Preparing for a trip to Baja, MX

[Greg]

Over Thanksgiving week we're going to drive our Land Cruiser down to San Felipe and beyond for some offroad exploring. We've taken our Land Cruiser on a big trip in the States before, but Baja is a whole new level! I'm trying to do by best to plan and be prepared, thought I'd get some input on how we're getting ready. It's right about 1,000 miles from Grand Junction to San Felipe and I'd like to visit Bahía de los Ángeles and a handful of other sights on the way down, overall I'd expect 2,500-3,000 miles out of this trip... Good thing gas prices are low.

My biggest concerns are gasoline (having enough for exploring the dirt roads between gas stops, with aired down tires equaling poor MPG's) and possible tire problems. I'll be bringing my CO2 tank, tire plug kit and a handful of tools so we're prepared.

I have a couple Scepter 5 gallon gas cans, so I'll be taking 2 of them. The Land Cruiser has 295 BFG A/T's, but a stock spare tire. I'm going to add another 295 matching spare so we'll actually have 2 spares, which makes me feel better about any tire problems. The larger tire won't fit in the stock location underneath, so I need to find somewhere else to put it. I don't want it inside the vehicle and I've decided swing-outs are a PITA that get in the way. I'm not a huge fan of putting heavy weight on the roof, but I think that's the best option. The larger spare tire and 2, 5 gallon gas cans are going to end up on a roof rack. I really like the Gamiviti Expo Rack, it's low profile and affordable at $600. Plus I can pick it up in Denver, saving money on shipping! - http://www.gamiviti.com/html/products_roofracks.html

I'll probably need to figure out how to lock/secure the spare, possibly the gas cans. TBD.

Another upgrade I'm working on is lighting... the current lighting leaves a lot to be desired, low beams aren't great and the high beams are decent, but could be better. I don't plan on doing much driving after dark in Baja, as it's not the best idea... but just in case and for the drive to & from, better lighting is worth while. When I got the Cruiser, the factory fog lights had been removed and the lenses were very foggy. I spent a little time polishing them and they look great, so I reinstalled them. I've also decided to change out the bulbs on all lights, I looked into HID lights but to do it right would run a few hundred $$ and I'd rather spend that money on gas for the trip. I decided to try HIR bulbs instead, ordering HIR bulbs for the High, Low and Fog lights... hopefully they're worth while! I'll let you know. Here's more info on HIR bulbs, from- http://www.finemotoring.com/-

These HIR bulbs are a unique product, the only bulbs available that use the research technology that General Electric patented in 2000 (patent number 6,087,775). It was GE's goal to create a bulb that produced 75% of the light output of HID headlights at 25% of the cost. GE sells HIR bulbs for residential lighting and specialized projectors, but decided to stay out of the automotive market and licensed this technology to a division of Toshiba. In fact, Toshiba and GE are among the few companies in the world with the expertise to engineer and build this product. These bulbs attain light levels 75% to 110% brighter than stock as a result of an engineering process that deposits multiple, yet almost invisible, layers of semi-reflective coating on the surface of a specially shaped quartz bulb. This coating ( a titania/silica, zinc oxide/silica, zirconia/silica, silicon nitride/silica, and titania/magnesium fluoride tantalam/silica multi-layer dielectric, according to the patent) reflects a portion of the infrared energy emitted by the filament back onto the filament, causing it to glow brighter and emit more light from the uncoated forward portion of the bulb. Although the filament gets hotter, the glass does not. IT GENERATES NO MORE HEAT THAN A REGULAR HALOGEN BULB, AND IT DRAWS THE SAME WATTAGE AND AMPERAGE AS THE STOCK 9006 BULB IT REPLACES

I also bolted up a pair of 4" Checker HID lights on the factory bumper... soon to be wired up. They will be used for Offroad only... or when driving thru the Res at night. (I almost hit a black cow years ago on the Res at night when driving home from Yuma! Stopped less than 6' away, from 60 MPH, in my little Jetta. )

I'll be bringing the Edgestar Freezer/Fridge for perishables, water, etc. We'll bring quite a bit of bottled water as well.

