I woke up before dawn in Presidio at the overpriced hotel (3 Palms Inn)  with the intention of making it to the border before anyone else got there and before the narcos I’ld been paranoid about arrived to stake things out.  While packing my bike in the freezing cold I met a nice American-English older couple who then invited me to breakfast.  Nervous about getting across the border and to a reasonable location before dark I left them and went across the border at Ojinaga.

Customs was quite quick and painless other than the sluggish cow of a clerk at the Banjercito (where you get your temporary vehicle import permit) who couldn’t operate the computer properly and typed in my information about 10 times.  For anyone doing this you need: your ownership/registration, driver’s license, passport, and tourist entry visa – get a photocopy of each beforehand – except the tourist visa as you’ve just been issued it – or get copies of everything at the kiosk window just outside the Banjercito window. It took about 1/2 hour and only 4 other people were doing the same thing at that time – about 8am.

I came out of the customs office and feeling the urge to get quickly away from the border started to drive to get maps at the Pemex station when my GPS started show it’s low battery warning even though it was plugged in.  Pemex didn’t have the maps I needed -e.g. for the area or for the whole country. So I headed for the non-toll route to Chihuahua city according to the signs.  By the time I had crested the first range of mountains my GPS stopped working entirely and so I was a bit worried being in border territory with no maps  and lonely without my soothing commandatrix GPS lady telling me where to go.

I came to an immigration control after about 30 kilometres and was let through easily, then on through huge windy and cold valleys followed by small mountains and dusty dessert scrub.   The free road (MEX-16 libre) to Chihuahua was in decent repair with no traffic so I was reaching 120 at times and generally relaxing after having been through both an immigration and a later army checkpoint.   I arrived in

Chihuahua deposited on a busy series of thoroughfares all with many signs.   So I waved down a local motorcyclist and asked him where the Walmart was – so I could try to buy a new plug for my GPS – which I discovered had disintegrated – not very impressed with Garmin at the moment!  He drove me part of the way then drew me a map. I got lost again and got 15 minutes of directions from another (attempting to be) helpful fellow and eventually found my way to a rich Mexican’s shopping plaza.  Inside I managed to get a



USB cable for the GPS which worked until the next town of Cuatehmoc  and then the GPS just stopped working entirely and the cable light no longer showed it was powering anything.  At least now I had the best  full Mexican road/city guide – Guia Roji.




I took the toll-highway from Chihuahua City to Cuatehmoc which was really fast and then from memory followed the signs to La Junta (‘the junction’ I believe) and then had signs to Creel. The road to Creel wound up from the deep valley through pine forests, with tight corners and dusty little villages in rocky canyons. It was really pleasant other than rounding one corner and almost being taken out by a very heavy and fast moving full tanker truck, and then seeing two unmarked white pick up trucks filled with men in camouflage touting automatic weapons followed by a camouflaged Hummer also sporting the covered-faced gunmen.  I am not sure yet if they were army or narcos.  I’m going to enquire around Creel to find out.

I arrived in Creel happy to be in Mexico – the people are as always personable and the atmosphere much more human.  It feels much safer and less threatening around here than had been suggested to me and how the US media projects – I am not very worried about it at all anymore.

Heather and Chuck Edwards Over Breakfast	Successfully Crossed	Roadside Shrine Where the GPS conks out	Canyon on Mex 16 Before Chihuahua
Canyon on Mex 16 Before Chihuahua	Toll Highway From Chihuahua to Cuatehmoc	Mex 25 South Heading to Creel	Mex 25 South Heading to Creel
Mex 25 South Heading to Creel	Outside Creel Pineforests	Outside Creel, MX	Bad face after seeing potential narcos
Creel Rooftops From Huespedes Perez	Huespedes My Room Perez	My Room	My Room
Back Rooms of Hotel	Tired me on arrival in Creel

Presidio TX, to Creel Mx