Atascadero->Mexico May 2010 - Reg71

He's just covering because the only kiss he got was from a snake that was forced to comply and the next morning he woke up with his lips on reg's tookish.

That's the rumor I heard (started) and only good pictures will prove otherwise....

 

just getting going. drinking coffee rapidly to recover from bad case of monkey butt. near 500 miles yesterday. Gathering pics. Will post some in a few minutes...

 

If the rumor I've started about Long's lips and your tookish - I don't wanna see those pics.....

There better be hoochie-mamma as promised

 

If you think they are bad in pics, you should have seen them in person...!

 

So, here we are again. It seems like it's been a while since I've taken a trip. I think Long has a secret connection at my work so that he knows what's going on with my schedule before I get it. I was sitting and looking at my schedule when I get a message from him either in txt or in chat asking when I'm coming down. I look and see I have a block of several days off and figure what the hell. Time to meet up and go to Mexico. This wasn't really planned, it just kind of happennd from us mentioning before that it would be cool to ride down to Mexico for a day and see the sights. We got Jason involved and he started a quick route plan that would avoid Tijuana the first day and take us on some twisty roads.

Anyway, shall we?

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Here we are all loaded up and heading out to go down and meet Long at work in Irvine. It's roughly 250 miles from my place so it's not so bad, but he wanted me there around noon meaning I had to get up and head out in the a.m. No taking the twisty mountain route for this leg or it takes 6 or 7 hours.


Above is the view from Shell Beach, a little south of where I live and a little north of Tori and Brian. I was stopping by to borrow a GPS from Tori and drop off some truck parts for a friend of his. It's a pretty day, and the scenery is nice for the occasional glance from the road out over the ocean. Traffic is light being this early and on a weekday in the central coast.


Above is where I get off the 101 for a break and take 154 through Los Olivos and past Lake Cachuma and then down through the mountains to Santa Barbara. It shaves a few miles off the trip but I'm not sure if it's any faster. I suppose it really depends on if you believe in double yellow passing as much of 154 is two lane with slow speed limits and slower traffic.


I stopped here at Carpenteria to have a quick snack and get back on the bike. I am already feeling a bit sore as I haven't done much riding since my 50 mile bicycle ride that nearly left me debilitated.
It's around 10 and I have already received another text from Long wanting to know how I can be 'online' when I am supposed to be coming to visit him. (It's called an iPhone Long!) He already wants to know where I am. So much for taking it easy. You can tell he's already getting excited. The plan is to go to Mexico (Tijuana) tonight but by car to the border then walking over. Then the next day, we'll pack up and head over on bikes.


So here I am where Long works in Irvine. On an interesting side note, I noticed that Blizzard Entertainment is caddy cornered across the street from him. He didn't know why I thought that was cool, but some of you geeks out there know what I'm talking about. I was about 30 minutes late (by his clock, not mine... hehe) and starving so Long offerred to take me out to eat.


Never one to turn down a free meal, I followed Long to a little Vietnamese place where the food was really good and the staff spoke some kind of jibberish language with Long. I think the translation was 'Feed the round eye some of yesterday's dog. He'll never know the difference.'

From there we head to Long's house which is actually quite a ways from where he works. The main reason he needs a bike is that he commutes every day about 50 miles and some of it through horrendous traffic. More power to you, brother. You are nuts. I hope to never commute that far.

I'm pretty sore by the time we get to Long's but he stops by the grocery and grabs us a 12 pk of a local brew. It's a nice Amber and we are enjoying a couple when Jason rolls in. I think it's around 3 or 4 by this time. We start discussing our plans for TJ and for the trip down to camp over the weekend.

We load into Long's huge ass Nissan truck (Titan maybe?) and cruise on down to TJ through more traffic. I think it's roughly an hour or so to get down there from Oceanside and during this time, Long repeatedly demonstrates that Nissan uses quality brake components by late braking every time we get near another car. (I knew I should have brought road beers) After 100 or so near misses and only cutting off 10 or so other drivers (Long's catch phrase of the day "Well they need to learn to move out of way for big truck") we make it safely to TJ. I promptly towel the sweat from my forehead, pry my fingers from the dashboard and jump out of the truck running for the border.

After some discussion we decide to leave cameras in the truck because the clubs get a little pissy about photos and will confiscate your camera and start rifling through your pics to make sure you don't take pics of anything inappropriate. Now, who gets to decide what's inappropriate is anybody's guess. I'm thinking at a club where a "lady" is squirting choc sauce all over her bottom (not the most appetizing look FYI) and another lady is helping her clean it off without the use of a towel appropriate is kind of not applicable. Apparently they think different. It's all good as long as there is no evidence I guess. Anyway, after a dozen tacos, about as many beers, and Long eating some bait from a street corner, we head on back to the states to get some rest. Oh yeah, I picked up some tequila and some kahlua for a pretty decent price. Look for it at SLO 2010.

day 2 to come...

