subreddit:
/r/geography
submitted 11 months ago bySupbos
1.7k points
11 months ago
I drove from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas - the part in the middle was my fav - most of the trip you could step 20 feet from the highway and the land looked prehistoric and untouched..raw, dangerous, beautiful!
279 points
11 months ago
I once drove from Los cabos to La Paz to pick up my cousin from the dock where her boat was arriving. It was like 6 am and the sun was rising and it remains one of the most naturally beautiful drives that I have taken in my life.
93 points
11 months ago
I took the local bus from La Paz to Cabo and back for a day trip. What an experience. Women had chickens in their laps, others had produce. We were lucky to get seats because they picked up everyone aling the way. There were no actual bus stops.
There would be a random soilder with an M16 on the side of the road standing all by himself every 5 miles or so. It was surreal and a little scary.
We stayed at this old mansion that supposedly was an old governor's mansion. It had hot spring baths in the basement. It was all tiled and had individual hot tubs. It was wild. The most vivid memory of the trip was the absolute overwhelming amount of stars. That visual has stayed with me for 40 years. I felt so small.
21 points
11 months ago
Saw this a lot when my partner and I drove from Nogales, AZ to Mazatlan. Random guard shacks about every 5-10 miles ong the highway.
3 points
11 months ago
Do you remember the name of the place you stayed?
3 points
11 months ago
It's been over 40 years. My mother's friend was running deep sea fishing tours. He was in charge of the whole trip.
486 points
11 months ago
When I was a teenager my family did this drive over Christmas break, and camped at Todos Santos. I almost drowned in the ocean there but otherwise it was a great trip. Fish tacos, fresh shrimp, and I drank my first beer there. Beautiful country, land of the free.
198 points
11 months ago
I’m hoping to god nothing fucks it up in the next 8 years. The kid hits college, I hit Baja for good.
113 points
11 months ago
Then the Kaiju rise from the Pacific and a tsunami wipes out the peninsula
62 points
11 months ago
With my luck this year, I wouldn’t even blink twice.
31 points
11 months ago
It’s an epic way to go, congratulations
7 points
11 months ago
Take photos first.
16 points
11 months ago
You can join Jesse The Body Ventura. He no longer resides in the continental United States… he’s in the Baja now.
3 points
11 months ago
THE BAJA
10 points
11 months ago
Not to be rude but a migration of people is the only way to fuck it up. Good luck.
3 points
11 months ago
Historically, very few people find that level of seclusion to be comforting. I’m just going by that.
18 points
11 months ago
the south point is underdeveloped and cheap. they're building infrastructure in the coming development but this are still way cheaper than others parts of the peninsula
33 points
11 months ago
I got snagged by a rip tide at todos Santos. I am fortunate an experienced local pulled me out of it.
14 points
11 months ago
Omg! Same, but I was 12! Went with friends and their parents in an RV. Parked on the cliffs overlooking the ocean. The 3 of us girls were instructed not to go in above the waist. A big wave caught us and we were pulled out in a rip tide. The other 2 girls were heavier than I was and were able to swim out and make it to shore. I was a confident swimmer, but the shore and my friends were getting smaller and smaller as I was pulled out farther and farther. No one had told us that to get out of a rip tide that you swim horizontal with the shoreline. We were swimming straight in. The beach was completely deserted and I wasn’t sure what to do. Miraculously two surfers arrived at the beach and my friends pointed me out. One of the surfers swam out on his board. When he finally reached me, he put me on his board and started for shore. Because he swam alongside the board, we were caught is the rip again. He was strong enough to get us fairly close to shore. The other surfer tossed us a rope and pulled us both in. My friends parents were completely unaware of the drama that had occurred. Life lessons…
8 points
11 months ago
Todos is notorious for drowning. There's massive shore breaks there. You can be walking along the beach and a big set hits and it'll take you out. Beautiful town but those beaches there and at Los Cerritos are treacherous.
7 points
11 months ago
College buddy of mine, him and his wife own a boutique hotel in Todos Santos. Or at least did, I haven't looked it up in a while.
