The Baja Pages

Doing Baja on your own

   You're an adventurer, you don't like the cattle calls of fly fishing groups and want to explore Baja  California by yourself. Then do it! Trailering a boat to Baja is not that big a deal. The road, from the California border to Cabo San Lucas has been fully paved since 1973 and is in better shape every year. The drive, while long, is a eye popper into another culture and fishing from your own boat is much more rewarding when compared to fishing from a panga.

    First, let's work on the name of where you're going. Baja is properly called Baja California. Baja means lower in Spanish. If you were speaking English you wouldn't say, "I'm going to lower," so you really should add California when you refer this narrow strip of land south of our borders. By the way, if you live in U.S. California, it's referred to as Alta California. Alta means upper in Spanish.

    How long a drive is it? I'll start from the border, Tijuana, since your individual starting point could be anywhere in the U.S. I'm also assuming that you want to fish the Sea of Cortez side from Bahia de Los Angeles south and not the Pacific side. It's possible to reach L.A. Bay in about nine hours, Santa Rosalia in eleven hours, Mulege in 12 hours, and Loreto in 14 hours. After that it's another long drive to La Paz and the areas further south. You'll be able to refine your drive times from a book I'm going to recommend.

    What sized boat can you take to Baja California? Well, I've made many trips down with a Western 14 but I don't recommend anything that small unless you plan on fishing sheltered waters. The minimum I'd take is a high bowed 16 foot boat such as a Bayrunner or Valco with a "Baja" bow. Definitely leave your bass boat at home or any boat with a low open bow. The Sea of Cortez can be as smooth as the waters of a bathtub but when the wind blows, the chop comes up quickly and the fetch between waves is extremely short, sometimes as short as 12 feet. A low bowed boat is liable to swamp. The upper limit is up to you but I think you'd have a white knuckle drive all the way with anything over 22-24 feet. Mexico Highway One is only about ten feet wide per lane with no shoulder and sometimes a drop off instead. You'll be using your mirrors all the way down even with a 16 foot craft, just to keep your trailer wheels on the road.

        Making the commitment to trailer your boat into Mexico involves three phases, the paperwork and planning phase, the drive itself, and locating launch ramps and where to fish and stay once there. Each can be fun. After all, one of the joys of fishing is the anticipation of being on the water. The view from the drive itself is at times heartbreaking and at other times spectacular and the fishing from one's own boat is infinitely better than any panga.

The Paperwork

    These are the items REQUIRED to have before crossing the border. You should start gathering this stuff at least three months before actually entering Mexico.

    You can obtain forms for a U.S. Passport at your post office. Complete information on what's required can be found at this web site. http://travel.state.gov/passport/passport_1738.html The cost is around $65. Allow a minimum of six weeks for processing and delivery.

    You should have current copies of your registration for all of your vehicles from when you renewed your permits. If not, you'll have to go to DMV and purchase duplicates. They are absolutely necessary to have with you although you may not be checked. If you are checked however, and don't have the necessary registrations, your property may be confiscated until you can produce proof of ownership.

    The next four items would appear to be the biggest hassle but in truth, are the easiest to obtain since they can all be purchased at the same source, Vagabundos Del Mar, a Mexican travel club located in Rio Vista California. http://www.vagabundos.com/

    The costs for each of the various items is approximate and will change as the exchange rate varies but here are some estimates.

9/15/07 Update: You can no longer obtain a tourist pass (visa) from Vagabundos Del Mar. All visas are now issued by the Mexican government. You must stop at the border in Tijuana and go to the 24 hour immigration office (make sure you are in the far right lane when entering Mexico so you can pull over and stop, it's just inside the boundary), obtain your visa, walk to the 24 hour bank close by, pay for your visa and then return to the immigration office to have it stamped. The process takes about 20 minutes but is a pain since there is very little room to park. One nice thing, a 24 hour money exchange is open at the same location with decent rates.

    Of course, Vagabundos does not provide the above services for free. The club has annual dues of $35. Other benefits include a quarterly newsletter and invitations to various Vagabundos functions. To me, the hassle free acquisition of documents is certainly worth the $35 dollar fee and the newsletter will keep you informed of what's occurring throughout the rest of the year, helping you in making future plans.

