Norte Baja Newsletter #3
Looking for a good band for your next event? Check Out The Bebedoors Band
It's fall now and the days are getting shorter. This is the perfect time and weather to plan your Baja peninsula exploration.
San Felipe
Shrimp Festival
The San Felipe shrimp festival will take place on Friday, October 31 and Saturday, November 1, 2025. The family-friendly festival will take place on the malecón from the hours of 10am-10pm each day. Enjoy food, drinks, live entertainment, and plenty of shrimp.
Mexicali Aguachile Festival
The Mexicali Aguachile festival will take place on November 8, 2025. The family-friendly event will feature a contest of the best aguachiles in the region. The festival will also feature live entertainment and will take place at the Plaza de toros Calafia.
Your Baja California North Road Trip
Let's assume you have a long weekend or even a few days more to discover, explore and enjoy Baja California North when the weather is perfect. If you're coming down from the north at San Diego you can easily pass through Tijuana and Rosarito to get down as far as Ensenada in a few hours. Everyone loves Ensenada and it's a fine place to spend a whole day, see some sights, go to some great restaurants or even take a boat ride- or you can keep driving.
The Valle de Guadalupe is getting all the press nowadays for the 150 or more wineries and high end restaurants located out of the back door of Ensenada. Glamping overnight is also an option as well for your first night on your Baja Explorarama.
When you're as far as Ensenada you have the option of continuing South towards San Quintin, which can be the strategic route if you're going to venture as far south as Bahia de Los Angeles. San Quintin is well known for Oyster farms and estuary kayaking or great sport fishing right off the coast. The Old Mill Inn or Hotel Jardines or several campgrounds offer options for your overnight stay in this unique place. Try the ribeye's at Eucalipto Restaurant.
If you were going all the way to the Southern State of Baja California Sur or heading for Guerrero Negro for instance to go Whale Watching at certain times of year- you would just keep going south. Instead, at this wonderful weather time of year the better option is to cross the Baja Peninsula to the east, getting the chance to see all the desert flora and fauna in all of it's glory. You might count as many as 50 species of cactus.
Once you've crossed the really beautiful desert, which is not oppressively hot at this time of year, you can make a choice to either go to the Gonzaga Bay area turning north again, or put in some extra hours to get all the way to Bahia de Los Angeles. Both areas have their attraction with Bahia de Los Angeles being even warmer, with fantastic fishing - a quiet little town with cheaper hotels and camping - decidedly less fancy, but offering the gateway to Angel la Guardia Island, fantastic and iconic adventures on the water - including swimming with whale sharks - this extra driving can be extremely once-in-a-lifetime kind of worthwhile.
If you turn north when you get across the peninsula to the Sea of Cortez, the Gonzaga Bay area is also excellent. Check out Punta Final, Alfonsina's hotel and great clamming and sea kayaking in the entire area. This area offers some primitive camping as well as RV hookups and the Rancho Grande store and Pemex gas station for everything you need. While Gonzaga Bay is a fine destination, especially for quiet and natural beach camping, you'll probably want to take another day to the north in San Felipe.
Being closer to the border, San Felipe is accessed by a lot more weekenders and features many more restaurants and hotels. Famous for fresh fish and shrimp there is always something going on in San Felipe - which yes, is darn hot until the latter part of October, but then really shines as a happening destination.
If you're coming from Arizona or Calexico, make sure to take the time to come through Mexicali. Mexicali while hot and not on the water, has amazing restaurants and many Micro-Breweries. You'll be ready for a cold beer as you pass through this area which is also famous for Chinese restaurants. Don't worry, they have Sushi and Mexican fare as well, but do yourself a favor and stop in there.
So you see that you have multiple options of both coasts of Baja North, and this is the time to take a road trip - while the weather is great. We are used to bringing kayaks and the dog - just check with your hotel choices to make sure your puppy will be welcome. No problem with most of the restaurants and the beach. Dogs love this trip too!
Baja's Art Scene
What constitutes a regional art scene? Prolific painters? Pottery and Sculpture? Openings and Showings? State sponsored exhibits and festivals? Multiple galleries? Baja California North has it all.
Check out our list of Baja Art Galleries
Short-finned pilot whales live in large, social pods and dive deeply to feed on squid and fish, often at night. They have strong family bonds and can be seen resting at the surface in groups during the day. In Baja, they are resident in warmer waters, with occasional sightings during whale watching. Specific range includes the Sea of Cortez and offshore Pacific coast areas year-round. Learn More About Baja Whales
Great Restaurants In Tecate
Whether you find yourself passing through or target Tecate as a destination - These are the top-rated restaurants in Tecate..
https://www.bajacalifornianorth.com/tecate-top-ten-restaurants
Is it time to move to Baja?
San Felipe, Baja California, is once again the host of the traditional music festival. This year, we will celebrate the 19th year of the "Blues and Arts Fiesta." El Dorado Ranch and the San Felipe Lions Club will continue to put this wonderful event in memory of Diane Grubb.
In addition to Diane, Rick Rudd and Heather Penrod were the foundation that created this event. Since 2005, the Blues and Arts Fiesta has brought fans worldwide, and locals always look forward to supporting this event.
The Blues and Arts Fiesta is not only a get-together of Musicians and Artists; it is also a charity event where 100 percent of the donations are given to the community. Our donations continue to benefit the local orphanage, Sonshine Hacienda, the Fire Department, Volunteers without Limits, DIF, San Felipe Seniors, International Hospital of San Felipe, San Felipe Schools, Better Together cataract surgeries, and our vision program, to name a few.
We welcome all of you for Supporting our community!!!Join us for the 19th annual San Felipe Blues & Arts Fiesta. We are proud to say that our annual Fiesta has raised over $300k for San Felipe.
Friday, October 24th, 2025
5:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Evening of Blues
Jam session with musicians
Saturday, October 25th, 2025
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Blues & Arts Fiesta on the Pavilion Lawn
San Felipe Blues Festival Returns
