Five Riders Dual Sporting in the Copper Canyon

[David]

Pretty amazing, Mitch. I'm not an astronomy type person, but I'll never forget looking up and seeing what looked like thousands of them. I'm sure part of the effect was from the lack of ambient light.

[smiller]

In Mitch's enhancement your photo is showing stars down to around 6 magnitude, which is about as dim as can be seen with the naked eye under perfect conditions. Not sure how much better the photo was than your vision alone, but in any event that's pretty darn good.

[Mark Menard (Vita Rara)]

David, Bearden, Mark, Kenny, Dex,

 

What an amazing tale. Just stupendous. I look forward to the rally in '06.

 

David, great pics. I bet the 16-35 got a work out. I can't wait to get down there.

 

My main reaction is, "WOW!" See you on the road,

 

Mark

 

Mark

[Limecreek]

That was a great tale David. I'll bet the trail down the side of the mountain produced some uncontrollable giggles of joy.

 

My wife, the photographer, loves the shot of the little boy. She said it was his eyes...."they speak to you".

 

 

 

 

What a trip.

[David]

Thanks, Greg (and Mark). Sorry we'll not make your fun weekend coming up. Thought about it a lot on our drive home.

[Patience]

Wonderful tale guys! I was looking forward to your return, and David, when I started seeing your posts after you got back, with no ride tale, I was afraid you weren't going to tell it! Thanks for sharing your adventure with us!

[David]

Kenny just got his pictures back, and I asked if I could throw up a few representative ones. He's got some great ones. I really like the how the road doubles around on itself here:

 

 

Nice composition with the cactus against the backdrop of the Lost Cathedral at Satevo:

 

 

Two shots of us taking a break, admiring the views:

 

 

 

Check out the river, waaaaay down there. We'd cross that bridge, just barely visible, about an hour and a half later. This stretch of 40 miles of "road" is about 3 hours of riding, mostly in 1st gear. Of course it took us twice that long with 1 brief mechanical repair and a lot of photography stops:

 

 

Of course it didn't help that Mark kept getting too close to the canyon edge and wetting his pants. Or was that rain? I honestly can't remember.

 

 

You can see all Kenny's photos here:

 

http://kennyandgrace.smugmug.com/gallery/448968

[StretchMark]

I remember, it was rain

[AZJerry]

Enjoyed your post. Five years ago I went to Batopilas in a Jeep. I went with my wife and a friend. One night we were awoke by cows running down the street chased by dogs. We also went to the mission and Divisadero. We could not see the bottom of the Canyon at Divisadero because of clouds. The rain started while we were at Divisadero, which made the locals happy. They were in a drought.

[Kenny Haynes]

Thanks for posting the link and getting some of these up David. I had forgotten how nervous Mark was around those drop offs. The gravel roads were a highlight for me, but this shot is representative of much of the pavement around Creel. It is sweet, and we were all pleasantly surprised at how well the continental tkc80 tires worked on the black top.

 

 

Here, Mark kneels to take the shot of the little girls he posted above. Most of the kids we passed along the way would run to the road side and extend their hand for us to touch as we passed. They were excited to see us, but frequently shy if we stopped and tried to engage them.

 

 

It would be wonderful to be able to time travel back to this spot. A nice snack break with a great group of guys. In the bottom of the canyon, it was quite warm, but as we increased elevation on the way out, the breeze picked up and it cooled off nicely.

 

 

The landscape dwarfs everything, even Stretch.

 

 

Though I suffered a little bit of Montezuma's revenge after we returned, I would head back tomorrow, especially with this group. Thanks again guys.

[steve.foote]

Pretty amazing, Mitch. I'm not an astronomy type person, but I'll never forget looking up and seeing what looked like thousands of them. I'm sure part of the effect was from the lack of ambient light.

 

David,

 

I'm sure the night sky must have been fantastic. So many of the daytime photos reveal a brilliantly blue, clear sky. With the absence of light pollution, the sky must have really opened up. I'll bet the Milky Way was spectactlar.

[Ralph]

What a great trip it must have been. And thanks for the pictures. It brought the trip home to us. Cool.

[eakins]

hey guys,

great trip!

we're talking about a fall trip. i'd like some beta please!