    Now that you've completed the paper work or at least have the situation in hand, it's time for the planning. To complete this phase you need to purchase two books.

Planning

    Don't try to re-invent the wheel. Others have gone before you and published everything you need to know about driving and fishing the Baja peninsula. Many have written books about their experiences but there are two books that stand out so far beyond anything else published that they've become legendary.

    The first of these two books is, "The Magnificent Peninsula" by Jack Williams. The book may be out of print but can possibly be found on the Vagabundos book shelf in Rio Vista. If not, you can order it from Amazon.Com, possibly new and for sure, used. Why is this book so good? Because it describes the roadway you'll be driving, kilometer by kilometer, , every speed bump, turn-off, road sign, gas station, town or pueblo, campsite, hotel, and restaurant and has hints and tips along the way. It also has sections on the history of Baja California and interesting sections on the flora and fauna and geology you'll encounter on the drive down. This book is your travel bible. My copy is so worn that both covers are loose as are several pages and the whole thing is held together by rubber bands. Expect to spend about $30 for the book and don't gripe about the price if buying used. It's worth it!

    Have you ever arrived at a big lake and were intimidated by it's size and been clueless of where to start? Wouldn't it have been great to have a fishing map showing you exactly where to catch the most and largest fish. Well, there's a book that does that for all of Baja. That book is, "The Baja Catch" by Neil Kelly and Gene Kira. Neil and Gene have fished virtually the entire coast of Baja California from San Diego on the Pacific Side, down to the Cape and all the way up to the inflow of the Colorado River at the top end of the Sea of Cortez. They've written one of the best fishing resource books I've ever read and it's not even a fly fishing book! The book is filled with maps and descriptions of the water, coast, and marked with words like, Dorado, bass, Sierra, Roosterfish, Sails over specific locations on maps that have proven to be extremely accurate. In addition to the fishing information the book has information on boat launching and ramps, accommodations and hazards. I actually wore out my first copy of this book and am on my second. Again, you may be able to purchase this book at Vagabundos or, if not, Amazon.Com. You may even find it at your local fly shop. The cost is about $27.

    Once you have the two books in hand you can sit down and start some real planning. Is your trip constrained by time of year? Then I suggest starting with The Baja Catch and looking at what type of fish are available at that time. If you're strictly fly like myself you'll probably be interested in top water species exclusively. The best top water fishing is in the middle of the summer, from the last two weeks in June through August. The farther north you go, the shorter the times of the preferred top water fishing times. As you move south past La Paz, that period extends from March all the way through November.

    Ok, now you've picked the month you plan to travel and have a general idea of what water you want to fish. The next thing to consider is launching and lodging. If fishing the northern area from Bahia de Los Angeles to Loreto, concrete launch ramps are available at Bahia de Los Angeles, Santa Rosalia, Mulege and Loreto, beach launching for lighter boats on hard sand is also available at some of the beaches with dirt road access. 

    If you want to fish top water outside of June through August you're probably looking at driving south of La Paz to the East Cape or down to Cabo itself. You'll need to check both books to co-ordinate your fishing time and location to make sure that facilities exist for both launching and lodging. An example of a spectacular area that currently offers neither close by is La Ventana south of La Paz. Just one more place that needs developing. However, if camping and able to beach launch, this is an attractive location to fish from.

    As to lodging, you basically have three choices, camping, hotels and B&B's. 

    Because I know exactly where I'm going when I go south, I make advance reservations. However, I wouldn't be afraid to travel without having booked a room for the night, especially in the middle of summer, the hot and humid season. The hotels are seldom full. You may not be able to stay at the place you want to call home on the first night of your travels because they're full but usually you can book the rest of your stay after you pick out the place you want after the first night's passing.

    OK, you've done the paperwork, have your destination picked out, have your fishing gear in order, and are ready to go. You need to do one more thing. Trade dollars to pesos.

Money

    If you take dollars into Mexico be prepared to loose about 10% of their value on every transaction. In calculating the exchange, most merchants round down, not up. In addition, if you go down loaded with twenties, you may have to sit and wait at a taco stand while the owner runs around trying to find enough change. Forget $100's, they're suspect as being counterfeit and it's very hard to find a business with enough change to cash a hundred dollar bill with the exception of the Pemex gas stations. 

