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BeachSeeker
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Posts: 110
Registered: 6-6-2023
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Book Recommendations and New Member Introduction
I've spent the last couple months taking in all of the great information here, and decided I should finally join and participate. I'll start with my
question first, and will write a brief introduction at the end if anyone cares to read it.
Does anyone have any recommendations on a fairly up to date guidebook on the less known beaches of Baja? I have the Benchmark Map/Atlas, but it lacks
the detail I need. I know Baja is all about the adventure, but sometimes a tip or a hint is all that is needed to get you started. I spend a lot of
time on Satellite maps, but determining if a road/trail is passable is not always possible, and a locked gate can waste an hour of backtracking. I've
starting compiling bits and pieces from trip reports, which is certainly helpful too. I imagine David K's new Road Guide might be what I'm looking
for. When do you plan to start printing David?
My wife and I enjoy exploring and the adventure of finding the secluded beaches of Baja. The perfect beach for us is sandy, clear water, snorkeling
nearby, and not another person around. Decent fishing is a plus too. Even well known beaches can be nice if you can drive a km away from the crowd and
be by ourselves.
Our first trip to Baja was La Paz in 2018. We flew to Cabo, rented a Jeep, and drove to La Paz. We spent a week exploring all of the beaches we could
find on the Satellite map from La Paz to La Ventana. We were hooked. Baja was magical, and gave a true freedom to explore. Since then we have been
back to the East Cape about a dozen times, usually staying in Los Barriles. We have found pretty much every "secluded" beach between La Ventana and
Cabo Pulmo. A couple weeks ago we decided to drive down to San Felipe for the first time. While San Felipe isn't at all our style, we found a few
stretches of sand that were great between there and Puertocitos. As a kayak fisherman, I've always read about BOLA, Ganzaga, Mulege, etc, but this
trip finally sparked the realization that there is so much more to explore in Baja than just the East Cape. I'm already planning our next trip, making
our way to Mulege. We are looking forward to exploring the rest of Baja and finding all the amazing beaches.
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4x4abc
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4291
Registered: 4-24-2009
Location: La Paz, BCS
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Mood: happy - always
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maps are the least reliable tool for road conditions
the most detailed maps are the INEGI topo maps
https://www.facebook.com/groups/651595359982880
most useful nav tool for Baja is GaiaGPS
but in the end it will be you making it possible to get to those remote beaches - or not.
no gates in remote areas of Baja beaches - except Timbabiche. There is a gate going towards Los Gatos. Seems only closed on weekends and holidays
Harald Pietschmann
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4x4abc
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4291
Registered: 4-24-2009
Location: La Paz, BCS
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Mood: happy - always
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I forgot to mention Google Earth
you should not venture anywhere remote in Baja without STUDYING sat images
that might be as many hours as the actual drive
Harald Pietschmann
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BeachSeeker
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Thanks for the information Harald! I've never messed with GaiaGPS but I'll have a look. Do they allow offline satellite and topo?
I do spend a lot of time already studying satellite maps. That is pretty much the basis of all my trips; find a beach on satellite that looks cool,
accessible yet off the beaten path, then go try to get there.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64864
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Welcome aboard BeachSeeker,
I hope you have been to my www.VivaBaja.com site, which I am modifying and adding content to almost daily.
Rather than a long list of links to content (maps, photos, history, etc.) on the home page, I am grouping things onto side pages so it may be quicker
to find content. I am working on an index, too. Revisit often to see what's new and what I have changed.
To see beaches, look at my Interactive Photos Map and to read about that beach, go to my Trip Albums. My Baja Bound Road Guide is back on production
following a delay for the Baja 500 and NORRA 1000. The person Baja Bound has hired to make the book ready to publish is heavily involved with the
sport.
Thank you for your interest in my Road Guide work. Did you know, I have shared several pages from the book's pre-publication edition you can see now,
on VivaBaja.com?
OK... so here are some places to look:
https://vivabaja.com/locations/
https://vivabaja.com/driving/
plus if you want to see some history on your way to a beach:
https://vivabaja.com/history/
As always, I am happy to assist... feel free to ask, u2u, or email me. There also is VivaBaja on Facebook, where we share locations, photos, camping
trips, etc. https://www.facebook.com/groups/vivabaja
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mtgoat666
Select Nomad
Posts: 18429
Registered: 9-16-2006
Location: San Diego
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Mood: Hot n spicy
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Quote: Originally posted by BeachSeeker  |
Does anyone have any recommendations on a fairly up to date guidebook on the less known beaches of Baja?
My wife and I enjoy exploring and the adventure of finding the secluded beaches of Baja. The perfect beach for us is sandy, clear water, snorkeling
nearby, and not another person around. |
The beaches listed in books and on websites are overrun with other people.
If you want a private beach, don’t look for it in books and online.
If you want your discovery to remain uncrowded, then don’t post your discovery on line!
Posting on the internet is the fastest way to ruin something!
Simple answer to the OP: don’t ask the question!
Woke!
