Driving from Texas to South America in a 1st Gen 4runner

[Ruined Adventures]

First Taste of the Mainland

Our ferry arrived in Mazatlan early the next morning and we spent about half a day exploring the city before heading south to San Blas, Nayarit. It was nice to finally make it to mainland Mexico and switch from desert to lush coastline.

San Blas was one of Brenton's favorite places from when he and his sister backpacked Mexico in 2004 and he really wanted to bring me there to share in some of his nostalgia.

San Blas is known for it's laid-back demeanor and easy surf break for beginners. We were greeted by "Pompis" Cano, the national longboard surf campion who owns Stoner's Surf Camp and offers private lessons and we quickly settled in.

We spent several days in San Blas, jogging on the beach, riding bicycles through town, and hanging out in the plaza at night. We also met Diana and Stephane, a very nice couple on vacation. Diana is from Monterrey and Stephane is from France, though he is currently living in Monterrey too. We spent time with them and a friendly group of mexican bikers on the beach. It was great Spanish practice for a while, as we explained our route to the bikers...until their drunk buddies pulled up and drove their Harleys up THROUGH the restaurant and onto the beach, getting stuck in the sand and blaring "Hot For Teacher" while the old caretaker was trying to sleep. It was bizarre for a second but our new friends managed to shoo them away. The next night the four of us had dinner and drinks together (no rowdy bikers in attendance).

​

Next we moved on to Tepic where we explored for half a day before heading to Jalisco and settling down at Laguna Santa Maria del Oro for a couple of nights. For me, it was a breath of fresh air. Finally, we were surrounded by grass, big green trees, and mountains. Laguna Santa Maria del Oro is actually an old volcanic crater that is now filled with water. It's incredibly beautiful and our campground was right on the water's edge. Our second night there we were treated to a live mariachi band while overlooking the lake. Each night we entertained ourselves by watching the industrious ant colonies that surrounded our camp, and playing cards. It really doesn't get much better than that. We left the next morning feeling refreshed and ready for some Tequila.

We got to the small town of Tequila just a little too late for a tour at Jose Cuervo, but not to worry, we just happened to arrive on the 482nd Anniversario de la Fundacion de la Villa de Santiago de Tequila, and Tequila know's how to party. The plaza was filled with vendors, musicians, carnival rides, and fireworks. We enjoyed some delicious margaritas, micheladas, and pastor tacos while taking in the celebration. We slept in a locked parking lot that night and the next morning, rather than waiting till late afternoon for a Jose Cuervo tour in English, we headed to Casa Herradura in the next town of Amatitan. I had read that though this operation is slightly smaller than Jose Cuervo, the grounds themselves are much more beautiful. We were happy with our decision. We got an English tour just ten minutes after we arrived with a small group of seven. The distillery was beautiful and at the end we all sampled tequila together, my personal favorite being the "plata", although Brenton had to finish most of the tequila for me.

The agave pulp...sweet and tasty to chew on​

Our next destination was Guanajuato. Another place that had been a favorite of Brenton and his sister's on their previous trip. It didn't take me long to see why. It's hard to explain other than the city just has a feel about it and an attraction. It's a small town with lots of history and plenty to see and do. We camped the first night on the panoramica then explored around town until we found a hotel with hot water at a decent price. Since we already knew we wanted to spend some time here, we arranged to stay for a full week at Hostel Cantarranas in the Centro Historico. This would be our first time staying in a hotel on this trip. The couple of campgrounds in the area are all outside of town and we wanted to be close to the action. Guanajuato is full of steep, narrow & winding alleys and each one is different from the next. The architecture is beautiful and colorful and the city never seems to sleep. We made two hikes up to the statue of Pipila, one for sunset and one for sunrise. The view was breathtaking.

One of many rooftop dogs in Guanajuato

After Guanajuato, we headed to San Miguel de Allende where we paid way too much to camp for two nights. We can't complain (too much) though, we met some really nice overlanders from Germany and Belgium. Joachim & Barbel have been camped out in San Miguel for three years! They are a very nice couple, and they gave us some great information and campground GPS coordinates for our drive south. Bernard & Alexandra are traveling with their three young girls, ages ten, five, & three in a 2002 Land Rover Defender. We spent a night exchanging stories and information with Bernard & Alexandra.

