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VegasNick
Junior Nomad
Posts: 75
Registered: 4-14-2015
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A week in Baja for first timers.
I'll get some pics added to this as I go, but I promised my friends from TJ that I would start this post out right.
Stay out of Baja. It sucks. The people are rude, the gas is too expensive and the attendants rip you off at every chance. The food sucks, the water
will kill you and you can't get a good hamburger. The people in Baja suck at English and the Policia are all criminals. Just stay home on the US where
it is safe!
Now that I have parroted everything that I heard about Baja, I can start telling all of you that my wife and I have had the time of our lives over the
past 6 days! We went all the way to Loreto and back up.
Our original plans were to go to Aqua Verde but were told due to it being the easter week, spring break, etc that the place would be packed. It turns
out they were right! People were camping three rows deep in Loreto and Concepcion!
So we spent our first night near San Felipe. One of our friends owns a small place there, but we stayed at a campground in Percebu. That first Baja
sunrise is one you will never forget! The second day was a marathon run all the way to Mulege with some more FJ owners from Tijuana.
I'll make a proper trip report and add pics this week, but I couldn't wait to see all is well in Baja! We loved it! Absolutely no problems anywhere at
all. Some of the nicest people we have ever met. The local police everywhere we stopped were awesome, and the Federales were no issue. I even chatted
with a few that were on the beach in Concepcion when I gave them some chilled bottled water.
Ok, more to come!
Oh yeah, and some of the cutest girls I have ever seen were pumping gas at a PEMEX in San Felipe and Vizcaino!
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VegasNick
Junior Nomad
Posts: 75
Registered: 4-14-2015
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We adapted quickly to life in Baja:
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VegasNick
Junior Nomad
Posts: 75
Registered: 4-14-2015
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This was our view from the camper that morning:
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ehall
Super Nomad
Posts: 1906
Registered: 3-29-2014
Location: Buckeye, Az
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Mood: It's 5 o'clock somewhere
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So you didn't get kidnapped and get your head chopped off? Lol. Glad you had a great time. Looking forward to more pictures.
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mtgoat666
Select Nomad
Posts: 18398
Registered: 9-16-2006
Location: San Diego
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Mood: Hot n spicy
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What is "the way?" Is that flag also for "the way?"
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nbacc
Senior Nomad
Posts: 770
Registered: 12-27-2008
Location: Northern California
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Good for you! sounds as if you had a GOOD time!!!
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Bajaboy
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4375
Registered: 10-9-2003
Location: Bahia Asuncion, BCS, Mexico
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We saw a FJ with a similar set up from TJ in Gonzaga on Tuesday. Glad you enjoyed your trip.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64857
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Thank you Nick, I look forward to your trip report!!!  
That trailer looks like it serves you well... and can keep the Toyota light for exploring out from your camp.
This may be the first of a lifetime of Baja adventures for you?
TONS of trip reports and ideas here on Nomad posted since 2002.
You may get some ideas from these Baja Bound articles, too: https://www.bajabound.com/bajaadventures/bajatravel/
[Edited on 3-26-2016 by David K]
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BajaBlanca
Select Nomad
Posts: 13197
Registered: 10-28-2008
Location: La Bocana, BCS
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hahaha great intro! great story! and that first sunrise is just spectacular.
obviously, you are not easily intimidated or you would never have had the courage to come south. sounds like you are as hooked as we all are.
next time, come on over to the Pacific side ... Punta Abreojos. La Bocana (and say hi to Les and I) and Bahia Asuncion (say hi to Shari and Juan)
are remarkable in their own right and completely different from the Sea of Cortez side.
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BajaTed
Senior Nomad
Posts: 859
Registered: 5-2-2010
Location: Bajamar
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Personal campsite "mystique" is a facet of baja camping and in intangible ways it can act as a security deterrent. IMO the flag will serve you well in
that regard.
Back in the day, arrival at a new campsite would have me carrying my Mayan ceremonial machete/axe around for the afternoon just to be a poser 
Es Todo Bueno
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woody with a view
PITA Nomad
Posts: 15939
Registered: 11-8-2004
Location: Looking at the Coronado Islands
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Mood: Everchangin'
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too bad those FJs were discontinued. it woulda been my Tundra replacement.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64857
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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OFF ROAD TRD 4Runner or Land Cruiser or Sequoia may be your options Woody?
Make sure it has the MTS (Multi-Terrain Select) system (new in 2016) that replaces basic A-TRAC, that was only available in the Off Road upgrade
models.
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Maron
Nomad
Posts: 458
Registered: 4-14-2014
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Welcome, VegasNick
Nice report and pictures
thks
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bajacalifornian
Super Nomad
Posts: 1117
Registered: 9-4-2010
Location: Loreto/Lopez Mateos/Rosarito
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Dang Nick. Apart from your great stuff . . .
