ElFaro
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Registered: 9-16-2007
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Precautions While Travelling in Baja
Since there have been several threads recently of thefts/robberies I was wondering what precautions all of us take while travelling in Baja. Maybe we
can learn from each others tips and suggestions.
I will lead off with a few things I do...some of this may be obvious to everyone.
1. I run a cable lock around my spare tire underneath and up over a frame member to keep it from being stolen.
2. To slow down truck thieves I bolt a chain to the inside of the hood at the front and pass it down in front of the radiator but behind the grill and
padlock it to the frame member. Keeps the hood from being raised for hot wiring.
3. Bought a "CAR BAR" that locks to steering column instead of to steering wheel.
4. I have a shell over my truck pickup bed with dark tinted windows and I cover my stuff in the back of my truck with a small tarp or moving blanket.
Prevents "prying eyes" from checking out my goods.
5. I lock everything up - gas cap, rear shell tailgate window, truck doors, trailer doors, etc. while underway. If I am stopped I have to unlock it
B4 anyone can access it.
6. My truck rear window is a slider. The shell front window is a slider. Right below the shell window at the front of the truck bed I put a plastic
tub. I open up both slider windows from inside the truck cab and put valuables in this tub and close up the windows. If someone wants to inspect
they won't bother to open up the sliders and the tub is too far forward of the rear of the truck to get to so it won't be looked at with all the stuff
in front of it.
7. With the tub used in #6 I put inexpensive things in the door pockets and glove compartment (e.g. playing cards, dictionary, wisk broom, gloves,
etc.) that I can stand to lose.
8. The last items I put in the back of my truck are my emergency gear / tools / lights. If I break down its all there at the tailgate ready to be
deployed.
9. When I get to a campsite I don't vomit out all my gear / equipment to be seen by Mexicans and gringos alike. I prefer to go slow and take out only
minimal items to relax and set up camp. Later when its dark I will get out more things after I get the lay of the area.
10. NEVER take $100 bills into Mexico nor give change to someone for a $100 bill. They are to damn hard to get rid of. At least the old ones!!
11. I keep a copy of this on my computer in my Baja folder and read it every time I get ready to head south.
Your thoughts...
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woody with a view
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Location: Looking at the Coronado Islands
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you're nutz....but i'll bet you don't have many problems......
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Packoderm
Super Nomad
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I carry traveler's checks. Any bank will cash them, but I usually use them for reserve funds. If a robber sees me with so much in traveler's checks,
he just might think that I don't have any other money anywhere. Other than that, I try to not bring anything with me that I will miss too bad if it
gets stolen.
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Iflyfish
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Registered: 10-17-2006
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Drive during the day.
Pay in Pesos when possible.
Don't be austentatious in display of wealth.
Don't wash our motor home.
Do not allow people to see inside of our motor home.
Park in well used, highly visable places.
Use small denominatin bills.
Keep valuables stashed in hidden places as much as possible.
Always be aware of surroundings.
Park with others. Isolation creates more vulnerability.
There is not absolute immunity to crime. Where there is poverty, there is crime.
These are thoughts off the top of my head.
Iflyfish
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Iflyfish
Ultra Nomad
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Registered: 10-17-2006
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To which I might add.
Don't get drunk in public.
Stay away from drugs and people who use them in Mexico.
Iflyfish
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Sunman
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Posts: 400
Registered: 6-22-2007
Location: Oxnard
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D-O-G ...nuff said.
$ stashed in ingenious location(s), never more than $60 at the ready but also stashed.
Everything else I consider disposable.
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Taco de Baja
Super Nomad
Posts: 1913
Registered: 4-14-2004
Location: Behind the Orange Curtain, CA
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Mood: Dreamin' of Baja
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A hidden kill switch might be a good idea
Run it to the fuel pump, they will still be able to restart the car, but only travel a little distance down the road before it dies....in the middle
of the road.
As soon as you are "pulled over" turn it off. Mount it under the carpet where you can easily reach it without it being seen, or without you being
seen hitting it.
Of course they may get peeed and come back and shoot you; but being sneak thieves they will probably high tail it out of there in their buddies
vehicles, leaving your vehicle where it died.
