Ride through the winter at Baja’s Rancho Cacachilas

Bike World News headquarters suffered one of our rainiest springs that we’ve ever seen this year and the rain left our local trails a mess well into summer. Still, I was lucky to start my mountain biking season in late March with a trip to Baja’s Rancho Cacachilas. With fall rolling back around in the states, now is the time to plan YOUR trip to Baja California Sur

Located in the rugged Sierra Cacachilas mountains of Baja California Sur, Rancho Cacachilas has a growing network of mountain biking trails that are well suited to day trips or extended stays. If you looked at Baja California Sur on a map, the first thing that would stick out to you would be the party town of Cabo San Lucas (that’s where I flew into), but the region has so much more to offer if you venture away from the beach scene. Indeed, once I started heading out of Cabo towards my jumping off point of La Paz, the landscape and the views were far different with sleepy surf towns like Todos Santos and La Ventana more common than an all day and night party scene.

I was met in La Paz by Rafa, who manages the ranch’s Bike Hub, and set out on another leg of our trip to the ranch. After about an hour drive, we arrived at the entrance to the ranch and then proceeded on dirt roads to the Rancho Chivato camp.

Rancho Cacachilas was founded to be a responsible steward of their land holdings and to practice social and environmental responsibility. As a part of their mission, they are completely “off the grid”, using solar panels for both electrical need and heating water and relying as much as possible on what they grow to feed their guests (more on the food later). In addition to mountain biking, Rancho Cacachilas is intended to be a destination for trail runners, eco-tourists, foodies and wellness.

Stay and Ride

When I was visiting the ranch, it was late in the season for them. Not only was I the first mountain bike journalist to visit, I was the only person staying at the ranch. While I stayed at a part of the ranch called Rancho Chivato, there were (at the time) four other locations offering rustic camping options (three additional camps are currently under construction). Each offers a specific focus, like farming, wine tasting, a creamery, mining heritage and the like. 

My accommodations were in a relatively comfortable resort room with a queen bed, a futon, dresser and nightstand, there was no TV or radio. Bucket sinks, urinals, bucket showers and composting toilets were just a short walk from the room.

Other sleeping options include cabin tents as well as primitive camping.

While the ranch and the Bike Hub are definitely set up to handle day trippers, you’ll definitely get more out of your visit if you stay for several days as you are closer to the trailheads the further inland you are. More about that below.

The Trails! What About The Trails?

Yes, it’s what I was there for and why you’re reading this article.

Rancho Cacachilas is home to 11 marked trails totaling over 40km in length and the plan is to add to the network every year (there are a total of 71km in the master plan). In line with the ranch’s environmental focus, all of the trails are built to IMBA standards to control erosion, maximize soil retention and lessen their impact. They’re organized in a way that they can be used for day trips as well as multi-day excursions with camping and food options.

For my first day of riding, I was met at Rancho Chivato by Fernanda, the manager of the Bike Hub. She brought a Giant Stance for me, just one of the options available from the rental shop. After a short warmup on a loop near Chivato, we put the bikes into a truck for a drive to a trailhead near the Las Canoas camp.

If, like me, you’re coming from the Midwest, the dirt here takes a little getting used to. As opposed to our hard-packed, clay-dense soil, the dirt at Rancho Cacachilas is sandy and I definitely had to adjust my balance on the bike. I learned my lesson the hard way after going down in an otherwise tame switchback on the first day.

The day’s trail was not technical when compared to the rocky and rooty trails of home, but there was a lot of climbing and some tight, exposed switchbacks that definitely made me check my speed and sight a little further down the trail. Besides the switchbacks, I was also checking that I was staying centered on the trail to avoid running up against one of the many cacti along the trail.

Cacti are just one of the sites that you’ll see on these trails. The geology of the immediate area around the ranch is quite different than the surrounding Baja Sur region. Where most of the area consists of sandy washes and a lot of sandstone, the ranch is situated amongst granite mountains peppered with huge boulders (yes, this would be a great place for rock climbers, too) and the aforementioned cacti. Yet one moment you’ll be weaving up or down well designed switchbacks with rocks on either side of you, and the next, you’ll be twisting through a green arroyo with large palm trees and other greenery. In other words, be prepared for a wide variety of terrain.

The signature trail of the ranch is the 5.7 mile Santa Rosa trail. The ranch recommends the trip for those with solid technical skills to handle the terrain, rock gardens, exposed switchbacks and tight turns. The trail can be ridden point-to-point if you’re doing a supported ride, or as a loop by adding in an additional 1.6 mile gravel road section. As you climb and descend, your efforts will reward you with amazing desert and mountain views and the glimmering water of the sea as you look to the east.

While Rancho Cacachilas does not serve up super-high elevations, be prepared for a lot of climbing. The highest peaks top out well over 1000m and it’s possible to ride nearly to that height from sea level.

While the Santa Rosa trail is the highlight, the ranch boasts 11 MTB trails with over 40km of riding. My last day of riding started with the 1.7 mile La Trinidad trail before we hooked up with the 1.7 mile Middle Mountain Trail, parts of the Santa Rosa trail followed by a fast and long downhill into Sargento for an awesome 16 miles of riding.

The Bike Hub

While I was staying at Rancho Chivato, my riding days usually ended up at the Bike Hub. After the first day’s riding, we went to the Hub for a light lunch and to check out the shop.

