Christmas in Baja!

[rote_baron]

Since we had 2 weeks off our family decided to load up the motorcycles and head to Baja. Baron on the 1979 IT 250, Karen on the KLX 250 and Chance riding the DRZ 400. Why take a vintage 2-stroke to Baja? Well, our son didn't have a street legal bike so we were looking for a very cheap option that was plated and pretty much ready to go. So after about $900 the IT landed in the truck with the other two modern bikes. My husband assured us that the IT would not be problematic

We crossed at Tecate which was quite simple. Once we crossed the border they checked our VINS and was able to get our tourist card right at the border. From there we headed east to Mexicali then on down Mex 5 to San Felipe. We stayed at Kiki's and Kiki stored our truck while we began our ride.

[rote_baron]

Day 1 San Felipe to Bay of LA





Our first stop of the day was at Puertecitos for gas and Baron was already zip tying the side covers on the IT


Next break was at Gonzaga Bay for lunch at Alphonsina's and some gas


Baron measuring and dumping the oil into the 2-stroke




We continued on towards Coco's however Coco was not there. We did stop for some coke's to take a break and met Florian from Canada. We would meet up with Florian a few more times throughout our trip.


When Baron showed up we asked why his bag was all scuffed up. Apparently he had been jumping the bike and his luggage got caught in the wheel




After Coco's we continued on to Mex 1 then took the turnoff to BOLA. About 10 miles out of BOLA the IT ran out of gas...Then Baron realized he lost the idle screw which caused the fuel mileage to drop. After some time of figuering out what to do he stuck an earplug in the hole and it worked like a charm. He ran it that way the rest of the trip as he wasn't ever able to find a screw that would work. Nevertheless we made it to BOLA just after dark and stayed at Costa del Sol.

[TooTallRacing]

Looks great so far. I'm loving a 79 IT in Baja!

[Humunn]

Great adventure!

[Scubalong]

Family explore Baja
What a great way to bond.
Keep the RR coming

[advrockrider]

Come on you cant stop now, we need more.... Love the IT, now thats an adventure....To cool..

[rote_baron]

Day 2: BOLA to San Ignacio


We started the day out with breakfast at the local market then headed toward the San Borja mission but not before putting a new ear plug in the hole where the idle screw used to be..


The bikes waiting patiently for the days ride.


Breakfast at the local market in BOLA


Chance headed toward San Borja mission. It had rained recently and there were actually quite a few of large mud puddles. We actually passed a Mitsubishi Eclipse on this road going the opposite direction. They had gotten stuck in a mud hole for a couple hours and didn't want to go back the way they came. Hope they made it!






San Borja mission and the surrounding grounds unfortunately the mission was not open for tours on this day.

We continued on towards Mex 1 but not before the KLX decided to take a sand nap...





I have yet to master the sand riding skills as seen here.. We finally made it to Mex 1 with lunch in Rosarito and continued on to San Igancio. Once again we arrived just after dark staying at the San Ignacio Springs B & B. Since it was Christmas Eve they served a wonderful spaghetti dinner. Later that night Baron realized that some of the oil he was carrying in his bag had exploded so the rest of the trip all his socks and underwear smelled like oil I guess that's what happens when you have to pack oil for your vintage 2-stroke.



The bikes waiting for Day 3.

[BrianF]

No idea how I didn't run into you guys. Riding the same places at the same time. Love to see other people's perspective on places I've been. Nice work.

[Adventure Trio]

We met you all at Alfonsina. Glad to see you made it home safely. I passed you for the last time while making the 200 mile round trip to San Felipe for more cash. We underestimated a bit on ATM availability and credit card acceptance.

Will be looking for the rest of the story....

-Terry

[chilango13]

I have an 85 IT 200. It's been sitting in my garage for two years...Im gonna fix it and take it riding! Great RR. !!

[rote_baron]

Originally Posted by Adventure Trio

We met you all at Alfonsina. Glad to see you made it home safely. I passed you for the last time while making the 200 mile round trip to San Felipe for more cash. We underestimated a bit on ATM availability and credit card acceptance.

Will be looking for the rest of the story....

-Terry

We ran into another rider that had a problem finding an ATM as well... It was good meeting you and hope you enjoyed the rest of your trip.

Baron

[rote_baron]

Day 3 San Ignacio to Loreto. Today would be a short day but not without something on the IT breaking..



The day started out in the town square in San Ignacio


Stopped for gas in Santa Rosalia


Then rolled on through Mulege...




This was somewhere along Bahia Concepcion


A little bit further down the road we stopped at a little place for fish tacos. After lunch we get on our bikes to leave and then Baron forgot something so he goes to put his kickstand down and next thing I know he's laying on the ground. I wasn't fast enough with the camera but the kickstand broke. You can't see it in the pic well but repairs are in order.


The rest of the day was pretty uneventful and we rolled into Loreto in the daylight this time staying at the La Damiana Inn. It was Christmas and one of the only places open for dinner was The Palapa.


The next 3 days were spent hanging out in Loreto but not before making some repairs to the IT. When we arrived at the hotel Baron noticed a new noise coming from the IT. He tore the bike completely apart and finally noticed that the bump stop for the shock had totally disintegrated and was gone. Nothing that some duct tape and double sided tape won't fix! After that the welder made a house call to fix the kickstand.









Stay tuned for a lot more pics as we head west to San Javier, the Comondu's and beyond. And if Baron gets it figured out we'll have some video to post.

[rote_baron]

This is our first video post/creation. It contains video shot from a fixed camera attached to my helmet. Unfortunately the camera does not have image stabilization, but Youtube did some editing to attempt to make it a little smoother. Has us starting up, passing by a truck, starting up again after putting my luggage back on and then coming into Coco's corner. Might be a little lengthy or not. Just have to see what people think.

Enjoy and Thanks,
Baron

[ezrdr55]

Originally Posted by rote_baron

This is our first video post/creation. It contains video shot from a fixed camera attached to my helmet. Unfortunately the camera does not have image stabilization, but Youtube did some editing to attempt to make it a little smoother. Has us starting up, passing by a truck, starting up again after putting my luggage back on and then coming into Coco's corner. Might be a little lengthy or not. Just have to see what people think.

Enjoy and Thanks,
Baron

What is that noise it was making just before it started? You may want to check your battery/charging system, starter relay or maybe the fuel pump. Never mind, I just went out to the MC shed and looked at my (long lost) XR600R and I'm starting to remember something about...MY LEG! IT'S MY LEG!

Very cool IT.

[AZ TOM]

Neat stuff. The Yamaha IT's way ahead of their time