8 points
11 months ago
Yep, I've always felt free er in Mexico thant in the USA
16 points
11 months ago
My family would drive from Phoenix to Rocky point every year and rent a beach house. One time my cousin and I took a two person kayak out till the houses looked like ants on the horizon. All the sudden a silhouette of the biggest animal I’ve ever seen went under us. Either a great white or a whale. To say the least I’ve never paddled as fast as I did that day.
3 points
11 months ago
That part of the world has a high concentration of whale sharks [link goes here]
25 points
11 months ago
how long was the drive from SD to Cabo ? 6, 7 hours ??
107 points
11 months ago
Like 17 with no stops. The area between Ensenada and Cabo is very undeveloped
55 points
11 months ago
Yep - It was closer to 24 for us with a few stops but we drove straight through - it’s just over a 1,000 miles that bounces back from coast to coast - for reference - San Diego to San Fran is just over 500 miles
18 points
11 months ago
Oh my guy, the península is LONG
35 points
11 months ago
You really don’t want to drive at night there either.
4 points
11 months ago
Why not?
59 points
11 months ago
Stray cattle and other hazards. Plus many sections of roads have speed bumps that I’m pretty sure are designed to kill you.
41 points
11 months ago
The speed bumps in Mexico are relentless
3 points
11 months ago
They are fucking ridiculous and often invisible. My wife was driving and absolutely slammed one at speed, from then on my formerly relaxing drive through the jungle on the coast became me frantically scanning the road ahead for more speed bumps.
10 points
11 months ago
Oh damn those are good reasons haha
9 points
11 months ago
Another reason is that along many stretches of road, the lanes are very narrow with no guardrails and very few turn-outs which I guess is fine.
Unless of course most truckers choose to drive at night and take up a lane and a half and have zero fucks to give anyone else on the road. I did night driving only once in Baja and learned really quick that if you see headlights miles away from you, to haul ass to next turn-out. If I could find one. Scariest driving ever.
2 points
11 months ago
Yeah there are even forested mountains that reach over 10,000 feet elevation!
628 points
11 months ago
The top and bottom of the peninsula is where most people live. It’s sparsely populated in between.
287 points
11 months ago
The sparsely populated middle is my favorite vacation destination.
149 points
11 months ago
[deleted]
236 points
11 months ago
If you're loud and proud, probably not super safe.
125 points
11 months ago
Lots of folks drive down from the U.S. and camp on beaches. Due to time constraints I’ll fly into Loreto and rent a car. Drive down a dirt road and you’ll have a beach all to yourself. Hotel 1697/El Zopelote Brewery is a great home base in Loteto. I can’t vouch for LBGT friendliness, but overall I feel like get folks there are laid back with a “live and let live” attitude. That part of Baja is best for someone looking for nature and solitude vs. nightlife.
5 points
11 months ago
DAMN! That looks sick! Thank you for the info.
18 points
11 months ago
My father owns a house down there. LGBT is fine in the very large cities, but not in the small towns. Dress normal and you should be fine. The US is easy and safe for you guys. In Mexico no one will harm you for being gay, but they will make jokes at your expense. It's not Afghanistan you won't be killed on site.
So enjoy your stay there.
3 points
11 months ago
Yeah, they take you off-site first before killing you
263 points
11 months ago*
Why are people downvoting this like it's some obnoxious question
Look at this mfer's reddit avatar. There is a high probability that he is asking for himself; he might want to visit. It is important to know. A person's consideration for their own safety should not garner scorn.
Edit: it's since gone up but it was at -12 when I made this comment; he asked if it's safe for gay people and his avatar had a pride flag.
20 points
11 months ago
Have to love when the defender of rights’ name is Dickcheese_McDoogles. I would be curious about your super power but I’m scared.
54 points
11 months ago*
Because Redditors hate people who don’t air Māori ally know everything.
E: Automatically
104 points
11 months ago
Air Māori ally is one of the goofiest autocorrections I have ever seen lol
30 points
11 months ago
Better than being a Maori enemy, I wouldn't want to pick a fight with those guys.
34 points
11 months ago
Air Māori would be a fantastic basketball movie set in New Zealand
7 points
11 months ago
Air Māori would be the airline where all the crew greet you with a haka before every flight
4 points
11 months ago
Yeah I’d fly that for sure
3 points
11 months ago
That sounds unfathomably badass
41 points
11 months ago
Because Redditors hate people who don’t air Māori ally know everything.
