BajaNomad

Highway 1

fatcatusn - 10-18-2014 at 11:17 AM

I need to get to La Paz by motorcycle in November, is that possible with the current road conditions?

gnukid - 10-18-2014 at 11:20 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by fatcatusn
I need to get to La Paz by motorcycle in November, is that possible with the current road conditions?


No problemo

Alan - 10-18-2014 at 08:45 PM

Unless big semi's can handle roads you still find difficult there could be a problem :lol:

DianaT - 10-18-2014 at 09:05 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by fatcatusn
I need to get to La Paz by motorcycle in November, is that possible with the current road conditions?


Whenever I see that someone on a motorcycle is headed south, I just want to warn you to beware of speed in areas that appear to be flat and wide open --- like north of Guerrero Negro to south of Vizcaino and beyond. It is because we, as did tripledigitken came across an accident in that area where a motorcycle hit a cow and it was a VERY ugly picture. That flat stretch has lots of dips. And with all the rain this year, there will probably be lots of cows.

Have a GREAT time --- travel safe and aware. La Paz is a beautiful destination.

Zola - 10-19-2014 at 03:35 PM

I just came down on the 1 from Tijuana to San Ignacio. Keep an eye open for cows for sure! We came across one in between Catavina and Guerrero Negro. The road is in excellent condition, with some road work in between Ensenada and San Quintin and a few puddles and dirt patches, but no real delay at all. It is green everywhere, and beautiful.

PS: I came down in an FJ Cruiser, not a motorcycle. I saw two guys on Baja 1000 style bikes with Dakar Rally stickers. I hope it wasn't one of them who got into an accident.

[Edited on 10-19-2014 by Zola]

Bajahowodd - 10-19-2014 at 04:00 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by DianaT
Quote:
Originally posted by fatcatusn
I need to get to La Paz by motorcycle in November, is that possible with the current road conditions?


Whenever I see that someone on a motorcycle is headed south, I just want to warn you to beware of speed in areas that appear to be flat and wide open --- like north of Guerrero Negro to south of Vizcaino and beyond. It is because we, as did tripledigitken came across an accident in that area where a motorcycle hit a cow and it was a VERY ugly picture. That flat stretch has lots of dips. And with all the rain this year, there will probably be lots of cows.

Have a GREAT time --- travel safe and aware. La Paz is a beautiful destination.


Me too! Guy was laying dead in the road. Not a pretty site. And it caused a major traffic delay.

cliffh - 10-19-2014 at 06:07 PM

just arrived in Buena Vista this afternoon, pulling 5th wheel and trailer behind with side by side. Detours north of cuidad and north of la Paz ok , slow is fast CliffH

dtbushpilot - 10-19-2014 at 06:30 PM

Make sure your tires are in good shape and be prepared to ride in soft dirt at times on the detours. The longest detour is coming into La Paz. Also be aware of pot holes, plenty of those out there too. What bike are you riding?

Highway 1

fatcatusn - 10-19-2014 at 11:51 PM

Thanks for the info. I'm riding a Honda Goldwing towing a trailer. It's a heavy bike and does not like soft sand/dirt. I returned to California in May covering some 20 k of hard pack dirt on Highway 1 and it was a very slow go on that, but I made it. I just looked at some of the pic's from Hurricane Odile and that really has me worried. My Boat is in La Paz

DaliDali - 10-20-2014 at 06:11 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by fatcatusn
Thanks for the info. I'm riding a Honda Goldwing towing a trailer. It's a heavy bike and does not like soft sand/dirt. I returned to California in May covering some 20 k of hard pack dirt on Highway 1 and it was a very slow go on that, but I made it. I just looked at some of the pic's from Hurricane Odile and that really has me worried. My Boat is in La Paz


I ride a big road bike also and can tell you the road is ok as of right now.

More concern might be if your going down when the Baja 1000 is running in November.
Those few days are a good time to stay off the highway if possible.

