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Ken Cooke
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8923
Registered: 2-9-2004
Location: Riverside, CA
Member Is Offline
Mood: Its Pole Line Road time
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Q: What's the worst road you've needed 4WD to conquer in Baja?
Anyone with some good stories & photos???
Up the creek (in Baja) in the dark (literally):
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BAJACAT
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2902
Registered: 11-21-2005
Location: NATIONAL CITY, CA
Member Is Offline
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Maybe "the widow maker", in catavina...(Santa Maria Mission)..
BAJA IS WHAT YOU WANTED TO BE, FUN,DANGEROUS,INCREDIBLE, REMOTE, EXOTIC..JUST GO AND HAVE FUN.....
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jimgrms
Senior Nomad
Posts: 664
Registered: 9-30-2005
Location: oceanside ca
Member Is Offline
Mood: its always good
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The b-tches the road south of puertocitos, in 64 or 65 had to unload my 57 international and back up the road as i had lost compound low the
road had been patched bu throwing bags of redi mix in the bad spots, i sure wish i had 4x4 at the time
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Hook
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9006
Registered: 3-13-2004
Location: Sonora
Member Is Offline
Mood: Inquisitive
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La Vibora.......but I dont get out much.
Yet.
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Crusoe
Senior Nomad
Posts: 731
Registered: 10-14-2006
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Aguajito---San Nicolas.....San Sebastia'n......!972. There was an old one legged man there----Isernio?......He liked to laugh alot and smile. Fun
person.
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Barry A.
Select Nomad
Posts: 10007
Registered: 11-30-2003
Location: Redding, Northern CA
Member Is Offline
Mood: optimistic
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For me deffinitely the grades just south of Puerto Citos in the mid-70's in my Ford F100 with a camper shell and 2 wheel drive with 4-speed manual
tranny and monster tires.
Tho we made it, on the return trip from San Luis Gonsaga I twisted my motor (240 6 cyl) off it's motor mounts on the first grade of the 3 (or 4?) bad
ones, and had to litterally chain the engine back to the frame to proceed home. It was really touch and go. When the motor mounts let go, the gear
shift lever on the floor came over and almost broke my leg--------that was a real wake-up call!!!
When I got home I installed semi-solid after-market motor mounts, and that old truck (1969) is still running with no more (similar) problems. My son
has it now in Owens Valley.
In the early 60's we had made the same trip in a VW van which made it ok, but the van was never quite the same after that----------what an amazing
vehicle.
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Oso
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2637
Registered: 8-29-2003
Location: on da border
Member Is Offline
Mood: wait and see
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Not sure "road" is applicable- took a wrong turn past Laguna San Ignacio the day before the B1k and ended up on the race course, through the dunes on
the whoop-de-dos. Came out on the beach in El Datil. Definitely would have never made it without the "doble". Spent the night on the beach in the
camper shell with my Chow/Lab, Chu Foon. Caught up with the LHL at Scorpion Bay next day. What an adventure!, broke a motor mount, fried spark plug
wires, had two flats and dented Roberto's pretty new F-350 during a moment's inattention in Cd. Constitucion. All this in an '82 Chevy Silverado-
still running. BTW, it's still for sale with or without solid steel camper shell.
All my childhood I wanted to be older. Now I\'m older and this chitn sucks.
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TMW
Select Nomad
Posts: 10659
Registered: 9-1-2003
Location: Bakersfield, CA
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I would say the Widow Maker too. There's one rock that took me 4 tries in 4x4 to get over. It's hard to say whether 4 wheel drive was necessary in a
lot of cases since I'm usually in 4 wheel drive when I'm on such roads. The south summit is another bad one. Probably much worse now that little or no
traffic has been over it. There are places on the Pole Line Road that are pretty bad too. Before the Baja 500 I plan on doing the San Ignacio to San
Juan de Las Pilas route. I understand that at the top of the mtn you can see both the Sea of Cortez and the Pacific .
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Barry A.
Select Nomad
Posts: 10007
Registered: 11-30-2003
Location: Redding, Northern CA
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Mood: optimistic
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TW-----the "south summit" is where in Baja??
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TMW
Select Nomad
Posts: 10659
Registered: 9-1-2003
Location: Bakersfield, CA
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Summit Loop
The following is from 2001 the last time I did the loop.
Summit Loop
For reference use the Baja Almanac page 8.
On hwy 3 turn north at KM108. You’ll cross a cattle guard onto a graded road.
GPS readings are Datum 27 in degrees-minutes –seconds, followed by elevation.
Hwy 3 at KM108. 0.0 31-29-29 x 115-46-39 3514ft
Jct. Sign Jamau y Sonora 2.8 31-29-55 x 115-43-59 3339ft
Bear left.
