General Beginner Advice for Baja
1. Buy Beer in liter bottles. They're called 'ballenas' Sp. whale
2. Plug in your rechargeable battery operated electronics whenever you have the chance ie. lantern, cell phone
3. Bring a hooded sweatshirt and jacket...
4. Bring a stocking cap
5. Definitely bring wetsuits
6. Bring booties and flipflps (for reef)
7. Bring Surf Trunks
8. Kiss the Tortoise
9. Use the lavanderia, they will wash six bags of your clothing for about 200 pesos.
10. Stay at the Mar de Cortez Hotel in Cabo. even if you don't stay there, go get breakfast for 35P.
11. Don't exchange a bunch of money before you go, just use the ATM's. They give a fair rate.
12. Snake bite kit. ...for all the 'stingers' in the world...
13. 5 gallon buckets and random pieces of plywood = for instance, garbage can, shitter and the plywood ends up being tables and wind breaks
14. Do not drive at night. Even late afternoon -- especially on Sundays -- gets crazy.
15. Buy ice in blocks at the heleria. There's a good one on the way to Scorpion outside of La Paz.
16. Get a tire gauge and lower 80lb tires down to 24lb. Also bring compressor that runs off of the lighter
17. Llantera = Les Schwab
18. Buy your car insurance in San Ysidro at 4:30 am on a Saturday, go through customs and definitely buy your VISA (you will be able to pay later because bank is closed on weekends) make sure you already have your Verification of Insurance and Auto Insurance Coverage Summary. Also good idea to have made copies of passport, drivers license and US car insurance and medical insurance. I always post them on GMAIL so I can get them anywhere
19 Relative Pricing: Margarita - 70P, 5 Gal Water - 30P, Bottle of Tequila - 110P to 220P, 15 Gals of gas - 500P, Expensive dinner with drinks - $US100
20. Average Speed on the Highway - 70 MPH, 120 KPH
21. Check your shit for weed at home. check again in SFO. check again LA. Check again in San Ysidro
22. I-Phone is sick to have in Mex. Make sure you switch it over before you go, however if you are going to be making mass calls and doing a lot of media shit then just get a temp phone in Cabo
Some Favorite Places in and around Todos Santos and Cabo
1. Todos Santos Inn $$$$$ - Todos Santosexpensive food
2. Los Adobes $$$$$- Todos Santos - good margaritas, cool garden
3. Suki's $$$- Todos Santos - best restaurant in Todos Santos! Hard to find, but worth it. Unbelievable ambiance, service and food!
4. Patagonia $$$$- Cabo - Argentinian charrasco style
5. Baja Beans - Pescadero
6. Cerritos Beach - Pescadero
7. Hotel California
8. Zacaritos - Beach (near Shipwrecks on East Cape)
9. Old Man's - Beach near San Jose with access to Zipper's
10. La Pastora - Beach north of Todos Santos - good fishing for Sierra in the mornings off the beach
11. L'Esquina - Todos - on the way to Pastora, free WI-FI
12. Lizarraga Co-Op - Todos - Buy all vegies and dry goods here
13. Guyarte's - Todos - groceries and meat
14. El Sol II - across the street from Logics and on the way to Pastora
15. Surf Advice - Todos - Surf Pastora in the mornings at sunrise, Cerritos - all day, Pedrito?, surf Old Man's in cabo going to and from the airport
16. Short Trips out of Todos:
- La Paz - new 4 lane highway, not even that bad at night (1 hour)
- La Ventana - good for kite boarding - be sure and leave Todos by 9 am to be back by 3pm
- Punta Conejo - 4 hour drive from Todos, look for third set of microwave towers out of La Paz on the 1
- Scorpion - 7 hours from Cabo
17. Mega Store in San Jose for groceries and you can get your rig washed in the underground parking. they have this sandwich bar in the bakery and the ham and cheese sandos are super cheap. great beach food. there is also WAL MART and HOME DEPOT in San Jose on the way to Todos
18. Always take the Toll Road to San Jose airport - 20P
19. Can't think of what to buy for groceries? Here's some basics that work cereal, milk, pancake batter, toast, jam, butter, bananas, oranges, pineapple, cheese, crackers,chips, mustard, ham, tomatoes, beans, rice, lettuce, salsa in a can, cooking oil, onions -- then get your meat, fish or pork when you get closer to your destination
Stuff We Forgot that We're Getting in May....
