A drive from Cabo San Lucas to La Rivera. By David Mandich. Los Cabos Magazine Issue #16 Spring 2008.
Explore Cabo’s East Cape and see Baja as it used to be. No new infrastructure, just miles of dusty roads where apple-seeking burros are not shy and wandering sheep herds often don’t care if you want to pass. You’ll discover isolated beaches with some of the most incredible surfing and snorkeling spots this side of Maui. It takes about 90 minutes of hard riding to do the East Cape road from San Jose del Cabo to La Ribera. Are you still with me?
About 15 minutes from San Jose heading north on the East Cape, asphalt terminates at Buzzards Bar & Grill. (Buzzards is also a B&B.) Long a hangout for East Cape adventurers, a quiet beach, surreal rock formations and a pleasant Sunday brunch, with your feet in the sand, Buzzards is a good place for a stop before your more arduous journey begins. La Laguna, with Malibu style luxury homes and condos for sale, is juxtaposed and immediately adjacent. Beautiful beach breaks, with nary a gnarly surfer in sight, are irresistible to me just about fifteen minutes after leaving the paved road. Continuing with the ocean on your right, make your way through arroyos and valleys, and along cliffs high above picture-perfect surf. Volcanic peaks and massive boulders, including a hidden one on a grade that caused my wife and me to bounce pretty darn high, dominate. “Part of the fun,” I tried to convince her.
Famous surf spots, 9 Palms and Shipwreck, soon come into view, and shortly after that, the Los Frailes mountain headland features gorgeous bays on both sides. Regardless of the wind, it’s always lake-like snorkeling on one side or the other. Beach camping and villas are available there. I love the tranquil Sea of Cortez, where 150-foot underwater visibility is not uncommon. Salinity is so high, you can practically float vertically! Nearly impossible to drown. If you do – email me.
Cabo Pulmo village, several miles beyond Los Frailes, is famed for its coral reef, located in a Mexican government designated game preserve. Don’t even think of taking a piece for a souvenir. Hundreds of colorful tropical fish will pose for your underwater camera and eat tortillas from your hand. Count your fingers. Find panga fishing boats for hire, as well as kayaks, scuba and snorkeling equipment. This is another good place for a rest. There are restaurants, casitas, B & B’s and camping in Cabo Pulmo village. Next turn-off you’ll want is the sandy road heading to the Punta Colorada resort, Roosterfish capital of the world. Big game trophies cover the lodge’s dining room walls. About a decade ago, this place was barely known except to faithful and dedicated anglers who were happy to forgo amenities for a few days of good fishing.
Finally, La Ribera, as sleepy a village as any in the Los Cabos of yore. It is on the developers’ radar screen with a marina, hotels, golf, and of course, condos envisioned. Take a picture before it disappears. Better yet: Invest in a building lot. From there, a smooth paved road connects to Baja Hwy. 1. Then it’s a one-hour cruise back to San Jose. A day trip up the East Cape in a Jeep (or any appropriate rental car) is truly an adventure. You will experience the exciting and compelling beauty of the Sea of Cortez wilderness. And it will probably give you a new appreciation of those smooth asphalt roads.
So, when do you want to go?
