Hello,

Does anyone know anything about Guerrero Negro other than the basic facts:
- entrance point into Baja Sur
- Lagoon where the whales mate

Has anyone spent any time there? I would like to relocate for about 1 year. I would like to find an affordable place on the water or near the water, I will need DSL. I would love to find a language school, etc . . . And safety of course.

Best,
Candice Nelms

Hi there,

It sounds like you are new to the peninsula and I’m unaware of your interests. In my experience, (35 years of running around there) Guerrero Negro has been 1) a supply point for the central desert and, 2) a company town (commercial salt production). While it is the largest collection of souls and commerce in the central desert, it is not a pretty town and the surrounding Vizcaino Desert is parched and almost cactiless. Personally, I have spent time in Guerrero Negro over the years, as a departure point for Malarrimo and Bahia Tortugas, a layover from a drive down the peninsula before the pavement went in, and as a point of repair for failed vehicles.

It has the greatest resources of any town in the central desert, but it is not a town I’d personally choose to stay in for more than a few days. But I have no knowledge of your interests. If you want to experience Baja, most of the Americans that visit there fall into two groups: 1) want to party and 2), want to dig a little deeper into the places less popular than Cabo, Rosarito and Ensenada. Since you are thinking about living in Guerrero Negro for a year, I’d assume you fall into the latter group.

Guerrero Negro does a good job of supporting tourists and has a number of nice hotels, motels and restaurants. It is a focal point for the Baja bus system, has full-time electricity and telephones. It is not, in my experience, a place that Americans go just for the town itself. It does have a distinct advantage of being on the west coast and thus is much cooler than the interior or the east coast. Regarding DSL, I doubt if you'll find DSL anywhere outside the larger cities, but most folks use a satellite link. If you're in the outback they use sat phones as well.

Personally I would consider something a little more attractive and less “businesslike” like San Ignacio (90 mins south of GN on Hwy 1). In San Ignacio, you’ll find the first truly historic and attractive town in the central peninsula, with a small but prominent river, a smaller town and a simpler structure. You’ll be closer to other older and more historic villages like Santa Rosalia, Mulege, Loreto and La Paz. In these towns you begin to feel the impact of the Jesuits who “developed” the peninsula during the 1700’s. The European influence is still there.

If that’s too far south and you would enjoy a simple village of about 700 folks and a fishing and low-key fishing-for-a-living environment, you might try Bahia de Los Angeles, two and a half hours north and east of GN and on the Sea of Cortez. The village of Bahia de Los Angeles is situated on the shore of a very large bay, well protected most of the time and with numerous off-islands along its shores. Most of the locals are fisherman and there are perhaps 150 tourist homes scattered in small clusters along the ~15 miles of bay coastline. The village has electricity between ~6 in the morning until ~11 at night. Most Americans that live there live outside the village and rely on solar power. Bahia de Los Angeles is a beautiful, tranquil place, a place to dream, to repair yourself from a frantic northern exposure and to relax and join in if you choose.

But there are many other places that might suit you and it is important for you to define what it is you’re looking for before you jump on a bus and take off into the heart of Baja. A few of the places you might just jump off might not meet with your liking. Regardless, you’re heading into an adventure and I envy you!