BajaNomad

Boulder CO to Todos Santos

Dakini - 2-20-2022 at 07:42 AM

Hello BB Friends!

I will be driving solo (2 dogs as co-pilots) from CO to TS at the end of May.
I am planning on breaking up the drive in 3-10 hour days. My first night stop will land me around Vegas and 2nd night in the middle of the peninsula.
Would love to get recommendations for a comfy, dog-friendly place to land.

Also, I am curious about the road conditions. I have a low-ish clearance 330i AWD wagon and plan to trick out the tires/wheels to handle potholes and the like. I have been told that I need to get a truck to make the drive but this advice is coming from folks who have not driven it themselves.

Thank you in advance for any travel tips!

Happy Trails,
Karina:cool:

AKgringo - 2-20-2022 at 07:52 AM

Unless you plan to go "off road", your AWD wagon will be more than adequate!

I can't help much with dog friendly accommodations, other than the ones mentioned on this forum recently.

mojo_norte - 2-20-2022 at 08:13 AM

BOCO to TS can't be done safely in 3 days . Figure 2 days to the border and then 3 days down the peninsula - minimum

JZ - 2-20-2022 at 08:14 AM

The Westin Lake Las Vegas is one of my favorite hotels.

They are very dog friendly.

mtgoat666 - 2-20-2022 at 08:33 AM

The roads are paved, don’t see why any car can’t drive the roads.

3 days is a bit ambitious…. perhaps make it a 4 day trip.

Don’t drive at night. You can’t see road hazards at night (cows, rocks on road, missing road, potholes, etc.)

I always tell my friend “don’t drive at night.” He sometimes ignores my advice, and he recently drove at night. He hit a donkey and flocked up his car.

Howard - 2-20-2022 at 10:05 AM

Quote: Originally posted by mtgoat666  
The roads are paved, don’t see why any car can’t drive the roads.

3 days is a bit ambitious…. perhaps make it a 4 day trip.

Don’t drive at night. You can’t see road hazards at night (cows, rocks on road, missing road, potholes, etc.)

I always tell my friend “don’t drive at night.” He sometimes ignores my advice, and he recently drove at night. He hit a donkey and flocked up his car.


Which one turned out to be the donkey?

Cancamo - 2-20-2022 at 11:34 AM

Most local hotels away from the tourist zones are dog friendly, just let them know ahead of time. Never been turned down anywhere SOB in hotels that service the local population, (500 to 700 pesos).

john68 - 2-20-2022 at 12:58 PM

We have driven from Denver many times, one time solo. Your car should do fine, but try not to need parts for your BMW—they are likely not available.. Crossing at Tecate, 2200 miles to Los Barriles, night driving is inadvisable. I have never done it in less than four days, longer if you sightsee, which you should.

Most places take dogs.

Bob and Susan - 2-20-2022 at 01:43 PM

dont cross at tecate...cross at mexicali

way shorter drive time to the middle of baja

be careful in vegas...lots of homeless drug addicts that roam around motel parking lots breaking into the cars at night while you sleep



pacificobob - 2-20-2022 at 03:02 PM

I prefer crossing at tecate. The drive over rumorosa pass [sp?] Is spectacular

JZ - 2-20-2022 at 04:05 PM

Definitely cross at Mexicali when coming down from Vegas. Zero reason to go through Tecate.

JZ - 2-20-2022 at 04:16 PM

Quote: Originally posted by Bob and Susan  

be careful in vegas...lots of homeless drug addicts that roam around motel parking lots breaking into the cars at night while you sleep



You don't have to worry about that at the place we stay at. It's $91 right now on Hotels.com.

Pic from last year.








[Edited on 2-20-2022 by JZ]

john68 - 2-20-2022 at 04:47 PM

There's no reason to go thru Las Vegas, BTW. In the winter, avoid possible delays on I-70 and go the southern route. Cross at Yuma/Los Algodones and go down Hwy 5 thru San Felipe. You'll miss the Valle de Guadalupe and some interesting country around Catavina, but it would save you some time. Much less traffic than Hwy 1 thru Ensenada.

JZ - 2-20-2022 at 05:10 PM

Quote: Originally posted by john68  
There's no reason to go thru Las Vegas, BTW. In the winter, avoid possible delays on I-70 and go the southern route. Cross at Yuma/Los Algodones and go down Hwy 5 thru San Felipe.


There is only about 30 miles difference between going through Vegas/Mexicali and Phoenix/Yuma/San Luis.

If you go through Phoenix, stay at the Grand Hyatt in Scottsdale. Really beautiful hotel. They are pet friendly.



JZ - 2-20-2022 at 05:56 PM

Quote: Originally posted by lencho  

Quote: Originally posted by JZ

==================

Spectacular picture! Is that your drone shot?

Wow.. where does all that water come from? :?:

[Edited on 2-21-2022 by lencho]


I didn't take that one. I'm not even sure it is a photo, or an artist rendition instead. But it does look like that.

