La Ventana Again

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Crossing the border and going further south

I never got to see the Red Volcano or the mud pots by the Salton Sea. We arrived there after dark and stayed at the Salton Sea Recreation Area campground instead of the one near those 2 attractions. It was familiar and posed less of a risk for complications. The drive there from Bakersfield was fraught with heavy rain and traffic. I'll never drive through the San Bernardino Valley again. Roads near Tehachapi were covered in mud from recent floods. My alarm went off at 5:00 am for an early start to the Calexico/Mexicali border crossing. We met Dave's very nice friend Hai at the Walmart there and went through immigration and buying our tourist permit for baja smoothly. Then the grueling drive south began.

Dave's rig.

Mud covered road near Tehachapi.

At the immigration desk in Calexico.

The border wall viewed from the Mexican side.

Caravaning with 3 vehicles is tricky, especially through urban areas. Dave brought a decent pair of walkie talkies to help with needs for stopping, etc. Their range is surprisingly good. He's got a pickup truck with a camper and is towing a trailer. His v8 engine really sucks the gas, so he wants to go slow. We've settled on 58 to 60 mph for straight roads. Lots of coordinating gas and pee stops. It's about 2,500 miles to the tip of Baja from my house, so it's like driving across the US. I feel a little insane at times. :-) Most Mexican highways have no shoulders and no turn out lanes for slow trucks. But the scenery can be beautiful and often exotic. Gas is about $4/gallon here.

Roadside scenery.

No slow-truck turnouts.

We camped at a hotel/RV park last night for about $7.50 each. Worth it since since they had hot showers. Passed numerous military checkpoints over the last 2 days, and today passed a truck loaded with camouflaged guys with guns. One was standing up manning a machine gun facing forward on fixed mount. One guy thoroughly searched my van and was very interested in my JBL bluetooth speaker. Asked how much it cost, and then while holding it said "For me?". I said "No, no no!"

Our rigs in the hotel/RV park in Guerro Negro. First night in Mexico.

So now we're camped by a beach on a whale watching bay at Adolpho Lopez Mateos. The whales come in spring, so none here now. Tomorrow we'll get to La Ventana by early afternoon. Friend Mica got there a couple of days ago, found a campsite, and said there's an empty one next to him. Hope we get it.

Beachside pics from where we camped

Heading out in the morning for our last day of driving.

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