Rolls Alaska to Argentina & back: 9 Rosalia to Cosamaioapan, Mexico

Friday, January 7, 2011

*Miles for the day: 14 (23 km) Miles to date: 5,033 (8,100 km)*

We showed up as requested at the ferry terminal at 7AM. There were a number of armed soldiers at the terminal, and the ferry had not yet unloaded. By about 8:30 they had the other vehicles and foot passengers off the ferry, including a truck with two full length trailers who had to back up the narrow ramp, then turn around in the small loading area - quite a feat of driving. Everyone had to go through customs and immigration, even though they were coming from a Mexican port. It seems Baja is easily accessible with no formalities - they exist only if going to the main part of the country.

By the time the drug sniffing dogs, customs officials and troops had finished inspecting both incoming and outgoing passengers, and the ferry was loaded, it was 9:30, and pretty much everyone was frozen, as it was another cold morning. For the first time we needed to open the trunk, but the inspection was cursory - they didn't touch or ask about anything. By the time we got underway for the "8AM" departure it was bright and sunny.

The ferry holds about 14 cars. It has a closed, covered front and open back on the car deck. There were only 4 vehicles, so the Rolls was placed in the center of two lanes, spaced well away from the one car ahead and two behind. The captain said he wanted to be absolutely certain nothing would touch the car when it moved with the motion of the ship. The car was also tied down to the deck.

The main seating area below the car deck looks like a movie theatre with all seats facing forward. There is a small snack bar, and two TVs with the movie "The Gladiator" playing over and over, however it was so cold most people opted for the sunny upper deck in spite of the cool breeze. We originally had a cabin booked for what we thought was an overnight trip, but cancelled it when we discovered it was a day crossing.

Eventually I went back to the car and had a sleep in the back seat. On my way back to find Vic I was outside the bridge and the captain invited me in. It turns out he owns a luxury yacht in Cabo San Lucas for group rentals, and wanted travel agency contacts. I spent quite awhile with him, as he wanted to see the photos of the around the world trip with the Rolls.

One of the passengers we were talking with before boarding, Jose, said he knows Guaymas well, and said we could follow him to a good hotel in the centre of town. When all cars were off the ferry, Capt. Guillermo asked me to back the Rolls back on so they could take photos for publicity purposes.

When I did leave, there was a quite thorough search of the interior of the car by some of the many armed soldiers at the dock, but they didn't move anything or open anything in the trunk as they did with other vehicles. When we got underway Jose headed towards where he though hotels were, stopping at a Burger King to ask directions & get something to eat. In the end he couldn't find a hotel, so Vic and I turned back towards town and checked into the Hotel del Sol, where in spite of noisy pipes we had a decent sleep. The temperature, for the first time, was about right without heat or air conditioning. While on the ferry we moved east osne time zone.

Saturday, January 8, 2011

*Miles for the day: 493 (793 km) Miles to date: 5,526 (8,893 km)*

We awoke to the warmest morning of the trip - not hot, but comfortable with a jacket. We stopped about an hour out at a great place for breakfast in Ciudad Obregon, then made good time on toll roads in reasonable condition. There was only one police check, and they were more interested in the car than anything else. Speed bumps are everywhere, and are driving us nuts. They are so high that the car high scrapes the exhaust system which now rattles - very annoying! Vendors at speed bumps hawked various goods today.

Our plan was to take two days to reach Mazatlan, but we did so well on time that we made it in one. Lunch was a quick hot dog at a gas station convenience store. After gassing up in Mazatlan we went in search of a hotel, but ended up in an industrial area, so returned to the main road instead of heading into rush hour traffic, thinking that there would be accommodation. Wrong! We were soon out of the city, and the sun had set when we turned off the toll road to find the town of Rosario on the free highway. A toll booth attendant had recommended Hotel Yauco, which worked out fine. The price was reasonable, the room well equipped and there was a restaurant and bar where we quickly quenched our thirst and had a bite to eat.