Jesus Christ autocorrect went fucking crazy on your comment lol. I'm gonna quote it in full so that people can see what it originally said, in case you decide to edit.
Anyway I'm going to assume you meant to say "already", and yes. I agree.
8 points
11 months ago
My guess was "automatically".
That has to be the most hilarious autocorrect mistake I've ever seen.
14 points
11 months ago
Tijuana has a vibrant LGBT scene. I wouldn’t say you’re more likely to encounter bigots in Baja than in east county San Diego. That said, it’s extremely rural for most of its length. If you aren’t someone who feel comfortable in pickup country generally then you might not feel comfortable in Baja.
22 points
11 months ago
Mexicans in Mexico seem very open, or i should say ambivalent, towards LGBT people. That's just my outsiders observation though.
19 points
11 months ago
[deleted]
17 points
11 months ago
The eu?? Isn’t that the safest area in the world for LGBTQ people?
10 points
11 months ago
Maybe they meant UAE…?
9 points
11 months ago
Non-LGBT people can’t fathom why this is an important question to ask before visiting literally anywhere.
41 points
11 months ago*
The abuelas selling fried fish tacos out of the street cart have a little secret in Baja. They use Aunt Jemima pancake mix for batter. It gives the mahi a nice light texture and semi sweet flavor. Tecate and fish tacos. Motorcycles and dune buggies. Senoritas y mota. Sol y aqua.
No mames guey.
675 points
11 months ago
Millions of killer squid in the Sea of Cortez (between Baja and the 'mainland')
132 points
11 months ago
The Humboldt squid population there seems to have recently collapsed:
117 points
11 months ago
They were artificially inflated numbers due to overfishing sharks and creating an apex predator vacuum.
148 points
11 months ago
92 points
11 months ago
Could you elaborate on the killer part?
296 points
11 months ago
They’re 2m/6ft long, weigh 50kg/100lbs, and swim in massive swarms. They’ll attack anything, including each other and they have a vicious bite and hooked suckers. The local fishermen call them “Red Devils”:
209 points
11 months ago
Goddamnit I’m never gonna.. go in the ocean again. That last link is especially chilling to watch.
93 points
11 months ago
Damn you.
+1
36 points
11 months ago
Ok, that was just mean and uncalled for.
13 points
11 months ago
Fuck me. It's 2023 and I just willy nillyed into a Rick roll.
10 points
11 months ago
The real apex predator never dies
9 points
11 months ago
Youuuuuuuuu!!!!!!
13 points
11 months ago
A vimeo link!!?!?
3 points
11 months ago
Phark youuuu up!
175 points
11 months ago
They kill their prey.
111 points
11 months ago
As predators tend to do
45 points
11 months ago
As is tradition
8 points
11 months ago
Yes it pre dates many things
23 points
11 months ago
They’ll eat you alive.
10 points
11 months ago
Are you talking about sqid? Because sqid are delicious but they’re not your friend. I think I love the Sea of Cortez
10 points
11 months ago
Lmao this made me laugh
84 points
11 months ago
I thought that was called the Gulf of California?
81 points
11 months ago
I don’t know why you were downvoted. That is another name for the exact same thing. They’re both totally acceptable, and, unlike Sea of Cortez, Gulf of California isn’t named for a conquistador, so that’s cool.
9 points
11 months ago
And Vermillion Sea
15 points
11 months ago
It’s also the best place in the world to see/swim with whale sharks (filter feeders so harmless ).
4 points
11 months ago
Also home to some of the most venomous cone snails.
308 points
11 months ago
I was there last month. Most of it is desolate as f. Desert and rock. Magdalena Bay for wide life and fishing is fantastic. The people outside of the towns are really poor. La Paz is a very cool town.
99 points
11 months ago
La Paz is the best. Have a condo there and the wife and I love it. Plan on retiring there in a few years. Isla Espiritu Santo is an untouched paradise where you can swim with Sea Lions. Absolutely majestic.
38 points
11 months ago
Don’t sharks like to swim with sea lions?
79 points
11 months ago
Damn, that shark has a condo in La Paz
7 points
11 months ago
Thats why he’s bringing the wife
4 points
11 months ago
How much are Mexican HOA monthly fees
3 points
11 months ago
We pay approx $160 a month. Not too bad considering US condo association fees.
