| New Restrictions for the Use of Bahia Balandra National Reserve Implimented November 2022. |
| Admitance to the beach will be limited to 800 and 100 of those will be reserved for locals, additionally the first Sunday of every month will be "Locals Only" admitted to Balandra.. Please respect this new time allocation to the local population. Residence is determined by BCS driver's license. Overnight anchoring in Bahia Balandra is now prohibited. Vessels must leave no later than 1/2hr after sunset. No more vendors on the property. |
Note: The printed rules we could find indicated dogs are allowed on a leash. However, recerntly Insider friends were told to remove their dog from the beach.
Bahia Balandra is a World Heritage Site and its untamed beauty is one of the major attractions to the city. The famous Mushroom Rock, unofficial icon of the city of La Paz, is located in the middle side of the northern portion of the bay. The public beaches in Balandra have no facilities and until recently vendors were not permitted at the parking site. Due to the rapid shallowing of the bay, the natural limitation to anchoring extend from just south of the Mushroom Rock to the far cliff wall, which protected smaller craft from spring's fierce Coromuel Winds.
However, revised anchoring restrictions for vessels over 25' are now in place from the more westward point of Mushroom Rock to the point near the fallen rock on the south wall of the bay. This change only eliminates are few hundred yards of the usable anchorage, but an area the was particularly useful to protect vessels under 50'.
In Caleta Lobos, just to the south of Balandra, is well known as one of the few all-weather anchorages within 30 miles of the Ensenada de La Paz. Well protected from all but the most direct west wind, it was my first anchorage when arriving in La Paz many years ago.
Unfortunately, the majority of the most protected anchorage is now off limits. Caleta Lobos is a very rich little bay, and anyone who has anchored there can attest to the the fish population and those that have scuba dove or snorkeled the bay can confirm the activity of the sea floor, unlike Balandra's sterile underwater dunes. Like Balandra, the sea floor also dictates the anchorage area, as it should to less than a meter well outside the mangrove area.
The protected mangrove which extend to the northeast represent one of the largest remaining stands in the area. Therefore, we are asked to observe the anchoring restrictions in Caleta Lobos. Also see Restrictions for Use of Island Espiritu Santo in the Sea of Cortez
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