My First Big Mexican Ride...

Okay, so the title can be read several different ways. But I thought starting out with humor would be good..

I've been riding a motorcycle for just over 3 years and soon after I started, I found advrider.com and became hooked! There are so many inspiring reports.. I had to.. Started out with a lot of local rides and figure out things like gear, pace and just general preferences... For the one day that I will take that big-ass ride.

Last December, I took a short, brief ride to Baja. Not really a big deal since all you needed at the time was a tourist card and I was only in the area for 3 days... Not a REAL adventure trip in my opinion.. But it was a nice baby-step.

Now, I'm on my way to Mexico for 3 weeks! Am I fully prepared? Probably not.. But that's part of the adventure.. To just go for it. Of course I've done a lot of my homework with some things having to be done at the last minute.. But I think I'm in pretty good shape. I got my trusty DR650 (who's name is Anna btw), proper gear and I hope, the right attitude.

I haven't had a vacation in years and with especially hectic the way my business has been over the last few months, I feel I owe it to myself to have a kick-ass time this December!

I planned on doing a full December trip to Mexico for several months now. Work is traditionally really slow during this time and I figured this would be the perfect time to take the month off. I have my own business that I run myself. I hired someone to take care of things while I'm gone. That was interesting.. But he was referred to me by a colleague and his credentials are very good. And he can still reach me while I'm gone.. So no real worries.

I had to delay the start of my trip a couple of days due to crap weather.. But hey, I used the time to fine-tune trip preparation and get some more rest before the start. God knows work has been kicking my butt. So I left on a Tuesday at around 1pm. The last week in my town has been unusually cold, almost reaching historic lows. Heck, it was even SNOWING in downtown San Francisco! A dusting usually occurs every 7 - 10 years in the area.. But this weather came with a vengeance. So after a quick meal at my favorite local restaurant, I was on my way!



At around 48 degrees, us Californians, even the ones from the North, aren't too cool with that. But hey, I'm going on vacation!

I wasn't sure how far I was going to make it on my first day. I'm starting in South San Francisco.... Santa Barbara or Los Angeles.. Wasn't going to make it to San Diego cause it's just too cold and I don't want to spend all the day in this weather if I don't have to. It's about enjoying the ride after all

After a while of the cold stuff, I stopped somewhere in Salinas for a cup of coffee and a short break. Anna didn't need it, but I sure did..


I tell ya, this was probably the best 97-cent cup of coffee I ever had!


Yeah, it's freakin' cold!


Yeah, snow-capped mountains near the California coast? Yeah, ALL over the place! Nice, no nose-hairs showing.. For once!

One thing I noticed was that the California Highway Patrol was out in force today. I'd say all the way to Coalinga.. They were all over the place... But I'm not a naturally fast rider and with a DR650, it's just not very comfortable doing 90mph on it. So I settle in between 70-75mph. Once in a while I have the coppers pass me up.

Taking a break when you need to or just for the heck of it is sooo important... I've done this route many times and it was time to mix things up... Like I said, I didn't need to stop.. But I needed a break.. So I did fuel up Anna far short of my usual time... And the coffee did miracles for me! I feel I finally woke up and my attitude got much better. As well as my energy level. Still cold, but at least in the right frame of mind.

Remember what I said about mixing things up? Well, I had to stop in Los Alamos for some fuel.. I'd ridden by here on numerous ocassions.. So I thought it would be fun to take a quick look around.

This is a REALLY cute little town! Even in the dark, I can see its charm. I definitely have to come here in the summer and spend some real time. I'd actually like to take a road-trip on the backroads from Gilroy to Santa Maria.
This looks to be the main strip of Los Alamos.. Nice that they are really into the Holiday season...


And for the couples.. A nice B&B..


I did my best here... But there can only be so many B&B's in Los Alamos...


They were probably wondering who the creepy-guy on the motorcycle was doing taking pictures in the dark :huh

Okay, so I decided on Santa Barbara.. Or more precisely, Goleta. Less than 10 miles north.. Even though Los Angeles was only about an hour away, my bike handling was becoming erratic and I was just plain getting tired. I think it's more about the cold.. I know that has a much worse effect on me than time on the bike.. But Goleta had a ton of hotels and they had plenty of services where I can get some more last-minute things done.

