andyc740
0
Violence along the border with Mexico has escalated in the past few months due to friction between the Gulf Coast Cartel and the Zetas. We intend to keep going to Mexico. This trip was made 2 years ago, but I've never posted a trip report on it, so here you go...
Lefty's and my second bike trip to Mexico again started in Corpus Christi in February 2008. This time we wanted to avoid larger cities like Monterrey and Saltillo and explore farther south along the eastern Sierra Madres. When we reached the Rio Grand Valley, we swung by Lefty's office in McAllen, then ran a couple errands, including buying a stuff sack for my sleeping bag. I don't carry the sleeping bag any more. Hotels are usually pretty reasonable and easily available. Though it did make a nice sort of backrest.
We crossed the border at noon at the Pharr-Rio Bravo bridge, didn't have to stop at customs (our paperwork was still current from the previous trip) and headed south. We made a gas stop at the "Y", about 80 miles south of Reynosa and visited a bit with the crew of window washers.
This fellow was scraping the spines off prickly pear pads so he could sell the pads. Mexicans use them in cooking. They're called "tuna". Really.
I took the wrong highway out of Ciudad Victoria after supper (in my own defense, the map was missing a road), added about 30 miles to our trip and we rode into Ciudad Mante about 8:00 at night after more than 500 miles of riding. Really flat, pretty boring. We found a pretty decent hotel in downtown Ciudad Mante. No, Lefty didn't sleep on the couch. There was a second bed in the room.
Lefty's and my second bike trip to Mexico again started in Corpus Christi in February 2008. This time we wanted to avoid larger cities like Monterrey and Saltillo and explore farther south along the eastern Sierra Madres. When we reached the Rio Grand Valley, we swung by Lefty's office in McAllen, then ran a couple errands, including buying a stuff sack for my sleeping bag. I don't carry the sleeping bag any more. Hotels are usually pretty reasonable and easily available. Though it did make a nice sort of backrest.
We crossed the border at noon at the Pharr-Rio Bravo bridge, didn't have to stop at customs (our paperwork was still current from the previous trip) and headed south. We made a gas stop at the "Y", about 80 miles south of Reynosa and visited a bit with the crew of window washers.
This fellow was scraping the spines off prickly pear pads so he could sell the pads. Mexicans use them in cooking. They're called "tuna". Really.
I took the wrong highway out of Ciudad Victoria after supper (in my own defense, the map was missing a road), added about 30 miles to our trip and we rode into Ciudad Mante about 8:00 at night after more than 500 miles of riding. Really flat, pretty boring. We found a pretty decent hotel in downtown Ciudad Mante. No, Lefty didn't sleep on the couch. There was a second bed in the room.