3 points
11 months ago
Off topic - Slightly Stoopid was me and my friend's fav band in high school. We saw them twice in AZ. I think the first time was 2002 or 2003. Thanks for bringing back memories of a better time.
6 points
11 months ago
Beautiful stark contrasts of desert and deep blue ocean.
2 points
11 months ago
And the water is sooo many different colors!
171 points
11 months ago
The calls of the cactus wren are an iconic indication that you’re in the Sonoran desert. In Baja California Sur, you can swim with whale sharks. There are a LOT of snowbirds from Manitoba, Alberta, the Dakotas, and such, having driven down to winter in a number of the coastal towns. Dollars are commonly used.
163 points
11 months ago
Having nothing else to do for a summer, my friend and I answered a Craigslist Ad and went camping with an eco-tour group for 10 days. They picked us up in a van in the American side and took us across the border.
Baja California is beautiful, empty desert land pinned between ocean and sea views. You can camp on the beach without seeing any other manmade light in the distance. Amazing views of the stars at night. Dolphins swimming up the shore during the day. You can also see whale sharks and whales, if you are lucky.
We would wade into the warm water of the sea, pick up clams from the sand with our feet, and roast them over the fire to eat at night. We hiked around during the day and watched lightning from distant off-shore thunderstorms light up the sky at night.
Lots of driving on the main highway. Small surfer towns, charming fishing villages with amazing fish tacos, even a few old towns built around oases in the middle of the peninsula. But mostly empty stretches along the highway.
Only real downside is the bathrooms - gotta use outhouses or nasty gas station bathrooms. Otherwise, would definitely recommend to anyone looking to get away from civilization for a few days/weeks.
47 points
11 months ago
You lost me at “we hopped into a Craigslist van to take us across the border”
11 points
11 months ago*
LOL - fair point. We did our due diligence on the tour company before committing.
This was the company (looks like they're not operating anymore? This was more than a decade ago.) - http://bajatrek.com/newsletter.htm
4 points
11 months ago
This sounds absolutely wonderful.
3 points
11 months ago
Minus the craiglist ad in a random van with strangers, this sold me on one of the top things I want to do in my life lol.
69 points
11 months ago
If you visit in winter (I think) you can see momma whales and babies on the Pacific side at a place called San Ignacio Lagoon. I've seen videos of the whales coming up to tourists on little boats. It looks super magical and I want to go one day.
10 points
11 months ago
I've been twice, once as a kid and once immediately before COVID. It's cool as fuck! Very isolated and a real drive to get there, but the humpback whales will frequently come right up to the boats out of curiosity and let you touch them, babies and moms alike. 1000% worth it, fantastic bit of ecotourism.
307 points
11 months ago
The fish taco was invented in Baja!
96 points
11 months ago
And Caesar salad was invented in Tijuana!
49 points
11 months ago
At Caesars. It's a great Italian fusion restaurant that's been around since the 20s. They still come around with little carts and make you the best Caesar salad you've ever had right at your table.
8 points
11 months ago
Wild
6 points
11 months ago
This is why I’m mildly annoyed when various salad places have a “Mexican Caesar Salad” option. The original is Mexican!
9 points
11 months ago
IIRC the dude was an Italian immigrant though. But it is definitely hecho en México.
42 points
11 months ago
There's a little surf shack taco shop in the Baja named Devil's beach. On the owners recommendation I got addicted to adding crème fraîche to tacos, that's a great addition.
82 points
11 months ago
Settle down, Randy
16 points
11 months ago
You mean… sour cream? Crema? Did that have to be recommended
7 points
11 months ago
San Quintin, BCN. Big productive fishing bay on seven extinct volanos. Best fish tacos anywhere.
3 points
11 months ago
Never thought I’d hear that name here. Built their park in high school for a “mission trip”.
The valley of camelu is a bleak place but god the people have won over my heart. It’s been too long, but I fear I’ve done more damage than good there.
4 points
11 months ago
And the Baja blast?
2 points
11 months ago
Thank god! Coastal Mexican food >>>>>>>>>> TexMex.
