San José del Cabo Los Cabos Mexico

 

San José del Cabo, Los Cabos, Baja California Sur, México

San Jose del Cabo was for hundreds of years, the only community here at the tip fo the Baja California Peninsula. With its natural fresh water oasis flowing into palm-lined lagoons at the oceans edge, the area supported Indian communities and hundreds of species of wildlife for thousands of years before colonization by the Spanish.

During the pre-colonial period it was a watering and provisioning stop for Spanish galleons. The heavy ships laden with treasure, silks and spices from the east were the ‘big game fish’ then for pirates like Sir Francis Drake who came looking for ‘donations’ to his favorite charity (himself) and his majesty the “Virgin” Queen Elizabeth. San Jose del Cabo was finally settled in 1730 with a Jesuit mission and fort to help stabilize the region against these marauders.

As the years went by, explorers like Cabrillo and Vizcaino, cannoned warships, whaling ships, and clipper traders running the West Coast all stopped and often left, leaving crew behind. Some of the old families in Todos Santos, La Paz and San Jose del Cabo have English and French derived surnames from ancestors who were buccaneers before jumping ship and becoming ranchers and fishermen.

Up until twenty years ago Cabo San Lucas was just a few farmhouses, some scrawny cattle roaming the dirt roads and a fish cannery. There was only an eighteen-mile dirt road connecting it to the only town nearby, San Jose del Cabo.

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