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warning if you are going to Nogales this week.


bmh

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The Yaqui tribe is closing the main road at Vicam just north of Cuidad Obregon and I have also heard of closing between Navajoa and CD Obregon,

A friend of mine had to stay in Navajoa as the road was closed and this morning the road was closed for 2 hours and opened for half hour.

The Yaqui say they are planning to continue until Conagua settles with them. Who knows what will happen but check noticias Vicam on the internet before leaving for the border.

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My wife and I got caught in this road block. They let traffic through every 60 or 90 minutes. Another road block, we had to drive around, which took about 45 minutes. I would avoid driving in that direction at this time. But if you have to, be prepared.

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Update on the Yaqui blockade at Vícam on Federal Highway 15: due to lack of acton by the authorities to the tribe's water demands, they have now permanently blockaded the highway causing lines of up to 14 km to sit. An original detour that added 4 hours of driving time is now inaccesible as the side roads are also being controlled by the tribe and other sympathizers. They are only allowing ambulances, small cars containing families with children or elderly with health problems through.

LInks to today's most recent articles:

http://www.uniobregon.com/noticias/cdobregon/articulo201309.html

http://www.uniobregon.com/noticias/cdobregon/articulo201507.html

http://www.uniobregon.com/noticias/cdobregon/articulo201552.html

http://www.uniobregon.com/noticias/cdobregon/articulo201627.html

We were to leave this Sat. to take the US plated car back to AZ and for a friend to travel to a medical procedure appointment he's waited 6 weeks to get in Phoenix. We will have to abandon the trip totally if this isn't resolved by Sat. as the latest we could leave and make it in time would be early Sun. morning. Not an impossible situation, the procedure could be rescheduled and we'd have to try the trip in another 4-6 weeks. I still have a couple of months on my FM3 to get the car out. Others are not so lucky at this point if their old status has already expired or they have their RP and need to get the US car out via AZ trying to use a "retorno seguro" that's only good for 5 days and they can't move forward on the road. What a Catch-22 for them!

A couple from Chapala left early this morning on a two day trip up to AZ unaware that the blockade had turned into a permanent one. I've asked friends of theirs to try to reach them en route tonight and tomorrow to update me on their progress and what they find out at the scene. I'll post any info I get here.

News updates can be checked on www.uniobregon.com by putting "bloqueo" in the "buscar" box.

If anyone else has just experienced this blockade, please post an update too.

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UGG! We are driving down from phoenix next fri.. with 3 kids and a dog in the car that would totally be a pain in the butt... I hope they figure it out..and soon! Thanks for the resource to stay updated!

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http://www.uniobregon.com/noticias/cdobregon/articulo201724.html

Because tensions were rising high after the permanent blockade and folks were starting to drive the wrong way down the highway to get out of the jam, the protesters opened it for three hours 9 to 12 noon yesterday "to vent off some steam," but then shut it down again including all through the night. Political appeals to the government officials so far have fallen on deaf ears. The lead protester has asked for assistance from the police in Obregon....to hold the traffic back in town so no more people end up stranded on the highway out in the boondocks! That will likely be heeded but no word on water talks yet.

Looks like we won't be starting out on our planned trip tomorrow morning. Everything governmental shuts down on the weekend, so I don't anticipate any change Sat. or Sun. but will keep checking hour to hour for an update.

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http://www.uniobregon.com/noticias/cdobregon/articulo201931.html

Tempers are rising at the blockade, some truck drivers have tried to move north in the southbound lane or to break through the blockade, only to be successfully turned back by the Yaqui people and their supporters.

Another article is suggesting taking a side road of 350 km around on the east side but to fill up first as there are no gas stations along the way on secondary and tertiary type roads only for smaller vehicles and buses.

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http://www.uniobregon.com/noticias/cdobregon/articulo202014.html

Thirty police units were theoretically being sent to break up the blockade yesterday. The Yaquis were going to take whatever came to them and hoped that the police would bring good news for them from officials as well. A followup article by their leader discounted the first story as only rumors and apparently the wall of tractors is still in place with many frustrated, tired, and unhygienic drivers stuck on the highway doing a slow burn.

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http://www.uniobregon.com/noticias/cdobregon/articulo202050.html

No federal police came to unblock the road...it was only a rumor. Now the truck drivers have blocked the only alternate route on their own, neither in favor of nor against the water protesters, but to keep people back in the comfort of the two towns on either end of the blockade and to prevent folks from running out of fuel on that desolate stretch of road devoid of gas stations. They are hoping their additional action will force the feds to unblock the main highway now.

