border Archives - Iron Roamer

Crossing the Border From El Salvador into Honduras at El Amatillo

It was time to cross the border from El Salvador into Honduras at El Amatillo. I had actually been wrestling with the decision. Many riders cross here and some even do the border into Nicaragua on the same day. The Argentinian rider I met at the Gautemala/El Salvador border recommended this too. I knew I didn’t want to do two borders on the same day. Quite the opposite.

I was wrestling with how much time to spend in Honduras. I really wanted to see a bit of the country. Roatan was high on my list but way up north. I even had an invitation to stay at a place in Honduras.

On the other hand, I only had 30 days left on my C4 permit. On the C4 permit you have 90 days to visit Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua. That wasn’t much time and I had a lot I wanted to see in Nicaragua. I could try to get an extension in country but I heard that that was a real pain to do. Or I could go into Costa Rica and then come back into Nicaragua for another C4 permit. But I wanted to go home for a couple weeks while it was still summer. Ahhhhhhhhhh …. what to do.

I decided to skip Honduras, except for a night at Choluteca. It was a hard decision in many respects. Perhaps one day I will see Roatan on a cruise.

San Miguel

The first step to crossing the border was getting close to it. I had a really relaxing ride to San Miguel, El Salvador.

Once there it was time to study the border I would be crossing around the pool with a beer :-).

I like to study so I know what to expect and can visualize the buildings and steps. Just takes the anxiety out of the crossing. I heard that this and the next border were the toughest I would experience. So I really wanted to be ready for them.

#1 Cancel El Salvador Entry Permit

After a night of study I was ready. As I got closer to the border I saw a gas station and pulled in. A man came running up to me. He introduced himself as Orlando. I thought maybe he was just a friendly local. I didn’t realize I was close to the border. He said he helped lots of Canadians cross the border. It was then I realized he had an ulterior motive. Soon another couple guys showed up. For a donation they would help me cross the border. I said no thanks and left.

It wasn’t that easy though as they followed me on a motorcycle.

Here is the overview of the border and the places I needed to stop.

#1 was a booth where they cancelled my motorcycle entry permit into El Salvador. The following border pictures I have taken from other blogs that I studied.

As soon as I stopped I was surrounded by fixers saying I needed their services as it was the hardest border to cross and I couldn’t do it on my own. Orlando was there too. He chimed in once in awhile to say that if I hired him everyone would disappear. I told everyone no and to leave me alone. They didn’t.

The Customs Officer approached me and said no I didn’t need any help. Luckily I was prepared for this onslaught and knew I didn’t need their help.

The Customs Officer checked my bike and directed me to the booth where another Officer cancelled my entry permit. I knew I needed copies and a photocopy store was right next door to the booth. I got 5 copies. Orlando was following me all the way and said I only needed 3. I knew that but like to have more just in case.

As I arrived back at my motorcycle my “groupies” were waiting for me. This time they wanted money for guarding my bike. I said no. The thought crossed my mind that maybe they did something to my bike. But it started fine and I rode off.

#2 and #3 Immigration

It is 2 and 3 because I made a mistake on the map 🙁 There is actually only one thing to do.

At the fork in the road keep left and you reach the El Salvador immigration office.

The window I had to go to was at the far end. So I rode under the canopy and parked right at the end.

I lined up, handed in my passport, the woman stamped it and that was it!

#4 El Salvador Permit Check

I left the El Salvador Immigration office and started to cross the bridge when another officer stopped me. He wanted to look at my cancelled motorcycle entry permit. I showed it to him and he waved me on.

#5 Honduras Immigration

Across the bridge was the Honduran Immigration and Customs building.

Upon entry to the building on the right is immigration. The officer took my passport, as well as my photo and fingerprints.

I then paid $3 US for a tourist permit.

That was it for that window. Now for the hard part.

#6 Honduran Customs

Across the hall is the Honduran Customs window. This is where it got frustrating. Patience is needed. I lined up and waited and waited.

While waiting I met a nice Mennonite family from Costa Rica.

I also met a family from Illinois. He was a retired US Armed Forces member. They were in a Nissan Pathfinder. He said he had been waiting 40 years to do this trip down to Argentina. We had a nice talk.

Now …. as the system works I would see these people several times during my processing.

The Customs woman was quite nice but didn’t speak any English. This presented a bit of a problem as my Spanish was ok for everyday conversations but not for this.

