Baja this summer?

Are there any baja trips planned for the summer?  A co-worker, my dad and I would like to  go down there from some kayak and boat fishing and a little diving, but I'd like to be along with some veterans that know the ropes.  Anyone going or it to early to plan yet?  4th of july week would be ideal vacation-wise, though I don't know when the best season is.

I will be yak fishing out of Cabo San Lucas from 7/7/07-7/14/07.

Scott

p-spark order 'the baja catch' gene kirra and neil kelly from amazon today!

I have driven down a number of times to the tip winter and summer but mainly for surf.

july will be hot on the sea of cortez. If you don't like heat, there are cooler places to go,
I would consider the 7 sisters area for super cool primitive camping and exploring and
some fun fishing too. not too hot there.

I would love to go, but I grew my company to 20 people from 2  2 years ago so I'm not
going on any vacations for a while.

J

Looks like i'm on my way down there mid-late April - last trip before becoming a papa

that is a good time for cooler temps on the sea of cortez side, wind is dying down, and clear water,
I snorkeled the one coral reef there cabo pulmo in may it was fantastic.

same place in december can be a freaking windstorm.

well, I am very jealous of all you guys!

J

Check out our calendar of trips for the coming year- http://humboats.com/calendar/index.php . We're doing alot of sea-kayak trips but we have some kayak fishing expeditions to the Sea of Cortez.

I'm headed there for a guided trip with Gary Bula in October. Has anyone tried to drive there on their own.?

rickey, I have driven down myself a bunch of times. 

tons and tons of people do it every year, it seems like half of canada is there in the winter.

J

I'm not sure wether it's better to drive or fly.  If I drive I can camp and bring all my own gear and save considerable $, but a road trip through mexico sounds kinda dangerous. 

If I fly it would gurantee more days on the water since it burns at least one day just getting past san diego.

That's part of why I ask what other guys will be doing. 

I have both flown and driven. You definitely lose a few days fishing when you drive down, but it allows you to get to some of the more remote and less pressured areas and some of the scenery and the people are really great. I never had safety issues or hassles with the local cops, but I have talked to others who have. I fly and rent kayaks now because it is easier. I bring my own tackle and kayak seat which has rod holders and a mount for my FF. I have 3 piece travel rods which I built so I can easily carry them on the jet. If you speak spanish and have more than a week, I would probably drive. Hope this helps.

Scott

I'm headed there for a guided trip with Gary Bula in October. Has anyone tried to drive there on their own.?

I just got back from a solo road trip down into Baja. I got as far as Magdalena Bay, which is around 800 miles from the border. I had no trouble at all from cops or military checkpoints. Everybody was very professional. Highway 1 is mostly in good shape. You just need to stay alert for wide RV's or trucks, and not drift off the steep-sided roadway. Here is some info from a log I kept of the trip:

1. The Discover Baja Travel Club: http://www.discoverbaja.com/

When you become a member, they offer all sorts of useful information and services. I bought my required Mexican auto insurance at their site for a discount, got my boat permit and fishing license, a Mexican phone card, and ordered a number of books through them. They are also available by phone to help out with any questions. One thing they offer is a satellite phone rental for 75 dollars per week. This would be a great emergency tool to have available in the remote areas in case you get stuck or break down. They were switching equipment, so it wasn't available at the time of my trip.

2. Regarding phone calls, get a Mexican phone card. You can use it at any Mexican phone booth for around 25 cents per minute. I was able to check my messages at my home and office nearly every day, and I still have 30 minutes left on a 10 dollar card. On the other hand, the one hotel room that actually had a phone (The Oasis) charged 25 dollars for the first minute on a call to the U.S.! Needless to say, I walked outside to the phone booth to make my phone calls.

Regarding cell phones, I changed my Verizon account to be able to make calls from Mexico, but the only time it worked during the entire trip was in Tijuana on my way home. I did see some Americans talking on a cell phone in San Ignacio. They were using Cingular. So, have your cell phone ready for Mexican calling, but don't count on it.

