Latest on the Arco Norte

We took the Arco Norte from Puebla to the Querétaro exit yesterday (May 13th) on our frequent drive between
the Chiapas Highlands and Lake Chapala after having spent the night at the fine and highly recommended Hotel Cascadas which takes dogs and is a beautiful property located in a local park with a stunning waterfall in a fabulous section of Orizaba and has a very nice restaurant in which we have had many fine dinners after tiresome seven to eight hour drives up from San Cristóbal.

We had planned to take the Arco Norte from its inception at San Martin to Atlacomulco and then connect with the Guadalajara-DF Autopista to Lake Chapala but, while the signs indicated that the Arco Norte was open to Atlacomulco, we had been down that road before and did not believe that signage so we exited at the Queretaro exit which is actually about 160 Kilometers from that city and about six hours from Ajijic on Lake Chapala.

We asked at the toll plaza we exited if the freeway was open to Atlacomulco and the attendant at the toll plaza said it was, indeed open to Atlacomulco but by then we had no chance to go back to the freeway and who the hell believes an attendant at a toll plaza anyway so we headed on up to Querétaro and on down to Irapuato and La Piedad and Ocotlan and part of the drive was a disaster through La Piedad as usual but that will soon be over so don´t worry about that.

Here is what you need to believe. That Arco Norte is one hell of a fine road upon which you can drive at the speed of sound and ain´t nobody on it and you never have to worry about traversing Mexico City again and having to be harassed by its crooked cops or being inconvenienced by massive and unpredictable traffic jams and for that I say Thank you Jesus or Mohammed or Tlaloc or take your pick.

Peter wrote:

Glad you're back at Lakeside. We had to delay our trip for a few weeks but will be coming soon enough. Now that I know you're back we can plan on running into you there. I doubt we will be coming before a couple more weeks so that should give you time to re-settle a bit before we barge in.

We'll have to try the pulled-pork sandwiches at Bubba's this trip, perhaps we can buy you lunch. Also we need more of those bread and butter jalapeños from Bubba's. We have a shopping list from some Michoacanos that want some grits and a few other things from Superlake so we'll see you soon.

Thank you for that nice note, Peter. Be advised that we will be in Santa Fe at an artisanal fair for most of July in our first trip back to the states in a decade so look us up in Ajijic in August. Arrive in August with an appetite trending toward Texas style pulled pork sammices and, while this will be nothing akin to the same dish in Birmingham, it will do as that is all we have, brother.

In the meantime, a recipe for Greenville Brislin Chicken:

SAUCE
One bottle of Worcestershire Sauce
One Bottle of Balsamic Vinegar
One "Stick" of Butter
Tons of sliced Garlic and White or Yellow Onions
Some sprinkles of ground white hot red pepper

Stew this for a long time.

BBQ some chicken pieces over coals and Hickory or Mesquite chips.

Marinate from time to time with that there BBQ Sauce.

Serve with potato salad and beer.

Maybe this was posted on the wrong thread. Please feel free to move, Peter.

I tried to use the mod tools to make this appear both here and in La Comida. It didn't work out so well, I ended up deleting my reply post to you but fortunately you quoted me so it all sort of makes sense. I think I ended up with the recipe in La Comida but as a "shadow topic", whatever that means. High-tech was never meant to make life easier for dinosaurs like me.

We are starting to check out driving information for our trip to Puebla and Oaxaca. So I just went on Google to get information on Arco Norte. With typical Mexican style, there isn't any!

Does anyone know whether it is now finished to Atlacomulco. If not, does anyone know the best way to connect with it going from Morelia to Puebla? Thanks!

Jim

We came past the junction north of Atlacomulco on Tuesday while on a bus from Mexico City to Pátzcuaro. The interchange, at least, is finished. I can't speak to the rest.

Thanks, Mike. This is kinda strange. So far I've not found anyone who has actually DRIVEN through that interchange onto Arco Norte. It would be nice to know where it actually connects in relationship to Atlacomulco, what the signs say, etc.

Jim

Jim:

If you do a Google search under Arco Norte you will find quite a bit of information on the highway at several sites. There you will find, among other things, a video of President Calderon speaking at the formal dedication of the autopista in May of this year all the way through to what is dubbed on the video the Atlacomulco- Jiquilpan Exit. We drove the highway from Puebla to the Queretaro exit in April of this year and when we exited at Queretaro, we were told by the toll taker that the road was, indeed open at the time all the way to Atlacomulco but there was no way for us to backtrack at that point. We will be driving that route in October when we return to Chiapas but have not driven the entire autopista as of yet. However, if you drive the Morelia-DF autopista you should have no problem spotting the signs which should read Puebla Cuota near or once you have entered Atlacomulco. Sorry I can´t be more specific than that but as long as you are going that way, perhaps you can share your experience with us regarding signage. You would think they would have excellent signage for the entrance to this autopista at Atlacomulco unless you have lived in Mexico for a few years and then no signage problems would surprise you.

Good luck and bon voyage.

Thanks Dawg.... I did find lots of stuff by Dr. Google, but nothing that specifically mentioned that the leg to Atlacomulco was open--though I did miss El Presidente's speech. I should be able to send you some info and pictures before you and Dawgette head that direction. We hope to see you in Puebla.

Jim