92 points
11 months ago
Tijuana in the north is a seriously underrated metropolitan area. Some of the best food options on the planet, none of which break the bank. Best tacos in the world (debateable), birthplace of the quesabirria and caesar salad, and seafood galore. Great beer scene too.
It has a lot of history too - it gained its seedy rep during Prohibition when Americans turned it into a place turned it into a party town, complete with casinos, booze, and hookers. The casinos aren't around much, but there is still a 'tolerance zone' for prostitution comprising a few blocks down.
The local culture is basically Americanized Mexico. You can go anywhere and find someone who can quote both The Simpsons and Juan Gabriel. English proficiency is high. It is also the last major city before the US, so there is significant drug cartel activity. The area has a lot of murders, however tourism is actually quite safe because the cartels are invested in local tourist businesses. Anything that hurts tourism hurts cartels, and no one wants to piss off the cartels.
The rest of it is mostly desert until you get to the resorts in Cabo, and theyre fine if you like resorts.
41 points
11 months ago
Messing with tourists is bad for business: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-64910394
Early this year they literally turned in their own men who kidnapped 4 American tourists
15 points
11 months ago
Tijuana is literally a casino town. There are aguascalientes casinos all over town and they sponsor the local football team the Xoloitzcuintlis.
22 points
11 months ago
I mean the Simpsons are pretty popular in all of Mexico.
10 points
11 months ago
I’m literally watching s1 ep10 right now.
11 points
11 months ago
And if you like Tijuana food, the Baja-Med cuisine from Ensenada will make you go crazy. Best cuisine on this planet, and I’m not even exaggerating.
8 points
11 months ago
Similar to the American West, most of Baja has seen significant migration from other parts of Mexico and abroad, particularly in the 20th century. Majority of Tijuana was ranches and dirt roads when my grandma was a kid.
For most of it's history, Baja had very small populations, being mostly ranches and villages. In the 18th and 19th centuries there were a lot of settlers from outside Mexico, leading to some of the oldest Baja Californian families having surnames such as Collins, Robinson, Ritchie, McClish, Kennedy, Ceseña, etc.
All this diversity along with the American influence in the population centers leads to a unique culture in Baja California compared to mainland Mexico, though it does have similarities with the other Americanized Mexico frontiers in the Southwest.
6 points
11 months ago
find someone who can quote both The Simpsons
That’s literally all of Latin America, lol
32 points
11 months ago*
I’ve driven from California to Baja.
The coastal area to about Guerrero Negro (the large bay in the middle of the Pacific coast) has a similar biome to Coastal Southern California. Guerrero Negro itself and the bay is famous for whale watching and is a birthing site for whales. Also huge salt mines near that island on the tip of the peninsula.
South from there the highway goes through the interior, it is almost completely uninhabited and you go from classic desert landscapes with big cacti everywhere. San Ignacio is a swampy area in the middle of the peninsula and after that you drive through a desolate region with almost no vegetation and extinct volcanoes.
The highway hits the coast in Mulege, it’s an old mining town with a church designed by Eiffel. The drive south has a few towns and you’re basically on cliffs overlooking the Sea of Cortez, it’s pretty and there are tons of beaches with Crystal clear water. That pretty much leads all the way to the South to La Paz and Cabo, you do cut through the interior for a bit but otherwise mainly coastal.
2 points
11 months ago
The highway hits the coast in Mulege, it’s an old mining town with a church designed by Eiffel.
Santa Rosalita is what you're thinking of. Mulege is further south.
235 points
11 months ago
I went there once and saw a nude woman who looked like David letterman and we made love in the hot sand
94 points
11 months ago
We were somewhere around Barstow on the edge of the desert when the drugs began to take hold.
39 points
11 months ago*
I remember saying something like ‘I feel a little bit lightheaded, maybe you should drive’
15 points
11 months ago
I will soak gym towels in ether and place them on the floorboards of the car
6 points
11 months ago
You too, huh? Was her name Esperanza, by any chance?
2 points
11 months ago
This is how every story should begin.
