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Location: San Diego CA>Tijuana, BC>San Antonio, TX
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We are booked at one of the Sonoran resorts in Puerto Peñasco for 4 of July weekend and are excited to get away for a little bit. We will be driving there from the San Diego/Tijuana area and were wondering what is the best route to get there?
Should I drive through Baja into Sonora or should I drive through California and then down? I would imagine that in Mexico the highway will be a toll road but I have never driven East of Mexicali... I have, however, driven the 8 freeway many times through the Southwest US.
Any tips on getting there from SoCal would be helpfull.
Should I drive through Baja into Sonora or should I drive through California and then down? I would imagine that in Mexico the highway will be a toll road but I have never driven East of Mexicali... I have, however, driven the 8 freeway many times through the Southwest US.
I've driven that road on the Mexico side. (1) It is not faster, (2) Do the drive at night just to tell your friends about it. You will be utterly amazed what it is like. Helicopters flying overhead, cars driving around with giant spotlights, everyone in the Oxxo has an Uzzi (they are all 18 year old soldiers). You literally will not believe that you are only miles from the US border.
If you have no taste for adventure and hearing screaming and gunfire at night, then go Interstate 8. Seriously! You won't see anything like that driving from Nogales to PP.
BTW: I have been in countries with heavily armed soldiers and policeman on many occasions. I don't want to give you the impression that I have never seen an Uzzi. But the Sonoran desert really stood out.
nobody in their right mind would travel at night in one of these highways.
I think you might be correct. I had my license plate stolen in Guadalajara, and I was travelling on a temporary Mexican plate with a truck filled to the brim the Mexican artifacts. I was afraid if I crossed in Nogales and my truck was impounded, I couldn't get home (San Diego) by trolley and negotiate for the release of the goods.
I was also afraid of crossing 600 miles of I8 on a temporary Mexican license plate with an American car.
It turns out my fears were totally unfounded as I crossed in Mexicali, and the border agent just laughed a little. She didn't even want to search the truck. The police in CA didn't stop me either.
Has been a while since I lived in Mexico City. They then had a penchant for out of State (Mexico) License plates. Any US plated car was 100% Game for a plate to be stolen and then mounted on the rear of a Mexican licensed vehicle (generally on the rear bumper). This was in addition to their own Legal plates while a window sticker also showed the plates number.
You would see many cars with 2-3-4-5 stickers from past yrs all showing the license plate sticker/number. Was told that this was a proof that the car was Mexican Legal and NOT a stolen vehicle which was common in many ways.
Sorry for the side tract...I get carried away at times.
I've driven to Puerto Peñasco several times from Southern Cal. I drive I-8 east from San Diego to Yuma, AZ. At Yuma turn south on US 95 to the border crossing at San Luis, AZ. You will see the left turn for Mexico highway 2 immediately after crossing the border. San Luis is a much smaller city than Mexicali and is easy to navigate through. That is why it is my preferred crossing place for heading to PP. Highway 2 heads in a straight line east through San Luis with no turns at all. From San Luis follow Mexico highway 2 to Sonoyta and then turn south on Mexico highway 8 to PP. I have not driven this at night, because everybody knows that you should not drive on highways in the border areas of Mexico at night (right?).
I don't worry about license plate theft. My plates use security screws that need a special tool to remove. It is enough to deter someone unless they are walking around with a battery powered grinder.
I don't worry about license plate theft. My plates use security screws that need a special tool to remove. It is enough to deter someone unless they are walking around with a battery powered grinder.
That was good advice. I can't tell you how much I was punished for losing those plates. The first police that pulled me over where particularly vicious and greedy. They were pawing my female friend and they shook me down for a lot more than the usual bribe. I felt particularly vulnerable because while all Mexican police threaten to arrest you, normally I consider it a part of the bribery game. But without any plates, I thought they would go through with it. By the time the third policeman in 3 hours tried to shake me down, my friend just started screaming at them in Spanish so that I think he was genuinely frightened.
So after the shakedown I went through a nightmare of bureaucracy to report the crime and then get temporary plates. I had to go to three different offices in all parts of the city, stand in lines for hours, and after about 6 hours someone found a typographic error and told me I had to go back to the first office and start over. I must have looked like I would begin crying, because he told me that he would take care of it on his next trip.
Combined with the 24 hours I spent in a swamp when the roads were washed out, I pretty much decided that it isn't worth driving to central Mexico. I talked to some Mexicans who live near the US border, and they have pretty much decided the same thing.
So the gunfighting on the Arizona border wasn't even close to my worse day.
Location: San Diego CA>Tijuana, BC>San Antonio, TX
6,514 posts, read 7,562,786 times
Reputation: 6894
Thanks alll, we wound up going with friends that knew the road down. We wound up taking the 8 all the way to Yuma and then crossing South at San Luis Rio Colorado. From there we went South on state highway 3 which goes South and runs along the coast (as opposed to the highway 2 that runs along the border) all the way to Puerto Penasco. It smooth and safe during the day and quite scenic especially along the coast. You just need to watch for patches of sand that blow onto the road from the desert and beaches as they can create a hazard.
On the way back we went from PP up to Sonoyta/Lukeville and then all the way up to Gila Bend, then 8 west back to San Diego. That way was long and boring and I do not recommend it for San Diego residents driving to Rocky Point. It is the quickest way to the US from Rocky Point as we hit the border 50 minutes after leaving Puerto Penasco but for us definitely not worth the extra hour and a half of driving and long border wait at the small border crossing in Sonoyta/Lukeville along with two border long patrol stops along highway 85 in AZ and the local sheriffs in Ajo Arizona harassing drivers.
I'm glad that you had a good trip on the route I suggested to PP via Yuma and San Luis. I have been on all the other routes that have been mentioned, and agree that the Gila Bend is way out of the way if heading to California from PP.
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