Wondering if anyone knows the condition of this route; Carr Hato Mayor El Puerto to San Geronimo, the 66 to Bayaguana, then the 23 to Hwy 7. We may only have our car, not a SUV. We never gone further west than our campo near Dos Rios and I hope to avoid back tracking to get to the North Coast, on my next trip there. Thanks
- Thread starter scotia
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West of Hato Mayor to Hwy 7 Road Conditions?
It's been a long time since I've done any running around in that part of the world.
That used to be all dirt roads, but I wouldn't be surprised if some of it is paved now.
I would hazard to guess you could do it in a car, but it would take a quite a few hours to do it.
That used to be all dirt roads, but I wouldn't be surprised if some of it is paved now.
I would hazard to guess you could do it in a car, but it would take a quite a few hours to do it.
If you are going to see the Salto Socoa water falls near Bayaguana they should be excellent now.. but the entry from the main road may be difficult .
We drove from Sabana del Mar on the way to Las Terrenas 3 years ago. We decided to take the shortest route which was supposed to be only minutes longer than actually driving to Santo Domingo and then heading north. When we went through Hoto Mayor there was massive road construction and we were feeling at ease.. Then the road became more difficult and then treacherous. Weaving back and forth in our front wheel drive SUV I was initially having fun. Then we realized we probably had made a mistake. Over one stretch my wife had to get out of the car and direct me to navigate boulders. Not driving squrely on the boulders the car could have dropped and bottomed out. My concern was that if we were stuck how would we get help because we had not seen a vehicle or even a motorcycle in over an hour and a half. Fortunately a work truck came from behind and we were able to follow its lead as difficult as it was. The lead truck had double rear tires. I had to work hard to keep the slow pace and then slid down in mud tracks to the bottom of a slope. When I looked for the pace car it was crossing a seasonal river. WTF. The sun was setting and there was no way I was going to cross the river. The water was almost up to the truck's bed. What to do. I knew we would not be able to retrace our steps up the mudy grooves of the slope. Then my wife said the kids in the truck are waving us across. In our rented car we started to cross the river. We months later googled the river and it was over 50 meters across. About mid way navigating the water the kids were waving for me to head up the stream. The water had to be well over the door opening. I wondered how the engine was still working. Alas we made it. The rest of the road was marginally better but after what we had passed it was no problem. It was so relieving to make it to the Texaco motor stop. As it always seems both a good and a bad travel story is equally memorable. Good luck on your decision.
I've heard some of it is paved but unsure where. It was always a little rough anytime we went up there on either route in, years ago in rainy season much worse 4x4 needed to cross the rivers.
I'll be there in January so it'll be dryer but after reading these replies I think it best to come back to San Pedro and head up north the usual way.
Some of this journey sounds very familar. We too have had to ford rivers up that way. I think we'll go to the campo for a few days and then drive up north the more reliable way. Looking at the map it seems like it could be shorter (as the crow flies)