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preston
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Posts: 159
Registered: 2-3-2005
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Gonzaga Loop Trip
I will be making my bi-annual San Diego - Gonzaga loop trip next week. Will be leaving the morning of May 27th and returning June 2nd. My wife will be
coming with me this year (thanks to the road improvements) along with my golden retriever. General plan:
Day 1: San Diego to Mexicali to San Felipe (taco stop) and camping somewhere south or Puerticitos.
Day 2: to Gonzaga
Day 3 and 4: Gonzaga
Day 5 and 6: to Ensenada/Wine Country and return
I'll be driving a gray Tacoma with a windsurfer (stand-up paddleboard) on top.
Will either be at Alfonsina's or Beluga in Gonzaga (depending on which one looks less crazy).
If you see me, please stop by for a beer (I'll have plenty).
Haven't decided whether to come back via Highway 1 or back through San Felipe and Highway 3. With the progress on Highway 5 out of Gonzaga, I suspect
that may be faster. Any confirmation?
I'll do a report when I return.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65087
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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When you are there (at Gonzaga Bay) look to the hills to the west-southwest... We will be up in there May 29 & 30: Mision Santa Maria!
Have a fun trip... If you are camping, then Beluga should work... Rancho Grande turned their area into a dust bowl says other Nomads... and
Alfonsina's has only a motel, unless you have friends there and can camp on their lot.
Take photos... note where the pavement end and then how much further new road work goes. Visit Coco if you return via Hwy. 1.
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preston
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Yes, Rancho Grande has been "destroyed" by the wall they are building and the grading elsewhere. It's off my camp list for now.
Yep, always make a Coco stop if I am going out that way.
Are you coming down the 5 or the 1?
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David K
Honored Nomad
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| Quote: | Originally posted by preston
Yes, Rancho Grande has been "destroyed" by the wall they are building and the grading elsewhere. It's off my camp list for now.
Yep, always make a Coco stop if I am going out that way.
Are you coming down the 5 or the 1? |
Oh, the 1, as the road to the mission begins at Santa Ynez (a mile from Cataviña) and we will be staying at Baja Cactus in El Rosario on the way down
and back.
Alas, the only direct way between Gonzaga and Santa Maria is by foot or mule (El Camino Real)!
Chris next to a sign that was laying along the trail, just up the hill from the arroyo where the hike begins.
In 2003, my son and I hiked most of the way to the mission on the Camino Real from the Gonzaga Bay side... but ran out of daylight before we turned
back. Allow 6 hours one way.
That's Punta Final... from the Camino Real.
The mission trail is barely visible along the side of the hill... high above the Santa Maria canyon.
Fun stuff... I would like to try again and do the entire trail... before I get too old. Don Jorge followed Chris and I, a couple weeks later and did
it all the way to the mission... and returned via the canyon, which required a lot of water crossings.
[Edited on 5-20-2010 by David K]
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David K
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I just posted some old, old maps of the Gonzaga Bay area here: http://forums.bajanomad.com/viewthread.php?tid=45819
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Edguero
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Registered: 6-13-2006
Location: O\'side/Punta Final
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Check out Sacraficio south of Beluga, stopped by there a month ago and thought it was pretty nice, $15 a night you get a 3 room bungalow with
queen/full size bed, bunk beds and a really nice bathroom with hot water, shade out front with a bbq. Eduardo who is the jefe there is quite a
character who takes pride in work at the campo.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65087
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Location: San Diego County
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Edguero
Check out Sacraficio south of Beluga, stopped by there a month ago and thought it was pretty nice, $15 a night you get a 3 room bungalow with
queen/full size bed, bunk beds and a really nice bathroom with hot water, shade out front with a bbq. Eduardo who is the jefe there is quite a
character who takes pride in work at the campo. |
Good to know! Just some small signs and an unusual name is what we saw for the tourist camp (Sacrifice?), last time we were at Beluga.
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mcpuitar
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Posts: 37
Registered: 3-16-2010
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Preston, I'll be heading down to the Punta Chivato/Mulegé area at the same time with my girlfriend, another woman friend, and 2 friendly dogs. I live
in Tucson and usually take the Santa Rosalía ferry from Guaymas, or take Hwy 1 down through Ensenada, but this time I've decided to drive Route 5
south from Mexicali just to try something different and check out the new roadwork. We'll also be making that taco stop in San Felipe on the 27th and
then camping somewhere south of Puertecitos that night too. We'll be stopping by Gonzaga, but only briefly, on the 28th and then Coco's Corner on the
way out to Hwy 1. Aiming to arrive Mulegé no later than Saturday afternoon of the 29th. We'll look for you along the way. We'll have plenty of cold
beer with us as well. I'll be driving a green Honda Element with a few bags on the roof rack. Hope to see you!
I'm not positive about the best return route to San Diego but now that the road is paved to El Huerfanito I'm pretty sure it would be faster for you
to backtrack north from Gonzaga instead of driving down to Hwy 1. Have a great trip! -Peter
McPedro
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preston
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Posts: 159
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Edguero
Check out Sacraficio south of Beluga, stopped by there a month ago and thought it was pretty nice, $15 a night you get a 3 room bungalow with
queen/full size bed, bunk beds and a really nice bathroom with hot water, shade out front with a bbq. Eduardo who is the jefe there is quite a
character who takes pride in work at the campo. |
Thanks. As a minimum, I will check it out ...
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preston
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David:
As always, thanks. I recognize the one from the Cross book (of which I have a copy). I'm always befuddled by the name changes and multiple names for
locations in Baja. I guess it comes with the fact that this is still pretty much a remote area.
