# Traveling through Sonora desert



## Tr0phy_Scars (Jun 5, 2011)

I plan on taking a drive with the girl this weekend to Puerto Penasco from San Luis Rio Colorado, not a huge deal but I heard to be aware between Sonoyta and Puerto Penasco of fake police traffic stops and small cartels targeting U.S. plate cars.

Can anybody confirm hows the area between the 3 areas I've mentioned? Anything to be aware of?


----------



## tepetapan (Sep 30, 2010)

Tr0phy_Scars said:


> I plan on taking a drive with the girl this weekend to Puerto Penasco from San Luis Rio Colorado, not a huge deal but I heard to be aware between Sonoyta and Puerto Penasco of fake police traffic stops and small cartels targeting U.S. plate cars.
> 
> Can anybody confirm hows the area between the 3 areas I've mentioned? Anything to be aware of?


 Where did you hear this from? Some sources are not very good, to put it mildly. 
I can check with a friend who is in Sonora if need be.


----------



## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

Tr0phy_Scars said:


> I plan on taking a drive with the girl this weekend to Puerto Penasco from San Luis Rio Colorado, not a huge deal but I heard to be aware between Sonoyta and Puerto Penasco of fake police traffic stops and small cartels targeting U.S. plate cars.
> 
> Can anybody confirm hows the area between the 3 areas I've mentioned? Anything to be aware of?


I have a taken a bus through there three times in the past few months and will be doing so twice more in the next couple of weeks. We had no problems.

Correction. The bus didn't take the route between Sonoyta and Puerto Peñasco that you are asking about. It went straight from Sonoyta to Hermosillo.


----------



## HolyMole (Jan 3, 2009)

Tr0phy_Scars said:


> I plan on taking a drive with the girl this weekend to Puerto Penasco from San Luis Rio Colorado, not a huge deal but I heard to be aware between Sonoyta and Puerto Penasco of fake police traffic stops and small cartels targeting U.S. plate cars.
> 
> Can anybody confirm hows the area between the 3 areas I've mentioned? Anything to be aware of?


It's been 15 years since we rode from Ajo, AZ to Puerto Penasco (via Sonoyta) and back by motorcycle, so I can't comment on current conditions, except to say that if you're going and returning during daylight hours with the rest of the Phoenix and Tucson crowd that fills PP on weekends, I wouldn't expect you'd have any problems.Can't even hazard a guess, though, on the San Luis Rio Colorado - Puerto Penasco section. There'd be a lot less traffic on that stretch than Sonoyta - PP.


----------



## DennyDaddy (May 3, 2011)

Hi..

The new toll road from San Lois off of Az 95 Yuma is a great drive to RP. Not much traffic, cost for toll is around 90 pcs. After you make the circle turn south of SanLuis, well marked, to the toll booth there is a nice clean well maintained rest room and area with tables. Keep your stub! It covers your car, I heard, for insurance, on the toll road.

There is a military check point about, guessing, 15 miles from there, but south most of the time you will not be stopped going to RP.

Coming back all have to stop at this check point (military well armed) and they look for drugs and guns. You get out of the car and a solider looks inside your rig. I been thru this many times, and they are friendly, and they are just doing a great job! 

Large trucks going north get a good shake down for drugs. As far as I would say, I'm glad they are there.

Pot toilets, and a small soda stand and shades rest, area, at the check point. There are always military trucks running that road. 

Good drive about 3 hours from border to RP. I taken this drive even late at night, after crossing the border.

I only heard of one problem near ElGofo where someone was stopped by fake police, this is hearsay tho, don't know for sure, and they was caught. ?????

It's a great drive south with the Sea of Cortez to your right. We started useing this new coast toll byway right from the first it opened! Not much traffic, few trucks and busses. Sometimes we were only car on the three hour trip. Now, the buses and freight trucks are using the road, but still little traffic. 

It sure beats driving I-8 to 85 to Ajo, down to RP. The route thru Ajo is a main RV and run for week-end condo and tourist people going south. 

As far as the RP expats both roads are safe, and a good drive, except many Az'ens doing the, peddle to the medal, thing!

I did one late night going north to border, myself, out driving my headlights, going to Sonayta/Lukevilke almost ran into a heard of horses in the middle of the road! Lucky they moved as I skidded and missed them.

So now any night driving I drive like the Mexicans from Mexico.....slow!

But the new coast toll road is a brand new road, well marked and heads down past RP to points south. May not all be finished father south. A few good places to stop, lunch at ElGofo about not half way or so, to RP.


----------

