Navojoa, Sonora to Mazatlan, Sinaloa

We were up early yesterday and after a decent continental breakfast we were on our way by 7:30.  We always enjoy our stay at the Fiesta...a reasonable $84 Canadian, good parking and a very well thought out room.  Not fluff but places to put things.

Navojoa seems to in a building spare like many other places..straight ahead.

Lots growing here.

The new concrete highway needs a bridge repair.

I was worried about this impromptu stop.  Last year they were going to go through our truck but the police were eating lunch.  This time we were waved through.  We don't have anything illegal but a tear down means you don't get where you want to go on time.

Welcome to Sinaloa...big tolls for really bad asphalt highways.  There are potholes that would do serious damage if you hit them.  

Another check point.

The farther you go south the greener it gets.

Huge silos around Los Mochis.

This used to be a Pemex and it's where we always overnighted in the RV.  A gated truck stop with a restaurant.

See those potholes.  Whichever lane was good was the one Eric drove in whether it was the passing lane or not.

This is the road right after a toll booth!

Heading towards Culiacan.

Some crops are protected from the sun.

Straight ahead for Mazatlan.

Now the passing lane is horrible and we are on the very expensive Culiacan to Mazatlan piece. Close to $50 for the tolls at the beginning and end.

Were getting closer...there's the ocean.

                 , ,    ,,,, Coming down to the final toll booth before Mazatlan.

Onto the road to the playas or beach and it's a mess here.

I always take a picture of the Riu hotel to show we're almost here and getting close.

We arrived around 3pm and considering the roads we made good time and didn't break any thing.  Eric unloaded the motorcycle and rode it to the house.  Then I walked to the vegetable store to get us enough to get by for dinner.  Eric dropped the trailer down the road in a parking spot and brought the truck back.  We can't park the trailer in our complex.  We unloaded the stuff from behind the seat and that was that.  Hugely hot and humid.  The house is dirty from the geckos but I cover beds, furniture and tables so that helps.  Outside stuff is stored inside so it's a jumble till we sort it out.

Today we got outside stuff out and tidied up a bit.  We were both wiped from the drive and the heat but the AC is running so that helps.  Unloaded the back of the truck with all the food and cleaning stuff I brought and I'll deal with that over the next few days and cleaning will take a week or two.  Feeling a bit more human tonight😊

 

Nogales AZ to Navojoa Sonora and it was a long tortuous day!

This is Wednesday.

It's 8pm and it was a very long day so I'll make this as brief as I can. Last night's dinner did not agree with my stomach so I was up and down last night.  No breakfast which is sad because the Hotel Americana has the best complimentary breakfast we've run into.  Eric had some scrambled eggs and coffee and I had tea.  

Ready to go at 7am and about 360 miles to go.  We wound our way down to the border and crossed with no issues.  First stop the Tourist visas and importation.  You will remember we tried to import the truck and cargo trailer a couple of days ago and it was a no go.

We expected this to go smoothly this morning but it did not.

First we were told our truck was over weight and was now into the commercial or work truck status.  This rule came into effect in May 2023.  OK,  we were informed of that in San Luis when we were doing our paperwork.  The young agent said I had to go take a picture of the door sticker that shows GVW.  I returned with the picture and once again I'm told it's too heavy and needs special permission.   Then we're asked for pictures of the front, back and inside of the truck so Eric did that.  More humming and hawing and now they want us to print the pictures..  They send me to the copy place who sends me to the guy who sells Mexican insurance.  Getting dumber and dumber by the minute.  He was real techy and accessed What's App on my phone, transferred the Google photos on my phone to his phone and printed them.  Back to the agent.  Now she says we need to see the aduana which is the customs officer.  Take a seat or come back in a half hour.  We waited.  We go to see him with paperwork and now he's humming and hawing and using Google translate to tell me he's helping us out, that the agents don't know what to do etc.  In the end we figured out he wanted money but he was waiting for us to offer.   Eric said...no way were we doing that.  Finally after we showed him our electrical bill from our house in Mazatlan we think he realized we'd been coming to Mexico for some time and we knew what he was up to.  He finally went to look at the truck and take pictures which is his job and what he should have at the beginning. Now back to the agent but we have to wait again while he talks to them.  They ignore him! Finally we see a different, very efficient agent who quickly completes the paperwork, we pay and can go.  Something that should have taken 45 minutes at the most took 2 1/2 hours and I was completely exhausted.  Can you imagine what would happen if a group of RVERS with 3/4 or 1 ton trucks came in.  You can't pull an RV with a half ton unless the RV is really light.  The reason given is that bigger trucks could be used as work trucks.  Let's get serious any truck can be a work truck in Mexico regardless of weight.  We understand its Mexico and they can make any rules they want.  Next year a different plan for importation. 

           Over the border and  the first little town has topes or giant speed bumps.  Lots of the time the are hidden...Surprise!

    The wide open highway.

Before Hermisilo large vineyards appear. 

    

The circus is setting up somewhere.

It was now 10:30 and we still had 585 km to go.  Off we went.

My pictures are out of order as I'm fighting with the internet!

The rest of the day was usual with construction and slow downs due to police stops.  A delay going through Vicam as they are working on the main street.  Lots of tolls to pay as well.

 A little bit of showers when we got to Obregon and it continued to Navojoa where we are tucked into the Fiesta motel for the night. A light snack type dinner, beer a shower and bed.

Tomorrow is about 350 miles on worse roads but we'll at least be at the end of this journey.

Vicam and they  are putting a four lane highway right through the middle of town...what a mess.

We're through Vicam finally..that's the huge Yaqui ststue.

