THE EAST CAPE, MX
La Ventana, or 'The Window' in Spanish, is an amazing little town on the eastern side of the southern part of the Baja Peninsula. It was pretty much our last stop in Baja, and it was a place that I wish I could have spent more time in. Located right on the Sea of Cortez this place is a kite-surfing hotspot. The beach is full of kitesurfers, kite surf school, kite bums living out of their vans for the season, etc. The vibe of the town due to this is pretty cool. Just a bunch of active people chasing wind and living down here. Its like a surf-town, but just for kiting. The year-round winds here have attracted a lot of people, which has allowed the town to grow a bit due to the travelers that live here for months at a time. But this place isn't really touristy. It's the sweet spot of a place where the people who are there have helped to make the place better rather than corrupted by the tourism. There are cool restaurants, some bars, a semblance of a nightlife, and a nice community feel. There's also some cool things to see here outside of just going kite-surfing. The beaches are beautiful and won't be all that crowded. There's also a hostel here that's really lovely. I really recommend this place. Located within an hour of La Paz, it's an easy place to get to. Just south a bit. It's certainly worth it for anyone who is in Baja — no matter what you like to do, you will have fun here.
LOCATIONS
The name the East Cape should give you an idea about where this place is located. It's the eastern side of the southern cape of Baja. It's located east of San Jose del Cabo, pretty much all the way around to Los Barriles. I mean "located" there's really no definition as to where it starts and stops, that I know of. I would say the section serviced by the Camino Cabo Este is probably the best definition for what this part of Baja is.
It's a generally uninhabited portion of the southern tip of Baja, especially as compared to the generally large population centers in the area. There are also a lot of different areas of the East Cape. So below I will get into some of the different parts of the cape.
There are two ways to get into the East Cape. The access from the north is to take highway 1 down from La Paz, which you will take south until you see the turnoff for "Camino Cabo Este". This is the road that you will be on no matter which way you enter the East Cape and the way that you will travel the east cape. Once you get on this road, just take it and it will take you around the entire East Cape. The dirt road is nice and easy, and no clearance or 4x4 is needed. If you decide to turn off the road to the roads less traveled, be wary because sand can get deep, and 4x4 is required.
The 2nd way in from San Jose directly. Take the Camino Cabo Este Road out of town. MAKE SURE YOU DON'T TAKE THE EAST CAPE ROAD. The Camino Cabo Este is a newly paved road that goes about 10 miles into the East Cape. Skipping a 10 mile or so stretch of absolutely terrible dried out riverbed and rock road along the water leading into the East Cape. I made this mistake, and it was a long slow crawl over the rocks. Pretty though, but not worth it. The Cabo Este eventually heads out to the ocean and it turns into the beautiful dusty road that flanks the entirety of the East Cape. It's an easy and beautiful drive. Pretty much when the road turns dirt you have arrived. The road is well kept and easy. And you'll get to see a lot of cool stuff along the way. There's lots of little places to stop and camp and you can make the trip as quickly or slowly as you would like.
TIPS:
1. DON'T TAKE THE BEACH OUT OF SAN JOSE. Take the paved road as far as you can. It's the one on google maps. Don't hug the beach after passing the Marina Golf Course. It's a terrible road and you could end up in trouble. It takes forever as well.
2. STOCK UP. Stock up on your food in San Jose del Cabo. The East Cape is extremely rural, there aren't really grocery stores, and gas stations are hard to find. Get your supplies before heading in.
3. THINK BEFORE TURNING OFF. Don't just take random turnoffs unless you have a good enough vehicle. If you have 4x4 do whatever you want, but if you don't, the turnoffs could have deep sand, big rocks to crawl over, etc. Just be smart before exiting the Camino Cabo Este.
4. CAMP YOUR ASS OFF. The wild camping here is some of the best in the entire country. A few places we stayed are some of the most memorable places I have woken up in my entire life. Explore, and treat yourself.
La Fortuna was one of my favorite places to camp in the East Cape. There's an excellent wave out front as well. You can wake up steps from the water with the wave in front of your face. It's also one of the first places that you will roll up on after the Camino Cabo Este turns left along the sea if you are heading North. About 2 miltes after the left turn at the sea. It's an amazingly beautiful place, with a nice white sand beach. You can camp everywhere here. There will be a nice dirt road along the ocean, some nice vacation houses, but nothing other than that. The only form of traffic will be the many cows that end up in the road. There's also one restaurant, really the only place of note to eat in the East Cape. Some of the best sushi I have ever had. Or so it seemed. Zai Sushi.
Nine palms would be the next popular stop north up the East Cape Road. It's one of the best surf spots in the area — aptly named. None of the camping here is all that unique compared to one another. So it's similar to La Fortuna. This place was a bit more crowded when we were there though. This is the most popular place with the big rig overlanders. So you will see a lot of them here. It's a really nice place though — awesome wave too.
Los Fralies is a place that you can miss. It's a large beach a bit of a ways up from Nine Palms. About 20 miles north. It's a large crescent-shaped beach that it's popular to camp on. It's in a small fishing village here, so there are some very scarce options to eat, or buy fresh fish from the local fisherman. There's a mountain at the point of the bay that you can go and hike around or explore around by car if you are interested in that as well.
