WINGSSAIL

It’s been about 40 years since I took a vacation not on the boat. Just never did it. Not since Judy and I bought our sailboat, Wings, in 1986. Every vacation was a boat trip, or if not a vacation on the boat, it was a trip somewhere for business.

But driving or flying somewhere for fun and relaxation and staying in hotels? Never did it. Funny huh?

But this summer Sandy and I took a road trip. We took off in the Chrysler for a 14 day trip around historic Mexico. It was actually a great circle route around Guadalajara, in the high country. La Cruz in August is hot. It would be cooler up there. So we turned the Chrysler to the east, away from the hot and humid coast towards the high country. We planned to visit several old Mexican cities and the first stop was Tequila.

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Chrysler 300M Special

Tequila

Tequila was nice enough, lots of tourists in cowboy hats and plenty of the agave juice on tap, but it was the drive there that was pretty fantastic. There is a new highway to Guadalajara and Tequila. Its 137 miles of high speed sweeping curves through the mountains and it’s a toll road so traffic was light and the cars on that highway were travelling fast. I stuck with the fastest of them.

At one point I was flying, about 95mph, through a tightening right-hander and the G force was about point 6. It was a little exciting but the Chrysler held the road. Sandy was snoozing. After Tequila the highways were straight and boring but the cities were wonderful. Our favorite was Guanajuato.

Guanajuato

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Driving into Guanajuato

High in the mountains about 175 miles east of Guadalajara, Guanajauto is a mining town established by the Spanish in 1548. It hasn’t changed much. Defined for centuries by silver wealth, Guanajauto is filled with cathedrals, culture and beautiful colonial architecture on narrow winding streets, We loved it.

Teatro Juarez

We found a room in a luxurious hotel from the 1700’s on the central plaza and explored the old city for days. In the iconic Basilica Colegiata Catherdral, built in 1671, we heard a private recital played on a pipe organ with 1098 pipes which was also made in the late 1600’s.

These are the roads underground

An interesting fact about Guanajuato: the streets are too narrow for much traffic so the city built an underground highway system. Started in the 1780’s as tunnels to divert flood water they were later adapted for traffic and over time expanded into a network. Google maps doesn’t work underground and we got a little lost in those dark tunnels. Our next excitement was in Aquascalientes.

Aquascalientes

(car problem)

Heading northward going about 55mph on an overpass In Aquascalientes the Chrysler’s front suspension broke and I completely lost steering! I yelled to Sandy “I have no steering!”. I took my foot off the gas and with the steering wheel totally slack but somehow avoided hitting any other cars or the guard rail as we came to a stop. Then slowly, carefully, we wobbled, like a staggering drunk, down to the surface streets and pulled to the curb. The left front wheel was pointed at a crazy angle.

Well, luck was with us. Not only did this strut decide to wait until we were going slowly in Aguascalienties instead two days previously of when I was driving 95 mph in the mountains (God, if that had happened then, you would not be reading this from me now!) but 200 feet away from where we stopped there was a suspension shop. I got a tow truck to take us to the shop. “OK, no problem, we can fix that.” Four hours later we were back on the road. On up into the mountains we traveled. Next stop: Zacatecas

Zacatecas

Sandy in the room

Zacatecas is at 8100ft (cool). We found another historic hotel, art and culture everywhere, and a famous cable car ride! We loved Zacatecas. We found restaurants, a nice bar, and culture plus some urban hiking in this hillside town.

Sandy in the Museum

But off we go to Durango

Durango, Mazatlan, San Blas

Durango is on the edge of the escarpment. West of Durango the road drops down 6000 feet to the coast. So down we go: Durango, Mazatlan, then San Blas. VIDEO Wow, what a drive (154 miles). The Copper Canyon is near here, but this road is fantastic: 115 bridges and 61 tunnels and not a meter of straight road. Also, no turn offs for photos. But Sandy drove and I pointed my phone out the window. We stopped in Mazatlan old town for a night and a nice meal but then we were off to San Blas, to my favorite hotel, Hotel Hacienda Flamingo. If you go there stay in that hotel and try to get the room Pili, (they have no room numbers, just names). Pili is a fantastic room full of antiques