Mexico Border Crossing Tomorrow as We Begin Our 2019 Overlanding Adventure

Mexico tomorrow. We’ve spent months preparing for this and I can’t believe it’s hours away.

Have we met? I’m Brittany Highland, and I live in a Jeep with my husband and two-year-old.

I’m not destitute. I’m living intentionally.

With five years of full-time RV life behind us, we’re pushing our boundaries and exploring what’s next for our family. We sold our diesel motorhome, outfitted our 2014 Jeep Rubicon for overlanding, and embarked on an aggressive travel itinerary for 2019. January through March, we’ll be adventuring through the interior of Mexico.

Crossing the Mexican Border

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Mexico Border Crossing Location

It’s probably best not to write extensively about crossing the border until we’ve actually done it. But just a few notes about where we’re at. Originally, we planned to cross in Brownsville/Matamoros because it was the fastest route to our destination cities in Mexico.

But after consulting with overlanders and Mexican friends, we changed our crossing to Laredo/Nuevo Laredo for safety reasons. It’s a straight shot down a toll road to Monterrey, getting us out of the tumultuous border region.

Next decision was which bridge to use. We quizzed the On the Road in Mexico Facebook group, and quite a few people recommended Columbia. Pros: more intuitive for first-timers, friendly staff, less traffic. Cons: not open 24 hours (opens at 8 a.m.), hour drive from Laredo to get there, and have to make your way to the toll road.

Eric and I went back and forth. But we ultimately decided on Columbia over the main bridge. We aren’t in a hurry, and we aren’t super interested in making things hard on ourselves, unnecessarily.

Paperwork

So much paperwork. For our Jeep, we have originals and copies of:

• Mexican vehicle insurance
• Letter of permission from our lien-holder
• Bill of sale
• Credit contract
• Account statement

For ourselves, we have originals and copies of:

• Passports (Caspian also has a passport card)
• Driver’s licenses
• Birth certificates
• Marriage certificate

Where We’re Going in Mexico

We have from tomorrow until the first week of March to explore Mexico. Heading south, we plan to stop in Monterrey, San Luis Potosi, and ultimately end up in Puebla. In between San Luis Potosi and Puebla, we’ll be meeting up with a group of overlanders for a weekend trip. Can’t wait to share more about that!

We’re keeping our options open for our trip back north. Maybe we’ll be homesick and want to return as quickly as possible. There’s no shame in that. Maybe we’ll want to take the same route, but stop in different cities we discovered on our trip south. Or maybe we’ll take a completely different route, based on recommendations from locals and fresh research.

Documenting Our Trip Through Mexico

I have aspirations of publishing nightly travel logs over the next two months (and beyond as we’re back in the U.S. and overlanding into Canada). With a few years of blogging behind me, I know it’s important to set realistic expectations for myself. I figure if I don’t try to write long entries, I should be able to manage.

In between travel logs, I hope to write topical articles covering things like how to choose campsites, overlanding with a toddler, working full-time while overlanding, and more.

We’ve very active on social media, so you can connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Over the past seven months of research, since we decided to pursue this overlanding thing, we’ve been sponges. In some ways, our learning is only just beginning. Up until now, research has been based on Internet accounts and personal recommendations. As of tomorrow, we learn through experience.

We Need Our Community

We’re eager to hear from you through all of this. Comment with questions, topics you’re interested in hearing more about, and any suggestions. We’re not too shy to ask for encouragement and your prayers. Maybe I haven’t let on, but this process–and especially the past couple of days–haven’t been without nerves and trepidation. But we’re doing this, and deep down I have a good feeling about it.

-B

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