Hiking in Baja California Sur – Hidden Port in Todos Santos
Photo’s courtesy of Ken Burningham
Hermann’s Hike, Todos Santos, Old Harbor –
Distance 6.2 miles / 10Km
Elev 300ft / 90m
We have all hiked to many beautiful places in the world and today’s Hermann’s Hike to the Old Harbour at Todos Santos, and to the beach oasis, have to rate as some of the nicest places I have been. The coastal scenery was spectacular, well worth the climb, it was truly a memorable hike.
I am still new in La Paz and I have not yet rounded up new Hermann’s Hikers. I hope it will happen soon, I just don’t know when.
About Hermann's Hikers |
Hermann's Hikers are a bunch of like minded people based in Harrison Hot Springs BC Canada. We organise weekly hikes in Beautiful British Columbia. We call ourselves a Social Hiking Group because we love to party after the hike. We draw people from all parts of BC and we In Mexico I organised hikes in and around Loreto last year and it was so successful I decided to start up another group here in La Paz. It has taken off like "Gang Busters", La Paz has a great bunch of people who want to experience the "Great Outdoors" and we have so many places we can hike in Baja Sur. Hermann Stolting was our original leader in BC he is still with us but not able to hike any more, I took over the group about 4 years ago and we now have over 100 hikers in our group, of course not all of them come all the time. In Baja Sur we already have over 50 people wanting to hike or already hike with us. As you know hiking is a great recreational activity, obviously here in Baja Sur people want to be social and they want to exercise, we provide them the wherewithal to do it. Everybody is welcome and it cost nothing to join the group, just show up and enjoy the comradeship. Ken Burningham See Hermann's Hikers on Facebook |
Barely one hour away is Todos Santos which is being reborn as an artist community. As you drive through this small town you notice how many buildings are displaying artistic messages, paintings, pottery, galleries and so on, but the real gem is the coastline, you are on the Pacific Ocean and we all know how good that can be, weather permitting.
I started the hike day by calling into Club Cruceros a Canadian and Gringo meeting place at the harbour close to the Malecon in La Paz. I met some neat people, many live on board their boats at the La Paz Marina. It was good to chat and have a coffee with them.
Next the trip to Todos Santos which is barely 80 Kms away to the south west, the highway is probably one of the best on the whole Baja Peninsula, dual carriageway most of the way, within the hour I was dropping down from the desert into the oasis town.
I had been here before but this time I had good maps so after driving through the town centre I needed to find the dirt road to the fisherman’s beach. Of course no signpost but no problem, I headed for the Pacific Ocean and I could see the blue in front of me. This was a real bumpy dirt road but Suzie my Sunrunner was up to the task, am I glad I decided to bring it to Mexico.
As I got close to the ocean I noticed two vehicles parked one with BC plates and decided to stop, it was the trail head. I parked next to them and went to the beach, this was full of trucks, and obviously it is a big time commercial fishing location.
Looking up I could see 250 M high hills, and to the south the trail was winding its way up over the top to the next hidden bay which is the original Old Harbour of Todos Santos.
OK let’s go, so I started the climb. As I reached the first plateau I noticed a Jeep descending. I wanted to get picture so I asked the guys “what’s up”. Could you believe my surprise when one guy said he was from Langley and the second said I am from Chilliwack? After my previous experience on Tecolote beach with a couple from Langley I am thinking this is unreal, the Canucks are to be found everywhere in Mexico.
I momentarily continued upwards, and then I remembered I had parked Suzie where they wanted to exit the trail. I turned around and descended the trail as fast I could go. As I got close to the starting point I saw their Jeep driving away, obviously they had found a workaround. I jumped into Suzie and drove it up the hill to where I had been. I got out and continued upwards, what a great climb up to the high point of the trail.
Fantastic view, I looked down into the hidden bay and could see the old harbour. I returned back down the trail and jumped into Suzie and drove her to the top. Yes, I know this is a weird way to ascend a climb but safety is of paramount importance and I wasn’t sure how good the trail was so I did it on foot before making the 4x4 ascent.
After we rested at the top Suzie and I dropped down the “zig-zag” trail to the old harbour, it was scary in places with big drop offs but we made it in one piece thanks in no small part to having 4L selected to hold me back on the steep parts of the trail.
On the return journey I stopped on the trail and then hiked on foot to the top of the hillside which allowed me to take 360 degree photos. I checked my thermometer it said 30C, luckily a pacific breeze was blowing to help cool things down.
I slowly made it down the hillside and back into Todos Santos, I then saw a sign to the Posada La Posa (Inn on the Lagoon). I had no idea what this was but in the spirit of adventure I followed the signs which took me along dusty roads heading back to the ocean.
Boy I am glad I did, this is a little Hotel run by a Swiss couple, right on the edge of the ocean, I met the hosts who made me very welcome, what a way to finish the hike.
Hasta la Vista, Senor Ken.