“El Coromuel” Just a leyend?

Picture taken in the entrance of playa El Coromuel

“One warm evening in La Paz Ensenada, people going out of their houses to feel the fresh breeze and hear, behind the sound of the palms and the waves, the slight pronouncing of Coromuel”.

I am not a poet or anything of that style, but I got inspired reading the stories I could find on the internet about why they call playa (beach in English) El Coromuel, to an ex-balneario in La Paz, which has remodeling plans on this 2023.

Someone told me there was a story or a legend, true or false, about how they named the beach; although they vary slightly on the origin of the word, both of them agree that the word belongs to the name of a wind. A breeze that comes every summer, from the top of the mountains all the way to La Paz Ensenada.

When I was reading some articles written by historians and fans of piracy times, I found that the word Coromuel, is actually the mispronouncement of the word Cromwell. It is the surname of a person who came to La Paz Ensenada and always used that breeze for a faster retreat.

These legends talk about (here is when the stories do not match) an English man in the 17th century, and others of a pirate whose last name was Cromwell.

In one of the stories says that he was in search of a treasure; and in another that he was hiding a treasure. He took advantage of the evening winds to leave the coast, always coming back the following summer. The natives began to associate his name with the breeze and since they could not pronounce "Cromwell", they changed it to "Coromuel".

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Picture of the dock

Pirate, English, Hiding or looking for treasure; Whether they created or maintained the story to this day,

the Coromuel wind is very significant and unique to La Paz Ensenada, which is the rewarding-breeze for La Paz residents on a long day in the hot sun of summer.

Picture taken from the dock

The beach is the closest one to the malecón, starting from the Fiscal Dock in front of the La Fuente (ice cream place) it is 4.7 km. Whether you want to enjoy the amazing views of the eroded walls of the road (12 minutes), walk with the panoramic views of the ocean (1 hour) or use the bikeway (30 min).

You can also use public transport at the La Paz Terminal, located on the malecón between Calle Independencia and Av. 5 de Mayo, near the Kiosco of the malecón.

Playa El Coromuel has parking lots, public bathrooms, showers, and restaurants. The restaurants have the service of tables, chairs, and shadow in the sand, so the visitors are comfortable and a few steps from the sea.

Their schedules go from 8:00 to 16:30, where you can enjoy a delicious ceviche, a coconut, clams, micheladas, a cold beer, among others.

The beach is friendly in this zone and is not very deep, excellent to rent a Kayak or a Paddle Board and enjoy the views. And if you are interested in swimming, a line marks the limit from the shore to a few meters into the deep ocean, so you can swim without distractions.

Unfortunately, it is not pet-friendly because it is considered to be an aquatic park, although on the other hand, it has adaptations for people with disabilities, ramps and exclusive palapas.

In the renovation plans of the Balneario El Coromuel, headed by API (Integral Port Administration of Baja California Sur), they will include the South Califonian Institute of the People with Disabilities (ISIPD, Spanish acronym) and they will have 4.5 mdp for the first part of the remodeling, which will help to further adapt the facilities, as well as attract more tourists.

Picture2 taken from the dock

I think that this could become a very important place for the families of La Paz and also for the tourist community that wants to know the beaches of La Paz.

In the same way, El Coromuel is a wonderful beach to enjoy with your family, friends or with a book. You can go and have a wonderful lunch with a view, relax in the warm sand or have an amazing beach day with your family.

But if what interested you was the legend… you should go in the summer, at sunset and feel the famous breeze known as

“El Coromuel”.

- J. Orozco