I've got my standard recovery gear, but no winch on the Land Cruiser at the moment. I'll be bringing a tow strap, clevises, etc but since we'll be solo I think we will just have to be cautious with sketchy roads. The Cruiser is locked F & R and IMO with tires aired down, we should be fine.

I'll be taking my Olympus camera for some quality photos... sunrises in Baja are surreal! Probably will haul a GoPro along, for some filming while driving in the dirt/sand/beach!


Any suggestions on what else to take or be prepared for? I'll update this thread with the changes as they come.

 

[Cascadia]

Your 990 on a hitch carrier.

 

[Greg]

Your 990 on a hitch carrier.

I would love to, but after spending some time down there a 450/650-sized dirt bike would be much more appropriate. IMO the 990 would just be a miserable handful in the sand... that and bikes disappear in Baja.

 

[Rot Box]

Man I'm jealous. How is Mexico for distance between fuel stops? I envision it being pretty remote.. I used to carry two five gallon cans in the 100 series out in the west desert figuring I'd have more than enough. One too many close calls forced me to start taking three. Probably wouldn't hurt to carry a spare fuel filter or two.

Looking forward to a trip report

 

[rholbrook]

I know a guy here locally that does this yearly. I can get you in contact with him if you want. I also know a guy that works hard all summer in a grader and spends all winter in his 5th wheel riding his dirtbike and can probably find his email for you. Maybe you can hook up and ride with him.

 

[Greg]

Man I'm jealous. How is Mexico for distance between fuel stops? I envision it being pretty remote.. I used to carry two five gallon cans in the 100 series out in the west desert figuring I'd have more than enough. One too many close calls forced me to start taking three. Probably wouldn't hurt to carry a spare fuel filter or two.

Looking forward to a trip report

We're going to stay on the Sea of Cortez side for the most part and there aren't a lot of fueling options in that area South of San Felipe. I do have 3 Scepter 5 gallon cans, probably would be wise to bring all of them, eh? The first (reliable) gas will be in Gonzaga Bay, about 85 miles away.... then next gas is at Bahía de los Ángeles which is about another 110 miles. If we stay there for the night and get fuel before leaving again, we should be perfectly fine w/o dipping into the extra gas.

They recommend you don't let your tank get below 3/4 full, in case you get bad fuel... so yeah, a couple spare fuel filters are a great idea!

I know a guy here locally that does this yearly. I can get you in contact with him if you want. I also know a guy that works hard all summer in a grader and spends all winter in his 5th wheel riding his dirtbike and can probably find his email for you. Maybe you can hook up and ride with him.

No worries, I'm not riding (on this trip!) and we'll have the in-laws in San Felipe. My wife spent her early Summers driving up & down Baja... she'll be my guide. I've been to Baja a handful of times before, all thought it's been several years since the last trip.

 

[Cody]

Bay of LA south is really your longest stretch, as El Arco doesn't have much and you have to push all the way to Valencia. There is fuel at San Francisquito....but it's questionable. I don't think you'll have any fuel issues though. Just fuel up at every PemEx as you head south.

If you make it down to valencia, you should shoot to the other coast and hit the beaches by punta abreajos on the pacific side. If you camp at Bay of LA, on the north end of the bay is a decent beach called La Gringa that is probably the best place to camp.

 

[Greg]

Bay of LA south is really your longest stretch, as El Arco doesn't have much and you have to push all the way to Valencia. There is fuel at San Francisquito....but it's questionable. I don't think you'll have any fuel issues though. Just fuel up at every PemEx as you head south.

If you make it down to valencia, you should shoot to the other coast and hit the beaches by punta abreajos on the pacific side. If you camp at Bay of LA, on the north end of the bay is a decent beach called La Gringa that is probably the best place to camp.

Thanks for the input Cody! The drive between San Felipe and Bay of LA is about 190 miles, gas in Puertecitos isn't reliable but I hear there is usually an attendant there, sleeping in the back... lol. If we can get gas there, I will.

I ended up building a mount for 3, 5 gallon Scepter cans so I'll have 15 gallons of additional fuel... probably overkill, but I feel good about it.

