TRAVEL ALERT: Cañón del Tajo / El Gran Trono Blanco, Baja California

TRAVEL ALERT :  Cañón del Tajo / El Gran Trono Blanco, Baja California, México    (also posted under International)

Use caution while driving the dirt roads through the Sierra de Juárez between La Rumorosa (Mexico highway 2) and Ojos Negros (Mexico highway 3). This includes the route to Cañón del Tajo and to Laguna Hanson (Parque Nacional Constitución de 1857).

My recommendation is to travel during daylight hours, and in a convoy of 3 or more vehicles. No more driving this road at midnight for me :(

Unfortunately, the sierra has had an increase in crime in recent years. There have been at least two carjackings and shooting incidents and an armed robbery in recent years that I am aware of. On April 12, 2022, a prominent local cattle ranch owner was abducted, during daylight hours, while driving between his ranch north of Laguna Hanson and the town of La Rumorosa. The family paid the ransom, but the man was not released. I waited for two weeks, until this became public knowledge, to post here, so as not to endanger the family. We do not know if Señor Dukes was specifically targeted, or if it was a random abduction.

https://www.periodismonegro.mx/2022/04/29/secuestran-a-empresario-y-ganadero-del-ej-sierra-de-juarez/?fbclid=IwAR06bjqbPLbl9vOEGvk0cvR0ckV17K2c7CErQ5g_j05-c4XB3LZ9y037jyY

The dirt roads of the sierra and this route have long been used by narcotraficantes to circumvent the military checkpoints on the major highways. In addition to being a smuggling corridor, the canyons which have water sources are often used by marihuana growers. That includes parts of Cañón del Tajo, though away from the climbing areas.  According to local ranchers, there are currently at least two competing local mafia groups. Added to that are problems with freelance or rogue criminals. Methamphetamine has become pervasive in all of Baja, including in the sierra. Meth addicts commit a lot of property crimes, incl. thefts upon tourists. Occasionally, those turn into violent crimes.  

To my knowledge, there has not been an armed robbery at basecamp since 1996, nor vehicle burglaries in the past 20 years. If you survive the road to basecamp, it should be safe enough - except for rattlesnakes and cacti.

This is sad. I have always felt safe once on the dirt roads. One of the ranchers helped me get the car out of the sand once- using a horse! He wouldn’t accept a dime.
Thx for the update. I hope the rancher is released OK. Harming the victim is a bad move if you’re in the kidnapping bizz. 

You are an absolute legend. Thanks for keeping the community up to date and whatever risks you’re taking on to keep eyes on. Hope people see this before they head down to explore what looks like a remarkably isolated and beautiful climbing area. Stay safe out there. 

Sad news out of the Sierra de Juárez. José Dukes Carranza was found deceased near El Hongo on 4 mayo 2022. Descanse en Paz, José.  https://www.periodismonegro.mx/2022/05/05/localizan-sin-vida-a-ganadero-secuestrado-en-sierra-de-juarez/

I offer my sincere condolences to Jose Carranza’s Family and Friends.

I hope someday we humans will learn to embrace love and friendship and will reject violence.

That's awful.  Does anyone understand the rationale for killing him after the ransom was paid?  I'm clueless about cartel politics.

Cocoapuffs 1000 wrote:

That's awful.  Does anyone understand the rationale for killing him after the ransom was paid?  I'm clueless about cartel politics.

I won't try to get into the "cartel politics" or local mafia issues. It wouldn't even be safe to do so, and my knowledge is limited. We aren't even sure if this abduction was random or an organized targeting of the specific individual. Rather than try to answer your question on a macro level, I can address the psychological. 

To a sociopath's mindset (aka: antisocial personality disorder), a human life is worthless unless it has some benefit to him/her. Once the ransom is paid, there is little or no benefit to keeping the victim alive, unless it is to extort additional money. The risk in keeping the victim alive is that the victim can provide identifying information about the perpetrator(s). It is perfectly logical to kill the victim, if you understand the sociopathic mind. There is a decided lack of empathy for others, and most often a great deal of underlying anger/rage. Most of us have difficulty understanding the antisocial personality. Estimates of prevalence range from 1% to 4% of the population in the USA. To understand the profound lack of empathy, one might ask, "Does the cat feel guilty about killing the bird?" or "Why did  the cat kill the bird, it ate 10 minutes ago?"  That is the same reason Putin does not feel remorse over Ukrainian women and children being slaughtered at his direction.  It is hard to believe that there are people like that. A painful reality is that there are people in our communities who are watching and waiting for their next victim.