I handed her my passport, drivers license, registration, and cancelled El Salvador entry permit, along with a copy of each. I waited and waited as she filled out forms.

In the meantime, the Mennonite family was sent off to make photocopies and returned. She looked after them and sent them off to the bank. The Illinois family returned from being sent to the bank. She looked after them and they got their entry permit. Meanwhile, the Mennonite family returned again and were sent to the photocopy place. She continued with me until they returned with photocopies. They then got their import permit. This is what I had to look forward to.

Eventually, she got my paperwork done and directed me to get copies. The copy place is just beside the building at #7 on the map.

Back I came with my copies.

When I arrived back she informed me that my next step was to go to the bank down the street but it was now closed for lunch! Now what? Turned out this was great. She could do everything there. Why they can’t so that normally beats me.

I needed to give her $40 US and she didn’t have change. Of course I didn’t have exactly $40. Fortunately, there were lots of money changers around. She came out of her booth and found one that would change a $100 US bill at no cost.

She took the $40 and filled out a lot more paperwork.

After awhile she handed me back a bunch of paperwork including my motorcycle import permit. That is what I had been waiting for. I asked her if that was all and she said yes. As I took the paperwork, she started saying something to me that I didn’t understand. I apologized and she tried again but I still didn’t understand. Eventually she got frustrated and motioned for me to leave. I was hoping what she had to say wasn’t important.

#8 Checkpoint

A ways up the road is a Immigration checkpoint. The officer wanted a copy of my import permit. I never made a copy of it. Maybe that is what the woman was trying to tell me. But I had asked her about copies and she said no. Of course my Spanish isn’t that good.

After a few minutes I discovered that the Customs woman had made a copy of the import permit and had stapled it to another document. YAY! The officer at the checkpoint took it from me and I was off to Choluteca Honduras for the night.

My Route for July 16, 2017

My Route for July 17, 2017

Crossing the Border at Las Chinamas from Guatemala to El Salvador

I was feeling a bit better now, still a sore throat, but after 2 weeks in Antigua it was time to cross the border at Las Chinamas into El Salvador.

As I was getting ready to leave, I could feel some anxiety. After 2 weeks I had gotten comfortable in Antigua. My daughter said that for most it takes 2 years to get comfortable in a place. But I guess when you have been traveling for a year, hopping from place to place, 2 weeks is a long time. However, as I started to ride, the anxiety disappeared.

It was a long ride to the border at Las Chinamas from Antigua. I had thought about staying a bit closer but didn’t find anyplace I liked.

Las Chinamas Border Crossing

I spent the night before I left studying the border as I normally do. This relieves any anxiety I may have and helps me recognize where I need to go.

There were 7 steps to cross the border. The first 2 were on the Guatemalan side of hte border.

Guatemala Las Chinamas Border

I rode up to the border and went under the canopy to the middle of the building. I was immediately approached by money changers who I just ignored for the time being. At the middle of the building there are glass doors. Right inside to the right is immigration. They stamped my passport and gave me a small piece of paper that I tucked away so I didn’t lose it.

The 2nd step was to go to Customs to check my motorcycle out. I continued through the glass doors to the other side of the building. The Customs office is to the right at the end of the building. There the customs woman took my passport, drivers license, motorcycle registration and my motorcycle entry permit. After a few minutes she walked with me to my motorcycle, removed the sticker from mGy windshield, and headed back to her office. A few minutes later she handed me the cancelled entry permit and I was done!

All along a money changer had been lurking around me. When I got back to my motorcycle I pulled out the few Guatemalan money I had left and he gave me $10 US in exchange. The currency for El Salvador is US dollars.

El Salvador Las Chinamas Border

The el Salvador side of the border wasn’t quite as easy.

I crossed the bridge and on the other side was flagged down at a small building on the right.

Here I would do steps 3 and 6.

After waiting for a bit a man came out and handed me a form to fill out. It was all in Spanish. I figured out most of the stuff but left a lot blank. I then handed the form back to him with my Passport, Drivers License, and motorcycle registration with a copy of each.

After a long time, he came back with everything and checked my VIN. He had completed a new form with all the information I had given him. He kept asking “electronico” but I had no idea what he meant by it. Eventually he just stopped asking ha ha.

Another man came out and I followed him across the street to complete step 4. I didn’t have to do much for that. He sat at his computer and was entering data from my documentation. He asked if I had a copy of my cancelled Guatemalan entry form to which I said no. He made a copy for me. Like the guy before he asked “electronico.” I had no idea what he was asking for. Finally a gentleman showed up and said “e-mail.” AHHHHHHH ok … now I get it. I printed my email on a form, signed a couple of things and I was done with Customs.

