Stuff to see along the Sea of Cortez

[Ray Hyland]

Hey all, we will be spending about 10 days on the Baja North East Coast, between San Felipe and Bahia De Los Angeles over Xmas/NY.

Mainly we will be kayaking, playing along the beach, etc. But I am looking to see what other cool stuff there is to do and see with 3 boys aged 10-11-12. Dog friendly is always good too (we will have 2 big dogs along).

Markets, Ruins, aquariums, great ice-cream, etc.

Cheers

Ray

 

[Bajadb]

You can hang out in the Hot springs in puertocitos, you have to pay a little to park there. Panga ride at gonzaga bay to look for wildlife around the islands,maybe fish..... Wildlife ocean life sanctuary in LABay.Tide flats in San Felipe too. Good ice cream on the malecon near the middle. Can't miss it. I have boys about the same age and we hit all those spots. Get a hotdog at cow patties near puertocitos. Stop and visit with Coco if he is there at his corner south of gonzaga...oh cactus forest south of San Felipe too. Also have to pay a bit there too.

 

[Ray Hyland]

Awesome suggestions, thanks!

 

[goodtimes]

It's worth the drive up to Montevideo (petroglyphs) - ~10 miles east of BoLA, and then on up a bit further to San Borja (mission). If you hit it on the way out, you can take the dirt 2-track all the way back out to Nuevo Rosarito (?), which is a fantastic drive. If you're going east to west, do it in the morning so the sun is at your back.

 

[1leglance]

Fireworks, fireworks and ummmm fireworks
When my boys were that age there was nothing more fun for them than camping on the beach and putting on nightly "shows" for the family.
Not sure what things are like in Canada but for us in the USA fireworks are no longer as easy to access and enjoy.

Part of the fun of Mexico is the street experience, just walk around San Felipe and other small towns (not in the tourist markets) and talk about daily life there. It made a big impact on my sons as they tried to imagine living in those places and what life would be like. Even stocking up at small stores for camping is an adventure and learning experience.

Oh yeah, and make sure you get some fireworks

 

[Enigma]

I've only been to Mexico once 12 years ago when the wifey and I got married in Loreto. Beautiful little town, nice people. Really need to go back one day.

Anyhoo, if you are driving down that way, it's worth a stop.

 

[shortbus4x4]

x2 on the fireworks. I used to have a blast down there with fireworks.:victory:

 

[Ray Hyland]

We had a great time in Baja. Very kid-friendly place.

We camped on the beaches every night, on isolated beaches where we could find them, and spent a few days over xmas on an isolated sandy beach near a semi-abandoned housing project, where the sand dunes were slowly burying the houses.

In one house (cinderblock shell, no electricity, no water, no windows, dirt floor, etc) we met a local fisherman. He would string nets on the beach and check them at low tide. His son was about the same age as ours, and they all had fun playing together. We spent a couple of days with the family, sharing meals, chatting about life, etc. They only spoke Spanish, which we don't speak, so it was fun trying to explain some concepts. Lots of mime, drawing in the sand, etc. but no real issues communicating.

They gave us a whole bunch of dried fish which was really good (if you like dried, salted fish - imagine fish jerky, really really good with a cold beer) and on xmas day we all made a fish stew with it, which was really good.

Declan learning to fish with a net.


Dried fish


Fish Stew


One of our dogs, guarding the Kayaks.

 

[Ronct110]

Looks like excellent family time together; thanks for sharing!

One of these days, will make it down to San Felipe and further; how was the re-fuel stop experience, and where did you re-fuel passed the border/enroute to San Felipe? Thanks!

 

[Ray Hyland]

how was the re-fuel stop experience, and where did you re-fuel passed the border/enroute to San Felipe? Thanks!

Actually we rolled through the East border crossing at Mexicali, which was fast and easy, and immediately after the border there was a Pemex station, clean, friendly, gave us the best exchange rate we saw all trip, was happy to exchange a few hundred bucks for pesos, and sold us diesel for about $3/gallon.

There were lots of gas stations, but only about 50% of them sold diesel. Not a problem for us, as we have a 1500km range, but if you have a small tank you may want to bring a Jerry can or two along, just in case the station that should have diesel has run out, or there is a pump malfunction. At one place we went to, only one of the eight pumps actually worked.

 

[cesar.tj]

Ray im planing to make same trip , do you have any more pics that you can share?

 

[Ray Hyland]

Ray im planing to make same trip , do you have any more pics that you can share?

Marianne's report was on the front page, lots of pics. I am planning to post a report soon.

Cheers