I'm really sorry to hear this. One of my favorite places on earth and only good memories of the people I've met down there...

Any updates on this area? Has anyone been down in the past few months?

The North face of Canyon Tajo is the best cliff in San Diego. I am sad to feel like I am taking a big risk in going down there anymore until things change. The routes I was involved in down there are among the best I ever climbed on. I have too many people I am responsible for these days to cast the dice like that. I started going to Mexico in the early 1970,s. We would go for a week or two at a time. No destination, no cell phones. Nobody ever knew where we were. There was no crime back then. Only an occasional shakedown by the federales if they saw surfboards on the roof of our car. Pay the twenty dollars and walk away. Those were the days. Meth wrecked everything. North of the border is also getting worse by the year. Where will it end?

Damn! I was over at Randy’s yesterday and he got me incredibly stoked on the area, was considering trying to head down in the next week or so but it seems suspect at best and not really worth the risk. 

Updates:  There were two carjacking incidents on the same day in September 2023 on the main dirt road between La Rumorosa and Laguna Hanson, near the Canyon Tajo turnoff. The bandidos have not been caught. See my advisory here: https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/124883696/travel-alert-canon-del-tajo-el-gran-trono-blanco-baja-california-september-2023   I'm not aware of any incidents since September.

From the turnoff to basecamp, about 1/2 mile in, the road had a washout this winter. 4WD not necessary, but high-clearance vehicle recommended for the short bypasses. The sand arroyo near basecamp has deeper sand than past years. If you have 2WD and are unfamiliar with the route, it's best to walk those short sections first. Know the easiest path. Also know about how to drive sand,  and airing-down tires to get unstuck.

I was there two weeks ago. Encountered four yucca poachers with machetes about 300m before basecamp. These guys are illegally harvesting wild yucca plants. That poaching is organized crime throughout the Sierra de Juárez. 

Tanner, you will want to give it several days of good weather to dry out and warm up. April through May is usually prime season. It snowed last weekend, and is snowing again this weekend. Another storm arrives next weekend. Basecamp is at 5,000' elevation. We have internet available at Rancho El Topo, 3 air miles to the WSW (6 miles by road). Also a great ranch to visit. Safe camping under the pine trees, 100 pesos per person per night ($6 USD at the current exchange rate). Horseback riding available on weekends at very reasonable rates. You may use the outdoor climbing wall, artificial holds on a 35' granite cliff, bolted for leading or TR. It's 50m from the ranch houses. Beto or Ricardo are usually there on weekends, Lucas mid-week should you need anything. Tell them John sent you, if you visit or need any assistance. 

Most likely, there will be a few Mexican climbers at basecamp on most weekends this spring. You may feel some sense of "safety in numbers" on weekends. If you feel nervous about camping alone, an option is to camp overnights at El Topo and drive to Tajo for daytime climbing. 

Other travel tips: If driving through Tecate, keep to the speed limits, posted in KPH, despite locals driving double that speed. Make a full stop at signs and count 3 full seconds before proceeding, despite locals not bothering to stop. The Tecate cops frequently shake down tourists for "mordida" (bribes). A new bakery/restaurant in La Rumorosa opened in 2022, across the highway from the Pemex gasoline station. Dulce Altura's pastries are delightful, and the interior design is unique.  https://www.dulcealtura.com/    La Cabaña del Abuelo restaurant next to the Pemex is outstanding. cabanadelabuelo.com/   The Ejido Gustavo Aubanel Vallejo operates a guard shack on the main dirt road south of town. The attendant will ask for a small fee to pass through, supposedly for road maintenance. The peso has strengthened against the US dollar, currently you will get about 16:1  Bring small bills for the tolls on the "cuota" Mexico highway 2D. 67 pesos at El Hongo, approx. $4.20 each way. Speaking of 4.20, just don't even think about it. The police would like nothing better than to shake you down for all your money and perhaps even your vehicle. They are also on the lookout for knives; even a small pocket knife is illegal. Dogs must be contained or restrained in the back seat area. 

Amazing beta thanks for taking the time to share! I’m going to shoot you a direct message, I’d be taking my van down which has everything I own in it so I’m not sure I’d be comfortable risking it from the sound of current affairs. But the granite does look good..