The architecture in San Miguel is similar to that of Guanajuato but more monochromatic and minus the steep hills. San Miguel in general is a pricey area and is filled with retired North-Americans and European ex-pats. The city is incredibly clean and the plazas are beautiful and well kept. For our third and last night in SM, we ninja camped near the plaza principal and the next morning headed to the incredible church of Antotonilco.

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The Santuario de Atotonilco is an amazing church just outside of San Miguel de Allende. Pilgrimage to Atotonilco is a goal of many Mexicans as it has a significant role in Mexico's independence and is viewed as a very important sanctuary. The walls inside the church are covered with beautiful murals and different stories from the Bible. Only a visit would do it justice, but it is worth a mention and a couple of pictures. From here we made our way to Dolores Hidalgo.

Dolores Hidalgo is a small town with a nice plaza, beautiful pottery, and some interesting hand spun ice cream flavors. One of our first stops was at one of the many ice cream vendors in the plaza. We were given samples of every flavor they made. Some were great, some I don't know why they ever thought it'd be a good idea to turn it into ice cream. Brenton tried all of the bizarre ones, including the shrimp flavored ice cream. I couldn't bring myself to try the shrimp; avocado and beer were adventurous enough for me! As we were strolling around the plaza that night, out of no where all of the lights in the plaza and the church went out. We thought they must have had some sort of power outage; and then the loud music began to play. On the entire face of the church they began to show pictures telling the story of the town's past and it's role in the fight for independence. It was a really neat experience that we happened to randomly stumble upon.

Next stop, Guanajuato round two.

For more pictures from Mazatlan to Santa Maria del Oro, click here: Mazatlan to Santa Maria del Oro
For more pictures from Tequila to Guanajuato, click here: Tequila to Guanajuato

 

[Ruined Adventures]

Fast-Forward to Now: bribes, counterfeits, and dysentery

First of all I'd like to formally apologize to our readers, all five of you, for the serious lack of updates we've had over the past few months. I hadn't realized how far behind we were until we won the award for "Most Slackerest Blog" (new word courtesy of James at Home On The Highway). Between fighting Shannon over the keyboard and actually putting the computer away to actually enjoy our trip, it's been a little tough to update our experiences. I'll do my best to sum it all up to date, and get things back on track.

We did a post on our blog last month which I didn't upload here, but it's not exactly relative to the trip...it's more of a tribute to a good friend we made on the road: Guanajuato Fred

We've had a few highs and lows over the past few months...

In Mexico, we fell head over heals in love with the small town of Guanajuato. Admittedly I already had a serious love affair with GTO, but after I introduced Shannon to the charm and beauty of this pueblo magico in Central Mexico, it became a full-on complicated love triangle. We spent over a month there and could have easily just put the 4runner up on blocks, and slipped away into the daily grind as full-time expats there.


In Mexico City, while shopping for a wedding dress and size 4 heels for Shannon (an experience that all overland travelers should seek out) we were robbed not once but twice by taxi-drivers...well robbed may be stretching the truth a bit. There were no weapons involved, no threats, and we didn't even notice it was happening but after the ride we realized that one driver slipped us a fake bill in change and the other had given us an out-of-circulation bill that was worth less than a dollar. Another souvenir for the road and another lesson learned.

Occupy Oaxaca in full effect...teachers on strike made it difficult to appreciate the downtown architecture
​

In Oaxaca and Chiapas, we blazed through at least 4 of the unofficial roadblocks that we had heard so much about. Basically two people holding a rope or cable across the road, we were warned that these were attempts to stop you while men in the bushes come out to rob you. Admittedly it appeared that these were all simply attempts to sell elotes or tamales by the road, we drove through anyway, not really in the mood for a snack.

I'll be happy if I never eat another chapuline (grasshopper) again​

We crossed paths with Crossing Latitudes, who we went into the Sierra Norte with, eventually giving a ride to two colorful characters in a small mountain village. The six of us followed a lead towards a nearby party and stumbled on a 600 year-old religious tradition in a small village that I couldn't even pick out on a map. We were treated like royalty and the villagers were warm and friendly. I may or may not have consumed fire-water straight from a gasoline jug...I survived, but for a second I thought that I may go blind.

Going where the wind takes us

Our new friends Mindy & VJ, Aaron & Aneta​

Our border crossing experience to Guatemala was gentle at La Mesilla, however the nice man at Migración did ask for the unofficial Q20 fee for each of our visas. Thanks to Life Remotely and WikiOverland, we knew what to expect beforehand so we kindly asked for a receipt.