We will see where else we get to, I want to spend time exploring and seeing more but Catherine wants to spend time hanging out with her family in San Felipe, reading on the beach and taking naps. I had to cut out some places I really wanted to visit, namely Guadalupe Canyon and the hot springs there. Next time for sure.

I made a reservation for a room at Daggetts Campo in Bay of LA... $60/night, but flushing toilets, showers and a nice bed will be so welcome!

Did you exchange US dollars for peso's? Catherine says they never did with her family in all their trips down there when she was growing up.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

...Did you exchange US dollars for peso's? Catherine says they never did with her family in all their trips down there when she was growing up.

I always exchange a few hundred for a couple reasons, more ($3-400) if I'm driving all the way to La Paz

1. There are some fuel stations that will not take credit cards, they may even advertise they do but everyone in our group repeatedly had issues at some of the more remote stations with getting declined. We called our banks and they were not even seeing a transaction attempt. I've had similar things happen in past trips too.

2. The exchange rate is better when you convert either in the US or near the border. The further south and particularly small towns and they will give you a less favorable rate, ranging from $10-12.00 peso/dollar verus the 13.xx rate you will get an an official exchange place or ATM proper. Exchanging at banks down there can be a pain, you have to wait in line, have your passport and they limit how much you can do whereas the little exchange places near the border offer competitive rates and will do $500 or more without asking for as much as ID.

3. Beat up US Dollar bills or even brand new bills that look too clean can be refused by a remote fuel stop or restaurant, etc. They don't want money that looks fake to them nor money that looks so beat up their bank won't take it. I don't think it's even a real issue yet we've run into it at the pump. We had one attendant refuse the new US $100 bill a few years back because they had never seen one and it admittedly looked like monopoly money. Their money on the other hand is pretty normal to them

Re: Fuel. Like I mentioned on FB I think you will be golden. Your not getting far enough south to get in the rear fuel void zone and 15 gallons should give you plenty of room to explore.

Sounds like you have a great place to stay in BofLA, if you end up wanting to camp we've stayed in the 28°53'26.63"N/113°31'13.68"W vicinity and had the place to ourselves and that was during the Baja madness.

 

[Greg]

Great info Kurt, thanks for weighing in!

 

[Cody]

you always get a little better price in pesos. You could make it with dollars just fine, but it's probably 5-10% cheaper in pesos.

We had 10 gallons with us, and never needed it or got close to needing it.

 

[Greg]

Again... thanks!

Just a few banking-related notes... my local Wells Fargo bank does exchange different currencies and I was able to get $500 changed to pesos at a 13:1 rate... feels pretty good to have 6,400 pesos on hand! That should make it much less of a hassle than finding somewhere to exchange once over the border. They will also change it back to dollars when we bring extra peso's back. I'm going to bring a $500 US and will use that for most transactions and the Peso's of any gas stations won't take dollars. I also had my debit card OK'd for purchases in Mexico over the next week, but I don't plan on using it... just if I HAVE to. Wells Fargo also set me up with a 'Travel' account with a minimal amount of money in it, with a debit card. It'll be safer to use this card first, since it's not tied to other accounts.

I understand you cannot bring full fuel cans over the border, so my Specter cans are empty and ready to go. The 15 gallons is overkill and if it all works out, I won't have to touch our gas supply... but I'd rather be safe than sorry, especially down in Baja!

We're loaded up (mostly), roof rack is on, shovel, spare, HID lights, CB, new light bulbs, fog lights working, etc, etc, etc... we roll out tomorrow! Probably going to stay in Yuma, AZ tomorrow night, then head to San Felipe Sunday morning.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

...I understand you cannot bring full fuel cans over the border, so my Specter cans are empty and ready to go. The 15 gallons is overkill and if it all works out, I won't have to touch our gas supply... but I'd rather be safe than sorry, especially down in Baja!...

While some borders may say something, my experience at Tecate and Calexico prove they don't care what you bring inside of the fuel cans. I know I had a full can in plain view and so did a few of the others, non-issue. That said fuel is fair priced and super easy to find down there so no reason to risk it.