1. Fruit basket
2. Knife Sharpener
3. 5 gal buckets
4. Bigger wrenches and sockets
5. (1) Additional dry storage
6. Chaise Lounge chairs
7. Broom
8. 10' x 16' astroturf
9. Heavier Tarp and (3) more pieces of 3M bamboo for the 'palapita' - bamboo can be purchased on the way out of Todos just after the wood guy and before the military checkpoint
10. Full 3/2 wetsuit
11. UGG slippers
12. Snake Bite Kit
13. Toilet Seat on Milk Crate
14. Blankets
15. Propane Barbecue and use mesquite
16. Smaller 1 burner stove for just coffee
17. Second 6' table
18. More sleeping pads
19. Taller ladder - good for a water tower and drying wetsuits
20. More plywood
21. Knife on a belt for diving
22. New Surgical tubing for spear gun
23. Fishing poles and equipment for use and gifts
24. Hiking Boots
25. Pajamas, fleece or long underwear for sleeping at night and kicking it around camp site
26. Lighters with long necks
27. Newspaper for fire, fake log
28. Vitamins
29. Extra batteries
30. Good day pack
Original Equipment in 97 Ford E250 1/2 Ton Van
Vehicle: No back windows is good. Swivel seats is good. More than (2) people requires tent
1. Camp Site and Sleeping
(1) Battery Lattern (Coleman rechargeable) - Freddies
Extra Rope (clothesline is great all-around rope)
Queen Size inflatable mattress, fits perfectly in E250
(3) Nylon sleeping bags (not quite warm enough for February but OK
6' x 8' jute carpet
4-Person 2 season Coleman Tent w/ metal stakes and dew cover (dew cover is key)
Coleman 5 gal water tank with spicket, store in milk crate while driving
Coleman Sun Shower - 5 gal especially good for washing dishes when beach is far away
(6) 2" - 3" diameter bamboo canes (approx 3m in length) + rope + 1/2" rebar = sun and wind protection built off of van. use extra rebar and concrete stakes for wind. Requires heavy tarp for roof (12' x 16') and two more for walls
2. Tool Kit
Hammer/Hatchet
Vise Grip
Socket (11/16)and Box Wrench Set (5/8)
Battery Drill and Charger + Extra Battery
Miscellaneous Screws and Nails
Adjustable Screwdriver
Large Flat Screwdriver
Tire Iron with multiple sockets
First Aid Kit
Rubber Maid Tubs (1) Small, (1) Med - wetsuits, (1) Med - kitchen
(1) large - general storage
Marine Ropes (at least 200') they are unbreakable for pulling you out of sand or setting up camp
Tow Cable with iron hooks
Shovel
Axe Handle (fish killer and protection)
2 Set Dakine Tie Downs
Short Ladder
Milk Crate
(2) quarts of 10/30 oil
1 Gal anti freeze
Rags
(3) headlamps
(2) flashlights with extra batteries
3. Kitchen Set
Small Fry Pan
Large Fry Pan
Sauce Pan
Stew Pot
Silverware
Cooking Knives
Lime Juicer
Coffee Cups
(3) Cutting Boards of various sizes
Bottle Opener + Decorking Mechanism
Dishwashing Kit - Pan plus drying rack - the pan ends up being a convenient way to keep melting ice water off of food in the cooler
(2) burner Coleman gas stove + 5 gal propane tank
(1) clear plastic dry food container (need 1 more)
(1) 6' folding table
4. Beach Kit
2 Piece Umbrella
Small hand-held cooler (Burton's Little Buddy works sweet plus it provides music)
(3)Folding Beach Chairs
(2) Sets of snorkeling gear - mask, snorkel, fins in breathable bag
(1) 9' longboard - Calkins' old board
(1) 8' longboard - Tom Scott old man board
(1) Short Fish - old green Hammer
(2) longboard leashes
FYI: Racks are padded for boards, one side of racks has the Rocket Box
5. Miscellaneous
Baja Map
Spanish/English English/Spanish Dictionary
Map To Ivan's Long Term Storage at San Jose Airport - so this is where the van is parked and Ivan also had a good mechanic
Wish List:
- Motorcycle
- 26" BMX Bike
The Hell-Drive from Oregon:
Day One: San Francisco (10 hours)- stay at the Pheonix in the 'loin and start out on 101 the next day
Day Two: Los Angeles/San Diego - surf on the way down (Santa Cruz to San Onofre) and stay some place south of San Diego
Day Three: Start at 4:30 am (make sure you take the toll road through Tijuana and you will make Santa Rosalalita at 5pm. Camp at Santa Rosalalita and maybe go to the Wall the next day.
Day Four: If you leave around 6 am, you can make Todos Santos by about 7pm. Get the short cut through La Paz figured out before you get there. HINT: Take a right at the Home Depot coming into La Paz