Truth generally lies in the coordination of antagonistic opinions
-Herbert Spencer
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bacquito
Super Nomad
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We wash our car very little-it does not look worth stealing We do not
carry alot of cash with us, we have an account at Banomex, if we run low on "lana". I like the idea of putting valuables between the camper cabin
sliding window and the rear sliding window of the truck
bacquito
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Jig
Newbie
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Registered: 9-11-2007
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Carry your ATM card and enough cash to get you by. Hide any extra cash in you freezer or ice chest in a white envelope under the ice cubes enclosed
in a plastic freezer zip loc bag. My truck is wired so that the ignition will not complete the circuit to the starter with out having the cigar
lighter pushed in, this works! Keeping in crowded areas is a must. Don't be brave and set up camp on isolated beach or some off road area. Don't
drive at night. Carry a cell phone or a CB. A very important thing to do is to have an emergency number posted in your truck just in case some needs
to make a call that could save your life.
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Sunman
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Location: Oxnard
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Jig
Don't be brave and set up camp on isolated beach or some off road area. |
UNderstand your intent and not trying to be a smart @ss at all, but if you can't camp on an isolated beach or remote area, what's the point of going
to Baja?
Like your idea of an emergency number visible in your rig...note to self. I'll be traveling solo and in remote areas next week.
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Taco de Baja
Super Nomad
Posts: 1913
Registered: 4-14-2004
Location: Behind the Orange Curtain, CA
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Mood: Dreamin' of Baja
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Sunman
| Quote: | Originally posted by Jig
Don't be brave and set up camp on isolated beach or some off road area. |
UNderstand your intent and not trying to be a smart @ss at all, but if you can't camp on an isolated beach or remote area, what's the point of going
to Baja?
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I agree.
What's the point of camping in Baja, if you are going to camp in a crowd? You can do that any place in the states....Unless you like the party
atmosphere, of course. One of the joys of Baja is being able to see a place not many people have, and having it fairly pristine, with little to no
trash, graffiti, loud music, etc.
I fully subscribe to the old saying: "Bad roads, good people; good roads, bad people." A thief is not going to drive for hours over a tough road on
the off chance there is going to be someone at the end of it whom they can rob. They are going to stick close to a paved or nicely graded road with
easy access in and out.
Truth generally lies in the coordination of antagonistic opinions
-Herbert Spencer
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pappy
Senior Nomad
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10-4 on that taco de baja!! kind of cool to be able to drive as far back into a canyon as possible, then leave vehicles,etc. there for a few days
while ya backpack around the area...i don't think i'd take that chance here in alta california....
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Pappy Jon
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Location: Wrong side of the Continental divide.
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Taco de Baja
I agree.
What's the point of camping in Baja, if you are going to camp in a crowd? You can do that any place in the states....Unless you like the party
atmosphere, of course. One of the joys of Baja is being able to see a place not many people have, and having it fairly pristine, with little to no
trash, graffiti, loud music, etc.
I fully subscribe to the old saying: "Bad roads, good people; good roads, bad people." A thief is not going to drive for hours over a tough road on
the off chance there is going to be someone at the end of it whom they can rob. They are going to stick close to a paved or nicely graded road with
easy access in and out. |
My only comment here ... I've been spooked off two very remote beaches, and the threat came in off the water. I was probably ok, but I didn't want to
chance it.
"The association of flowers and warm-blooded love is more than a romantic convention; it is based upon one of the great advances in the evolution
of life." Ed Abbey
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jeans
Super Nomad
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Jig
My truck is wired so that the ignition will not complete the circuit to the starter with out having the cigar lighter pushed in, this works!
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I've never read that here before! That sounds easy enough (well..at least for someone, not me) Does that prevent hotwiring under the dash? (Or have I
been watching too much television?)
Mom always told me to be different - Now she says...Not THAT different
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Bajabus
Senior Nomad
Posts: 892
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: Elias Calles B.C.S. or NC USA
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Mood: My friends..it's good.
