I recently picked up a camping book for Baja thinking that it would be a great resource for the drives up and down the peninsula. As a bonus, it also called attention to a couple local places to explore. So a couple weekends ago, we packed up the car and drove towards Los Barriles to check out a few swimming locations. The first we visited were beautiful hot springs – Santa Rita. You follow a meandering dirt road through a couple quaint inland towns and end up in a “parking lot” which apparently doubles as a campground and a cow staging area. It is spring so the babies were out, some still with their umbilical cords – check out this handsome little bugger.

The proprietor collects 100 pesos from you (~$5) and you walk down a very short path to some gorgeous, crystal-clear pools nestled between granite boulders. Arriving before noon meant no people, and so we slipped into the pools to soak and listen to the bubbling creek below.

I assume that this place is typically a bit more crowded, but I bet mid-week it stays pretty chill and a great place to venture to with guests when the ocean is too chilly for swimming. Sprinkled near the immaculately clean grounds, you could take advantage of several picnic areas and BBQ pits.

The river also featured a beautiful swimming area, colder than the pools, but great for a cold plunge and refreshing in the hot east cape summers.

Since we were on a mission, we packed up and headed back on the trail to the car where I was able to snap a shot of this dude.

Next stop was a swimming hole with a waterfall a short distance as the crow flies, but significantly longer on the meandering dirt roads. This place was much more populated and established. $300 pesos later, we followed a very well maintained and structured trail to a stunningly beautiful swimming hole with a cascading waterfall and numerous fish hanging out in the shallows. I’ll just leave you with a few pics. I’m definitely coming back here!