Step 5 was Immigration which was pretty easy. It was just down from the Customs office.

Another Motorcyclist

As I was heading back to my motorcycle at the small building by the bridge, A young guy with a big smile came up to me and put out his hand. I was a bit taken aback until he spoke in English and said he was riding too. Turned out he was from Argentina and riding a Chinese bike to Mexico from Argentina.

We exchanged some info about my upcoming borders and road conditions. He suggeted I do the 2 borders in Honduras on the same day as they were a pain. He said it would make a long day but worth it.

It was pretty cool meeting another biker. I haven’t met as many as I thought I would. When I got back to my bike, sure enough, there was his.

Last Steps

I was almost done crossing the border. I handed the guy at the small building my stamped passport and the form completed at the Customs building. He checked it and said that was it!

I got on my bike and about 25 metres up the road I was stopped. It was hardly worth putting my helmet on. The immigration officer there looked at my passport and took that small piece of paper I received from the Guatemalan Immigration. NOW I was free to go!

Ahuachapan

I planned on stopping at Ahuachapan for the night where I had booked La Casa de Mamapan hotel. It wasn’t too far from the border.

When I booked it I said I needed secure parking for my motorcycle. The secure parking was the lobby of the hotel!

The problem was getting my motorcycle in there. There were several steps to get through the door.

The people at the hotel made a ramp, but part of the ramp was just a piece of wood the would give way every time I gave some gas to get over it.

Finally, a group a boys who were watching all this, came up and lifted the rear of my motorcycle over the piece of wood and onto the ramp made of a long piece of wood. A little gas and I was through the door and into the lobby.

For the rest of the evening people were coming by and looking at this huge motorcycle in the lobby of the hotel ha ha.

There wasn’t much to see in Achuachapan. I found a Bank of Nova Scotia to get money. And ran across a cool crepe place where I ordered a couple of strawberry smoothies. Then called it a day.

My Route for July 10, 2017

Crossing the Border into Guatemala

After a relaxing time in San Cristabol it was time to tackle the border into Guatemala. I first wanted to get a little closer to the border. But not too close as border towns are infamously chaotic places. I chose Comitán de Domínguez.

Comitán de Domínguez

I arrived early to Comitán. As usual the weather forecast was for rain everyday. But I am discovering the pattern. It is nice in the morning and afternoon. Then late afternoon and into the evening it rains or thunders. So the plan was to get to Comitán before the rain started.

Comitán surprised me! What a nice place. Hardly any foreign tourists and the town plaza was beautiful.

Of course there were the usual amazing churches.

Then the rain struck.

It didn’t last long though and I was back to the plaza to enjoy some wings and beer 🙂

Checking out of Mexico

The next day I tackled the border into Guatemala at La Messila. I had done some research but there wasn’t the detail I wanted to really understand where to go etc. So hopefully here I can provide a little bit more for those who may wish to follow.

First I needed to check out of Mexico. Where to go? Where to go? As I got close to the border I saw on the other side of the street some buildings that looked like an Aduana. I turned around and headed back.

No one was around. I walked into building #1 in the photo and was greeted by a security guard. He said to wait a minute. A little bit later an older man came to the desk. He looked at my passport, visa, and my 500 peso entrance fee paperwork. He handed my passport back and that was it. He didn’t say a word.

As I walked outside, another security guard asked me to pulled my motorcycle up to building #2. He then directed me to the Banjercito bank booth and told me to wait.

Eventually a gentleman came and took my paperwork for the $400 USD temporary import permit for my motorcycle. He then went outside and took a photo of my motorcycle VIN and came back inside. Moments later he handed me back $400 USD and that was it! Pretty simple. No hassle.

Crossing the Border in Guatemala at La Mesilla

Now for the hard part. Well …. it really wasn’t that hard. Just more chaotic.

So there is a long stretch of no man’s land between when you check out of Mexico, #3 in the photo and reach the Gautemalan border at #4 in the photo.

I reached an open gate at the border, #5 in the photos. I did stop before the gate as it looked like a government building there. But I was waved on by a money changer who said the fumingation and border was on the other side of the gate.

Just on the other side of the gate, at #6 in the photo, is where you have to get your motorcycle fumingated. It cost 11 Q or about $2 Canadian.

