Delica Canada | Mitsubishi Van Club | wvo delica headin' for mexico!

Oooo, Joshua Tree, nice. Hope you post some pictures from there. Never been, but the pictures I've seen and the tales from friends who've been there climbing make it a place I know I would like to see. Just how cold is it down there? About the centrifuge, does that replace filtering and de-watering, or are you 'roughing it' and processing the oil less than you would at home? Looks pretty slick. Thanks for the update. With winter solidly here, it's nice to take a vicarious road-trip to Mexico - keep the posts coming!!

the trip to joshua tree wasnt such a great drive. the wind was blowing really really hard and my arms were getting tired from holding the wheel straight!

the campsite at joshua tree
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heres a cool rig i saw. i used to think a safari van would make a good travel van. its a big minivan.

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we took a 4x4 tour of the park and drove out a canyon. the road out was really rough and super fun. i got to use the 4 low for a change and do some skillful maneuvers. too bad i didnt stop to take some shots in the canyon.

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we went from 5000 feet at the top of the park done to 270 feet below sea level in a few hours! the altimeter lies i think
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we went from there down to the salton sea. an accidental lake created when a canal from the colorado river breached its levee and the water flowed onto the salton bason
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we camped there for the night and then went to check out slab city. "the last free place in america" slab city (look it up!) used to be some kind of base or something and all kinds of people squat there. from broken down old school buses right up to $350000 motor homes. theres a night club, a library, a junk yard and so much more!
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at the entrance is salvation mountain:
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an old guy has been working on this for a decade. its adobe, paint, tires, sticks and so much more!

we're in yuma now for a night in a hotel and i hope to cross the border tomorrow into mexico.

the brakes are starting to squeak a bit. i took one wheel off the front and had a look. thers still at least 1/4 inch of pad. il try to get some new pads and shoes tomorrow if i can find them. and ill get a mechanic in mexico to install them.

theres sooo many more photos. my wife put them up on flikr...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/79152880@N00/collections/72157611755725382/

oh yeah.. the raw power centrifuge is a be all end all for filtering dewatering.
i only have 80 liters left from what i got in the bay area. i just did a late night clandestine bin run around yuma and all the unlocked bins are empty!

All the way to the border. Yahoo! Looks like you two are having fun. BTW, your rack looks good, along with the Shady Boy (how's that working out for you? I like mine). I think if you had borrowed mine, you wouldn't have had a little area to sit (like in the one picture you've posted).

Have you been running on WVO the whole way so far, or a bit of both, here and there? Lots of stops along the way to pick up free WVO? How is the whole system working out for you?

hey....

i am in Cabo San Lucas right now. Are you coming down the Baja? If you are let me know and we could connect, lwt you know where to get some veggie oil. Also i could let you know of some of the cool places I visited along the way.

Happy Trails.

WOO HOO!!!! we made it to mexico!! and the sea of cortez!
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were in puerto penasco.. the next cancun its not that great here really. everything is $US and the same price as US.
were staying in a gravel pit called playa bonita. im surprised to find wireless here. its actualy an rv park. i need the power supply to 'fuge WVO. i foubnd some in a barrel yesterday morning.. its pretty gross. i also asked at a restaurante here last night and they said they have some for me.good thing my espanol still works. they think its espanLOL i think

we had a little trouble at the border... seems the computer wont accept a weird VIN... who would have thought? they had to call mexico city and got it worked out. the dude had to check my vin and he was blown away by the vehicle! of course he had never seen anything like it.
the drive here on hwy 2 from san luis to sonoyta was hell. really hell. theres no shoulders and its a main trucking hwy to tijuana. danika was scared shitless to be on the "impact" side of the van. she was holding the holy shit handle and saying her prayers. the hwy from sonoyta to puerto penasco was way better


sorry, no baja... i heard from glen at cc that you had some serious vehicle trouble.. hows that working out?



i havent had a chance to use the shady boy! weve been moving too fast and there wasnt much sun till we got down south. i dont even know how to set it up yet..

yup WVO the whole way! i filed up diesel in souther oregon just to see how much i had used.. not even 2 gallons. its working great. although sometimes there is power loss. i changed the filter after only 2500 km but nothing changed.

were staying here a couple of days. i got brake shoes and pads in yuma and i want somebody to install them. im sure i could do it myself, but hey! im on vacation.

btw. a guy i got WVO from in sunnyvale CA saw another delica a couple of days later. he went to talk to them but said he thinks they must have thought he was a panhandler... who is down there?

got quote $30 US to do the brakes today. turn out only the front brakes needed replacing. seems i had the rear done. guess i forgot. still gave the guy $30.
i also found out that everybody here tosses their wvo. i filled up a bunch of cubies. i had a problem with the fuge b/c the dirty barrel i use gets clogged.
off to bahia de kino en la manana!

we finaly made it to sayulita!!!!!!! we saw some nice places,ate some good food, and did many hellish drives... just an update, but more to come with photos soon.

zero automotive problems!

