Part 1: San Diego - Bay of Conception Trip & Road Report

Nov. 5, 2011 1:00 PM


Time to get this lashup on the trail.

The rig this trip is a 34ft motorhome towing a boa...?..uh..?
..jus a sec...

(--psst, hey, Kemo Sabe..take a look behind...what do you see?...
..OK,good... mucho grazies.--)


yeah..as I was saying...the rig is a motorhome towing a boat.





Just about to leave the RV park here in San Diego, lumber up onto I-8 East then wind onto Hwy 94 to cross the border at Tecate. Then slowly thru the road mess... to Ensenada...to Mulege..to Conception Bay. We are optimistic about surviving the trip...and...it's starting to rain again.

I will certainly TRY to report as it happens...but you know the Internet.

She's a real b-tch at times.


Hmm? No-no....not you, dear.


Okay...time to roll! God willing, and the creek don't rise, a road report will come your way soon...



[Edited on 11-8-2011 by Pompano]

Ollie, Ollie Oxen free! All Come Home! Safe journeys and adventures. Pictures at eleven. Good to have you onboard, Amigo. Tio

Yippee Kai Yey!!!

Ooof-Da! That was really....a long, tiring trip from there to here, with lots of 'events'.....I'm pooped.

I read this thread and tried to reply from Catavina's Desert Inn a few hours back, but that dog don't hunt. Thier wifi service is about as good as smoke signals...or a pigeon. Great little oasis in the Land of the Giant Rocks, but don't depend on getting online ..let alone emailing.

Thanks for the nice thoughts, guys and gals.


shari..Too bad you didn't post that request when I was online in SD, gal. Sirenita y Izaak are more than welcome to ride along anytime...we would have enjoyed thier company. Que lastima. Lo siento.

BajaBlanca...I have your TP...unused. Will message an ETA manana when leaving GN for your turnoff. And...like shari, too bad I didn't get your mail package message when still in SD.


Too tired to make a report tonight...I'll be snoring about 1 minute after typing this.

Am now camped at ..hmm...Espíritu Santo..or something... RV park? Yellow cafe bldg alongside highway just north of Army base at 'Black Warrior' (GN). Has working wifi hotspot.



Yawn...I'm hitting the hay,now. Buenas noches, los nómadas. I'll get right on the road condition/trip report manana.

"Okay, Hay, turn off the tv, I'm dead-tired." (you gotta love her...she has a great sense of humor..and is very forgiving of mine.)

Does this happen to you? You go to the store for a single item..in my case, some coffee creamer I like....and you end up with a little more?

FRESHMAN CLASS: "HOW TO SHOP 101"

NEVER, NEVER GO TO A GROCERY STORE ON AN EMPTY STOMACH.


....Here's some photos of San Diego to mull over. (I mull a lot, don't you?)


ALWAYS GO TO A FISHING TACKLE STORE ON AN EMPTY STOMACH.











Another tackle/marine/etc store...just a few more $$$ for certain items.




The shore fishing doesn't get any better that that on Shelter Island, San Diego Bay...

...especially if you catch one!










A trusty fishing boat will improve those catching odds.



I never tire of that skyline view...San Diego Bay, muy buena vista.





Went to lunch...and saw where somebody left thier boy as a tip. Hey..I'm not judging...these are tough times.




Okay...time to hit the bricks for Coyote. Will catch up with the Baja Road report after I get settled. It was grrreat trip, except for....

Hwy 94 to Hwy 3 ..Dulzura - Tecate

San Diego to Tecate Hwy 94 – ‘Campo Road’
Being Norsk I picked a day of heavy rain and poor visibility to head for Baja. I planned an early start and left my nice, comfy RV resort at the crack of noon.
I got lost soon afterward by making the wrong turn off I-8 East in El Cajon. Understandable…this is only the 30th year I’ve been taking this route.

But..thank goodness, “All Roads Lead To Tecate.” And I soon found the way.


The drive over Hwy 94 is always enjoyable for me….mmm, those huge Dulzura burgers are always a TREAT! The rains made the highways nice and shiny, but not slippery at all for me. I am driving a behemoth coach and pulling my Yarcraft fishing boat.