 

Day 2

Ugh, whose idea was it to eat a dozen tacos and drink beer the night before a bike trip?


Here we are all lined up bright and early. For some reason the guys say we need to get on the road before 8 am or else the world will explode or something. Thank goodness we didn't go out partying at strip clubs with booze and mexican food the night before... Oh wait...


There is a lot of the above when you live where these guys are. It just seems to go on in every direction, but as you can see the traffic is light at this time of day. It's slightly cool, but really not bad and we are all pumped up with that pre-trip energy trying to counterbalance the last night hangover.


Still more of the highway. We opted not to use our radios for comms, but I was jamming the tunes so I was doing okay. I think we did about 1000 miles or so on this road. Just kidding. I don't know how far it was, just that it seems deserted and long and straight. Some of the scenery is pretty cool if you are from out of town, though. Anyone ever notice the big boobies nuclear plant on I-5? I know everyone must think the same thing when they look at that thing.


This was to be our last stop in the US before crossing over, but after my morning constitutional at Long's (which I have eyewitness proof of since I forgot to lock the bathroom) I still had some business left to take care of. Unfortunately for me, I have been holding it for 30 miles or so of curves so more waiting is not an option and the lady in the store says no bathroom and nothings open this early. Good call on the leaving early guys.



Thanks to the foresight of Jason, we had emergency TP, and I have no qualms about dropping trow out in the open. As you can see, I left the paved road and road up a road that most VFRs never see. Long dropped his bike and naturally it was my fault! Anyway, if you should find yourself on this road near Tecate and see some white paper on the ground, just leave it. Needless to say lots of beer and tacos is a great combo before a day of bike riding.


We made it across the border in no time. Crossing in Tecate is nothing like crossing in Tijuana. If you have the choice and aren't pressed for time or wanting to ride the coast, I reccomend going this way. At the border was the first time I was to discover the Mexican version of rumble strips. The difference being the size and layout. The mexican ones are slightly bigger and spaced randomly at times making it feel like you are riding over flipped over bowls covered in oil. It's pretty much a sickly feeling every time you cross them but once the bars stop wiggling you feel just fine for surviving them yet again.


Here's another shot from in Tecate. Traffic there was pretty light so we were pretty comfortable grabbing the cameras for a few quick shots while waiting at the lights.




Coming out of town, we headed for the mountains in the distance. It's warming up a bit, but not hot really. The speed limits are posted at some ridiculously low limit in some forgotten language called kilometros but lucky for us no one in Mexico apparently can read them. We just stayed a little slower than everyone else and kept our eyes peeled for people with guns and seemed to get along fine.




Over all I must say I was pretty impressed with the roads. Granted we were one some of the main arteries, and they weren't magnificent, but I had expected much much worse. And I have seen much worse in the states. Road signs, seem to be optional and apparently, a road sign with an entire sentence is not considered too much to read (probably wouldn't be if you actually went the speed limit). We faked it pretty well and only got surprised a few times by bumps. I was to learn a new word in Spanish a little later but I'll get to that.


Here we decided to pull off on the side of the road for an impromptu rest stop. My back was sore and I was digging around in my bag fiending for some ibuprofen (another common thing for my road trips). We shedded some of out extra layers because it was approaching noon and warming up a bit, but still not what any of us would consider hot.


Here we are in Ensenda after coming through the mountains then riding through town. For those of you who haven't been to Ensenada, let me just say, some areas of it are high on the scale of odiferous emanations. I'm not sure what I smelled coming in to town, but I was glad I didn't see it, and glad when the stick cloud left my vicinity.


Here we stopped on the beach outside Ensenada to get a look back towards the town and the cruise ship. In the next photo, I'll zoom in so you can get an idea of the size of the Mexican flag in Ensenada.



Here we are parking the bikes near la bufadora (the blowhole) located south of Ensenada maybe 15-20 miles. It's in a quote/unquote town Punta Banda that has grown up around the little piece of interesting geology. This is where we decided to call home for a night.

By the way, that Spanish word I learned is topas. On the road from Ensenada to Punta Bunda, you may or may not see a sign that says TOPAS. If you do, slow down, if you don't then pray you see the bump in the road cause these are speed bumps that appear to be be randomly placed along the highway to ensure that all cars in Mexico either 1. have blown suspension (most commonly the case) or 2. replace their suspension with baja shocks. Apparently Baja California gets a kickback on every upgraded suspension set sold.