    If you have an ATM, you can make withdrawals at Mexican banks but banks are not as plentiful as in the U.S. and the ATM machines are frequently locked up in the lobby when the bank is closed. You can use your credit cards at major hotels but many smaller hotels and other businesses are cash only.

    You'll need to get a sufficient amount of pesos to cover your cash expenses while below the boarder. You can either ask your bank to exchange your dollars, or if you want the absolute best rate, exchange your money at San Ysidro at one of the exchange businesses, just before crossing the border into Tijuana. Ask for some small bills for lunches and other small purchases. For myself, I exchange money through my bank. It's just too much of a hassle to drive through San Ysidro pulling my boat, looking for the best exchange rate. The exchange takes about a week. Ok, now you're ready to cross the border into Mexico.

Crossing the border at Tijuana

    When you approach the border go to the farthest right lane allowed for autos since as soon as you cross, you're going to have to park and have your visas stamped. You may be stopped at the turnstiles and asked for registration on the boat and trailer but most likely you'll just be waved through. Once past the entry corridor pull over to the right. The parking apron is very small and you'll have a hard time and will have to park very close to the end. Give all of your passports and visas to one of your party and have them go to the immigration office where the date and time of entry will be stamped on the visas. Photocopies will also be made of your passports before everything is handed back.

Driving through Tijuana to Ensenada

    The best thing to do in driving through Tijuana is to stay on the freeways and get through quickly. Traffic in Tijuana is a mess. Be careful, the off ramp to the playas and Ensenada comes up quickly after leaving the border. Once in the road out of town, you can start to relax. The drive to Ensenada is an easy one. You'll have a choice of driving the toll road or the free road. I've never driven the free road to Ensenada since with boat and trailer I want as smooth a ride as possible. You'll pass through three toll stops on the hour drive down the coast. The road itself is a divided highway, two lanes in each direction. It has some spectacular views.

Gasoline in Mexico

    Gasoline in Mexico is sold by independent Pemex stations who purchase their inventory from the the government owned Pemex Corporation. The gasoline does not have alcohol as part of the blend and, while the same octane as U.S. gasoline, is not refined at the same quality. The result is that you will probably get a little poorer mileage than on U.S. gasoline. However, the price per gallon is usually 40-50 cents less than California. The government has pushed stations to exchange any old tanks for new installations and the days of gasoline with rust or water is now a thing of the past. Because of the poor quality refining, your high performance four cycle outboard will probably smoke and have a rough idle while warming up but will run just fine after a few minutes at anything but idle speed. Your tow vehicle will probably not be so finicky but will suffer from poorer fuel mileage.

Getting through Ensenada

    You have two choices in driving through Ensenada, neither is quick and neither is without some apprehensive moments. Your choices are to take the scenic route past the the waterfront or to stay on the main section of Highway One and drive through the center of town. Both routes are usually overcrowded and have multiple stops. 

    The scenic route involves keeping right in the commercial shipyard area and staying along the waterfront, first on Boulevard Azueta and then turning right onto Avenue Lazero Cardenas. If you are traveling in the early morning before eight thirty, need something to eat and can find a place to park your vehicle and tow and everything is secure and not subject to pilfering, a visit to the fish market is in order. The market is only half block from the main thoroughfare at the intersection of Azueta and Cardenas and seaward of the Denny's on the corner. A walk through the stalls reveals a fantastic menu of seafood items fresh from the sea and ready to cook. Along side the market stalls are a number of taco stands, most featuring fish and shrimp tacos. These places serve some quick, clean and wholesome food that is lip smacking good. If I possibly can, I try to time my passing through Ensenada to coincide with the market's being open. After visiting the market, continue along Lazero Cardenas until turning left on Agustin Sanginas and then right onto Avenue Reforma to leave town.

    The main route requires that you keep traveling straight at the split in the commercial ship area and driving deeper into town. The road swings right and then takes a hard right at an intersection and then a hard left onto Calle 9A where you travel southwest until reaching Avenue Reforma and the road out of town. Once on Avenue Reforma you'll pass lots of Burger Kings, McDonalds, KFC's and other places to stoke up before the long drive to El Rosario and the beginning of the first desert section. 