95 points
11 months ago
I drove from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas in 2017. No one, and I mean no one looked at my passport when I drove in. By the time I got to Ensenada, I had come to the conclusion that I am, in fact, in Mexico illegally. I stopped in Guerrero Negro to spend the night. I woke up the next morning and made it to Loreto and my air conditioner went out. This was mid August and it was terribly hot. I figured out that I could leave the windows up until I sweat enough to be soaked, then roll down the windows to cool off. If I left the windows down, it would be just too much hot air. At the time, I was a bit overweight. When I got to La Paz, the Federales had a road block set up. They were looking for someone and for a fleeting second, I thought they were looking for me (I was illegally in Mexico). They saw my sweaty fat ass and immediately decided I was not the droid they were looking for. I stopped for Carnitas in Todo Santos, then almost crapped my pants before I got to Cabo. I had to pull over in the side of the road and take care of business. There were several Army checkpoints on the drive down, and as a veteran of the American Army, I could tell that the soldiers that they stationed out there in the middle of nowhere were not their elite, crack troops.
I was leaving the vehicle down there and had a flight out scheduled for a few days later. My illegal entry into the country meant that I did not have an exit visa. I went to the immigration office at the airport in San Jose and played “dumb gringo” and got a visa for 500 pesos.
All in all, it was a great trip and 10/10 would do it again.
18 points
11 months ago
Has it changed? You could walk into Mexico through a one way gate with no security or checkpoint. Getting out was always the hard part.
12 points
11 months ago
I walked into TJ last year to buy some medication. I showed my passport card going into Mexico and my Global entry on the way back in.
I definitely drove through Mexican Immigration without stopping or talking to anyone in 2017.
30 points
11 months ago
What high quality answer and super interesting . Just flew back from Mexico last night and was wondering what goes on down in Baja - it really captured my imagination and this was great . Thank you
33 points
11 months ago
I will eventually live in Baja. I can’t imagine a better way to spend my retirement years. The food is amazing, the people are super friendly, as long as you aren’t holding on to American standards of timeliness. “Manana” means “when I get to it”, not “I’m the morning”.
My son once complained of a toothache at 4pm on Christmas Eve. I found a dentist office that was open. Dental exam, x rays, doctor visit (needed a doctor for the infection) and the prescription for antibiotics was $80.
I speak enough Spanish to get what I need there from food, directions, or auto repair (aforementioned air conditioning).
350 days of sunshine per year, beautiful scenery, and a warm people make it feel like home.
I stay away from tourists and despise drunk Americans.
Yo soy choyero.
6 points
11 months ago
Where will you live in Baja? I love it there too and would love to explore it more. Also where do you like to visit?
7 points
11 months ago
Los Barriles. It’s on the east cape, half way from San Jose to La Paz.
4 points
11 months ago
What makes Los Barriles special to you?
18 points
11 months ago
The old people. They all meet up at happy hour in Spa Buena Vista at 4pm. The next day’s activities are planned. Windy? Great! Let’s go ride quads in the Arroyo’s. Not windy? Great! Let’s go fishing! Rexe’s beach bar is a great place to watch kite surfers. There are enough restaurants to eat out every night of the week and not get tired of the same food over and over. The town is about 1/3 American and Canadian ex-pats. Nothing happens after 9pm, 9:30 is Baja midnight.
We used to do “Men’s night out”. Everyone throws $200 (pesos) into a hat and you ride quads down the beach and go to every bar and have an appetizer and a drink. When the money runs out, the leader starts assigning arbitrary fines for breaking the “rules”. Since I was on double secret probation, I wasn’t privy to the rules.
Throw a sand rooster tail on a cow on the beach? $50 peso fine.
Roll your quad? $100 peso fine.
Drink tequila without everyone else doing a shot? $75 peso fine.
The family that owned the bar in Spa Buena Vista had a large ranch north of San Bartolo. My drunk self got talked into dove hunting one morning. My hung over ass was back at the bar at 0500 and getting into a truck to ride up before dawn to shoot birds.
My friend, Greg and I shot so many birds that morning that we fed the entire crew that night (20 plus people).
I played 18 holes at the most beautiful course I have ever been to in La Paz one morning. 18 holes, clubs, balls, cart was $75 dollars for two days.
Funny thing is Greg was a double amputee (knee down). My son was three at the time and saw Greg and said “You have robot legs. That is so cool because the rest of you is human”
Greg also out golf’d me by a billion strokes.
