Traveling Baja...Is it Safe anymore?

[Skillet]

About five years ago myself and a friend did dirtbikes for two weeks through Baja and never had a problem.

I have been reading some Baja forums and, in late August, a well respected lady from Bahia L.A. was murdered in a drive by outside of Catavina and before that, a California man was shot in the leg on the toll road near Rosarito.

What is going on?

I have an October trip planned down there and will be passing along those routes.

We went down as far as Gonzaga last year through San Felipe and had a great time.

It will be just myself and my girlfriend and I am concerned now that this is becoming a "let's get the gringo" thing.

Any ideas on this and the saftey of single vehicle travel?

 

[jb welda]

i think there are some articles about carjacking and stuff like that going on in california too but rarely am i scared to drive around here.

its probably mostly a matter of wrong place @ wrong time or possibly being involved in something you shouldnt be involved in.

when i last went to baja in the mid 80s our biggest problem was the federalies or some folks wanting us to believe they were federalies.

one love
jah bill

 

[cpg]

After that hurricane depending on where you are heading dirt roads you where going to take may be gone. Also after a rain like that mosquitos can be very bad down there. As far as the safety due your research and you have to make that call. I went down with just the wife and we had no problems federales were very nice, locals very nice. Dont camp off a main road where your truck can be seen. Drive slower and safer than you do in the states. My biggest worry was being bitten by a rattlesnake 5 hours from a paved road.

 

[Cabrito]

Baja is easy

Baja,
I have been all the way down Baja five times. Always in my 85 Toy SR5 4x4 truck. (before the land cruiser)
Last time was about 5 years ago. Never had any problems in that part of the country other than the cops asking for money.
Baja is like Mexico light – Everyone speaks English and they all take your American dollars.
I could see Bahia L.A. being a little scary because it’s so far off the beaten track but I never had a problem camping on the beach out there.
The only gun I have ever seen aside from the cops and bank security people was a kid with a 22 rifle that asked for 5 bucks to camp on their property in the south east end of Baja.

The mainland is another story – I had to deal with Banditos on the road between Puerto Vallarta and Acapulco back in 1994 – They pulled a road block and boarded the bus in front of us with guns. We turned around and went to a small road side restaurant and they hid my Scout out back and put us up in the kitchen. We stayed the night and left in the morning after the Army truck rolled thru. Great fun!

 

[loeky]

i've been reading the same sites for a while now and would give pause to your plans, but not for the reason of violence.

the damage done to a lot of areas down there is pretty extreme. in mulege for example, pretty much everything by the river is gone. gone gone. that's going to be a mean a lot of things like disease from insects, poor conditions for vacationing and possibly long tie ups on the roads that are not cleared yet, or not cleared well.

i did say pause as between now and october is a long time, but i would be doing some good research to know exactly what kind of situation you're going into.

as for the violence - s*** happens all the time in the US. the main things hold true about baja that have always. take main roads and don't drive at night. don't stop for a blockage if you don't feel good about it - better to pay a fine than get held up.

all in all - if you have to ask yourself if it's the right thing to do, it might be best to plan a trip somewhere else? it's no fun if you're sweating about unknowns the whole time.

 

[Skillet]

Indeed things happen here all the time. That is a fact and I am street savy enough to get by in almost any environment.
There are places in the Plumas N.F. down on deserted bars where meth-addict gold miners would not think twice about shooting you to sell your vehicle for more "ice".
I still go there and camp and enjoy myself and I also carry a 44 magnum at all times.
However, down there in Baja, if guns are becoming more common amongst the bad element and I am not allowed to carry one for protection then perhaps it is time to take pause.
Just curious what some recent experiences have been.
Not to mention, the lady who got murdered was obviously a well liked person and certainly was not some place she should not have been. She was an elderly hotel owner heading out of town with her husband.
I have been down to Baja at least 50 times over the last 8 years with no problems.
Just looking for fresh input. Places can change a lot in 5 years.

 

[jb welda]

i dont mean to question first hand knowledge...but:

>There are places in the Plumas N.F. down on deserted bars where meth-addict
>gold miners would not think twice about shooting you to sell your vehicle for
>more "ice".

i think that is highly unlikely. probably talked about a lot and perhaps has happened once or twice and legend has built around those couple of incidents, but ive been around there in some pretty lonely places and talked to people who resemble that description but they wouldnt hurt anyone...mostly because they know they would be under arrest within a week. if this did happen i would bet it was someone involved with the miners who got offed.

but bad stuff happens everywhere i suppose...i just dont think its all that prevalent. i often carry a gun out in the wild too but have never felt the need to show it to anyone much less point it much less fire it.

anyway sounds like youre acquainted enough with mexico to deal with it so i would just go.

one love
jah bill

 

[Skillet]

i dont mean to question first hand knowledge...but:

>There are places in the Plumas N.F. down on deserted bars where meth-addict
>gold miners would not think twice about shooting you to sell your vehicle for
>more "ice".

i think that is highly unlikely. probably talked about a lot and perhaps has happened once or twice and legend has built around those couple of incidents, but ive been around there in some pretty lonely places and talked to people who resemble that description but they wouldnt hurt anyone...mostly because they know they would be under arrest within a week. if this did happen i would bet it was someone involved with the miners who got offed.

but bad stuff happens everywhere i suppose...i just dont think its all that prevalent. i often carry a gun out in the wild too but have never felt the need to show it to anyone much less point it much less fire it.

anyway sounds like youre acquainted enough with mexico to deal with it so i would just go.

one love
jah bill

You're probably right about the fact that it is talked about more than it has happened but the possiblity exists just like the issues in Baja.
My gun has never been used nor has it been shown to anyone.
The fact that it is there if I need it, a tool, much like my Hi-Lift, gives me comfort. If it collects dust for the rest of my life, that will be fine with me.
More than anything else, I am trying to make a comparison.
Down there, they know you are not armed, up here they don't know on way or the other.
Thank you for the input.

