LCXC 2018: Baja!

[Taco2Cruiser]

I'm guessing we're talking about military? There's no restrictions or requirements (APACs, county clearance, ect) for the state of Baja. Mainland is a whole different story. Obviously, if you have specific security requirements due to your position/clearance, you should already know those.

Isn’t that what I said?

 

[Union]

We had a guy get permission to go Juarez because his family lived there. Pretty sure a General had to approve that one...

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

I was clarifying, guy.

Well stop clarifying and adhere to OPSEC rules. You’re not supposed to mention APAC or that there are areas of classification on public forums.

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

Foreign clearance guide requirements aren't OPSEC.

Oh my god Tony (said in a “come on man” kinda way), they are FOUO, which means that they have a classification. Which means are absolutely OPSEC. Can you just access FCG from the pentagon?

https://www.fcg.pentagon.mil/

F no you can’t, why, because it’s OPSEC. You need credentials to open them, because of the whole public forums thing. Don’t mess with me on this, I worked at these levels, so stop bringing it up.

 

[TonyP]

So, did/do I, you're incorrect.
But just so you don't get your panties in a bunch, I delete my posts, sweetheart.

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

So, did/do I, you're incorrect.
But just so you don't get your panties in a bunch, I delete my posts, sweetheart.

Haha, go see your S2 Tony.

 

[TonyP]

 

[Markuson]

All right, everyone hug it out...

Dr. Markuson Welby MD says,
“Take two weeks in Baja and call me in the morning.”

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

Dr. Markuson Welby MD says,
“Take two weeks in Baja and call me in the morning.”

YES! I'm just ready to retire and grow a beard, so Baja is beard oil to my Leonidas beard.

So... we have right now:

Baja, part II
Big Bend NF
North rim of Grand Canyon and some stuff west of that
Southern Utah

 

[TonyP]

Yes, enough of the two old ****s bickering.

If you guys end up choosing Southern Utah I have the 4-day route for the trip I took earlier this year that I can give to someone. It can be incorperated into a longer trip. It was a pretty great route.

For Baja I still have my East coast PoIs.

 

[RET2]

Somebody throw the damn dart pick a place and let the planning start. I'm up for Utah or North Rim.

 

[Union]

I took a quick detour to the North Rim, that place is so dang remote. I can only imagine the truck trails through that area.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

If I do mainland Mexico, it will be en route (quickly) to Central America and south.

Absolutely, in fact, it may be better to just have the trucks shipped to Columbia. That’s a trip I have planned for a few years from now.

I’m kinda getting excited for a South West Arizona, New Mexico, hell maybe even southern Utah expedition roaming driveathon. Mark I’m gonna need a lot of jerry cans to hang with you and that auxiliary tank.

Fwiw, having don't Baja many times both as part of the B1K and part of other adventures as well as driving through mainland to or from Central America a couple times... same relative safety. In fact if you're comfortable with the idea of traversing Nicaragua, Honduras and El Salvador, Mexico will be a non-issue. Like Baja (and the US) there are absolutely regions to avoid and safety precautions to take, but don't blanket avoid imo. South America is no different, we were shaken down by cops in Columbia (E7), Ecuador (XO) and shot at by cops in Peru (XO). All the while having an amazing experience throughout all of those countries and ironically Peru is the one I'll be visiting sooner than later again for the Dakar in January. I hope their aim hasn't improved

 

[Union]

"...shot at by cops in Peru (XO). All the while having an amazing experience..." That's saying a lot!

 

[cruiseroutfit]

"...shot at by cops in Peru (XO). All the while having an amazing experience..." That's saying a lot!

Lol, I'm either dumb, naive or a combination of both. It's my opinion that you can't judge 32 million people on the actions of 3 cops who may very well have been doing their job outside or what I'd like to think was a ND or show of force rather than an actual intent to harm, we still don't know which. Much of the Colombia cocaine industry has made it's way to the jungles of Peru fwiw.

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

Lol, I'm either dumb, naive or a combination of both. It's my opinion that you can't judge 32 million people on the actions of 3 cops who may very well have been doing their job outside or what I'd like to think was a ND or show of force rather than an actual intent to harm, we still don't know which. Much of the Colombia cocaine industry has made it's way to the jungles of Peru fwiw.

**Disclaimer: this post is intended to positively encourage people, who have their reservations, to push themselves. I use examples from my background, to try and show some humility, and that it’s okay to have worries, but as a group we will (most likely) be fine. After this, I’ll keep my mouth shut and let the group decide where LCXC 2019 will take place. I’m done fighting, in every sense of the phrase.**

Well said. But I will add that heard mantality can make 3 idiots into a pretty big crowd under certain circumstances.

