Trips to baja

[gonetobaja]

I am going down to baja again on the 19th. We make a trip every two weeks or so. For a freediver spearfisherman in CA it is a good trip. Go south of San Felipe about 1 hr or untill you get to Puertecitos. After that the coast turns very rocky and the hunting is great!. The water is always warmer and more mellow for shore dives, a welcome break from winter diving in So Cal. There are some charters down there and pangas that can take you to the
Enchanted Islands, they are off the coast about 10 miles. The fishing out there is great! Its cheap to sleep on the beach or camp in your car and you can make the trip on a weekend. Re fuel when you get to san feliepe because it is the last place to get gas. I tell people to give it a try, the sea of cortez can be pretty addicting to a freediver/hunter.

You cannot use tanks and spearfish in mexico, its a law.

I would say this is not a trip for people who want to carry alot of gear and tanks and stuff, the roads can be rough and unforgiving on equipment.

Its an adventure for shure no matter how you slice it

Dont be skered the trip to mexico is easier than you think!

www.gonetobaja.com

[BLUEGILL]

Hey GTbaja can you offer any travel times to get to where your talking about, Myself and a couple buddies make an annual surf pilgrimage to abreojos on the pacific side (650 south of the border)and its usually a two day drive without killing ourselves, and driving pm baja(scary).How many days do you usually alot for a trip?I'm writing this without first checking out your website so forgive me if these questions could be answered. Do you need a 4x or will a full size truck make the trip? And lastly , of course, what is an average water temp in January? A 3/2 with a hooded vest do?Sorry for so many questions but I'm sitting at work and the dream of a baja trip is overwhelming.
Oh yeah! have a great trip and merry christmas!!!!

[PV_Spearo]

Hey Bluegill,
You ever do any spearing in Abreojos??
I was thinking about going down there when the water gets warm again.

Thanks,
Brandon

[BLUEGILL]

You know what I took a pole spear down there one year and the local guys pretty much frowned on it and told me that you can't dive or take anything from the water! This was the local sheriff who cruises out every once in awhile.They also have signs posted no taking of abalone, shelfish clams NADA.They were fine with us using fishing poles but that was it. I actally put on my mask and fins and went out anyway one afternoon and the possibilities for game was incredible, there was stuff everywhere.Thing was all the local fishing boats were coming by and waving there arms telling us to get out of the water! They didn't even want us to fish from our surfboards,we did anyway and caught some nice corbina but the setup there is to there advantage.Its 3 hours from anywhere on a dirt road,its just a local fishing village with a cannery on the point and theres a law force and a small military base right next to each other.I kind of felt like if they get pissed at you , you might be in for some true mexican adventures, which I've had to deal with as well.we've been there like 6 times and only bothered to take stuff to camp , surf, and fishing poles. I'd love to hear that things are different than the experience we had.Also the water does not get the tropical warmth until another couple hundred miles south, we've always taken a fullsuit with us and ended up using them more often than not.If you do go let me know!!!!! would love to make the trip as always but it would be cool to learn something from someone who knows there stuff.
good hunting
JEFF

[gonetobaja]

heres the ticket,

The good thing about this area is that it is only 2 or 3 hours (depending on what and how you drive) from the border in Mexicali. The water is always pretty warm a 3/2 full suit with a hood should be plenty, I sometimes wear my pacific side suit in jan so I can hang out for hours in the water. Campo Playa Escondida is just north of Puertecitos. They have palapa camp sites for 10 or 15 bucks a day. They have a bbq grill, outhouses and cold fresh water showers. Ask for pancho. the place is about 1 hr south of San Felipe. As far as licences for fishing I know it is legal to carry rubberband powered spearguns into mexico and use them while freediving. Tanks are for non-hunters. You can get a year round fishing licence for about 30 bucks. I send people to www.discoverbaja.com to get what they need. You do not need a tourist visa to go to san felipe for under 72 hours. We usualy leave on a thursday or friday and come home on sunday. Its close enough to make it an easy weekend trip and far enough down to get that tropical feel. The police dont bother you down here like other places but there are military checkpoints (2) that you will pass through and they are checking for drugs or firearms. do yourself a favor and dont try to pull anything past these guys. They are mexican army regulars and they dont take bribes from tourists, like us. They have always been very professional and polite to me and my friends but I wouldnt want to be a "problem guy" and face em. There is a small store in Puertecitos that has beer, drinks, tequila, food, and supplies. Bring your own cameras and re-fill to top in San Felipe because thats the last place for gas. The road can get bad but people can make it in 2wheel drive cars all year round, you just need to drive a little slower. There is no surf to speak of on this side, very mellow like the corona commercial. There are some hot springs in the town of puertecitos on the beach that you have to wait for the tide to come up to cool them down before you can get in, they are really cool(hot?) have yet to find a simailar type of hot springs.

Its a really fun and cheap trip if you can handle sleeping bags and tents.

You can pack groceries for a small trip and not buy anything in mex except gas and beer, and shoot all the fish you can eat.

Im leavin at 10am:rolleyes:

somewhere in mexico, a fish is scared...

gonetobaja