BajaAnthro
Junior Nomad
Posts: 29
Registered: 2-20-2012
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Trip north Sept 4-5 (washed out in GN etc)
I just made the drive up from the cape yesterday. A couple of highlights:
1. I hit the edge of a pretty big rain storm up near Santa Rosalia. The roads were fine but some of the arroyos inland were starting to fill up. The
lucky part was that the highway pretty much skirted the worst part of the rain.
2. In San Ignacio the road was flooded out but not too bad. Some of the local kids were there helping to guild people around the rocks. That was
worth a 10 peso tip.
3. The worst part of the trip was north of Guerrero Negro where there's road construction. I got up early, headed north, only to be stopped by a long
line of cars, vans, big rigs, etc. I walked down to check it out: the arroyo was completely flowing and blocked. There was one semi that was totally
stuck in the mud--some folks said it got stuck the night before. After a few people checked the bottom, some folks from the other side made the
crossing. A few people got stuck in the mud and silt, but the 4x4s pretty much made it no problem. Finally a Toyota tried from the south side, and
made it up the bank easily. So me and another guy said "let's go for it" and we crossed as well. I wonder how long people had to wait for the road
to get cleared. With all of the mud etc there's no way that the big rigs and regular cars were going to get across for a while. Anyone passed
through here since yesterday morning???
4. The rest of the trip was fine, with the usual amount of crazy drivers making insane passes, but otherwise no problems.
5. I took the Tecate route for the first time, and it was a mellow, welcome change from the madness of Tijuana. It added a little extra time, but I
think it was worth it. You end up in the US on the 94, about 40 miles from San Diego. Not bad!
[Edited on 9-6-2012 by BajaAnthro]
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Russ
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Location: Punta Chivato
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Good report. Thanks
Bahia Concepcion where life starts...given a chance!
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64855
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Good report... Just curious, where was the big stuck arroyo?
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BajaAnthro
Junior Nomad
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Hey David,
It was about 30 min or so north of Guerrero Negro, where they are still working on the road.
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David K
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Location: San Diego County
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Thanks... in late July, the roadwork was all done... maybe they began a new section?
30 min = ~30 miles or a bit more on that straight road... I wonder if it was:
Near the town/ gas station of Villa Jesus Maria?
Near the military checkpoint at the El Tomatal road?
Near Nuevo Rosarito town?
Or?
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RnR
Senior Nomad
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Registered: 5-1-2010
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Just a reminder:
Check your driveline and bearings, ALL of the bearings, after driving through water.
I had about the same scenario during the February storms that took out the four bridges in northern Baja four or five years ago.
Came up from the Cape area. Hit some rain near San Ignacio. Then several running arroyos around Guerrero Negro. Then the road blocked at the big
arroyos 30-40 miles north of Guerrero Negro.
I checked the differential cases and the front wheel bearings of the F350 and found no evidence of water. Whew!
Then, I promptly forgot about the smaller wheels/bearings on the utility trailer that also went through the arroyos behind the high riding F350.
Oops!
Sure enough. Next trip down, ( about 1,500 miles and six months later), lost a wheel bearing right outside Guerrero Negro. What is it about that
place??
Found the grease inside the trailer hub "churned", contaminated with water, and rust on the spindle. The good news. We were on the road again in
about two hours as I had spare parts and hadn't damaged the hub or the spindle.
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BajaAnthro
Junior Nomad
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Registered: 2-20-2012
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Hey David,
I should have taken a GPS point!
I am pretty sure it was just past the checkpoint at Tomatal. If you look on google maps there is a little s-curve in the hills just north of that
checkpoint and you can see where a drainage/arroyo goes right across the road. That looks like the place to me.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64855
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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| Quote: | Originally posted by BajaAnthro
Hey David,
I should have taken a GPS point!
I am pretty sure it was just past the checkpoint at Tomatal. If you look on google maps there is a little s-curve in the hills just north of that
checkpoint and you can see where a drainage/arroyo goes right across the road. That looks like the place to me. |
Thanks! That little gorge does funnel the mountain runoff and there should be a bridge built across it! In the Baja Almanac, it is Arroyo San Javier.
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Bajahowodd
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9274
Registered: 12-15-2008
Location: Disneyland Adjacent and anywhere in Baja
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Gawd!
| Quote: | Originally posted by David K
Thanks... in late July, the roadwork was all done... maybe they began a new section?
30 min = ~30 miles or a bit more on that straight road... I wonder if it was:
Near the town/ gas station of Villa Jesus Maria?
Near the military checkpoint at the El Tomatal road?
Near Nuevo Rosarito town?
Or? |
Can't believe that there is still construction happening in that area. Fundamentally, it has been going on for like two years. But, it is really just
about repaving. They're not taking down hills, or re-routing.
Just seems to me to be the poster boy for those who denigrate Mexico.
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