Hola!

3′10′05

All is well, sorry for not writing for the last couple of days, be we were in rustic areas and no internet service.  Right now we are in Creel and just getting ready to drop down into Copper Canyoin,  its like a 6,000 foot drop to the town of Batopilis where we hope to spend the night.

We rode some really cool jeep roads day before, one was just a track down a dry creek bed, it went on for miles, along the creek, up on the bank then back in the creek.  Finally it got up out of the creek and was one of the coolest roads ever, perfectly smooth, up and down just rolling along through the scrub of Northern Mexico.  Chuck ran low on gas and had to buy some out of the back of a pick up truck and the boy poured it out of a big can, it was funny, the modern 950 KTM getting gas the old fashion way.

We ended this day at a large resivour and checked out the dam, it was pretty heavily guarded by military guards, but they could tell we were not trouble!!!!!  And they let us go on out and check it out.  The lake was about 30 miles long and very pretty.

We spent the night in a rough little motel run by a family, they were very nice and fed us dinner and breakfast all for a low price.  Well Chuck saw an open room and instead of sleeping in a room with me and my famous snoring, he snuck in to the other room for the night.

Well they were wise to him and charged us for two rooms so it was a little heavier hit that what we had planned, oh well.  At this motel were some Americans who winter in Mexico at Kino Bay.  They had made the trip up to go fishing with the man who owned the RV park in Kino.  The old guy{s were super nice and funny but Fausto was a little hard edged and was not taking a liking to us because we were cooler than him.  So that night they are all standing around drinking moonshine and Chuck told a funy joke that did not go over well.  ¨Hey we got Keno up in Vegas, it{s great you play a long time cheap!  Kind of like you guy{s, you play a long time cheap!!¨¨   Well Fausto had just enough liquor in him to not like Chucks joke, and it was a good one, I thought it was funny and still do.  So we were out of the club of octagenarions.  Oh well.  The next morning they had all sobered up and no one seemed to remember.

This day we rode mostly paved roads, at least that{s what the map said, but the first road was under construction for 50 miles or more and our speed was about 30mph.  Then we got out on 16 and crossed 3 large mountain ranges, it was beautiful.  Twisty roads like you have never seen.  The big 950 just put{s it to me on the 640, I won{t even play any more,  plus don{t forget Chuck just might have more skill and talent than I do, so that{s my excuses and Im sticking with it.

Last night we stayed in a little log cabin with a fire place and still froze!  It was at 6,300 feet.  It was Bashamichi, where the 1,000 foot tall water fall is, we visited it this morning and got some photos, pretty nice.  While we were at the cabins we met two BMW riders who knew the area quite well and offered all sorts of routes and advice.  Then during further discussions we discovered  we both knew Gerrardo Ibbra from Mexico City, via Indy!  If you remember, Gerrardo was the one who got this whole trip started but could not make it happen on his end.  >Sorry Jerry but thanks and it is a small world.

Any how, we just got done with the bank machine and are getting lunch, before we tackle the trail to the bottom of the canyon.  They might have internet tomorrow night so I{ll write more then.  We are having a great time and no problems what so ever, every one is super nice and food is good and the most comonly asked question¿  Yes, the bowells are still good!

Adios all, I¨ll  talk to ya soon.

PS forgive the typos, many of the keys are differnt than I{m used to, like ñ Ñ }*´´?¡¡¿*_[{{ and spell check is in spanish, so it is no good to me.

3′14′05

Hello from where ever we are!

Boy let me tell you, the riding has been outstanding.  Instead of taking the popular route to the bottom of the Copper Canyon, Chuck found another road that seemed to go to the same town of Batipolis.  Okay, ¨¨seems¨¨ is the key word here.  Well the first road was really cool, a 6,000 foot drop to the canyon bottom dozzens of switchbacks all the way to the river, but alas, no bridge and a dead end.  We did meet a Dutch rider who was coming up out of the valley, he has been on the road for 2 years, 8 months!  Chuck piped up and told him we had been on the road for four days!  I think he was impressed.  ANy how we retraced out path back to the top, found another house with children selling gasoline and struck off on another direction.