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preston
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Posts: 159
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| Quote: | Originally posted by mcpuitar
Preston, I'll be heading down to the Punta Chivato/Mulegé area at the same time with my girlfriend, another woman friend, and 2 friendly dogs. I live
in Tucson and usually take the Santa Rosalía ferry from Guaymas, or take Hwy 1 down through Ensenada, but this time I've decided to drive Route 5
south from Mexicali just to try something different and check out the new roadwork. We'll also be making that taco stop in San Felipe on the 27th and
then camping somewhere south of Puertecitos that night too. We'll be stopping by Gonzaga, but only briefly, on the 28th and then Coco's Corner on the
way out to Hwy 1. Aiming to arrive Mulegé no later than Saturday afternoon of the 29th. We'll look for you along the way. We'll have plenty of cold
beer with us as well. I'll be driving a green Honda Element with a few bags on the roof rack. Hope to see you! |
Peter: My ETA in San Felipe will be between 3:00PM and 4:00PM. For camping south of Puerticitos, there is a small cove that has 5 or 6 Palapas and a
restaurant (you drive down off the road). I want to say within 5 miles south of Puerticitos .. but not sure. I have plenty of firewood and will keep
my eyes out for you. What is your ETA in San Felipe?
Thanks,
Preston
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65087
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Playa La Costilla 
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preston
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Posts: 159
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| Quote: | Originally posted by David K
Playa La Costilla |
Gracias!!!
Peter: that would be my plan ... unless I find something better!
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mcpuitar
Junior Nomad
Posts: 37
Registered: 3-16-2010
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Thanks Preston (and David too for the campo-info),
I hope to get an early enough start on the 27th to make it to San Felipe by 4:00 pm. Two of the three of us don't have FM's so we'll need to stop and
get our 180-day visas as we cross over (at Mexicali I suppose--I've never crossed there before), but I hope that won't take long. If we don't see you
eating tacos in SF, we'll look for you down the road and we'll be sure to check out Playa la Costilla to see if you and your wife are there to raise a
few cold ones with us by the Sea of Cortez and toast the beginning of a much-needed vacation. FYI: I have AZ plate 500-PTM.
McPedro
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BajaWarrior
Super Nomad
Posts: 2307
Registered: 9-27-2006
Location: Mission Bay, San Diego. Playa Hermosa, San Felipe.
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Mood: Anxious to get south
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| Quote: | Originally posted by mcpuitar
Thanks Preston (and David too for the campo-info),
I hope to get an early enough start on the 27th to make it to San Felipe by 4:00 pm. Two of the three of us don't have FM's so we'll need to stop and
get our 180-day visas as we cross over (at Mexicali I suppose--I've never crossed there before), but I hope that won't take long. If we don't see you
eating tacos in SF, we'll look for you down the road and we'll be sure to check out Playa la Costilla to see if you and your wife are there to raise a
few cold ones with us by the Sea of Cortez and toast the beginning of a much-needed vacation. FYI: I have AZ plate 500-PTM. |
On the subject of getting your FM-T at Mexicali East. When we were there last paying duty on goods we were bringing into Mexico the bank would not
accept U.S. Dollars. Got lucky and a guy in line exchanged for me at no cost, really, wouldn't take a dime.
Anyone else have this experience at the bank window lately?
Haven't had a bad trip yet....
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bajalou
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4459
Registered: 3-11-2004
Location: South of the broder
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| Quote: | Originally posted by BajaWarrior
On the subject of getting your FM-T at Mexicali East. When we were there last paying duty on goods we were bringing into Mexico the bank would not
accept U.S. Dollars. Got lucky and a guy in line exchanged for me at no cost, really, wouldn't take a dime.
Anyone else have this experience at the bank window lately? |
I once had a fine to pay to customs there and had to go to other banks to change $s to Pesos.
No Bad Days
\"Never argue with an idiot. People watching may not be able to tell the difference\"
\"The trouble with doing nothing is - how do I know when I\'m done?\"
Nomad Baja Interactive map
And in the San Felipe area - check out Valle Chico area |
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preston
Nomad
Posts: 159
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Never had a problem paying in dollars ANYWHERE in Baja ... of course many times I got screwed on the exchange rate ... so I always try to carry pesos
and dollars to pay in the listed currency. A few times I have been able to screw the other side on the exchange rate. I consider it all part of the
negotiation that is ingrained in the Mexican culture.
Of course, we're only talking about a few pesos
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preston
Nomad
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| Quote: | Originally posted by mcpuitar
Thanks Preston (and David too for the campo-info),
I hope to get an early enough start on the 27th to make it to San Felipe by 4:00 pm. Two of the three of us don't have FM's so we'll need to stop and
get our 180-day visas as we cross over (at Mexicali I suppose--I've never crossed there before), but I hope that won't take long. If we don't see you
eating tacos in SF, we'll look for you down the road and we'll be sure to check out Playa la Costilla to see if you and your wife are there to raise a
few cold ones with us by the Sea of Cortez and toast the beginning of a much-needed vacation. FYI: I have AZ plate 500-PTM. |
Peter:
Thanks! Sounds like we'll cross paths for sure. Again, I'll be driving a Tacoma with a 12' windsurfer on top (impossible to miss me).
Preston
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yakyak2010
Junior Nomad
Posts: 94
Registered: 4-24-2010
Location: Victorville, Ca.
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Beluga
I'm leaving Monday for Gonzaga, 1st time since 1972. Can I get to Beluga from Rancho Grande via the beach or do I need to go by road?
I\'ve been told I\'m preoccupied with Baja. They just don\"t understand, in fact neither do I.
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yakyak2010
Junior Nomad
Posts: 94
Registered: 4-24-2010
Location: Victorville, Ca.
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PS on finding Beluga. Are there any signs directing you to Beluga?
I\'ve been told I\'m preoccupied with Baja. They just don\"t understand, in fact neither do I.
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