Alan - 10-20-2014 at 06:12 AM

For the most part the road was in great condition when I came down last Thursday. There are still the typical potholes around Catavina but not quite as numerous or deep as previous years. I came in right on the heels of TS Simon so some of the vados were still flowing. The asphalt had washed out on a few of them but the cobble underlayment was still intact with no big holes.

There is a rocky section just south of Loreto where it looks like they are blasting out some rock and making a vista point with about a 20 minute wait. The longest detour is just before La Paz but south of where it was last May. Should be the same as you previously experienced.

fatcatusn - 10-21-2014 at 09:23 PM

Wow, I was hoping they would have all of the ongoing road work fixed before I returned. I'll just have to be really careful. The running water in the vados may be a horse of a different color. Thanks for all of the info.

Alan - 10-22-2014 at 06:49 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by fatcatusn
Wow, I was hoping they would have all of the ongoing road work fixed before I returned. I'll just have to be really careful. The running water in the vados may be a horse of a different color. Thanks for all of the info.
The running water in the vados isn't deep enough to be of any concern. Even on a scooter

arthaey - 10-25-2014 at 12:21 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by DaliDali
More concern might be if your going down when the Baja 1000 is running in November.
Those few days are a good time to stay off the highway if possible.


Do you recommend staying off the highways just for the day the race is going through town? Or should we give it a day or two on either side? Or for the entire race itself, regardless of location?

I'm about to do my first Baja trip from October 29th through Thanksgiving, and I'm not sure what to expect re: impact from the Baja 1000.

bajabuddha - 10-25-2014 at 12:54 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by arthaey
Quote:
Originally posted by DaliDali
More concern might be if your going down when the Baja 1000 is running in November.
Those few days are a good time to stay off the highway if possible.


Do you recommend staying off the highways just for the day the race is going through town? Or should we give it a day or two on either side? Or for the entire race itself, regardless of location?

I'm about to do my first Baja trip from October 29th through Thanksgiving, and I'm not sure what to expect re: impact from the Baja 1000.

Part of the problem are all the chase and parts vehicles on the main highway; a lot of the 'crews' are young-uns or first-timers down Hwy 1, and aren't used to the extremely tight conditions and Mexican customs of the roads. They're usually in a hurry and have wide trailers behind. Also the practice-runners testing out their rigs. Thirdly, you have all the sticker/decal kids at every town running out to the racer rigs begging for their new decals, traffic-be-damned. It's just a busy time to be on the highway.

DaliDali - 10-25-2014 at 02:17 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by arthaey
Quote:
Originally posted by DaliDali
More concern might be if your going down when the Baja 1000 is running in November.
Those few days are a good time to stay off the highway if possible.


Do you recommend staying off the highways just for the day the race is going through town? Or should we give it a day or two on either side? Or for the entire race itself, regardless of location?

I'm about to do my first Baja trip from October 29th through Thanksgiving, and I'm not sure what to expect re: impact from the Baja 1000.


Make the call, but if this is your first trip to Baja and have zero experience on that MX 1 highway....I would advise you to stay clear of it 2 days before and 2 days after the race.

Get to where you want to be 2 days before the race start and hunker down until the racers get well south of you by a day.
Do the same when the race ends.....all those trucks with trailers will headed back north. Hunker down someplace.

Ensenada, the race start point, is a total mess with the streets shut down and you will be diverted off the main drag into side streets where you WILL get lost.
The same goes for La Paz at the finish line. Traffic is blocked and diverted.
I have been at both places during the starts and finishes.....just don't do it if at all possible.

As the previous poster mentioned, it's not so much the race cars themselves, it's the crew trucks and trailers who race up and down the highway, blowing you in the dust.

And

bajaguy - 10-25-2014 at 02:19 PM

Finding a place to stay is going to be a problem

Zola - 10-25-2014 at 09:50 PM

Can someone please provide the dates to avoid traveling on Highway 1? We have to travel NORTH from San Juanico to San Diego in order to arrive in San Diego no later than November 12. On which dates should we not make the attempt? Thanks.