 

[jb welda]

>The fact that it is there if I need it, a tool, much like my Hi-Lift, gives me
>comfort. If it collects dust for the rest of my life, that will be fine with me.

yep i agree though ive often wondered if it would be of any use if a real situation were to arise mostly because i would probably not resort to it until it was too late anyhow.

>More than anything else, I am trying to make a comparison.

it was a good comparison; one i didnt really get at first i have to admit

>Down there, they know you are not armed, up here they don't know on way
>or the other.

quite true.

one love
jah bill

 

[SLOwag]

a California man was shot in the leg on the toll road near Rosarito.

My friend knows this guy. I haven't heard the complete story yet but he was apparently traveling with his family back to the States at 3am when an approaching vehicle was coming toward him in his lane, when he stopped, one of the theives was out of the car with a handgun. The victim backed up and was shot through the car door and the leg....apparently through flesh only because the round was later found on the floor boards.

I still want to hear the complete story but traveling at that time in the morning may not have been too wise.

 

[Skillet]

My friend knows this guy. I haven't heard the complete story yet but he was apparently traveling with his family back to the States at 3am when an approaching vehicle was coming toward him in his lane, when he stopped, one of the theives was out of the car with a handgun. The victim backed up and was shot through the car door and the leg....apparently through flesh only because the round was later found on the floor boards.

I still want to hear the complete story but traveling at that time in the morning may not have been too wise.

Traveling in Mexico at night is out of the question, period.
If for no other reason, the animals in the road.
Not saying I have not done it, but I was in a caravan of divers making a bee-line for the bay of conception and I was not point man. That doesn't mean it was not stupid though.

That is the same story I read, BTW.

More than pointing out violence, I am just looking for trend indicators before I go. I really want to be as fully informed as possible.

 

[e9999]

no idea if Baja has become more dangerous in the last year or so since I was down there, but I'd take such reports with a grain of salt. 2 incidents isn't much and they are probably highly publicized on the web because of the American citizenship of the victims.

It's like whenever I'm in Europe and I have folks telling me that they'd be afraid to drive around in the US because everybody is shooting at each other...

 

[Skillet]

no idea if Baja has become more dangerous in the last year or so since I was down there, but I'd take such reports with a grain of salt. 2 incidents isn't much and they are probably highly publicized on the web because of the American citizenship of the victims.

It's like whenever I'm in Europe and I have folks telling me that they'd be afraid to drive around in the US because everybody is shooting at each other...

Good point.

I am really not being paranoid, I really just trying to gather information and opinions.

Most appreciated.

 

[NW-sickboy]

drove the whole thing 3 years ago in my Duramax. had a bag stolen out of the back in ensenada and zero problems all the way to Cabo and back..... Easily a top 3 trip i have ever done and def the best road trip. Drove at night once we were a long ways into mexico but never got used to it.

 

[surfpig]

Last Spring (or was it the Spring before...) the family flew to Loreto, rented a car and camped at Playa Santispac on the Bahia de Los Angeles for a week. We met friends who drove down from Cali, no problems. We hiked around and explored the area extensively. I never felt threatened at all in any way. There is an Army outpost along the way where they stop and search you and your car, I offered the soldiers some water...

There are thieves everywhere, just watch your stuff and surroundings, and be careful. Most of the time, it's kids, taking advantage of opportunities. I have always said, I feel more safe in some of the worst slums in Mexico than I feel in many places here in the US.

I would recommend caravaning, though, at least 2 cars... It's rugged country.

 

[Skillet]

I would recommend caravaning, though, at least 2 cars... It's rugged country.

I know it is rugged. I have been trying to get people to go for a few months. I actually posted here five months ago and again over a month ago. As well as on Expedition Portal and 4WDtrips.com.

No takers and my local friends cannot get the time off.

Me, I have to take my time or lose it.

So, there will be no caravan.

Edit: Wanna go?

 

[cpg]

I am tring to find some time to go to Las Animas maybe to San Francisquito also. Are you going in October? Caravan down to the BOLA turnoff maybe.

 

[Skillet]

I am tring to find some time to go to Las Animas maybe to San Francisquito also. Are you going in October? Caravan down to the BOLA turnoff maybe.

We will be leaving October 12. We tentatively want to bee-line down to La Paz and then work our way back up along the coast.

Camping and spear fishing, etc, etc.

We would love to have some company!

Like I said before, I have been trying to rally some troops since January...Here is my original post. Let me know what you think.

https://forum.ih8mud.com/showthread.php?t=76327

 

[cpg]

Hi Skillet
That would not work for me on the 12th. Iwas thinking the 23rd. Post up some pics when you get back. Have you seen the recent pics of Mulege. seems to be pretty much wiped out from the storm.
I am sure you will have a great adventure!

 

[hendo]

all i can tell you is ,the more people and cars you have with you the better.the road to san filippe has got bad with drug traffic lately its the main corridor for thugs