Mexico Summary

If you are patient, a map will appear showing our route though Mexico

NB the blue dots do not indicate where we stayed each night. They relate to where we were when blog posts were written

107 days to get to Tenosique

9 punctures

30 days without riding

55 nights in the tent (25 nights paid / 30 wild)

18 nights with hosts (9 Inc Mazatlán)

33 nights in hotels etc

Cheapest hotel 250 pesos

Cheapest paid camp 50 pesos

Most expensive camp 500 pesos

Most expensive hotel 1000 pesos

£37 per day average. We find this interesting as it is less per day than America and we have eaten out in roadside stalls, cafes and restaurants much more than in the US and have stayed in many more hotels (mainly when camping options have been none existent)

4 days with rain

Total distance 5731km

Total climbing 60450m

Average distance on days when we rode 71km

We passed though the following Mexican states:

Baja California

Baja California Sur

Sinaloa

Durango

Coahuila

Nuevo Leon

San Luis Potosi

Guanajuato

Querétaro

Hidalgo

State of Mexico

Ciudad de Mexico (not a state but is a federal entity)

Tlaxcala

Puebla

Oaxaca

Veracruz

Tabasco

Chiapas

Comments on our time in Mexico.

Firstly, Mexico is big. Really big. We had been warned before setting off that the effect of map projections makes it seem smaller that it really is but we could not comprehend its size until we were riding here. Riding in the same country for nearly four months does odd things to the mind. On one hand, each day has been great. We have met wonderful people, eaten great food, seen great sights and enjoyed ourselves tremendously. On the other hand it's a curious sensation that we are not making progress (even though we don't have a schedule and our time is completely our own).

Secondly, Mexican drivers are brilliant. Mexican roads have lots of topes (see my previous post), cows, horses and dogs wandering on in then, families on motos, taxis and buses making regular and random stops as well as cyclists using either side of the road. This means that drivers have to be attentive and are used to dealing with other roads users. They are all patient and not possessed by an urgency to reach their destination. All this means we have felt super safe even on busy roads.

We have really enjoyed developing our Spanish. Whilst we still get frustrated by the limitations in our language, when we reflect back on our first few days in Mexico we can recognise just how much we have come on. This makes a real difference as one of the things that makes touring such a treat for us is the interactions with people we meet each day. Being able to have basic conversations with them about their families, where they live, our trip and where we are heading is really important to us.

Mexican food is great. Even as vegetarians we have loved the regional variety in foods. (Being able to communicate that we don't eat meat was one of the first things we learned to say). As we have moved along we spot new foods appearing for sale, we then try them out and get used to seeing them for sale, then we move into a new area and they get replaced by other things.

There is lots more I could say but I'm going to finish in this - Mexico feels really safe. So much of what is covered by the UK media about Mexico paints a picture of a violent and dangerous country. This has not been our experience. All the Mexicans we have met have been really friendly, helpful and generous. All through the country we have been greeted by friendly smiles and waves.