The Bike Hub not only acts as the jumping off point for riders interested in day trips, it is also a full service bike shop with parts, accessories, clothing and complete bikes from Santa Cruz, Juliana, Giant and Specialized.

You can also bring your own bike, but the mainstay of their rental fleet are very capable Giant Stances with 27.5+ wheels and 130/120mm travel (F/R). The plus size tires were really helpful in the loose, sandy soil, helping to keep the bike under me. Bikes can be rented from anywhere from 4 hours to all day (approx. $46 to $93)

You can also ship your bike to the Bike Hub and they’ll unbox it and have it ready for you for just $20.

There’s also a pump track just up the street to warm up your skills before hitting the trails.

Guided day trips are run out of the shop seven days a week from October 1 to May 31. The $45 cost includes a guide, shuttles and food & drink when you’re all done.

Let’s Talk About the Food

All of the meals at Rancho Chivato are cooked in a traditional Mexican kitchen from locally grown foods. The first meal I experienced was responsibly-farmed baked fish (Tortola) with purple onions and peppers, served over rice with salad. Hisbiscus tea was always on hand. Breakfasts usually included scrambled eggs, tortillas, granola, yogurt, toast served with salsa and refritos.

We also enjoyed a delicious lunch at the Las Canoas camp on a break on our longest day on the trail. Beer can chicken, salad and tortillas, all with tea and beer to wash it down.

Sargento and La Ventana

Since we ended up at the Bike Hub at the end of our rides, I got to see a little of Sargento (home to the Bike Hub) and the neighboring town of La Ventana, just to the south.

The Sea of Cortez, and La Ventana in particular, are well known for their winds and are very popular with windsurfers and kitesurfers. While the season had mostly wound down when I was there, Rancho Cacachilas manager Rafael told me that there would be hundreds of kites in the air during the winter when the winds are high and that the area attracts surfers from all over the world during the high season. As such, the area has more to do than you’d expect at first glance with plenty of dining and drinking options if you’re looking to get away from the ranch for a few hours.

Biologically Diverse

While the area is dry desert, Rancho Cacachilas’ team has documented 496 species of plants in the area, of which only 36 are non-native.

Similarly, the area is rich with insect life, with 50 species of butterflies, 71 species of spiders, eight species of scorpions, and one species of tailless whip scorpion. The team has discovered multiple species new to science, including a species of treehopper previously only found in the Caribbean and a mantid never seen outside of mainland Mexico. Another discovery that captured worldwide media attention was of a new species of a cave-dwelling spider. This species has since been named Califorctenus cacachilensis after the Sierra Cacachilas. Honeybees are very active, especially around Rancho Civato.

The area is also home to 30 native mammals, 37 species of reptiles and amphibians and 102 birds.

Peace & Quiet

The number of visitors at the ranch will vary over the course of the season, but be prepared for an “off the grid” experience.

I brought a book along for the trip, which I quickly finished the first evening I arrived. I was grateful for what little wi-fi there was to download some additional books to my Kindle.

While the quiet took some getting used to, I quickly learned to appreciate switching off from all of my normal distractions and being able to just take in the cooing doves, buzzing bees and other wildlife sneaking in from the periphery.

If you like stargazing, I would propose that there are few places in the world better than Rancho Cacachilas for a dark night sky. I found myself sitting on the top deck of the ranch house for at least an hour each night taking it all in, seeing the universe from a different angle and watching satellites zoom past.

Getting There

Rancho Cacachilas is made up of several large parcels of mountainous terrain, bordering the Gulf of California (a.k.a., the Sea of Cortez), between La Paz and El Sargento in Baja California Sur, Mexico. Flight into Cabo San Lucas will be the least expensive, but there is also an airport in La Paz.

I took a bus from Cabo San Lucas to La Paz for about $50 USD and from there, you can take a 20 minute taxi ride (approx. $26 USD) or Uber ride to the Rancho Cacachilas Administrative Office. From there, staff will transport you directly to Rancho Cacachilas for your stay.  La Paz is 30 minutes drive from EL Chivato Adventure Resort & Camp at Rancho Cacachilas.

Confirmed overnight guests are provided with a private shuttle van to Rancho Cacachilas from La Paz. Our staff will meet you at the Rancho Cacachilas Administrative Office or the La Paz bus station to then drive you to Rancho Cacachilas.

Biking Tours

Day trips on the trails of Rancho Cacachilas are $45 plus another $45 for bike rental if needed.

For the real experience of all of the trails, the food, the hospitality, the education and off-the-grid experience, however, I recommend their 4 day/3 night Secret Sierras Singletrack experience ($525 – $750). While that may seem like a lot, that includes lodging, meals, complimentary wine & beer at meals, cheese tasting, route guides and transportation around the ranch and La Ventana. Of course, you’ll still need to rent a bike if you don’t bring your own.

Other options for stays include Eco-Adventure Tours, Hiking Tours, Mule Tours and add-on 3 days stays on the Sea of Cortez at RC’s partner facility on the Sea of Cortez, Rancho Las Cruces.

To say that they treat you like family is not enough. It’s more like spending a few days with old friends as they take you on adventures and feed you great food!

Wrapping It Up

If you’re looking to extend your mountain biking season well into the winter, or get an early start on spring training, a trip to Rancho Cacachilas will be an awesome experience that you’ll never forget.