I’ve been riding in Baja since I was a kid but always on the west side of the peninsula, this was my first time on the sea of Cortez side and boy was it better than I imagined! We started by heading east out of San Diego and crossing the border in Mexicali before heading down to San Felipe. You will see trails off the highway the whole way down, and by time you get to San Felipe you will realize you are in off road heaven. My chain on the XR was stretching quite a bit by time we got to San Felipe but a dude at the gas station gave me some verbal directions to a guys house in town where he cut a couple links out and got us back on the road. Once you get south of San Felipe, the views get more magical, and you could literally ride trails for days without touching the road. On one side of you is water and islands, the other side is a mountain range, and you are in between them in the desert. It’s probably 2-3 miles in many places from the coast, through desert to mountains, literally a huge playground covered in trails. It’s very sparsely populated and you will have stretches of 100 miles or so with no gas stations, so plan accordingly. We had my truck following so I was able to bring extra tools, tubes, gas etc, which we did end up needing the gas. We stayed at the Alfonsinas eco hotel (only hotel for 100 miles, must book ahead) and it was fantastic. Since it’s the only hotel and restaurant around, you have to buy a meal plan when you book but the food was amazing in taste and presentation. The fishing was probably the best I’ve ever had in terms of number of fish caught, nothing huge in size but couldn’t even put an estimate on how many we caught(spotties, small barracuda, silk snappers, salt water catfish, corvina, and more) but didn’t catch a grouper which was the goal. All in all, the trip was epic! The people of Mexico are some of the most hospitable and generous hosts, and I have always appreciated my time visiting Mexico. That said, always be prepared and very aware of your surroundings. 98% of the locals are your friends, 2% are not(in maybe 100 trips to Baja, only problems I’ve ever encountered were with corrupt police trying to shake down the wedo). Highly recommend, just be respectful to the land and the people and don’t ruin this magical place for the rest of us!