For everyone
That said, I remember when I was an adviser for Brazilian Marines. Just BSing with them, my US buddy said he would hate to have his family exposed to what those foriegn military memebers have to deal with. Where local criminals target their families, terrorist crap, stuff like that. One of them asked where my US buddy was from. “New York” he said, “oh... is it that where those terrorists killed all the civilians in the towers?” “I couldn’t imagine living there.”

That’s when I fully realized that people are just afraid of the unknown, which is not a bad thing, to have a heath respect for what you could get yourself into.

Worse, is when people are overly confident, those that think they are invincible, because of some warped belief of their capabilities.

That was where my comment that Baja is safer than west of Big Bend on the US side. To show that most places are fine.

Hell, the safest places I’ve ever been are where the Navy and Air Force set up in Iraq and Afganistan, oh and Jordan, that place is a vacation. The US is not going to put billion of dollars of equipment in harms way. So they are protected really, really well. And for Army guys, we go through those areas to get to where the real fighting is at, out at combat outposts, or on patrol, not where Toby Keith does concerts. Yet, every time, some of those guys act like they are in the thick of it. That doesn’t mean those guys are not useful, they are, but just like everything in this world, take what people say with a grain of salt, that includes Taco.

It’s another example of we don’t rise to the occasion, we fall to the level of our training.

I don’t want to say that a guy that is cautious for not wanting to go to a new place is wrong, he’s not, he just hasn’t had the opportunity to test himself yet.

Now this is the point I’m trying to make, that groups like this, are probably the safest way to step into the unknown, while having the safety net from others in the group.

 

[Union]

Great post Taco. It's an added benefit of this group where we can pull our collective brains together, all from different backgrounds and come out with a way forward, into the unknown.

 

[mcgaskins]

I appreciate the viewpoints of those with much greater experience than I have traveling the world, Mexico in particular. The way I look at it is this...if I'm in AZ, CO or UT and I come across a cop/ranger, I wouldn't be afraid at all that I'm about to get shaken down or detained or even harassed - likely just a wave or head nod and I'm on my way. If I'm out in Mexico and the same thing unfolds, the likelihood of something negative happening is probably a bit higher. If something strange happens and I end up in a jail cell in Mexico whether I did something wrong or not, that's going to suck a lot and likely be an expensive, dangerous and onerous process to get out of.

Probably more importantly, if I'm in the US and I or someone in my group gets hurt, I am never too far from help especially with my Inreach and route plans and communication plans, but if I'm in Mexico or many places in the world, everything changes dramatically. My thinking has changed dramatically since I have a family depending on me and a job that likely wouldn't be cool with me missing a couple months of work because I ended up getting tossed in the clink or a hospital in Mexico.

My goal with my Land Cruiser, dirt bike, motorcycle, hiking boots, etc. is go out and have fun. I haven't seen half the places in the US that I want to explore, so for me it doesn't make sense to increase the risk, expense, etc. to get check out foreign countries in my truck when I have the relative safety and predictability that being a US citizen protected under US laws affords. All that said, one day when our lifestyle affords us the ability to do so, my wife and I both would like to see more of the world in the Land Cruiser. I think it's a lot easier to justify doing that kind of travel now if you know you own an off road shop, you're a world renowned explorer, part of a famous race team, etc. etc. Military guys also have a completely different perspective on this stuff because of the training and experience they have and different types of schedules where it might be possible to be "out of office" for longer than 1-2 weeks at a time.

There are no right or wrong answers here, so everyone just needs to do what's right for them and their comfort level. I for one am incredibly happy to have some living legends on this board to live vicariously through, in particular @cruiseroutfit but also guys like @Taco2Cruiser @TonyP @indycole @Markuson and lots of others who get out there and really live and put their Toyota iron to the test in the process.

 

[TRD Burglar]

Having been on both the LCXC Baja 2018 trip and a trip to Southern UT/Northern AZ just last month. I'd vote for going to UT/AZ. There's so much to see and do out there, I can't wait to go back.

 

[Markuson]

Having been on both the LCXC Baja 2018 trip and a trip to Southern UT/Northern AZ just last month. I'd vote for going to UT/AZ. There's so much to see and do out there, I can't wait to go back.

Sounds fun to me.

Honestly, there’s not a heck of a lot in Baja.
If Baja was more of the super fun crazy cactus driving...I’d have already been back by now bc that was a hoot.

AZ/Utah in cool weather sounds good.

I’d still do Baja again though. Would vote for either more interior exploration...or hightailing in far south first and deciding maybe based on weather.