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Calamajue

Marc - 3-1-2018 at 05:01 PM

I've been searching this board for info without result. Has anyone been out there recently? How is the road?

David K - 3-1-2018 at 05:16 PM

Last year! That is if you are speaking of the Puerto and not the mission. TRIP #1. http://forums.bajanomad.com/viewthread.php?tid=85374

The road was fine... graded, no traffic from Coco's Corner, 21.9 miles.
Here are my photos and area map:

[Edited on 3-2-2018 by David K]

willardguy - 3-1-2018 at 05:39 PM

so david...you got your kilometer numbers for your upcoming book but you really didn't see chit out there did you? or was your camera out of film?

AguaDulce - 3-1-2018 at 05:46 PM

wow!

David K - 3-1-2018 at 06:06 PM

?? Wow indeed!
What do you have for Marc to share, willardguy?

willardguy - 3-1-2018 at 06:35 PM

Quote: Originally posted by David K

?? Wow indeed!
What do you have for Marc to share, willardguy?

well david, thank you for your riveting trip report, you didn't even get out of the car!
this is one of the better side trips you'll find. totally uninhabited for years, there's still a chapel thats untouched still with the alter,jesus staues, crucifix's, crosses, chapel stuff exactly like it was when it was a thriving fish camp. next to it the school house remains still with desks and workbooks scattered around, remnants of the school yard and bano's. down on the beach a shrine still remains that still had a wrapped gift on it, it was a little girls piece of costume jewelry. on the other side of the bay is the never used fish processing center with concrete filet tables and water troughs, out side are the dual fish smokers, never put into service. this is the building david calls the "house" in his investigative report :rolleyes:

. just back from this is a huge stone water pila, beautifully built with the names of the builder inscribed on it, again never put into service. back from the beach is the "town", homes abandoned with still clothing and housewares strewned about, one of the buildings a saloon with a primitive bar still in place. david found it too muddy for the tacoma to handle. on the way to the beach a ranch house still exists, probably a dream that ended in a dried up well......
tell us more about your trip david?
wow indeed!

[Edited on 3-2-2018 by willardguy]

willardguy - 3-1-2018 at 06:59 PM

Quote: Originally posted by AguaDulce

wow!

beware davids travel logs.....they're mostly drive-by's

John Harper - 3-1-2018 at 07:21 PM

So, what caused this area to become abandoned? Like a modern Bodie?

John

willardguy - 3-1-2018 at 08:12 PM

Quote: Originally posted by John Harper

So, what caused this area to become abandoned? Like a modern Bodie?

John

david says it was a boiler explosion! :lol:

mtgoat666 - 3-1-2018 at 08:19 PM

If you have to venture more than 100 yards from the car, then it ain’t worth seeing!

willardguy - 3-1-2018 at 08:32 PM

Quote: Originally posted by mtgoat666

If you have to venture more than 100 yards from the car, then it ain’t worth seeing!

the sandwiches are in the car.....

mtgoat666 - 3-1-2018 at 08:42 PM

Quote: Originally posted by willardguy

Quote: Originally posted by mtgoat666

If you have to venture more than 100 yards from the car, then it ain’t worth seeing!

the sandwiches are in the car.....

He could wear a fanny pack

MMc - 3-1-2018 at 09:15 PM

I was out there last spring, by myself. Rolled in and looked around, I was not comfortable setting camp and left. Maybe it was me, I follow my inner lizard, if it isn't comfortable i move on. I was looking to post up there for a couple of days, but kinda spooky,

David K - 3-1-2018 at 09:24 PM

Quote: Originally posted by MMc

I was out there last spring, by myself. Rolled in and looked around, I was not comfortable setting camp and left. Maybe it was me, I follow my inner lizard, if it isn't comfortable i move on. I was looking to post up there for a couple of days, but kinda spooky,

Thanks, I got the same feeling plus high tides made the flats muddy and I missed checking out the fish camp on the other side.

willardguy - 3-1-2018 at 09:33 PM

Quote: Originally posted by David K

?? Wow indeed!
What do you have for Marc to share, willardguy?

you asked the question, I replied. what more do you have to offer? your trip report is useless, correct?

but the map is a real doozie! :yes:

[Edited on 3-2-2018 by willardguy]

del mar - 3-1-2018 at 10:00 PM

someday, and I bet sooner than you'd expect, there will be a badazz resort out there, if there's water......
and its an easy kayak launch!

honda tom - 3-1-2018 at 10:22 PM

Stop at Coco's and talk to him about it. He will tell you not to go out there.

At one time it was an isolated drop off point for drugs from the mainland.

I was there about 3 years ago, mid-day, and it was empty and isolated.

if Coco's stories are correct, and he will tell you several, i would stay away as a camping spot.

If you want to see it, I would suggest 2 or more vehicles and don't stay too long.