“...ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.” “My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America
will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.”
Prefered gender pronoun: the royal we
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64864
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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That is so untrue, goat. I have been sharing Shell Island with my Nomad friends since Nomad began, 21 years ago... and it still looks like this, as it
did when I first camped there, 45 years ago!:
A typical Memorial Day weekend, nobody else was on the 4-mile-long beach/ barrier island...
The secret is 4WD and not being a sissy or needing any facilities.
As anywhere, if you bring it in full, you can haul it out empty. Take only photos and leave only footprints.
[Edited on 6-7-2023 by David K]
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AKgringo
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6035
Registered: 9-20-2014
Location: Anchorage, AK (no mas!)
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Mood: Retireded
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Will you have a good 4x4 on your planned trip? I have explored quite a few remote beaches, but some of them are risky in a standard vehicle.
If you are not living on the edge, you are taking up too much space!
"Could do better if he tried!" Report card comments from most of my grade school teachers. Sadly, still true!
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BeachSeeker
Nomad
Posts: 110
Registered: 6-6-2023
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David K - Thank you for the welcome. Yes I have explored VivaBaja and I really appreciate all of the information. I am slowing
piecing locations together. Like you mention, and if you don't mind the feedback, the website could benefit from some sort of menu or indexing. I
understand that is a ton of work, and just having the information there is so helpful to the community, so I don't want to sound ungrateful. I'll
check out those links, they seem to be pointing me in the right direction. I am definitely going to check out Shell Island next time I head South. We
never have really been campers. Don't need much in the way of accommodations, but a shower and a bed are nice after spending the whole day exploring.
I'll keep an eye out for your Road Guide once it is in print.
mtgoat - I get what you are saying, I really do. I'm not looking for a TikTok story on each beach. All I need is some basic info.
"Turn left at km xx.x, dirt and sand road, trucks ok, xx.x km to sandy beach with reef on South side." Wasn't sure if there was something like this
available or not. I've found some great beaches in the East Cape, which is definitely not an unexplored or undocumented area of Baja.
AKgringo - I'm not looking to do any major offroading, but sand/dirt/mud is fine. Arroyos and unmaintained trails are fine. I'll be
driving a mostly stock newer Tacoma TRD Off Road. Capable, but the offroading is a means to an end, not the goal.
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4x4abc
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4291
Registered: 4-24-2009
Location: La Paz, BCS
Member Is Offline
Mood: happy - always
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| Quote: Originally posted by BeachSeeker | Thanks for the information Harald! I've never messed with GaiaGPS but I'll have a look. Do they allow offline satellite and topo?
I do spend a lot of time already studying satellite maps. That is pretty much the basis of all my trips; find a beach on satellite that looks cool,
accessible yet off the beaten path, then go try to get there. |
I am mapping professionally
GaiaGPS is one of my main support tools. It is the only one that offers the original Mexican INEGI topos (subscription needed)
works flawlessly offline
topos need to be preloaded, of course
Harald Pietschmann
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4x4abc
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4291
Registered: 4-24-2009
Location: La Paz, BCS
Member Is Offline
Mood: happy - always
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| Quote: Originally posted by mtgoat666 |
The beaches listed in books and on websites are overrun with other people.
If you want a private beach, don’t look for it in books and online.
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right - the cool stuff is not in the books (yet)
Harald Pietschmann
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mtgoat666
Select Nomad
Posts: 18429
Registered: 9-16-2006
Location: San Diego
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Mood: Hot n spicy
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Every day the cool stuff gets ruined when people post it on in their social media, on ioverlander, etc.
The cool stuff left is behind gates or in roadless areas.
The internet sharers are fast ruining everything else…
Woke!
“...ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.” “My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America
will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.”
Prefered gender pronoun: the royal we
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shari
Select Nomad
Posts: 13048
Registered: 3-10-2006
Location: bahia asuncion, baja sur
Member Is Offline
Mood: there is no reality except the one contained within us "Herman Hesse"
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Welcome to the sandbox Beachseekeer! For remote pristine sandy beaches with not a soul on them visit us on the central Pacside. the weather is lovely
between July & March...not too hot in summer, not cold in winter.
Here around Bahia Asuncion there are dozens of beaches within a half hour of the village where shore fishing yields a fish every cast. I can dial you
in to how to best access them if you stop in and visit me at La Bufadora Inn. To see some of the area beaches take a peek at www.bahiaasuncion.com
There are miles of empty beaches between Bahia Tortugas & La Bocana to explore and fish.
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wilderone
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3825
Registered: 2-9-2004
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You're on the right track, and your truck will do just fine. Lots of beaches are empty at the end of the road. Are you camping? Santa Rosalillita
was all ours - see the small sign to the right before you get to town. Try the Conception Bay peninsula west road. Punta Chivato, then south to
Bahia Sta Ines. BOLA, but then south to Bahia Las Animas.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64864
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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| Quote: Originally posted by BeachSeeker | David K - Thank you for the welcome. Yes I have explored VivaBaja and I really appreciate all of the information. I am slowing
piecing locations together. Like you mention, and if you don't mind the feedback, the website could benefit from some sort of menu or indexing. I
understand that is a ton of work, and just having the information there is so helpful to the community, so I don't want to sound ungrateful. I'll
check out those links, they seem to be pointing me in the right direction. I am definitely going to check out Shell Island next time I head South. We
never have really been campers. Don't need much in the way of accommodations, but a shower and a bed are nice after spending the whole day exploring.
