Mexico Day 38: Where exquisite beauty meets heart-pounding risk

At sea on the TMC ferry to La Ciudad, Durango //

Both Mark and myself are pleasantly surprised that we slept (mostly) through the night.  A routine habit causes me to peek out our windows at the view even though all I can see are semi trucks inches from our windows.  We get out of the camper, crawl underneath the neighboring semi, and emerge to the view of the rising sun, ocean in every direction, and no sign of land in sight.  There’s still three hours to go on our ferry ride to Mazatlan.  

Upon docking at the port we reap the benefits of being one of the last vehicles to load and are of the first to exit the ship.  We made it to Mazatlan (woohoo!) and it’s time to wake up because the streets are buzzing with traffic of all kinds.  Buses, motorbikes, quick-moving sedans, bicycles riding towards on-coming traffic, and pedestrians weaving their way through it all; Mark’s unwavering attention is required to make our way out of the city.

Our selected destination for the night is in the neighboring state of Durango and there are two options for getting there, either a toll road or a two lane highway that is illustrated by a very squiggly line on the map.  Both roads traverse very rugged mountain terrain with the toll road being less curvy and more heavily traveled than the secondary road.  We start out on the toll road for a portion of the day’s drive until we decide to exit and discuss trying out our alternate option.  

The safety of the road this road is in question as it travels through a remote area in Sinaloa state which has been dealing with cartel violence.  Our adventurous spirits want to experience the scenic mountain road, our rationale is compelled to play it safe and return to the toll road.  The consensus among the group is the toll road until I impulsively express interest in the mountain road and everyone else shares in my curiosity.  Google says an hour and forty minutes to our destination and we have more than enough daylight to get us there, so into the mountains we go.

It feels good to be away from the toll road traffic and driving the leisurely 35mph mountain pace that we love.  At a pull-off marked on the iOverlander app as a potential place to camp, we get out and admire the view.  It’s as good, if not better than, the Grand Canyon.  How strange it feels to have been on the beach yesterday and climbing high into the pines today.

Continuing down the road after our brief stop we notice that the hillside is blackened and smoldering; a small flame of fire flickers along the side of the road.  Mark wonders if we should turn around and in hindsight I wish we would have, in the moment there weren’t many options to do so.  Further down the road are several car-sized patches of burnt asphalt.  Our instincts tell us this wasn’t a forest fire that started by accident.  Not long after, we come upon two military trucks and a dozen or so officers standing guard on the side of the road with their rifles in hand.  Josh is in the lead and stops to ask if it’s safe to proceed.  Using Google translate he determines that the officer says it’s ok to continue.  Between the fire and the military our nerves our elevated but our heart rate doesn’t reach its fastest beat until our next encounter.

A few miles past where we saw the military patrol are two shiny unmarked pickup trucks on the side of the road with six or eight guys in street clothes holding the largest automatic rifles I’ve ever seen.  My mind says this is the cartel, there’s no doubt in my mind.  Josh is gestured to stop.  He rolls his window down and says “no espanol” and then a guy with a full grill of gold teeth says “todo bien” (all good) and waves us all on.  

It takes some time to resume a normal heart rate.  Mark remains calm and collected but we’re both more than ready to make it to our destination which is still over an hour away.  The scenery gets better and better with every passing kilometer and it’s then that I learn that you can simultaneously experience breathtaking beauty and heart-racing risk all at the same time.  

While the rest of the drive feels ominous no other encounters are had.  Shortly after arriving in the town of La Ciudad, a two hundred peso entrance fee gets us into Parque Mexiquillo, a large terrain park with cabin rentals, atv rentals, and plenty of room for our three rigs to set up camp.  A giant exhale is had by us all as soon as we get settled followed by a debrief of everything we just experienced.  We all agree that it would have been a better call to stay on the toll road and further agree that we can use today’s experience to help us make more informed decisions moving forward.  All evening I wrestle with feeling as though I’m the one to blame for ending up on that road but am glad to be traveling with a compassionate group of friends that would never make me feel that way.  

Multiple times throughout the day I think to myself that I wish we were back in Baja.  What immediately follows that thought is a memory I haven’t recalled in many years.  In 2002 when my mom helped me move from Arizona to Denver for college, we got lost trying to find my new apartment the night that we arrived in the city.  There were no smartphones to lean on, no google maps and we ended up at a sketchy hotel in a bad neighborhood.  Neither of us slept a wink that night and it took every ounce of restraint I could muster to not tell my mom that I wanted to turn around and go back to Arizona the next morning.  I was as freaked out as I’d ever been.  Had I acted on that fear my life would be entirely different, most notably (and most devastating to consider) is that I never would have met Mark.  

There’s a difference between fear and instincts.  I wanted to go back to Arizona out of fear and today’s desire to be back in Baja is no different.  Yes, we were on a road we shouldn’t have been on but that doesn’t mean all of Mexico is unsafe.  I believe some truly incredible life experiences await us this winter.  I also know that the highs don’t come without the lows.  Mostly I’m curious who we are going to be and what Mexico will have taught us by the time we return to US soil.

Note: These posts are backdated by almost three weeks. Please rest assured that we have not had a single encounter with the cartel since the day that was recounted in this post. While we wish for our posts to not be any cause for concern it’s important to us to share an honest account of our experiences. Thanks so much for being here and for supporting our travels.


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10 Comments

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  • The cartel has been a concern of mine but when you respond to the comment I post I know your okay at that point. So I love it when you send my a reply! The traffic looked crazy 😧 in the city! Your campsite looked very pretty and cold. I hope it’s nice and quiet.

  • All is well that ends well. We took the toll road back and forth between Durango and Mazatlan. No problems with cartel or police, but the traffic conditions (and all of the trucks passing in heavy traffic, including in the tunnels) felt very dangerous.

    • Thank you for mentioning that fact, I neglected to talk about how the hectic nature of the toll road played a part in us deciding to try another route.

  • You guys went right past the Tufted Jay reserve with grreat camping on the edge of the barranca. We birdwatch on the old road you were on yearly w/o any problems
    Didja get to checkout Concordia? Camping there in town also & great family restaurant on square
    Happy trails

    • We were interested in getting out of Sinaloa state. But that’s great to hear that you have first-hand experience on that road without any issues. We missed Concordia, but will remember the recommendation if we make it back that way. Thanks Will!

  • I admire your courage but I have to admit there was just a tiny bit of worry in my heart. Just take care of each other. I am looking forward to a hug in a few months. Love you both, mom

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We’re Mark & Michele, modern-day nomads perfecting the art of slow, full-time travel.  Our tiny home on wheels and slow-paced travel style allows us to minimize our expenses while maximizing our freedom.  May our unconventional way of life inspire you to design a life that you love.

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