Bikerb2

Planning to head south from San Diego in mid November down Baja,ferry over to the mainland from LaPaz,then south along the west coast through Mexico into Central America to the Panama Canal.Then start up the east coast back into Mexico and return to the US.I'm a mid fifties male,lots of touring experience, flexible with the route or any other concerns you may have,plan to use alot of hotels,but will have camping equipment as well.I'd like to average around seventy miles a day,with rest days as needed.Only know very basic Spanish,so if your fluent,it would be very helpful.

Mtroup

Check out Iohan's videos on YouTube. The Central American ones will be of particular interest, as he took a different route through Mexico. He tends to ride well off the beaten path, but it should definitely get your wanderlust stoked. The volcano stuff in Central America is especially inspiring.

djb

finding inexpensive hotels will not be a problem, especially as you improve your spanish and get better at asking questions.
re: wanting to do 110kms per day, by all means, ride your own ride, but do be aware that due to the heat, wind, and the general up and down of the land, you will probably find you will modify your expectations (or not, depends on you, but just know that for an average rider, it likely will be too much, depending on age and all that)

mev

I cycled San Diego to Panama City last year from just after Thanksgiving to April. A few thoughts:

1. Check out climate averages and how they vary with elevation. Baja is great. After leaving ferry in Mazatlan you'll immediately notice difference in heat/humidity few days after that. If you climb to Durango or Tepic, then more comfortable than along the coast. You'll have similar choices later...

2. The website Crazy Guy on a Bike has many journals of people who have ridden the area. It is popular. I found the CGOAB journals nice to read in advance to see and learn from other experiences. I also found them helpful underway since I would search with name of next town or two and find journals.

3. SIM cards are relatively inexpensive. A bit of a pain to keep getting a new one for smallest countries, but nice way to keep connected. In Mexico, I would get an "amigo plan" or "con datos" not sure if that is exactly right description but it got me what I needed.

4. Several places with language schools along the way. Found it a nice break and also good motivation to stop and brush up on Spanish.

My journal: scc2ush.com

chrisx

https://www.bikeforums.net/touring/10...ja-divide.html

Got tubeless?

Coldhands

Cheap digs abundant in Mexico and central, though Baja is a little pricier than the mainland due to a strong economy and influx of migrants/tourists from the north. Mainland Mexico hotels are easily found for 200-300 Pe$o. Southern Mexico (Chiapas, Oaxaca) are cheaper still. Campsites uncommon in Mexico but Mexicans are friendly and hospitable and if you ask 'Por favor, estoy buscando una sitio seguro para acampar', this often ends in an invite into someone's yard, etc. That said, I wildcamped most of the time and had zero problems. Baja is wildcamping heaven.

Here are some tips:

• Take highway 3 and 5 in Northern Baja. Far quieter and much more scenic. Riding the 5 along the coast is a real highlight and you get to visit Crasters Keep, I mean, Coco's corner
• Often the biggest challenge in Baja is the heat. Take plenty of water, always more than you'll think you will need. Many parts of the Baja Divide are (more or less) ridable with a standard touring bike (but extremely hard!), if dirtroads are your thing PM me as I did around 40% of this route with 1.5 tires on a LHT.
• The ride to LA Bay/Baja de los angeles is incredible and so is that little town itself, a great place to relax but you'll have to ride back out unless you fancy 3 days of hard dirt riding (but incredible) along roads which make up part of the Baja Divide.

In Mexico there are generally three types or road. Cuoata, Libre/Federal and quiet country backroads. As a rule, riding in northern Mexico is hot and dry, central is altiplano thus relatively flat and pleasant most of the year round weather wise, if not a little chilly in winter. The south and tends to be quiet mountainous and either side are two massive mountain ranges which run north to south, these make for extremely rewarding riding but are tough. Riding along the coasts is hot and sweaty, and unless you like beaches I strongly recommend heading inland.

Que te vajas bien!


* this isn't always the case, for example the toll road which runs from Mazatlan to Durango now sees the vast majority of the traffic as it cuts many hours from the journey time. The old federal road is almost void of traffic and many cyclists told me it is a must-do ride when crossing Mexico.