Looking back to early December, we had a week between the time house-sit #8 ended in San Andrés Huayapam, Oaxaca, and the time house-sit #9 began in Mexico City. So we decided to take a short detour, to drive the Isthmus of Tehauntepec. I couldn’t miss the chance to put my feet in the water of two oceans in one day, only a few hours apart!
Our YouTube video gives a brief overview of the location of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec (spoiler alert: it’s the skinniest part of Mexico), as well as a little insight into the cities at either end: Salina Cruz, Oaxaca and Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz. I also included about 15-minutes of dash-cam footage, showing each end of the isthmus, and some interesting parts of the drive, notably some beautiful jungle scenery, and the bustling small towns along the route.
Fun fact: the Isthmus of Tehuantepec was considered for what later became the Panama Canal. However, they weren’t planning to build a canal across Mexico, instead, they were potentially planning to build a massive rail system to ferry the ships across by rail! As the route we took is literally the only highway connecting these two major port cities, there is a high amount of large truck traffic on what is mostly a two-lane highway. Super interesting.
So, I hope you enjoy coming along on this journey with us, to see two oceans in one day!
Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, Mexico » The Pacific Ocean ⌄
Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, Mexico » The Gulf; part of the Atlantic Ocean ⌄
Our YouTube video covering the Isthmus of Tehuantepec ⌄
Thanks for reading,
Dani & Evan Benton
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