Made it 2 La Paz, Baha California Sur, Mexico

The drive was 9 hours on Saturday, January 12, 2008 and we finally stopped in La Paz, Baha California Sur, and the capital of BCS. This was probably the most insane drive and Steve drove most of the way because I had a close call with a semi truck as he veered into my lane and I could not stop shaking for a few hours after that. Prior to arriving in La Paz, we had a close call with not being able to find a gas station, luckily we found an off-the-road station at Puerto Escondido, a huge port just past Loreto, BCS. By this time the speedometer read 179170.

We stayed at Club El Moro Hotel (
http://www.bajainsider.com/baja-california-travel/baja-desti nations/la-paz/hotels-la-paz-01.htm
) on the main strip in La Paz. This was a pleasant hotel and the service was very nice. The balconies were lovely as well. The wireless Internet did not work very well in the rooms and we had to sit out on the patio for full access. The room was a bit more than what we wanted to spend since we are on a budgeted trip but it turned out to be a great experience as we ended up driving the main strip and got to see a lot of what La Paz has to offer.

Filled up in Puerto Escondido, Baha California Sur

Prior to arriving in La Paz, we had a close call with not being able to find a gas station, luckily we found an off-the-road station at Puerto Escondido, a huge port just past Loreto, Baha California Sur. By this time the speedometer read 179170.

We also want to mention that while driving the Baha California the roads at the start were not too bad but as we kept driving the Baha, by mid-way we realized that this drive would be quite a tough one. The mountain roads are quite narrow, very steep and every few miles we saw a cross with flowers, showing that someone had died in that area. It is a very emotional drive and vey `white knuckled´ in some areas. There are many accidents on the Baha because people are either careless, or rush the drive, or maybe even drive at night. There are cattle on the road such as: cows, bulls, goats, horses and donkeys, and they seem to simply pop up in front of you as they are not fenced off and roam freely. We were not sure if they were owned by locals or simply wild cattle. We had a couple of close calls on the drive down. This is a huge reason not to drive at night in Mexico.

Stopped in Guerrero Negro, Baha California Sur

On Saturday, January 12th we crossed over into the Baha California Sur and in Guerrero Negro there was a stop that required us to pay 10 Pesos or US $1.00, for a mandatory ‘pesticide spray’. We are not sure if that is what it was or just a quick spray of water, but we thought this to be quite weird.

Overnight in San Ignacio, Baha California, Mexico

We drove about 9 hours and decided to pull into an off-the-road hotel in San Ignacio, Baha California, Mexico. We were trying to make it to Guerrero Negro but realized the sun was setting soon and we could not drive onwards any longer. The hotel was quite a large setting with a restaurant and bar, named Rice and Beans Oasis - http://www.ontheroadin.com/baja/bajarvparks/riceandbeansoasis.htm . The bartender was also the hotel check in guy and everything else that night. He was very pleasant and we really enjoyed the atmosphere there. The food was OK and reasonably priced. We met a retired couple from Hope, British Columbia that evening. There were quite a few Americans there as this is a well known RV Park location. This Hotel sponsors or is a pit stop for the Baha 1000 (off-road race) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baja_1000 ) Steve really enjoyed this as he is a huge race fan proven by the other sites we own, so we took some pictures of the signed car hoods in the restaurant lobby.

Leaving San Quintin, Baha California, Mexico

We arrived in San Quintin and ended up staying at a 4 star Hotel that night named Maria Celeste Hotel. It was really inexpensive and even had wireless Internet. The hotel staff was very polite and the accommodations were clean. We went out to eat at a local restaurant recommended to us by the hotel personnel. The restaurant was named Mision Santa Isabel. It was really good food, but we thought quite pricey for where we were located – in the middle of nowhere!Friday, January 11th and we are off to another full day of driving. We filled up in San Quintin and the speedometer read 178290. Since we left Calgary, Alberta, we drove 3,235 km. Friday the drive was very spectacular, however the mountainous highways were quite scary at times. The road was very well paved most of the time, but it became narrower and the steep drive through the mountains was quite adventurous. We drove about 9 hours and decided to pull into an off-the-road hotel in San Ignacio, Baha California.