Aha! Nice pasture scene here…can anyone quess what kind of flowers those are out there?? Hmmm?

Ahh…here comes my burger at the Dulzura Café! Be still, stomach..


HIGH EXCITEMENT STRIKES MANY TIMES ON THIS TRIP….HERE’S THE FIRST….

EGADS AND ZOUNDS! translation: !&%#!~ing&!%#hole

THE DULZURA CAFÉ IS CLOSED!!


After my blood pressure went down a few hundred points and the spikes receded back into my head, I continued on down the trail, using up a full box of Kleenex to control my sniffling woes. Well, hey, that was not a burger I lost, it was a Happening.


My homegrown burger is okay, but can’t hold a candle to a Dulzura Gut-Bomb.

Okay, no more tears…one must man-up and move on.

Hwy 94…The Tecate Road ahead:

Winding down the grade….dodging Border Patrol cruisers and many, many northbound jaywalkers.



The sign warns of …

…these tire eaters…will shred your sidewalls or just flat-out puncture you. I’m normally cautious, but am now SUPER-cautious, cuz I just mounted 6 new 10 plys on my coach. My wallet said…”Ouch!”

We now enter Tecate, USA….still drizzling pretty good. Hell, it’s RAIN..not drizzle.



The Tecate Border stop ahead…note all the traffic? It was like a ghost town…empty.


I rolled on into Mexico…and kept right on rolling after being waved on by the friendly border officials. I never had to look out for traffic, thankfully. This happens quite a bit at Tecate, for which I am eternally grateful. Of course, I am one of those border-crossers who never carry anything illegal across, and I’m positive these guy’s sixth sense tells them that…for sure. That and that ultra-secret XYZ-ray machine scanning you as you roll between the entry pillars.


I park a block down the street……




..and we walk back to Imagracion to get a tourist visa stamped.


After that we walked the one block back to the MH, hung an immediate LEFT….then a RIGHT at the Ensenada sign…and drove straight ahead to the TJ/Ensenada Y turnoff. Piece of cake.


EXCEPT FOR THIS SEWER MAELSTROM….which threatened to pull us down, down, down…ugh…, NOOO thanks!

We’re outta here!





..zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.....time to hit the Hay.

To be continued in the wee hours of…. manana.

G’morning….yawn… Um…so who else is up at this un-Godly hour?


Yeah, pretty early in the day…With the help of some recent medication changes, it seems I'm becoming kind of a night owl.

Hmm…Owl? night owl?
… that brings back a memory from the foggy past...

-----Does anybody remember that old late-night radio program called Night Owls?

It came on AM radio in the wee hours, too. ] And it may have been broadcast to target Midwestern & Western audiences?

I used to listen to that midnight AM program in the early 60's, while I was pulling a boat somewhere....enroute to some faraway western USA adventure. The show contained interesting & polite dialogue that kept me from T-boning the moose.

I recall it had a huge audience from the western half of US and Canada..with many social get-togethers at varioius locations. Real fun stuff with real people. Guess it drifted away with a lot of other nostalgia.. haven't heard that program on the nighttime airwaves since...??

Jeez...slap me & spoon me some pablum while I babble away.----


Okay, okay…I suppose you think I should get back on track and continue this Baja Road Trip Report ?....yes?
…..or maybe No! in ‘some’ views.

Well, read it or not, I’m writing & posting it..…so ..’Aaah-Waaay We Go!’:


Nov 5th – Nov 8th,, 2011 Road Report from San Diego to Coyote Bay

Continued from Tecate departure:

We roll on out of Tecate without mishap again…knock on wood. And head uphill towards….this beautiful and peaceful place….Valle de Guadalupe and the Ruta de Vino.

Even though it’s still raining, it’s a nice drive along Hwy 3. I’ll take it every time over TJ.









Just checking!…..




“I’m Just driving in the rain…just driving in the rain…oh, lah la-la-la what a wonderful FEELING..I’m happy agai..….hmmmm?” wha….??

Okay..I’m being hailed by Hay….time out for breakfast. That’s all I can write for right now…but Hasta pronto!


What's for today, sweetheart? Mmmm....Waffles, pancakes, sausages, toast, eggs, HASH BROWNS maybe!?




