This report is about the tour: Mexico: Baja California & Copper Canyon 🗓 February 2021
Advanced travelers have long discovered Mexico. They say that Cortez did this 500 years ago... and here, of course, it is difficult to compete with him. But as far as I noticed, the vast majority of tourists in their explorations of Mexico are limited to the capital and the warm Yucatan. I once did this myself and drove around half of Mexico by car... But this was precisely the lower half.
Is this fair? And to correct this shameful situation, in the winter of 2021 we went on a trip to less popular areas of Mexico - we flew to Southern California and the Copper Canyon. Initially, we were attracted by giants - huge whales, sharks and bottomless gorges. But in fact, the journey turned out to be much deeper and truly colorful. There was also a lot of extreme sports. Read on!
We flew to Mexico right after the Guatemala Tour. Almost in full force, the entire group, at the end of one trip, boarded a plane and headed off to new adventures. This time, the Mexican border guards let everyone through normally (it happens otherwise ) and in the middle of the night, happy and tired, we reached the hotel in the center of Mexico City. I ran to a 24-hour grocery store for a SIM card, and the people went to bed, because in the morning we had a flight to California
The California we arrived at (La Paz airport, Mexico) was sharply different from the already familiar native Guatemala. Shrubs, cacti, everything is red and withered. “Not too fun,” I thought, and I was wrong. Within a few hours, this corner of Mexico began to open up to us, and quickly attracted our hearts to its side.
A few years ago, on the trek in the Himalayas I met a magical Mexican (Carlos, Luis, Miguel?). This huge guy walked along the path with a smile, greeted everyone he met and said that he lives on the very edge of Baja Southern California where you can eat exclusively fish for a year and everything will be ok.
And here we are - at the end of the earth, in the village of Cabo San Lucas. In addition to our charismatic second, there are several humpback whales (here are the whales), a rock arch and the magnificent Lover's Beach. Let me remind you that the trip took place in early February and the sea was not too hot, so we only symbolically wet our feet and focused on the Instagram side of the beach holiday.
We had a lot of seafood restaurants on this trip to California, but as is often the case, the first one was the most memorable. Very tasty!
On the way back to La Paz, we stopped for a few minutes in the town of Todos Santos (Spanish for “All Saints”). “The same” Hotel California is located there. Although in fact, the name of the hotel is not so simple, but the establishment is really colorful, and it was definitely worth the time we devoted to it.
One way or another, most of the entertainment in Baja California is related to the sea and its inhabitants. Yesterday we had a beach, and today they will give us a shark... Or vice versa - they will give us one. So we're on a boat, in the middle of La Paz Bay, wearing wetsuits, and a little annoyed.
At the captain's command, we jump into the water right in front of the shark, and when the fish is distracted in shock, we try to catch up with it... All this happens at a frantic pace. There is no time or energy left for fear and caution. It was only thanks to the efforts of the shark itself that we did not cram into its mouth and gills. But there was also a positive moment in this chaos - thanks to liters of adrenaline, we almost didn’t feel the cold, because now it was winter and the water in the Sea of Cortez was no warmer than 16 degrees. At least that's what it seemed to me.
Perhaps in the evening, after the shark, there were some other events - a restaurant, a road, and the like. But you understand, after the shark it would be strange to notice such a small thing. So I woke up in Loreto to my phone buzzing. It turns out that my roommate had already woken up a long time ago (it was barely dawn) and ran to meet the sun on the seashore. And now he came to the conclusion that such beauty simply needs to be shared with someone. Dima, thank you! The dawn was truly fabulous.
After breakfast, we rush to the port again and board a high-speed boat. We are flying over the horizon, dolphins are jumping nearby, everything is great, but a little cold - I put on a jacket over my wetsuit, and give my raincoat to the girls so that they can hide from the wind. I wonder how we will get into the water at this temperature? Although I’m lying - not everyone is cold. Look at the photos - it’s obvious that the sea inhabitants and some of ours don’t freeze at all.
Yes, we continue to pester the inhabitants of the Sea of Cortez. Today we dive with sea lions. Unlike yesterday's shark, these guys don't run away and you can safely watch them. There are only three disadvantages to cats: stink, real teeth and lack of warmth. So we returned to the boat, practically blue from the cold... but happy and laughing.
Well, okay - sea lions are counted for us. Are we going to go back to the hotel? No way! We land on some island, quickly get rid of our wetsuits, grab a few burritos with cheese, and quickly get on the track. The guide says that we are going to which beach, but in reality the purpose of the walk is not important at all. I just want to move around and warm up properly.
There are plenty of dried crabs, sharks and shellfish on the beach. We have already moved a little away from the icy breath of the depths, we have warmed our hands and can again perceive the world around us.
Again an endless journey through an endless desert. We sleep in a hotel that is 100% similar to roadside motels in the USA. This is not surprising - from here to Tijuana and the border are some 700 km... If you want to go to Baja California, I recommend learning patience in advance.
If you were born on this planet and understand Ukrainian, then you probably know that there is a huge gap between the law and its practical implementation. So, according to the laws of Mexico, during an excursion in the Gulf of Guererro Negro (Pacific Ocean, Southern California), no one should touch the whales: this is dangerous for people, it can make the animals nervous, and this can cause the whales to become infected with the damned corona. Now I think it won’t be difficult to guess why we went on this tour. Yes! We selfishly and extremely irresponsibly wanted to occupy the gray whale. However, the wind raised waves and close contact became impossible. All that remains for us is to watch as dozens of large whales and small whales rush back and forth across the bay, and hug each other, and not with us. That's a nuisance))
Between sharks, lions and whales, we still managed to travel considerable distances along the desert paths of lower California. For example, the last race lasted 12:00 (700 km) - from 1 pm to 1 am. We weren't stunned, but we didn't go crazy only thanks to the continuous game of Alias and the incomparable Mexican landscapes.
