Three weeks of vacation with four and a half thousand miles of solo riding headed into warm sunny Mexico. For those seeking that fluent prose so common on this site, please continue onto the next thread. Most my English teachers could not have been that wrong. This is my humble attempt at payback for all those who have contributed to this site, making this trip a possibility.
I had a great time. I would like to share some of the things that happened to go right and the others which would now would do differently.
Spending too much time preparing for a trip can be as much of a detriment as going in blind. I overthought this one. It is one thing to brush up on a foreign language of the country you plan on visiting and going over the intended places you plan on seeing. I however, overthought scenarios that never happened. This was unnecessary pre trip stress. The best preparation is to take a shorter trip before the big one. A short trip gets you organized and best determines what works best for you.
PACKING: I pack light with two bicycle panniers and a small canvas bag over the rear. This I’ve learned from previous rental rides into Latin America. This would be no different, but this time taking my own Suzuki DR650 from Chicago into Mexico. While acquainted with the bike, I still managed to over pack. I did not need the water purifier or the Pac Safe mesh security net. I took along a fleece sweater that I did not use, but do not regret ever risking the chance of being unnecessarily cold. The great thing about packing lite is that it makes for less things to lose. It’s just easier to maintain where everything belongs.
EATING: It can be hard eating right while on the road. It did not take long before wanting a salad, fruit and veggies. In the southern states this was easily accomplished at the salad bar that most Walmarts have to offer. By taking along a spork to a secluded shady spot of the store, I was content with one less burger n fires to have to digest. Mexico has a large gastronomical variety, although northern Mexican cuisine is based on meat. Markets and their tiendas inside offer a huge selection of whatever fresh you care to eat. By checking the menus in front of restaurants and again Walmart to the rescue, I like to think that I mostly ate right. The adage of ‘eating at the popular spots where the locals eat,’ served me well. I am also a consumer of the local yogurt. It helps me keep things going right.
WATER: it is easy to ‘dry out’ on the road. It can be easy to overpay for purified water at Oxxo or gas station marts. Supermercados and Dollar Stores along the way came to the rescue. In the evening, I would pick up a gallon of drinking water and fill two 1.5 L. bottles attached to the panniers. No need for Steripen, filters, etc. Access to drinking water was not a problem.
ACCOMODATIONS: There is a time to bend the budget and pay extra to be within walking distance of the attractions of a big city. In Mexico, the places I stayed ran from 400 to 600 pesos (@ 16 to the dollar). When stopping at a layover town, I believe that the ‘Motel’ has a lot to offer. Located outside of most large towns, love motels offer a good bang for the buck. They are cheap and clean with enclosed parking. I enjoyed the huge shower with plenty of hot water and good water pressure. Do pick up one that is within walking distance of a mall or shopping area. This will give you a chance to stretch your legs and bring something back to your room to munch on later. Be aware that there is no lock on doors with only a garage door opener to your room. I do not believe that security is an issue with a gated entrance and motel occupants with an itinerary that does not include taking inventory of your stuff.
SECURITY: This topic seemed to be on everyone’s minds but was not an issue for me on this trip. Most of the time, I was with my bike and during breaks, I would leave my helmet and jacket on the bike. Never a problem. It would be nice to have a lite bicycle cable lock for those two items in shopping center parking lots, if only for the peace of mind. In Peru, security was a bigger issue with hotel owners doing whatever necessary to bring your bike inside. Here on two different occasions, I ended up in two larger towns having to leave my bike in the street in front of my hotel. Best other single security option is a covered bike.
FACTOID: When the finances allow it, it is popular for Mexican parents to send their high school graduate sons north to be immersed in English. Canada is their destination of choice since it is deemed much safer than the United States. Go figure.
BIKE STUFF: For tools, I took what was needed to change a flat tire including a spare set of tubes. There were the essential tools to do basic maintenance. JB weld, zip ties, and tape topped it all off. The DR is a beast and took all I had to offer. Her smaller size came especially into play when parking in tight spaces.
