The Ferry: 14hrs (January 30/31)
Acquired a new brotha on the ferry ride to Mazatlán and I gotta tell ya, I’m a better human having meet the 6’7” ex-footballer from Holland that works with disabled people of all ages, has the gift of making people smile and calls San Francisco home. Since Ben offered me a few sunset beers on the deck of the poor man’s cruise ship in route to Mazatlán, we’ve been traveling in tandem. It has been an awesome experience covering miles and sites in a tortes and hare formation. Ben is rolling down to the World Cup in Brazil in a 1955 Chevy pickup truck named Nellie. I could describe Nellie to you but only a photos will do her justice and so I’ve dedicated a photo gallery dedicated to the old girl. That said, I will add that the entire ride was hand painted by the folks with whom Ben works and is peppered with signatures from people meet along the way.
I was also fortunate to meet a few fellow motorcyclists on the ferry that had some quality advice for mainland of Mexico. Cheers Eric & Atilla!
San Blas: 2 nights
This is a sweet little town that is just down the coast from Mazatlán. A cool fort overlooks the pueblo and is accessed by walking an old cobblestone road. Welcoming locals, a relaxed setting and lodging with hot water for $15 makes San Blas was a good place to chill for a few days.
Punta Mita: 3 nights
I’ll just say that the digs in Punta Mita at Ben’s amigo’s pad wasn’t Mexico but for a couple blue collar travelers, pampered days in the land of the rich and famous was pretty damn sweet!
Puerto Vallarta: 1 night
Purdy resort town with real locals on cobblestone streets that probably deserved more exploration but hell, Mexico is a pretty big country and if you ain’t feeling like staying longer somewhere, you move on.
Bahia Navidad: 1 night
There is no shortage of older ex-pats from Canada in this sleepy little coastal town where Ben & I camped for $7. I also meet another motorcyclists that shared some travel stories with me and got me thinking of another trip in the future that is more off-road oriented and includes rolling through Copper Canyon.
Between Bahia Navidad & Lazaro Cardenas:
I lost Ben & Nellie somewhere…found out later that he had taken an accidental scenic route into the mountains that are currently filled with drug cartels and violence. I kinda figured that the machine gun toting narcos took one look at Ben’s ride, laughed and said let that f##ker pass.
Lazaro Cardenas: 1 night
Very few tourist and due to the warnings from the soldiers at military checkpoints while traveling south along the coast, I pushed past my planned destination of Playa Azul and arrived an hour after sunset to this industrial port town. I found cheap digs and pretty good food that suited my needs.
