Mexico Ride 2007

 

This is the site where I'll be updating my trip as I head South to Mexico. My planned departure is Dec. 25, 2007. I will post here daily, or as often as I can.

I have a satellite antenna on my bike and you can follow my travels by logging on to: www.star-traxx.com
Logon:
Name: griffin
Pass: griffin

December 25, 2007 (Tuesday)

Today was a wonderful day to depart, however my 102 body temp kept me from doing just that. Tomorrow's forecast is not as good as today's but if I get to feeling better, Iwill be on the trail. Gale Smith is going to make the trip with me and I can't imagine how aggravating it must be waiting on me to get healthy. We'll see if I have some kind of miracle during the night. There's nothing worse than having precious time set aside to make this trip and "not" getting to make it.
December 26, 2007 (Wednesday)
I could not drag myself out of bed this whole day..................wasted.

December 27, 2007 (Thursday)
Ok, I finally pulled myself out of bed and took a test ride to see if my balance was ok? I rode to Celina and back and didn't crash, so I guess I'm good to go. I left the house at 10 am (35 degrees) with Gale Smith riding along. We had a cold and tough ride down to Temple before it started warming up. The traffic didn't ease-up until we were south of San Antonio. We're now in Eagle Pass getting rested up to cross into Mexico in the morning.
 
December 28, 2007 (Friday)
Today was slow and cool. We decided not to head too far south, so we are just roaming around the small towns of Mexico. I never could find much today to shoot, but I did enjoy a few small town courtyards. The border crossing process was easy and quick, but we weren't sure where the customs office was. It turned out to be about 40 miles inside the border which is unusual. After that, we just took small two-lane roads through Allende, Sabinas, Ciudad Anahuac and Villaldama before stopping for the night here in Sabinas Hildalgo. We have a real nice hotel for $525 pesos per night. The only notable road was between here and Villaldama. I wouldn't mind riding back through that sometime in the future.
This young man was playing in the park.
His Mom was telling us they live in San Antonio and just come back down to Sabinas to visit.
We've all been on a merry-go-round like this one
Parked and ready to go
Some of that Mexico two-lane. (Hwy 22)
Apparently, my moto isn't fast enough? This big rig pulls out and passes.
 
 
   
December 29, 2007 (Saturday)
Today was the day to head back. It was a much shorter trip than I wanted it to be, but we'll have to make up for it on another trip. We had a great ride through rural Mexico as we meandered over to the Falcon Dam near Zapata, TX to cross back into the United States. It is the easiest and quickest border crossing I have ever had.
Photo taken in front of the Hotel Lobby at about 7 this morning
Photo taken from the Hotel Lobby at about 9 this morning
A local Park at the town we stayed at (Sabinas Hildalgo), but apparently it's not open this morning.
Scenery just east of town.
Some photos just need to be taken
This is the road between Vallaldama and Sabinas Hildalgo. It could be a destination again sometime.
The building structures vary in Sabinas Hildalgo
It's hard to understand what some buildings are, but it's different and unusual to see.
 
Oops, I ran out of pavement. U-turns are just part of riding in Mexico
Leaving Hildalgo with the mountains in our background
A small convenience store in a small town (Colorado de Abago)
Grazing on the side of the road
laying on the shelf of a convenience store in La Escondido
Gale visiting with a local
This little guy wouldn't come out and let me take his picture.
These nice kids gave us directions to the local Pemex. They could speak good English
I was not seeking a gravel road, it just happened
I'm sure Gale would like to find someone else to follow
This is the shortest and quickest border crossing that I have made (Falcon Dam)
Stopped for a little something to eat now that we're back in Texas
 

December 30, 2007 (Sunday)

We spent the night in Goliad, TX last night and I did a quick survey of town before leaving. These pictures are from the area around Goliad. This town has a lot of history.

Downtown Goliad
Goliad Courthouse
Old Spanish Fort in Goliad
Historical Marker at the Fort
Statue
Mission within the State Park in Goliad
Another view of downtown. This is where we ate last night
Old Tree at the Court house