Sunday, January 9, 2011

*Miles for the day: 517 (832 km) Miles to date: 6,043 (9,725 km)*

We were on the road by 5:30 AM, found our way back to the toll road in the dark and headed south. By 7:30 we were having breakfast at a roadside place in Tepic. The drive was more interesting today through a lot of hills, and not long after leaving Tepic we started to climb the 5,000+ ft.(1,525 meters) to Guadalajara. We found our way through this city of 4 million without incident, stopping for gas and another hot dog lunch before heading to Tolum, arriving there at about 5 PM Mazatlan time or 6 PM in Tolum with a time change. We stopped to ask police directions and they confirmed we were on track for Mexico City, and only a block from the recommended Del Rey Hotel where we stayed.

Tolum is at about 8,000 ft (2,440 meters). The road had a number of long, steep hills that the old Rolls struggled up, sometimes unable to do more than 30 mph (48 kph) The engine was starting to miss the odd time, and was idling rouge, so I filled it with higher octane premium gas rather than the 87 octane regular I'd been using. This helped a little, but it still idled so slowly that the battery discharged in stop and go traffic.

The toll roads have been good, but they are costing over $100 per day, still worth it as they are much quicker and easier to drive. We expected more road blocks as we went toward Mexico City, but passed only two today, and they both looked at the car and waved us through. At the second one there were two police inspecting cars. Beside them, on the side of the road, was a concrete fortification with four police shoulder to shoulder with automatic weapons on bi -pods aimed at oncoming cars.

Pemex still seems to have the monopoly on gas, and many would not accept credit cards, although this was less the case south of Mazatlan. The price per litre was the same throughout the country.

After a couple of beer and a steak in the hotel restaurant we headed for bed.

Monday, January 10, 2011

*Miles for the day: 289 (465 km) Miles to date: 6,332 (10,190 km)*

We were on the road by 5 AM for the drive from Tolum through Mexico City, and already traffic was heavy - or perhaps, as Vic commented, it is always heavy. I'd done a lot of research to find a reasonably direct route through the city, and we'd gone over all the details the night before. The first problem was when we were pulled over by traffic police as soon as we entered the city. They showed me a law that says vehicles with foreign license plates are not permitted in the city between 5 and 11 AM. I got very loud and told them it was ridiculous, that there were no warnings indicating this was the case, and when they said I'd have to follow them to a police impound I said, "Let's go! I want to talk to your boss!" When they said for me to calm down I told them I was furious, that the whole situation was stupid. When they finally realized no bribe was coming they told me to carry on.

We found the street on the planned route, where I knew I had to be in the left lane to join another major road, but unexpectedly the lane turned into a bus terminal, and I couldn't get out of the dense traffic to get back on track. Vic spotted a sign with a street name we recognized but after some miles I turned off onto a side road and flagged down a cab, asking him to guide us out of town. He said it wasn't necessary, that if we continued we would be on the Puebla road, which turned out to be true after another couple of minor mishaps.

We hadn't planned to drive past noon, but after getting stuck in heavy traffic in Cordoba looking for a hotel, and finding nothing interesting in another town in the area of high air pollution near Vera Cruz, we decided to head further south. The toll highway past Puebla was in deplorable condition so speed was much reduced.

Vic spotted the town of Cosamaioapan on the map, so we asked about hotels at the toll booth and were told there were several. We could see one that didn't look bad right at the turn off, but decided to drive into town. At a car wash the car was cleaned up while we chatted with locals who had gathered and the car wash owner, getting information on banks and directions to the recommended Hotel Arroyo Largo.

We stopped at the HSBC Bank where they said they don't change money - the same answer I've had from HSBC branches in various countries including England. They said Banco Santander might, so I asked a fellow and girl on a motor bike where it was. They said to follow them, and took us to the bank. It closed for currency exchange at 2PM, exactly the time I arrived, but would open at 9, so I asked the motor bike fellow where the recommended hotel was. He then led us to the hotel door before saying goodbye. The people in this town are fantastic; we were even thanked for bringing the Rolls to their town!

In the late afternoon we took a walk around, strolling through the market and looking for cantinas - finding only two. It seems the people of this tranquil town don't spend a lot of time in bars! One thing that was a big surprise was that there were no beggars, and not a single vendor tried to press anything onto us. Tourists are rare, so it is a super place to come to see a real Mexican City not corrupted by tourism.

After dinner and a couple of beer we retreated to the room to catch up, me on writing and Vic on navigation and forward planning. It was an early night after a long day!