Come To Kino

[moisheh]

http://www.elimparcial.com/EdicionEnlinea/Notas/Noticias/31012016/1050257-Le-pondran-magia-a-Kino.ht...


For many years there have been many in this forum who have criticized Kino for not being Mexican. Well things have changed. When we first came to Kino 26 years ago the local economy relied on Gringos. After March when the foreigners went NOB everything came to a halt. This started to change about 15 years ago. A new deluxe road to HMO was built and Hermosillenses flocked to Kino. Previously it was Gringos that were building new homes on the beach. Typically a Gringo would first come to Kino in an RV. The they often bought park models or an old trailer and installed them on a lot in one of the trailer parks. Then they would build or buy a home. Mostly on the beach. As more Mexicans came to Kino the homes were being built by Mexicans both on and off the beach. The summer season is busier than the Snowbird season. The Government built bathrooms and Palapas on the beach and they are well used. New hotels have popped up as well as many rental Condos. There are paved roads in Kino and we even have one traffic light! Some new restaurants have opened and I expect there will be more. We do get some weekend entertainment from Hermosilla and Arizona. One weekend there was a Mexican Bluegrass group and Mark Mulligan is coming soon. The road to Punta Chueca( Seri Village) is paved. When the new Governess, Claudia Pavlovich, took over she had big plans. Unfortunately ,Padres, the previous Governor literally emptied the State Coffers. There was no money! He and his family were arrested last week. I am sure he is going to prison. But we should not be shocked. This is typical. Every time there is a change in political parties the x Governor takes a lot of money. Sometimes they annex some huge parcels of ready to be developed land. Or the Deputados build a mansion in San Carlos . Or they suddenly have a 250,000 dollar yacht. A si es. But now that Caludia has the bucks they are spending some in Kino. The Feds declared Kino one of the magic pueblos and made Kino eligible for Federal pesos. The beach will be one of 2 in Mexico with handicapped access.
So if anyone is looking for a spot to RV that is not far from the border you might consider Kino. The beer is always cold at our house!

Moisheh

[Pacific_John]

Moisheh: which park(s) would you suggest?

Is there any place to stash a class A to scout the town?

[Pacific_John]

Thanks, crew!

[mexicoruss]

We will make a run on the coastal this winter and report progress if any from Kino to Penasco direct

[mexicoruss]

15 from Hermosillo to Santa Ana is the only viable way for a motorhome to get to Penasco

[Belgique]

Moisheh is spot on re the road from Guaymas to Kino, I did that several years ago and I needed a lot of Padre Kino afterwards.

[moisheh]

That is a loaded question. There is a short cut that takes you on Calle 36 to Libertad. Then you pickup the coastal highway. It intersects with a road that comes from Caborca. Mexicoruss can give you the details. But here is the rub: The road from the Kino highway to Libertad ( Calle 36) is iffy. I haven't been on it for a few years. There is a detour around a vey bad bridge that is unreal! OK in an SUV but it is dangerous for a MH. I have seen a recent report where they were in a 4 wheeler and the actual road has improved. The little detour is still there but apparently they were working on it. Otherwise you have to go to HMO and North to Santa Ana. You would be driving on a very good highway. BUT the coastal road has some beautiful views. There are no services once you leave the Kino highway. One Pemex in Libertad that often is out of diesel. Otherwise NADA! Here is photo of our Bluebird on the coastal road. You can see how close you would be to the ocean.



Moisheh

[Pacific_John]

Moisheh. Perfect, thanks! I see the Rio Sonora intersection on the map.

What's the best way to get from Kino to Puerto Penasco?

[moisheh]

Be cautious using Google maps. Does not take into account road conditions. My advice on taking any short cut from Guaymas to Kino has not changed : NO!NO NO!. The roads have been bad for 25 years. Impossible to avoid the giant pot holes. One year they did some cude patching but when it rains the patches "dissolve". I do know that Sonora has been spending a lot of $$ on some roads. I saw a sign with the road numbers but never paid attention to see if the roads in that area have been updated. You would save a few km.s There is also one town where the transitos try to extract a "payment". Once you are close to HMO you can get on the Periferico Sur. It is a busy street but wide. 6 lanes. Take that road until you see a WalMart and Home Depot on your right. You are going to turn left on Rio Sonora. Take this until it dead ends. Turn right. You will see a large underpass and signs for the airport. Follow the signs. It will be a left turn. This is the highway to Kino. Just keep on trucking. Maybe Briansue can post a map.
On edit: I know of no passable road that is 60 km above Guaymas. The short cut I mentioned is North of Guaymas. There is a Pemex on the left side of the road and that is where you can turn. I see you are in a large DP. I would not take it on htat road.