More of day 2 to come as we explore Punta Banda...

 

Here's a shot of the street running through town where the street vendors wait for the tourists from the cruise ships in Ensenada. They basically all sell the same things and follow you down the street explaining in choppy English why their wares are better.




The Mexican with the Do-Rag above seemed to follow us everywhere we went that day. We were unable to lose him but fortunately he had lots of cash and kept buying us beers.


Try as he might, Long was unable to negotiate a fair price for the performer to exchange outfits with him. I'm thinking a few bucks more and he would have gone for it...


Here I am sitting on the wall of one of the 3 observation decks. Way off in the back left is where we camped. The views were awesome and other than the constant bartering going on, it was a very cool place.


Here's Jason and Long coming up the steps from the lower observation deck. The blowhole is a cave to the left and down where air gets trapped in as the waves come in then it blows it out is a sort of geyser. It's kind of cool, in a so what sort of way. Just kidding. Just don't go there expecting to see anything life changing. For Californian's its fairly common to see waves crashing against rocks and causing ocean spray. It is interesting to see how these people's lives revolve around this natural phenomenon. They have capitalized as much as possible on it and the drop in tourism is hurting them noticeably.


As you can see there are some deluxe accommodations with great views in the town. We tried to rent the place in the background but didn't have enough money. I think the place by the blue car house a family of 8. Way off in the background you can see the point which juts out near where the previous pictures of la bufadora were taken.


Here's where we decided to camp after debating it for about an hour. Finally, beer access and assurances of 24 hr security won out and we paid for a camp site rather than trying to just find a place on the side of the road.





Here's the little Mexican fellow that hung out with us while we were there. As you can see he is very happy.


You have to get shots (antibiotics and such)before using the toilets in Mexico (It's a law...okay so it's not a law, but it probably should be.)


Here's a nice duplex for sale beachside in the campground where we stayed. It looks out over the ocean, but take a close look in the next photo of the view.


That's right, the nice little duplex sits just behind this tired ass roof on a house that looks ready to collapse. It's just sitting there rotting. What a shame.


Here's a view from camp looking back towards the little town. We were the only campers so we pretty much had the run of the place. Good for us, not so good for a Saturday night in May in terms of tourism.


Here's Jason crossing the rock bridge just below our camp. Long and I opted to remain on more easy footing as were partaking of various local beverages.








And here's what Long was doing while Jason was out rock climbing. Apparently 40oz is just about 10oz too many for him to finish at 3 in the afternoon.




Then after his uh shall we call it, rest break Long was up and talking about eating again. We made our way to Los Gordos for rattlesnake tequila and some food. Here's the black sea bass (so they said?) that Long had. I tried it but it was just too fishy for me. It was pretty pricey, too. I think it was like $7 or $8. We hung out there for another couple of beers wherein Long promised the bartender we were coming back in a little bit and we walked back to camp.


Here he is a few minutes later just before he started up the Asian chainsaw which ran beside me all night. Lucky for Jason the waves were loud enough (just) to almost block out Long's own sleep machine. By the way, he still thinks he doesn't snore! I had to move and eventually I got sleep in 30 minute batches punctuated by rocks jabbing me in the back. The alcohol helped me get some rest, though and I have had worse nights camping. There was a light breeze so no bugs, and the temp was cool without being cold so we were all very comfortable (although neither Jason nor myself seemed as comfortable as Dr. Long).

Next day...


We awakened bright and early again and began looking for coffee. Finally after passing several coffee shops that don't open until 9, we found a place back in Ensenada to get a cup of Joe...


We saw very few people on the streets in the morning. Come to think of it, it was never very crowded anywhere we were...yet.




Back on the highway heading toward Rosarito. It's a bit dreary today and cool but not bad. There are about 3 stops for tolls on the expressway from Ensenada to TJ and they run you about 2.25 ea for car, motorcycle, whatever. Lucky for me, I was with a couple generous dudes that would pay for all of us when they got to the booth. (The trick is to always pack your money away where it's hard to find then fumble around for it when you get up there then your friends feel sorry for you and pay just to get you to move). Seriously though, these two guys are very generous and it was quite hard to ever pay the tab with them. I managed a couple times, but you have to practically fight them over it.






Ok, for all you guys that keep asking if I found Jesus, here he is. Apparently he's been in Mexico all this time, so stop asking.


