores, which includes the Portuguese Man o' War. Characteristics[edit]

The blue button lives on the surface of the sea and consists of two main parts: the float and the hydroid colony. The hard golden-brown float is round, almost flat, and about one inch wide. The hydroid colony, which can range from bright blue turquoise to yellow, resembles tentacles like those of the jellyfish.[5] Each strand has numerous branchlets, each of which ends in knobs of stinging cells called nematocysts.

The blue button sting is not powerful but may cause irritation to human skin.[2] The blue button itself is a passive drifter, and is part of the neustonic food web. It is preyed on by the sea slug Glaucus atlanticus (sea swallow or blue glaucus) and violet sea-snails of the genus Janthina.[6] It competes with other drifters for food and mainly feeds on copepods and crustacean larvae.[7]

The blue button has a single mouth located beneath the float, which is used for both the intake of prey and the expulsion of wastes.



[Edited on 5-23-2020 by David K]

Quote: Originally posted by AKgringo

I'm going to look for that beach on my next trip, Looking forward to part #2! I did not know that Hankook was making an ATM tire now. It must be handy to check your air pressure and the exchange rate at the same time!

I bought this set at Discount Tires... Pep Boys also sells them... and other Hankook distributors. Mine are 265/75-16 (32"), about an inch taller than the stock 265/70-16 tires.







I have run BFGs, Cooper Discoverer (ATR and STT), Toyos (Open Country AT), and Definity Dakota ATs (Pep Boys). I have run the Hankook ATMs before... they are inexpensive (under $150), quiet on the highway, great in sand, mud, snow... really cannot complain.

Quote: Originally posted by Udo

WOW! What a great trip report, DK. One can tell that you are a professional writer. Hey, are you sure you did not just copy some of your old photos on this post? You COULD have fooled us.

This fellow popped onto the beach, still alive... I put him back and watched him swim off.


We love it here, on Shell Island, in Baja!

PART 3 Sunday, July 10, 2016

We get camp taken down, and loaded up by 9:10 am...


Driving south... hate to leave... but we got enough sun and our friend BajaCactus/ Antonio may be in El Rosario and we would like to visit with him.



We are off the beach, refill the tires to 34 psi, head to the Ejido Delicias (Km. 35-36) stores and get a half block of ice and a bag of cubes to add to our ice chest (we condensed the two to one this morning). 10:00 am

They are both Coleman Extreme 5 Day chests. One was for beer and water bottles (1 10lb. block and two 10 lb. bags of crushed) + 30 cans of beer (Tecate Light) and lots of water bottles... The other was for meat & cheese, milk, OJ, more water bottles (pre-frozen) and had 2 blocks and one bag of ice. I drained the melted water out of the food box except for a few inches at the bottom. The beer chest with only 1 block, I left the melted water remain. This was a test... I was sure the drained box would have more ice (2 blocks vs. 1, opened less often, etc.). The beer chest was new, but still 5- day rated... the temps were near 90° each day and we left them in the truck bed only covered by folded tarps. The beer chest with undrained water had twice the size of block ice (1 block) as the food chest (2 blocks) had left after 3.5 days of un-ideal conditions!It was a good lesson. I had heard pros and cons of both drain and leave the water in there. Obviously, with food, you may need to drain when driving so the sloshing liquid doesn't make a mess of your food. We use snap lid containers or double zip lock bags to keep out the water.

The road to Puertecitos is pretty rough for pavement, but not as bad as it was in 2006-7 before they recoated it.

Km. 60 is Arroyo Matomi road (34 miles west to the waterfall).
Km. 74.5 Puertecitos Jcn. 10:30 am
Km. 99 is the view pullout for the Enchanted Islands. We leave at 11:07 after having sandwiches.


Rest area, Km. 99, 15 miles south of the Puertecitos Junction (Km. 74.5)



Km. 147 is the Pemex and across the way, the Rancho Grande store. 11:38 am. (This was Km. 150 last year).

The Campo Beluga road is 1.2 miles south (Km. 149). A news note, Alfonsina's son (Roman) no longer owns that Pemex, it was sold to a group that runs several Pemex stations in Baja.

