Everything is packed up into what I hope are strong packages. The bike should be OK and I have all my gear in 2 huge shopping bags that I double-lined with heavy duty garbage bags and then wrapped in packing tape. I’ll also have my handlebar bag and Ortlieb bag that converts to a backpack. Hopefully I can find a cart to lug all this around. How all this stuff fits on my bike I’ll never know.

I finished up a Highlights page for the time I spent traveling from Alaska to Panama. Originally it was going to be from Alaska to Argentina but it would be impossible to go back through that many blog posts. The updated Highlights page is here or you can cheat and go right to the Alaska to Panama page.

There’s also a new page called Bicycle Health that lists all the equipment replacements I’ve made.

At the mall next to the bus terminal we found a Dairy Queen. I sure did miss those Snickers Blizzards. They are cheap here too. Only $2.50 compared to $6.00 in Canada and whatever they are in the States ($4-something?).

After we got back it was time to pack my bike. Except for one minor bolt on a water bottle cage that I snapped off, everything came apart easily enough. There was plenty of room in the box the frame and wheels. I just hope the airplane people don’t toss it around too much. Credit goes to Karen for taking all the pictures of me getting my bike ready.

Traffic was definitely like NY. The PanAm for the last 20 miles had the most wretched shoulder so most of the time I had to ride on the roadway. Oh and it rained the entire time too. I’m sure I used up at least 2 of my 9 lives.

My luck changed when I arrived at the Bridge of the Americas. There was a minor traffic accident on the other side so traffic was moving a crawl. Perfect for me since there was no place to ride the bike except in with the cars. It was pretty cool riding my bike across the Panama Canal. Since traffic was moving at a snail’s pace I had lots of time to stop and look around. The bridge and entrance to the canal were both quite the sight. The bridge is extremely high to allow the cargo ships to pass beneath.

The next adventure was finding the hostel where Karen and Martin were staying. I thought I was all slick pulling the GPS coordinates off Google maps using the address they had for the place. With the waypoint marked on my Garmin I took the ocean route knowing that I’d be able to find the hostel whenever I decided to head in. Well that didn’t work out. The address Google maps shows for the hostel is wrong and my paper map only had major streets marked. So I had pretty much had no idea where the place was. I kind of knew what intersections it was close to so I rode around on busy, one way streets, in the rain, with crazy drivers honking at everything for 2 hours. Finally I thought to myself I really just need to see Karin and Marten walking down the street. Sure enough not 10 minutes later that’s exactly what happened.

After settling in and having a few beers, Karin and I went over to the bike shop and picked up a bike box for me so that’s covered. They also picked me up 2 really big shopping bags I can use to pack my gear into. Then we took my first Chicken bus ride ever to grab some dinner. We even got to see some street ladies getting hauled away by the policia. It’s a bit of a culture shock this city. It’s seriously just like walking around Lower Manhattan except there’s less people. Neon signs abound, street vendors hawking everything, major chain stores on every corner and massive skyscrapers.

Kind of sad that this was my last day riding on the North American continent. It was about 10 months ago that I crossed over into Mexico where I’d end up riding around for the next 6 months before getting into Belize and officially entering Central America. My flight leaves for Colombia on the 8th so I’ll be hanging out here till then.

GPX Track

Long day riding even though I was planning on stopping early. The weather was too nice so I just kept pedaling. I was kind of impressed with myself because even with some big hills at the end of the day I didn’t even feel tired. Bummed that I have yet to see the Pacific Ocean even though I was less than a mile from it. Trees blocked my view most of the time.

I saw something pretty sad and even though I strongly dislike dogs now it still bothered me. The highway, for some bizarre reason, merged from 2 lanes to one right before town so traffic was a bit chaotic. While I was watching for cars and potholes I looked over in the middle of the road and saw a black dog laying there with its head up looking at traffic coming toward it. At first I thought it was just stupid since I see them laying/sitting in the road all the time but when I looked closer I could see blood running out of its nose. I think someone hit it and it was either too hurt to move or maybe it was in shock. Cars were slowing down to avoid it and some people looked like they were waiting for traffic to break so they could help. The worst part was confused/scared look on the dog’s face. Brutal.