 

[Troop92]

Sounds like an awesome trip. Can't wait until the kid is a little older and a long trip isn't such a chore. Curious to know the route you end up taking, and what good sights (and gas stations) you end up finding...

 

[OCNORB]

I've had to pay a "fuel import tax" in Algodones a few times. $20

Rule I heard and live by is to never pass up an opportunity to top off your tank down there. Even if you think you don't need it... might apply more to bikes though.

 

[Greg]

While some borders may say something, my experience at Tecate and Calexico prove they don't care what you bring inside of the fuel cans. I know I had a full can in plain view and so did a few of the others, non-issue. That said fuel is fair priced and super easy to find down there so no reason to risk it.

My FIL has been harassed bringing a full 5 gallon can over in the past, like you said... gas is easy enough to get. We're going to use the border crossing at Algodones. We have crossed in Calexico before... should be fine.

Sounds like an awesome trip. Can't wait until the kid is a little older and a long trip isn't such a chore. Curious to know the route you end up taking, and what good sights (and gas stations) you end up finding...

There will be a trip report after we get back, hopefully it'll do justice! Our trip this time will be somewhat short, 7 days in Baja which isn't near enough! For the most part we're going to stay between San Felipe and Bay of LA with a little exploring in between. There is so much more to see... but we don't have the time.

I've had to pay a "fuel import tax" in Algodones a few times. $20

Rule I heard and live by is to never pass up an opportunity to top off your tank down there. Even if you think you don't need it... might apply more to bikes though.

Good to know about the 'tax'.... that's not bad, but still cheaper to bring empty cans across.

I've heard it's best to not let your tank get below 3/4 full, but that's hard to do. The reason is in case you get bad fuel, hopefully the remaining good fuel will mix it up and not clog up your lines or cause further damage. The chance for bad fuel increases the further South you go. Apparently fuel in Baja Sur is brought across from mainland MX in barges and the holding tanks are horribly contaminated, rusty, etc. Some times the barges even mix up diesel and gas! We will plan on topping off the tank any change we get.

 

[Cody]

We crossed at the big crossing in Calexico and just drove right through. Our fuel cans were full. The "american premium" fuel at PemEx is only found in the northern parts from what I saw, so if you care about that stuff, get it before you get too far south.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Zero issues with fuel the south fwiw. I too have heard the tales over the years but we hit dozens of different stations in BCS and never ran across any sketchy. Mex 1 is so much more traveled than it used to be, things have really changed down there even the last 5 10 years as far as service stations and tourism.

 

[Greg]

We're back... epic trip for sure! Trip report to come... many of you watched the updates on FB.

The changes & mods worked well, 15 gallons wasn't necessary but comforting to have (I used one of the 5 gallons and that was it), the roof rack and cargo up top held up after bouncing the 100 Series thru 35 miles of whooped-out Baja 1000 race course, tires were fine, low beams still suck with the HIR bulbs, etc.

We ended up crossing at Mexicali, the new East port. We stayed the night in Yuma and had plans to cross at Algodones, but that crossing doesn't open until 10 AM! We left the hotel by 8 AM and just drove the 30 (?) miles to Mexicali.

We didn't even have to stop on the way into Mexico at the border... I had 1, 5 gallon gas can full and 2 empty. Nobody cared...

My Olympus camera's battery died on the 1st morning, my helpful wife had 'put away' my cameras battery charger and I couldn't find it before the trip. It was showing a near full charge the day before we left, but it didn't last. 95% of my pics were taken by my phone...

We used most of the peso's in Baja for fuel and food, and some US dollars for a room and dinner in Bay of LA... the guy gave us a 12:1 exchange rate, which wasn't the best deal.

We never came close to getting stuck, but when driving up a sand dune off the beach I did lock both F & R diffs and used lots of momentum to get up and over the soft sand.

The 100 Series performed amazing, considering how hard we pushed it. It has 260k miles and we did 2,600 miles in 8 days with some crazy offroading, rough roads, high-speed sand washes, etc... and it didn't skip a beat!

 

[Tonkaman]

That's fantastic! Sounds like a great trip, I look foreword to trying it myself someday