Thunderation! She's got me on this new and very ’strange’, diet.

Seems to be good fiber, though.

Good to see an interesting trip report If I am reading your musings it must be time to get to Baja.......2 more weeks! I was hoping you would have have pictures of the craziness everyone is talking about on the road north of G Negro but the night vision camera may not have been working. Glad you made it safe.

Hey, isnt that a new, er..........well, RIG you're rolling with? I can't keep up...............

Damn, must be good huntin', up there in North Da-ko-tee!

Smart man! Brings his own pepperocini's with him. Giuliani's from Costco. I cant eat a sandwich without them on the side, anymore.

[Edited on 11-13-2011 by Hook]

Quote:

Originally posted by Hook Hey, isnt that a new, er..........well, RIG you're rolling with? I can't keep up............... Damn, must be good huntin', up there in North Da-ko-tee!

Hah..i just blew my coffee at that round-the-corner question.

Hook, like mi amiga/maid, Carmen, often says with a nice grin...'Weedy, weedy, weedy..' A great expression!

You are right, though...I recently bought and customized a 33ft fifth wheel for boondock camping in comfort. Sleeping on hardpack in a tent is romantic and all..... but leaves me crippled these days.

Okay, back at it again….a wee bit sleepy, though….yawn....

...unlike others who have WAY too much energy!



NO… I don’t feel like dancing. Especially after such a heavy breakfast! Grrrr….most likely I’ll be in the bano most of the day?

Besides that, my little laptop traveling companion tells me it's time to get on with this Baja Road Report. There are some bumps ahead!

Thanks so much for all your time and effort... really great stuff...

Quote:

Originally posted by wessongroup Thanks so much for all your time and effort... really great stuff...

Camping at Sordo Mudo Hwy 3 KM 75 - Excellent park!

Back in the saddle, I came upon this manned/un-manned army checkpoint a few miles south of Tecate on Hwy 3.

Well, you can hardly blame the poor soldiers for staying inside the Hummers. It was cold and wet outside…nuff said…duh?


Keep your powder dry, amigos!


By now it was getting towards dusk, so we stopped for the night at this familiar old campsite…Sordo Mudo RV Park. Really a little oasis for the RV traveler….and nestled in one of the prettiest valleys along the scenic Ruta de Vino.




We had the place pretty much to ourselves. It has been raining for two days now, remember? Hardly any traffic on Hwy 3 at all. Never seen it so deserted…which is fine with me!


Sordo Mulo Park has community bldgs for meetings, barbeques, love fests, etc. Also a well-maintained facility with showers and banos. I am wary of any public baths since I got a bad case of foot rash at Campland on the Bay’s showers…. so we did not use these, although I inspected them and they were spotlessly clean.

The RV sites were very spacious and made on hardpack which held up under the downpour. Good shade trees around each site is a welcome feature to all RVers.


The hookups were power only on this trip..and it is 15 amp...no 30 or 50 amp plug-ins. As you can see from the coach exhaust, it was CHILLY… and the 15 amp was adequate to run all our electric, plus a small handy space heater. Good for those cold feet sneaking over…
The water was not on this time, but the water lines are in and working for the landscaping. No sewer hookups are available at the RV site, but there is a common dump site on the grounds.



The Sordo Mudo RV park is very easy to find. Kilometer 75 on Hwy 3….just north of Ensenada about 20 miles or so. Watch for that marker 75 and you can’t miss it.

It is a donation park and ‘usually’ someone comes over from the school to greet you, show you the ropes, and collect a donation. On our occasion nobody came. It was raining! Had a great overnight sleep, even picked up DirecTV on my 18” roof satellite. Always gratifying to catch the real news in a fair and unbiased manner...unlike the other network embarrassments . Je je je

This is one of my favorite campsites on the Baja Road…for many reasons. You won’t find any garbage laying around or blown into the trees here. Scenic, calm, and restful.

Another RV campground/resort I am eager to check out is much further south…way down on the peninsula in Baja Sur…think it belongs to a nomad…but can’t quite place him…? Matt or Mathew?..Mitch?...no Mandrake..naw, he’s gone…hmmm…oh well, it’s come to me soon, I expect?

