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Mulegé

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Mulegé
Heroica Mulegé
Street in town
Street in town
Country Mexico
StateBaja California Sur
MunicipalityMulegé
Elevation
52 ft (16 m)
Population
 (2010)
 • City3,821
 • Urban
3,821
Time zoneUTC-7 (Pacific (US Mountain))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-6 (Pacific)

Mulegé is an oasis town in the Mexican state of Baja California Sur, situated at the mouth of the Río de Santa Rosalía. It is the fourth-largest community in Mulegé Municipality. It had a population of 3,821 according to the Mexican federal census of 2010.

History

Photo taken from the Mulegé Mission

The river valley of today's Mulegé was discovered in 1702 by the Jesuit Father Juan Maria de Salvatierra as a place for a mission and consequently for a settlement. Like everywhere in Central and South America, it was the Spanish Conquistadores and behind them, the Spanish Church, who established missions and settlements, with the intention of conquering the entire area for the Church and the Crown. The valley of the then-unnamed river was ideal for a mission and a settlement, because of its abundance of water.

In 1754 Father Franzisco Escalante started the construction of the mission. Years later many other Jesuit fathers came into today's area of Mulegé to bring the Catholic faith and convert the Mexican people to Catholicism.

Heroica Mulegé

The official name of the town is Heroica Mulegé. This title is based on incidents during the American-Mexican war 1846-1848. The 'Americanos' tried to occupy long stretches of the Pacific coast like California, Baja California and New Mexico which belonged to Mexico at that time. The effort was made as a blockade and to battle Mexican General Santa Ana who fought war in Texas (the Battle of the Alamo, Battle of San Antonio, Battle of San Jacinto, and so on.) The people of Mulegé and surrounding settlements along the Pacific coastline defaeted the 'Gringos'. As a result Mulegé was not occupied. Mulegé was rewarded the official title Heroica Mulegé. Even today, on any letters of the Government of Baja California Sur you will find the title 'Heroica Mulegé'.

Tourist spots / attractions

  • The Mission, founded in 1705, is one of the famous attractions in Mulegé. It is located high above the river, overlooking the entire river valley.
  • The caves in the 'Sierra de Guadelupe' near Mulegé with extensive cave paintings are worth a visit, as are the caves in the 'Sierra de San Borjita' and La Trinidad.
  • A special feature of the town is the old prison. It was erected completely without bars. The prisoners could freely walk around town and even go as far as to establish and maintain families. They just had to come back in the evening. Escapes were rare because the remoteness of Mulege offered nowhere to flee. Until Mex 1 was paved there was nothing but empty desert to which to flee. Also, all prisoners had to agree to assist in tracking any escapist and assist in their capture. Today, the old prison is a museum suggesting a nominal (M$15) fee for entry.

Economy

All over the world Mulegé is famous for its rich fishing grounds in the Sea of Cortez. A warm current from South out of the Pacific and a cold current from North are coming together here in the Mulegé area of the Sea of Cortez and is creating a great variety of different fish species. The Sea of Cortez is named after the Spanish explorer Hernan Cortez. In the past Mulegé made its living mostly from fishing and from farming produce. Today tourism is a major income source for Mulegé. Deep sea fishing is one of Mulegé's tourist attractions. Kayaking, Cave tours and bird watching, fishing with or without charters to catch a big game fish are popular attractions. Today's tourism industry in Mulegé is based on the fact that in 1976 the Highway MX1 - a paved road - was constructed and Mulegé was easily accessible by land. A trip from the US border to Mulegé which lasts no more than 12 hours today, lasted four days or more before the construction of today's highway.

Climate and agriculture

The entire peninsula of 'Baja California' is an area with one of the lowest precipitation in the world. Rain is rare and happens between December and March, sometimes. As a result, global warming hurricanes are a major threat to the Mulegé area. There is a saying in Baja California: "It never rains in Baja, but if it rains, it pours". Because of the richness of water supply in the 'Mulegé River Valley', Agriculture is booming. Irrigation is possible like nowhere else in Baja California. Farming is focused on all sorts of produce. Oranges, bananas, lims, citrus and Mangoes, to name only some, are found in Mulege and the surrounding areas. The soil in the area is very fertile.

Transportation

By land, Mulegé is accessible by Federal Highway 1, which runs from Tijuana at the US-MX border to Cabo San Lucas. The highway was built in 1975/76. Before that, Mulegé was only accessible via dirt road leading from Tijuana at the U.S. boarder to Cabo San Lucas at the southern most point of Baja California Sur. The trip took about four days by car or truck. Considering that the 'old road' was just a dirt road leading through big lava fields with lava rocks, blown tires were very common those days and a break down was always blocking the road in one direction. Mulegé was also accessible by private aircraft, and of course by sea. Mulegé has been a pilot destination for private air travel since the mid 1950s. As well as other towns of the entire peninsula. Celebrities like John Wayne to name just one, visited Mulegé. Mostly because Mexico got no regulation on alcohol. Even today the non-existence of any 'Open Can Law' is attracting many Americans. The Northern Part of the Baja peninsula consists mostly of lava rocks. Many streets even today are covered with those lava rocks, while the Southern Part - South of 'CD Constitucion' - consists more of sand and gravel. NOTE: The northern part of the peninsular is named officially 'Baja California' while the southern part is named 'Baja California Sur'. Both parts are separate Mexican states. Mulegé is served by three airstrips in the area which have no importance for public travel but are more for private air travel: A graded dirt & hoof strip that is somehow maintained at the Serenidad hotel. High caution is advised for the use of this airstrip as dogs and other animals as well as Mexican Citizens are frequently crossing the strip. Also on High Tide the strip can be very muddy or even submerged. The strip is located only a very short distance from the Sea of Cortez, more or less on sea levelMulegé Municipal, and the farthest Punta San Pedro (at Concepcion Bay). Regional flights are available at the Palo Verde Airport (to the north of town), and international flights are available at the Loreto Airport (123 km to the south).

The Municipality

Mulegé Municipality reaches from Guerrero Negro about 250 KM (156 mls) north of Mulegé to about 60 KM (40mls) south of Mulegé. But Mulegé is not the municipal seat. That is Santa Rosalia.

The mission in Mulegé is named 'Misión de Santa Rosalía'. The mission in Santa Rosalia is named 'Santa Bárbara'.

The river is officially named 'Río de Santa Rosalía, but usually called 'Río Mulegé' There is no river in Santa Rosalia

180° Panorama of the Misión Santa Rosalía de Mulegé backed by mountains: La Misión and Santa Clara. The meandering Mulegé River appears on the right lined with palm trees as seen on a sunny December afternoon.

Mulugé does have a law against open containers. The punishment is either 300 pesos, for those that have the money on them, or 3 days in jail and an order of deportation.

References

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