Oh, and I gotta mention this... I was riding down highway 101. I was thinking of hwy 5 originally to save a couple hours of riding time. But the night before, I decided to call a friend of mine in Los Angeles to chat. She knew about my trip and we chatted about that amongst other things. Well, a couple of hours I left, I got a txt message saying that hwy 5 was closed due to snow! I would have been MISERABLE if I had taken the route. The traffic alone would have been HORRIBLE. So she saved my ass from hours of frustration. I owe her big-time. Thank God... Now, back to our regular scheduled programming.

I need to stay on a fairly strict budget. I want to stay as close to $50/day. But because of the weather, I'm not about to camp out.. I want to get to Mexico rested and ready. I ended up at a Motel 6. One of the least expensive places I could find. $65/w/tax/night and it has WiFi


I really scored! It's a really cool-designed room. No carpet which is kinda a bummer.. But I guess it's better for them to keep it clean.. And if people get busy on that bed, that mattress will start sliding off.. Otherwise, I really like the room. And it has a tub you can reall fit into. Yeah, I'm cold to the bone and that's exactly what the doctor ordered!


Yes, I'm happiER!


Dig the iPod looking tv mounting.. Think it was intentional?


I had to take a better picture of this.. This is a really cool setup.. $65/night AND I get HDTV... Way cool.


I was so proud of my packing! I have my 38L saddlebags and a large Northface duffel bag. I like being a minimalist as much as possible and combining as many things as possible.. I think I did a B+ job.. I'll know in 3 weeks


My other saddlebag.. Not bad eh?


I glow!


Total vanity shot!

I had dinner at Outback restaurant, which was totally overpriced... And spent some time at the FedEx Office doing some scanning... Yeah, I had to take care of some last minute things... But it's okay.. It's still part of experiencing Goleta.. But it was still a bit of a ghost-town.. It was way too cold for these folks!

I ddn't get up particularly early... Around 7:30am. The day before wiped me out more than I thought. I got ready quite quickly.. But I STILL had some things to finish up at FedEx Office.. Dang it, didn't get on the road until 10am! This pretty much seals my fate for today.. I will not be making it into Mexico at a reasonable hour.. I want to get at least 2 hours away from the border.. Even though violence going on at the Border towns in Mexico is limited.. It will make certain people feel better that I didn't hang out there too long. No worries, one of my plans was to make leave California in two days.. So it's all good.


Anna and I stop about an hour North of San Clemente which I was thinking of where I'll be staying. There's a good campsite if I decide to go that route and there are a good number of hotels too.


According to my WeatherChannel.com app on my phone, it's supposedly 53 degrees.. If feels much warmer and it's a godsend!

So I make it to San Clemente around 1:30pm and now I'll actually have time to hang out and check the sites. It's still too cold to camp out for me.. Like I said, I want to make sure I get to Mexico rested... But first order of business is FOOD!!!


I found this really interesting looking place off the main drag...


And the prices look right...

But it's not open!!! In fact, it looks like they are remodeling. Bummer. The search continues...


No, they didn't have food hear.. Well, at least I don't think so... I didn't go in... Really... No really... It was next to the place where I had lunch and it just surprised me that an exotic store was located in this min-mall...


Really, I didn't go in...


A carnitas-torta.. I found this Mexican place that wasn't a chain and looked interesting...


This thing was absolutely DELICIOUS! It's really hard to get carnitas right.. This place did it! Really worth the $7.50 I paid for it and my drink.. Or was I that hungry? Whatever, it was GOOD!


I like a nice menu... I think it's a family owned-built place.. They had a lot of pictures inside and I think it was the owner who came out and asked how the torta was... Nice.

I shopped around for hotels.. There are many so I think I'll find a good deal. Took a while. I found this interesting place off the beaten path, but they were just rude and they quoted me a weekly rate.. When I told them I just wanted a night, I can tell it turned them off. I found this REAL dump that was $45.night. But it was to lowly for me. I mean, it looked really crappy... I looked across the street at a Budget Lodge.. I kept saying to myself that it looked too expensive for my budget.. But I thought it doesn't hurt to ask..

