Hi all,
In both 2006 and 2007, I took a solo driving trip into Mexico and had a good time going to a lot of places tourists never go, or at least seldom see. This year, I'm thinking of taking a trip further south, but I'm not quite sure I want to tackle that alone this time. I'm looking to see if I can get a few other folks to take their Jeeps (or trucks) along too. 4WD is not a necessity, but good ground clearance is. Reliability is a must, as is the ability to perform maintenance and at least basic repairs (usually due to bad roads). Something that looks crappy would be best; I have an '82 Scrambler that looks all of its 28 years. You'll likely want to change your oil at least once, and remember Jeeps are NOT that common down there (i.e. bring your own oil & filters).
Dates are flexible for me, but I'm thinking about four weeks to be safe, some time in the next couple of months. My Spanish is rusty but serviceable. Everyone would be responsible for all of their own expenses and for anyone in their car (hey, I'm not a friggin' tour guide). I have a Garmin GPS, which I'll load up with a world map. Unfortunately, I cannot find an equivalent to the Mexican "Bicimaps" for Central America, so the maps will be fairly course. But I have no plans to go too far off the beaten path, anyway. I'll likely pick up a GSM cell phone, too.
My biggest concerns are Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua. The corruptions about the worst in those four countries, and the crime rate in the Guatemala border towns are pretty bad, at least at night. Once into Costa Rica and Panama, things are probably no worse than Mexico.
It'd be a fun trip, and something to remember. Anyone wanting to go should be aware that they should NOT act like an idiot. Doing so in some of those countries could get you put away for a while. I've never had any issues throughout Mexico, but I rarely drink and only chase women in the approved zones :). Speaking Spanish is a plus, but not a necessity (you'll soon learn what "Topes" means).
I live in Austin, Texas, only a few hours from the border. I'm going to post to a couple of Jeep and Land Rover (let's see if their sense of adventure matches their spare tire covers) clubs in the Texas area to see if there's any interest there.
Let me know what you think. And yes, I'm aware it's crazy based on the feedback I received when I asked about driving into Mexico back on
2005.Thanks, Michael