Moisheh

[Pacific_John]

Moisheh and all:

I'm on my way back from PV, headed to AZ. I'm at Noe Rubio's piece of paradise, Villa Celeste at Celestino Gazca an hour above Mazatlan.

I'd like to hit Kino and Purto Penasco on the way back.

How are the roads?

I'd drive to Kino from Huatabampito, and Google Maps suggests taking 61 about 60km above Guymas instead of left at Hermosillo. Does anyone know how 61 is?

From Kino to Rocky Point/Puerto Penasco, Google says to hug the gulf and take route 3 which becomes 37. Is this okay, or is it better to go up to Santa Ana on 15 before turning to Puerto Penasco?

Thanks!

*

Since I'm here, here's my mini trip report. We went all the way to PV. Lots of heat and humidity 😉 Our stops south were Totonaka in San Carlos, El Mirador in Huatabampito, Villa Celeste, the park in La Penita, then Tacho's in PV.

Totonaka in San Carlos was fine, but it was still too hot early this month, and people had problems with power for AC.

Huatabampito is still an undiscovered paradise, and the southern road to 15 is a disastrous string of pot holes, but still worth it! The road straight from Navojoa is supposed to be fine.

Villa Celeste has had great weather and has a few people smart enough to stay here until the PV area cools off. It's a lot nicer than Mazatlan even though it's only a few km away.

From Mazatlan south, it's still too hot and humid for us, and we were happy that Tacho's had enough power for our AC, as we were trapped in the rig during the day. We hadn't been down for years, and loved the Malecon and the food. Tacho's is still nearly empty. La Penita was also nearly empty.

15 is in great shape from the Mazatlan area to Tepic, so you can make good time. The road from Tepic on is the same as always, slow and terrifying. The option to go via San Blas isn't good. Friends say it's nothing but pot holes and low hanging trees - it hasn't been adequately fixed since the last big hurricane.

Oh yeah, the tolls. On the way down through Sinaloa, the attendants overcharged us by quite a bit, but on the way back, it's worked perfectly to pause at the rate sign, write down the prices for the rig (autobus 2 ejes) and the toad (auto) and add the numbers. The person at the first toll booth was pissed 😉

[briansue]

I clicked Tony's link above to see where it led. The info says it is 18km to city center. We stayed at Oaxaca Campground last winter for several weeks and drove in and out of town many times. It sure did not seem to be as far as 18km. It is a very easy in and out of town - as well as to other local attractions. But having a car would be desirable. I think there is a bus stop near the campground and there are taxis as well as tuk-tuks. The road in and out of the campground is a little rough but easily managed at slow speed - a short distance.

You can see Oaxaca Campground on Google Earth at 17.030503 -96.599031 . In fact I think that is our Bus in the picture.

Here is a Google Earth image of the pink paint store at the intersection where the turn is made to the campground from the highway.


Click For Full-Size Image.

[Oaxacakate]

Yup - the old parking lot campground in Oaxaca City is now permanently closed. There is a new office building where it used to be. Thank heavens for the new Oaxaca Campground!

[tony_lee]

http://app.ioverlander.com/places/9421-oaxaca-campground

that campground at Oaxaca is also well regarded by the overlanding mob

[gatorcq]

Thanks Moisheh

[rvmex]

Hi Moisheh......it really hurts hearing what is going on on the RV Parks in Kino, yes I also remember when I used to park them on the over flow, but the worse thing is that I see no boy is doing any thing about bringing more RV´s like it used to be.....I just hope that one of this days RV´s will come back to Kino and see units parked ont the beach because there is no vacancy on the parks.....