I then exchanged my Mexican pesos with the money changer that showed me where to go. He was the only one there. I didn’t have much so I really didn’t care about the exchange rate. Plus he had helped me. But the rate seemed reasonable.

Right next door at #7 in the photo is the immigration office. They were really friendly. I just filled out some paperwork, and he stamped my passport. That was it. I hope that is all that was required … huuummmm. I guess I will find out.

The Aduana for my motorcycle entry is just next door at #8 in the photo.

The people at the Aduana were equally as nice. I gave him my registration, passport and drivers license and he spent what seemed like an eternity filling out paperwork. I then had to go next door to pay a fee of 160 Q or about $30 Canadian. Then it was back to the Aduana where he had more paperwork to do ha ha. Poor guy. After all that he came out to my motorcycle and put a import sticker on my windshield.

I was now in Guatemala! I let out a cheer. The policeman next to me said welcome to Guatemala 🙂

Riding into Guatemala

As I left the Aduana it felt like I was riding into the abyss ha ha.

I didn’t want to stay too close to the border but still close enough because I had no idea how long it would take to cross. I decided on Huehuetenango.

Huehuetenango

The hotel I stayed at, La Chacra de Joel Hotel, was tucked in off the street in a quiet treed area.

As usual I decided to explore the town a bit. Boy, there wasn’t much there that I could find of interest.

Tripadvisor did recommend a coffee place nearby, Fuego Café. I headed there hoping it would be a bit a refuge in unknown territory. It was.

I had a victory coffee and sandwich for crossing another border 🙂

My Route from San Cristabol to Comitan on May 15, 2017

My Route from Comitan to Huehuetenango on May 16, 2017

Back to Mexico from Belize

Alas, it was finally time to go back to Mexico. This was not my original plan. Before my surgery the plan was to go to Belize and then onto Guatemala. My surgery changed things. Because I spent 2 months at home recovering from surgery, I needed to get my motorcycle out of the country fast. However, I hadn’t seen everything in Mexico I wanted to.

So I went to Belize to get my bike out of Mexico in time and to see the country. Instead of going into Guatemala today, I was heading back into Mexico. I would go to Guatemala from Mexico.

Ride to the Border

As I packed up to head back into Mexico I realized I was going to miss Belize. It had grown on me. The people were really nice. Often people said hi to me as I walked the city. And they didn’t even want anything. I was also going to miss Spoonaz and my server Jolene. And my morning coffee at La Petit Cafe. Oh well … leaving places and people is part of my life as a traveler.

Like every day here, it was hot in the mid 30 degrees C. However, once I started to ride it was OK.

I just hoped the newly updated Belize maps would be a lot better. They were. That is until I reached the border town. Once again I got twisted around. My GPS lead me down to a dirt road and to a waters edge. It was up to me to find the border on my own. It really wasn’t that difficult. I just followed the main road north.

Belize Border

It was now time to do the border dance again. First the Belize border.

I pulled into the parking lot at #1 and went into the building at #2 to go to immigration. However the first booth was to pay $40 US worth of tourism departure fees. Good thing I had US money as I didn’t have enough Belizean dollars left.

After that is was the immigration booth where I handed in my departure form. They directed to teh vehicle booth in the far building labeled #3 in the photo. This was the same booth I attended when I entered the country. There I handed in my Temporary Import Permit and passport for them to cancel the permit. It was pretty simple. They just stamped over the passport stamp where they documented the import of my motorcycle.

From there it was back on my motorcycle to leave. But as I rode down the road I encountered another booth. This one was to check my passport and to make sure I had completed everything I needed to leave. The officer was really nice and wanted to know all about my trip. Now off to the Mexico border.

Mexico Border

As I rode up to the border I parked in the parking lot at #2 where I had done all the documentation when I crossed into Belize. I went inside to go to immigration. People were lined up with their entry cards but I couldn’t find any in the building. Huuuummmmm. So I watched where people were coming from with their cards in hand. It turned out there was a building at #1 where a customs officer questions you and hands you an entry card.

Once I had the card I lined up in building #2 with my card in hand. The immigration officer just asked a couple of questions and stamped me in.

Now I had to get my Temporary Import Permit for Mexico. I attended Banjercito to get it. I handed the woman my passport, vehicle registration, my entry card, and $400 US as a deposit. The woman noticed right away that my vehicle registration was a copy. She said she needed the original. Back out into the parking lot I went to get the original registration from my panier.