There is much more detail on Cabo Pulmo in the section on it, which is linked to the name here, but in short Cabo Pulmo is a small dive-town located here in the East Cape. It's for diving, and nothing else.
This was a just stunning part of the cape that we happened upon entirely by accident. I thought twice about even writing about it, but I figured most people won't read this deep into the East Cape page. Anyways, if you do, here's a treat. We got lost, actually, and didn't know where we were, and accidentally found ourselves in the most beautiful part of the entire trip of Baja, I believe. You can't get here really without 4-wheel drive. It's a large sandy beach, that leads out to a point and a lighthouse. If you can drive on the beach, you will be totally isolated.
We drove onto this perfect and entirely deserted white sand beach that stretched for miles. We drove for a few miles on the deep sand — the car overheated, and we were forced to sleep there. It was mind-blowing to us that this existed. Not a human for miles. Once you have reached this point, the surfing in Baja California has practically ended. The waves for the most part can't get around the horn of the Cape.
I didn't find this to be a real point of interest, but it is notable because it is the beginning of the East Cape, kind of, from the northern entry way. When you get to La Ribera, you have really entered the Cape. It's a marker-town. — Also, last place to get any real supplies. Additionally, there is a Four Seasons resort here. Sadly.
EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN
The locations mentioned above are such a small selection of the different parts of the East Cape. You can camp and explore everywhere in between. I highly recommend doing so. You will find some real beauty.
HOSTELS, CAMPING, AND HOTELS (IF ANY)
— Described in more detail in the 'locations' section. But La Fortuna is a lovely place to camp. It's the first spot you will hit, really, that is popular after turning along the ocean on the East Cape Road. — Free and safe wild camping, with a restaurant on the cliff. Wave in front. Mind the donkeys, they like to come and steal your food and trash.
The accommodation here is camping, if you ask me. There are Airbnbs in the area, as some of the beaches have big gringo houses on them, but that wasn't what I was in the market for. Maybe if I was coming on a week-long surf-trip with friends that would be what I was looking for, but not for the purposes of this guide.
There is camping everywhere. You can wild camp anywhere you want. It is free, extremely safe, and beautiful. Camp anywhere you want, and anywhere you find beautiful. A few of our favorite spots we stayed are mentioned below.
Another great place to camp. More detail in the locations section. One of the more popular places with the overlanding community, also one of the best waves in the area right out front.
— More details in the 'locations' section. A popular place to camp in a small fishing village in the central part of the East Cape. It's a large beach, with plenty of space. Local fisherman launch from the beach as well, so you can buy fresh fish.
EATS
Eating on the East Cape is pretty much whatever you bring in with you. There are some options to eat in Cabo Pulmo, but that's really a place of its own — separate from the East Cape. It's camping world, and cooking your own food. There is one exceptional place to eat in La Fortuna. Some of the best sushi you will have anywhere — especially considering you are eating it in the East Cape, after having tacos for months and rice with sand in it.
Restaurants
I can't say enough about this place. It's a beautiful restaurant located in La Fortuna. It's so random, doesn't fit in its place whatsoever. Like a red herring. But the food is so delicious. The sushi is some of the best I have had ever, and it's a proper restaurant which can be nice after so much Baja. It is not cheap though. It's actually downright expensive. But if you have it in your budget to splurge every once in a while, this is that place to do it. I promise you.
NIGHTLIFE
Nothing at all.
SIGHTS
Pretty much everything in the East Cape is a sight to see. It's beautiful and picturesque around every corner. But in terms of there being like go to places to go see and do, there's not much here. Just enjoy it day by day, surf and watch the sand and cliffs turn into blue ocean. That's all there is to see.
SURFING
The most important part of the East Cape if you ask me is the surfing. It is, in my opinion, far and away the best surfing in the southern part of the State of Baja. Far superior to the waves around Cabo San Lucas and Todos Santos. The waves out this way are harder to get to. Really any type of vehicle with wheels can make it out to the East Cape, but the dirt-only roads add a perceived level of difficulty. So the crowds stay somewhat low here. That's not to say it's anything like northern Baja, from a crowds perspective.
There is a large amount of surf tourism. For good reason I guess. But there are a lot of waves to be had. Up and down the Camino Cabo Este.
The water is especially warm in this part of Baja, which is a treat compared to the rather frigid to even cold waters on the Pacific Ocean facing side. You are working in Sea of Cortex water here really. At some point in the East Cape as well, the wave will stop. There is a point, at Punta Arena, where the waves cannot get past. Outside of specific circumstances involving hurricanes. The waves hardly even make it this far.
It's a summer surfing spot. The waves work best during the months of June through September, really. But I was there in November, and had some luck. — Just less size. This place really needs the southeasts to come up and wrap around the horn of the Cape to get things going. But when it does work, there's a beautiful selection of waves here. I will only get into the big 3 here. But there's plenty more should you choose to explore...