"The stamp in your passport is the receipt." He claimed.

Without skipping a beat, I replied "That's cool, but I just need an official piece of paper that says I give you Q20 and you give me the stamp to receive the visa."

We went back and forth like this for a while, referring to notes that I had made on a piece of paper. Since I had obviously done my homework and I was not going to budge on the matter, he quickly changed his story to "You pay the 20 quetzales for the visa when you LEAVE Guatemala" in a disappointed tone. Sure buddy.

Tractor-powered ferris wheel of death in San Juan La Laguna​

We spent a month in San Marcos La Laguna and this was our second time finding home away from home. A quiet village on Lago de Atitlan, we spent three weeks taking spanish lessons from Homer of San Pedro Spanish School. We now feel very confident with our spanish conversational skills and we've definitely noticed a difference in daily interaction. We made a few friends on the lake and even managed to pick up some informal lessons in Kakchikel, the local Mayan dialect...although the local girls giggle every time we attempt to pronounce it.

One of many lancha rides across the lake​

My sister and brother-in-law came to visit us in Guatemala and they brought our 4-month old nephew so we could finally meet him. This kid is so awesome...not only does he live in Madagascar, but he's going to have more stamps in his passport by the age of one than most of my friends back home do.

International man of mystery in training

Getting stamped out of Guatemala, officially in "no man's land"



We decided to make the short trip to El Salvador for some surf and sun. On the way there we had a few options to get to the coast...

Easy does it

Enjoying a beer on the ferry to Monterrico​

This border crossing experience was a little more interesting now that we were officially in Central America...we had read stories about the "helpers" that approach like zombie hordes and harass you into paying them to get your paperwork completed. We decide along time ago that we wanted to do it the hard way, completing our paperwork for ourselves and hopefully becoming border-crossing pros. We did not however, expect the helpers to barrage us on motorcycles, before we even got near the border. Imagine the final chase scene from Mad Max: Beyond The Thunderdome...post-apocalyptic thugs chasing us on bizarre machines riding alongside the 4runner for the chance to hop on the hood, while screaming "Let me help you! I will take care of your papers!"

Approaching El Salvador's border​

While I may be exaggerating a little, the description is not too far off. The sketchy moto-helpers were riding through oncoming traffic, tapping on my window, pleading to be the one to help us take care of the border crossing red-tape. Once we parked at the border, we had at least fifteen helpers literally surrounding us in the 4runner before we even stepped out. They were all banging on the windows and claiming to help us "for free", while we just sat for five minutes in pure shock. We had to brush them off and make our way to the migración, but one helper who spoke very good english would simply not leave me alone. I told him we wanted to do everything on our own and we already knew what to do, but he was like a fly in my ear at every step. He would tell me what to do AS I was already doing it, while I was politely telling him that he was actually making the process more difficult since we could not hear the border officials talk to us. I finally ditched him when I needed a copy of our vehicle title...he waited for me at the copy-shop while I went to the 4runner to get a copy I already had. Overall the border took us almost 3 hours, most of that time was spent waiting for the kind folks in El Salvador's aduana to notice us and actually give us the time of day.

Note the convenient handle above the bed and the toilet paper dispenser​

We got lost trying to find Parque Nacional El Imposible, stumbling past MS-13 graffiti and eventually ended up staying for the first time in an auto hotel. In case you're not familiar, an auto hotel is a place where you pay by the hour and they have a little garage for each room so you can hide your car from sight. The menu had condoms and lubricants...probably not the best way to welcome your family to Central America, but it was unforgettable no doubt.

Keeping a low-profile in gang territory

Sunset in El Salvador

The volcano of Parque Nacional Cerro Verde
​

While in El Salvador my brother and I got to enjoy some surf at El Zonte, where I was desperately trying to avoid swallowing the water while half-drowning. The surf break is about 200 yards from a river outlet that is undoubtedly flowing with sewage. Needless to say, while attempting to duck dive my lower lip was ripped open by the powerful surf and I ingested more crap-water than I had hoped.

The break at El Zonte​

A week later when we finally found Parque Nacional El Imposible (it is indeed fairly impossible to locate),where I spent 48 hours trembling in bed with a fever of 103, surrounded by hallucinations of a tombstone that read "DIED OF DYSENTERY" while wondering if Shannon would continue the journey without me or find an El Salvadorian sancho to replace me. Unfortunately Shannon eventually got just as sick, so we took turns nursing each other to health and trying to cool each other down.