HAH! Got a site and a cold beer waiting for us, Mike Odell? Be warned…We we’ll be heading your way soon!

The next morning, after what is called breakfast these days, I was still munching my dried leaf as I drove the motorhome into the school across the highway to find someone to pay for our single night’s camping. Viola! I donated an amount of pesos for one night and another small donation to the bldg fund...because I applaud this place. I think we both were quite satisfied. I know I was.

Your donation is your own business, but IF you need a ballpark amount for a one-night donation, I’d say 50 bucks is way too much…and 5 five bucks is way too little.

A little history of Sordo Mudo:

Rancho Sordo Mudo is a free home and school for deaf children in Baja California, Mexico. Ed and Margaret Everett, the founders of RSM, believed that deaf children could be taught how to read and write, to communicate in sign language, and to learn a trade for their future. More importantly, the goal of the ministry is to teach the children of God's love for them and give them a hope and future.
This has been the work of the ranch for over 40 years.

http://www.ranchosordomudo.org/


Well, that’s those Christian zealots for you again….always getting involved for some reason. My, my… Sure are dangerous people, aren’t they?

Kudos to you, Ed & Margaret.


Huh…? I’m getting signals to be more socially and politically correct? Yeah sure…and you can shove that idea where the sun never shines.
Mas tarde, amigos.

To be continued…yet again!

A+ Roger!

Hwy 3 from Sordo Mudo Park - Ensenada - Santo Tomas Road construction ..and BEYOND!

There was a great hot dog stand at this ‘Y’ on Hwy 3 just north of Ensenada for many years…but haven’t seen it for some time, now. Reminds me of the loss of Carmelita and her tamales. The attrition rate is high on the Baja Road.



For those of you in need of Mexican Migracion…here it is. If you are southbound…Watch for this sign and take a right.





I always look forward to auto-electric repairs to trailer taillights every 4 months…which is the life-span of boat-trailer lights in Baja. The good thing is…you can get them repaired them so cheaply it leaves you smiling and smugly happy.

Today I stopped at this shop above…. south of Ensenada before the Blowhole turnoff … replaced a round plug with a blade (much better), got all new bulbs, three missing lenses, a roof lite on the MH, and a good wiring job…all for 150 pesos by my new amigo, Luis. I love it. If these new ones don’t destruct in 4 months, I’m hitting ‘em with a hammer. Who can resist such a good deal?



The last few days of rain and mud made a mess of my large windshield…especially the sections where the wipers and Pompano can’t reach. Well, okay…so I like to donate to these guys, they need the work! At this Pemex two window-washers tackled the motorhome windshield inside and outside…PLUS all 8 coach windows, headlights, parking lights, etc. A good job …well worth 50 pesos, two cookies and two cokes.




Road Hazard

Some miles south of Ensenada..the pavement is still great, but this edifice (inspection station to-be) is accident prone at this writing. I have been thru it a few times by now, so it’s not a surprise to me anymore. But…the posts all have damage marks..from semis and large RV’s….there is JUST enough room to squeeze through the first few lanes. Can be a little nerve-racking at 50mph as it comes up on you without much warning….now anyway. Slow way down, folks…or you might just leave a mirror…or worse…. behind.

Ah…see these below: Some road construction photos of that area north of Santo Tomas.








These construction sections are at their worst during and after a good rain, but it was not that bad for me. I have been thru far worse in this long rig. Go slow and you will have no problems at all…with any size rig.


We reach Santo Tomas as seen in the pictures below. Long a favorite spot to pull off into the tall trees, enjoy their cool shade, and have a lunch break.


I remember my wife and I spending the night in those trees in my El Camino in 1975….and I still can hear the old trucks with the cowcatcher grills thundering by with no mufflers. Well, I won’t be doing THAT again anytime soon…





A good bar and curio shop here. Old time place full of memories...




There is a RV park here...The Palomar...never tried it, but looks like a pretty steep grade to haul my fifth wheel & boat up and down. Pickup campers and smaller motorhomes would be okay. Maybe someday?






The park has a GREAT watchdog.



"Hey! woof-woof, Is somebody there? Helloooo...Yoo Hoooo?? Shoot, musta been another cloud shadow."