Exploring Baja - Week Three: Mulegé to Agua Verde
Bahia Concepcion, Playa El Coyote
WEEK THREE – Going into our third week! We are fully in love with Baja, the contrast with the desert and the aqua blue ocean, the mountains as a backfrop. We are soaking up the natural beauty and finding enough adventure.
·Day 15 – a rare layover day in Mulege
We acknowledge and accept that we are completely dysfunctional as a couple when it comes to staying still and slowing down. The drive to move on and see the next thing is deep in both of us. We are working on this! A layover day allowed Andy to work in a lovely spot plus we did laundry and visited the local mission.
Mision Santa Rosalía de Mulegé
River view from the mission at Mulegé overlook
Day 16 - drive to Bahia Concepcion, Playa Escondida - 20 minutes
Bahia Concepcion is just spectacular. We spent three nights at three different beaches (again, that need to keep moving that drives us). Each beach had its own personality and occupants.
First view of Bahia Concepcion from the north.
Our first stop, Playa Escondida, was our favorite. Tucked away and a little harder to find, it has a shallow cove, and easy access to kayak to small islands. For a stroll, you can walk either way along the coast - to the south, over to Playa Los Cocos which is closer to MEX-1 and less private. At Playa Escondida there are several palapas grouped together or open beachfront camping. Pit toilets and garbage cans are provided. Although we heard there was a $7.50 fee, no one was there to collect it so we had a free night. A friendly community of travellers were staying in the palapas, including a couple of people who stayed for months at a time (we couldn’t begin to imagine, beautiful as it was, so much to see in Baja!)
The day begins at Playa Escondida, Bahia Concepcion
View north at Playa Escondida
We are a tiny bit anti social.
Day 17 - drive south along Bahia Concepcion to Playa El Coyote - 10 minutes
Onwards to explore a different place, we drove down the road to Playa El Coyote. Similar facilities, pit toilets and garbage cans. The host came by for the $7.50 fee. Much longer coast line than Playa Escondida so we felt more private at our palapa.
View along Playa El Coyote to eastern camping side.
Kayaking back from the islands in the bay. Fish for dinner!
We had our first unpleasantness in Baja at Playa El Coyote - returning to the shallows from kayaking, Andy stepped on a stingray and it whalloped him. As a big stoic guy, he was feeling the pain big time. The only relief was a boiling water compress for three hours. Then like a switch, the pain stopped and we were back on our way.
Guess which foot was stung by a stingray. True is it that we have seen better days.
Day 18 – Playa El Requesón
For our final night at Bahia Concepcion we drove another 10 minutes south to the beach we had heard was the most scenic. It was gorgeous! Turqoise calm water, mountains in the background, yellow sand beach. We chose our three beaches in Bahia Concepcion based on natural beauty, lack of infrastructure (restaurants, permanent residents or houses) and a reputation for being less crowded.
Playa El Requeson had a caretaker charging a $10 entrance fee. We bypassed the palapas and drove to the end – that slightly anti-social thing again. At low tide a sand spit connects the main beach to a mangrove island allowing for additional exploring or you can walk south to the next beach. We were enjoying the lack of people, the absolute beauty and feeling blessed.
Secluded spot at the end of Playa El Requeson
At dusk, 50 members of a Chihuahuan motorcycle club arrived to join us on our end of the spit. Such is life, camaraderie prevailed, and we were impressed that the beach was quiet and everyone heading to bed by 9pm.
And then joined by motorcycle club.
Day 19 – Loreto – 90 minute drive
The next day we left the idyllic Bahia Concepcion to go to town and re-supply. On each of the beaches we had been visited by friendly vendors selling their wears (blankets, shirts, jewelry, rugs, tamales) or offering kayak rentals but we hadn’t made any purchases – although we were tempted by the tamales.
For us, Loreto struck the right balance of having everything we needed but being small, walkable and friendly. The downtown plaza was lined with cafes and restaurants, mostly empty due to a lack of travelers during COVID times.
Central Loreto plaza
Loreto plaza - empty street cafes.
Loreto waterfront.
We camped at Rivera Del Mar RV Park. It was a well manicured sandy parking lot, decorated by white stones (a common landscaping feature in Baja that we have come to appreciate) and mostly deserted. But it offered in town convenience two blocks from the beach for $10 for the night, hot showers and washing machines.
Loreto campground - Rivera del Mar
We walked the Malecon, the beautiful beachfront walking paths common in larger towns, at sunset.
The next morning – panaderias! Super Pan for pan dulces and Pan que Pan for baguettes.
Andy’s panaderia haul - all about the sweet.
Dawn’s panaderia breakfast - all about the savory.
Day 20 – Puerto Escondido – Rattlesnake Beach – 30 minute drive
Continuing our journey south, we made the short drive to Puerto Escondido and found our way out to wild camping at Rattlesnake Beach. This beach was great for us – sites very spaced out with dunes and vegetation in between that made it feel very private. As far as we could tell, there were only two other groups camping in the mile long stretch we were on.
Tucked away at Rattlesnake Beach
Baja wildlife -especially the sea birds provide endless entertainment for us. We will literally spend our cocktail hour watching pelicans dive, sea gulls fight, egrets hunt for fish . . . We are easily amused (although we do move on to Netflix after dark). Andy had fun at Rattlesnake Beach rescuing puffer fish from sea gulls who would get them onto the rocks and peck at them to try to get them to deflate.
Andy saves puffer fish from sea gull and releases it back to the ocean.
At the north end of the beach, Dawn found a well marked and sign posted trail system that went up the hill to great views of the cove and the port.
Trail sign for hiking trails at north end of the beach.
View of Rattlesnake beach from the ridge trail.
We have been very aware that the numbers of campers and travelers right now is way below normal due to COVID. Currently, there seem to be an even mixture of non-Mexican tourists travelling or staying on beaches in vehicles they live in and Mexican families and young people taking the opportunity to recreate locally. But no where has been full and most places have felt empty. We worry about the local economy and people reliant on the non-existent travelers. We are also aware that in not eating out, purchasing items or staying in hotels that we are not helping much.
Returning from Puerto Escondido to MEX-1, we saw an iOverlander symbol for free water on our map and decided to check it out – amazing free spigot by the roadside. We ran it through our UV system and filled up (just a little challenging getting it from the firehouse sized spigot into our collapsible bucket so that we could run it through our filtration and into our tank).
Free mountain water fill source, with bonus shower for Andy.
Day 21 – Agua Verde – 90 minute drive
We have found all of Baja so far to be extraordinarily scenic but for us, Agua Verde surpassed everything to date. Once you leave MEX-1, it is an hour drive along a gravel road to get to the coast. The road was well graded but narrow and hugs mountain cliffs. As you descend toward the sea, there are gorgeous views of the mountains and bays.
View driving into Agua Verde
We turned off shortly after KM 34 to get to a beautiful small cove north of town.
Agua Verde was magical – the weather was calm and warm, we had our own stretch of beach, only accompanied by a group of Mexican youth tent camping down the way. There were islands off shore and the area was perfect for our inflatable kayak. The flocks of Pelicans diving for fish provided endless entertainment. At the end of the day we would try to settle into our books but they were just too distracting and amusing to watch.
With no set schedule in mind, we stayed two lovely nights.