So that pretty much brings us to present day, with a couple of exceptions. The 4runner is currently out of service right now for some maintenance and repairs, so we're trying to figure out our next move from Antigua. We may write a few updates that will fill you in on some of the specifics that I've left out, but for now we will consider our story updated. James, you can stop harassing us now...

I almost forgot to mention the highlight of our trip so far: 31 of our favorite people came from all over the world to see us on the lake...

And we got married!

Stay tuned for more details on our recent nuptials.​

 

[Ruined Adventures]

A few more pics...

Our friends Kamil & Zuzanna we met in Mexico City (and again in Oaxaca, and again in San Marcos La Laguna)

Watch out for this dude if you go to Mexico City, we caught him peeing on our rig while we were sleeping inside

Laundry Day at our campsite in Oaxaca

Some of our new friends at the Oaxaca Campground

Found an apartment in Oaxaca for $5/day with no furniture and serious mosquitos...no problemo!

A short hike in the Sierra Norte

With Crossing Latitudes, exploring a watch tower and suspension bridge

One of our favorite campsites in Oaxaca, despite the fact I was sick as a dog

Pulling up to Monterrico on the "fun-ferry"

Stealing as much air conditioning as possible from the Aduana office in El Salvador

The guest bed in our sleezy auto hotel...still can't figure out why there was a little closet-sized garden?

Obligatory overlanding photo for Parque Nacional El Imposible

Sweet little Suby we saw in El Salvador

Tuckered out little traveler

Everyone has their preference

I ain't skewered...

Our new friend Sean, we bumped into him at one of our favorite haunts in San Marcos La Laguna

The reason for the celebration in the Sierra Norte

Lago de Atitlan, not a bad view for the next month​

 

[Devils Paw 80]

Lago de Atitlan sounds like a great place to be "stuck" for a month. Looking forward to more of your photo journalism.

 

[Ruined Adventures]

Looking forward to more of your photo journalism.

It sounds so fancy when you put it that way!

We've always just thought of ourselves as homeless people with a camera

 

[Eric Hohlfelder]

Great adventure story. Love the pictures and candid writing. I think my 85 4Runner is twiching for a ride into the sunset. Keep it up and enjoy your trip.

 

[Ruined Adventures]

We've officially sold out!

Shannon and I try really hard to keeps it real, but admittedly the corporate world has sunk it's teeth in...

More details on our 'Sponsors' page

 

[Ruined Adventures]

We wrote a short article, discussing the finer points between driving, backpacking, cycling, or traveling the world by motorcycle. This one's for all of our readers who are contemplating how to go about their journey...however we would love some feedback in the comments section if you have relevant experience, feel free to contribute to the discussion!

Overland Advice: To Drive, Or Not To Drive

 

[Ruined Adventures]

Our 4Runner is possessed! I guess we asked for it...

Thanks for the virtual hug Ocell and thanks again to all you Yota-lovers reading our little thread.

Just about a month ago Shannon and I were chatting in the shower (I know you're jealous already but I couldn't resist). I mentioned that so far our journey has been all rainbows and unicorns...no getting stuck to our knees in mud, we're never hopelessly lost (just slightly lost), and no frustrating breakdowns so far. I told her that I want to push the vehicle further along with our own limits, trying to bring some adventure into this little road trip of ours.

I was surprised when Shannon fully agreed and we made plans to get silly when we head into the Petén region. Keep in mind the Petén is the Amazon of Central America...also keep in mind that we'll be passing thru during the wet season. What better way to spend our honeymoon, right? What a gal.

Little did I realize, that the very first DAY that we head in that general direction we get surprised by maniacal electrical gremlins.

So I'm driving up into the mountains, out of the Lake Atitlan area and I suddenly notice that my brake light comes on. That's not uncommon, since I usually have a bandanna tied around my parking brake and it sometimes gets caught extended just enough to trip the switch and set off the light. Not this time...there's no bandanna, and I check three times to make sure the parking brake is all the way off.

Shannon asks me what that means (which is usually best to ask AFTER I've figured it out), so I tell her it could just be low on brake fluid. Except for the fact that I had just topped off the brake fluid before we left. So I pull over, pop the hood and take a look. Everything looks great. I take a peak under the 4Runner, and again, everything looks good. Okay, that's weird.

