On North

The flowers in the various campgrounds, parks and yards have been beautiful, but it is time to head north.  These Bougainvillea were just two spaces down from our palapa in the Vagamundos del Mar campground.

The first stop we made was at the Cabo volunteer fire department's "Official Store".  As a long time wildland fire fighter I just had to have one of their logo t-shirts.  After that we hit the road back towards La Paz.  This time we are taking Highway 1.  La Paz to Cabo is the only part of the peninsula where there are two routes to take.  We took Highway 19 on the way south and are now taking Highway 1 back north.

The road north is a lot like the one south, dry desert with standard no-shoulder highway, topes at the villages and speeding drivers.

I have saved a highway topic for the return trip because I will be repeating the same roads and don't want to bore you with the same old discussions.  I have several times mentioned the speed with which they drive.  But I haven't mentioned that they have a high disregard for all traffic laws.  Stop signs/lights, lane markers, turn signals, following distance, passing distance, vehicle maintenance are all mere suggestions!  Topes and stop signs/lights have patches of oil/grease that have dripped from the vehicle making those locations very slick.  Tires are underinflated and brake lights aren't working.  Now in defense of the Mexican drivers, they are not alone.  We met similar types of drivers in Spain, Portugal, Morocco, Italy and Greece.  Maybe it has something to do with living in a warm climate?

With those comments it brings me to the next series of pictures.  The roadside shrines, that we assume, are built by the family/friends of travelers who through poor driving or just bad luck were killed in a wreck.  We have seen hundreds, if not a few thousand of them.  Some are simple, just a wrought iron or wooden cross.  Others are very elaborate.  Some have been maintained very well while others are apparently abandoned. 

This is largest single group of shrines we have seen.  There are five in this picture and there were two more off to the left.  There is the fancy white one on the right, the red/white on the left with a double green one in front of a white one.  All are concrete.  Then there is the white cross in the center and two wrought iron ones out of the picture.  These are all well maintained.  Many have a picture of the deceased and maybe a saint or two as well as the name.  This was on a curve, but not a very bad one.

This is Hector, he and his cabover truck did not make it around this corner.  His family does not appear to have a lot of money as the shrine and model of his truck appear to be home made, but it is well maintained and neat showing that he was loved and will be missed.  (The cactus in the background are Cilios and only grow here.)

It is sad to see all this evidence of roadside carnage, but it seem to have no effect on the drivers now on the road.   Many are on long straight stretches where the driver might have fallen asleep, or maybe didn't have enough room to pass after all.  We have twice been forced over to the very edge of the road because the oncoming driver did not have enough room to pass without meeting us head on.  The highways have lots and lots of skid marks left by sliding tires, many on corners and lots on straight stretches.  Some go right off the road, others have a sudden kink in them when they contacted another vehicle.  Some are duals and lots more are singles. This is Mexico's greatest hazard to tourists, not drug wars or banditos.

We are in La Paz.  We got the tire.  It is already mounted on a rim and has a price sticker on it from Ace hardware for 850 pesos.  With the tax and the hit my bank gives me on foreign purchases, it will cost me just over 100 US dollars for ONE TIRE!  We had Les Schwab Tire Co. mount and install three tires for less than that in Fortuna, California earlier in this trip!

From here on the road is the same and the next update will probably be across the border in several days.