Reunited with my bike, back in Atillo, my mission is to leave Ecuador. The fact my new VISA card still hasn’t arrived in Tumbaco is a small impediment to this plan but nonetheless I head towards the border. The road drops down from Ecuador’s mountainous spine to the fringes of the Amazon jungle and apparently […]
Also tagged ecuador, on the highwaySetting off from Atillo into the hills, during a short break in the rain, my pack laden with food and camping gear I’m vaguely anxious. The way the locals direct me doesn’t match the route description I have photocopied from the guide book and there is absolutely no path to follow on the boggy wet […]
Also tagged ecuador, mountains, off cycle, ruins, walkingIt’s a long climb out of Salinas to approach Chimborazo but its a beautiful ride. Sometimes I just can’t help wanting it all. Despite having to backtrack 12km on the highway I rode yesterday, then head 20km north on the Ambato – Guaranda highway when, overall, I am trying to move southwards, and in the […]
Also tagged dirt roads, ecuador, mountains, volcanoI arrive in Villa Maria sodden, freezing, filthy. I am exiting a hotel that is so dire even I won’t consider staying there. The rooms are raw brick windowless stalls that fit a bed and nothing more. No room to unpack. Everything is wet. There is no place to hang clothes, tent, sleeping bag, to […]
Also tagged colombia, friends, ordinary angelsRain on the roof throughout the night, a constant drip, water pooling near my head. Wind howling, rattling loose roofing, chilly gusts scuttling under the door and creeping into my sleeping bag with me. I am sleeping in a bare concrete cell of a room at the desolate finca, ironically named Campo Alegre**. I wake […]
Also tagged colombia, mountains, walking, wild placesBy the time my washing is dry, the blog updated and route information gathered two nights have gone by in Santa Rosa de Cabal. After a day and half of climbing, in the rain, I reach the edge of the park. It occurs to me somewhere towards the end of this period of time that […]
Also tagged colombia, mountainsWhen I finally limp into Alajuela, Sarah and Tom still aren’t there. I check into a hostel and make the trip by bus back to Liberia to pick up my mail. Liberia happens to be home to some very fine bike shops and so my first purchase with the long awaited bankcard is a new […]
Also tagged camping, costa rica, friendsI strike out for Cayo Jutias, an island off the north-west coast accessible by a causeway, with high expectations. I have a copy of Lonely Planet’s Cycling Cuba and the beaches of Cayo Jutias are described in it as wild and pristine. As I cross the causeway towards the island, thunder rumbles around me and […]
Also tagged cuba, injury, the seaThe rainy season has left me wondering a little about what to do with myself. It’s not that I mind getting wet – because I don’t – but the kinds of roads I like riding on are pretty much impassable when things are sodden because dirt plus water equals mud and mud and bicycles are […]
Also tagged mexico