CLOTHING: The new fabrics make for easy wash and quick dry. Non stink is a plus when too lazy to wash. Wool blended socks are great. When my feet got soaked riding through a San Antonio downpour during the early morning hours, my feet were wet but stayed warm.
FUEL: I was advised to filter my gas with a nylon stocking to prevent filter build up. No visible debris and the roja/red served me well. “LLeno por favor” got me off and running.
ROAD SURFACES: I am so glad that I changed to quality tires before heading off. The asphalt south of Laredo gets very hot. I witnessed three blowouts between Laredo and Monterrey. Michellin Anakees worked much better than other low cost tires I’ve mounted on wet roads and sharp twisties.
TOURISM: In Zacatecas, I wanted to take it easy and sign up for a tour. “Let someone else to the driving for once,” I told myself. Being Monday, there were not enough of us to make the tour, so instead of wasting the morning, I took a cab up the mountain to the Cerro del la Bufa and walked around the monuments and Museum of the Revolution. This allowed me to take in a cable car ride that would not have been included in the tour. From there it was a quick walk to the El Eden Mine tour. Do your homework ahead of time; get an idea of the things you want to see. Save a few bucks. And yet leave a few places off of your list for next time.
ROUTES: Whatever road surface you care to challenge, Mexico has it all to offer. No one likes to ride the same road twice, unless they have to retrace because they are lost or there is no other option. The circle route gives maximum variety per mile traveled. I intended on returning to the states by riding easterly, this time crossing at Reynosa. I got peculiar looks from the Sanbourn Insurance agent and was highly advised by locals to retrace my steps back to Laredo. While this did mean backtracking, it had the added advantage of not having to look for the inaccessible hidden customs/aduana check-in station on my Mexico departure.
HASSELS: There were none. I had to acclimate to the huge temperature difference from home and southern Texas. I was sweating like in hell while filling out the personal and bike paperwork. I forgot tp use my no foreign fee credit card and will probably be charged for the tvip in spite of the fact that the transaction was cancelled on my country exit. I was asked if I had my permit about 25 miles south of the border. I quick “si’ sent me quickly on through the checkpoint. At the U.S. border I was questioned about my luggage and a side pannier was opened. The only hassle was keeping all the various pieces of paper organized. Bring a pen.
MONEY: I always try and change a good amount at my local bank before crossing the border. It saves time. I did get a good exchange rate at the local cambio in the small town of Dolores Hidalgo, much better than what I saw in the larger cities. If you do not have a local bank account, forget about trying to change money. Gone are the good old days of banks as sources of better rates. ATMs worked fine at most banks.
ATTITUDE: When is it just noise blasting from a car stereo in Guanajato or did the similar sounds seem like mariachi serenades in those smaller towns? While larger towns especially the touristy ones have a lot to offer, I was most comfortable in the smaller ones. You pay a premium to be in the larger cities, I just feel better elsewhere.
BEST RIDING: My experience with lane splitting has been limited. A few cars in downtown San Jose, Costa Rica about sums up my past experience. However, a huge (miles) two lane back up before entering the San Roberto federal check point was an invitation not to be refused. Scary, kind of like a roller coaster ride, with a wire cable jetting out the side of a truck or vendors darting into the center line. Vendors were making the best in a selling environment. The best riding of the trip were the twisties between the mountain passes of San Roberto and Linares. Great riding!
COMMUNICATIONS/PICS: I took along an extra unlocked phone and purchased a Telcel chip for 500 pesos that include fifty minutes of air time. The extra phone provided an additional photo source. I did not bring my Go Pro and the video quality of pictures suffered because of it.
BEST DAY SPENT: was taking the time after a full day of walking to talk to the hotel owner’s sister. A single mom who has spent three years working in the states got a chance for us to exchange stories. She offered me a delicious dinner that evening, for which I am extremely grateful. Taking the time to talk to a local can be very rewarding, especially when traveling solo.
If I had to do it all over again, I would ship my bike to Laredo and spend the three weeks in Mexico. While the return trip did allow me to explore parts of the U.S. I had not traveled before, the most memorable part of this trip was the time spent in Mexico. Viva Mexico!