El Vallecito
A dramatic and colorful place to stop between Tecate and Mexicali, the ancient winds blow as if from yesterday to light upon the stones and cliff faces of old La Rumorosa!
El Vallecito is is a fantastically picturesque valley and archaeological site in the very north of Baja California. Surrounded by mountains and deserts, the site it is about equidistant between Tecate and Mexicali on Federal Highway 2D at the La Rumorosa/Vallecito exit. It's just on the southern slopes of the San Pedro Mártir mountain range.
People visit el Vallecito for the cave paintings. Many of them dating back more than a thousand years. Created by the ancient inhabitants of the region, they can be admired on all number of the rocks adorning the landscape. Hiking trails lead visitors from rock to rock, but the depictions of human figures, animals, and abstract symbols are frequently spellbinding and reflect the worldview of the ancient peoples from all over the area. The site has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO for its archaeological value.
Of the 30 paintings discovered in the area, only six can be visited. Many of them follow the contours of the stones, in shades black, white, and red. Although evidence of human settlement in the area goes back some 12,000 years, the creators of the paintings are believed to be Kumeyaay and perhaps their immediate ancestors, the Tipai-Ipai peoples. Upon the arrival of Europeans in the area, Kumeyaay people were organized into some 30 patrilineal tribes including in this area.
People stop in El Vallecito on their way through the valley to Mexicali. But little Rumorosa has an increasing number of services intended to keep the visitors from taking off too fast. The surrounding desert is the the perfect environment for hiking, mountain biking, and camping. The San Pedro mountains, after this low-slung valley, will quickly rise up to meet motorists just after La Rumorosa. And here you start to see that they are in fact a formidable barrier even today.
Several groups run organized tours from Tecate into the Rumorosa valley. A little bit further afield, there are also a number of former, and working, ranches that welcome guests for farm-stays or trips into the surrounding desert.
