Rancho Ecológico El Refugio (find them on Facebook!) is a great place in San Dionisio to get a taste of the cool lifestyle of rancheros, our local ‘cowboys’ in Baja, a culture that is very characteristic of the region yet very few people outside of locals know of. It’s taken care of by an awesome family that will welcome you, feed you and show you around the Protected area of the biosphere reserve that they manage. First thing to do is to get your bracelet to access the Protected area. You can get it for about US$5 in their offices in the town of Santiago (from where you access San Dionisio), about 45 minutes North of San José del Cabo. There you’ll find Chuky, the oldest son of the family who manages the project, and a pretty cool guy that can share insights on what to do in San Dionisio. He can give you proper instructions on how to get to the ranch from there, which is another 30 minutes drive, approximately, but just in case, you can get there taking a right just after crossing the bridge to enter Santiago, follow the straight road until you see a dirt road the climbs up the side of canyon. On top of this road there’s a small platform overlooking the oasis of Santiago down below (great photo op!), and right there there’s a fork on the road. Follow the sign that says San Dionisio or Rancho La Acacia and follow that road until you reach El Refugio. Don’t forget to ask them to take you to La Poza Oscura, a huge pool in the riverbed to swim in and that you can see in this spots’ photo. #waterfalls #photography #climbing #mountains #hiking #culture #local #food