Пуэрто-Пеньяско: Аризонский пляж на берегу моря Кортеса.

Puerto Peñasco is a small city located in Puerto Peñasco Municipality in the northwest of the Mexican state of Sonora, from the border with the U. S. state of Arizona. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 62,689 inhabitants. It is located on the northern shores of the Sea of Cortez on the small strip of land that joins the Baja California Peninsula with the rest of Mexico. The area is part of the Altar Desert, one of the driest and hottest areas of the larger Sonoran Desert. Since the late 1990s, there has been a push to develop the area for tourism. It is now one of the most important tourist destinations in northern Mexico. Puerto Peñasco is often called "Rocky Point" in English, and has been nicknamed "Arizona’s Beach" as it is the closest beach to cities such as Phoenix and Tucson. The warm sea surface temperatures of the northern end of the gulf cause Puerto Peñasco to have a much warmer climate than coastal cities on the Pacific both in the Mexican and American Californias. Nights also remain hot and muggy during summer due to the warm water influence. The Mar de Cortés International Airport serves Puerto Penasco, but currently has no regularly scheduled flights in or out. A new highway shortens the drive from California by Tourism and fishing are the most important economic activities for the city. Development to date includes over one hundred restaurants, forty two hotels and motels, and fourteen RV facilities. The new "Home Port del Mar de Cortés" (Sea of Cortez) cruise ship terminal began construction in 2014 between Sandy Beach and Cholla Bay (La Choya), northwest of the central city. The construction has been suspended for financial reasons.

The city is known by two names, Puerto Peñasco (rocky cliff port) in Spanish and Rocky Point in English. In 1826, retired Robert William Hale Hardy of the British Royal Navy was sailing in this area searching for pearls and precious metals. He named the area Rocky Point, and it was identified as Rocky Point on marine maps until President Lázaro Cárdenas changed it to Puerto Punta Peñasco. To simplify pronunciation, the English name lost the word “Port” and the Spanish name dropped “Punta”. Prior to the 1920s, the area was just one of the safe harbors for wandering fishermen who worked the upper Gulf of California. During fishing seasons, fishermen from Guaymas, Bahía Kino, Puerto Libertad, and Puerto Lobos began to come here to camp out. The main attraction for these fishermen was a fish called totoaba, which was fished not for its meat, but for its use in medicine. At this time the area was known as Punta de Piedra o Punta Peñasco. The name comes from a large quantity of solidified lava that hit the Gulf. Until the 1990s, there had been little tourism here except for campers and fishermen. The municipality's pristine beaches with clear waters stretched for a hundred miles north or south with almost no development. Beaches here include Sandy Beach, Las Conchas, El Mirador, La Choya, Playa Encanto, Estero de Morúa, Playa La Joya, Playa Miramar, and Playa San Jorge. Sandy Beach is noted for its sand which is a light brown color. One attraction of the beaches is the tidal pools. Tides here can raise and lower the sea on the relatively flat land up to Low tide reveals a large number of tidal pools in the craters of the rocky coast. In these pools there used to be large numbers of crabs, starfish, and other marine life. There is also an estuary by the name of Morúa east of the community of Las Conchas. Here live thousands of birds, including migratory species. Puerto Peñasco is a popular destination for spring break, especially for high school and college students from Arizona and California for both its proximity and its 18 year old legal drinking age. The Universidad de Sonora has its Centro de Investigaciones Científicas y Tecnológicas (Scientific and Technological Research Center) as well as its Centro de Estudios del Desierto (Center for Desert Studies) here which are open to visitors. The CET MAR Aquarium is a marine research center open to the public with displays of marine life such as turtles, octopus, and numerous fish species. The town also has newspapers in English.

The city of Puerto Peñasco (Rocky Point) is found in the northwest of the Mexican state of Sonora, a state that is located directly to the south of the U. S. state of Arizona. It is located on the eastern coast of the Gulf of California approximately 60 miles south of the Arizonan border, only about a four hour drive from Phoenix or Tucson. The city's maximum elevation is 100 meters (328 feet) above sea level and its minimum is 0 meters (0 feet) above sea level. It is found in the Sonoran Desert, a desert which stretches from the U. S. states of Arizona and California down to the northern tip of the Mexican state of Sinaloa. Because of this, its climate reaches extreme temperatures during the summer and relatively high temperatures in the winter. The city itself is relatively flat, with the exception of Ballena hill that is found near its port. Further, remnants of ancient volcanoes can be found on the beaches of Puerto Peñasco and several dormant volcano peaks can be seen throughout the entire state.

As of 2020, the city of Puerto Peñasco has a total of 62,689 inhabitants, making it the eighth largest locality in the state. The population of the town has doubled since the year 2000, due to the developments in tourism.

According to data provided by the 2010 census, approximately 2.65% of the population over the age of 15 are illiterate. And about 15.02% of the same age do not have a basic primary education. About 3.48% of children between the ages of 6 and 14 do not attend any type of institution of education. Furthermore, about 36.73% of inhabitants over the age of 15 did not finish their primary education, and about 31.74% of the population is not inscribed in any government health service. However, since 2010 Puerto Peñasco has been among the healthiest cities in the state.

Puerto Peñasco is full of educational institutions ranging from elementary schools to universities. The city also houses several private schools and trade schools. Since 2015, the following have been registered in the municipality. ·     A school that specializes in special education of public character and administration for the Federal Government. ·     Four education centers of elementary education, three private and one public. ·     Fifteen kindergarten schools, ten of which are public and five of which are private. ·     Twenty three elementary schools, twenty of which are public and three that are private. ·     Four public and two private high schools.

·     Superior Technological Institute of Puerto Peñasco. ·     Technological University of Puerto Peñasco. ·     University of Professional Development. ·     CEUNO University.

Puerto Peñasco also has two General Hospitals, a Center of Urban Health, a Hospital of Social Insurance, a Family Medical Unit of the IMSS (Mexican Social Security Institute), as well as many clinics and private consults all around the city.

The city is mentioned in Season 3 Episode 6 of Narcos: Mexico, when Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada tells Francisco Rafael Arellano Félix and Enedina Arellano Félix, "Amado's expanded operations taken over Puerto Peñasco, made it hard for my boats to unload." Season 1 Episode 7 of the Netflix series Yankee is entitled "Penélope in Puerto Peñasco." The Hoyt Axton song “Evangelina” mentions Puerto Peñasco as the home of the protagonist’s Mexican lover .