Km. 159 (7.2 mi from Pemex) Las Palmitas road has some activity on it.. a ranch or ?? This was the access to the El Camino Real trail to Mission Santa María and the oasis of Las Palmitas.

END OF PAVEMENT 7-10-16 (same as it was in Jan. 2015). Now Km. 167.5, 12.4 miles south of the Pemex. It is 11:50 am








We see about three completed bridges... and many just started bridges and little else change in the canyon since 12 months ago.




A short section of new highway roadbed just north of Las Arrastras.
Las Arrastras historic site (see my July 2015 trip report) is currently a road construction camp... 18. 5 miles from Gonzaga Pemex. 12:07 pm. The new highway heads straight south from here (or will when open) while the old road curves to the left and heads for Coco's Corner.



Mile 22.5 from Pemex is Coco's Corner. 12:17 pm. See my 2015 report for photos of Coco and his corner.

Mile 27.2 come along new road construction in the canyon. The past 4.7 miles from Coco's are the roughest of all the miles.










Hwy. 1 straight ahead.

No work was in progress except for a water truck we saw driving on the new roadbed, across the Chapala Valley, where it is a bit south of the old road.

HWY. 1 Laguna Chapala 35.4 miles from Gonzaga Pemex. 23.0 unpaved miles. 1:03 pm
These are odometer corrected mileages (if they appear a little different than earlier mileage figures). I am seriously into accuracy!

MORE TO COME! MISSION SAN FERNANDO...




[Edited on 5-23-2020 by David K]

Quote: Originally posted by seasider

Absorbing and detailed report, as usual. Its interesting to note that despite all the publicity you have made of the beauty and attraction of shell island;it always seems to be a nice quiet getaway for you, and close to the border. I plan to order your excellent new book, and will most likely read it when I am on my next kayaking adventure in Baja. Cheers!

Nice trip report, looks like you had fun! Thanks..I have been running the same Hankook tires for almost two years on Ol Smokey. Baja, Saskatchewan, all over the US..street, mud, snow, rocks gravel...Excellent performance and they seem to wear like Iron...Smokey keeps on trukin, headed for 400,000 miles...Last tank 22MPG, uses no oil. not beautiful anymore tho..

shell island

Quote: Originally posted by bajapedro

Cool trip. Shell Island is truly a pretty cool place. We have a house in Rancho Percebu and are able to walk onto the North point of Shell Island at low tide. Not justs shell there, but ofter can find whale bones and dolphins skeletons too. David, when your back there next time, should you every want to borrow my house, let me know. I also keep a 2 person kayak there in my garage to paddle around the lagoon at high tide, if you ever want to use it.

Shell Island, June 2006:



That is so so kind of you to offer! Thank you!! While we are still 'young enough' to tent camp, we will... but health issues may cause a change in that someday (sadly). A home at Percebu or Bahía Santa María would be ideal to be as close to our beloved island, as possible!



[Edited on 1-11-2021 by David K]

Mission San Fernando (1769) in 2016

The drive north of Highway One was pretty typical. There are some pot holes and rough areas near Laguna Chapala and near Cataviña (about 30 miles north of the Hwy. 5 junction).

We stopped to have a look at the Hotel Misión Cataviña (formerly Desert Inn, La Pinta, El Presidente) to see what's new... It was impressive considering the location.

I made a few road notes
San Ignacito café (south of Santa Ynez) was back in business and there looked to be a new monument marker where the highway construction crews from the north and the south met (1973), across from the restaurant. A plaque was vandalized some time ago here.
Km. 179 Cataviña
Km. 176 Rock Art access (see: http://vivabaja.com/703/page5.html )
Km. 121 Mission San Fernando access/ Rancho El Progreso (café is now abandoned).
It is only 2.3 miles from here to the 1769 mission site...



New signs and some archeological digging has exposed the stone side wall of the mission or terrace the mission was built upon. Nobody is there when we arrived. I was last on site in 2005, but flew over it in a helicopter for photos in 2014 during the Trail of Mission TV show trip I was on.














Shameless plug!



Coming up next... EL ROSARIO...


