Zinapecuaro to La Penita

Made the drive from Zinapecuaro to La Penita in one day, about 350 miles. No problems except that the parking space at the Pemex in Chapalilla where we usually spend the night had no parking signs in it. So we had to go all the way with no stops. The only thing we saw was lots of Quota booths that collected all our pesos.

Heaven's Gate park is really nice with the owners helping us to get set up. The park is small but surrounded with either a wall or fence so that Leo and Hayley are able to run free without the worry of getting out. We took them through the gate to the beach where they ran and played until they had to lay down and rest. Both had "Happy Dog" faces on.

This is the first time coming to Mexico that we weren't stopped by any Military or Police check points. We made a little shopping trip down town in La penita and as when we were here before, the people are friendly as always.

Parked at Heaven's Gate RV Park

Leo & Hayley Enjoying the Beach

Our Beach North

Our Beach South

Down Town La Penita

Day 6 .. Zinapecuaro

We walked around Zinapecuaro with David today. There's a market area that's open every day and sells just about everything you can think of.

Zinapecuaro is a totally Mexican town and David believes he's the only gringo in town. I was able to get another supply of pesos from one of the two banks in town so we have enough to get to La Penita.

We'll be leaving here tomorrow and should be in La Penita by Sunday or Monday. No posts on the Blog until we get there.

Here's a couple of pictures of the town

Our friends and hosts Teri & David and their home

Day 4 & 5 November 22nd & 23rd

There hasn't been an opportunity to post as we didn't have an internet connection.

Crossed the border about 8:00am on Nov. 22nd. The Mexican immigration office was almost empty except for one other couple from Ontario driving a car to Ajijic near Chapala.

Getting our immigration and vehicle permits went quickly although there's a new rule about your towed vehicle that now has to be driven across the border by itself so it had to be disconnected from the motorhome.

Shortly after leaving the border area, there was new road construction that confused me and I went down the new section of road being constructed that ended at a ditch. We had to disconnect the Jeep and get turned around. It was a bad driving day for me because shortly after I somehow ended up going the wrong way on the new road and had to cross the median when we say two lanes of big trucks coming right at us.

Highway 57 goes through a mountain range and the SunSeeker was having a little trouble getting up the hills and at one point died but I was able to start it up again. It was still having problems when under any load and fortunately there was a road side mechanic that I was able to drive to. At first they thought it was the fuel filter but after taking it off found it was ok. The problem turned out to be the fuel pump and after watching the mechanics pull the gas tank out and getting the new pump installed and paying $8,500 pesos we were on our way. This was a little over $600 dollars but the same job back home would have cost three or four times as much.

It was getting dark by the time we got out of the mechanic's shop and we went against one of the main rules about driving at night and continued on to Matehuala. There was lots and lots of trucks on the highway but we made it safely to the La Palmas hotel in Matehuala at 10:45pm.

The next day (November 23rd) we had a good breakfast at the hotel restaurant and started on our way. There was still a lot of mountains to go through but the SunSeeker was running much better although it still couldn't get up some of the steep hills with any speed.

The couple from Ontario went their own way to Ajijic while David and Diane and I headed towards Morelia. Unfortunately we got on a few wrong roads during the day which resulted in driving much longer than anticipated but we arrived at David's home in Zinapecuaro at about 9:00pm

There seemed to be many more toll roads than we remembered and paid as much in tolls as fuel. Our motorhome was charged as much as a bus plus we also had to pay for the Jeep.

We met David's wife, Teri and stayed in their home where we're having a relaxing time before heading to La Penita.

Replacing the SunSeeker Fuel Pump

Traveling Friends at La Palmas Hotel

Spanish Conquistador Armor and Sword

Day 3, November 21st

Met our travel buddy David today and had a long enjoyable chat about our lives and adventures in Mexico. We'll get our travel plans finalized this evening and meet at about 7:30 in the morning in order to be at the border crossing at 8:00am when they open.

David lives in Zinapecuaro, a small town near Morelia and insists we visit with him and his wife before heading to our winter park in La Penita.

Casa Blanca State Park

Day 2 November 20

We pulled into Casa Blanca State Park in Laredo about noon after driving about 160 miles. Not much sleep last night as the first day/night on the road your body has to get used to the change. The pups were also up and down all night aware of all the new noises they hear in the Walmart parking lot.

I thought there might be a problem with the refrigerator as there could be no noise heard from the propane coming on when switched from electric to gas but it seems to be keeping things cold so not going to worry about it now.

The wind wasn't blowing as strong today but still blowing enough so that the ceiling vent in the bedroom came off its tract and is danger of blowing off completely. When we get home we'll have to get a new vent. Hopefully it will stay together until we find someone with a ladder so that I can get on the roof and duct tape it down.

It's still quite warm but we have a nice camp spot that backs up to the lake at Casa Blanca State Park. Leo and Hayley couldn't wait to get in the water and have a swim. It's been a while since they've been swiming and Hayley didn't want to come out of the water when called.

We're scheduled to meet up with our "travel buddy" David tomorrow. He left the Denver area several days ago and he and his dog are driving to Morelia where he and his wife have a home. The plans are to cross the border early on Tueday morning.

Day 1 on this trip's adventure

After getting all the last minute items aboard, we finally pulled out of the driveway at 9:00am. Not bad for us.

We headed down highway 59 from Livingston and found ourselves in the middle of highway construction half way through Houston. After getting through Houston the traffic on highway 59 south was moderate however the sky clouded over and a fairly strong wind picked up. Unfortunately we were driving right into it which made the SunSeeker work a little harder.

A Class C motorhome is definately not a Class A in terms of power and handling. Driving the SunSeeker fully loaded with the Jeep on behind reminded me of fully loaded dump trucks I've driven in the past... But one gets used to everything and as long as the SunSeeker keeps going with no problems, I'm happy.

We traveled 261 miles today, most of it into the wind and decided to stop about 3:30 at a Walmart in the town of Beeville. (Sounds like something out of a Dr. Seuss book) The pups continue to be first class travelers and Leo had to show off when we were getting fuel, pretending to be the driver while sitting in the front seat. A lady getting gas at the next pump was so impressed she had to take his picture.