[QUOTE=Vanimal;224217] I would not venture alone down there in todays world, especially in my van without a group. QUOTE]
Safety in numbers is always a good idea, and it's easy to find like minded folks to travel with. Never the less, I have traveled to Baja countless times since 1971, alone, in groups, by motorcycle, in vans, jeeps and SUV's, and have NEVER had a problem. Use some common sense just as you would anywhere and you should be fine. There are plenty of places in N.Y., S.F. Oakland, Portland, Seattle etc where I feel very unsafe but I have never felt that way in Baja. The storys you hear in the news are probably mostly true, but the cartels are targeting other cartels, not tourists, and mostly on the mainland. Sure, you could be in the wrong place at the wrong time, but that can happen anywhere, in any country in the world, including the U.S. There's an old saying that says, "the only way to make an airplane completely safe is to never leave the ground" I for one love to fly, and accept that it's not 100% safe, but that doesn't stop me from going.