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| Zola 
 
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 Can the end of hwy 5 be driven at night?
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| Zola 
 
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 is it possible to drive the end of hwy 5 to hwy 1 at night
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| willardguy 
 
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 yup! gets real spooky out there though!
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| rts551 
 
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 unless Los Pinos has fixed them in the last week there are places where the road drops off on the sides and some pretty bad holes in the center (its a
mud road bed  that the rains have fun with).  You would have to go very slow at night.
 
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| BajaUtah 
 
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 Anything is possible but if you aren't familiar with it there are a lot of side roads that head off the main track. When it's light the main track is
pretty easy to see but when it's dark
  It's pretty easy to get somewhere you don't
want to be. 
 
 
 
 Andy | 
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| durrelllrobert 
 
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 | Quote: Originally posted by rts551  |  | Last report since I went through a couple of weeks ago,  said the rocky pass is much worse.  how  was it for you? | 
 I haven't driven it but it cant be any worse than this:
 
   
 
 
 
 Bob Durrell | 
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| thebajarunner 
 
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| Yes!! 
 
 
 
 We drove a portion after dark with our boat guy tagging along.
 I cannot imagine how you could get lost, it is a well defined road.
 As to the mud middles and the big dropoffs.....????
 It rained really hard the night before we crossed and it was absolutely dry.
 Dropoffs are along every road in Baja, nothing unusual or scary.
 And, the road is wide enough that meeting semis should not be a problem.
 
 I think some folks here have seriously over reacted to driving on a non-paved surface... just my observation.
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| rts551 
 
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 not big drop offs but portions washed out.  Maybe in a Tacoma
  ,  you can
pass.  But with a full size truck there are places on the "cuesta",  the grade through the pass where we could not pass and I had to back up to a wide
spot.  If that is seriously over reacting,  so be it. | 
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| willardguy 
 
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 | Quote: Originally posted by rts551  |  | not big drop offs but portions washed out.  Maybe in a Tacoma  ,  you can
pass.  But with a full size truck there are places on the "cuesta",  the grade through the pass where we could not pass and I had to back up to a wide
spot.  If that is seriously over reacting,  so be it. | 
 
 A-trac offers safe, secure passing in every situation! just push the button, ease the seat back,crack a coldie and let A-trac do the work!
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| David K 
 
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 A-TRAC is a LOW RANGE 4WD traction system, standard on the Off Road TRD Tacoma and other Toyota and Lexus vehicles. It is comparable to the traction
obtained with front and rear locking differentials, but without the steering difficulty that comes from locked differentials.
 
 The point is, in Low Range, you are not driving at a passing speed or on any graded road for that matter.
 
 You would be more correct in speaking about TRAC which is the limited slip system and VSC (vehicle stability control) that works in 2WD and 4WD HIGH
RANGE (ie. at highway speed).
 
 
 
 
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| Tioloco 
 
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 R U guys kidding me? This is getting ridiculous...... Jajajajajajajajajaja!!!!!!!!!
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| thebajarunner 
 
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| What is difficult from some is easy for others 
 
 
 | Quote: Originally posted by rts551  |  | not big drop offs but portions washed out.  Maybe in a Tacoma  ,  you can
pass.  But with a full size truck there are places on the "cuesta",  the grade through the pass where we could not pass and I had to back up to a wide
spot.  If that is seriously over reacting,  so be it. | 
 
 How do you generalize the road conditions for all types of drivers?
 For me, this unpaved portion of 5 is a very easy stretch of road.
 I drove much of it in my "full sized" F-150 at 50- 60 mph.
 The guys with the boat in our group likely never topped 15 mph and much of the time much slower.
 By "Baja Standards" this is a very benign piece of territory IMO.
 If you are concerned, just take it easy, it will all work out.
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| Tioloco 
 
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 Baja runner-
 Agreed.
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| StuckSucks 
 
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 | Quote: Originally posted by thebajarunner  |  | How do you generalize the road conditions for all types of drivers?
 For me, this unpaved portion of 5 is a very easy stretch of road.
 I drove much of it in my "full sized" F-150 at 50- 60 mph.
 The guys with the boat in our group likely never topped 15 mph and much of the time much slower.
 By "Baja Standards" this is a very benign piece of territory IMO.
 If you are concerned, just take it easy, it will all work out.
 | 
 
 Thank you! What you said! Bravo!
 
 
 
 
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| rts551 
 
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 | Quote: Originally posted by thebajarunner  |  | | Quote: Originally posted by rts551  |  | not big drop offs but portions washed out.  Maybe in a Tacoma  ,  you can
pass.  But with a full size truck there are places on the "cuesta",  the grade through the pass where we could not pass and I had to back up to a wide
spot.  If that is seriously over reacting,  so be it. | 
 
 How do you generalize the road conditions for all types of drivers?
 For me, this unpaved portion of 5 is a very easy stretch of road.
 I drove much of it in my "full sized" F-150 at 50- 60 mph.
 The guys with the boat in our group likely never topped 15 mph and much of the time much slower.
 By "Baja Standards" this is a very benign piece of territory IMO.
 If you are concerned, just take it easy, it will all work out.
 | 
 
 Because,  maybe you have forgotten,  but someone who obviously never driven the road before asked if it was OK at night.  If they were as highly
qualifyed as you,  they would not have even asked...Geeze...speed on.  Hopefully not one of the times I am on the road going the other way.
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| Cliffy 
 
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 I drove in to Gonzaga once from the dry lake through the canyon at night, the middle of the night, back in the early 70s. We did it in an old Jeep
Wagoneer. Slow going but no real problems UNTIL-
 we met a Military road block in the canyon somewhere (where is lost in the annals of history and memory).
 They asked a coupe of questions (my companions were fluent in Spanish) and away we went.
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| Zola 
 
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 We drove through in the black of night. It was a peaceful, enjoyable ride. We did come across tractor-trailer trucks, which traveled in small convoys
and had personal graders as escorts. It is a fun drive if you have a serious off-road vehicle (we have an FJ Cruiser). I think it is not a wise choice
for regular 2-wheel drive cars or anyone who has a trailer. There will be too much wear and tear on the vehicle at certain points.
 
 But I give fair warning: Now that I have driven Mexico 5, I have a strong motive for hoping that it remains exactly the way it is
  What you miss are some of the great places to see and surf in BC Norte, but what you
gain is not becoming utterly frazzled by making the drive from San Miguel to San Quentin. But you also miss the amazing drive from El Rosario to
Catavina, which is a magical stretch of road, along which lies the magical pueblo of  El Rosario and the stunning mountain drive to the southeast. 
 [Edited on 4-3-2015 by Zola]
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| chuckie 
 
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 As I have said in the past, Hiway? 5 is no worse than most of the Baja back roads. I suspect that the people who find it "bad" havnt spent much time
in Baja....Get LOST? HOW? Geezo....
 
 
 
 
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| Udo 
 
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 There are two schools of thought for driving the 23 miles of dirt/rock:
 
 15-20 MPH with no or little air-down on the tires
 45 MPH+ with about 18 PSI in the tires
 
 My personal philosophy is the second one.
 
 
 
 
 Udo 
 Youth is wasted on the young!
 
 
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| Udo 
 
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 A total of three.
 
 
 
 
 Udo 
 Youth is wasted on the young!
 
 
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