BajaNomad - El Camino Real (Again) Part 4 and the End

El Camino Real (Again) Part 4 and the End

Fatboy - 1-15-2023 at 05:03 PM

The whole time I am hiking in general I am always thinking about food after the first couple of days, I bring plenty but you do have to ration it to a certain extent so it is always in the back of my mind and I always feel just a little hungry.

Then in the desert it is not just food, but also water. I just want to drink all I have and that last morning I only had about a cup left and didn't feel like filter some since I was so close to the car.

Once at the car I drank a little, but just knowing I could have all I wanted seemed to quench my thirst, weird.

Car started (I have been known to leave something on and come back to a dead battery before) and I headed out.

Upon arriving at Rancho Nuevo, I made sure to wave at Francisco's wife who was out sweeping the porch and started leaving, when I heard yelling and whistling coming from the rancho.

I stopped and got out, Francisco walked up to me and said he relieved him and his wife were to see me. They had prayed every night for me. I was truly touched by his kindness.

He invited me in for coffee with him and his wife, which I very sadly declined.

Leaving there feeling overwhelmed by their kindness I wished I had taken him up on the offer.

Soon I was at La Sandia, the large sandy washed that worried me. I decided to try a different way out.

On and on I drove passing a few Rancho's in the 50 miles of dirt roads it took to reach pavement almost 3 hours later.

From there a quick stop in Villa Jesus Maria for a repeat of my visit of a week earlier. There was a young couple from Pennsylvania driving down the peninsula for the first time and so we talked for a few minutes while I was waiting for my food.

I made it all the way to Laguna Salada where I spent my last night in Baja.

The next morning I followed Highway 5 to Highway 4 to Highway 3 to Highway 2 and I crossed at San Luis after my quickest border check in decades.

Read Part 1 here

Read Part 2 here

Read Part 3 here

[Edited on 1-17-2023 by Fatboy]

bajaric - 1-15-2023 at 06:06 PM

Great report, and promptly posted! I saw some horses near Calmalli, a little south of where you saw some horses. Wonder if they are wild or belong to some rancho? Aschmann maintained that unlike burros, wild horses cannot survive in the central desert. I am not sure if that is true as there appear to be wild horses in other desert areas.

Fatboy - 1-15-2023 at 07:43 PM

Horses seem to thrive in Nevada pretty well, but it does seem like burros do better in the 'drier' portions.

Based on where they were I would lean more towards wild, at least the ones I saw, but I am not sure.

Ateo - 1-15-2023 at 10:01 PM

Killer report. Thank you for taking the time to post it. Funny how as soon as you get back to your car and have a bountiful supply of water, it tends to calm the mind and thirst is quenched easily.

I love this area and will never forget my excursions in there for Baja 1000 trips.

Heading down that way in 2 weeks. Thanks for getting me excited for it!

David K - 1-16-2023 at 09:42 AM

Thank you Fatboy for another chapter of you El Camino Real Quest.

Do you have a different area of it to examine/hike in mindfor the next time?

For Nomads (and lurkers) who would like to know where they might see El Camino Real, here are the places it joins or crosses modern roads, and a list of links to maps of the Camino Real in Baja California: https://vivabaja.com/ecr-crossings/

Fatboy - 1-16-2023 at 11:39 AM

I really want to just does this section completely before thinking about anything else!

I did learn that I would not go up La Rabia, I would go straight to San Sebastian and then hike over the pass, that would have saved over a day of travel.

David K - 1-16-2023 at 12:22 PM

Super
The Jesuits also made detours and changes to earlier routes. There is no one El Camino Real. Any trail between missions, visitas, and water holes (tinajas) you find may be one used by the missionaries and others before automobiles.

BornFisher - 1-16-2023 at 12:51 PM

All the elements of a great report, thanks for posting!

advrider - 1-18-2023 at 08:57 AM

Thanks for posting. What was your total millage for the five days?

Fatboy - 1-18-2023 at 03:14 PM

Somewhere around 35.... Pretty low actually.... Day 5 was only a couple of hours of hiking.

advrider - 1-18-2023 at 03:49 PM

For the conditions and not knowing about water, that's not bad millage. If you over do it and run out of water, you could be in trouble fast.

4x4abc - 1-18-2023 at 06:06 PM

Quote: Originally posted by Fatboy

I really want to just does this section completely before thinking about anything else!

I did learn that I would not go up La Rabia, I would go straight to San Sebastian and then hike over the pass, that would have saved over a day of travel.