This was to be another common theme in Mexico. Various construction projects halted mid development with no activity whatever going on. Apparently the drug cartels ca cause trouble for developers. Charging rents, harassing, etc. A local even told us that Donald Trump had started to build near Ensenada and just gave up after being blackmailed by the cartels. I can neither confirm nor deny this as I haven't talked to Donald lately, but we heard it.


We made it down to Rosarito and looked around a bit til we found a nice spot for breakfast. It was a pretty decent breakfast, for a few bucks per plate. Once again, it was early and we were the only clientele.


We actually sat right up there above where it says live lobster and had a pretty good view. We had mostly American fare, but with some tortillas and some chips and salsa (apparently chips and sals go with every meal in Mexico). The food wasn't bad, but the coffee was weak. In my mind I had always imagined coffee to be stronger in other countries, but I guess years of drinking Starbucks has made my palate immune to traditional brew.







From there we headed south again to go to a place that Long likes to visit. I forget the name of the town, but I'm sure Jason or Long will drop it later. On the way down, we passed Fox studios baja, slightly in disrepair also.


Long tried in vain to convince me this ship was used for titanic. (Remind me not to hire him for writing a period piece) Anyone recognize the ship, though?


There he is again, just in case you missed it the first time. As you can see, he was very impressed with my VFR and gave me his blessing. Or maybe he blessed the bike? Either way, we both made it back to tell this tale. So thanks.


Here we are checking the local scene while I smoke a "real cuban" cigar. I have my doubts about it's authenticity, but whatever, it was decent but still don't expect to get mad deals on cigars in Mexico unless you are very knowledgeable about them and a hard negotiator. Now tequila on the other hand...


I believe he was thinking "Would you just buy the damned purse already..." but I didn't hang around to ask as he was making me nervous.



Jason and I had our own personal paparazzo. He followed us around in the little town snapping shots. Come to think of it, he looked a lot like the little Mexican from the day before.






There he is. You can see the look of surprise on his face after Jason punched him in the stomach and took the camera away.



About every one of these places offers lobster for under $20. They are smaller than is legal to take here due to overfishing but we split a plate of them anyway not feeling guilty in the least. I mean these people have families to feed, right?


I put a pic of the name of this restaurant up here because the owner speaks fluent English, and was very nice to us. He allowed us to park outside and kept an eye on our bikes and gear while we walked around. After much reassurance, we trusted him and walked away. All are things were there when we returned so we ate in his establishment. The food was good, not great, the atmosphere good, but it was his personality that got our business so I figured I'd give him a little plug on here just in case anyone decided to head down on their bike. I think having bikes in front of his business helps business also. Just FYI, 2 lobsters, beans, soup, ceviche, rice, tortillas, and a margarita was around $18. Also, he says "we are not insulted when you barter, we expect it" so have fun determining the price.

Well, from there we packed up and headed back north for TJ. We decided to go on through the crowded crossing since we were on bikes.

That's the only pic I got as I was concentrating on avoiding the street vendors strategically placed between cars in the middle of the highway. I only bumped cars a few times and my engine temp never got above 225 but I'm pretty sure I lost a year of clutch life. It was interesting for sure. If you are not one who believes in lane-splitting, I recommend you go back through Tecate instead or you will be in a world of pain trying to cross in TJ.

I made my way up and finally got to the gate where I was questioned briefly then allowed to pass unhindered into the good ol US of A.


We split lanes at 80 for a while and slid on back into oceanside to take a break at Long's and discuss the next trip before I loaded back up and decided to iron butt back home a day early. I left Jason somewhere south of LA where he headed home and we were in the midst of a traffic jam that had me riding between cars for 10 miles before breaking loose a few miles then repeating. I don't know how those guys do it day in and out. I'm so keyed up from splitting the 40 some odd miles of traffic around LA every time that it takes me an hour to settle back down. I stopped for gas once in Thousand Oaks and grabbed a quick bite before loading up for the last stretch. It was a tough one. I rode hard and fast and with lots of pain. I ended up making it in just over 2 hours going about 175 miles. You do the math...

In summary, it was a great time. Jason and Long were, as always, great hosts. They take great pains to make sure that you are having a good time. (Relax guys, I just don't smile much) It's always fun to get out of town for a bit, and even more fun when you can do it on a bike with a couple buddies. To those of you who like to ride but haven't taken a bike trip, I think you should. There is a reason we ride a VFR and not something else, it's because it can do the long miles and still have fun in the twisties. Hell it wouldn't matter to me what I was on, though. It's just fun to get out there and ride.

Hasta luego...

 

Isn't that Mel's house on the beach that got blasted by the choppers in Lethal Weapon?

 

And some videos from the trip:

(let me know if it works. i Haven't tried photobucket embedding before on here...)
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