The cave paintings in Baja California Sur, is an artistic phenomenon and is one of the five most important concentrations in the world.

The eroded walls attracted the painters and you can find most spectacular and best preserved Great Mural sites, representing rituals or battles with different characters and animals.

The origin of the paintings is unknown until now, although some investigators think the paintings were made for some people traveling through the peninsula that belong to a culture far superior to the tribes found by the Jesuits in the 17th century.

The paintings have different colors like ocher, red, white, yellow and black. Human figures in red and black, with arms raised and rare headdresses. In many cases, these figures and those of animals such as hares, whales, snakes and birds, appear superimposed, which could mean that they were made at different times.

This complex of cave paintings located in the Sierra de San Francisco, are registered by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.

You can plan to spend at least two nights in the mountain canyons, so you can visit five or six different sites without wearing yourself out. But if you want to visit just for a day you can try Cueva del Ratón in the Sierra de San Francisco, you do not need hiking and you can easily visit the site in a day from San Ignacio by way of a vehicle.

There are other two caves at El Palmarito (La Cueva Pintada and Cueva de las Flechas or Boca de San Julio), east of San Ignacio, that can be visited in a day, by way of a vehicle and then riding trained mules. This excursion requires some medium hiking.

Control of the cave paintings falls under the guidance of Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) and in any trip to the caves you need the company of an authorized guide.

You can also visit Mulegé to see the cave paintings found at the foot of the Guadalupe Mountains.

One of the most fascinating places in the area is the Canipole Caves.  The Canipole Caves Tour takes you on a journey back in time. First, you’ll walk for 45 minutes, learning about the region's flora and fauna, before reaching the caves and marveling at their impressive cave paintings,along with somecarvings on stones.An unmissable experience!