It seems some people these days get a little fidgety or nervous when they get off the grid—no cell service, no phone, no Internet, no Snapchat, no Facebook, no real connection with the outside world.
We were completely okay with that during our two rides in Baja California late last year. Of course, we weren’t out of touch for days on end but when we were “off the grid” we thoroughly enjoyed it. We didn’t—and you won’t—want anything to spoil your Mexico experience.
Our off the grid moment came when we dropped down from the desert into Mike’s Sky Rancho, which is tucked away along the Arroyo San Rafael in a remote and secluded canyon far from any civilization.
Mike’s Sky Rancho was our overnight stop on both trips to the Baja as part of Go Baja/Go Desert Riding Tours (www.gobajariding.com) ride last fall and winter. We told you in part one (“Riding The Baja Is Magnifico,” Dirt Toys Magazine, August, 2017, page42) of our two-part story on riding in Baja California that we have been to the area twice to ride, once on a Can-Am Maverick X3 Turbo side-by-side intro and the other with Bruce Anderson and his tour company with a group of riders from all over the United States. Combined, we were able to ride the Baja for five days and nearly 650 miles.
It was espectacular.
Beach Time
Prior to riding to Mike’s Sky Rancho, we spent the previous night in San Felipe on the Gulf of California. After breakfast provided by Go Baja/Go Desert Riding Tours poolside at Hotel Hacienda Don Jesus, we headed to the small sand dunes literally on the edge of town. We didn’t spend much time at the dunes (Google Earth shows the dune area well) and soon were headed to the Muelle de San Felipe on the Gulf of California. Here we saw the local shrimping boats in dock and others coming in/going out.
It was a short stopover at Muelle de San Felipe and we were soon on our way south on Mexico Highway 5 for several miles. Just before the turnoff to the aeropuerto, we jumped off the highway and rode along the beach for a couple of miles. Riding along the Gulf of California on the beach was increible. The views were espectacular and we had it all to ourselves. We did spend a fair amount of time on the beach before heading back up to Mexico Highway 5 and back into San Felipe.
We drove right through town, along Malecon Sur to the colorful San Felipe sign, stopping for a few photos and to take in the views of the Gulf of California once more before heading inland.
From there we retraced part of our ride from the day before, going back to the dry lake bed. We crossed part of the dry lake bed but also skirted the edge of it on a dirt trail for a ways. One of the biggest differences from this day’s ride and the day before is the wind had died down and that meant no blowing dust. We could clearly see Cerro Picacho del Diablo (10,157 feet) and indeed it is an imposing mountain.
We made our way in the general direction of Lazaro Cardenas, stopping for lunch along the highway and then heading south across the desert toward Mike’s Sky Rancho. Basically, we rode around the mountain range where Cerro Picacho del Diablo sits to Mike’s Sky Rancho. It was through this stretch that we passed a group of federal troops who were walking in the desert looking for drug runners. Anderson had told us we might come across federal troops in the desert but we hadn’t until this day. It was a little different to see them walking around with semi-automatic weapons, seemingly in the middle of nowhere.
Mike’s Sky Rancho
Those in our group on dirt bikes took a single track trail once we got closer to Mike’s Sky Rancho while those of us in the side-by-sides took the main road into Mike’s. Since it was December, the daylight hours are short and the evening sun on the mountains was quite a sight.
Looking at our odometer from the second day’s ride, it showed we dialed up 100 miles, the shortest of our three days of riding.
There are no powerlines linking Mike’s Sky Rancho to electricity so the rancho relies on a generator that generally runs from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Once we arrived, we hurriedly plugged our cameras, cell phone, anything electronic we had, in to take advantage of the window of power.
Our evening meal at Mike’s was excelente. The staff there grills steaks and serves them with homemade salsa and tortillas and it is so good. Breakfast the next morning is also made from scratch and the service is every bit as good as the food.
