ANGELS IN MEXICO

By Barry Zander, Edited by Monique Zander, the Never-Bored RVers

Our drive down Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula took us along Hwy. 1, a very narrow and winding passage with no room to move off the blacktop.  Through desert and rocky hills, it passes scarce outposts of civilization where few people, if any, speak English.

POW! We heard the blowout on a trailer tire.  I looked to the right and realized we were 10 feet from a Pemex gas station, the Mexican-owned system of fueling stops with mini-markets.  I pulled in just

enough to get us out of the road.  Ten minutes later the “Green Angels” arrived to change my tire.

The Green Angels is a posse of government-sponsored multi-talented people, ready to help and protect tourists plying the remote spaces of Mexico.  Fantasy RV Tours, with whom we were traveling, had hired them to escort our RV caravan for the entire trip, and, I assure you, no members of our troupe were as thankful to

have them along as Monique and I.

I have often written and spoken about how RV caravans are not journeys where rigs all travel in a queue.  That’s obviously not always true, because on our 1,200-mile round-trip, our 14 rigs mostly stayed together, almost always in sight of the rig in front of us.  It’s not a command, but it seemed like the best way to travel these precarious roads.

When one travel trailer in our band tried to leave room for a motorhome to exit first from a resort RV park, the truck and then the trailer sunk down into

sand about a-foot-and-a-half.  It was the Green Angels that dug that rig out.   [Since we were the only travel trailer in the 14-unit caravan, I’m forced to admit it was I who got into that mess.]

Driving back toward the U.S. through the mountains in an isolated area, we saw a Green Angel on patrol providing water to a car that had obviously overheated in the 88-degree temps.  That wasn’t us.

But, going through the congested Town of Tecate near the border, a local motorcycle policia stopped me for going through one of the dozens of stop signs (which neither of us saw).  He didn’t speak English; we don’t speak Spanish, so we couldn’t explain our side of the story to let him know that we had to stay with our group going through the border crossing.  He demanded that we follow him to the police office, something we did not want to do, knowing that it could be two days before being allowed to leave.

It was the Green Angels who talked it over with him and retrieved my driver’s license.  He waved us onward to U.S. Customs.

I’ll have impressions of our wonderful trip on my website — http://ontopoftheworld.bz — and possibly in RV magazines, with details about petting baby grey whales and lots of other great memories, but I wanted to share with you a very powerful reason for entering Baja Mexico as part of a caravan. Having gone with Fantasy RV Tours & Creative World Travel, which may be the only company currently scheduled to go onto the peninsula, we certainly can recommend the tour. But, mainly, I want to say that thanks to the “Angeles Verdes,” the Green Angels, there was never a time when we were concerned for our safety.  Tony and Isaiah kept their professional distance, but melded well with the entire group, joining us for a few of the Fantasy-prepared casual dinners.

I now invite you to check out http://ontopoftheworld.bz to see some dazzling photos and articles about our visits with the gigantic grey whales and with graceful finbacks.

From the “Never-Bored RVers,” We’ll see you on down the road.

© All photos by Barry Zander.   All rights reserved

Because of the numerous Spam comments on this site, the comments section has been deactivated.  Please email us at neverboredrvers@gmail.com and I will pass along your comments.    Learn about Alaska, the Canadian Atlantic Provinces and much much plus a growing number of travel photos at http://ontopoftheworld.bz.

COMMENTS FROM OUR READERS:

FROM SHARON — Hi, We are planning our trip to Alaska and are wondering about the safety of our “stuff;” i.e., portable generator. Do we need to take extra precautions with expensive things like 50-amp extension cords, surge protectors?  I have read of a rare experience of a generator stolen but it is really hard to get any information about crime rate against RVers. ANY insight would be appreciated. Thanks a bazillion!!  Sharon

MY REPONSE — You don’t NEED a chain for your generator; however, I have the heaviest chain available that will fit through the handle of my Honda 3000i and use it with a formidable lock whenever I take the generator out.  I haven’t heard of anyone losing a generator for years, but it has happened.  Also, I have a smaller chain to put around a ladder and around my extra gas supply when I leave them out.  I’ve lost one ladder in an upscale county park [someone probably needed it and forgot where he got it when he tried to return it].

We have melted two 30-amp surge protectors in our travels.  A 30-amp surge protector costs much less than 50-amp protection, but the price of a 50 amp is a lot less than a fried electrical system.

Western Canada is not the untamed wilderness that you might expect, but, thankfully, there are hundreds of miles of uninhabited land.  It’s not much different than the U.S., only sparser population and more miles of beauty.  Alaska is no different than the rest of the U.S. in many ways.  That said, it’s still the trip of a lifetime.  You may have unexpected situations, but going into the trip, I recommend going without fear and with high expectations.

FROM ALAN IN WASHINGTON — We are going to upgrade our RV to a 23-foot Born Free.  If you were able to list the types of things you and Monique would look for in an RV, what would those items be?  I plan on towing our Toyota 4Runner behind it, just so you know.

BARRY’S RESPONSE – Since the Born Free company has been around 67 years, I’m sure they have thought of the basic needs, so there’s not much to add.  However …

• If you’re thinking about going on the road for several months in different climates, you need room for a variety of clothing.
• How much eating-out do you do?  Refrigerator space is helpful — we supplement our fridge with a Coleman ice chest that plugs into A/C and 12-volt outlets including the truck cigarette lighter.
• I set up an office in the back corner of our rig.  I built a shelf unit and had cabinet space assigned to me by Monique.  We move the computer printer every time we travel, but it’s not a big deal.
• As full-timers, we used the back of the truck for garage (generator, tools, compressor, extra hose and 30-amp electrical cord, folding chairs and other stuff) and the back seat of the truck for our extra closet.  For shorter runs, we don’t have as much onboard.

If a slide-out is an option, take it.  We lived in a 22-foot trailer for a year.  One of the best features of our upgrade was the slide, which almost doubled the daytime living space.

AGAIN, FROM ALAN IN WASHINGTON — Barry, what size solar panel do you have?  Born Free is offering a 300-watt setup from Zamp Solar.  I figure I’ll modify under the RV so that I can have 3 batteries (vs. 2) with the option to increase to 5 if wanted.  It has a residential microwave/convection oven, which will probably be the largest draw of power.  The fridge is dual powered and will be the main consumer of propane.

BARRY’S RESPONSE — We bought our solar panel 8 years ago.  As I recall, it’s 450 watts.  There are very few rigs that rely totally on solar.  Of the three we’ve come across, they had about a dozen panels, some on top that rotated with the sun and others portable.  We’re talking big money, but they were full-time boondockers.  We have never had a real power problem by allowing our panel to help recharge the batteries.  Oh, and don’t forget, batteries are heavy.  You’re better off with a 3000-watt generator, ours weighs 84 pounds when fueled up and powers the A/C and microwave as needed.

What I think I’m saying is “go with the flow.”  Too much technology can bite you in the back.  I’m not suggesting that you don’t upgrade, but 1) be careful, and 2) get road experience before you invest in miracle improvements.  Oh, and 3) I appreciate your exuberance for the latest technology, but the reason to RV, at least for us, is to enjoy the journey.  Getting around the unexpected, of which we’ve had more than our share in Baja, is the memorable part of the adventure.