Sierra de la Laguna Biosphere Reserve

A UNESCO Biosphere Reserve (2003), A Mountain Range Of Oak Pine Forest Above The Desert At About 2,100 M, With A Hike To La Laguna Meadow, A Rare Cool And Wet Climate At The Tip Of The Peninsula And Plants Found Nowhere Else. Water For Los Cabos And La Paz. Hot In The Lowlands And Cold At Altitude · Todos Santos, Baja California Sur

Sierra de la Laguna is a mountain range at the southern tip of Baja California Sur, protected as a UNESCO biosphere reserve and a surprise for anyone who expects only desert. Its upper slopes, around 2,100 m, hold a pine-oak forest, a cooler wetter climate than anywhere nearby and plants found nowhere else, and it catches the rain that feeds the water supply of La Paz and Los Cabos. The classic trip is the hike to La Laguna meadow, about 9 km each way with a steep climb of roughly 1,500 m, usually done with a night of camping. Lower slopes are hot, dry and thorny, and the top can be cold. It suits fit, self-sufficient hikers who want a real mountain day away from the beach. It is worth the detour for the forest and the quiet; it is not worth it for a casual visit, for people short of fitness or time, or in the rainy season from July to October, when flash floods and hurricanes can close trails. Todos Santos and Cabo are the nearby bases.

Sierra de la Laguna, the mountains south of La Paz and east of Todos Santos at the tip of Baja California Sur, reached by road to San Dionisio or La Burrera; coordinates approximate, Todos Santos, Baja California Sur, Mexico

The reserve is open all year, but there is no fixed schedule and no visitor centre in the usual sense. Entry is by permit through the reserve office, managed by CONANP, and the trails can be CLOSED during hurricanes, after heavy rain or in fire-risk periods. Trailheads such as San Dionisio and La Burrera are reached by dirt road, and starting at first light is standard so you climb before the heat. Walking the lower access roads is FREE, but camping and some guided routes carry charges. Confirm all details with the reserve or a local guide, as arrangements change.

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