Boondocking Nuevo Leon - What I Liked and Disliked

Email me at:

living.boondockingmexico@yahoo.com

Now that the trip is over, I have had some time to reflect about the trip here in Nuevo Leon, how our rig worked out, tourism and a bunch of other stuff. A lot of it all boils down to the adventure and going where you want and when you want.

First though, the rig. Most of the big parks;

• El Sabinal, Cerralvo, N.L.
  
• La Turbina, Sabinas Hidalgo, N.L.
  
• Cañon de Ojo de Agua, Bustamante, N.L.
  
• El Cuchillo, China, N.L.
  
• El Salto, Zaragoza, N.L.

are not too restrictive in size of rvs. The last one in Zaragoza would require a rig with total length less than 36ft (like the autobuses that go to the park). The rest are easy access and all located within less than two hours of the border.

As for the other towns in which we traveled in the North, I believe there is no limitation as long as the rver doesn't mind staying off the main road or parking on the hidden side of the plaza, all of this with permission of course.

Regarding the size of the Funfinder, at 18ft it is comfortable for two, but with the cat carrier and cat box, it takes some maneuvering once in awhile. Overall it was great and I think we could travel a couple of months that way. With retirement coming though, I have been scouting around and have come up with two options. The first would be the Funfinder 210WBS, a 21ft model with a sofa slideout. For where I like to go and be able to do a turn around on a quiet two-lane highway that is about all the length we could manage. The slideout would give more room plus a walk around bed or even better, twin beds. I also have come up with my wish list for the retirement part-time rig:

no roof air conditioner (its noisy, drones and vibrates the trailer, we even swapped it out from a 13.5 to an 8000 btu)
4 deep cycle batteries
solar panels
satelite dish for tv and internet
a small slideout (210 wbs)
water system that allows grey to flush toilet
reflectix insulation liner under outer skin (that shiny silver bubble wrap, we use it now on our windows in both winter and summer, it is a real energy saver)
trailer shocks
no inside furniture, we'll buy our own (no dinette booth)
no curtains, we'll buy our own
3000W inverter hard wired
window unit air built into a cabinet maximum 8000 btus

I mentioned the use of a window unit air conditioner in a cabinet because when we had the first Trailmanor that thing was quiet, cool, added no height to the trailer, easily replaceable and just plain convenient. I am still tempted to have a hole cut in the back of the Funfinder and use up that worthless cabinet space at the bottom of the wardrobe. It would fit just right. I couldn't do that job myself I would need someone who is a professional (any recommendations).

Another issue with boondocking that we came across in some areas was the lack of gas stations and banks. The money issue we can handle. Buying fuel from a tank or a barrel leaves a bit to be desired. I can imagine some of the risk one runs when doing that. This is not to say that stations are in abundance, they are. However, some very rural areas just don't have the demand yet. Also, the Pathfinder has a small tank that limits us to around 225 miles per tank pulling the trailer. I guess buying a truck with a larger tank especially diesel would work out well considering the price of fuel here (diesel is 2.2o us per gallon).

The upside to boondocking that we have found to be true in Mexico is you can park just about anywhere. In all these years we have never encountered a problem unless you might consider a noisy music playing couple. Apart from that no attacks, no robberies, no scary knocks on the door at night while sleeping. I'm going to say it, it just doesn't happen here.

Setting Up A Website?

On this trip I really had fun sharing all these great places we visited and I hope that it has been useful as well as entertaining. A website would help to organize all of this stuff and I have been kicking the idea around. I know the maps may not be very useful, but heck, some of the roads on the map appear but without highway numbers. You get to the turn off and then you see that it is Hwy 9 but its just not on the map.

Also, when I do a search for boondocking in Mexico, my blog comes up. I get a few hits from other countries in the Middle East, Europe and Asia, but I think they are searching for other stuff. So I'm out there but the funny thing is, I get very few hits after almost 4 months. I'm not just looking for hits although the Adsense would make it worth my while. I want to spread the information. Okay, maybe boondocking in Mexico isn't generating a lot of interest but I need to boost readership.

Why Boondock in Mexico?

For starters, you can't beat the fuel prices, food prices, repair prices and the boondocking is free. Also as I stated above, it's safe. Trolling along the coasts of Mexico stopping at just about any beach you want exploring hidden and unknown areas with all the historic, archaeological and cultural finds. Sorry, I'm gonna be on the road every chance I get.