Entering Tijuana, Baha California, Mexico

So the next morning, Thursday, January 10th, we woke up especially early to make sure we get through the Tijuana Boarder Crossing. We drove about 10 minutes and we seem to have driven into Tijuana!! There was no one there to stop up or ask us any information as to why we are going into Mexico , etc..; things one would expect when one crosses the Border into another country. So, after driving about 3 blocks we realize we are in f&*#$^ Tijuana!!!!!! We started freaking out because we had no clue what to do. So we stopped the car and decided to go back though to the US Boarder since we needed to get our Mexican Tourist Cards http://www.bajabound.com/before/permits/visa.php and Temporary Vehicle Pass http://www.bajabound.com/before/permits/vehicle.asp which we needed to enter Mexico mainland. So we asked for directions and ended up waiting to get back into the US (at the US Border) for just over an hour. Get this – then we get pulled over, because they randomly select cars to check for drugs, guns, etc... So we wait, while they check over our vehicle. We finally make it back into San Diego, California, by about 11am and filled up our car one last time and by the time we left San Diego, for the 2nd time, the speedometer read 177973.We get ready to cross the Mexican Border once again and this time we stopped prior to entering Tijuana. We would not advise anyone to enter Mexico through the Tijuana Border Crossing, that is if you plan to further onto Mexico mainland. The reason is that it is quite confusing since all the offices one requires to get the Mexican Tourist Cards and Temporary Vehicle Pass (which you have to have if you enter Mexico mainland) are not all in the same place. We were able to obtain the Tourist Cards there and even then we had to fill out the Cards , then go to a Bank they require us to pay at (the cost was 237 Pesos, so about US $24 each) and then go back to the Tourist Card Office to get them stamped.As for the Temporary Vehicle Pass, we had to fill out the forms in that area and drove into Tijuana about 4 blocks to another area, I think it was called Banjercito, a bank of sorts, to finalize payment and details and then we obtained the Temporary Vehicle Pass (cost was 328.19 Pesos or about US $33.) This Pass is required if you drive into Mexico as they do not like Canadians and/or Americans bringing cars to Mexico to sell them. You have to return this Temporary Vehicle Pass upon your return into the US as proof that you still have the vehicle you entered Mexico in.So finally we drive off into the sunset, sort of speak. The roads were not bad at all and the weather was really beautiful. We were exited that we got all the paperwork completed and that we were finally on the road to Mexico. Our only concern now was to get to a destination prior to sun down as we were advised not to drive at night in Mexico. We drove for about 5 ½ hours that day and made it to San Quintin, Baha California.When we entered Mexico we drove Highway 1 and there were 3 Toll Roads http://www.mexperience.com/guide/essentials/toll_road_charges.htm ; http://www.bajabound.com/before/driving/tollroads.asp , called CUOTA, we drove through on the way. There are the Toll Roads, which are better paved, much faster and probably safer, but you have to pay. We paid (at JSOA – 26 Pesos, or US $2.60, at JRANGEL - 26 Pesos, or US $2.60 and at JVAZQUEZ - 29 Pesos, or US $2.90.) There are also free Highways, called LIBRE, meaning free; but they are not well paved and much slower. We advise you take the Toll Roads.

Hangin' out in San Diego, California, USA.

The next morning, Wednesday, January 9th, we moved our luggage over to the Vagabond Inn (http://www.vagabondinn.com/SanDiegoMissionValleyPage/tabid/2 09/Default.aspx?hotel=302 ) This hotel was undergoing some renovations and we had to change our room, as the original room we were given, smelled of paint. The staff was very polite and the rooms were clean. We finally got settled in and decided to head out for the day. We shopped for a bit, bought most of what we needed for the trip, ate lunch at a place called Pei Wei (http://www.peiwei.com/), it seems to be a chain in the US. The food was all Asian cuisine, really great food and the price was surprisingly low.We spent our day driving and walking around San Diego, hung out at Old Town and Mission Bay, the La Jolla district and Beach, to name a few, as we can’t recall all we did that day...we did a lot. We saw some sea lions and really enjoyed the break in San Diego after driving for 2 full days.

Stopped in Las Vegas, Navada, USA for a bit

We drove through Las Vegas and thought about stopping in and maybe staying for the night but we decided to drive onwards to San Diego. We took a few pictures, stopped in to eat at Primms Valley Resort and Casino Cafe (http://www.lasvegas.net/Primm-Valley-resort-and-casino-info. htm ) and had a prime rib dinner for only US$7.99 + tax. It was delish!!

Still driving - Leaving Lehi, Utah, USA

The following day, Tuesday, January 8th, we left Lehi, Utah at about 8am and drove all the way to San Diego, California. Our speedometer read 176717 when we filled up that day in Scipio, Utah. Driving on Tuesday was fun because we drove through Nevada and the roads were narrow, twisty, lots of turns, thus exiting. It was a lot slower to drive but much fun. We also drove through Las Vegas and thought about stopping in and maybe staying for the night but we decided to drive onwards to San Diego. We took a few pictures, stopped in to eat at Primms Valley Resort and Casino Cafe (http://www.lasvegas.net/las-vegas-hotels-Primm-Valley-resort-and-casino.htm ) and had a prime rib dinner for only US$7.99 + tax. It was delish!! We drove almost 12 hours on Tuesday and made it to San Diego, California - our planned destination before entering the Mexican Border into Tijuana, Baha California. We settled for Motel 6, at Hotel Circle. The location was awesome since it was a few minutes’ drive to the inner city, to most beaches and attractions, but it was a bit overpriced, did not offer anything extra, even wireless Internet was at an extra cost. But we had to stop for the night and planned on staying in San Diego the following day so we hoped to find a better hotel rate the next day. While we stepped out for a bit that night, we found Vagabond Inn, another motel located within the Hotel Circle area.

On our way out of Calgary, Alberta, Canada

We left Calgary, Alberta, Canada at about 6:50am on Monday, January 7th with our speedometer reading 175055 and drove like maniacs. We drove Highway 2 all the way to Montana. Once in Montana, USA the highway turned into Interstate 15. We stopped in a few places for gas such as: Milk River, Alberta; Boulder and Dillon Montana, and Malad City, Idaho. That first day we drove through part of Alberta, the states: Montana, Idaho and partway through Utah. The drive overall was quite boring as it was very flat and uneventful. At times, I actually felt like falling asleep at the wheel. The most exciting part was at the Monida Pass as it started snowing and the highway was down to one-lane traffic. There were a few cars in the ditch so we drove cautiously for a while.We stopped at about 12am because we were getting very tired from driving and we ended up staying in Lehi, Utah for the night, at The Days Inn-Lehi ( http://www.daysinn.com/DaysInn/control/Booking/check_avail?p ropertyId=10979 ) The room was nothing special but it included a continental breakfast and the service was not bad. However they were located near a construction site or it seemed to be in the Industrial part of the city and was quite noisy at times.