Nuevo jct. turn off to left 3.6 31-30-26 x 115-43-41 3350ft
Continue straight
At this point you’ll go about 6 miles total looking for a road to the left. If you come to a locked gate turn around and go back looking for a road to
your right with in a mile. I’m going from memory so please bear with me. If you look straight ahead you can see the summit road running left to right
at the base of the mtns.
The turn off road will take you to the summit road access at 6.9 miles from hwy.
Summit road access 6.9 31-33-09 x 115-43-31 3484ft
Fence and cattle guard 9.7 31-34-55 x 115-43-05 3736ft
This starts Summit run.
Sum. Rd .2 miles pass Dam 12.1 31-35-24 x 115-41-07 3761ft
Wash near house 14.2 31-35-49 x 115-39-49 3787ft
Note. This is El Jamau on topo map
** Top of Summit 19.0 31-37-38 x 115-36-37 4186ft
Wash at bottom of Summit 20.7 31-37-57 x 115-36-09 3088ft
Note: Turn right up out of wash. Watch carefully.
You can see road to south coming down Summit.
As I recall the right turn for the south summit is about 1/4 to 1/2 mile from the wash.
Turn right for South Summit 21.8 31-37-07 x 115-34-48 3220ft
Hill top up South Summit 24.1 31-36-10 x 115-36-04 4033ft
** Top of South Summit 24.6 31-36-03 x 115-36-24 4588ft
Gate at top of South Summit 25.0 31-35-52 x 115-36-31 4639ft
Y in road bear right 28.7 31-34-03 x 115-37-41 4448ft
Y in road bear right 31.0 31-32-21 x 115-38-19 3829ft
Note: Your now on Graded
Road to village of Jamau.
Cattle gate 32.9
Cattle gate 33.4
Jct. Sign Jamau y Sonora, same as line two above.
[Edited on 5-5-2007 by TW]
Attachment: Summit Loop 3.pdf (35kB)
This file has been downloaded 370 times
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TMW
Select Nomad
Posts: 10659
Registered: 9-1-2003
Location: Bakersfield, CA
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SCORE tried to use both summits in the 95 or 96 Baja 500 race but too many racers complained about how hard it was so it was taken out. That was the
first time I had been on it.
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Von
Senior Nomad
Posts: 961
Registered: 10-1-2006
Location: Poway-Rosarito
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Mood: getting ready!
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Thats around my uncles ranch right past heroes de independencia isnt it, I love going down all the way to the bottom and going north what a long trip
that is......back to La romurosa......
READY SET.....................
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Taco de Baja
Super Nomad
Posts: 1913
Registered: 4-14-2004
Location: Behind the Orange Curtain, CA
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Mood: Dreamin' of Baja
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The road through the Sierra Columbia, heading from Hwy 1 to Punta Blanca on the Pacific in the early 1980's comes to mind, some very hairy
stairsteps....But beautiful country.
Also the "road" through the dunes between Playa Malarrimo to the town of Malarrimo, 15 of so miles, to the northwest in a full size Chevy loaded with
gear...We decided to try it since we did not want to go back through the almost featureless plain to the pavement at San Jose de Castro.....Mighty
soft sand for a heavy truck
Truth generally lies in the coordination of antagonistic opinions
-Herbert Spencer
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AmoPescar
Senior Nomad
Posts: 835
Registered: 7-15-2006
Location: North San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Need a Fish Taco and a Pacifico!
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What's the worst road I needed 4WD to conquer in Baja?
It was the road to the border on Memorial Day weekend.
But hey…NO PROBLEM…I just threw in 4WD LOW and drove to the front of the line!!!!
Miguel 
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Ken Cooke
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8923
Registered: 2-9-2004
Location: Riverside, CA
Member Is Offline
Mood: Its Pole Line Road time
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| Quote: | Originally posted by AmoPescar
What's the worst road I needed 4WD to conquer in Baja?
It was the road to the border on Memorial Day weekend.
But hey…NO PROBLEM…I just threw in 4WD LOW and drove to the front of the line!!!!
Miguel
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These Jeepers couldn't wait to use the facilities - notice Lynn sitting on the Jeep on the left on Powell's bumper-mounted toilet seat!
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64589
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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I wonder if you were on the old logging road to Corral de Sam?
[Edited on 5-18-2007 by David K]
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DonBaja
Nomad
Posts: 139
Registered: 5-9-2006
Location: OC
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Mood: Just Cruzin'
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If I post the GPS coordinates would it be possible to find exactly where we were on a map or google earth ?
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64589
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Yes... Google uses map datum WGS 84 and Baja Almanac topos are at NAD 27 Mexico.
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DonBaja
Nomad
Posts: 139
Registered: 5-9-2006
Location: OC
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Mood: Just Cruzin'
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I apologize for hijacking this thread !!! Here are the coordinates:
Elevation 6,922 ft.
N.31* 02.788
w.115* 33.155
Hope this is correct
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64589
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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20 year old map shows Corral de Sam
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