As I left, my mouth on fire due to the chilli’s, a new Bentley car pulled out in front of me. That’s odd I thought, a new Bentley in an obviously poor area 🤔 Had I just seen a Cartel boss!
I met Garth a few miles from the Mexican border in San Diego, getting into the USA is difficult, getting out and into Mexico is easy.
As I ride through Tijuana it was obvious we had entered not just a different country but a radically different environment & culture too: dusty, pot-holed roads and unfinished buildings. And then to my left I saw it; The Wall… a rusty scar on the landscape that rose & fell, twisted & turned as it followed the border between the privileged and those that want a better life. For the next hour it came into view and then it vanished from sight as we rode up into the mountains; but always dominant.
We pulled into a petrol station and quietly Garth said “we should have a low presence and not behave any more ‘touristy’ than we have to. This is a major cartel area. Did you see the girls on the bridge over the freeway? They were lookouts, reporting back that we’ve arrived in the area”. I took onboard his wise words and we left the area.
We headed to California Baja, a town called San Felipe on the Gulf of California / Sea of Cortez. My first time in Mexico and I instantly knew I was going to love it here. Virtually no tourists, just happy Mexicans smiling as I attempted (poorly) to speak Spanish.
We rode south down the Baja and it felt like how I imagine Greece was in the 1970’s, run-down, dusty, beautiful sea and beeches with hardly anyone there. The temperature hovered around 35°c (95°f) and we camped on the beaches and found cheap hotels.
I saw my first Coyote.
We stopped in San Ignacio and checked into a wonderful campsite in an oasis. I pitched my tent under the palm trees and walked the short distance into the town square. We spent 3 or 4 hours there drinking beer and taking in life in the square. ‘It’s all about the people’, right! Families, young & old, a wedding at the 17th century Catholic Church, boys playing football in the dappled light under the massive trees, young men driving pickup trucks playing loud music… my friend & I didn’t stop smiling!
I found Mexico today.
We stayed a further day and that evening the ‘Desert Assassins’ arrived: 34 Americans on a 9 day motorbike off-road tour; 20 professionals, 2 former Baja 2000 winners, 4 medics, and a helicopter & film crew for ESPN. Elite riders for sure.
I had been on the road for 3 1/2 weeks and this morning I would be riding on my own for the first time on this trip. I had been with Rob, Nick, Garth and then my cousin Patrick. I headed off into the desert alone. After an hour I was passing through an industrial town and saw a car parts shop, I had been meaning to buy a puncture repair kit for over a week so I pulled over. “Hola, buenos días” I said; now how do I ask for a puncture repair kit in Spanish 🤔! The man in shop eventually knew what I wanted and went to get me one, I turned around and 2 military men walked in, as always in Mexico, smart, clean and left me in no doubt they were serious with rifles. They stood and watched. I paid and walked out of the shop, 2 more military men were outside watching what was occurring, as well as a massive pick-up truck parked 1 metre behind my bike. On the back another military man standing with a massive machine gun. The driver watched me and I wondered why 6 military men were interested in me! I started my bike and rode off. They didn’t follow me. Another country to add to the list where military men with machine guns mounted on the back of pick-up trucks follow me or ask me to follow them (Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Timor Leste, Egypt, Sudan. Maybe more). I smile and it’s never been a problem 🙂
I spent 1 week riding south down the Baja California (1,000 Miles) and really enjoyed it.
I’m currently on a ferry crossing the Sea of Cortez to mainland Mexico. Only yesterday I studied the map and realised how massive a country Mexico is! When I disembark it’s still 1,200 miles to Guatemala!
I said goodbye to Garth and decided I needed to chew some miles so took the toll road and rode 340 miles (550km) rising up into the mountains. At last I had left the desert and that night I stayed in a great old colonial Spanish hotel in Chapala, it was cool not scorching hot.
I was up early and set my sat nav to ‘avoid toll roads’. As I headed south it felt like many countries I had travelled in, not rich or wealthy at all, where everyone worked, smiled and seemed happy. I was in the mountains and the cool air was a welcome change. Dusty roads, agriculture, small towns, markets, the odd cow in the back of a pick-up truck, 3 or 4 people squashed onto a moped, I could have been in Asia or Africa, I’ve been here before I thought.
I found myself in the back streets of one small town, not many cars, dogs barking in the distance, people walking, sweeping the footpath outside their house, proud people, happy people. People stopping and talking – community. It’s all about the people.
I spent hours riding in the mountains, lush jungle, twisty roads, small, beautiful villages. One day, I stopped for lunch in a small town and 5 ladies selling street food all rallied around, making me a plate of food, I didn’t speak Spanish and they didn’t speak English. Everything worked out fine, I filled my belly with food and they watched me enjoy it. And then I remembered the ‘Mexico Rule’, keep to the main roads so the bad men leave me alone (Cartels). I had been on the most remote roads in the jungle, what was I thinking! I got lost in travel, the fascination of new environments & people. It’s all about the people; and the jungle clad mountains. It was 1pm and half way through my meal the ladies cleared away all signs of them having been there. Of course, it was time for a siesta! Only a pale Gringo would be outside in this blistering heat!
As I left, my mouth on fire due to the chilli’s, a new Bentley car pull out in front of me. That’s odd I thought, a new Bentley in an obviously poor area 🤔 Had I just seen a Cartel boss! It was just after 1pm and the temperature was a blistering 105°c (40°f), but this wasn’t an occasion to stop and rest. I slowly left the town and fortunately didn’t see the Bentley again!