So we take off and as I'm driving I'm playing 20 questions with myself, trying to brainstorm why that stupid light seems to be screaming in my face. Suddenly I remember that the brake light can be the first clue when the alternator isn't putting out enough juice. Well now that you mention it the voltmeter looks like it's reading a little above the halfway mark when it usually reads much higher, almost to the mark just below 18 volts.

So I grab our cheapo slightly questionable voltmeter that we keep plugged into a rear cigarette lighter to monitor our aux/house battery. It says the alternator is bouncing around between 9 and 11 volts. Oh great, it looks like the alternator is gonna bite the dust. So I pull over again and get out my multimeter to get a legitimate reading from the alternator. Of course, my multimeter has failed when I need it most. I take a moment and spray some WD40 directly at the alternator, hoping to displace any water from when I recently washed under the hood (did I forget to mention that tiny detail?).

So I put my faith in the cheapo cigarette lighter voltmeter and tell Shannon we're running strictly on the battery's juice, so we need to get somewhere quick. I luckily find a paid parking lot (parqueo) that's directly across the street from an "electro-mecanico" and around the corner from a parts house. Of course it's raining like that scene from Forest Gump, but at least this parqueo has concrete instead of mud and there's a bathroom, so we make plans to stay the night.

Now in this situation, I've found it's best to throw my hands in the air, maybe shake my fist at the sky...and then get some food and maybe a beer. Luckily across the street we find a comedor (cheap eatery) and we promptly get to it. We come back to find out that the guy who runs the parqueo decides to NOT let us sleep in our vehicle there overnight since they also have hotel rooms. We tell him we're on a budget and we want to sleep in our rig, but it doesn't sound like it was his call anyways. I tell him we're going to find another parqueo to sleep in our vehicle, as long as it starts up.

We were surprised to find out it started back up and now our cheapo voltmeter was reading between 12 and 13 volts. Either there was water messing with the alternator and the WD40 did some magic, or this cheapo voltmeter is as unreliable as I thought. The volt gauge on the 4runner is now looking like normal too so that's vote number two. I decide to press on and closely watch the cheapo voltmeter AND the volt gauge and see if anything acts up.

We make it this way for another two hours and the cheapo voltmeter is eventually looking happier and happier. After a few clicks we're steadily pushing above 13 volts while winding through the Pan-American highway, so I'm thinking we're golden. Thank god I don't have to rebuild the alternator in a muddy parking lot in Antigua, right?

Next thing I know the cheapo cigarette voltmeter is reading even higher and higher. It's steadily above 15 volts and eventually even climbing up to 16.5v. Well that's probably not good.

We're about 20 km outside of Antigua, our destination for free camping until we head to the Petén region, and all of a sudden the 4Runner becomes possessed. The LED for the alarm is suddenly flashing super-bright blue, like a hipster that suddenly decided two hits of Ecstacy would be better than one. At the same time the windshield wipers turn on uncontrollably and go into hyperdrive, back and forth like 'Wacky Waving Inflatable Arms Flailing Tube Man'. The low fuel light is telling me in Morse code to please stop torturing my 4Runner in these strange, foreign lands. Several things are going on at once and it's hard to pay attention, while I'm dodging chicken-buses on the carratera inter-americana. Shannon's freaking out, asking me what's going on before I even have time take my foot off the gas pedal.

Next thing I know there's a big flash/pop. The poltergeist is suddenly gone and a little puft of smoke comes from somewhere around the tilt column or behind the dash directly in front of me. I turn on my hazards and I'm surprised to find that they work and decelerate into the shoulder. Luckily the engine is still going, but all of the gauges are dead except for the speedo. The clock, radio, and any cab lights are toast and the cheapo cigarette lighter voltmeter tells me nothing aside from "I told you so". Bastard.

I get out and check under the hood, everything looks normal (and clean!) :chair:. I test the headlights, brake-lights, and running lights and they all work. Now I have to decide between dealing with this right here and now, in the middle of sketchy-town Guatemala, or keep on for another ten minutes to the gringo-comforts of Antigua.