I would list the towns we visited, but none of them are on even the good map we have.  Really, we were off the map.  The GPS?  Yes it works fine but it does not know where we are either, just a blip o the radar.  So we spent the night in a nameless town in a $20 motel, it was nice, as we would soon find out.

The next day we climbed up and down the valley a couple of more times, each time a 6,000 foot climb, cross a small stream and start back up.  We were heading to Tobaries, again not on the map.  It was getting late, after 5pm  we were hustling as best we could, there in the distance we could see the church dome, we were home, we were safe, but as we got closer, the church had been burnt and the town was gone, just a few stys and that was it.  We had to keep going.

We had ridden some of the most challanging two track roads I have ever seen, some of you know Engineer Pass in Colorado?  lot´s of stuff like that.  Stopping at villages to ask directions, no one speaking the others language.  Chuck has started speaking this pig spanish, adding an O to every word.  Even I can´t understand him now, not that I´m listening to him.  I made the mistake of letting him have the map,  very bad.  I would take the map back but since we are not on the map, it is moot.

So there we were lost in the back country, it was getting dark, plus it was raining, we were getting in a bad bad way.  But, the road was outstanding, groomed from edge to edge, unlike anything we had seen for days, it was an unlikely place to find a good road.  Finally we met a truck full of cowboys, Chuck made the international sign of place to sleep. (place your hands next to your head like a little child going to sleeep)  The cowboys told us to go with them, back to thier small town.  We were happy to follow, they took us back to a town of huts and we were shown to a concrete building with no windows or doors, the floor was covered with old papers and dog shit, but we were home and thrilled to be there!

The locals invited us over for dinner, it was the first time I have ever had unrefregerated macaroni salad tacos, with water dipped out of a cauldren.  We had broken every rule about visiting Mexico, we drank the water, we ate the food, we rode at night, we rode off the map, we are lucky to be where we are, and thats another story.

Up early the next day, surrounded by dozens of children watching our every move.  We got another map drawn on a napkin and took off.  For hours we took nasty roads.  When we asked for advice and directions, the locals would just laugh, they knew something we did not.  So we rode all day, it was getting late again, the GPS said Batpolis was just arond the corner, if we could just make it to San Ingnacio.

Oh, that´s why they were laughing. the river stood in our way.  A big wide brown muddy river.  There was a a large truck stuck half way across, we were stuck.  It was way too deep to cross.  We had to go back to San Miguel to the bridge.  It was only about 30 miles, but you guesseed it, back up and over the mountain.  Military check points, miles of rough road, and it was getting dark.  We had to push on, it got dark, then black, until we finally got to Polanco and a motel.  It was nice.  no toilet seat or hot water.  Ive decided they are both overrated, and when I get home I{m taking the toilet seat off, I´m always in trouble for either leaving it up or leaving it down.  Plus I spend too much time sitting there reading magazines.   And the hot water?  Ehh, who needs it?  Although that is one of the first things I ask at the motels now.  Aqua caliente?

We eventually made it to Batopolis and it´s oasis of humanity.  Hot water, soft beds and good food.  We think we were fed dog meat the night before, but don´t talk about it much.

We made the climb up ot of the canyon this morning on the popular tourist road, and no it is no peice of cake, in fact over the last 4 days we have covered about 900 kilometers at a speed of about 20 miles an hour.  This is according to the GPS which only measures when the bike is actually moving, so to say the least we have had some long tough day´s and no I do not reccomend this route to any one.  The popular route is just fine, the long way round is very rough.  I´ll tell more once I have more time and I´m not worried for my life, and more about that later.

I do want to thank my freinds who have made donations to cover my expenses, that is totally kind and deeply appreciated.

Chuck is doing well, he says¨: HelloO HowO areO YouO?¨

Okay, I´ve got to run, it´s a 2 hour ride to the next town and we want to get there before dark.  I´ll write soon and keep those cards and letters coming in.

Charlie and Chuck