[Edited on 5-23-2020 by David K]

Quote: Originally posted by David K

The officer speaks perfect English and explains that the FREE FMM must be returned to their office when you leave Mexico (to prove you didn't stay longer) [Edited on 7-13-2016 by David K]

Quote: Originally posted by willardguy

didn't see any pics of the mission warehouse ruins on the bank of bahia willard?

Quote: Originally posted by willardguy

didn't see any pics of the mission warehouse ruins on the bank of bahia willard?

I didn't go to the shore of Bahía San Luis Gonzaga ("Willard Bay") where the 1768+ warehouse ruin is located, on this last trip.

Here are some, since you brought it up...



Photo of the warehouse taken by the author of the Lower California Guidebook, in 1958.


Photo I took of the ruins in 2002. Punta Willard (next to Papa Fernandez' camp) is seen in the background of both photos, above.



The description of the ruins in the 1962 guidebook.



Archeological dig onto the stone tiled floor of the warehouse, a few years ago (2011).



[Edited on 5-23-2020 by David K]

Antonio soon arrives at the motel to visit with us. He owns the Pemex station, next door, and was there when we arrived. I made friends with Antonio through Baja Nomad and we met in July 2004 at jrbaja's home near Rosarito (La Barca) for an informal get-together. http://www.vivabaja.com/bajacactus/


Baja Angel (Elizabeth) and BajaCactus (Antonio). It was Antonio who came up with the handle "Baja Angel" for Elizabeth back in 2005 when she joined Baja Nomad.


To help Antonio's fire and rescue service, we donate my new book (I had 10 copies) and a couple copies of my previous co-authored book (The Old Missions of Baja & Alta California) for Antonio to sell at his Baja Cactus Motel in El Rosario, (right next door to the Pemex station). Both are discounted five dollars to $25 for the new book and $15 for the older book and income from them will go to the Desert Hawks Fire and Rescue service.

We hear of the changes in El Rosario and other happenings. We hadn't spent time there in a few years, using Hwy. 5 to travel south/north on. I saw Antonio briefly on the Trail of Missions TV special I was part of in 2014 and when he came up to San Diego County for supplies once, last year.

Antonio has a meeting with a government rep that evening and Elizabeth and I go to Ed's Baja's Best B & B restaurant for dinner. We had the shrimp stuffed chile rellanos.

Monday morning we have breakfast with Antonio and Itzela (who manages the Desert Hawks donations) at Mama Espinoza's. Then, we have to say good bye, but hope it won't be too long before we return!

Gasoline in El Rosario was 13.40 pesos per liter (Magna) and 14.37 for Premium. The peso per dollar exchange was 17.00: 1. We left at 12:30pm.

Military Checkpoint on the mesa above Rosario was the only one on the drive home, and we were waved through.

At Maneadero we stop for tacos at the place on the east side as you enter town... I will get a Google street view of it added. They were great! Left there at 3:47 pm.

At Tecate, we needed to turn in the FREE FMM and drove up to the border (entrance into Mexico street) and to the right, one-way street is street parking. We walk to the border and get instructions on what to do. You go through the turnstiles on the east side of the street, follow arrows north, then across the street to the INM office. Walk in, find the desk and our passports are stamped and scanned.. all clear to go! It was not too much trouble.

Back to the Tacoma, we drive east to the U.S. entrance access road and get in line at 6:10 pm. We are in the U.S. at 6:28! No secondary inspection.

I am happy to answer questions and will post more details (maps) to show how we did the Tecate two-step.

Again, the pay FMM does NOT need to be returned, but the free one does.

Thank you... and hope to see some of you at my lecture tonight in San Diego!

http://www.discoverbaja.com/event/david-kier-lecture/

Gonzaga warehouse

Quote: Originally posted by lencho

Quote: Originally posted by David K   The INM officer scanned and stamped our passports... Woah, with a computer scanner?

Quote: Originally posted by John M

David, what was the result of the archaeological dig in 2011? John M

Quote: Originally posted by BornFisher

Fine report, thanks

Thank you!

Here is the taco place in Maneadero we go to... east side of the highway, south side of town... We got carne asada with everything on it and the 'al pastor' tacos... (I am thinking that is what the meat on the verticle spit is called, like how gyros meat is cooked).