So we made it to Antigua with no more problems aside from the fact that our 4Runner is now deaf, dumb, and mute. I know that's not politically correct but our vehicle no longer has feelings at this point. After a decent check-up, it looks like no fuses are fried, I can't find any toasted wiring, the 4Runner won't start back up unless I do the screwdriver trick to the starter, but somehow the aux. battery is fine and dandy. When I restarted the 4Runner, the aux. battery's circuit showed 12.4 volts with the cheapo cigarette-lighter voltmeter so I can only assume that the alternator is officially toast.

Of course our natural reaction after all of this was to head to the nearest bar and indulge in happy-hour Cuba Libres and hot-wings. What better way to take the edge off and contemplate our current situation. Luckily we're stuck in a fun city with free camping and all the comforts of home.

I can't help but wonder if the overcharging alternator fried the wiring between it and the factory fuse block. I wouldn't be surprised if our computer was sacrificed too. Luckily we're only a 30 minute chicken bus-ride away from Chimaltenango, which seems to be the 80's-90's Toyota pickup and 4Runner's life-after-death. Parts should be no problem to find, but I just need to figure out the full situation.

 

[Ruined Adventures]

What do you think?

In Summary:

the alternator got wet...

Then it was overcharging (15-17 volts)...when the 4runner went Poltergeist on me it actually flashed over 24 volts at one point!

Now everything in the cab is dead: the gauges, gauge lights, dome light, clock, radio, cigarette lighter, ignition, alarm.

The isolated aux. battery is fine, along with all of it's associated accessories.

It appears that the alternator is charging, but the vehicle won't start unless I use a screwdriver to jump the terminals on the starter.

I'm just curious what you guys think about all this. I'd love to know if any of you have theories or similar experiences. Let me know, thanks.

Now that I've had a couple drinks to get the wheels turning, I've somewhat fixed the multimeter so hopefully I can figure more out.

 

[Devils Paw 80]

I don't know, but it sounds like the voltage regulator went screwy and maybe fried some wiring. You could easily put in a push button starter in the cab, and with the headlights and running lights working you should be good to go once you get a new alternator.

 

[Ruined Adventures]

Here's a little post that Shannon wrote while I'm dealing with our electrical issues...

Our Wedding Day in Guatemala​

Even though we had been engaged for a year, we didn't actually decide where our wedding was going to be until about three months before the actual event. After seeing photographs of Lake Atitlan and getting confirmation from several other about how amazing the lake was, the decision was made to have our wedding there.

We decided to keep the wedding to family and invited only a few of our closest friends. We wanted to keep things as simple as possible. We were originally planning to have our wedding alone, with no guests at all, so this was a stretch. Considering the short notice, we figured ten, maybe fifteen people would commit to the occasion. You can imagine our surprise when thirty-one loved ones RSVP'd.

Our good friend Katie recommended staying in San Marcos La Laguna at Hotel Aaculaax. At Aaculaax we made friends with the owner Lily, who recommended talking to her friend Ana who happens to be a wedding planner and owns a hotel in Santa Cruz La Laguna.

Our honeymoon suite at Hotel Aaculaax...only a slight adjustment from sleeping in the 4Runner.

The honeymoon suite's balcony at Hotel Aaculaax.​

Wedding planner? No thanks, sounds expensive and you know wedding planners…they always go over the top. That's what I thought anyway. Brenton and I met with Ana and her assistant Karen at Hotel Isla Verde, a short fifteen minute lancha ride from San Marcos.

After talking with Ana and Karen for less than an hour, I was proven wrong. Ana and Karen were both down-to-earth and didn't try to make our wedding anything we didn't want it to be. Not to mention, their whole business is based on being eco-friendly, which is something we appreciated. We waited about a day for word on what the total cost would be and again we were pleasantly surprised. For what they were quoting us, we didn’t feel like we could do it on our own for any less. It wasn't long after that we decided to do our wedding at Hotel Isla Verde.

Our family all arrived within a couple of days of each other and we spent the first few days exploring the beautiful city of Antigua. On the third of August, we all piled into a bus and made the three and a half hour drive to San Marcos La Laguna on Lake Atitlan.

​

The first night we enjoyed a wonderful meal and drinks at Fe Restaurant. We called it our "non-rehearsal dinner" since we didn't plan on actually rehearsing anything. Half of our family stayed with Brenton and I at Hotel Aaculaax, the other half stayed about fifteen minutes down the main road at Pasaj-Cap. Both places were wonderful, beautiful, and our hosts were amazing.

