Laguna Hanson: Slow Beauty in the Baja Sierra

By Erin Dunigan

As a love of mountains with a penchant for rugged peaks, pine trees, and alpine lakes, I've always held the Sierra Nevada in high regard. Yet, recently, I stumbled upon a lesser known Sierra in Baja that challenged my preconceived notions of mountain beauty.

My initial plan was a return visit to the majestic Sierra de San Pedro Martir, a place I'd adored on a previous trip. However, a last-minute conversation with a fellow Baja enthusiast sparked a change of plans. He raved about Laguna Hanson, a lesser-known gem nestled within the Sierra Juarez.

And just like that, I had a change in plan. Intrigued by the idea of a serene mountain lake, I decided to head to the Parque Nacional Constitucion de 1857 where Laguna Hanson is located. I didn’t really know much of anything about Laguna Hanson, other than it was closer (about 2.5 hours from the greater Ensenada area, vs the almost 5 hours for San Pedro Martir) and that he said the roads were no problem. A quick check of a few Facebook groups told me that the laguna actually had water in it still - something that had been rare in recent years.

The next day I set out; my little Kia Rio full with my tent, camp chair, food, a few serapes, water, sleeping bag, head lamp and my dog Mia. I set the GPS and got on the road. I did know that there was no signal in the Sierra (part of the draw) so I did a screen shot of the map so I’d have it, just in case.

Leaving Ojos Negros I lost the phone signal completely, but wasn’t too worried as my GPS still had the plan. A good thing it did; I would have probably sailed right past the turn-off and on to San Felipe had it not told me where to turn off. There was a sign, but the road somehow seemed insignificant for a turn off to a national park (thus began my assumptions, which, you will see, were many).

I pulled off onto the dirt road and realized that I still had 30 kilometers to go. “No worries,” I thought to myself, “Richard said the roads were good.”

About 20 kilometers in I saw that it was still 88 degrees outside and the dusty desert terrain had not changed much. I knew that Laguna Hanson was at 5500 feet, and wondered when it might start to look like that.

Slowly things began to shift. The temperature dropped a few degrees, and then, I saw it - a pine tree! Ah yes, I thought, finally, ‘mountains!’ The last bit of the way passes by ranchos, some abarrotes (that appeared closed, though I’m sure if you stopped for a cerveza someone would be there to sell it to you) and finally to the park entrance. There was no one there. I later found out that the rangers had left to get gas, so I headed toward the camping areas along the lake. The first one had a family camping in it so I continued on.

As I began to unload my stuff and look for the perfect spot for my two person tent and Mia looked for the perfect spot to relieve herself after the 3 hours in the car, without even realizing it I began to think:

I’m not going to stay here. Tomorrow I will pack up early and head to San Pedro Martir for some ‘real’ mountains. This is flat! How can I be in the mountains if it is flat? And, there is no dead wood on the ground - how will I have a campfire if there is no dead wood? This is not what I had expected...

I set up my tent, my camp chair, my tiny little table. It’s a good thing I brought them, as the campsites are very basic without picnic tables. Not even bothering to fix the dinner I had brought, somehow even setting up my small camp stove seemed like accepting the experience. I am definitely leaving tomorrow. As I sat there, eating an avocado and looking at the lake, watching a bit of alpine glow as the sun went down, I happened to notice a small piece of pine branch on the ground nearby. Something in me decided to get up and see if there might be more.

As I began walking around my camping area it was as though all of a sudden I could see - there, on the ground, was another small branch, and then another, and another. I began to collect them and put them in a pile next to my chair. Soon I had easily enough for a respectable campfire.

Inside me something began to shift. Maybe I will stay.

The next morning I woke early with the sun and saw the dawn sky through my screen tent roof. I decided to stay, and not go chasing previous experiences, to see what might unfold in this experience.

Mia and I set off early for a hike around the laguna. It was already starting to get warm, but we both cooled off with a plunge in the water on the other side. There was no hurry, nowhere to go, nothing to accomplish, nowhere to go. Just us, there. And the beauty of Laguna Hanson, surrounded by pine trees and giant boulders.

That night as I sat by my campfire and reflected: How easy it would have been to miss the beauty that Laguna Hanson has to offer. How easy it would have been to go chasing my idea and expectation of what a trip to the Sierra should entail. How easy it would have been to have kept myself from being able to see that which was around me the entire time - a subtle beauty, one that revealed itself slowly, gently, and without a lot of fanfare or grandiosity. But a true and genuine beauty nonetheless.

Know Before You Go:

• Take all your own food and water
• The camping areas on the east side of the laguna have camp grills, but the areas on the west side do not.
• All camping areas have outhouses. They are quite stinky.
• Definitely plan to go when there is water in the laguna, it makes the beauty of the place
• I went in August and it was still in the 80’s during the day; plan accordingly
• Use your GPS, but also use your good sense. Follow the traveled route and don’t turn off on less used random looking detours and you will be fine.
• Park entrance fee is $300 pesos per car
• I traveled alone, as a woman (with my dog) and felt very comfortable
• Slow down, relax, and enjoy!