Glass smooth ocean for first kayaking!
San Felipe was nice to explore and has some great eateries. The campground we were in was OK, but we were hankering for some Baja beach boondocking. For me, that was what hooked me on going to Baja Mexico in the first place. A quiet beach was a bucket list item for me down here. Spots were researched going south. What would we end up at?
You may assume I’m being cheap to want to be boondocking. Price is a factor; I’d not be retired this early if all camping was $30 a night. Campo Turistico #1, was on the beach, but camped among other people. I don’t consider $20 a night exactly cheap for an unserviced spot. But what I really want is a spot all on my own with my friends. Campgrounds are great for last minute spots, a location with something special, or you just need to be near town. Campgrounds suck for having people packed in, with all the noise and annoyances they bring. Nomad means being on your own, although now I’m traveling with a small group, so perhaps we are gypsies, wandering from place to place in search of the perfect beach spot.
Our plan was to stop along the way at Valley of the Giants, the giants being cacti. Unfortunately, my brain didn’t get the second part of the memo, which was that we would stop at the highway entrance, and decide if we wanted to go in from there. I arrived there first, having had the least number of errands in San Felipe. Driving up to the gate, I paid my 200 peso entry fee and went merrily on my way. I was assuming my friends would catch up to me inside the gate. You know what they say about assumptions.
Being looked down upon
I ended up parking near the washrooms first and walked down the road a ways. Seeing the road was doable by all our rigs up to a fence line, I walked back then drove the rig down to a good parking spot we’d all fit in. Then I walked the rest of the way down the crappier road to the actual parking lot that was noted as being 4×4 beyond this point. Yes, I did a lot of walking back and forth to scout things out.
I wouldn’t take a really large rig down the last bit of road, but small – medium sized rigs can make it if you are willing to share some paint with a few cacti. If you are really scared of bad roads, park at the washrooms and take a longer walk.
Giant cacti with tiny Carolyn and Edie for scale
The cacti are indeed big. If you’re not heading further south this is a good stop, but otherwise I’d save my 200 pesos for a good margarita or three. There is much more interesting desert plant life scenery as you get deeper into Baja. But in the meanwhile, I was in ignorance that my friends were waiting at the entrance, wondering what had become of me. I walk back to my rig, expecting them to show up shortly as the appointed meeting time was upon us.
Suddenly my walkie talkie pipes up with a query as to where I am. I’m not concerned yet that no one has shown up as we are only just past the meeting time. I explain that I’m inside the park, waiting for them. Only then do I realise the error of my ways – they were wondering what the hell had happened to me. The group ended up joining me inside the park but were underwhelmed like me. We’ve all spent time in the desert having seen as good or better for free.
One unexpected thing (have you figured out yet that this is a theme?) was the lack of free beach camping spots along the way. There absolutely is free beach camping, but most of it is over rougher roads and farther from civilization that we wanted to be as a group. What you see near the highways is a lot of “campgrounds”. I put quotes around that as most of them are not really campgrounds, more like spots you can drive down a dirt road to and park for 100 pesos a night. From the reading I’ve done, you might get a local asking for money at the ‘free’ spots as well, but we have yet to be hit up for cash. Your guess is as good as mine as far as if it’s a scam or a real property owner collecting dues.
Camp spot viewed from hill nearby.
We proceeded south, heading for a spot that looked like it might be good beach camp south of Puertecitos. It had all hard pack gravel around from a former development, now long abandoned. The road in requires a bit of winding around barriers, or a steep drop from the highway if you come in from the south. But once in, you have lots of hard packed gravel to park on. It can be seen from highway 5, which can be a plus or a minus depending on your priorities.
What greeted me on my first beach
As you can see from my hill top view, we were by the water, at least close to the beach. But after our sandy stuck adventure, were were just fine with a view from terra firma. I had a parking spot a little closer to the water. Immediately after getting level, I went down to the water on what was a nice afternoon to dip my toes in the Gulf of California, having not wet myself in this body of salt water yet. The beach is mostly coarse gravel, receding to rocks at low tide. The water was chilly, but felt good in the heat of the afternoon. Only then do I notice the floating dead cetacean in the water beside me. I exited the water quickly, making note to wash my feet once I’m back at my rig. I think it was a dolphin, the decayed nose suggested as much. Fortunately, the decay had not progressed so far that I was worried about contamination in the water. Also fortunately, the tide took the body out again the next day so we had a much nicer gravel beach to launch my kayak from.
First time Kayaking in the Ocean!
The weather the following two days was absolutely perfect. No wind, highs around 25C, not a cloud in the sky. About your only complaint was sunburn if you didn’t lather up before heading out with pale skin. I inherited my mom’s leather skin, so I don’t burn easily, but even I made sure to have hat, sunscreen and covering for my pale legs when I headed out in the kayak. The sun hits you both from water and sky – double trouble. The water was amazing. It is true what you read about the plethora of fishies in the seas here. So many fishies in the rocks to see from the smooth water I was on.
@That RV Over There goes kayaking
Don’t forget the birds too. They were at least possible to photograph, although quite camera shy. Most flew away before I was close enough for a decent shot. But it was fun to see them nonetheless. Some of my friends took a go at kayaking as well. I may have sold them on getting their own folding kayaks with that amazing day of paddling on the water.
There was rocky shore too
It was not all clear blue skies and balmy weather. The atmospheric rivers that had been pounding the southern California coast were affecting us too. At least we were on the edge with only minor rain but still a lot of wind. While I had pulled up my kayak to my RV in anticipation of the wind, I did not expect it to start blowing quite as soon as it did. So much for wind forecasts of 10am start. Rather, at 3am I hear the kayak moving around outside while my rig shakes from the gusts. But I was tired after a great day of paddling and exploring the beach so I fell asleep again assuming my kayak would just be shifted a bit in the morning.
So many lupins
Heading outside in the morning after a stiff coffee to counteract the stiff breeze I was heading into, I see no kayak where I had left it the night before. Looking downwind, I see my kayak has been pushed over into the gully next to my rig, being sheltered enough from the breeze there to not move. Good thing that gully was there or my kayak might have been pushed clear over to the Gulf of California and onto Sonora on the other side. Dragging my kayak back to the rig against the wind, I secure it to the rig with what I normally use to deter thefts, but in this case it would do fine to keep things anchored in the wind. I found out as the wind changed direction that my kayak would be reoriented pointing into the wind. The wind direction record was better than having the kayak thrown into the Gulf of California at least.
Even though the wind was still blowing pretty good, I decided that a little hike into the dry channel next to our camp would be decent. The wind by this time was coming from the south so the east – west wash would be mostly sheltered from the breeze. Indeed, it was quite sheltered. In fact, I was getting quite hot on my little walk. Good thing I had some water with me. I loved all the flowers, especially the riot of blue lupins that had laid down masses of flowers up and down the channel. Overall, things were quite green. I suspect there has been more rain than usual in the area, allowing the plants to get really lush right now.
Selfie fail
Overall, we had a great time at our first boondocking on the Gulf of California. But it was time to head further south again, looking for more beach camping. But what about beach camping, within walking distance of a great restaurant and a cool little town to explore only a few minutes drive away? Plus a cool Mexican natural park. Yes, all of this awaited us at our next campsite, which you can read about next time!
