TecateRay
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Heading to San Felipe - toll road around Mexicali?
I'll be heading to San Felipe next month and I have heard that you can bypass most of Mexicali by taking the toll road from Tecate. Has anyone done
this? Is there a special turnoff on the west side of Mexicali?
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David K
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Yes, it avoids all of Mexicali... From Tecate you hop onto it after climbing out of the Laguna Salada basin... It joins 2-D near the Pemex fuel tank
depot...
Photos at the end of my web page on that trip last August: http://community-2.webtv.net/thebaja/806
Map shows the approximate location...
When you are driving north from San Felipe, there is no direct onramp for northbound Hwy. 5... You go under the bridge and make a u-turn and get on it
heading south bound (dumb)!
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David K
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The road is all concrete and just one lane each direction! For the short cut, the toll is (was) 45 pesos!
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David K
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Here's the access ramp at Hwy. 5 for west bound (Tecate)... The ramp is for only southbound Hwy. 5! The toll gate is near Hwy. 5...
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bajaandy
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How much (if any) time does this toll road save when coming from San Diego to San Felipe or the other way around?
subvert the dominant paradigm
"If you travel with a man, you must either fall out with him or make him your good friend."
JBL Noel
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David K
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If you are coming from or going to Tecate, then you would have NO Mexicali city traffic, intersections, etc. However, if the 45 pesos seems a bit
steep, then pretend the cut off does not exist.. I wouldn't be surprised if it cuts 20-30 minutes off the time to Tecate from San Felipe.
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TecateRay
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Registered: 9-6-2006
Location: La Mesa, CA
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Thanks for the map and directions! This will save me a bunch of time and trouble - well worth 45 pesos.
As to the Tecate border - I'm a frequent crosser there, but I have stopped using it on Sundays. Weekday evenings seem to be best, a friend crossed
last Saturday around 3:30 PM and only had to wait 15 minutes. It's hard to figure, but most mornings and every Sunday are Bad, long waits almost
guaranteed.
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