The first course from our amazing dinner at Fe Restaurant.

...and of course we had to wash down that incredible dinner.

The breathtaking view from Pasaj Cap, where we had a bbq together. This is also a great place to camp if you find ever find yourself in San Marcos La Laguna.​

The next day, the fourth of August, we headed over to Santa Cruz in lanchas. I headed over a couple of hours earlier to get ready. Brenton and the rest of our guests came over in two different boats. As people arrived they enjoyed the incredible view and drinks from Hotel Isla Verde. We decided the ceremony would start at four o'clock, though I didn't actually come down until four-thirty. That's not too bad right? Brides are supposed to make a fashionably late entrance.

The lancha ride to the wedding venue.

Every bride needs a support team.​

We married on the dock, surrounded by our family, with "the most beautiful lake in the world" as our backdrop. Amazingly, we didn't get rained on either. Remember, we chose to get married in Guatemala, in the rainy season, in the late afternoon. That's prime time for a downpour.

Exchanging vows.

Our officiant has a problem with pacing, especially when public speaking.​

Did I mention my now brother-in-law was our officiant? We couldn't think of a better person to do it. As Brenton mentioned in the previous post, his sister Marissa, her husband Jay, and our nephew Cooper came down a couple of weeks before everyone else so we could spend some time traveling a bit with them. It was at this point when we asked Jay to officiate. We didn't give him much time, so we're grateful he agreed.

Note the Mayan girls enjoying the show through the windows.

Brenton and I decided to write our own vows and we also wanted Jay's part to be unique and personal. We looked up traditional vows and found some aspects that we liked, gave them to Jay, and told him to go wild. You could tell that Jay had poured his heart and soul into the role, and we couldn't have been happier with our choice to have him as our officiant.

You may kiss the bride!

 

[Ruined Adventures]

After the ceremony we enjoyed incredible food, dessert, and a fun night of dancing and spending time with the people we love. Our day was amazing and everything we could have wanted.

Things got a little emotional during the father-bride dance.

​

Since we were still on the lake, I surprised Brenton with a night at Hotel Isla Verde exactly one month after our wedding, on the fourth of September. Since tourist season is slowing down right now, we almost had the whole place to ourselves. We enjoyed a romantic dinner and slept in a comfy room with an amazing view of the lake.

A nice little surprise, the girls at Isla Verde pulled out all the stops for us...again!​

We are so grateful to all of our family and friends who made it to our wedding and for all the wonderful people who helped to make it possible. We couldn't have asked for more.

 

[Ruined Adventures]

I don't know, but it sounds like the voltage regulator went screwy and maybe fried some wiring. You could easily put in a push button starter in the cab, and with the headlights and running lights working you should be good to go once you get a new alternator.

That's the best theory I've got so far. I'm in the process of rebuilding the alternator and tracing wires to find out where the short is. Unfortunately I only have the headlights, no brake lights. Without the windshield wipers, it would be a very slow and dangerous drive thru Central America especially considering we're smack dab in the middle of the rainy hurricane season.

 

[Ruined Adventures]

Meanwhile, back at the ranch...

Another month has passed along with another long period of silence on our end. We've since crossed several borders and it's hard to believe how much has happened since we left our little bubble of peace in Lake Atitlan. For the sake of consistency, our story will pick up where our last broadcast left off, but in regards to our 4Runner.

Of course, if you get impatient and once every month or two isn't enough for an update...you can keep closer tabs on us with Facebook.

Apparently when folks head south, once they get to Guatemala, the miles really begin to add up and it's typically time to replace a few things. Toothbrushes, book lists, maybe a timing chain. The 4Runner was starting to misfire terribly since we left for El Salvador and our wedding was quickly coming.

I decided now would be a good time to let someone else do the work and cross my fingers that the rig would be waiting for me after the wedding. Luckily, fellow travelers Home On The Highway and Capitol Southbound had already been in that boat, so we followed their recommendations for a mechanic in Guatemala City.

Driving in Guatemala City (or any capital south of the border) can be a little intimidating. Take the typical mishaps of driving in Latin America, Guatemala's lack of useful signs mixed with plenty of nauseous one-way boulevards, a notorious reputation for crime, and you've got a giant bowl of scary spaghetti to get lost in. The very thought of driving through Central America's largest city is enough to put any tough-guy Clint Eastwood into the fetal position, sucking his thumb. No problem though, we had been practicing for this…couldn't be worse than Mexico City right?

