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#1 buckland

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Posted 23 April 2022 - 05:43 PM

Most of the searching I have done and have gleaned the most from on the site is about Baja.  That is on the top 10 list but I have another plan for yearly winter trips ( I live in the NE icebox.) My wife retired after 37 years teaching and so we are now free to roam whenever we please. We have thought how great it would be to escape the winters. We absolutely love where we live but we are remote and the winter dig outs have lost their appeal...if they ever had any. One of our thoughts as we have both lived and worked overseas in a number of countries and have traveled a lot.  We'd like to use the FWC to get down to Mexico and have it to explore but to have a couple places we would rent a small house for a month or two at a time. Using those places as home bases from which to do shorter explorations. I used to live in Paraguay a long time ago but as a teacher many of my students helped me keep up my Spanish enough that I can get by and carry a conversation if the verbs don't get too crazy. 

 

We are looking for areas both highland and coastal. We have heard the Belize border area quite nice as is the expat areas like San Miguel etc. So we are looking for help from those willing to share their experiences, places, local rental agencies, though we have also looked at VBRO and AB&B.  Any and all advice greatly appreciated. It is an ideal way to see an area leisurely and have the comfort of shorter trips from a home base. 

 

Muchisima Gracias

 


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#2 kmcintyre

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Posted 24 April 2022 - 01:03 PM

We did a 2 month trip a few years back and it was great.  We went down the West Coast, down past Mexico City to see the monarch butterfly migration, then back up through the central part and then diverted back to the coast about halfway up.  So many great areas, people, etc.  We used our FWC the whole time without a hitch (ok, a few wrong turns).  We also diverted to a very, very remote village (that took us 2 days to get to) where my grandmother was born.  About 100 people living there, only a few people spoke any english and we met some amazing people there too.... I wouldn't hesitate going again.  We've also done Baja for a few months and that's equally as nice (but different).  You could hit both and take the ferry (we haven't done it).  We have (and had) a diesel pickup too.  From what I can find out, it's still a so-so proposition if you'll get ULSD once you are down in the Southern part of Baja.  Mainland Mexico is probably ok.  We carried 2 full jerry cans of diesel so at least we could mix it if we had too but never had any issues.  That was on a RAM EcoDiesel and we now have a Chevy Duramax (haven't tried it down there yet).  


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#3 buckland

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Posted 24 April 2022 - 01:56 PM

Sounds like a great trip. That's the kind of trip I like and really cool to be able to go to where your roots stem! I have been reading for years about places to visit but it is always the little out of the way places not the tourist trail that is the most enjoyable. I love the wide variety of Mexican cuisine... a few years back I'd watch on PBS the Rick Bayless cooking show and he did trips down to different areas and highlighted their street stall foods... wow looked wonderful.  As you said you were in the camper most of the time were you boon docking or camp grounds? What was your go-to map/book?  I too carry 3 / 2gallon rotopax diesel tanks. My truck has a mini diesel and I get 20/gallon with the camper on so 120 miles of reserve makes me feel secure. We would be going in the winter months and taking our dog. Dogs can be a 'pita' get her used to but I really like her to be with us and though it has drawbacks I'd like to life on the road. We took her across Newfoundland and Labrador and did fine... but going to where there are many loose dogs may be a challenge. Will find out!  Thanks for your thoughts.

Rob


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The only people who ever get anyplace interesting are the people who get lost.
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#4 kmcintyre

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Posted 25 April 2022 - 01:08 PM

Sounds like a great trip. That's the kind of trip I like and really cool to be able to go to where your roots stem! I have been reading for years about places to visit but it is always the little out of the way places not the tourist trail that is the most enjoyable. I love the wide variety of Mexican cuisine... a few years back I'd watch on PBS the Rick Bayless cooking show and he did trips down to different areas and highlighted their street stall foods... wow looked wonderful.  As you said you were in the camper most of the time were you boon docking or camp grounds? What was your go-to map/book?  I too carry 3 / 2gallon rotopax diesel tanks. My truck has a mini diesel and I get 20/gallon with the camper on so 120 miles of reserve makes me feel secure. We would be going in the winter months and taking our dog. Dogs can be a 'pita' get her used to but I really like her to be with us and though it has drawbacks I'd like to life on the road. We took her across Newfoundland and Labrador and did fine... but going to where there are many loose dogs may be a challenge. Will find out!  Thanks for your thoughts.