I revisited the area the last few days after your report.
I rediscovered a pass that I had completely forgotten.
It seems in excellent shape.
Maybe a strong alternative to the route a bit west of it
28°26'37.76"N, 113°34'11.70"W

4x4abc - 1-19-2023 at 03:57 PM

Quote: Originally posted by David K

Sharp eye, Harald.
Looks like a parallel trail that continues up the Arroyo San Sebastian canyon from Rancho San Sebastian site, then climbs out (your image), to head west, to meet ECR about here: 28.443822, -113.569917

junction here:
28°26'52.29"N, 113°34'49.39"W

David K - 1-19-2023 at 05:45 PM

Quote: Originally posted by 4x4abc

Quote: Originally posted by David K

junction here:
28°26'52.29"N, 113°34'49.39"W

Yes, the one above was your switchback waypoint (in decimal degrees) that was still in my mouse! My mouse failed to grab the one I wanted to past here: 28.4489, -113.5805 or using Harald's format: 28°26'56.1" N, 113°34'49.8" W

This is just a few meters from your junction waypoint.

4x4abc - 1-19-2023 at 06:01 PM

Quote: Originally posted by David K

Quote: Originally posted by 4x4abc

Quote: Originally posted by David K

junction here:
28°26'52.29"N, 113°34'49.39"W

intyeresting is that Google is blocking out the view of that area
blocked areas have increased quite a bit over the last year

mtgoat666 - 1-19-2023 at 07:33 PM

Quote: Originally posted by 4x4abc

Quote: Originally posted by David K

Quote: Originally posted by 4x4abc

Quote: Originally posted by David K

junction here:
28°26'52.29"N, 113°34'49.39"W

intyeresting is that Google is blocking out the view of that area
blocked areas have increased quite a bit over the last year

How does Google control the weather?

bajaric - 1-19-2023 at 09:09 PM

Chemtrails. :cool:

It almost looks like there are two parallel trails that split apart before San Sebastion and then rejoin farther north. Maybe, as DK said, the Jesuits made an alternate trail to replace the first one. That switchback trail that Harald found screams "Jesutis".

Or, someone else made a new trail. There was a little mining around there, Gabb saw an arrastra at San Sebastion in 1867. Miners were great road builders. They did not have Indian labor, but they made up for it with explosives. Or a trail made by ranchers.

Thanks again for sharing that trip report. A place that very few people have seen in person. The return trip to Jesus Maria looks like a decent graded road and an alternate to going the long way past El Arco. Any way points or Rancho names that you passed en route?

[Edited on 1-20-2023 by bajaric]

4x4abc - 1-20-2023 at 01:01 AM

Quote: Originally posted by mtgoat666

How does Google control the weather?

Google can select sat images with clouds or without clouds
they can also select images with bad resolution or good resolution
here is what is currently fuzzy or cloud covered:

mtgoat666 - 1-20-2023 at 09:19 AM

Quote: Originally posted by 4x4abc

Quote: Originally posted by mtgoat666

How does Google control the weather?

Google can select sat images with clouds or without clouds
they can also select images with bad resolution or good resolution
here is what is currently fuzzy or cloud covered:

actually, google attempts to procure images with least cloud cover. but sometimes that is all that is available from the image vendors. some parts of the world are just not photographed often, because there are little or no buyers for images of remote areas.
sat photo vendors focus on imaging what sells. there is no benefit from photographing remote baja areas if no one wants to buy or use the images.
do you think google wants to pay extra for images of remote areas if very few people are looking at remote areas?

Fatboy - 1-20-2023 at 01:44 PM

I did go out the Jesus Maria way and the first half from Rancho Nuevo until out of the mountains doesn't seem to be used very much. It was a little tougher in some spots and at times it looked like I was on a road that did not go anywhere and that had me a little concerned.

I passed 3 ranchos on the way out 1 looked deserted and the other 2 looked lived in and working ranchos. I didn't time it or check the mileage so I am not sure which was shorter and/or quicker but coming from the north I would go back this way.

I do believe that Ranchos Los Corralles/Nuevo/Santa Cruz use a different way to get in and out, it is probably the quickest/easiest way and I wonder where it is?

Quote: Originally posted by bajaric

Chemtrails. :cool:

4x4abc - 1-20-2023 at 01:44 PM

Google listens to wilderness advocates, BLM, Forest Service, government agencies, mining companies, real estate developers when it comes to displaying images of selected areas.
I often find new roads, buildings etc a couple of years after an area had been obscured.
You can often (but not always) find current and accurate images on other sites.
If you are willing to pay, you can get super accurate images taken yesterday from some services.
https://eos.com/find-satellite/

4x4abc - 1-20-2023 at 01:55 PM

recently found a new road from El Rarril to Rancho San Miguel on Google
a couple of weeks later Google replaced the 2021 images with images from 2014 (without the new road)
I can only guess why - but I have no knowledge of the process involved
I am just observing

fortunately I trace every new development as soon as it shows up
and some of the tracks that I traced years ago are no longer visible (due to vegetation, erosion, lighting, resolution) on newer Google images