Google Earth street view image>>>

RETURNING THE FREE FMM @ TECATE

We parked at the circle... one way street to the east (right). Lots of spots on both sides of that street to park (that day).
We walked to the INM office along the blue arrows. You go through a turnstile.
We walked back to the truck along the red arrows. A turnstile is also passed through leaving the INM area.

To go to the USA border line, we drive east on the one-way street a few blocks then to the right (south) a couple blocks to the street that is HWY. 2 (to Mexicali) to the traffic circle and just beyond to the USA entrance road.

Higher View

Blue arrows are driving to INM from Ensenada. This is the opposite direction on the same streets as going to Ensenada from the border (except for the last blue arrow pointing east to where I parked on the one-way street).
Red arrows are driving to the USA from INM.

Quote: Originally posted by JohnK

I really like the way you lay it out, David. Great post. I've got a pop-up camper on the back of my Tacoma. Do you think I would be OK going to Shell Island with it? Good tires. 4WD.

Yes, weight is not an issue with deflated tires. 10-20 psi range. Start at 20, if the truck struggles or wants to dig into the sand, do not spin the tires, just stop and let out more air. You will find the "sweet spot" and float.

I knew a family from Vista, CA who drove full-sized motorhomes onto the beach at Shell Island... 2WD motorhomes... and no problem using the largest tires that would fit and deflating. I ran into them at Sunrise Cafe in Vista a couple years back (Bob and Pat Hale) and it was fun talking about their days camping on the island since the 70s. Before the new highway was built in '82, an arroyo was used to reach the island from 5 miles west where the old Puertecitos road was.

Here is my map from 1980:



Here is the map I drew 2 years later with the new highway (unpaved):

LOL... thanks, but those are ancient now! Most of the dirt roads are still there, however!

Here are a few more I drew of the region...

Quote: Originally posted by steekers

Awesome post David. I wish I could have joined you for the day at Shell Island while we were down at EDR. Will have to have a coffee in SM when we are in the area. Thanks for the great photos.

De nada Michael!

Here's a photo of "steekers" (tall guy) when I introduced him to Baja racing and cartoon legend, Dave Deal (with beard) a few years ago in Vista, CA (Sunrise Cafe).

Quote: Originally posted by Barry A.

David--------On your hand-drawn map which is the last map shown above, you show the 17+ mile drive from the Sulfur Mine to Matomi wash------has anybody driven that stretch recently and if so is it a rewarding and scenic drive? (It is the ONLY road on your map that I have never driven over.)

Hi Barry, great question!
I got interested in that road because Howard Gulick thought enough of it to include it, but never mentioned it in his Lower California Guidebook...


1962 Edition Lower California Guidebook

I call it the Llanos San Fermin road, after the name of that valley (or plain).



I have driven over it once... was traveling along with Nomad Gila Oro (Max) and his wife who both were in a Suzuki... May 2003:



Max follows me up Arroyo Matomi...
The Geo Tracker does fine.



Looking like layers in a cake, Matomi has many interesting geologic features!



The lower Matomi canyon.... just one of so many great places to explore in Baja!



Our lunch break in the middle of the Llanos (Plains) of San Fermin.
Just minutes after this photo was taken, a dust devil hit us, lifted my chair (in photo)
and set it down (to the left of the picture) on top of Max's hat!
GPS here: 30°34.23'/ 114°52.23' (NAD27), elev. 1,144'.

That's all I have but I do remember the road passed a capped wellhead and there was quite a cluster of bees on it. Apparently, they got plenty of water crawling through a gap in the cap. It was a pretty slow road, as SCORE has used it a few times for the San Felipe 250 and that seems to create whoop-d-do's.

[Edited on 5-23-2020 by David K]

Quote: Originally posted by Barry A.

David--------On your hand-drawn map which is the last map shown above, you show the 17+ mile drive from the Sulfur Mine to Matomi wash------has anybody driven that stretch recently and if so is it a rewarding and scenic drive? (It is the ONLY road on your map that I have never driven over.)

Quote: Originally posted by David K

It's just a big valley back in there... only the capped well was of interest to me (no palms, petroglyphs, mines, or missions)!

Quote: Originally posted by John M

David, what was the result of the archaeological dig in 2011? John M