Skip to main content

2020 Jalisco, Mexico Road Trip Part 2

Part 2 of the Jalisco series picks up where Part 1 left off and mostly focuses on my visit to the City of Guadalajara.


Part 1 of the Jalisco Series can be found below:

2020 Jalisco, Mexico Road Trip Part 1

Part 5; Autopista 54D over Laguna San Marcos

On my way back to Zacoalco de Torres from Lake Chapala I took Autopista 54D southbound over Laguna de San Marcos after merging off of Federal Highway 15 northbound.  After descending the hill side the limited access Auto Pista 54D has a toll facility which cost $84 Pesos.  Traffic on Autopista 54D southbound has a return ramp to Gaudalajara immediately beyond the tollbooth.


Autopista 54D south costs a total of $272 Pesos to reach Colima.  Colima is signed as 147 Kilometers south of the tollbooth.


Autopistas in general are a pretty decent analog to the standards seen on the Interstates.  Autopistas even includes traffic devices such as Variable Message Signs.


Autopista 54D southbound enters the mostly dry Laguna de San Marcos on a raised grade.  The grade of Autopista 54D includes a warning regarding frequent dust storms.  After crossing Laguna de San Marcos I pulled off of Autopista 54D southbound onto Camino Real to reach Zacoalco de Torres.













Part 6; Federal Highway 15 northbound and Avenida Adolfo Lopez to Guadalajara 

My approach to Federal Highway 15 northbound was from Federal Highway 54 north and Federal Highway 80 east.






Federal Highway 15 north climbs in elevation and intersects Federal Highway GUA 10D.  Federal Highway GUA 10D essentially is a limited access bypass of Guadalajara and is more known as Libramiento Sur de Guadalajara.






 
After interesting Federal Highway GUA 10D the route of Federal Highway 15 north descends into 




Federal Highway 15 north crosses through Santa Cruz de las Flores and intersects Metropolitan South Circuit.  Interestingly Federal Highway 54 briefly appears somewhat co-signed at the split of Metropolitan South Circuit.











Despite being a well engineered surface expressway there are some unique traffic issues that can be seen on Federal Highway 15 north like unsecured brick loads.



Oddly the turn off for Las Plazas Outlet has Federal Highway 39 signage which shouldn't be present.


Federal Highway 15 north continues into San Agustin and the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area.






Federal Highway 15 north begins to have some small limited access underpass segments starting in San Agustin.




The artwork on some of the overpasses on Federal Highway 15 is...interesting?


Federal Highway 15 north passes through Los Gavilanes and San Jose del Tajo before entering Zapopan.














Federal Highway 15 north intersects Anillo Periferico Norte Manuel Gomez.  Anillo Periferico Norte Manuel Gomez has signage directing traffic to segments of Federal Highway 15D.









Federal Highway 15 north splits onto Avenida Mariano Otero approaching the City Limits of Guadalajara.  I stayed straight onto Avenida Adolfo Lopez Mateos.







Avenida Adolfo Lopez Mateos passes through a couple of underpasses and enters the City of Guadalajara.  Avenida Adolfo Lopez Mateos passes under Federal Highway 15 in front of Hotel Riu Plaza Guadalajara.  Hotel Riu Plaza Guadalajara opened in 2011 is the tallest building in Guadalajara at 705 feet.
















Avenida Adolfo Lopez Mateos northbound passes under Minerva Roundabout and Glorieta Colon via a series of tunnels.






I followed Avenida Adolfo Lopez Mateos to it's northern end and made an southern turn onto Avenida de las Americas to backtrack towards Central Guadalajara.








Part 7; Mercado Libertad

After spending what seemed like an infinite amount of time attempting to negotiate the narrow streets and construction zones in Central Guadalajara I arrived at Mercardo Libertad.


Mercado Libertad is officially known as "San Juan de Dios Market" and is the largest indoor market place in Latin America.  Mercado Libertad opened in December of 1958 and operates in a facility which is approximately 430,000 square feet.   Mercado Libertad has a three floor interior which somewhat resembles something you'd see out of the first Blade Runner movie.



