BajaNomad - What are the best trails / rides within 75 miles or so of San Felipe?

What are the best trails / rides within 75 miles or so of San Felipe?

JZ - 10-18-2018 at 06:21 PM

Haven't ridden much out that way, but a friend wants to go there for a quick 4-5 day trip.

ehall - 10-18-2018 at 06:41 PM

Tough one. Rockman trail from Puertocitas to Catavina.
Dry lake bed to san matias, up to Mike's, over to Coyote.
Race course that really sucks to ride.

basautter - 10-18-2018 at 06:41 PM

San Felipe has the Baja 250 course. It's mostly sandy whoops and jeep trails. There is great single track to the south. Gonzaga Bay is a better staging place if you go there. There is the Calamajui Wash and Window Rock trail to BOLA, the Jimmy Somas trail gets you back to route 1, and my favorite, the Bill Nichols trail from Catavina to Santa Rosalia. GPS and trail info can be found in books published by the Lizard Lady (plus more). Have fun, and IM me if you want more info.

advrider - 10-18-2018 at 07:05 PM

Is the rockman trail ride able on a 500 or do you need a small bike? Is the trail from El Rosario to catavina via the mud hills the cactus trail or the Bill Nichols? Sorry for the high jack, just trying to gather some intel myself.
Calamajui, past Cocos is a fun ride and window rock as stated. Most of the stuff around SF is very wooped out and a serious workout.. It is fun to run out on the lake bed for a beer at the old mans shack.

ehall - 10-18-2018 at 07:14 PM

Rockman can be ridden on a 500. Not sure about the mud hills. Always fun to drink a tall boy with Jose.

TMW - 10-18-2018 at 07:22 PM

The 2018 SF250 course to the north of Highway 3 would be a fun ride. Go north to the Oasis and back by the wells and south to the Borrego crossing. Your chase truck could meet you before the top end using the La Ventana access road to the wells.

You can start and end at Morelia Jct that would be about 165 miles. You can get the map, GPS and GE files at http://www.murdocknav.com/mapsmex1.php

bajatrailrider - 10-18-2018 at 07:30 PM

Jz for me most all riding around sf the worst riding in Baja. The only good trail like Ed said the Nicoles trail around the mud hills That is not around Sf nothing but woops and sand. You come out my way I got good rides. Even Ed would agree on that.🤗

advrider - 10-18-2018 at 07:41 PM

You might find better ridding near Tecate rather then SF? I know there is a lot of single track around that area if you can find someone that has the tracks?

David K - 10-18-2018 at 09:42 PM

The Valle Chico has many roads and a few cross the mountains to the coast. Azufre Wash (Cañada el Parral) is a great one. Go one way on that and come out down Matomi Wash, making a loop.

There are waterfalls, palms, cool streams, hot springs, petroglyphs along the mountains off Valle Chico. I have reported so much on this, it is amazing to find a Baja Nomad who doesn't know about the off-road gems near San Felipe!

If you need links, I can post. Here is a map of the area and just main routes shown:

willardguy - 10-18-2018 at 09:50 PM

:lol:

Viking wash without an end........

David K - 10-18-2018 at 10:07 PM

Quote: Originally posted by basautter

San Felipe has the Baja 250 course. It's mostly sandy whoops and jeep trails. There is great single track to the south. Gonzaga Bay is a better staging place if you go there. There is the Calamajui Wash and Window Rock trail to BOLA, the Jimmy Somas trail gets you back to route 1, and my favorite, the Bill Nichols trail from Catavina to Santa Rosalia. GPS and trail info can be found in books published by the Lizard Lady (plus more). Have fun, and IM me if you want more info.

Yes, these are super single tracks... but JZ asked for a 75 mile limit from San Felipe for his friend's range of interest.

The San Felipe 250 is in March or near then.
Calamajué Wash is over 100 miles from San Felipe.
Bill Nichols Trail (one of them) is from south of Puertecitos to the Pacific near El Rosario (not Santa Rosalia).
The Lizard Lady is Kacey Smith: http://www.bajagpsguide.com/

ehall - 10-19-2018 at 06:57 AM

Quote: Originally posted by David K

The Valle Chico has many roads and a few cross the mountains to the coast. Azufre Wash (Cañada el Parral) is a great one. Go one way on that and come out down Matomi Wash, making a loop.

There are waterfalls, palms, cool streams, hot springs, petroglyphs along the mountains off Valle Chico. I have reported so much on this, it is amazing to find a Baja Nomad who doesn't know about the off-road gems near San Felipe!

If you need links, I can post. Here is a map of the area and just main routes shown:

Probably my favorite type of riding. Fast 2 tracks with some technical stuck here and there. Exploring new places.

JZ - 10-19-2018 at 09:19 AM

Quote: Originally posted by David K

Yeah, post some links.

I've been more into boating in the SoC the last 15 years than riding. About 3 years ago the kids got big enough to do long distance trail rides. We've pretty much ridden most stuff from the central on down. Very little up North.

