Posted on 03/29/2021 12:06:47 AM PDT by nickcarraway
Hiking trails in the state are being certified according to an internationally accepted system
Hiking is becoming an increasingly popular activity in Baja California and the northern border state looks set to attract even more nature lovers with the certification of what will be the longest trail in Latin America.
There are currently 12 certified, marked trails in Baja California, according to state officials, more than any other state in Mexico. They include trails in the Sierra de San Pedro Martír National Park as well as coastal tracks in Ensenada and Rosarito.
The newspaper The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that the state is now in the process of certifying a 68-mile, or 110-kilometer, trail that will run across the state and along the coast down to Baja California Sur. It will be the longest in Latin America.
The Union-Tribune also reported that the state government has partnered with the company Baliza México to certify Baja California hiking trails according to an internationally accepted system that makes them both safer and easier to navigate and enjoy.
“People want to escape the day-to-day. If we add in the pandemic, people have had even more to deal with, and they are looking for that escape,” said Mónica Véjar, executive director of Baliza México, explaining the increasing popularity of hiking.
Hikers on one of Baja California's hiking trails. Hikers on one of Baja California’s hiking trails. BALIZA MEXICO She said that Baliza works with people who live near the hiking trails so that they can become informal guides or sell water or offer washroom access.
“At first, some [locals] were asking, ‘Do we need to put in cabanas and restaurants?’ and we said ‘No, no, no. Water, restrooms and a trail-head,’ and that makes for a great hike,” Véjar said.
“[Now] they are telling me they are already overwhelmed by the number of people who are arriving, and while it is certain that people want to escape, it is very important that people do it responsibly and part of doing it responsibly is going to places that are already marked,” she said.
One person who has recently caught the hiking bug is 45-year-old Mexicali resident Beatriz Ojeda, who was laid off from her job as a dialysis technician during the pandemic.
While she was feeling depressed about losing her job, Ojeda was invited by a friend to go on a hike and really enjoyed the experience. She, her 24-year-old daughter and a friend recently set out on a hike to climb the highest mountain in Rosarito, Cerro El Coronel, which affords breathtaking views over the Pacific Ocean.
During the hike, markers installed by Baliza were very helpful to Ojeda and her companions, the Union-Tribune said, noting that the precarious path to the peak of El Coronel makes for a challenging hike.
A trail marker on one of Baja California's 12 certified trails. A trail marker on one of Baja California’s 12 certified trails. BALIZA MEXICO “I feel totally different today,” Ojeda said the day after the hike. “It just opens up your mind, your heart and gives you a totally different perspective. You don’t need to go all the way up to take it all in. You can just sit down and breathe and watch the view and it does a world of good.”
Tourism officials hope to attract people from nearby San Diego, and farther afield, to enjoy the state’s trails, which Baliza is also geocoding so that maps show up on search engines such as Google.
“The truth is we’re inviting the whole world,” said Dr. Ruben Roa, Baja California’s deputy minister of sustainable economy and tourism.
Promotion of the hiking opportunities is an extension of a concerted effort to make tourists aware of activities in the state beyond spring break partying. Culinary tours, the abundant craft beer offerings and the wineries in the Valle de Guadalupe have all helped to attract new and different kinds of visitors to Baja California.
Now, the state’s certified hiking trails look set to do the same.
“The idea is to extend the [Baja California] experience … to complement it,” Roa said. “In other words, we’re not closing off those other activities that are welcome, but I must admit that have exploited us for a long time, and did not allow for a recognition of the natural and pristine beauty of the state, especially in the southern portion of the state.”
Ping
Don’t forget about its tourist attraction, “avoid the cartel gauntlet”.
Go hiking in Mexico! That’s what I want to do!
It’s the last thing I want to do, because it is the last thing I would do.
Reminds me of one of those “right before tragic death” photos.
gmta.
You think cartels go hiking?
They wouldn’t hike. They’d probably use ATV’s.
I once passed three possible drug ranchers in Ventana Wilderness, wearing green army jackets and bolt actions riffles.
Hiking in Baja? More like impersonating bucks during hunting season.
“Reminds me of one of those “right before tragic death” photos.”
Not to worry. She’s making the sign of Satan with both hands. Safe as kittens.
"Baja Trail: Not Just For Cartels!"
"Buh-Baja: Just Do It"
"Beheaded on the Baja: Feel The Fresh Breeze On Yo Neck, Pendejo"
"Music for Mojados on the Baja Trail: How to Disappear Completely"
"Music for Mojados on the Baja Trail 2: Missing Persons"
I hear that trail from middle of nowhere to 30 miles east of Douglas AZ is popular too.
Since the subject was raised earlier, the death rate from murder in Mexico was similar in 2020 to 2019, both years about 34,500 which is a rate of about 29 per 100,000 as Mexico has a population approaching 120 million now (surprising given the numbers who list California as their home address).
That sounds quite high but your chances of being murdered in Mexico are about one in 3,400. I would imagine that residents of certain locations are at higher risk than that, it is likely a lower risk in Mexico City or Monterrey than Guadalajara or Ciudad Juarez.
Looks like a great trail! Great views, certainly,
I’m just glad none of the pictures had people wearing masks, LOL! I got so sick of that last year when I went hiking several times in Georgia. Some of the hiking clubs were actually requiring hikers to wear masks on the trail. Sigh.
And then there were the masked hikers, mostly young, who would leap to the side of the trail or even run into the woods if they met you coming in the opposite direction.
I hope Mexican hikers are not as nutty.
How do you say rape and rob in Spanish?
“Hiking is becoming an increasingly popular activity in Baja California...”
So has kidnapping, murder, rape, robbery etc!😎
Maybe next she’ll do what the European chicks do in Indonesia and ‘take it all off’ and then post pictures/videos on Facebook.
...and then wonder why they’re being jailed rather than being allowed to board their flight home.
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