Alaska to Argentina | Episode 6 | The Baja Divide

The Baja Divide is a mostly off road cycling route through the backcountry of rural Baja California, Mexico. It starts in San Diego and runs a circuitous route through the length of the peninsula.

I was initially hesitant to commit to attempting this route since my bicycle touring setup is not what most people recommend for this route. My gear is heavier and my tires are narrower than what most people use. Still, I decided to go for it. It was long and tough, but I'm glad I did.

I was constantly amazed by the incredible variety of landscapes from the wild ocean coastlines to the craggy ridges of the central mountain ranges. One thing I was often surprised by was how green the desert was. The arid hills were often carpeted with plant life including some of the most wild looking species of cactus I had ever seen.

The challenges were real, though. Many stretches of sand seemed to go on forever, and I could see why most people recommend wider tires. I did skip a few short sections that I knew were going to be sandy, but I didn't manage to avoid all of it. The other issue I was worried about was getting flats from cactus thorn punctures, but somehow I avoided getting a single flat the whole ride.

In the end I was tired and glad to be finished with the Baja Divide. I met my dad in La Paz and we rode the ferry to the mainland at Mazatlán together to start the next chapter of the ride.


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About the Ride:
My name is Alex van Gelder. I'm from Seattle and I'm just starting my first intercontinental bicycle tour. The goal is to ride from Deadhorse, Alaska to Ushuaia, Argentina in one go.

I also want to ride some bikepacking routes including the Great Divide Route through the Rocky Mountains and the Peru and Ecuador Divides through the Andes.

For this trip I built my own bike using a custom frame in order to be able to withstand rough mountain roads as well as power through long distances on pavement. (I had never built a bike before so we'll see if it holds up.)

If you want to learn more about my bike build, I go over it in this video:    • My Alaska to Argentina Bike Build  

I go over my gear in this video:
   • My Alaska to Argentina Gear Overview  

If you have any other questions you can check out my FAQs video:    • Alaska to Argentina | Episode 0 | FAQs  

Or leave a comment and I'll get to it as soon as I can.

I'm editing these videos on the road, so releases my be infrequent as I try to find a quiet place to edit.