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On the freezer thing......most thieves know to look in the fridge/freezer, bottom of the garbage pail, bottom of the dirty laundry, taped to the
bottom of a drawer, inside the toilet tank, on top of cabinets, under the mattress, under the floor mats or carpets and inside the air filter. I
think you have to be more creative.
On the fuel pump thing. A big V8 is gonna suck that line dry pretty fast, I would want them a little further away. The good kill switches give you
about 2 min before they cut power. If you are handy with soldering and reading basic schematics it is very easy to wire a 555 IC chip with a relay,
variable capacitor and variable resistor to do the job nicely for under $5. Hit a small momentary switch and the timer starts counting.
If you really are worried about loosing a valuable asset in TJ or other big border town invest in a GSM or CDMA GPS/Cell triangulation device. Easily
concealed, you log into a secure website to view coordinates, direction,speed, heading and battery life. You can even export data to google earth.
battery lasts about 5-6 days. You can get something like this for about $400 and monthly monitoring plans in 3,6,or 12 months run about $19 per
month.
I just put one of these in for a buddy and it is slick and kinda spooky.
No I don't sell them but they are easy to find. Try www.supercircuits.com
Another trick is the exploding shoe box. Get yourself a small cardboard box like a shoe box or smaller put a blockbuster or ashcan fireworks device
in it. Fill it with Styrofoam pellets and the device, rig an electric match to it and wire to the dome light with a hidden on off switch. Guaranteed
to scare the pants off anyone and disorient them.
Our place in Mexico has a buried 3" titanium aerial salute that is quite a distance from the house. These are the nice chest thumpers you get at the
end of a fireworks shoot. Walk into the wrong place in the house and it will fire up into the air about 500 ft before detonating. The neighbors know
what this means.
Yeah I am extreme but you only live once. The shoe box trick only ever went off once and it was in my friends bar, The fore n' aft in White Plains.
He kept getting broken into and having his booze stolen. Never happened again after that.
The one in my bus never went tested. I would have loved to see the face on those guys when the bar one went off.
"Preventive war was an invention of Hitler. Frankly I would not even listen to anyone seriously that came and talked of such a thing."
Dwight David Eisenhower
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ElFaro
Nomad
Posts: 231
Registered: 9-16-2007
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There are alot of good ideas from seasoned Baja veterans on the board...keep them coming!!
Here are a few more things I do / practice while down in Baja
1. I don't pick up hitchikers unless we happen upon an accident or something where aid/transport is required to those in need. What if the hitchiker
was carrying something illegal and was searched at a checkpoint and busted?...I would be implicated by association.
2. When I'm camped at a remote location, I prefer not to carry my keys around with me while kayaking, boating, surfing, or beachcombing. To solve
this problem I bought a lock box padlock from Home Depot. It looks like a big fat padlock with a compartment that stores your keys. When I go out
kayaking I lock up the trailer and put the trailer keys in the truck. I then lock up the truck and put the truck keys in the lock box that is locked
to the trailer frame. The lock box is opened by a combination. If you drive your truck to a remote location you can use the lock box by locking it
to your trailer hitch. Another option I'm looking into is a box that locks into your receiver hitch that stores your keys. It too opens by
combination.
3. I DO NOT reveal my travel plans to anyone (Gringos especially) while in Baja. I have run into Gringos in Baja who are down there for questionable
reasons. One time I was at a small village on the coast helping pull a Mexican truck out that was stuck in the sand on the beach. Afterwards an
American came up to us and during the conversation he told us he was staying at a relatives house in the village because there were arrest warrants
out for him in the Bay area and he went down there to let things cool down. I've run into Gringos travelling alone and now I ask myself 'is this
person down here because they like Baja or are they down here for other reasons'?
4. While parked at my campsite, I use cablelocks on items I consider valuable and lock them to my trailer frame.
5. I keep a machete next to the bed just in case I need to put up a fight at night or anytime for that matter.
6. I try to get acquainted with the local Mexicans when I arrive at a town or camp and only do business with them. I speak very good spanish and it
helps a great deal especially if I need help. The more you get to know the locals, the more they will go out of their way to help you.
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