SCORE! The guy at the Budget Lodge originally quoted me $60/night, but lowered it to $55/night/w/tax! So for $5/night more, I got a really clean place, underground parking and the top floor of a 3-story hotel. I couldn't get a good picture of the room.. But it was HUGE. It must have been an apartment complex before... It had a SEPARATE living room!
So I'm headin' out to the Starbucks down the street.. Think this look will get me some chicks? I think the bum-bag puts it all together!


On my way to the Starbucks... A little chilly.. But you get moving and it's all good..

Until my next posting folks.. Goodnight!

Very nice start, looking forward to more.

Looks like you're off to a great start.

How far do you plan to go during the three weeks? Definite destination or just play it out as it comes along? I ask because I've got three weeks next summer for a Mexico trip and I am wondering how far I could comfortably go leaving some time to do things besides riding 12 hours a day.

good start...looking forward to following your report

..carnitas torta...good choice.

Would you say that the "Zip up" style inner pannier bags are worth the investment?

I have Caribous and was considering getting the inner zip up bags.

Have a great trip

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Hit me up on your way back through town and lunch(dinner) and beers are on me! Maybe even a place to crash. (Need to clear it through the spousal unit). When you plan on coming back through?

ConREV has been there for about 10 years or so.

Check out Surfin Chicken on Pico for excellent food as well. I'm there for lunch about twice a week!

Are you sure you're not riding with someone? Alot of pictures with you in 'em. You're a self-shot junkie! The ride sounds great and I can't wait to see images that make me feel warm again.

Santo Moto,

We have been waiting for you! I remember your first ADVrider ride report

Looks fun so far, I'm in.

Personally, I like the fact that your in many of your shots, its different. I would never have the courage (I'm much uglier on camera than in real person). Keep it coming.

Puerto Nuevo lobster FTW!

have fun and be well

Too bad I did not see your post earlier. You were in my manor. Good pics of the trip so far. Keep it up.
BTW, for really good carnitas by the pound, check out La Siesta at the north end of town.

Cool pics. Thanks for sharing.

So I get up a bit earlier today.. 7:30am. Not bad, but I wanted to be on the road by 7am! I didn't know exactly how long it would take for me to get through the border and get all the paperwork, but I'll figure it out as I go.


I hit the Starbucks that I was at last night for a quick breakfast. Man, there were some really good-looking women there... Too bad I didn't get any pictures... Checking the maps for some route details...

So I hit the road at 9am and moving along... I'm moving faster than normally.. I usually keep it between 70mph to 75mph.. But I'm trying to keep it under 80mph.. I'm also not very nervous either.. Though I was going over numbers, money and other things... I need to relax alot more.

I get to the border at about 10am.. Okay, now I'm getting a little nervous... It gets really hectic once I pass through the border.. I follow the signs to the Bancajerto relatively easy... Amongst the chaos... But as I turn the corner to the parking area.. A couple in a SUV dart out of the street and startle me a bit.. Front wheel locks up and loses traction and I take a spill. FU#@!!! Luckily, I was going pretty slow. The couple are shocked and I'm already getting up.. Folks, you could've gotten out of the SUV to help me get my bike up... Here I get a taste of Mexican hospitality.. A couple of guys jump forward and help me lift my bike up.. Thanks a bunch! Other than the ball of the clutch lever breaking off, I'm relatively unscathed. A little banged up and the ego bruised a bit.. But I'm okay. The road is made of this material that's a bit slick feeling.. And I'm not sure how these Mefo tires on pavement really.. As I'm finding out.. It may be a good idea to lessen the pressure on 'em. I'm going to look at this as a wake-up call.. Be more alert.. But relax too... I'll just have to work on this...

I'm filling out the paperwork for my tourist card and vehicle importation and I'm noticing something.. I'm falling in love with every Mexican woman I'm seeing! Hmm, does the Mexican government make it a point to hire attractive women? Maybe. Hopefully I'll can get this one's number if she's there when I return. Oh yeah, both the tourist card and temporary vehicle import paper is good for an automatic 180 days? Also, they took my debit card.. The woman who was doing this told me that they wouldn't charge anything to the card... It's "just in case". So I'll have to check later to see if anything happened...

I should mention... There was an extremely nice older-gentleman who saw that I looked a little lost and helped me through the process.. Yes, that's kindness.