I'll keep an eye out for your Road Guide once it is in print.
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Oh yes, I agree... I have been loading my reports and logs as well as great links, maps, photos, and history... It is jam packed and sort of a
rabbit-hole that you could spend a vacation in, without leaving home!
To reduce the search time, I have moved many links into groupings and will continue to try and make the Viva Baja experience more streamlined (click
on blue text to see each):
Click to DISCOVER WHERE TO GO, WHAT TO DO, and HOW TO GET THERE:
Discover LOCATIONS (Travel Articles, Maps, Books, Road Logs)
Discover HISTORY (Missions, El Camino Real, Painted Caves, etc.)
Discover DRIVING (Border Crossing, Road Maps, Kilometer Marker, GPS)
Funny that you should mention an index... which hyper-links you to the page with that place or thing. I have begun building one!
See it here, under construction: https://vivabaja.com/viva-baja-index/
Thank you for commenting and anything else I can do to help one navigate VivaBaja.com or find a Baja adventure to experience, let me know!
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surfhat
Senior Nomad
Posts: 549
Registered: 6-4-2012
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Back in the old days of the 70's, the best we had was the Baja Topographic Book.
It showed just about everything except locked gates. haha
There are many more of those these days, so these modern updates are invaluable. Even more so with the occasional hurricane changing the access to the
out there spots.
There is something special about holding a book in your hands and finding maps of roads and trails that might go somewhere many others will not. One
can hope so.
Having Baja to yourself when you can will always remain special. Sharing adventures with close friends is even better if there are as few of them as
possible. I never went down to join a crowd if I had the choice, but a couple of friends along were welcomed if they didn't tell of their friends
later. haha
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64864
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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| Quote: Originally posted by surfhat | Back in the old days of the 70's, the best we had was the Baja Topographic Book.
It showed just about everything except locked gates. haha
There are many more of those these days, so these modern updates are invaluable. Even more so with the occasional hurricane changing the access to the
out there spots.
There is something special about holding a book in your hands and finding maps of roads and trails that might go somewhere many others will not. One
can hope so.
Having Baja to yourself when you can will always remain special. Sharing adventures with close friends is even better if there are as few of them as
possible. I never went down to join a crowd if I had the choice, but a couple of friends along were welcomed if they didn't tell of their friends
later. haha
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In the 70s, besides what the Auto Club produced for its members, we had these road log and map guidebooks:
In the 1980s
and in 1986 the first edition of two Baja Topo Atlas books. [They would later
become the Baja Almanac editions later. Today, we have the Benchmark Baja Road Atlas]:
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aburruss
Nomad
Posts: 218
Registered: 2-6-2018
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Also.. Get the Avenza Maps app, and load in the Benchmark Maps Baja Atlas. Will allow you to track your location overlaid on their maps. Super
resource for exploring when you don't know where you going.. Is there a road? Yep! Nope! Figure it out!... Sometimes it'll get you close, and then
you find something worth exploring down the road where their road or path ends! But if nothing else, it'll keep you on track with where you're trying
to go.
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AKgringo
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6035
Registered: 9-20-2014
Location: Anchorage, AK (no mas!)
Member Is Offline
Mood: Retireded
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Bahia Asuncion
BeachSeeker, did you take the time to view Shari's video link? http://www.bahiaasuncion.com
I have spent some time at La Bufadora...it is a special place, and many beaches are a short drive away if the ones in town don't suit you. While
exploring the area, keep in mind that the fishing co-op is watchful of their abalone and lobster stocks.
I have met them several times, and it was a cordial encounter each time. They had no problem with me and my dog spending nights in either of the
locations.
If you are not living on the edge, you are taking up too much space!
"Could do better if he tried!" Report card comments from most of my grade school teachers. Sadly, still true!
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BeachSeeker
Nomad
Posts: 110
Registered: 6-6-2023
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Thank you everyone for the information! I have spent no less than 20 hours just looking through trip reports and piecing together information on
satellite and topo maps. This is nothing new. We have explored the entire East Cape like this. As well as much of the Pacific side of Costa Rica.
Sheri & AKGringo Bahia Asuncion and that whole area are on the list. However, the Sea of Cortez is more of a draw for use, with
white sand and warm water. When we do go, we will definitely come visit you Sheri and stay at the La Bufadora Inn. Maybe that is the place to go in
the hottest months when the Golfo is too hot.
Speaking of books, is there anything like "The Baja Catch", but updated? I think the last one was published in 1997.
[Edited on 6-13-2023 by BeachSeeker]
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