 

-i'd like to know the longest you went between gas being avail? i've got at least 250+ on the klr. did you need the extra gas you had in those red cans. where did you find gas?

 

-what was the name of the hotel you stayed in creel? safety of the bikes? places to eat/drink? other tips about creel?

 

-what was of the hotel you stayed at in botopilas? safety of the bikes? places to eat/drink? other tips, things to see/do?

 

-how long from the border to creel?

-how long did it take to get from creel to botopilas?

-how much/little spanish do you think we'll need. hablo un poquito.

-any other must see or not worth it? sounds like the trip to the church was not worth it.

 

inquiring minds want to know. thanks!

[David]

-i'd like to know the longest you went between gas being avail? i've got at least 250+ on the klr. did you need the extra gas you had in those red cans. where did you find gas?

 

No need for the extra gas. We were trekking to some places that were new, and were just making sure. The longest stretch without fuel is probably 100 miles, from a little stop in the desert to Chihuahua. Even in some remote towns without a gas station you can buy it from locals out of 55-gallon drums. You'll be fine on the KLR.

 

-what was the name of the hotel you stayed in creel? safety of the bikes? places to eat/drink? other tips about creel?

 

We stayed at the "Best Western," the only American style hotel in town. Rooms are great. Restaurant sucks. But there are many lodging options in Creel, and all are cheaper. For security, pick one with a courtyard that is closed at night or has a night watchman. Restaurants are all over the place in Creel, though they don't open early (it's at high altitude and cold). There's one main road--just walk it and you'll find ample options.

 

-what was of the hotel you stayed at in botopilas? safety of the bikes? places to eat/drink? other tips, things to see/do?

 

We stayed at Juanitas. Again, just walk in any direction for places to eat. Bikes will be on the street at night, typically, but it's a small, familiar, safe town. We didn't worry at all.

 

-how long from the border to creel?

 

It's 300 miles and takes about 6-7 hours. What'll slow you down is two check points as you leave the free zone; traffic in Chihuahua; stops along the way.

 

-how long did it take to get from creel to botopilas?

 

It's 45 miles of pavement to the turnoff, but there's lots to see on that stretch, so plan on 1.5 hours. Then it's 40 miles of dirt. Assuming the "road" is passable (i.e., there haven't been heavy rains), it would take you about 3 hours without stops. With typical stops I'd guess 5 hours.

 

-how much/little spanish do you think we'll need. hablo un poquito.

 

Very little English is spoken--it's not like Cancun or Cabo, and you'll see very few tourists. But anyone who's patient and smiles a lot will be fine!

 

-any other must see or not worth it? sounds like the trip to the church was not worth it.

 

Not from my perspective. I found it interesting and would recommend it. The "road" is pretty rough getting to it (6 miles from Batopilas). Rather than going into a long discourse of other things to see, get Richard D. Fisher's book entitled "Copper Canyon Mexico."

 

Have a great trip!

[steveknapp]

Just got done watching Rick Bayless on da TV and it got me thinking, what did you guys eat?

[David]

Just got done watching Rick Bayless on da TV and it got me thinking, what did you guys eat?

 

We had a pretty full breakfast, typically, at a non-descript local restaurant. Hardly ever ate lunch, instead stopping at some place with a nice view and eating dried fruit, cereal bar, and bottled water. Dinner at any restaurant we could find.

 

We ate two real meals a day: local, cheap, and good.

[steveknapp]

What's the local food like?

 

Don't know if you've ever seen Bayless, but he's big on authenthic, often leaning towards "street food".

[David]

What's the local food like?

 

Simple, fresh, tasty. A typical breakfast we'd eat would be scrambled eggs with local saugage mixed in; corn tortillas; coffee. Maybe some "tocino" (bacon) and fresh orange juice. Toast and fresh jam.

 

Dinner might start with homemade soup. Then a Mexican dish--sort of what you'd get in a Mexican restaurant, but not tending toward the TexMex style you'd get in the US. You know, a burrito, tamale, tacos, whatever. Usually with beans and/or rice.

 

Excellent beer everywhere. I hadn't had Tecate much before this trip but really grew to enjoy it.

[bartster]

WOW, Now thats what I call livin. Ride Safe Detroit

[David]

WOW, Now thats what I call livin.

 

Reading it again makes me homesick. What a trip it was.

 

We're going back in March--join us!