Yeah! Take some deep breaths and relax Ari; you two deserve it. Kick back, take a break from driving and oil processing.

Cheers,
Kevin

now that i have finally fully decompressed ill fill you in! sayulita is truly relaxing, if a bit crowded with gringos. the food here is good and safe but more expensive. although we have found if you go off the main streets there is cheaper food. we have surfed, horseback rided boogie boarded and chilled a bunch. i even saw another delica here! a blue over white crytallite with too overheating canines inside. i left a note in the dust on the window for the owner to find his or her brethren, but still havent met them.
the sayulita photos will come soon but heres the trip from penasco to here.

posada san gemma in bahia de kino. nice town in the desert on the sea of cortez. water still a bit too cold.
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$20 a night for beachfront full hookup hot shower. got some oil from the resaurant across the street!
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next on to san carlos. some new friends in a westie at kino drew us a map to this free wonderful off road campsite. san carlos itself is gringo landia.. golf and yacht clubs
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next on to alamos. again we wouldnt have found this posh rv park in this beautiful colonial silvermining town without the help of the westies
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$12 only hot shower and hookup. pool and fruits from the trees!
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it was saturday and the whole town was filled with mexican vacationers partying and cruising.

and finally SAYULITA!!!
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well worth it! we had some hairy moments though. we actually ran out of diesel on the toll hwy between cualiacan and mazatlan. i didnt fill up before getting on because everywhere else in the country theres a fuel station every 30km it seems! i poured in unfiltered wvo in order to get us on the way. i pulled in at a small tienda on the hwy and they had jugs of diesel for sale in the back. we stayed in the nearby town of esatcion dima. it was sunday and everybody was partying just because it was sunday! we were the only gringos in town and stayed at the only hotel in town. a dingy affair with cold water only and $16
a full delicious breakfast in a little streetside kitchen was only $1.20!
we also stayed in a beach front hotel in el novillero. overpriced at $35 salty cold showers. i insisted they drop the price and we payd $30. we followed the map south along the beach to connect down to mexcatitlan and then san blas. the road was being worked on so we had to drive for miles in the soft sand next to the road. when suddenly the road ended we learned from the shrimpers that the road was cut 25 years ago to allow passage of boats. into the inland lagoons. we could see the road across the waterway. space antelope did fine in soft sand 2 wheel and four wheel drive.
we had to return and then rush some to get to san francisco before sundown. the road down from tepic was windy and verrrry scary. theres no shoulders and trucks and cars were passing all over the place. we actually had to stop short on the highway to avoid head on collision! lucky we didnt get hit from behind!!! we didnt like san francisco so carried on to sayulita but missed the turn. we had to turn back and we were driving more and in the dark! i was passed by a pickup with no lights on. damn!
anyhow were all good and chilled now! stay tuned.
dont forget to check the flickr link earlier in the thread for other beautiful photos that dont have the delica in them

que tu vaya bien!

Looks real niiice! It's a little warmer up here again and most of the snow is gone, but I'd still like to be in the beach front spot next to you! Thanks for the pics and the posts!

hi
we started to get a little tired of sayulita. its really busy there al the time. the beach is crowded, theres always people trying to sell stuff to you. day before yesterday a sewage pipe erupted in the campground. that was the sign to leave! i spent the night 'fuging while some friends from back home that we ran into visited with us.
yesterday we made the big move to san pancho, 4 minutes up the road. on the way out i passed the car wash, i wanted to stop in but we were rolling.. however the other delica in town was getting washed just then!
san pancho is nice and quiet. were staying on the roof of the house those friends we ran into are renting. i spent the afternoon fishing (no luck this time) and swimming and just relaxing. like i said, its hard to relax in sayulita because its just soo busy.
next i think well try to camp on a beach we heard about, then san blas, then inland to tepic and guadalajara.
peace!

thought id post photos of the fish i caught

sierras aka mackeral made some great breakfast tacos
i caught these with an "anchovy" lure from home.. i have since lost the lure.. i lose lures all the time
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heres a toro aka jack. delicous red flesh. great for diner with homegrown garlic we brought with us. weve been making lots of salad too.....
caught this with a spoon i bougth in peurto vallarta
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hey looks like you are having a splendid journey.

as for the van, it is still sidelined, i have been diagnosed with a possible rod bearing problem. so i am going to take the oil pan off for a closer look. so who knows what will become of the van.

glenn has priced out a block and engine for me.... but getting it here would be a challenge, however i am not at that point yet. fingers crossed.

continue to keep us updated with your beautiful travels.

peace