DaliDali - 10-26-2014 at 05:25 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Zola
Can someone please provide the dates to avoid traveling on Highway 1? We have to travel NORTH from San Juanico to San Diego in order to arrive in San Diego no later than November 12. On which dates should we not make the attempt? Thanks.


Start date November 12th from Ensenada
Finish date November 16th in La Paz

http://score-international.com/2014-tecate-score-baja-1000/

TecateRay - 10-26-2014 at 07:17 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Zola
Can someone please provide the dates to avoid traveling on Highway 1? We have to travel NORTH from San Juanico to San Diego in order to arrive in San Diego no later than November 12. On which dates should we not make the attempt? Thanks.

You should be okay if you are in San Diego on the 12th. The race starts Thursday morning 13 Nov. Hotels will be busy in the days preceding the race, but the traffic "insanity" is usually race day and the following few days. Keep an eye out for prerunner (practice/ reconnaissance) cars. There are a few highway sections the race will use and although they are supposed to stay within the speed limits some may be "in a hurry".

How is the pavement from San Juanico to Insurgentes? Are you already down there?

Zola - 10-26-2014 at 09:02 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by TecateRay
You should be okay if you are in San Diego on the 12th. The race starts Thursday morning 13 Nov. Hotels will be busy in the days preceding the race, but the traffic "insanity" is usually race day and the following few days. Keep an eye out for prerunner (practice/ reconnaissance) cars. There are a few highway sections the race will use and although they are supposed to stay within the speed limits some may be "in a hurry".

How is the pavement from San Juanico to Insurgentes? Are you already down there?


We arrived from the north on the middle road that leads to Campo Datil. Cars come and go to Insurgentes without any problem, but I did hear that there still might be some standing water in some arroyos. If your car has good clearance it is not a problem.

The hurricanes have gravely affected the quality of the surf by removing sand from the points. The wave still has great form and can be long, but it is very mushy at second point and breaks in the middle of the cove, not at the point. It will take some strong WNW swell events or perhaps the passage of time for the sand deposits to return. Right now Scorpion Bay is San Onofre South, with less exposure to swell....

I hope I am not stepping on anyone's toes by saying so.



[Edited on 10-26-2014 by Zola]

Zola - 10-26-2014 at 09:10 AM

PS: We love this place anyway for a million reasons, and I don't like it when the aggro rippers come out of the woodwork and try to spoil the vibe in the lineup, so for me the state of the surf is a mixed circumstance, but the wave at second point is not the same right now as it usually is.

Otherwise, the rule here remains the same: Everyone takes his or her turn. After you have ridden your wave, or missed it, you wait until the others in the lineup have gone. Then you get to go again. That is how surfing will save itself from itself. It's a much better way for everyone to surf.

Zola - 10-27-2014 at 07:59 PM

Karma obliges me to relate the following good news, after which I promise radio silence on the matter: The wave in SJ has already started to get much better and works just fine when there is more surf, which happened today, even if it will likely be better still when all of the sands return. Over and out!

Zola - 11-7-2014 at 11:47 PM

We traveled from San Ignacio to Tijuana yesterday. Overall, I have never seen the road in such good condition. They have completed much of the work in-between Colonet and Ensenada. The new road is a very well engineered, first-rate highway. (Baja is improving its roads while in the US the roads are falling into disrepair with minimal funding to maintain them properly, but that it another matter.)

There is a well-constructed detour south of Ensenada where they are completing this work. There were no hazardous sections.

Overall, the highway in BC is better than it is in BCS between Guerrero Negro and San Igancio, where it still lacks any shoulder. All of it is far better than it was ten years ago, which is when I first started driving it.

briantroy - 11-8-2014 at 03:12 AM

Great news.

chavycha - 12-16-2014 at 10:57 AM

As of 12/12, the road was in generally very good shape from Tijuana to Vizcaino.

Some potholed areas right around Catavina, but nothing bad. There were also two dips on that section which are washed out and require slow passage.

Otherwise, no detours (other than the La Mision one), and no traffic. No hassle at the border or checkpoints, which was surprising considering we were towing a skiff full of stuff with a cover on it.