HeyMulegeScott - 10-19-2018 at 09:37 AM

Here's my blog post on taking my Jeep to some of the places David K mentions - https://www.awaywewinnebago.com/baja-adventuring/

David K - 10-19-2018 at 11:35 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Three2tango

Here's my blog post on taking my Jeep to some of the places David K mentions - https://www.awaywewinnebago.com/baja-adventuring/

It is a nice blog, Scott... I am glad to see you went somewhere I have not been (Baja is full of them!): Diablo Canyon where the climbers start the east side approach to Baja's highest mountain, 10,154' Picacho del Diablo.

JZ, going backward in time with these trip pages or web pages covering Valle Chico, Matomi, & Azufre Wash (Cañada el Parral) aka Crazyhorse Canyon:

2017: http://forums.bajanomad.com/viewthread.php?tid=85989 (Valle Chico, + Agua Caliente and Matomi Canyons)
2010: http://forums.bajanomad.com/viewthread.php?tid=45351 (BajaRob's post on Cajon Canyon)
2007: http://forums.bajanomad.com/viewthread.php?tid=23376 (Neal Johns' post on Berrendo Canyon)
2006: http://vivabaja.com/618/ (Arroyo Matomi to Canyon Waterfalls from Hwy. 5)
2006: http://vivabaja.com/106/ (Azufre Wash to Berrendo Canyon)
2004: http://www.vivabaja.com/404/ (Parral, Berrendo, Carrizo, Agua Caliente, and Cajon Canyons)
2004: http://www.vivabaja.com/204/ (Nomad Group trip to Matomi Falls via Azufre Wash and back using Arroyo Matomi to Hwy. 5)
2001: http://www.vivabaja.com/matomi/ (First group trip to Matomi Falls)

bajatrailrider - 10-19-2018 at 03:30 PM

Most of this good info but from 4x4 guys not motos. Not knocking as I 4x4 also. He did say trails that means where motos go and not trucks Jeeps. Sf has been wooped out over 20 years. If you love woops and rides where everybody has been. Then Gorman and jawbone canyon remind me of SF ok not joking . Tell me where you can go around sf and no woops. the paved road.

JZ - 10-19-2018 at 03:37 PM

Yeah, whoops are fun - for about 5 mins.

[Edited on 10-19-2018 by JZ]

David K - 10-19-2018 at 04:05 PM

Quote: Originally posted by bajatrailrider

Most of this good info but from 4x4 guys not motos. Not knocking as I 4x4 also. He did say trails that means where motos go and not trucks Jeeps. Sf has been wooped out over 20 years. If you love woops and rides where everybody has been. Then Gorman and jawbone canyon remind me of SF ok not joking . Tell me where you can go around sf and no woops. the paved road.

I hate whoops... they seem to form after an off-road race? Is because they are 90% 2WD vehicles? The Valle Chico road is fast except for the last 8 miles to Matomi Canyon. That part is badly whooped as it is all cross-grain and not graded like the road is north of Carricitos (Carrizo Canyon).

I guess someone needs to make a good single track map for riders in the San Felipe area? I think Kacey's (Lizard Lady) routes around there are all roads... even her XR Ride (Turquesa Canyon) is a road or was a road once?

advrider - 10-20-2018 at 06:51 AM

The beach is fun when the tide is out, going North or South. We found some single track out past Kiki's that went North. It looked more like mountain bike trails then moto but was still fun. SF=whoops....

David K - 10-20-2018 at 08:08 AM

Keep in mind that turtles have begun nesting on the beach south of San Felipe... this is now the second season of turtle eggs being deposited as witnessed by so many now living along that coast. On Facebook, yesterday, a mama green turtle was filmed depositing her eggs just south of Nuevo Mazatlan. Last season, the babies coming out of the sand were filmed. It is pretty exciting as I have been going to that region since the mid-1960s and there were never any signs of turtles using that beach and the locals did not ever see any or hunt them, as in the rest of Baja where they lived.

So, maybe avoid the dry sand above high tide and stay on the firm wet sand during low tide? ATV and 4X4s with floatation tires do not dig in like a m/c spinning tire or human footprints do.

From Facebook: We have seen turtles laying eggs twice in front of our house at La Mision. Once in Oct. & in July. Last year at Thanksgiving time frame was when babies hatched & abt 75 made it to the water in front of our casa as well. So this is an area to be aware of what might be happening on the beach & letting Mother nature do her thing.

[Edited on 10-20-2018 by David K]

bajatrailrider - 10-20-2018 at 09:01 AM

Have two friends with houses there said we need go over 80 miles out of SF to get to good riding. It is nice to put around on a ATV but on a bike sucks.

StuckSucks - 10-20-2018 at 09:38 AM

About 10 years ago we rode bikes on the beach from San Felipe to Puertecitos - a fun ride, but of course there was lots of soft stand, which means pinning it the whole time. Also, you need to plan on navigating around the laguna south of Percibu (watch for sticky mud). Friends chased us in trucks on the highway for any "just in case" problems.