Wondering if anyone can give me an idea of the current drive time from San Felipe to Guerrero Negro? (HWY 5)
Also, and feedback for a Hotel there. Planning on doing some whale watching in March.
Thanx.mtgoat666 - 2-19-2017 at 09:46 AM
Depends on how fast you drive.
I usually estimate 50 mph as my average for long drives in baja, accounting for travel plus short potty/fuel stopsmtgoat666 - 2-19-2017 at 09:48 AM
Terra sol for cheap and clean and sterile.
Malarrimo for character/tradition.
Do not eat at Terra sol, the food is abysmal.David K - 2-19-2017 at 11:01 AM
Wondering if anyone can give me an idea of the current drive time from San Felipe to Guerrero Negro? (HWY 5)
Also, and feedback for a Hotel there. Planning on doing some whale watching in March.
Thanx.
I recently gave drive hours from this month's trip... let me dig that up...
San Felipe 12:45pm PST
Puertecitos 1:23pm
Gonzaga Bay Pemex 2:06pm
Highway 1 (Chapala) 3:15pm
L.A. Bay jcn. 3:41pm
El Tomatal (military CP) 4:22pm
Jesus Maria Pemex 4:40pm (dinner at Kassandra's to 5:07pm) <27 min>
State Border (bug spray 20 pesos) 5:29pm/ 6:29 MST
San Ignacio 8pm MST
Driving time San Felipe to the Eagle Monument near Guerrero Negro: about 4 hrs. 15 min. in a Tacoma, no towing. About 235 miles.bajapedro - 2-19-2017 at 11:18 AM
Thank you, and appreciate the info. mtnpop - 2-19-2017 at 05:42 PM
we have this trip at right at 250 miles,,, consider slower thru the vado territory and 23 miles under construction then if you stop at Coco's for a
cold drink will affect your drive time.. We are usually thru the construction area in 1 to 15 hours...
as for restaurant at Terra Sol,,, we must be luck folks, meals have been pretty good... then again I usually have the Shrimp Boston plate so there is
bacon involved and shrimp...
I think we are usually about 6 hours or so from San Felipe to GN...
good luck...carlosg - 2-19-2017 at 06:10 PM
Hotel TerraSal Restaurant
This is our preferred mid-way stop on our way up and down Baja, we usually stop on a weekend so we can enjoy the ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT Buffet which we find
more than just good.... we just enjoy it....!!!! We'll be stopping by next month on our way to Ciudad Constitución.
[Edited on 2-20-2017 by carlosg]BajaDanD - 2-20-2017 at 08:28 PM
We are heading down there in March also we have done this route in 5 hours but I drive faster then some. The 23 mile stretch of dirt road takes about
an hour. I've had flat tires from driving it too fast. Even after I aired down my tires to 25lbs. We are leaving from Prescott AZ on the 11th Cliffy - 2-20-2017 at 08:34 PM
What city is the TerraSal in for those of us with limited knowledge?mtnpop - 2-20-2017 at 08:43 PM
What city is the TerraSal in for those of us with limited knowledge?
that would be Guerro Negro
Almost... GUERRERO NEGRO (means 'Black Warrior', the name of a whaling ship that was lost in the lagoon just west)kevin_in_idaho - 2-21-2017 at 08:57 AM
We were just down there too. If you have a pet, Malarrimo doesn't allow them. TerraSol was nice although for being newer, it has some interesting
faults (no faucet handles, door locks loose, etc.) but the grounds were very nice, great location, friendly people, etc.larry - 2-21-2017 at 10:47 AM
I stayed at Los Caracoles (right side of the main street into town, just before Malarrimo) on New Years Eve--clean, basic and cheap. Dinner at
Malarrimo was relatively expensive and not good.DeMinimis - 2-21-2017 at 11:20 AM
A little off topic, and hopefully no too hijacky, but some computer maps now show Mexicali to GN as being quicker than TJ to GN. (saving approx
1.5hrs). Is this now true? Thanks.David K - 2-21-2017 at 11:46 AM
Indeed!!!
Take out city traffic in Ensenada and the dozen farm towns and San Quintin traffic... then eliminate the mountain road between Maneadero and Colonet
and the 30 miles of twisting road beyond El Rosario... you can easily see that only dealing with easy San Felipe traffic and 23 dirt miles wins out.
Edit: There is also the obvious shorter distance using the 5 over the 1. Look at a map: Colonet and San Felipe are about across Baja from each other.
See how short the distance is to Laguna Chapala from San Felipe (135 miles), but how much longer it is from Colonet (200 miles)?
Of course, if you begin in San Diego, you need to drive east to Mexicali to begin the 'shorter' drive south! I choose the nice drive on Hwy. 8 and
Mexicali south over the Tijuana, Ensenada, farm towns, San Quintin, curvy road stuff.
[Edited on 2-21-2017 by David K]DeMinimis - 2-21-2017 at 12:11 PM
Thanks DK. Thankfully, I live in a neighboring state ;-) So, I'll just skirt "Hell", go through San Bernadino (or the Indio route), stay in El
Centro and cross in the AM. I must admit, on our last return trip via Coco's, it just seemed shorter (which I attributed to the fact we were leaving
Baja and didn't want to).DeMinimis - 2-21-2017 at 12:19 PM
Oh, does anyone know if you can you pay for tourist visas at the Mexicali/Calexico East crossing on Sundays? I believe there was a time you could
not. Crossed there on a Saturday once, back in '09, and if I recall correctly, no dice (visas) on Sunday back then. Thanks.
Bajapedro, thanks for letting me play through.David K - 2-21-2017 at 01:04 PM
I use Mexicali downtown (west). The tourist cards are purchased directly from the INM officer, no bank trip needed. The INM office is open 24/7 as is
the border.
If you cross at downtown (the closest to El Centro, end of Hwy. 111), te INM office is IMMEDIATELY on your left once you clear the red/green light and
Mexican border guards. You may need to double park, and that was fine when I last got my FMM in Sept.
From there, to find the correct street for San Felipe (it is well signed), take the street with the TRAIN TRACKS in the center! Piece of cake. It is
about 5 miles to the next major split (San Luis R.C. Hwy. 2 forks left, you keep in the right lane for San Felipe).DeMinimis - 2-21-2017 at 01:08 PM
Crossed there last time (coming back) by accident. We're too big to handle the tight quarters, so must go East. I don't want to further hijack, so
I'll post up the Q in a new thread.