Rob

 

Rob,

 

We had quite a few books and I'll have to find them as they are here somewhere since we're planning a baja trip early next year.  We stayed at a few "campgrounds" when our 4-5 hr max driving was approaching.  We did use iOverlander too.  We had a dog, no issues.  Had all the documents and no one ever asked for them (either border crossing, etc.).  I guess "campgrounds" may be a bit misleading.  Most of the best places we stayed had palapa's and generally had other sites for other campers so we really didn't do any boondocking in the true sense of the word.  Sometimes we were the only people there but there were places for others.  Generally they were really inexpensive ($5/day).  

 

For research, we used the site BajaNomads a lot.  We also used this site (guy) for diesel news but I don't know how up to date it is: Diesel Fuel in Mexico (bajamary.com)

 

For insurance and other info we used : Vagabundos del Mar RV, Boat & Travel Club - Mexican Insurance, Baja & Mexico Group Activities and Tours

 

You'll need a FMM too so read up on that and the documentation requirements.  We made copies (multiple) of everything so that we arrived we didn't have to worry about where, or if, they could make copies; passport. license, insurance, etc., etc. You used to be able to pay with a credit card or cash and they'd refund it on your way out of the country.

Vehicle Import Permits for Mexico 2022 (bajabound.com)

 

 

Kevin


Edited by kmcintyre, 25 April 2022 - 01:09 PM.

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#5 buckland

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Posted 25 April 2022 - 11:22 PM

That is a great help Kevin. I Love seeing stuff I can do right there in front! Thanks for the links.  We are very up for this and are thinking the best idea might be for us to travel south to the border (as we are from the Northeast) and do Big Bend and San Pedro island then find a place to hunker down and do what is needed to make the trip in as smooth as possible. this first trip in maybe only a 2-3 week tour around to see places we might want to stay longer the next trip. To me, anything on the road in winter in warmth is a really good thing. Beats plowing slush and then chipping ice !  


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2016 Duramax 2.8 Diesel long bed Colorado 4WD with 2011 Eagle

Lordwoodcraft  instagram        Rob
The only people who ever get anyplace interesting are the people who get lost.
Henry David Thoreau
"Work to achieve not to acquire"

 


#6 kmcintyre

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Posted 26 April 2022 - 01:22 PM

That is a great help Kevin. I Love seeing stuff I can do right there in front! Thanks for the links.  We are very up for this and are thinking the best idea might be for us to travel south to the border (as we are from the Northeast) and do Big Bend and San Pedro island then find a place to hunker down and do what is needed to make the trip in as smooth as possible. this first trip in maybe only a 2-3 week tour around to see places we might want to stay longer the next trip. To me, anything on the road in winter in warmth is a really good thing. Beats plowing slush and then chipping ice !  

 

I found a rough map of our route but to be honest, every person has a different idea of what a good trip is so this may be useless for you.  I'm not even sure of its accuracy but it's close.  I think we had a garmin mini running so friends could follow us (many were worried) and I think I pulled this off from that unit.

 

My advice, take it slow, find a place you like, stay a while.  On the mainland, it seems like you don't have to go as far to get away from the crowds but there is this term "gringo trail" which is pretty true; you'll meet and see a lot of people from the US and Canada doing a similar route.

 

Kevin

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#7 buckland

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Posted 26 April 2022 - 03:45 PM

Kevin thanks for the visual. It is always good to see where folks have gone before. There are places along that route I have heard are beautiful I went to the State dept. Travel advice (Have been all over the world and and we will be doing that western side it is good to see latest concerns but we also travel very carefully and have found most times just being vigilant we feel safe.) Our route will no doubt start in SE Texas and come down the East side to a point where we head up into the highlands to avoid certain hassles on that coastal route. Being Irish I am not one who can hang on a beach for long anyway...heck I burn next to a 100W bulb! I can imagine it will take quite a lot of trips to see all the places I have had recommended. 


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2016 Duramax 2.8 Diesel long bed Colorado 4WD with 2011 Eagle

Lordwoodcraft  instagram        Rob
The only people who ever get anyplace interesting are the people who get lost.
Henry David Thoreau
"Work to achieve not to acquire"

 





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