Tucker Travels

Each day was filled with more wonders than the previous as we awaited the day that we would board the trains. It took almost all morning for us to be loaded onto the train, parking with our drivers side wheels only inches from the edge. We were to remain here for the duration of the train trip, 4 nights and 5 days of dry camping without being able to even put out our slides. Each ramp onto the rail cars was measured for each coach and moved accordingly. Scary looking but done with precision, or at least as much precision that could be obtained in Mexico.

This is our Wagon Master's rig as we connect to the engine on the first day. You can see how close his tires are to the edge. We did have railing on the passenger side so that we could walk. They also asked that we pull in our stairs when not using them so that the train personnel could pass without hitting their legs, esp. at night when it was pitch dark.

The contrasts from the working farms to the rugged mountains of the Copper Canyon, the passing the Continental Divide several times and the high altitude was all hard to believe when we seemed to travel such a short distance. I guess that with us all being used to the driving and this time just sitting back and letting the train do it we were really able to see the changes, even at 25 mph.

The Taramahara Indians are a very resourceful tribe. They have change little and still live very primitive lives and make money by selling baskets to the tourists along with woven wraps, bracelets and some children's toys.

Our last day on the train was the longest and the most interesting as far as geology goes. We went from a very high elevation to sea level, through the treeless mountains to the fruitfull valleys lush with produce of vegtables and fruits to the Sea of Cortez with its bounty of fresh shrimp, which a vendor delivered to our camp as soon as we were set up.

After 4 days in Mazatlan we began our trip north and back to the USA. We were sorry to be leaving as this meant that we would be parting ways. There are a few things that people have asked. Did we feel safe? Yes, never was there a time when we were the least bit concerned. The Mexican people are very friendly and know that the RV tourist brings money to town. We were cautious about the water and filled up with only 5 gal water jugs in Mazatlan as they had a long funnel to make filling our tanks easy. I would bring a funnel next trip and get all my water that way. We really enjoyed the fresh shrimp and fish in the coastal towns and the fresh fruits in the agricultural belt and in Mazatlan. Next trip I would bring packages of useful things like face cloths, hand towels, baby wipes, bars of soap, small bottles of hand disinfectant. I think you get the picture. These are things that they don't have and that would not take away from their culture but just might make life a little better.

There is much more that we did and if you are really interested there is much more to read on our "Blog". A "Blog" is really nothing more than a log of what we did day by day. You can get there by going to www.monacosinmotion.org and clicking on Copper Canyon Blog. Or you can go directly www.mimcaravanmexico.blogspot.com and while you are at the Blog, don't forget to click on the web album(s) so that you can see first hand our wonderful pictures of the trip. www.picasaweb.google.com/mimmexico/MexicoCaravan and www.picasaweb.google.com/mimmexico/MexicoCaravanII. I hope you'll go and enjoy reading about how much fun we did have.