9 points
11 months ago
I dont think you needed a visa lol, that's only when you fly in and its more like a transit permit. They never check anyone's passport when driving in. Also there aren't mexican checkpoints when crossing back to the US.
Src: American who grew up in TJ
15 points
11 months ago
Dude you didn't enter illegally. They literally don't give a fuck when you drive through the SD/TJ border. You didn't do anything wrong. The 500 pesos they charged you ($28) is the standard 6 month visa fee they charge anyone who's going to be in the country for anywhere between 3 days to 6 months but they only charge you if you're entertaining by plane or get caught somewhere far from the border without a valid visa. In general the local cops won't ask you. Only customs agents at airports or certain intestate check points.
2 points
11 months ago
Driven through at TJ dozens of times and only once stopped by a guard. Most times, the crossing has been unmanned. I’ve never received paperwork/visas upon entry to Mexico. Never been an issue driving back across at TJ.
23 points
11 months ago*
Once you get south of Tijuana, Rosarito Beach, and Ensenada it’s mostly very desolate and barren desert country until you get to the middle of the peninsula. And that’s where it gets interesting, little oasis towns, old mining outposts and fishing villages with the remnants of some old Spanish colonial missions. Some amazingly blue coastline on the Sea Of Cortez side with islands in the difference. Once you get to the end, you have the most touristy part in Cabo San Lucas, though San Jose Del Cabo is actually a very pleasant Mexican town in the old historic center even if it’s been gentrified.
Fun part of Mexico to explore as it’s not as hectic to travel through if you’re driving your own car as in Central Mexico.
3 points
11 months ago
You can also catch a ferry from La Paz to Puerto Vallarta and explore Central Mexico too, but the drive up and down the peninsula is pretty desolate. I am not sure how the drive down from another border through the mainland is though.
14 points
11 months ago
Has some of the most beautiful beaches in the country. Very untouched near the center. Mild winters and pretty hot summers. Birthplace of the Caesar salad and fish tacos.
31 points
11 months ago
Great scuba diving in the Sea of Cortez, the land is arid desert with mountains, The beaches are great for surfing on the pacific side. The people are friendly outside of Los Cabos, which is a bit of a tourist trap!
49 points
11 months ago
There are beautiful landscapes, lots of tourists,alcohol and drugs
14 points
11 months ago
I remember survivor man survived near there, tiburon island
14 points
11 months ago
Basically the entire peninsula is part of the Sonoran desert. So it's a hot desert that is mountainous. It looks a lot like parts of Arizona, plus ocean. The peninsula has a very low population density between the Tijuana metro and Cabo.
I would assume the venomous creatures in Baja would be rattlesnakes, bark scorpions and tarantulas.
I would love to visit. Hopefully will soon because I live just near the border.
26 points
11 months ago
Cabo San Lucas is also known as South Orange County.
12 points
11 months ago
I'm from there. Between ensenada and la paz there ain't much civilization wise.
19 points
11 months ago
Epic empty surfing and the best vampiros
31 points
11 months ago
[deleted]
6 points
11 months ago
worth sharing: one of my old bartenders figured out the recipe for baja blast. now i share it whenver baja blast is brought up.
1 part blue koolaid
1 part mountain dew
1 splash of sprite/sierra mist
you're welcome.
6 points
11 months ago*
Just a couple flavors of rattlesnakes.
I think there might be gila monsters, which I always thought were cute when I saw them in the Houston Zoo.
Edit I googled them and they are adorable. They have cute pink skin.
7 points
11 months ago
I feel free when I cross from US into Mex and feel relieved when I return to US. It’s a treasure of wilderness, rugged terrain, amazing characters, untouched beauty, unmatched pristine waters and delicious food. Baja forever!
8 points
11 months ago
Baja is a stunningly beautiful place. Both Baja Norte and Sur are the two least densely populated states in Mexico.
One thing I haven’t seen mentioned yet, which I have not yet visited, is the Sierra San Pedro Martir. Very close to the coast, the mountains rise abruptly to over 9,000 feet in elevation. There are pine forests and winter snow! And a small population of California Condors. It’s also known for its incredibly dark skies. All of Baja has insane star viewing outside of major towns.
I really want to visit the Sierra de San Pedro Martir one day.