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That sounds very sticky, but increasingly common in the age of popular anger and resentment. Here in Michoacán we frequently have manifestaciones by the teachers and "normalistas," students at teacher's colleges, that block the roads for several hours, so I really sympathize.

However, have you considered taking another route and crossing at another place? I'm not fond of the El Paso/Juarez/Santa Teresa crossing, but at least it would route you away from the problem area. It does mean some extra driving through both México and the US, on routes you're probably not familiar with (and the possibility of getting lost or making a wrong turn). But it could be better than giving up the trip entirely.

I hope you're able to figure out a way around this dilemma. What a nightmare for the folks caught in a 14km traffic jam!

N.

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That sounds very sticky, but increasingly common in the age of popular anger and resentment. Here in Michoacán we frequently have manifestaciones by the teachers and "normalistas," students at teacher's colleges, that block the roads for several hours, so I really sympathize.

However, have you considered taking another route and crossing at another place? I'm not fond of the El Paso/Juarez/Santa Teresa crossing, but at least it would route you away from the problem area. It does mean some extra driving through both México and the US, on routes you're probably not familiar with (and the possibility of getting lost or making a wrong turn). But it could be better than giving up the trip entirely.

I hope you're able to figure out a way around this dilemma. What a nightmare for the folks caught in a 14km traffic jam!

N.

We fortunately do not absolutely have to go at this time, a $50 rebooking fee for the return flights and rescheduling a medical procedure wouldn't be worth risking this hassle unless it seems to be loosening up.

Friends just returned this evening southbound after importing their car in Nogales. They got through on Thursday morning by working their way up to the head of the blockade and feigning a story that a father was dying in Chapala so were let through with the ambulances and buses. When in doubt, play the family card. This would not be a guarantee for everyone to use however. They saw lots of police/army presence but apparently only to deal with irate tempers and not to enforce federal law about the illegal blockade.

http://www.uniobregon.com/noticias/cdobregon/articulo202072.html

The latest news states that a 3 hour opening was made today to let "their compatriots," the truckers, through but then they blocked the highway permanently again without regard to other traffic as no officials were caving in to their demands. The federal police on site did convince the truckers to unblock the alternate route from Esperanza via Hornos and San Nicolas, so there is a way to do the trip through the back roads, no gas stations, 350 km, 4 hours, Cd. Obregon to Hermosillo. We are considering starting out Sunday late morning if things look promising and the alternate route is open.

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Thank you so much BMH for the OP and Phxfunguy for your updates and links. We are in Nevada heading south in an RV from Oregon and going very slowly hoping for some resolution. We would not have known about it at all were it not for this thread. We will have to decide by tomorrow whether to continue south or turn east at Phoenix toward El Paso. For us the situation still looks pretty "iffy". Please keep the updates coming. I am reading them in Spanish but the exact details of how the traffic is or is not flowing is difficult for me to determine so I really appreciate your explanations. It is very kind of you to do this.

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Call one of the Best Western or other bigger hotel in Culiacan or Navajoa , they know if people are going through or not.When my friend was stuck in traffic she called me and I called the Beast Western El Rio in Navajoa and told me the road was blocked. could not give me any details but there are problems but at least that was enough for my friend to stop a cop and put him on the phone and I was able to get an update for her. Hope you have a cell phone so you can always call somebody to get an update if you cannot get any information where you are.

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Its still going on!!!!! I guess I had better start thinking of routing us thru texas.. Oh the joy! Heres the number to call for updates .. The State official urged travelers who need to pass through the blockade, calling before initiating your way through any cell phone number 119, or 01 800 2 protects (7768343) to learn about the current status of the step.

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The Yaquis have been rebelling, protesting, fighting off and on for over 400 years so don't count on it to end anytime soon.

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For those who prefer a smaller-scale border crossing, I've heard that Agua Prieta is a good option. It's not as far east as El Paso/Juarez/Santa Teresa, so it would be less of a detour for anyone trying to get to Arizona. The US town on the other side is Douglas, AZ.

N.

If you go that route, you will still have to deal with the blockade near C. Obregon.

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The alternate routes given on the link above from protecion civil do not help anyone driving up from the south, as far as I can determine.

You join the route at the southern end of Cajeme/Ciudad Obregon and come out north of Vicam. It works for both north and south travel.

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For those who prefer a smaller-scale border crossing, I've heard that Agua Prieta is a good option. It's not as far east as El Paso/Juarez/Santa Teresa, so it would be less of a detour for anyone trying to get to Arizona. The US town on the other side is Douglas, AZ.

N.

Aqua Prieta would not be a good choice. Too isolated. Lived in Arizona a long time and stopped using this route to visit the potters of Mata Ortiz due to problems.

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