February 26 to 28, 2014; Guadalupe to El Golfo, Sonora, Mexico

FEB  26, Wednesday; To Guadalupe
10*C @ 6am; 19*C in pm and windy

The mornings are getting much cooler as we head north!  This campground only had 6 sites, all pull-through.  It is also a campo for kids and Christian families.  We were on the road by 9:30 am; we drove through San Quintin where we got slowed right down due to a demonstration; they were walking and blocking the whole highway.  This went on for two blocks when they finally turned off so that we could continue north.  We ran into another Military check-point which was easy then onwards.  We had one more check point to go through then we finally arrived in Ensenada.  We had lunch on the outskirts then went on.  Traffic was heavy though town and something was happening on the waterfront as it was all blocked up.  We finally made it through town and headed north towards Tijuana and Hwy 3.  I missed the turn and had to go turn around then finally we got on Hwy 3.  We arrived in Guadalupe and just past the town, our RV Park for the night, Rancho Sordo Mudo which is a deaf & blind school for unfortunate children.  We got here around 3 pm and gave a donation of 100 pesos ($10.).  We now have Satellite with DISH but our programs are all screwed up.  We will have to fix that tomorrow; right now we don’t have internet so can’t use SKYPE.

We travelled 240 Km (150 miles) in 3 hrs @ 65 Km/hr average.

N  32* 06.699’
W 116* 32.829’
Alt: 1155 feet

 

FEB  27, Thursday; To El Golfo de Santa Clara in Sonora, Mainland Mexico
12*C @ 7 am; 20*C in pm with some rain and winds

Just as I got the coffee started, the power went out so I got the generator going; wonder what happened!?  It is cloudy again today and the guy that collected our fee yesterday said that the forecast was 80% chance of rain today or tomorrow!?  Well, it did rain, near Tecate and for almost a whole hour then it cleared up as we headed east.

We were on Hwy 3 by 8:30 am and slowly made our way to Tecate.  There’s been a lot of work done on this highway and for the better; it is now much wider and safer.  At Tecate we got on Hwy 2 D (Toll) and paid a total of 350 pesos from Tecate to Hwy 5 south of Mexicali.  Not bad considering the quality of this hwy and what they did to get over the mountain pass east of here (see pictures).  We drove a very desolate desert then arrived in Mexicali where we had lunch and turned south on Hwy 5.  At the end of the 4 lanes, we turned east on Hwy 4, went through a few local villages and lots of topes, stopped for fuel, 778 Litres  then finally made it to Hwy 3 south towards El Golfo.  For some reason unknown, my GPS locked up on me as if it was out of power yet the battery showed full and eventually started again!???? 
We went through an inspection but didn’t have to stop then finally arrived at our destination, Colorado River RV Park at 3 pm.  The park is quite nice and we are in view of the Sea and the people are very friendly, so far.  We paid $120 for 12 days under RPI membership.  We are now on “Mtns time”; we moved our clocks one hour ahead. 

We travelled 219 miles in 5 hrs at an average 72Km/hr

N  31* 40.544’
W 114* 29.283’
Alt: 55 feet

 

FEB  28, Friday; El Golfo de Santa Clara, Sonora, Mexico
17*C @ 8am; 22*C in pm and very windy

I slept in this morning and it sure feels great!  It is cloudy with sunny break and windy!  First thing I did is unloaded the kayaks and bikes, took the bike rack off and washed everything and I do mean everything: rack, ropes, tie-downs, kayaks and bikes.  Then I washed the Jeep, it was well overdue!  Val went to do the laundry while I was doing that.  I also dumped the fresh water from the tank and reloaded it with fresh stuff.  When all this was done, we had lunch then went into town/village.  This place sure doesn’t have much and it is very dirty; there is garbage everywhere and poverty shows everywhere.  We won’t be back, that’s for sure.  The Park itself is friendly and they seem to make their own entertainment.  From what we gathered, Colorado River Club is not all that keen in putting money in this place and it shows in some places.  Most people meet in the Palapa for HH so we attended today and met a few more people.  The guys meet in the morning for the “BS over coffee” in the club house.  It was windy all day from the south and by early evening, the wind got quite strong; there is a storm brewing in Southern California.  I got to BBQ chicken before it got too bad.  We finally got our programming on DISH so were able to watch the news in a long time.