Lake Las Vegas is just a few miles from Lake Mead. It's a small lake surrounded by a couple hotels, village, golf, course, and houses.

A really nice area. About 30 mins from the strip. I use to keep a boat out on Lake Mead, and we'd stay here.


[Edited on 2-21-2022 by JZ]

AKgringo - 2-20-2022 at 07:21 PM

Quote: Originally posted by lencho  

Three days would definitely be stressful!

Coming in from as far east as Denver to La Paz as she is, for those who have done it "recently", what are the advantages/disadvantages of going straight south from Nogales and crossing over on the ferry?


Well so far, it is not known if "Dakini", the new member is even reading the replies posted, but I will add a concern about crossing on the ferry with two dogs.

It is not that recent, but a couple of years ago I intended to cross from La Paz to Mazatlan. It appeared that my dog would be spending that long, slow voyage in a kennel on the cargo deck, and I would not be allowed access during the trip.

If someone has gone through with the crossing (with dogs) I would like to hear from them, but I think the driver, and dogs would be happier with the road trip.

JZ - 2-20-2022 at 07:59 PM

The Santa Rosalia ferry seems pretty lax. They let us hang out at our truck. We sat in the bed, played music and drank Pacico's.

Not sure how they would treat dogs, but I'd be surprised if they didn't let you keep them in the truck.

My MX friends buttered up the crew. They invited us to eat with them in the crew quarters. Some very good fish tacos.


pauldavidmena - 2-21-2022 at 10:09 AM

Quote: Originally posted by AKgringo  
Quote: Originally posted by lencho  

Three days would definitely be stressful!

Coming in from as far east as Denver to La Paz as she is, for those who have done it "recently", what are the advantages/disadvantages of going straight south from Nogales and crossing over on the ferry?


Well so far, it is not known if "Dakini", the new member is even reading the replies posted, but I will add a concern about crossing on the ferry with two dogs.

It is not that recent, but a couple of years ago I intended to cross from La Paz to Mazatlan. It appeared that my dog would be spending that long, slow voyage in a kennel on the cargo deck, and I would not be allowed access during the trip.

If someone has gone through with the crossing (with dogs) I would like to hear from them, but I think the driver, and dogs would be happier with the road trip.



I'll be keeping an eye on this thread. After flying down to Cabo from Boston about a dozen times over the years (including 2 cancelled flights through Dallas!), we're thinking about driving down next time instead. Several of the routes suggested by Google Maps involve taking the ferry from Mazatlan to La Paz. And since one of the reasons we'll be driving is so that we can take our dog, we would definitely not want to have him banished to the cargo deck for the duration of the trip.

phmilo - 2-22-2022 at 09:49 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Dakini  
Hello BB Friends!

I will be driving solo (2 dogs as co-pilots) from CO to TS at the end of May.
I am planning on breaking up the drive in 3-10 hour days. My first night stop will land me around Vegas and 2nd night in the middle of the peninsula.
Would love to get recommendations for a comfy, dog-friendly place to land.

Also, I am curious about the road conditions. I have a low-ish clearance 330i AWD wagon and plan to trick out the tires/wheels to handle potholes and the like. I have been told that I need to get a truck to make the drive but this advice is coming from folks who have not driven it themselves.

Thank you in advance for any travel tips!

Happy Trails,
Karina:cool:


We recently did Seattle to Todos in 6 days. I think 3 is being too aggressive. I'd ditch Vegas and go directly toward Yuma or Mexicali. With the US roads that would be a day. Cross early in the morning and you should make GN via MX5 comfortably. Halfway inn takes dogs. Loreto is a good second day, and that will put you in Todos on Peninsula day 3 with time to get groceries and then head out for dinner.

[Edited on 2-22-2022 by phmilo]

TSThornton - 2-22-2022 at 09:54 AM

Two days from El Centro to TS is very do-able and not stressful, including a few dog walks. Border at dawn, Santa Rosalia before dark, Hotel El Morro is dog friendly and has a good reastaurant. TS by 4:00 the next day with a stop for a customary "it's great to be back" swim at Playa Coyote.

Doug Landolfi - 2-28-2022 at 09:09 AM

I have made the drive from Colorado Springs down to San Jose del Cabo, then up and down the peninsula, then back from San Jose to Colorado Springs over 4 different trips, leaving my truck and camper in storage between trips. I logged about 4000 miles of driving on the peninsula - both Gulf side and Pacific side - in 2021. The advice in this thread regarding a minimum of 4 days strikes me as even too aggressive. Probably more like 5 or 6. The advice about not driving at night is absolutely correct. One additional thought - Baja starts getting VERY hot as early as late May and certainly into June. I am back home in Colorado Springs, thinking about my next trip down.
Feel free to shoot me a U2U if you have questions or want more details.