Why this ride
It goes by way of Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci, Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of and back through Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
El Vizcaíno and Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 289 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 59
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: planning record, not independently verified geometry.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distances and riding times are planning figures. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. El Vizcaíno
Baja California is a long, thin peninsula, and El Vizcaino is where it gets properly wide. The biosphere reserve covers a huge, dry belt of the central peninsula, from the Pacific lagoons on one side to the Sierra de San Francisco on the other, and it is named after Sebastian Vizcaino, the Spanish captain who sailed these coasts in 1602. Scattered over the desert are the strange plants that make Baja famous, the towering cardon cactus, the squat elephant tree, and the cirio or boojum, a tall tapering spike that looks like an upside-down carrot with a few frizzy branches. After a rare rain the ground is briefly green.
Read the complete El Vizcaíno write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
El Vizcaíno is where the day begins. Next is Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci.
2. Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci
Far down the Baja California peninsula, in the mountains above the Pacific coast, are some of the finest rock paintings in the Americas. The Sierra de San Francisco is a rugged range of volcanic mesas and deep canyons, and in the shelters and overhangs along the canyon walls the Cochimí people and their ancestors painted enormous figures: humans, deer, rabbits, birds, snakes and whales, in red, black, white and yellow. Many of the human figures are life-size or bigger, with arms raised, some pierced by arrows, and the older panels are thought to be a few hundred to several thousand years old. UNESCO listed the site in 1993.
Read the complete Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci comes up about 81 km into the recorded legs. Next is Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of.
3. Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of
Jacques Cousteau once called the Gulf of California the world's aquarium, and the number backs him up: more than two hundred and forty islands and a protected stretch of sea, listed by UNESCO in 2005, hold about a third of the world's marine mammal species. Blue whales and fin whales come into the gulf to feed in winter and spring, sea lions haul out on island rocks, dolphins ride the bow waves of boats, and whale sharks cruise in warmer months. The water is a startling turquoise against cactus-covered desert islands in the colours of rust, ochre and bone.
Read the complete Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 144 km into the recorded legs you reach Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of. Next is back through Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci.
4. back through Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci, late in the day. Next is El Vizcaíno.
5. El Vizcaíno
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete El Vizcaíno write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at El Vizcaíno. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
El Vizcaíno to Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci
El Vizcaíno → Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci is 81 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci to Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of
Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci → Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of is 63 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of to back through Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci
Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of → back through Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci is 63 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci to El Vizcaíno
back through Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Franci → El Vizcaíno is 81 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.