Later that afternoon at a military roadblock, after some time I realised they wouldn’t allow me to find a hotel in the town I randomly picked! The Chief said I had to ride an hour further and find a hotel there. He didn’t realise I was knackered and much prefer ‘ploughing my own furrow’ so I decided I knew better 🤔 I chose a town much closer only to find it was a really expensive tourist town (I can’t imagine anything worse when I’m traveling!), time was getting on and as one of my two rules is don’t ride at night, I found the cheapest room in town. Now, I’m not a frequenter of brothels but if this wasn’t a ‘drive in’ brothel…
Cites are great for weekend breaks but aren’t something I’m interested in when over-landing on my motorbike.
There was a police/military presence throughout Mexico, but as I approached Acapulco it significantly increased, however, as soon as I was in the city it disappeared and it felt like any other city by the sea in the world. Although being in Acapulco conjured up memories of James Bond films, Roger Moore, Sean Connery, Jane Seymour & dry martinis… The reality was not as glamorous or jet-setting…
I had been in Mexico for 12 Days and was only 2/3rds of my way through the country. I was enjoying the landscape more and more as I moved away from the dry arid-desert and started to ride through the forests and mountains. Outside of the cities I see changes in culture: people burning rubbish everywhere, empty roads and people riding horses, and then I saw my first rickshaw of the trip, and then a donkey; signs of poorer, more rural communities around the world.
About 20 miles before Puerto Escondido I descended the mountain and started to ride through palm tree groves where beyond I could see the Pacific Ocean and massive waves rolling in. Puerto Escondido seemed like all other Mexican town, dusty, poor roads, massive speed bumps everywhere, the same roadside shacks/shops… As with most of my travels, don’t be fooled into thinking I have a plan; yeah I’m heading to Central America, but that’s it. So when I turned onto the road by the beach, I saw something that caused me to have a second glance, two European looking women, shortly after another two and then a couple. I looked in the cafes and restaurants as I rode past and they were full of them! I couldn’t believe it, I hadn’t seen a tourist in over 1,000 miles and now they were everywhere, come to think of it where were the Mexicans! It then dawned on me that this wasn’t the usual ‘tourist cohort’ these were Backpackers!!!
How did they get here, I hadn’t passed one on the road! Bloody airplanes…
Whilst it’s a beautiful place, nice bars… it could’ve been anywhere in the world! I’ve been to these ‘backpacker destinations’ so many times, they’re great but all the same. If you want to backpack around the world, just pick one destination and stay there for a year, they’re all similar!
The following morning I had some work to do, clients meetings, online of course. I left around 1pm and headed south, there were no options of a fast or slow route, just one road heading inland, over the jungle clad mountains. After an hour I found myself riding through a ‘new road construction site’, the old road torn up by vast amounts of plant. The usual H&S rules in Europe didn’t apply here, all transport ploughs through the construction site; dirt, deep red dust, up and down over half constructed road. After about 30 minutes (half way through) a construction worker held his hand up and stopped me, a lizard about 70cm long had decided that would be the place to bask in the afternoon sun. Later I turn another bend and I couldn’t believe what I saw, high up in the mountainous jungle, it wasn’t natural and didn’t have any place there! It snaked and cut a scar through the mountain. I had arrived at the ‘new highway’ with shiny black tarmac glimmering in the afternoon heat! I had enjoyed the red dust, technical riding through the construction site. I guess infrastructure is progress… 🤦♂️
I rode further south and needed to find a hotel, so took a sharp right and 10 minutes later l found one of the most deserted and beautiful beaches I’ve ever seen (and I’ve seen a few over the years). There wasn’t a hotel so I ended up in a very poor village where the local shop owner had a room to rent me ‘out back’. As I walked through his shop complete with mud floor my expectation were met. When one has no choice, one’s standards can dramatically reduce! I was happy 🙂
However the meal I had that night was very tasty.
I’m 2,500 miles from the border with USA and only 350 miles from the Guatemala border. As I’ve travelled south, Mexico has become more rural & poorer, however, the people seem happier! Don’t over think it, wellbeing comes from connection, meaning & purpose amongst other factors. Life without money is awful, but don’t be fooled into believing having more than those around you brings happiness!
How much is ‘enough’ money for you? Work that out and if it’s attainable you could be one step closer to happiness & fulfilment!
I love the way I travel; little research and experiencing life as I come across it. I left the coast road, headed inland and after a few hours I started ascending a mountain, riding through the clouds and emerging to blue skies. I continued to climb and started to get cold, by the time I reached the summit at 2,500m I was freezing. I then dropped down to 2,200m into the historic town of San Cristobal De La Cara. I don’t make many recommendations but if you’re in the area…
The following day I headed to the Guatamala border, where I heard a month earlier there had been a shootout between a drug cartel and the military. I pulled up on my motorbike at the border, the border guard said “welcome to Guatemala, have you checked out of Mexico?” I gave him a puzzled look and he told me it was 2 miles back where I had been! This is not the first time I had to turn around and back-track (in 2014 I was 10 miles inside Nepal when I realised I had left India).
After backtracking and exiting Mexico I returned to the Guatamala border.
So what have I learned about Mexico?
- It’s a huge country – nearly 3,000 Miles (4,800km) from Tijuana to Cancún.
- The desert in the north changes to jungle in the south.
- The people are great, and as I’ve observed around the world, once above the poverty line, there doesn’t seem to be a relationship between wealth and happiness.
- I met very few foreigners, virtually none in the South.
- If you like tacos you won’t starve.
- Speaking Spanish would obviously help, but I did alright without speaking it.
- A smile goes a long way!
- The best food was always ‘Street Food’.
- Mexicans love loud music, anywhere anytime.
- I have never been in a country with more speed-bumps.