You )sent great photos . . .
An accomplishment of sorts,
In these parts, around here.
Gracias!,
American by birth, Mexican by choice.
Signature addendum: Danish physicist — Niels Bohr — who said, “The opposite of one profound truth may very well be another profound truth.
Jeff Petersen
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willardguy
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6451
Registered: 9-19-2009
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Quote: Originally posted by bajacalifornian  | Dang Nick. Apart from your great stuff . . .
You )sent great photos . . .
An accomplishment of sorts,
In these parts, around here.
Gracias!,
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hey how did you guys fare the day after st pats? looked like a crappy boating day up here!
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BornFisher
Super Nomad
Posts: 2107
Registered: 1-11-2005
Location: K-38 Santa Martha/Encinitas
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Hey Nick--- Thanks for your post. Having a FJ Cruiser, I`ve seen your posts on one FJ Forum where you guided trips to Nevada ghost towns. So glad you
made it south, there is a whole new World waiting for an explorer like yourself. Thanks for your post and pics, much appreciated!!
Note to Mark--- Fishing bad!!! Hope to see you again!!
"When you catch a fish, you open the door of happiness."
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VegasNick
Junior Nomad
Posts: 75
Registered: 4-14-2015
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"The Way" was a song from 1998 about a couple who drove off into the sunset never to be seen again. (actually a true story with a more tragic ending)
The flag... well it's a pirate flag representing Christopher Moody. from some family research and stories passed down in our family, he is a relative.
I have embraced my pirate heritage. 
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VegasNick
Junior Nomad
Posts: 75
Registered: 4-14-2015
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If this ever dies, I will probably go to a 4 runner. I have 60K miles on it now,and probably 10K of it has been off road. zero mechanical issues thus
far.
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VegasNick
Junior Nomad
Posts: 75
Registered: 4-14-2015
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| Quote: Originally posted by BornFisher | Hey Nick--- Thanks for your post. Having a FJ Cruiser, I`ve seen your posts on one FJ Forum where you guided trips to Nevada ghost towns. So glad you
made it south, there is a whole new World waiting for an explorer like yourself. Thanks for your post and pics, much appreciated!!
Note to Mark--- Fishing bad!!! Hope to see you again!! |
Thanks man! Yeah, I am taking a bunch back to Baja in October! we also have a big ghost town event happening here in May. Some of the Tijuana guys are
supposed to be coming up for it.
Yep, I am hooked! I can hardly wait to get back down there.
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VegasNick
Junior Nomad
Posts: 75
Registered: 4-14-2015
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Ok, so here we go.
Some simple stats first. 6 days on the road. 2000 miles total round trip. Just about $500 in gas.
Some lessons learned:
Even though most everyone takes USD, stop in San Felipe and get ALL of the money you think you might need converted to Pesos. (Some PEMEX stations and
hotels only give you a 15:1 exchange rate.) Don't forget to let your bank and credit card company know you are traveling!
Get plenty of 20 Peso notes. They work great for tips!
Cheap hotel in Mexico means something totally different! Be happy if you get warm water. Bring your own toilet paper. (We slept in the camper every
night because it was more comfy. We used a hotel twice for just the shower and a real toilet) There are some nice places scattered throughout though.
Campgrounds may have a toilet that uses water from a 55 gallon drum on the roof to flush it!
Learn at least minimal Spanish. It helps a LOT!
Be careful navigating smaller towns. ALTO may mean stop, but in Baja it is a suggestion more than a norm.
Don't be in a rush! The only people that we found in a rush were from the US.
Get used to military checkpoints. They exist all over Baja. Be polite and let them know you don't know Spanish if you don't speak it. ("Alante" means
forward, so in other words...move on)
Don't forget to get your FMM and your Mexican Car Insurance.
Forget EVERYTHING you may have heard about traveling in Baja. At no time did we feel unsafe. The Policia in every town were very friendly. How long
has it been since you have seen a cop walking a beat in the US? We saw lots in small towns like Mulege and San Ignacio. The Federales were the same. I
chatted with several. We had to have the rig x-ray'd on the way in to Mexico. On the way out, our customs guys could have cared less. Every place we
ate had some awesome food. (remember "La cuenta porfavor" which means "bring the bill please" or you may be sitting for a while! We never had the
slightest of issues with Montezuma's Revenge. We never broke into the month supply of Mountain House that we had with us! We had no issues with gas
stations or the gas itself. I carried some AMSOIL octane booster and added it like three times over the course of the trip.
Ok, so that is it for the rambling notes. Pics to follow!
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