Civil Unrest in Nicaragua

You guys read/view the Daily Beast report? About how the tatoo guy wanted to do harm to the rider, until the elder intervened? Just think about all the deported folks, and think about them watching the latest news about the U.S. government separating women from their kids. We are not well liked right now. Think about today's political climate in regards to how Latin Americans percieve the Trump administration and it citzens. Have you ever heard the term?" Don't poke the bear! "

We do not need another Harry Dervert incident.

I’ve been encountering a growing negativity the last few tours through Mexico. It’s palpable. My CDMX friends say the people are scared because of what they’re being told by the news industry daily. When I asked them about the record deportations and children held in cages several years ago they say they were never told about such things.

BINGO!!

We are suffering an industry that profits from human misery, profits from turning us against one another. They play us for fools.

I won’t be their fool.

throughout latin america and the caribbean there are always people that are anti-yankee/anti-gringo. it's a fact of life. part caused by jealousy (mostly in the caribbean), part caused by asinine immigration policies, part caused by our history of invading small countries to benefit our corporations with interests there, and yes, part caused by the inescapable truth that many americans are assholes abroad.

as i said earlier, though one gringo was killed in nicaragua recently, there is no evidence that he killed because he was gringo. the violence in nicaragua is aimed at the population not at foreigners of any particular ilk. there are MANY americans living in the country and some (foolishly) are standing side--by-side with their nica neighbors in protest. so please let's not make this an anti-american problem.

When we travel, we must be an Ambassador for our country; for example, when I get asked where I am from when traveling in Mexico, my reply is Mexico Dos (two). Sone people will ask a second time "?Donde?" When my reply is "California," this usually produced a smile. Don' t be the Ugly American, or Canadian for that matter.

I tell people “Soy Tejano” which is always received well. But this is about something far greater than some traveler playing Ugly American. The relationship between our two countries is being undermined for an agenda that goes well beyond current policies. People are being stirred up daily by a news industry and others seeking to exploit us all. Peoples need to stand united against these forces and not be played against one another. Sorry if this sounds a bit Kumbaya or conspiratorial but this is how I see what is happening to us.

Divide and conquer.

exactly how did this thread become about the US media? kindly delete your posts to keep this thread on-topic. for a change let's keep this thread on-topic and limited to information relevant to those even thinking about crossing nicaragua.

Wow, seems like most of the more recent vitriol is better suited for CSM....

a word of caution: many of the roadblocks have been taken down by force of the police and paramilitary groups. although this means that you can physically get from one place to another, it DOES NOT mean it is any safer. 14 people murdered since friday. all acts of random violence by police and paramilitary.


please continue to avoid nicaragua.


yeah it certainly does suck for us travelers, but our lives should mean more to us than our adventures. and i really do not wanna read about someone's final adventure ending in nicaragua.

Thanks for the input TeeVee, has anyone been able to find alternative ways from Honduras/Guatemala/Mexico to Panama or Colombia? Are there any shipping routes where a few travellers could share a container?

Currently the alternative I'm considering is to fly my bike from the US directly to Colombia, which would be a shame to miss out on all of central America.

I'm still hoping things improve in Nicaragua in the next couple of months, but I'm a little less than optimistic.

I think it would be helpful to post shipping companies which move containers from Honduras ( to Colombia, to work around Nicaragua. There simply must be goods moving between the ports of these countries.

I'm keeping an eye on this myself. My plan has me hitting the Nicaraguan border on Oct 17, but not looking too great at the moment for the crossing. I've been researching, and am waiting for more info from Avianca Cargo, as they fly from Mexico City to Bogota. I am also in the process of talking to a shipping broker about sending off from Veracruz. On ioverlander & a couple of FB groups, there's mention of shipping by sea from Puerto Barrios, Guatemala or Puerto Cortes, Honduras. Once I some responses with prices, I can pass along what I hear.

I'm curious about alternate routes to SA as well. Scheduled to depart Los Angeles September 1st and was shooting for a Stahlratte passage early November. I've held off on booking passage due to the situation. As inconvenient as it is for us, I really feel for the people of Nicaragua.

You might keep in contact with Stahlratte in case they offer passage from Mexico during your travel window.

i have a friend that runs an ocean freight forwarding company out of miami with primary destination of nicaragua. i've asked him about this and he has not come up with any answers. not saying there isn't, but i can tell you this: most if not all intra-central american freight moves by truck.

same friend arrange to ship another inmates crashed bike back to miami from nica by ship and it was quite pricey.

if i were planning a southbound ride to SA i would skip CA and air freight to colombia and leave all of CA for another time.

If anyone can drive a truck across the Darrien Gap, it's a one-armed muchacho who wants to watch a futbol game!

Buy a bike in SA.

Appreciate the return of conversation to the topic at hand. My wife and I will be facing this in about 9 months, headed south. Hope situation improves by then, but I'm following this tread closely, particularly interested in real experiences with flight/shipping options for getting bikes around Nicaragua. Still hoping Lisa and Simon will chime in with their solution, assuming they found one.


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This is an important thread for a lot of riders!!
I am following because my moto is still in Peru and I plan on returning to Bogota in Sept, I have decisions to make. I want to ride Peru,Ecuador and Colombia again on my return from the Ushuaia, fly out of Bogota. I would again like to ride through Panama and CR, and eventually return to states.
I can fly my moto to Panama City and ride to CR and store it, return in Jan 19 and hope Nica is safe
I could just ship it to the states but that wouldn't be fun, missing CA
I could ship it from Panama City to Mexico City (Toluca) by FED EX, but last time I did that Mexico charged me import tax (be careful) and it was very expensive just to bi pass CA.
I could wait in Colombia until Nov when the Rat sails, especially if their return route includes Cuba
I am sure there are other options, my goal is to safely RIDE as much as possible on my return. I can not count the number of road blocks that I have been through, this is much more different and dangerous.

I've been in touch with Lugwig about the possibility of them sailing from Cancun. As of the last email on June 11, sailings remain unchanged from their website published dates