
Two thirds of the way down Baja California, the surf spot of Scorpion Bay first came on my radar around ten years ago. Since then I’d be circling around it nervously like a coiled snake ready to make it’s move and pounce. Even the name – Scorpion Bay – had given it a kind of mythical, exotic and slightly dangerous status. I’d poured over YouTube videos of the wave itself – peeling right handers that seemed to go on forever. Some articles called it – when conditions prevailed – one of the longest waves in the world. Easy and forgiving, perfectly for a middle aged surfer like myself. I’d studied maps and forums of the best way to get there and any other tips for visitors. Do I need an SUV? How much water should I take? Is it dangerous? But I’d never quite managed to pull the trigger and visit. Until now.
Loping below California, the Baja Peninsula – the biggest peninsula in the world – really is an adventure on our doorstep just waiting to happen. With it’s miles of coastline – longer than California – it’s vast wildness had always been a rite of passage for surfers. I’d made forays into Northern Baja and enjoyed a holiday at the tropical southern most tip of Cabo San Lucas – but I’d never been to the bit in the middle that housed Scorpion Bay.

We flew into the town of Loreto on the Sea of Cortez side from LAX on Alaska Airlines. A short 90 minute flight and you are in another country. On the flight down I looked out the window at the endless miles of blank desert and coastline. No roads or population – just coves, beaches, cliffs, headlands, crescent bays and, I imagined, endless waves, surf and point breaks. I basically spent 90 minutes looking out the window mind surfing. Looking at the Sea of Cortez side as we lowered into Loreto I was amazed at how mountainous it was. I got a Canary Islands vibe with the deep azure of the ocean and the volcanic islands that littered the coast, like the opening credit to a Jurassic Lost World documentary.

From Loreto we hired our car and started the 3.5 hour drive across the peninsula to the town of San Juanico, to the north of which Scorpion Bay is situated. The drive moves from the hot Sea of Cortez side rising over the mountains to the desert plateau and eventually across to San Juanico and the Pacific Ocean by way of dusty deserts and endless cowboy movie cacti. The landscape is big and empty. Big skies, sand, glimpses of the Pacific across the sand and no people. It feels like the end of the earth. Across the plains we came to the junction town of Ciudad Insurgentes and headed north, parallel to the Pacific, glimpse of which we would see on our left in the distance through the hazy, dusty sun. Brief sightings of the deep blue tantalizing us into the promise of what the Ocean might have in store for us over the next few days.

We got there just in time for sunset – which was good as we’d been warned to not drive in the dark – and found our accommodation at the Cantina which is the only hotel on the headland nearest the waves. Excited, we drove our car around to look at the surf. The reports had said a solid 3 foot swell and from the cliff we watched long boarders take a perfect peeling right hander – probably waist high – which went on and on. We were looking at Point 3. Further around the headland is Point 4. I guess Points 1 and 2 are actually the bay itself and on bigger swell days you could catch a wave – where all Points join up – all the way in on a ride that’s reputed to be one of the longest in the world. Unfortunately we didn’t quite hit those type of conditions but we definitely weren’t disappointed.

The first day we surfed Point 4 and it was probably head height – I scored some of the longest waves of my life. They kept going on and on alongside being an easy take off that would morph into some steeper and more challenging sections. It was a very rocky break so you had to watch out for boils and rock outcrops but we never felt at risk. We were pleased to have bought neoprene bootys for the walk out across the sharp rocks infested with urchins. In the water everyone was very friendly and it wasn’t very busy – I guess it’s quite an effort to get to so it probably only attracts the adventurous type. I imagine on really good says it might get busier and a tad more competitive.

The next day we surfed Point 3 near the lighthouse and this was a really fun wave. It was quite small but it still went on and on and again everyone – mostly long boarders – was very friendly. It really is the perfect wave with an easy take off and a long open face to play with. Most people at the Cantina were camping in their RVs, many of them driving down – a journey of 18 hours – from California. We even met people who’d driven down from Canada via mainland Mexico. With a 4 wheel drive you could spend months driving down scoring empty waves and perhaps bagging spots that had never been surfed before. The hotel had a palapa with a good restaurant and bar and again everyone was very welcoming and friendly. It had a backpacker vibe to the place and took me back to traveling in my late teens.

On the last day we left after breakfast to spend the day and our last night in Loreto. After descending from the mountains to the Sea of Cortez you skirt magical coves and beaches. We stopped off for a swim and it felt like the Greek Islands – crystal clear water, hot and dusty, endless coves, white sands and a laidback and sleepy vibe. In fact the Sea of Cortez is famed for its world class snorkeling and diving sites so you could do a great holiday splitting your time between the Pacific side and here. It’s also famous for whale watching as humpback and grey whales migrate from California waters around the bottom of Baja and up the coast to give birth in the calm and warmer waters of the Sea of Cortez. Loreto itself was a lovely sleepy port town. I felt like I had been taken back to 1970s Spain or Portugal. Everything seemed a little – in a very good way – old fashioned. There’s a romantic malecon you can stroll alongside the pond-like sea. There’s a Main Street with restaurants and bars and a characterful Spanish colonial church.

I almost feel bad writing about the magical place of Scorpion Bay. It’s somewhere you’d like to keep a secret but weirdly and perversely want to tell everyone about. I don’t believe in God, but I imagine if he existed only He could have created the absolute perfection that makes this spot. It’s like it’s been specifically designed to tick all the surf boxes. Exposed headland that picks up south swells. Check. Good bathymetry to form long waves under the surface. Check. Cliffs that shelter the waves from winds so it can work on windy afternoons. Check. Ability to hold bigger swells and on the right conditions all the planets align and the different points join up to form one of the longest waves in the world. Check. It’s mythological place. I will be returning soon when conditions prevail so I can see this unique beast at it’s very best .