Back inside i gave it to her and she completed lots of paperwork. This is where it got a bit confusing. First she asked for 500 pesos as a tourism fee. I gave her that. Then she asked for $50 US (in Spanish) for something that I didn’t quite get what it was for. I handed her $60 US and then she motioned something. In the end she didn’t give me $10 US in return and I forgot all about it until I was on my way to Chetamul. So I am not quite sure if I was taken there or what happened. Also confusing was the 500 pesos as I paid it before when I left Mexico and not when I entered. However, I understand it is suppose to be paid when you enter.

In the end though I got my Temporary Import Permit and my tourism card.

As I rode out I passed a final check by customs officers at #3, but they waved me through as they were already searching all the cars they could handle.

I was now back in Mexico

Chetamul

Since I was crossing a border I didn’t plan to ride many kilometers today. So I stayed in Chetamul for the night.

My Route for April 2, 2017

Crossing the Mexico Belize Border at Chetamul

Crossing the Mexico Belize border at Chetamul would be my first real border crossing. The others did not involve checking myself and motorcycle out of one country and then checking us into another. I had done the research and today would be the real deal. Here is what happened.

Mexico Border

As I approached the Mexico border there were trucks and cars in line. There were no signs, but having done my research, I knew that the place I wanted was at the far end of the border complex. I labelled it #1 on the photo.

So I went around the cars and trucks and headed further down. I saw the building I wanted and pulled up to the window. The customs officer took my passport and asked for 500 pesos as an exit fee. I was a bit suspicious and asked if I could pay at the bank. I knew I had to go to the bank anyways to check my motorcycle out of the country. He said yes.

I pulled into the parking lot labelled #2 and headed into the adjacent building. As I entered the door I saw Banjercito. The clerk at the bank was really helpful and spoke a little English. I gave her the Temporary Import Permit and a copy of the registration for my motorcycle, along with my passport and my tourist permit. After a lot of paperwork and signatures she came out to my motorcycle and took a picture on the VIN. Back inside she gave me the $400 US cash I had paid as a deposit for my motorcycle to enter the country way back in Tijuana and I was done. EASY! Now it was the Belize border.

Belize Border

As I left the Mexican border I knew the next stop was fumigation of my bike. My research had told me that it was just at the entrance to the Belize border labelled #1 in the photo below. But it wasn’t.

Soon after leaving the Mexico border there was a newer building with a tunnel like a car wash that a vehicle was going through. I put an arrow where the fumigation is now in relation to the border crossing. I pulled around the “car wash” and parked to the side. A man game out and sprayed my tires with a hose attached to a generator. For that I paid 50 pesos. I didn’t have any Belize dollars yet. Good thing they accepted pesos.

The plan was to enter the free zone after the Mexico border and before the Belize border to get some Belizean dollars from an ATM. After the fumigation I approached the free zone and saw that it was really run down and I had to pay to get into it. I decided not to go. I had pesos and US dollars so I hoped that would work.

As I entered the Belize border a guy flagged me into the parking lot I have labelled #1 and into the far building I have labelled #2 in the photo.

Once in the building the first step was to fill out a Belize entry card. Then wait in line at immigration for the officer to check my passport and card. That was easy. Behind the immigration booth I saw another booth with a sign that said “Motor Vehicles.” That must be the place to check in my motorcycle.

The great thing about Belize is that they speak English! That made this process much easier.

I gave the woman behind the counter my passport, entry permit and motorcycle registration. She completed a lot of paperwork with carbon copies. Old school! Then stamped my passport and entered my motorcycle information on it. She handed me my motorcycle import permit and asked me to meet her at the booth outside I have labelled #3

As I walked back to my motorcycle the man who had flagged me over approached me and said I needed to pay a 150 peso Belize tourist fee. Huuuuuummmmm. I paid it and he gave me a receipt. It must have been legit I guess.

I road over to the booth where the customs officer was waiting for me. She checked the VIN to make sure it was the one on my registration and then I was free to go. YAY! I was in Belize.

Motorcycle Insurance

Motorcycle insurance is mandatory in Belize. As I left the booth the insurance building is on the right. I labelled it #4.

The gentleman inside was nice and we talked about my trip. Obviously, he had dealt with motorcycle adventurers before. The insurance for 2 weeks was 46 Belize dollars. They took credit cards so that is how I paid.

I did it! I crossed my first border. An easy one I know, but good practice.