The road from Mazatlan to Durango across the Sierra Madres is primo. Even making extremely good time we were still on that road several hours. The road condition was good to excellent Weather cool but mild. Traffic hair raising at times. It's easily made my top ten North America roads despite that. Myself and the Mouse on the Ultra Chicken, Morgan Kane on his hopped up Harley, and Bill Walker on the Green One made this part of the trip having separated from Buddy Helscel outside of Mazatlan that morning as he made his way up the coast. The road winds itself around tree festooned peaks, giving particularly good views of the canyons below, on both sides of the road no less. Extremely curvy. Clear air revealed mountains to the horizon. Slowing down in remote mountainside pueblitas, all eyes turn to follow the bikes as they rumble through. Kids waving. One teen we passed revealed his knowledge of English, exclaiming "Oh, my god!". No shit. Buying gas at a store with the word "Gasolina" scrawled across a piece of wood tacked to one outside wall, we tank up out of jugs an old man drug out onto the dusty porch, his dog taking a siesta in the shade. We tackle those sinuous curve with conviction and concentration. Scraping floorboards on both sides, hammering the throttle as we made noisy but graceful work of each corner. Passing slow moving trucks we leave the local logging, commercial, and personal traffic behind. Our reward afterwards consisted of some carne, beans and tortillas....and a table full of grins.
