El Espinazo del Diablo

It was tough to leave Durango after our great stay there, but we were very much looking forward to the ride over to Mazatlán and a relaxing few days at the beach. The road from Durango to Mazatlán is an absolute joy to ride, one of the best rides on the continent. It begins with a nice curvy section out of town turning more and more mountainous with amazing views as you cross the Espinazo del Diablo:





We lucked out and didn´t encounter too much traffic or road hazards, but of course there were some slow moving trucks with limited opportunities to pass, but it usually works out. In general, the truck traffic here in Mexico keeps an eye out for vehicles behind them, turning on their left turn signal when they believe there is room to pass. That is unnerving for a few reasons, mainly, those of us that learned to drive in the US are accostumed to a left turn signal meaning that a left turn is upcoming, which would not be a fun experience if passing a large truck on its left. (Aside from these narrow mountain roads, many drivers here throw on hazards when a left turn is upcoming, and will often pull to the right to wait for a good chance to cross both lanes of traffic, which is quite helpful. Yet other drivers feel that any lights whatsoever on the rear of their car would somehow make them less of a driver, choosing instead to drive in stealth mode, which makes being anywhere near them that much more exciting.)



We were also lucky in that the road was in good shape with very little sand, gravel, or potholes. The biggest concern was that the battery was not holding a charge, so we kept the TA idling whenever possible. She thankfully started up at all gas stops and got us to Mazatlán without one single bump start.