Crossed Nicaragua
 

August 01, 2018 I crossed into Nicaragua from Costa Rica. Rode to Chinandega and spent the night. Crossed into Honduras and then El Salvador on August 02, 2018. I didn't see any signs of conflict and from what little contact I had with locals, everyone was good.
I did see a group log foreign riders riding south.

Thanks to .all for the commentary..... but are there any solutons or alternatives in bypassing the country....if at all.

We will be in Central america in three months time on our way to Mexico, do we simply monitor things and then if all seems OK ride straight through..... or if its not safe does anyone have any alternatives, i.e. would there be a ferry, or is plane the only option.

Thanks Rigby and GBY, we will continue to monitor, from what you say we may be able to cross and ride straight through.

If anyone has any alternative solutuons so we could continue our journey through to Mexico then please let us know.

David

update number? things have quieted down somewhat and most of the murdering has halted. roadblocks are gone. heavy police presence in managua after there having been a shootout or two between the pigs and the paramilitaries, who are sill armed with military grade hardware and may or may not be under govt control.

i am going down on the 10th to see how my property is and check on the general climate of shit before deciding anything. i suspect that the evil side has won and managed to murder enough innocent folks to shut them the eff up for the time being.

having said that, during the war in the 80's, managua remained relatively calm, while a civil war raged on the outskirts.

not wanting to be a nit-picky nanny type, i'd say that it is somewhat ok to transit through for now, just be SUPER AWARE and STAY THE HELL off the roads after 5:30 p.m.

oy david, i normally live 1/2 time in nicaragua--2 weeks on 2 weeks off. been in panama with the family the passed 2 months riding the violence out.


i keep tabs on what's happening and will keep this thread updated for as long as necessary. PM me as time gets closer for an in-depth report. if things are back to normal when you come through, i'll put together a nice "bahbie" for ya and we can share some beer!

Thanks, will dobeer

Just met a rider here in Tegucigalpa that is headed for the border today or tomorrow. He was on the fence about going into Nica but got some information that other travelers had gone through recently so he's going to make a run for it. I'll keep in touch with him and get back to the thread when I have any other information.

I am not advocating that a rider should go into an area where he feels unsafe. However, I thought I would post this dicho here.

Todo lo que siempre has querido está en el otro lado del miedo. . . Cuando vences tus miedos, se destruyen tus limites.

Spoke with my friend that just went through. He said that it's calm enough to zip through. He did the entire stretch in a day, about 300km total. Not much else to report other than it looks like riders are slipping through, sometimes in small groups.

Spent two days in Nica last weekend. while the streets are much less occupied and businesses are still not opening at night en masse, i would say it's ok to ride through.


if nothing changes drastically in the next few weeks, i will be moving my family back in mid-september, as most of my friends have done.


i will reiterate, that if you do cross or even tour, stay off the roads at night.

Glad to see that it's slowly improving.

There's conquering fear, and then there's being just plain stupid. A little prudence goes a long way.

Time flies.

So here’s the deal. Two weeks ago, I moved the family home to a much quieter and safer neighborhood. It was a long overdue move despite the shit that’s been going on over the past 5 months. Last week I moved the family back from panama as after having spent five days here moving I deemed it safe enough FOR NOW.

Things are not normal here. Many businesses have closed, operating hours are much shorter, practically no tourists (a good thing?), much less traffic. There are near daily marches, protests, caravans etc and a ridiculous (by nica standards) heavily armed police presence. There are still roving bands of masked people with automatic weapons but they are on witch hunt missions and are not indiscriminately shooting people.

I still do not believe this is a good time to be touring the country. However, if you stick to the main highways you should be fine to transit through. Oh, San Juan del sur is fine. So if you’re headed south, blast through from the north and spend a couple of days relaxing on the beach there before heading to Costa Rica.

On another note, to add to the BS one has to deal with here, they are demanding that you provide proof of yellow fever vaccination if you’ve spent ANY time in panama and 15 other countries. No proof? No entry. No exceptions. Not sure about Costa Rica but you can get the vaccination in panama for $100. You will then need to wait 10 days before entering nica.

Thanks for all the updates and information you have provides in this thread Teevee, much appricaited! I hope your new home will be better and safer for yoir family.

I plan to join the Stahlratte sailing 10/10-14/10 from Cartagena to Panama and thus I will probably cross Nicaragua in the first half of November. Just hope there wont be a second wave of trouble and roadblocks. (Had enough of them in Bolivia too esrlier this year...)

Thanks for the updates everyone, I really appreciate it. I am in San Cristobal, Mexico and heading south now. I’d love to be kept updated and may transit through Nicaragua in the next couple of weeks. If anyone is heading south in the future and want to think about having a riding buddy for that stretch of road let me know! I do want to ask Teevee, what is the gas situation like now? Are gas stations opened?

Thanks mate

all businesses that have not closed permanently are open. gas supplies and stations are at 100%. price of gas is high, as usual. only costa rica is higher in CA.


many smaller hotels have closed. MANY. so, do not rely on websites and 3rd party booking companies for lodging. call or email your selected places and confirm. then re-confirm a day or so before. keep in mind that the economy has tanked, especially the tourism sector. lots of places had held on, by letting staff go and running ghost operations. but there's no telling how long they can hold on without customers.


i will keep this thread updated.