John M
Super Nomad
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Registered: 9-3-2003
Location: California High Desert
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Campground south of El Rosario
A week ago we drove a pretty good dirt road the 6+ miles west of Highway 1, just a few yards south of KM 82 to a place that David K had written about
in a 2017 Baja Bound article. There was supposed to be a camp area there with cabins to rent, some tent sites and great scenery.
The cabins were there, scenery along the drive was great - some really dense Cardon areas. The "tent" sites were simple palapas - really unusable as
they were filled with heavy growth of weeds.
The lone caretaker asked 600 pesos for a cabin. Since it was cool and very windy we took a look. Didn't seem that the cabins had been cleaned in a
long time. Rodent poop on the beds and all over the table(s) and all along the baseboards. Two cabins had a single mattress and the third cabin had
two beds.
The grounds of the area haven't been kept up in a long time. We decided not to stay. The return trip to the highway reinforced the great diversity of
cactus in the area but presented no great camping spots until we were within earshot of the highway.
Disappointed, but not surprised since we've not found any other post about this place more recent than 2018. At the time of David's article the name
was Rancho El Sauce.
Below is a photo from David's Baja Bound article. There are some similarities to what is there now.
 acer laptop keyboard locked up
John M
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David K
Honored Nomad
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Too bad it wasn't maintained. It was popular with locals during Semana Santa, I heard. Antonio took Doug's (Baja Nomad) family there years before my
visit. They were impressed. On my visit, there were three caretakers, as I recall. It was March, so before any Easter crowds.
So, where did you go next?
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John M
Super Nomad
Posts: 1922
Registered: 9-3-2003
Location: California High Desert
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Next?
Starting to get dark and wind was picking up - we turned off around Km 131 - I think it's the road to Puerto Santa Catarina - went in a little ways to
some little protection. Around 40 degrees overnight and constant wind blowing. Those cabins would have been more fun.
John M
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David K
Honored Nomad
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Pretty much nothing remains unchanged
The longer I live, the more things change. That's tough for a guy who is into nostalgia, lol!
Here is my Baja Bound article: A Surprise Desert Campground Near El Rosario >>>
https://www.bajabound.com/bajaadventures/bajatravel/rancho_e...
Here is Doug's trip report with photos, in 2006: https://forums.bajanomad.com/viewthread.php?tid=21098
Here was my 2017 trip report, lots of photos (El Sauce is near the bottom): https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/2017-baja-expedition-3-m...
[I posted the same report here and on Tacoma World, since the photos were preserved on Tacoma World (when Photobucket stopped honoring their deal) but
not on Nomad, that is the link]
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64859
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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My March 2017 Rancho El Sauce road and campground photos:
 Palapas
 Spring-fed pools
 Community kitchen
 Rental cabins
These were really nice back then, just bring your own bedding.
My 2018 Road Guide Map including El Sauce, east of K80 (the road is at Km. 82 then 10 kms in):
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wilderone
Ultra Nomad
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It's got "that Baja feeling" ! I hope to check it out.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64859
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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For about 3-4 miles on the road in, you are driving on El Camino Real! The Benchmark Baja Atlas shows the route from Loreto to El Rosario, as 'ground
proofed' by the backpacking couple of CaminoRealBaja.com. If you have the Avenza App on your phone, your location on the Atlas is shown.
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