Fill the tank before you leave the border. Top off any time you’re at half.
MEX-5 the whole way. Return on the same highway.
Every drive down Highway 1 passes through the Cataviña boulder field; almost everyone burns it in an hour. This route is the argument for staying: two nights camped among house-sized granite, with the cirio forest turning gold at the edges of the day, cave paintings a short walk from the pavement, and a ghost quarry at the end of a graded spur where onyx sat stacked for shipment when the market died.
Members read the full route guide
The complete story, trip vitals verified by members who drove it, and the GPS file to take with you — every route in the library. $40 a year.
Already a member? Log in.
Members get this for every route in the library — a growing library of Baja trips — plus the camping, fuel, and checkpoint notes that go with them. The file loads straight into Gaia GPS, OnX Offroad, or a Garmin. $40 a year.
AnglersIsland-studded bay on the Gulf side, and some of the most reliable yellowtail water on the peninsula.
OverlandersWhere the pavement gets interesting: south of Puertecitos the Gulf coast empties out, and the road delivers you to one of Baja's last great beach outposts.
Baja changes. Roads wash out, camps close, a Pemex that was there in March can be dry in November. Everything on this page came from members who actually drove it, on the date stamped at the top — but conditions on the ground are yours to verify.
The GPX track is a planning aid, not a navigation authority. Don’t follow a line on a screen into terrain you can’t see. Carry paper backup, tell someone your plan, and turn around when the road tells you to.
Mexican auto insurance is required by law and your U.S. policy doesn’t cover you. If something goes wrong without it, the situation gets much worse very fast. Get a quote before you cross.
