Moto Trip Report - Tlachichilco / Atotonilquillo / Poncitla

So I bought this new enduro bike and thought the best way to test it out would be to take a beautiful girl on a little road trip around the lake and surrounding areas.

We went to Tlachichilco / Atotonilquillo / Poncitlan / Ocotlan / Jamay

We started here in Chapala, got a big hearty breakfast at Delicia's in Chapala and then headed east towards Vista Del Lago. I thought about trying out the rougher roads by Mezcala and seeing the dam and lake by San Juan Tecomatlan / Tlachochilco so we could cross back and go to Jamay to eat by the lake but have a different feel than the Chapala area.

The road out towards Vista Del Lago is being redone and one side or half is done most of the way and it is quite nice. The place to turn in San Juan to get to the dam / lake and road to Atotonilquillo isn't marked at all but after entering San Juan its like right before the last or second to last tope, there is a tree on the left and a cattle guard and that is the road you follow to get to the dam / lake and to Atotonilquillo. We went up and the road took us down to Atotonilquillo, the last time I visited the lake I just went to see it and the dam as someone mentioned it existed and I saw some photos of the new road by it.

We dropped down to Atotonilquillo and it was still a journey to Ocotlan, like another 20 minutes or so and we did pass the turn off to go to Mezcala.

Coming into Ocotlan I've always seen the sign for the gun club and this time decided to check it out. I'd love to do some skeet and sporting clays. So we drove up to the "gun club" that is right before entering Ocotlan. It is more of a family park where they have shooting. Nobody was shooting which I found odd, especially for a weekend and then they only had some metal gongs and targets on the hill, nothing really and quite primitive for a gun club, no shotgun sports. There is a large grass area where people were having picnics so it is a social club but not mainly dedicated to shooting sports, that just seems to be a small part of it.

We continued to Ocotlan which was fine, we road around, checked out the plaza and tianguis and then went to check out Cuitzeo. Supposedly they have good micheladas there and we toured the pueblo. We then tried to find a place on the lake to have a beer but didn't find anything except a dirt road that we think (and later confirmed) went to Mezcala but was rough, either you need a truck or motocross bike to pass. We did fine, I love my new bike but all the drinking holes were closed so we came back towards Ocotlan and passed the city, left the municipio and went to Jamay. There they have the same arrangement as Chapala EXCEPT most places are new and renovated and not from 1970 like the Acapulquito area of Chapala. We saw one place that looked good, El Palmar so we have beers and aguachile with camaron.

Then came the trip back. We went pretty well on the carretera, the road in and around Ocotlan is good and we maintained like 90kph and cruised but people would still pass us fast as we rode on the extreme right. This is why I did the east of Chapala shurtcut to avoid dangerous highways which we were only on for a short time. We did the San Pedro / Mezcala road on the way back, a nice road from the carretera and then an awesome mirador / view station at the top which wasn't there last year when I passed by. The road gets very rough, first it starts out as rock road but some potholes and sharp rocks, I cracked my oil pan on this road in my car and after the rocked part it is rocks, potholes and drop offs so it is good only if you have 4wd or an off road moto.

It is a bit of a drive in a car but on the bike we flew over holes and topes and rocks at about 60kph. The road perhaps a bit after San Pedro is a mix of cobblestone with 2 concrete strips for car wheels so it is a good road then become asphalt at the junction at Mezcala.

Here are some photos of today's trip:

Looks like FUN!!! Both the bike and the girl. For some reason it reminds me of a joke (nothing to do with your bike or girl - they both look great).

Never mind. The original joke was clean and funny. Don't really know why it was edited, but the edited version isn't even close to being funny or worthy of being in print - jeez! Oh well, we try and I respect the mod's authority.

Hence I have no fattie and no more scooter / moped!

Hey, where's your helmet?

How many ccs this bike? I've been looking for a late model KLR650 for a while. With the road sprocket, it could be a decent longer distance rider.

Nice lady too!

Bike is a Honda XL-125, was $29,000 pesos brand new. It is a little gutless but for the price was worth it, many larger bikes, even 150cc and 250 cc were priced much more like $43,000 pesos or higher. I'm happy and love having a suspension plus it fits in my entrance and is light enough to be easy to handle.

That's probably why I'll buy a bike in Texas and bring it down. I can buy a 2009 KLR there for $4000 or less.

What are you doing for motorcycle insurance?

Moto insurance... well as mine is a 125 it isn't required and I've had some high quotes like $4,000 to $5,000 pesos. I had my other bike over 4 years and no insurance and no problems. I'll keep looking for more companies.

I didn't want a bike from NOB so I could have a local warranty and not have to take it back NOB if I wanted to sell it.

Spencer - I hope you have two helmets! Just playing mother