Even though I had studied several maps of the city and I already had the GPS dialed in for this little venture, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little worried for the drive to the mechanic's shop in Zona 8 (see: sketchy-ville). You see, my first time driving into the capital was to meet with my sister, brother-in-law, and my 4 month old nephew when they flew in for our little side-trip to El Salvador. Sure we got really lost before we up with them, but at least I had the best navigator in the world helping me thru every wrong turn (I'm referring to Shannon of course, not the GPS). Only this time I would be driving solo, while Shannon entertained the first of our guests who were starting to arrive in Antigua for our wedding.

Of course the 4Runner battled me every second of the drive. It was like dragging a spoiled child to the dentist to get all of their wisdom teeth pulled. Knowing fully well that we're too cheap for proper anesthesia, this was going to hurt, and the 4Runner was kicking and screaming the whole way in protest. I didn't even think that I would make it to the top of the first hill as I left Antigua…but like a broken horse, the 4Runner eventually submitted and miraculously dragged me all the way to Guatemala City in a fit. I was amazed when I realized that I didn't get lost in the city once, and I even made it in decent time, though I was hardly able to break 45mph the entire drive.

I met with Adrian of Krazy Kustoms, and I was glad that we had found him to work on our baby. Not only was he a nice guy, but he seemed passionate about his work. We chatted for a while and I got to know him, and I felt at ease as I handed him the keys to our home. So what do we do now? I suppose I just sit back and enjoy the fact that several friends and family have come together in Guatemala just for our little wedding. This should be no problem while some stranger manhandle's our little girl right? Right?

 

[Ruined Adventures]

Volcano climbing and an eruption

After our last wedding guests left town we still had some time to kill while the 4Runner was getting some surgery. We met a couple of fun German backpackers, Fabian and Puck, while hostel-hopping and they had convinced us to tag-along on a day-trip to climb Volcan Pacaya. It was less than $9 usd per person, and we were tired of worrying about our vehicle, so we were game.

We didn't realize we would be part of a large tour, but we still enjoyed the short 1.5 hour hike up this active volcano. The tour guide was in his sixties, but he was built like a 25 year old. He said he makes the steep hike twice a day, 6 days a week.

The guide's dog was following the whole day too. We named him 'Black Fred', in honor of Guanajuato Fred, because this dog was obviously a badass too. He climbs volcanos every day, what does your dog do? Lick himself to sleep?

It was funny to see a mini gift shop at the top of the volcano, allegedly selling "Lava Jewelry", but no one was there and we didn't see any molten gems on display. We did get to see some interesting thermal vents and Shannon even climbed inside. Then the tour guide roasted some marshmallows using the heat from one of the vents, the typical volcano tour photo op.

Fabian has been carrying around some traditional liederhosen around Central America, for an "art project" he's been doing for university. He takes a photo wearing the liederhosen in random places that you wouldn't see in Germany. So we talked him into bringing the liederhosen. At the top of the volcano, he snuck behind a rock and changed for us. It was a good laugh, and everyone enjoyed the irony.

Unfortunately they try to sell all the tourists on taking this trek, even some who physically shouldn't. A woman with hip problems was told that the hike was "easy" and she would have no problems. They offer a horse ride to the top for a small fee, but there was no option for the slippery walk back to the bottom. The poor thing seemed to be having a terrible time, but luckily she had some nice German boys to help her down the volcano.

For more photos of Volcan Pacaya, go to our Facebook page.


Later that week while we camped at the Tourist Police headquarters, the Antigua area made international headlines. The nearby Volcan Fuego had been more active than usual, and we were fortunate enough to see some eruptions. Over 30,000 villagers were evacuated to the southwest of the volcano, but luckily we were safe in Antigua since we were to the Northeast, even though we were only 6 miles away.

It was very doomsday looking, but the locals all just continued with their day, so we followed suit. From our campsite at night we could even see the lava pouring down the side of the volcano, with an occasional eruption. It was a powerful display to witness and I feel lucky to have been there at that time. It's also a humbling experience, knowing that one minute we can be living our every day lives, the next minute we could be running our asses off while 10,000 degree lava chases us. Just a friendly reminder to take stock of what you have, and of course it's never a bad idea to sacrifice a virgin for the sake of the villagers.