Baja

[Robert J. Yates]

I have always been interested in taking an expedition style trip down into Baja and seeing that new trailer Mario built for that Benz last week at Boulderbars really got me going on wanting to plan a trip.

I'm thinking a small group of Jeeps maybe next fall around whale season might make for a nice trip both timing wise and weather wise. I'm thinking a trailer would be almost a necessity for a SWB Jeep in order to have adequate supplies of gas, water, parts and so forth.

Is anybody here interested? Has anyone on here done this? I'd be curious to hear about your experiences both on the trip and in your planning for it.

[Jason L Williams]

Have you been reading the Off Road Adventures stories about Baja? That has peaked my interest as well.

[Robert J. Yates]

No - 4WP canned my subscription because I haven't bought anything from them in years

What got me started was seeing a off road trailer that was built by Adventure Trailers for a guy who does alot of Baja exploration.



Heres' the link....

http://www.adventuretrailers.com/

[TObject]

I am interested in 4x4 expeditions. Except, I am afraid to go to Mexico, I hear it is not a safe country.



Matt and I went on an expedition in Australia, you can read about it here: http://www.expeditionsaustralia.com/...bleTour01.html

[Robert J. Yates]

I don't think Mexico is any less safe than anywhere else but that doesn't mean the thought of my personal safety hasn't crossed my mind Sergey. Being in a foreign country means foreign rights is all you have. Again, I think there is a safety in numbers thing along with a well documented travel plan and a way to check in.

I do remember you taking a trip last year. Thanx for the link and I'll re-read it at my convienence.

[speaceman]

My family and I drove from L.A to Cabo and back when I was 16.

It was all on road, of course, but it was such an incredible trip. I still remember it today as one of my more favorite ones.

We had no issues back then, although that was a while ago. I have no idea of Baja is more or less lawless at this point, although I generally remember there being less issues in Baja than in other parts of mexico, once you get past ensenada.

(Aside for La Paz, baja is relatively unpopulated.)

In any case, a trip like this would be quite cool. I"m not sure how you'd put together a route.

Are you talking to anyone that has done this before? A route and a list of things to do/avoid would probably be a good place to start.

[speaceman]

The main thing I always hear about traveling in Mexico in your own vehicle is the potential for it to be stolen.

For SUVs, this is supposedly a high chance.

I know for the mexican Jeep Jamborees (when they did them), people would spend the nights in hotels with enclosed courtyards where all the vehicles would be parked and watched while everyone slept.

Like I said, when we traveled baja, we heard all the same cautions about getting your vehicle stolen. We had no issues at all. Not even a hint of one.

That 17 years ago though. So I really couldn't say if it was still the same or not, with out talking to someone who has travelled baja recently.

[Larry Nickell]

If you're serious, please let me know when I should start begging for an invitation to tag along. I've always wanted to do that too.

[Tumbleweed]

Robert, one of my local Jeepers has that trailer, it is excpensive but very well built. Could Harry L. give you any help with a Baja trip? I have been to three Baja 500's; two Baja 250's, and one Baja 1000 races. Always as a chase crew. I was usually too busy trying to get to point b as fast as I could to really enjoy myself. If you get a short ways past Ensenada, I think it is Santo Thomas? a restraunt is built into the side of the cliff-wonderful eats.
A must have is Mexican auto insurance-yours is worthless down there no matter what they say. You can buy it by the day, week, whatever at the border towns. I believe it was under $10/day.
And that is only liability, they won't cover you full coverage-you gotta read the fine print too.

[honaker]

Originally posted by Tumbleweed
Robert, one of my local Jeepers has that trailer, it is excpensive but very well built. Could Harry L. give you any help with a Baja trip? I have been to three Baja 500's; two Baja 250's, and one Baja 1000 races. Always as a chase crew. I was usually too busy trying to get to point b as fast as I could to really enjoy myself. If you get a short ways past Ensenada, I think it is Santo Thomas? a restraunt is built into the side of the cliff-wonderful eats.
A must have is Mexican auto insurance-yours is worthless down there no matter what they say. You can buy it by the day, week, whatever at the border towns. I believe it was under $10/day.
And that is only liability, they won't cover you full coverage-you gotta read the fine print too.

As a veteran of six Baja races, Tumbleweed could give you a big heads up. I was on a chase crew for Baja 2000 and would be happy to discuss the experience of the roads, services, food, fuel, checkpoints (Federales), night time driving and other issues. PM your number if you like....I never get to use all my minutes. Do go and go prepared!

Check out CaveBiker from Jeepforum;

http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/searc...earchid=375430

and his web site;

http://www.justadventuretravel.net/

Glad you posted as I always wondered what happened to CaveBiker and had never let my fingers do the walking.

[Joel77]

Robert:

I was in Cabo last week, right now I'm in Mazatlan on business and heading south from here. If you have any questions give me a holler.


Joel

[Macgyver]

Originally posted by Robert J. Yates
I have always been interested in taking an expedition style trip down into Baja and seeing that new trailer Mario built for that Benz last week at Boulderbars really got me going on wanting to plan a trip.

I'm thinking a small group of Jeeps maybe next fall around whale season might make for a nice trip both timing wise and weather wise. I'm thinking a trailer would be almost a necessity for a SWB Jeep in order to have adequate supplies of gas, water, parts and so forth.