The exterior of Mercado Libertad is lined with access doors and shops that are open to the surrounding City streets.





The courtyard and bottom floor of Mercado Libertad feature numerous food stands.   I partook in a large torta (which might have been the best I've ever had) on the lower level before leaving Mercado Libertad for the airport. 


Mercado Libertad is located at the intersection of Calzada Independencia and Avenida Francisco Javier Mina.




Part 8; Federal Highway 23 to Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla Guadalajara International Airport

My path from Mercado Libertad to Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla Guadalajara International Airport ("GDL") was through the City Streets of Guadalajara gradually to Federal Highway 23.  From Mercado Libertad on Avenida Francisco Javier Mina I turned south on Caldaza Independencia.


Traffic headed south to GDL is directed to turn off of Caldaza Independencia onto Avenida Dr. Roberto Michel.



Avenida Dr. Roberto Michel south enters Tlaquepaque and junctions Federal Highway 80.  Avenida Dr. Roberto Michel merges into Federal Highway 23 south.



Federal Highway 23 south splits one-way around the western flank of a large hill and merges back in with the northbound lanes near Avenida San Martin.





Federal Highway 23 south passes through Las Pintas and Las Pintitas.  South of Las Pintitas Federal Highway 23 reaches the entrance of GDL on the outskirts of El Refugio.










Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Interstate 40's Tumultuous Ride Through the Pigeon River Gorge

In the nearly 60 years Interstate 40 has been open to traffic through the Pigeon River Gorge in the mountains of Western North Carolina, it has been troubled by frequent rockslides and damaging flooding, which has seen the over 30-mile stretch through North Carolina and Tennessee closed for months at a time. Most recently, excessive rainfall from Hurricane Helene in September 2024 saw sections of Interstate 40 wash away into a raging Pigeon River. While the physical troubles of Interstate 40 are well known, how I-40 came to be through the area is a tale of its own. Interstate 40 West through Haywood County near mile marker 10. I-40's route through the Pigeon River Gorge dates to local political squabbles in the 1940s and a state highway law written in 1921. A small note appeared in the July 28, 1945, Asheville Times. It read that the North Carolina State Highway Commission had authorized a feasibility study of a "...water-level road down [the] Pigeon River to the Tennessee l

Ghost Town Tuesday; Mannfield, FL and the stairway to Hell

Back in 2015 I went searching the Lecanto Sand Hills for the original Citrus County Seat known as Mannfield.  Unlike Centrailia in Hernando County and Fivay in Pasco County I did find something worth seeing. Mannfield is located in the Lecanto Sand Hill section of Withlacoochee State Forest somewhat east of the intersection of Citrus County Route 491 and Mansfield Road. Mannfield was named after Austin Mann and founded in Hernando County in 1884 before Citrus County Split away.  In 1887 Citrus County was split from northern Hernando County while Pasco County was spun off to the south.  Mannfield was selected as the new Citrus County seat due to it being near the county geographic center.  Reportedly Mannfield had as many as 250 people when it was the County Seat.  The town included various businesses one might include at the time, even a sawmill which was common for the area.  In 1891 Citrus County voted to move it's seat to Inverness which set the stage for the decline of M

The National Road - Pennsylvania - Great Crossings Bridge and Somerfield

West of Addison, US 40 crosses the Youghiogheny River at what once was the town of Somerfield.  When crossing the current modern two lane bridge, you many not realize that it is actually the third to cross the Yough at this site.  The first - a stone arch bridge - was known as the Great Crossings Bridge.  Built in 1818, this three arch bridge was part of the original National Road.  The name Great Crossings comes from the men who forded the Youghiogheny here - George Washington and George Braddock. (1)  If you cross the bridge at the right time, this historic bridge and what was once the town of Somerfield will appear out from underneath this massive man-made lake. Historical Postcard showing the 'Big Crossings' bridge and Somerfield.  Image submitted by Vince Ferrari. The Great Crossings Bridge was located in the town of Somerfield.  Somerfield, originally named Smythfield until 1827, would develop as a result of the National Road. (1)  Somerfield would go through va