So I'm going through Tijuana... Wow... And not in a good way... It's crazy and the poverty... It's something else... Federales and the Military.. Sheesh! I get some money converted to pesos and I'm outta here.


The only picture I could getting out of Tijuana.. I just wanted to get out of there...

Getting out was harder than I thought... I rode Hwy 1 Libre.. Boy, was it crap.. I didn't ride it on purpose.. It was easier to find.. I took Hwy 1D first chance I got.. Not as good as a California Hwy.. But not by much.. Pretty low in traffic. Awesome views too!

I'm noticing down the way.. There are some pretty darn nice housing by the beach... Is it gringos making big expensive homes? Unless you want to completely veg. out.. I guess it's fine.. But what else is there to do around? Surf?

So I've gone through my first military check-point... Easy-peasy... They just waved me through.. No fuss.. But then about 30 minutes later.. I'm being tailed by military.. Okay, I'm sweating... But as soon as he's able to go around to pass.. He does.. PHEW! I wasn't speeding.. But you know...

I get to the Ensenada toll gate.. It's backed up for a while. What's the deal? You pay and then go. I probably spent about 20 minutes waiting to get to the toll plaza. I took me all of 1 minute to pay...


UPS delivery trucks at the Ensenada toll plaza.. I thought this was kinda funny...


Ensenada in the distance.. It's quite beautiful.. From here..

I'm hauling ass to Ensenada to fill my tummy! I'm starving! I find this interesting little place deep in the heart of 'tourist' Ensenada.. I wish I had taken a picture... But the guy had tons of motorcycle dirt-riding stickers above his grill.. I got a feeling this is a popular spot for a certain crowd... I ordered another carnitas-torta, steak-taco and diet-coke... DELICIOUS!


This is GREAT! This is a chorizo-torta!


I forgot to take a picture of this really nice place... Nice family-run establishment. I think with all the gear I was wearing, they confused me for one of their regulars...

I'm debating whether I should try to make it to El Rosario.. It's about 3 hours away and it's 2pm.. I really only put in about 150 miles... But I promised myself I wouldn't ride at night.. Errrrgh! Okay, I guess it's Ensenada... Remember.. Be cheap...

Okay, I found this little hotel across from the Federal Police Station.. It SHOULD be safER It's $28/night or 350 pesos... Dang, I wish I had easier access to my American cash..

It's called the "American Hotel". I don't see why it's called this. It's not obvious to me... The room is HUGE! It even has a kitchen with breakfast nook.. But there is no way I would drink water out of that rusted faucet... And I'm not sure how clean that toilet seat is...


My hotel room... Interesting...

So after a long shower.. I take a short walk downtown and find the cafe that the hotel manager told me about. Another piece of kindness.. The hotel manager told me I should take a jacket cause it's going to be cold.. That's something a parent would say. How nice is that? Though, I'm from the San Francisco Bay Area guys... You folks here don't know what cold is...

I tell ya... The mixed crowd, mostly Mexican, was pretty cool. Change the language they were speaking and they were like any San Francisco coffee house I've been too. Attractive, stylish and really fun! And this is where it hit me... I'm getting a bit lonely... Something I'll have to think about.

Spent some time here for a while, watching, listening.. Checking eMail.. I then went back to my room to do this ride report... Watching tv and planning for tomorrow's ride.. Heck, showers are in-store according to weather.com :huh

Great pictures!

Mug shots galor

It's only day 3, and you aren't allowed to feel lonely yet motosaint. Get off your bike and settle in and meet some locals and all will be well. Have a great trip!

It's a heady start. More land shots, less mug shots.

On a lighter note, Northern Baja gets flash floods this time of year. Be very careful.

It's funny.. I got to El Rosario and within an hour, about 8 guys show up from a 4-day dirtbike ride.. So I got to hang with them for a while. Now I feel better

AND they are having a little fiesta here in town and this group from the midwest will be giving gifts to all the kids in town. Pinata and the whole works! I'm staying an extra day here..

You see, I try to mix it up.. Pure land-shots to me are boring. When I read someone's RR, I want to see that they were there and how they looked. I haven't taken an actual count, but I'd say it's REALLY close to 50/50 of mug/land shots.

And thanks for the advice.. Yeah, I can tell where there have been issues with water... But I'm in El Rosario and I think I'm out of the woods on the flash floods...