Is anybody here interested? Has anyone on here done this? I'd be curious to hear about your experiences both on the trip and in your planning for it.

Robert,

Mario is setting up a new less expensive trailer similar to the old M416's, but with a lid. These will be avail for rental. We are currently getting the first prototypes done, with 3 more to follow in the next few weeks. Part of his 2006 plan is to have a small fleet of these trailers availible for a rental fleet. These would be great for a trip such as you mention without the investment of owning the trailer. We also had talk of Mario leading a Baja trip towards the end of 2006.

PS: these new trailers are on air suspension and they tow awesome. That black trailer is in Baja now and the reports back from the owner are very positive!

[igofshn]

Since I built this, BAJA would be a great place to test it out.

[igofshn]

Since I built this, BAJA would be a great place to test it out.

[Daless2]

Hi Robert, Make this trip happen my friend, you will have a blast and a memory for a lifetime!!!

There's no big red "do-over button", do it while you can.



Hey Sergey, I so enjoyed the write-up you and Matt put together of your great adventure. Over the years I have spent a lot of time in Australia and your write-up of your trip braught back so many fond memories.

Thank you for posting the link. I will be sending it to my daughter as I am sure it will do the same for her as id has done for me.

There is a great book "In a sunburned Country", by Bill Bryson. If you haven't read it pick it up. Having been in this wonderful country you can read his book and fully appriciate the humor, especaill about the "Big Things!"

Thank you again, that was quite enjoyable.

Have a great evening folks,

Frank

[Cutch]

The reason I first got my Jeep was I was living in BC doing a lot of mountain biking and hiking. Driving the gravel roads in a car just wasn't cool. Then I got the Jeep. Built the Jeep up somewhat but the main reason was do go on off road adventures and be able to go wherever I wanted..within reason ...of course.

A dream of mine is to do Baja California.

As for travelling in foreign country...I do it all the time...heck just last weekend I was in St Paul, MN

[TObject]

Originally posted by Daless2
Hey Sergey, I so enjoyed the write-up you and Matt put together of your great adventure. Over the years I have spent a lot of time in Australia and your write-up of your trip braught back so many fond memories.

Thank you for posting the link. I will be sending it to my daughter as I am sure it will do the same for her as id has done for me.

There is a great book "In a sunburned Country", by Bill Bryson. If you haven't read it pick it up. Having been in this wonderful country you can read his book and fully appriciate the humor, especaill about the "Big Things!"

Frank,

Thank you for reading our story and for the kind words. I have a copy of Bill's volume, I fully agree it is a great book; and I especially enjoyed the humor aspect while reading it.

Ever since I returned from the Incredible Tour of Australia, I am dying to go on another expedition, and I was excited to see Robert?s post. I have some reservations about safety in Mexico, but I am sure I could be easily convinced.

[Jerry Bransford]

I've done quite a bit of driving in Mexico over the past 30+ years and will offer a few thoughts. First, traveling at night on non-major highways is a big problem and should be avoided. Bandits like to put up roadblocks or jump out at you and stop you at spots where you have to slow down. They are usually armed and won't worry about being heard while they shoot you if you resist. So nighttime travel is a big no-no in much of rural Mexico. Second, while SUVs are commonly stolen, our CJ/Wrangler sized Jeeps aren't common targets because they are small enough to make them less attractive. Chevy Tahoe/Suburban and Ford Explorer/Expedition size vehicles yes, but Wranglers are not stolen all that much in comparison.

Last, my recent encounters with a few well-armed (AK-47s!) truck-fulls of Federales were uneventful and actually left me with a shocked/surprised good feeling about the stop. Both times I was on a largely deserted/remote road late at night when I got stopped. Both times they were just checking me out to see if I had been drinking. After determining I was sober and ok, they warned me about the road being dangerous and wished me a good evening. Wow, I was shocked by that kind of unexpected encounter but at least in a good way.

[Robert J. Yates]

Thanx for all the replies....each was informative in its own way.

Joel, thanx for the offer. I'll take it to PM and we can go from there.

Quinn, thanx for the info. I may stop by one of these days and chat you and Mario up.

Frank, thanx for the kind words. Yes, there is no "do-over" button which is why I want to do this. I also have Tricia interested in going so I can't think of a better time or a better way to show her the big reason why I bought my Jeep.

Al, thats a great looking little trailer. It reminds me of those little wooden ones from the 40's. I forget what they are called but I have seen a show about them on the Discovery Channel.

Sergey, Larry, Cutch ect......you folks would be most welcome on any trip I can get organized. Maybe the next question should be if a fall date works for everyone? Maybe the question after is everyone want to participate in a "guided" expedition or would you rather we plan one out ourselves? I can see pluses and minuses to both. Given that Harry and Mario have both been mentioned here for guide services, maybe it might be wise to at least look into those options.

[igofshn]

Originally posted by Robert J. Yates

Al, thats a great looking little trailer. It reminds me of those little wooden ones from the 40's. I forget what they are called but I have seen a show about them on the Discovery Channel.

It is modeled after the 1940's Teardrop.

[TObject]

Another cool trailers link:

http://www.ultimatecampers.com.au/index.html

[TObject]

Take a look here for a press release on a new "Chaser" off-road trailer.