Yuma to Nogales, AZ and the Quality Inn Americana

We only had about 344 miles to go today so we didn't need a real early start.  Up at 7 and on the road by 8.  All freeway and most of it straight.

                                    Heading out of Yuma.

Close to Dome Valley.

Here you can see dust in the area but you can't smell the stink of the large dairies in this area.  Thousands of dairy cows all through here and it reeks!

Dateland.   Sitting all by itself out in the middle of nowhere.

More cows, huge silage piles and hay.

Lots of alfalfa grown here to...feed the cows!

Heading to Tucson.

As we rise in elevation it gets a bit greener and prettier.

The saguaro cacti start to appear on the hills.

Picacho peak in the distance.  Lots of RVers stay there for the winter...way too cold!

More and more lanes as we get closer to Tucson and the big trucks do nothing but bob and weave at 75mph +!

Tucson on the left. 

We leave I 10 to 19 south and Nogales.

A much quieter road.

Not too far to go.

Dennis York suggested the Hotel Americana Quality inn many years ago and we're glad he did. The rooms are large and very well maintained.  Free "full" continental breakfast and this time I got a deal on the room.  Usually one of our more expensive stays but this time $94 with a king size bed. Eric really likes this area and hotel...maybe next year we'll stay two nights here and drive over the border to predominantly our paperwork the day before...We'll see.

Out the window, can't see the sign.  A main road but it's quiet at night.

Did I mention the trains..😂

Tomorrow kilometer 21 to finish our paperwork and then Navojoa for the night.  

Day 2 in Yuma..some good, some not so good.

 So how did today go?  Well, not as we would have liked but I guess we just have to roll with it..   We were off to San Luis to get our tourist visas and import our vehicles for six months at about 9am this morning.

Connie sent me a text yesterday and asked what we did for the day. I said a bit of shopping and what Eric is doing.....we needed the rest!

.....she sent me a picture of Manny and Mitzi watching a football game😊

Last night we went across the street to the Vietnamese restaurant for dinner.

We ordered from a young girl who was obviously new and very nervous.  The owners wife was giving her corrections and I told her not to worry it would get better.  She was so sweet.  That white thing sticking up is a bot that delivers your food to you and the waitress puts it on the table.

The food was good last night but not quite as good as last time...a little greasier. 

We were also a bit disturbed by the people in the corner with two German Shepard dogs under their table.  I didn't realize dogs were allowed in restaurants here in Yuma.  One dog kept throwing up and the people didn't notice for some time but they finally took it outside.  Disgusting to us.  The guy was quite rude as he noticed we were watching and got quite huffy about it.  A..hole😮!

This is the restaurant owner and cook...what a friendly guy.  He came out to see that everyone was happy and sat down at our table to chat.  He was a refugee from Vietnam in the 80's and ended up in Orange County, California where he lived and worked for 20 years, then 10 years in Portland before coming to Yuma where he opened this restaurant 5 years ago.  Eric asked why Yuma and he said because it's a Republican state and a better tax situation.  I mentioned the young waitress's nervousness when he barked at her to attend to someone waiting and Eric said that he shouldn't be too hard on her.  He laughed and said his wife could comfort her as customers are the most important!  A very chatty nice guy.

So, on to today.  Off to San Luis with paperwork in hand.

          Heading south and the fields have vegetables growing as far as the eye can see.

Coming through Somerton where they have the tamale festival.   Truth...we don't like Tamales! 

Caesar Chaves drive...the champion of the farm workers.

They use lasers when they plow so everything is perfect for the irrigation.  The brown thing in the distance is...The Wall!

Ready to plant.

Heading in to do our paperwork.

First the tourist visas which went smoothly. Eric then imported the motorcycle and although it took an unusual amount of time it was done. You post a bond which is returned as long as you bring the vehicle out of Mexico.  Now for the truck and trailer for me.  Last year they wanted to see the truck because it was over 7,798 pounds but when I showed them a picture of it they were fine with that.  The agent spent about 45 minutes doing the paperwork and then he wanted to see the truck AND trailer! to take pictures. I said I had pictures but that wouldn't do and he said we had to bring both vehicles in so he could see them. New regulations this year because it might be a work truck as it was over their weight threshold which is silly as any truck could be a work truck regardless of GVW.   The agent knew it wasn't being used as a work truck but... he doesn't make the rules.  Impossible to bring in for him to see as it is way too congested and busy.  So...we have to do the truck and trailer in Nogales.  Next year we'll likely stay two nights in Nogales and drive over  the border and do all the paperwork there beforehand.  It would have been nice if he'd asked if the truck and trailer were with us before he wasted an hour of his time and ours.  Always a new wrinkle.

And now we had to go back over the border into the US. The line is always hugely long and it's blazing hot.  In line for about 45 minutes.  You can see the blanket tents which ran the whole way.  Refugees from who knows where trying to be permitted to enter the US.

We the stopped at the Walmart on our way back so I could get sandwich stuff for the road.  When I came out Eric had some good news.  When we arrived in Yuma on Sunday my keys were not in my purse...a lot of keys and I was more than upset.  I feared I'd left them on the bumper of the truck while opening the canopy in Ridgecrest. That meant lots of money and time spent replacing them all. Not a good thing.  Turns out they must have fallen out of my purse in the truck and showed up on the floor on the passenger side...how they got there I have no idea!  What a relief...misplaced...not lost. Whew😊

We got an oil change for the truck at Walmart and tonight it's leftovers and on to Nogales tomorrow.  A busy day!

Coming back and the vegetable pickers cars are lined up.