David K's map and info are enough for most.

willardguy - 3-1-2018 at 10:43 PM

Quote: Originally posted by del mar

someday, and I bet sooner than you'd expect, there will be a badazz resort out there, if there's water......
and its an easy kayak launch!

the wild card, this is the pila that was built to support the fish processing plant that never saw water and the cattle ranch just south featured a dry well. I heard the same stories from coco, about the same time his cuate, remember that dirty bastard that was watching over his place, and I certainly don't doubt it, not unlike dozens of other remote beaches.

Marc - 3-2-2018 at 08:41 AM

Wow! I get a spooky feeling just looking at the pictures.
I am not superstitious but I had what I would call a minor panic attack when in New Guinea I put in on a small island. I couldn't wait to get out of there. Later on I was told by the locals no one ever goes there because of bad spirits. I should post this on non Baja trip reports someday.

bajatrailrider - 3-2-2018 at 09:27 AM

Don't know what the problem is David with Baja Blow hard thank you for your post. So one takes more pictures than the other so his post no good. Take a rest blow hard give him a break.

yumawill - 3-2-2018 at 10:40 AM

"Baja Catch" book talks about the area before the improvements. But that was back when Baja still had fish. And I thought those ovens were for Pizza. Silly me!

Paco Facullo - 3-2-2018 at 10:47 AM

Me thinks that the place has some real bad JuJu ......

Visit but don't stay , and don't even think about taking any of those Religious artifacts . Or else ?????

willardguy - 3-2-2018 at 11:06 AM

Quote: Originally posted by yumawill

"Baja Catch" book talks about the area before the improvements. But that was back when Baja still had fish. And I thought those ovens were for Pizza. Silly me!

having fished the area many times our luck could best be described as "poor"

but yeah the smokers would be awesome pizza ovens!

John Harper - 3-2-2018 at 11:23 AM

So, why was the town abandoned? I can't find any references on the internet about it.

John

willardguy - 3-2-2018 at 11:39 AM

Quote: Originally posted by John Harper

So, why was the town abandoned? I can't find any references on the internet about it.

John

"the hardscrabble commercial fishing activity here is a vestige of a much greater operation that has virtually ceased after reducing the resource to an uneconomical level"

at least this is what Gene and Neil say....

TMW - 3-2-2018 at 11:57 AM

I was out there 4 years ago and there was a family packing up shells in bags to sell. We spent a couple of hours looking around then left. The road out was washed out in several places so you had to drop down to the side road. It was at the end of a trip report I did in 2014.

http://forums.bajanomad.com/viewthread.php?tid=73500

Graham Mackintosh spent the night out there with the fishermen and talked about it in his book "Into a Desert Place". He said they were shark fishermen that he met. A good read and he mentioned about the warning to get out before dark, starts on page 69 of his book.

David K - 3-2-2018 at 12:15 PM

The graded road from Laguna Chapala was completed in 1983 for Puerto Calamajué. That fishing operation was pretty major to get such a road.
It was a very poor 4x4 trail before the 1980s and most traffic for Gonzaga went to/from Hwy. 1 via Calamajué Canyon.

Near where it crossed the road to Gonzaga is where Coco made his 'Corner' some years later. The new graded road south from Puertecitos didn't arrive to the (future) Coco's Corner until about 1987.

Graham did his walk around Baja in the early 80s. He had some good photos of those shark fishermen at Calamajué!

StuckSucks - 3-2-2018 at 06:28 PM

Quote: Originally posted by TMW

I was out there 4 years ago and there was a family packing up shells in bags to sell. We spent a couple of hours looking around then left. The road out was washed out in several places so you had to drop down to the side road. It was at the end of a trip report I did in 2014.

http://forums.bajanomad.com/viewthread.php?tid=73500

Looks like a fun trip -- disappointing that some of the photo links are broken. But still fun.

TMW - 3-2-2018 at 07:03 PM

SS that was a really fun trip. I think the highlight was going into San Juan de Las Pilas. Jesus and Lupe were so friendly and so happy to have someone stop in. Jesus took us to see paintings at two places and said there were more but a little further away.

A funny think started right off on our way in. We came to a cross road and Ron and I are lead truck and are looking at the Baja Almanac trying to figure which way to go when Rudy walks up to us and ask what's the matter. We told him what we were doing and he walks across the road and points to the sign, it's one of the top pictures with the name on on a rock. I think Ron and I laughed about it for miles. What would we do without Rudy.

JZ - 3-10-2018 at 02:39 PM

Quote: Originally posted by Marc

I've been searching this board for info without result. Has anyone been out there recently? How is the road?

I'm going to go out there in about 3 weeks and check it out.

We are going to ride the Pioneer Mine road to where it connects with the road out to Calamajue.

I'll take the drone and post some pics.

willardguy - 3-10-2018 at 02:52 PM

Quote: Originally posted by JZ

Quote: Originally posted by Marc

I've been searching this board for info without result. Has anyone been out there recently? How is the road?

I'm going to go out there in about 3 weeks and check it out.

We are going to ride the Pioneer Mine road to where it connects with the road out to Calamajue.

I'll take the drone and post some pics.

don't forget the checkbook

http://www.propertypanorama.com/instaview/snd/170051113