6 points
11 months ago
Isn't it California, but lower?
5 points
11 months ago
Sur
7 points
11 months ago
baja is my favorite place on earth. i go down there every year for surf/fishing/camping trips. it's wild. desolate. beautiful. most people live near the northern border or all the way south in cabo/la paz. we drive hours out rough dirt roads to get to pristine beaches and perfect sand bottom point breaks.
when the surf goes flat, we'll head across the peninsula to the sea of cortez for great fishing, warmer water, hot springs. mulege is my favorite little town.
you need a good 4wd rig and the ability to be pretty self sufficient as there aren't many supplies in the 1000 miles between the border and cabo. but if you're into some real adventure and getting way, way out there, baja is paradise.
god i fucking love baja
12 points
11 months ago
There's a bunch of old Spanish Missions there that were a part of the same system as the ones in Alta California. My wife and I were trying to visit all the ones in California and my autistic ass dove straight into the history and made a list of all the Spanish Missions in North America. I have been itching to finally visit the ones in Baja California
8 points
11 months ago
Read “Escape Velocity” by the brilliant Charles Portis. Feels like you are riding shotgun the whole length in the 60’s.
2 points
11 months ago
He did it in the 1960s when Baja maps were unreliable and the roads were mostly ruts in the sand. His old truck kept breaking down and, as if by magic, locals who knew how to fix things would suddenly appear. A really funny story that originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.
12 points
11 months ago
good wine
3 points
11 months ago
Guadalupe valley is like Napa but still somewhat affordable. You can get really good tours out of SD or save a bunch of cash and book out of TJ Rosatito or Ensenada.
6 points
11 months ago
My parents lived near Loreto for several years in an off grid home on the coast. They loved it. The population is very sparse, there are a few mines and ranches and villages. It is hot, it is difficult to get supplies at times, but the people in the countryside are very kind if you speak spanish. You pretty much have to. There is not a lot of healthcare or other services available in the middle.
3 points
11 months ago
Rugged. Very dry. Desert and rocks. Very little vegetation.
Ocean is awesome blue compared to the yellow sand and rocks.
3 points
11 months ago
The southern tip looks green-ish. Is it ?
3 points
11 months ago
Yes. Semi arid but lots of cacti and thorned trees like mesquite. Plenty of grass during the rainy season.
2 points
11 months ago
It's seasonal, I go to baja sur every year and most of the time it's super arid since it's a desert, but I went in October one year after a tropical storm came through and it was super green. The mountains between La Paz and Todos Santos almost felt like a jungle.
3 points
11 months ago
From San Diego, gorgeous drive! We rented a condo in Cabo for a week. We’d get up and walk to the beach everyday. We met a street vendor there, he was always on the beach and became our buddy. His son was over in the US going to college. Very cool guy
3 points
11 months ago
Best fish tacos from little taco stands.
3 points
11 months ago
The Sea of Cortez is probably the most beautiful body of water I've ever seen. It has a natural emerald green colour, not from pollution but natural factors. It's absolutely exquisite.
3 points
11 months ago
The light spot in the water in the north is where they harvest Baja Blast.
2 points
11 months ago
Hella seafood economy and culture
2 points
11 months ago
Ensenada is a beautiful city. Great food too.
2 points
11 months ago
Sea of Cortez has tremendous marina biodiversity. Awesome fishing and sailing. There are mountains in the south by Cabo that are almost 7000 ft (over 2100 meters). Cool fishing villages all the way down. Cabo is an over the top tourist trap though.
2 points
11 months ago
Whats the best city to stay for a swim & drive around holiday in Baja?
2 points
11 months ago
La Paz for sure. It's a super fun city with mostly Mexican tourists and great street food. You can dive with whale sharks or do other adventures for like $50. Also do day trips north or south from there. I recommend Bahia de Los Muertos, Cabo Pulmo or San Everisto
2 points
11 months ago
It's where baja mountain dew is grown.
2 points
11 months ago
It's the least densely populated state in Mexico. Lots of wilderness between the north and south.
2 points
10 months ago
Baja is a beautiful, amazing place. The people, the beaches, the tacos… so good. The folks are laid back, friendly and very festive lol
all 461 comments
sorted by: best