I have a question about if it is safe to drive from El Paso
to Casas Grandes continuing along route 2 to the toll road
15, heading south to Hermosillo and ending up at Bahia de
San Carlos. We are three 50 year old women and two 16 year
old girls. Our vehicle options are 1) 1994 Honda Civic, bit
crowed 2) rent a Toyota Corolla that might have a little
more room or 3) rent a mini van. I'm afraid a minivan will
scream "ricas" and gain us a bit more attention than we
would like. Any advice on this??? We are leaving 4/30 for a
week. Thanks
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It really depends on whether you want to go the fastest and
safest route or the more scenic and interesting route. I
have never driven Mexico 2 west of Juarez, but if it is any
thing like Mexico 2 from Juarez to Matamoros, which I have
driven(which is a two laned highway with much truck traffic
and villages and topes,etc), you are in for a drive where
at best you will be cruising along at 50mph. If you have a
desire to go along Mexico 2 to Casas Grandes, you should
definitely follow that route. It will take longer. Follow
the usual precautions(do not drive in the dark. I recommend
stoping at least 1 hour before dusk. No Americans have any
business being on the road after dusk in Mexico, especially
four females unless you are looking for trouble.) As long
as you drive during the day, you will be fine in whatever
vehicle you decide to take.
Let me suggest another alternative which will save you time
and will allow you to drive at night if needed. Take I10
through New Mexico and Arizona to Tucson and then take 19S
to Nogales and cross the border there. You will hook up
with Cuota Mexico 15 and you are on your way. I recently
drove from Nuevo Laredo to Mazatlan, primarily on toll
roads and found the drive very easy and fast and safe. You
will not appear as "ricas" on the cuota, as most people who
use the cuota(which are expensive for most Mexicans) are
tourists like yourself or are better financially off
Mexicans. As a consequence, there are Green Angels and toll
police who patrol with regularity. One nice feature about
the cuotas is the lack of a radar gun on Mexican patrol
cars. Go as fast as you like. I regularly drove 90mph and
would have gone faster had I not been driving a Saturn. As
far as which vehicle to take, I would take the minivan. If
you want to enjoy your trip, the extra room will be needed.
Try to rent a minivan that is made by Chrysler or Dodge, as
these are now common in Mexico and you will not stand out
as much. Check into which rental agencies allow you to go
into Mexico, or you can rent in Juarez but you will pay
more there. As long as you take precautions, you will be
safe on whatever route you want to take. Have fun!
Let me also recommend a very helpful guide which I
frequently find myself thumbing through. A very wise
investment will be the Northern Mexico guide published by
Moon Guides. It is written by Joe Cummings, a former LP
writer who has also written Moon guides for Texas and also
for Baja California. Unlike some LP guides, which are
geared more for bus travellers, this guide is written
primarily for travellers to Mexico by auto. Cummings not
only has driven the route you wish to take, he also lives
in Baja and offers what I regard as some very interesting
insights to Northern Mexico and the people of Mexico. Check
out www.moon.com for more info. Also, check out
www.mexicomike.com for more Mexico road info. Buen viaje!
I really appreciate your comments. Our Moon guide is old 94
I think. One girlfriend from Las Cruces who is one of our
five has it. Seems I should check out the 98. I am in
Seattle and a person at Wide World Books read to me that
Sonora travel is safe by car as long as you never travel
after dark and stay off very side roads. Neither 2 nor 15
seemed "side" roads so I figure we should go forth. I'm
nervous because I've heard stories from my Mexican friends
about some of their encounters on the roads and also all
night buses. We were robbed at gun point in San Cristobal
in March 94 but we were on a deserted hill climb to a
church and we were lucky because several months of safe
travel had made us more relaxed. It was a very cheap lesson
but it has increased my discomfort and I don't want to
enter paranoia. I think some things you should never do,
other things do with extreme caution and I don't want to
jepordize other people with me. I think we will travel by
car, maybe minivan, probably to Casas Grandes and perhaps
return to US to drive to Hwy 15. I'm excited about San
Carlos. Do you know anything about Hermosillo, places to
see or stay or places in San Carlos? Well, thanks again.
Snook
Like Mexico Joe, I would agree that it is best to go from El Paso to Colombus/Palomas, drive the hour and a half or so to Casas Grandes, spend some time visiting the ruins and the accompanying museum and visit the village of Mata Ortiz, about 20 km from Casas Grandes, where the whole village makes a beautiful black pottery. This village is on a passable but dirt road.There are good moderate hotels in Nuevo Casas Grandes. Then I would go back to New Mexico and do the Interstate 10 to Tucson route suggested. San Carlos has some beautiful beaches, especially around the Club Med. There was also good snorkeling off the coast. I am also from El Paso and have done both of these trips. Rt. 2 after Agua Prieta became mountainous and seemed rather dangerous, with many trucks and a narrow road. Sounds like fun!
If you go from Juarez you must go toward Chihuahua City and
turn west at a wide place in the road called El Sueco. The
turnoff is well marked. The trip should take around 4 hours
from El Paso. I wouldn't do it at night as a "just in case"
sort of precaution but it probably isn't necessarily
dangerous - and the people are pretty nice. Mexico Joe
apparently didn't understand where Casas Grandes is.
If the Pacific coast is your destination, Mexico Joe is
correct.