Santa Cruz Drivers Club: Baja Barge

Words and photos by Warren Madsen
June 2009

Here is a quick review of my journey to the Sea Of Cortez, one of the most serene and laid-back places I've experienced.

Completely doable from California in a day, Hwy 1 takes you south along the Pacific Ocean through Tijuana and Ensenada and then veers inland down the heart of the arid Baja peninsula. We passed Northern Baja's wine region and a mix of quaint scenery and straight-up roadside garbage dumps. In all my travels, it always amazes me that people don't take pride in their natural surroundings and I'd be willing to bet it directly relates to education and income levels of the area. Although I once heard a Canadian say they were shocked at the level of garbage lining California's freeways...

The highway is tight and leaves little room for error. Pavement quality is surprisingly good. There's hardly any run-off and on-coming traffic often spills over the center line; especially the big stuff- buses and big rigs. Beware of "Curva Peligrosas" and hasty speed bumps that slow unaware drivers through small towns.
The Mexican run gas company Pemex provides low grade fuel, that tripped up our gas gauge and always, always, bring spare tires! We went through three and had a near catastrophic failure with one of our boat trailers. Duct tape saves the day again!

One of our rigs. Slightly lifted with custom suspension, the 4Runner handled everything we threw at it.

Flat tire on the trailer in the blazing heat of a Mexican desert. Not exactly AAA territory. The nuts were so rusted and fused on, we used everything from gasoline to 2-cycle motor oil to get them moving. The rag protected our arms from the exposed wires as we took turns getting that thing off.

Our first glimpse of the 'Cortez. After hours of dirt and cacti, nothing has ever looked so blue.

Our crew gearing up for the trip away from civilization. $500 in fuel for 3 trucks and 2 boats.

The ideal car for this journey would probably be a Mercedes ML 63, BMW X5M or a Porsche Cayenne GTS , something with some ground clearance, 4X4, a roomy interior, tons of power and comfort. We hear that an 8 hour run can get you to the sleepy town of Bahia de Los Angeles from San Diego (without towing a boat, of course). That's not bad.
If you are taking the slow road and need to tow something, try a Sportsmobile, although any full size truck will do.
There are a few government smuggling checkpoints further north, complete with hill top gun turrets and gnarly looking Mexican army dudes. Smile and nod. Past that, though, we didn't see any Highway Patrol and I'd guess an angry night time run could be quite exhilarating.
Once in Bay of LA, our route took us across 3 hours of dirt roads to reach our ultimate destination: a deserted beach along the warm and beautiful Sea of Cortez. Fishing, eating, drinking and sleeping with no phones, tv, computers or alarm clocks. Perfect weather, warm water and not a soul around. Bliss.