San Ignacio Lagoon

You can spot many different types of whales all along the coast of Baja, but since the bays and lagoons have a defined space, they offer a superb opportunity to view a high concentration of gray whales up close. Plan to visit one or more of the three bays where the gray whales migrate each winter. These three bays are Bahía Magdalena, Laguna Ojo de Liebre (nicknamed Scammon’s Lagoon for the whaling captain who discovered the bay), and San Ignacio Lagoon. Of these three bays, Laguna Ojo de Liebre and San Ignacio Lagoon offer by far the best whale-watching. The two most accessible bays are Bahía Magdalena and Laguna Ojo de Liebre. Although Lagoon San Ignacio requires a difficult two-hour drive along a bumpy, ill-kept road from the town of San Ignacio, this is our personal favorite place for whale-watching because the boats are smaller, the journey through the lagoon to where the whales can be seen is shorter, and the experience is more personal (staying at a tent camp is rather like a house party—you quickly make friends with your fellow guests). Nevertheless, San Ignacio Lagoon is not recommended for everyone: it is less accessible and has no hotels. The only accommodations are in a few tent camps, and these would appeal only to the more adventuresome traveler who doesn’t mind roughing it. Very important: It is a bit confusing when you read advertisements for whale-watching. Several companies offer whale-watching tours or boat trips that leave from La Paz and explore the Sea of Cortez. Indeed, these are fun trips that enable you to see an incredible amount of wildlife (including whales), but be aware, if you really want to see the whales, you must go to one of the three bays mentioned above, where the gray whales come to have their babies. LOCATION OF THE BAYS: Bahía Magdalena (closest town, San Carlos) is the most easily accessible place to watch whales if you are flying into La Paz. It is about a two-and-a-half-hours’ drive northwest of La Paz or about a two-hour drive southwest of Loreto (both La Paz and Loreto have international airports). Laguna Ojo de Liebre (Scammon’s Lagoon) is located near the town of Guerrero Negro, on the main Highway 1, about a five-hour drive northwest of Loreto or about a ten-hour drive south of Tijuana, the border town with the USA. San Ignacio Lagoon is located approximately midway between Laguna Ojo de Liebre and Bahía Magdalena. The closest town is San Ignacio, on Highway 1, but it takes two hours to reach the lagoon from the highway because the gravel coastal access road is extremely rough.WHICH BAY TO CHOOSE: All three bays mentioned above provide wonderful whale-watching opportunities and no experience can ever be duplicated or guaranteed—so, which to choose? Laguna Ojo de Liebre and San Ignacio Lagoon are considered to offer the best likelihood to see mothers and babies up close. It is a tossup which of the two is better—both are excellent. On the other hand, Bahía Magdalena has the advantage of being the closest destination to see the whales if you are staying in La Paz. Our advice: if you have the luxury of unlimited time, visit all three bays. If time is limited, just include Bahía Magdalena and Laguna Ojo de Liebre, since access to San Ignacio Lagoon is more difficult. If you want to concentrate on just one bay, we recommend Laguna Ojo de Liebre, because it has an abundance of whales (50% of all the babies are born here) and it is easily accessible by a good road.Underground springs make San Ignacio one of the most verdant spots in Baja California. Date palms and flowering shrubs are a welcome sight after hours of driving through a beautiful but starkly barren desert whose vegetation consists mostly of towering cacti. This tiny town has a small central square dominated by the Misión San Ignacio, which was founded in 1728 by Jesuit priests. The attraction of San Ignacio is that it’s the closest town for visiting the whales in San Ignacio Lagoon (about a two-hour, rough drive beyond the town). There are no hotels on the lagoon, only tent camps. There are four tent camps on the lagoon. All are without electricity or private bathrooms. They only provide very basic communal bathrooms and showers (with limited warm water). Two of the camps, one owned by Baja Discovery and the other by Baja Expeditions, cater to clients on charter airline tours from San Diego. Two other camps, one owned by Ecoturimo Kuyima and the other by Baja Ecotours, are available for the independent traveler. Ecoturismo Kuyima has an office on the square in San Ignacios opposite the church and offers single or multi-day whale-watching tours (email: kuyima@prodigy.net.mx, website: www.kuyima.com). Baja Ecortours offers tent accommodations at their Campo Cortez with a minimum stay of two nights and has an office in California for making reservations (tel: USA 877-560-2252, email: info@bajaecotours.com, website: www.bajaecotours.com). In addition to independent travel, Baja Ecotours can also arrange tours originating in San Diego or Loreto.RECOMMENDED PACING: To follow this itinerary we recommend eight nights. For those traveling independently, we suggest flying into Loreto and spending two nights there, giving you time to explore the town and then travel south to view whales at Bahía Magdalena. From Loreto, drive north to Guerrero Negro, where we recommend a stay of three nights in order to have two full days to take several whale-viewing outings. We then suggest driving south and settling in at Punta Chivato for three nights so that you have an entire day to look for shells along the beach and enjoy the beauty of the setting, and another full day to travel to Mulegé to explore the prehistoric caves. Depending on your departure from Loreto, it might be possible to drive directly from Punta Chivato to the Loreto airport (approximately two hours), or you might want to consider an overnight in Loreto, if you have a morning departure. Note: If you have a tendency for seasickness, before your departure, you might want to ask your doctor about the advisability of purchasing Transderm patches, as the sea can be rough.