September 2021 Baja Bulletin

COVID-19 Updates for Baja California

-The U.S.-Mexico temporary land border restrictions were extended until at least September 21, 2021. U.S. Citizens and Canadian Citizens have been allowed to cross back north into the U.S. and have had no problems crossing south into Mexico from the U.S.

-Mexico has instated a national “stoplight” system which sets the safety levels for the region and is evaluated on a weekly basis. The state of Baja California (norte) is rated “yellow.”

In Baja California Sur, Los Cabos and La Paz are rated “yellow” level 2, Mulegé is rated “orange” level 4, and Comondú and Loreto are rated “orange” level 5. Specific rules vary from municipality to municipality. We recommend that you call ahead to any business that you plan on visiting to find out about current hours and COVID regulations.

-Some of the California/Baja land borders are operating on reduced hours. The following are the current hours for border crossings:
San Ysidro: open 24 hours
(PedWest is closed but PedEast remains open 24 hours)
Otay Mesa: open 24 hours
Tecate: 6am-2pm Monday-Friday, 8am-4pm Saturday-Sunday
Calexico West: open 24 hours
Calexico East: open 6am-2pm
Andrade: open 6am-2pm

-For up-to-date information about COVID-19 in the state of Baja California (norte) please visit the Baja California COVID-19 page. For up-to-date information about COVID-19 in Baja Sur, please visit the BCS COVID-19 website.

-For Emergency Assistance for U.S. citizens in Mexico, call 55-8526-2561 from Mexico or 1-844-528-6611 from the United States. The U.S. Embassy in Mexico has put together a COVID-19 webpage or you can follow them on Facebook for updates.

-You can find the latest updates on our Road Conditions Page. Call the DBTC office at 800-727-2252 for more information about U.S. travelers crossing the border.

Rare Chance to Download Landon Crumpton’s Baja Almanac 

Landon Crumpton, the cartographer who published the Baja Almanac, passed away in 2015, and he left maps that had been updated at the time that were never published. There will not be another printed copy of the map book or fold-out maps, but on the Baja Almanac website  you can now download digital files of the 2015 Baja Almanac and Foldout map that Landon had updated before his passing.

Border Field State Park Celebrates 50 Years and Launches New Kumeyaay App

Border Field State Park in San Diego celebrated its 50th anniversary on August 21st with ceremonies and the launch of a new app “Border Field State Park: Divided Together” that features a self-guided tour about the stories from the first people of the area, the Kumeyaay. The app is a self-guided tour that will also feature highlights of the Divided Together podcast which will be coming soon. There are currently three stops to the tour on the app, with more coming: Kumeyaay Nation Divided by the Border, Indigenous Land Use Practices, and Scientists and Geographers Working Across Borders. Each stop is geopositioned around the turf on Monument Mesa. You can find the app on Apple or Google by searching for “Border Field State Park.” Alternatively, you can also use the web app https://borderfieldsp.stqry.app from any device that has access to the internet. Border Field State Park is the counterpart to Friendship Park in Tijuana directly across the U.S./Mexico border.

Corazón de Vida’s San Diego “Noche de Gala”

The nonprofit foundation Corazón de Vida will once again be hosting their annual San Diego gala, “Noche de Gala” in the iconic Crown Room of the Hotel del Coronado on Saturday, November 6th. The fundraiser will feature dinner, entertainment, and an auction, with funds going to the orphanages in Baja that Corazón de Vida supports. Tickets will sell out quickly—get yours online!

Tijuana Artist Exhibits in San Diego

The work of Tijuana artist Angelica Escoto can be seen in her enhibit “Ninguna Ballena es una Isla” (No Whale is an Island) through Sept. 12 at Bread and Salt gallery in Barrio Logan in San Diego. “Ninguna Ballena en una Isla” is an autobiographical work that consists of portraits of Escoto’s family and herself along the Baja peninsula that she started 15 years ago. The exhibition can be viewed at the Bread & Sale Athenaeum Art Center, 1951 Julian Ave., 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday, 6 to 8 p.m. every second Saturday, and by appointment.