Volcan de Nevado to Tierra del Fuego!

As we reluctantly headed out of “Valle” toward Mexico city, we noticed a cool looking volcano and national park on our trusty “Guia Roji”. What made this one interesting is that there was a road all the way to the crater of Volcan de Nevado at about 4,600m almost 14,000ft! We had to check it out. We drove to the base and parked Tonto and Lobo in the sun and then hopped on Mike to see what the story was. At the top there were two small sized lakes in the crater and a few cows grazing on dirt. We took a short hike up to the rim to try to see what it would be like for us climb around at some serious altitude. Not easy, but there were some outstanding views. If it would have been less hazy I am sure you could see to Mexico city.

Just as we returned to Tonto and were packing up to leave, a couple came peddling up on their bikes! We HAD to stop and chat, and find out what their story was. It was a long story, and so interesting that we ended up spending the night with our new friends Ralph and Pat from Colorado at the base. It was a cold night so we shared a warm meal in Tonto while they told us about their travels, on bike, from Alaska with a goal of reaching Tierra del Fuego in another 16 months! They were very grateful for the propane heater and we loved having people to share food with! It is cramped in Tonto with four, but on a cold night it is just the perfect thing to keep everyone warm! In the morning there was frost on Tonto and on their tents! After a nice hot breakfast we headed down the hill, and Ralph and Pat got on their bikes for the ride up to the summit. What a side-trip for them! With two years to make their trip it seemed important to make the best of their time and see all the sights whether uphill or down, and we wish them luck!





Then it was onto our next challenge in our big, tall, beefy 4x4 van; make it through Mexico city to the toll road to Oaxaca. So many people had warned us against going through the city, because of traffic and accidents, but our local friends in “Valle” drove there all the time, and they didn’t see it as too much a problem. Hector even called the “transito” to make sure they wouldn’t stop us for our plates, being that only certain numbered plates could drive in the city on certain days. As we entered the city limits, John turned on the smooth jazz radio station and we tried our best to navigate the congestion, lack of road signs, and roadwork. Turned out to be “no problemo” (John has picked up some Spanish ☺.) and we rolled through hardly noticed….amazing!