Military Road Blocks

     You wouldn't know it from the press here in the states but Mexico is attempting to do something about the rampant drug trafficking to the U.S. As part of this battle, a number of military road blocks have been set up along Highway One, from south of Ensenada, all the way to Cabo San Lucas. You will encounter anywhere from four to six manned roadblocks on the way south and on the way north. Usually southbound traffic is waived through without the necessity of a stop. Northbound is another matter. All vehicles heading north will be stopped and searched, both domestic and alien, private and commercial. The check usually takes about five minutes tops. The officer in charge may ask a few questions such as where are you coming from, what were you doing there, how long have you been in Mexico. Just do as he asks. Exit the vehicle to make the search easier. Make sure you take any valuables with you. We've never had a problem but the idea of tempting a young private with a wad of pesos jammed in the vehicle's glove box may be too much for him to resist.

     Years ago, my partner and I used to stock up the cooler and pass out iced sodas to the small crews of four to five soldiers working the road blocks. They really appreciated it. Now, because of Mexico's universal conscription, the crews have grown to as many as twenty soldiers at each road block, way too many to provide free drinks to.

Agricultural inspection at the 28th Parallel

     Just before you reach Gurrerro Negro, you will see a giant metal eagle standing in line with the roadway, and off to the right, an oversized Mexican flag. As you come closer you will approach an agricultural inspection station. It is required that you stop for inspection. The agricultural officer will ask if you have any produce and may ask to look in your cooler. If you have any restricted fruit or vegetables, they will be confiscated. You will also be required to pay the equivalent of about two dollars to have the underside of your vehicle sprayed before continuing on into the state of Baja Sur. You do not have to be sprayed on the return trip.

The large metal eagle was once the focal point of what was supposed to be a circular underground shopping center. The whole idea was part of the government's plan to make Highway One a tourist highway. The mostly abandoned RV parks along the highway were another part of that scheme. The government's attempt at planning tourism however was a dismal failure and the center was abandoned shortly after. A few years later the government built a military facility at the old center. In recent years it's expanded to a large military base.

One last precaution, driving at night

    It is a hard and fast rule that you do NOT drive at night in Baja California. Alcoholism is rampant, the roads are narrow, services are meager, driving skills are minimal, and domestic vehicles are generally in poor repair. In addition, in the rural areas, range cattle roam the roads, especially when evenings are colder since the asphalt roadways give off heat long after the sun goes down. Plan your trip so you do NOT drive at night. If you leave Ensenada at first light, you can reach Loreto before dark. If you're staying along that section of the coast there's no need for a stop midway. If you do want to stop, the most frequented stop with the most facilities is Gurrerro Negro. Malaremo Motel has been THE place for travelers, has inexpensive basic rooms to crash in and a great dining room.

OK, you're on your own

    After Ensenada, the road is a series of small roadside towns all the way to La Paz. You'll go near Gurrerro Negro and near Loreto but not through them unless you choose. You'll cross arid mountains, spectacular deserts, more mountains, sea shore, more desert, more mountains, and drive down a steep grade to the Sea of Cortez. Once back at sea level, you'll drive along the incredibly beautiful coastline between Santa Rosalia and Loreto and look down at Bahia Concepcion, a jewel in a tropical sea. Every inch of roadway from Ensenada to Cabo San Lucas is described in detail in Jack Williams, "Magnificent Peninsula." Keep it on the dash, or better yet, in the lap of the co-pilot so that they can read along as you drive.

   If it's your first time and and fishing isn't EVERYTHING! I suggest taking your time and doing the drive in two days rather than one with a stop at Gurrerro Negro. The slower pace will allow for stops along the coast, some spectacular scenery, a stop at Mama Espinosa's in El Rosario, a world famous restaurant, a walk into the desert at Catavina, picture taking, and just plain being overwhelmed by the things that you'll see, both magnificently beautiful and sordid and depressing.

   The first time I drove I was humbled by what I saw. I've made the drive many times now and still feel the same way. As Jack Williams called it when titling his book, it really is a "Magnificent Peninsula."

Has this article helped you prepare for Baja? Please let me know!
Jerry at DeltaStripers.Com