At dawn we fly from La Paz to Los Mochis. When we cross the Sea of Cortez, it seems to me that I see (and photograph!) a boat that is rushing towards a blue whale. One of our many (now) Mexican friends said that these giants were recently seen at the entrance to the bay. Therefore, my vision may be true.
Zorro was born in this town. And we had a little rest here and calmly warmed up before the extreme sports in the Copper Canyon. However, plans changed somewhat: I urgently went to the “district center” to solve the problem with tickets for the El Chepe train, and the group spent a significant part of the day fighting mosquitoes (it’s really warm here and the insects like it). Only in the evening did they calm down and allow the tourists to take part in an amateur performance - a musical show, so to speak, about the adventures of the handsome Zorro and his somewhat leisurely girlfriend Zorrita (he almost wrote Zvezdochki).
The El Chepe train has a reputation for being a breathtakingly picturesque moving viewing platform. He travels along the Copper Canyon through numerous bridges and tunnels. The views are really wonderful, but personally I was more interested in the shoes...
Have you seen sandals made from tires? It was local Indian women who came to the station to sell wicker products to tourists. We later found out that they were from the Tarumara tribe, famous for their long-distance runners. And as you probably already guessed, the Indians ran their marathons in the same sandals.
By the way, the tradition of Indian marathons is still alive today. At our small family hotel, the entire living room was filled with trophies from local trail running competitions. Inspired by this example, one of our tourists went for a run in the morning... and had difficulty fighting off the dogs. Although, perhaps, it was with the help of dogs that the local champions trained))
Most likely, we turned out to be great connoisseurs of traditions, because that same evening we spent only 10 minutes watching the sunset, and then devoted another hour to researching shamanism. Yes, we went to visit our Indian grandmother and she cast spells on us - whispered, smoked a cigarette, rolled out an egg. Very colorful and very familiar.
Going to the Copper Canyon, we were all somewhat worried. Someone was worried that warm clothes would be enough. Someone will give him the strength to complete the planned obstacle course. Someone was counting the budget. Well, I was worried whether all those attractions that would help us better understand the incomparable canyon would work (through the crown) at all.
But as you can see from the photos, the entertainment was a success. Instead of one mega zipline (2 km long), we chose a chain of 7 short but more picturesque ziplines, or as they say here, “tyrolesiv”
After several kilometers of ziplining, we were on adrenaline and with a feeling of “knee-deep sea”. Therefore, when signing up for the next incident (via ferrata route), no one really thought or hesitated. And the route turned out to be quite difficult, or at least impressive. And when it was all over, an incomparable feeling of “taste of life” and unthinking joy came. I wish the same for you!
To relieve stress after the Via Ferrata, we needed a long stop at the local Tacos market. What’s interesting is that tacos therapy worked even for those who didn’t take part in extreme sports. There was also an expedition truck with Spanish license plates in the market parking lot. These people have arrived!
Let me remind you that our Copper Canyon is located relatively high in the mountains (2300m above sea level), so it is not surprising that it was a little cold here at night (this is February 7, 2021). I don’t know what it looks like with Ukraine, but when you’ve been traveling in warm weather for a month, then -1 is perceived as a fierce star. We pulled out all our clothes and threw wood into the fireplace all night (there is a cool budget hotel with a fireplace in the room).
But the most difficult thing was later - in the morning we arrived at a magical waterfall with basalt pillars, and half of the group decided not to leave anywhere and stay in the warm bus. It seems that the tireless tourists are a little tired. However, some climbed that waterfall and the Valley of the Monks (Mexican Cappadocia) and other observation platforms on the mountain plateau near the town of Kriel. But looking through the photos now, I understand that the most interesting thing in this valley is the Tarumara Indians - bright and organic.
The Mexican airline unexpectedly moved our flight from the North to Mexico City one day. Thus, I got a few new gray hairs on my head, and the group got the opportunity to get to know the city of Chihuahua. We found a local guide, Alfredo, and set off in search of something interesting. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, the local caves were closed and almost all the Chihuahua dogs (as they were named after the city and state) disappeared somewhere. So Alfredo regaled us with tales of the wild sex lives of Mexican revolutionaries and wealthy rancheros.
We had almost come to terms with the fact that there would be nothing outstanding today when, in the evening, we found ourselves in a mining town where a local shopkeeper unexpectedly offered to look at the old silver mines. And that was it! Huge underground halls, bottomless pits dug by hand by enslaved Indians (the mine operated from the 16th to the 20th centuries) and at the end an impressive meeting with modern “black geologists”.
These guys go underground for several days in search of semi-precious crystals and when the light of their lanterns sank into the black abyss, mad ants ran behind me. Why did this remind me of the descent of the Fellowship of the Ring into the dungeons of Moria and I was not the only one who had such associations. God help the brave souls...
In the evening we fly to Mexico City, because a new stage of the Mexico journey begins there - the hot tour Mexico City + Yucatan
Kirill Yasko , Kyiv