3. Bring music. Unless you like non-stop Mariachi music, the radio will prove to be unsatisfying. It won't work at all in some areas. In northern Baja, around Ensenada and Tijuana, you can get the LA news station if you want to hear some English. Aside from the traffic reports as I approached the border, I didn't listen to it much. Who wants to hear about unnecessary wars and terrorism while in paradise?
When on the road, I like to bring an Ipod with a charger and cassette attachment. I can play it with my car radio. If I set it on "shuffle", the songs come as a surprise. It was fun to have Hawaiian music come on in the middle of the desert!

4. Spanish CD's. When I wasn't listening to music, I switched to my Spanish Language CD's. There were six CD's and an accompanying book, "Spanish in 10 Minutes a Day", that were really great. I would listen to each CD a few times and then read the chapters in the book when I was stopped for the night. It definitely helped me communicate, especially since the "10 minutes a day" was more like "6 hours a day".

5. Books. There were a few books that were really helpful:

AAA Mexico's Baja California: Basic important info; realistic travel times.

AAA Baja map: Essential.

Rough Guide to Baja California: Good info; there are a lot of similar books.

Traveler's Guide to Camping Mexico's Baja: Detailed info on camping, including GPS readings.

The Baja Catch: The classic book on fishing in Baja. Even for the non-fisherman, the detailed maps and descriptions are very helpful for camping in remote areas.

The Baja Survivor's Guide: Tons of practical info on living in Baja, with suggestions from people who know it from personal experience.

Fishes of the Pacific Coast: A good field guide with color photos.

Mexico Field Guide to Reef Fish: A good laminated chart to help you identify all the colorful fish you see when snorkeling.

Baja California Plant Field Guide: To identify all those weird cacti and plants.

6. GPS with Baja software: Essential, if you have a GPS. I purchased and downloaded the software into my mapping GPS:

http://www.bajainsider.com/baja-maps/gps-mapping/maps-baja.htm

It was VERY useful to have the local place names and geographic details for a remote place like Baja. I used it a lot, especially when I was off of the paved roads. The GPS has a car charger, and I also brought 16 rechargeable AA batteries and a charger that worked for my GPS, camera, and depth finder. The charger can be plugged in at a hotel, or it can plug in to the car lighter.

It was mostly a trip of exploration in a short time frame. I only did a little bit of fishing due to the time constraints. Here are my posts on the fishing:

http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/bb/index.php?topic=6998.0

http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/bb/index.php?topic=6648.0

p-spark, you absolutely must drive! if you have the option, having your own rig is the only way to go.

so much more fun!

J

I agree with John that driving provides a better overall experience. The people and culture alone is worth the drive. Although many speak English a little Spanish is helpful and adds to the quality of the experience. If you make it to Cabo mid July and want to chase roosters and sierras  in the surf let me know.

scott

Great info guys, I'll start on the research.    I ordered 4 of those books, including the fishing one and the rough guide, so I should have better bearings in a couple weeks.  Perhaps we can put together a caravan.   

ganoderma's post is great, that is good info. p-spark if you read all that you will be well-prepared.

I have been down a fair bit and spent 6 months there, sept 2003-march 2004, rented a ranch
property near the town of todos santos. surfed every other day, did not fish once. but then
we drove to the florida keys where I fished every day and did not surf once...

there is some crazy good baja fishing, even in the spots that are not known as fishing spots in the
books.  we caught a lot of fish surf casting with silver prism or silver/blue 1.5oz krocodiles.
those are good lures, but also all we knew how to use.

p-spark, at least once I have formed an impromptu caravan with some other single vehicle.
overall it is nice to have the moral support, but not really needed unless you are going way
way off the beaten path, and even then, a small rusted corolla with 6 mexicans will usually stop
and help pull you out when you are stuck or take your flat spare to be pumped full of air.

one thing I find is that rural people everywhere are helpful. city people usually are not.
just the way of things.

the tijuana crossing is always the scariest part for me!

but since the rural baja experience is what you are after, expect friendly people for the
most part.