(I sent this to Wes in anticipation that he might do the same thing a few months later. I had just returned home after we made our way to La Paz via Chihuaha and the Copper Canyon. Wes stayed in Baja for a few months working on a marine wildlife research project.)
After pondering my options, I decided to just return home instead of trying to find a good time in the heat of El Fuerte or somewhere in the path of a hurricane further south. The trip home is fairly easy, just tiring since it takes about 22 hours to get from La Paz to Tumacacori. I’m sure you can do it without my help, since it’s all very straight forward, but since I just did it and have all the details, I figure it will make your life a little less stressful.
When you all are headed back to La Paz for the last time, have them drop you off in the city center, it will only add an extra 20 minutes for whomever is driving to the airport, and you won’t have to pay a steep taxi charge. Otherwise you could wait for a bus on the main road outside the airport to take you to the center.
From the Aguila bus station in central La Paz, and assuming the “California Star” departs at the 16:00, you’ll need to take the 12:00 or 13:00 bus to the port (Pichilingue). There you will buy the ticket at the Baja Ferries window, which is to the left as you approach the terminal (near where the bag inspection was when we arrived). Between 13:30 and 14:00. Pay the $610 (pesos) in cash. They usually take credit card (as you’ll recall in Topolobampo), but when I bought mine this time, the “line” was down and I could only pay in cash, fortunately I had the cash on me; otherwise it would have been a major fuck!
The waiting room is upstairs (believe it or not, I ran into Mike and Alester here, again, they were tired and broke, so I gave them $p40 which cleared my conscience of the bar tab two nights before). If it’s the same day as a ferry to Mazatlan, everyone waits in the same room and boards at the same time. Get in line or wait for everyone to go through, there’s no hurry. Press the Aduana (Customs) button and you’re on you way to the ferry. As you walk to the ferry, you’ll have the option of leaving your bag on a cargo trailer below. I checked my bag in on the trailer and only took on a book, so I could wander around the boat without worrying about or carrying the bag. I recommend checking-in your bag. You know the routine when you get on the ferry. It’s a long wait before the actual departure and the food probably won’t be any better (I don’t recommend the calamari).
There were some dolphins jumping about as we left Pichilingue, otherwise the trip was pretty uneventful. I met some French girls on the boat, but they were kind of on their own stubborn agenda so I didn’t persist, and they weren’t that good looking. I spent most of the trip talking to this guy (Manuel) from Guaychimil, Sinaloa and learned a lot from him about life there.
Arrival in Topolobampo was just after 22:00. The scene is very familiar. Get off the boat, get on the bus, which takes you to the terminal (you’ll recall where we waited for a few hours on the first time). This is where you pick up your bag and walk out to the parking lot where there will be a bus that takes you to Los Mochis for $p20, in fact it takes you directly to the bus station you want to be at.
At the bus station, get in line to buy a bus ticket with Elite, the furthest desk to the right. We got to the bus station at about 23:00, and there was a bus to Nogales at 23:30. It cost $p372 and I paid in cash. I don’t know if it will be the same bus, but the number was 4341 which is found on the front of the bus on the passenger side and on or near the door. It will also say “Nogales” on the driver’s side. If there aren’t any more busses to Nogales, get on one to Hermosillo. If that’s the case, you’ll be arriving in Hermosillo at about 8:00 in the morning and you can get another bus to Nogales. I recommend taking your sweater on the bus because I didn’t and the bus was freezing and I didn’t get any sleep. (Note: Back in Mochis they sold me a ticket to Nogales, but that bus (4341) didn’t stop in Mochis so they put me on a bus to Tijuana and told me to change busses in Santa Ana, but the driver had me change busses in Hermosillo to another company, which was fine and was no trouble at all.)
Most likely there will be a couple of Federale check-points, which are a frivolous waste of time and are nothing to worry about. If everyone’s getting off the bus, get off as well, and look dazed and sleepy. If not, just sit there and look asleep or just dazed and sleepy. In the past all I’ve ever been asked is either “where I’m from” or “where I’m going.” Worst-case scenario is you’ll have to show them your bag, which they won’t even try to sort through (as you’ll recall upon arrival in Pichilingue the first time).
Whichever bus you end up taking, you’ll stop at the Hermosillo bus station in the morning. If you haven’t eaten anything by then, get a couple “tamales de helote” (corn tamales) for $p10 each from the lady in front of where the busses are parked (Do it! There good and you probably won’t have eaten since the shitty meal on the ferry some16 hours before).
Arriving at the Nogales bus station around noon, you can take a taxi or the public bus the border. A taxi will cost $p60 and the bus will cost $p4. Take the bus! It’s very easy: just cross the street in front of the bus station, a few meters south you’ll see a place where busses can pull off. Get on any bus that stops, if you’re not sure about it, just ask “al centro?” Crossing the border is the typical routine.
Now, if you wanted, you can take a shuttle from Nogales to Tumacacori. They leave every few minutes and cost $8 (US) and will drop you off at our driveway. If you walk up the ramp just as you cross into the US you’ll see the vans and more than likely you’ll get a few offers to Tucson. It sucks that you have to pay the same price as if you were going to Tucson, but that’s the way it is, I discussed it with a couple companies.
After having a symbolic Quarter-pounder and fries at McD’s, I got on shuttle and showed up at home around 12:30 had a shower and a shave, brushed the fuzz off my teeth and went to bed. Mom and Dad were surprised to see me, but that was over in two minutes.
Bottom line: have 1100 pesos, 10 dollars and 22 hours available.