Since I’m closer to Panama City than I expected to be today I’ll stay here tomorrow and ride into the city on Monday. Karen and Martin are there so I’ll stay where they are until they leave on Wednesday. They found a bike box for me too so I don’t have to worry about that now. They are so good to me. The only things I have to worry about now are finding a huge bag to pack all my stuff in and hoping that they let me on the plane because I don’t have proof of onward travel. Many other cyclists have flown into Colombia on one-way tickets so its probably not an issue but still I worry.

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I kind of hate staying in hotels now. They are expensive at ~$30 a night but it’s so much less aggravation for me. Camping spots are almost impossible to find and I’m by myself so the idea of sitting in my tent twiddling my thumbs from noon, which is when I finish riding for the day, until I go to sleep at 10pm is very unappealing. I’m really hoping things are different in South America.

Panama sure changed a lot from up north to where I am now. In the last 2 days I started seeing subdivisions with houses that rival what you’d see in Boca Raton. Security is still a concern for homeowners. It’s not uncommon to have a nice house with bars on every window and a chainlink fence topped with razorwire. The cars are also getting newer and flashier. Saw a BMW yesterday and a couple other pricier models ripping down the highway. Rode by 3 different motorcycle cops looking to bust speeders with their radar guns. That’s something I haven’t seen in a long time (Mexico?). Most of the medium-sized towns have a McD’s or a KFC. No Dairy Queen though.

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This route was my attempt to get off the PanAm highway as much as possible and it’s working out great so far. My map showed the road being paved all the way but that’s not quite true. Maybe 15 years ago it was all paved but now only about half is. The sections of gravel were easy enough even in the rain but I had to avoid a lot of potholes. The five notable climbs were OK but I had to walk up the only unpaved hill because the rocks were so loose. The gringo effect was in full force. Whenever I pull up to any store it goes from being just me and the owner to at least half a dozen people within a couple minutes, all of whom stare at me rather intently. I never even see these people walk up–they just kind of appear. Everyone I saw today waved and kids ran up to the road to watch if they saw me coming. It was pretty cute.

Last night I booked a flight for October 8th that will get me into Colombia. The bicycle tourists out there already know this but at a certain point in Panama the highway ends and there’s no way to drive (or ride) into Columbia. The area where overland travel is next to impossible is called the Darien Gap. OK, technically overland travel is possible using footpaths and a lot of boats but you’d probably be killed/kidnapped by the Colombian guerillas, bandits or smugglers that inhabit the area. From what I’ve read its probably one of the most dangerous areas in the world.

People riding bicycles to South America (or to CA if starting from the south) typically hop on a plane in Panama City and fly into Cartagena, Colombia. There are also chartered boats that you can book passage on for about $350 but I’d rather just get it over with in a day vs. the 3-4 day boat trip. There are no direct flights so I have 2 stops. The worst part is I get into Cartagena at 10:30 at night. I’ll try to book a hotel so at least I have a place to go (via taxi).

I’ve never taken a bike on a plane so I’m freaking out a little. The bike packing part I’ve been prepped for but I just know it’s going to be a big, stressful mess. I gave myself 3 days after I get to Panama City to find a bike box and a huge duffel bag to throw my panniers in.

Funny story but it’s at the expense of my friends but they’ll forgive me. About a month ago Karen and Martin were riding a few days ahead of me. They told me about this hotel to stay at so when I got there that’s where I stayed too. It was probably even the same room. Not long after I got there I started hearing this really loud noise that sounded like someone playing an 80’s arcade game. The bling beep bling noise went on non-stop for half an hour before I realized it was probably birds. Well, I found out much later from Martin that they were so annoyed by the noise when they stayed there that they were yelling into the next room to turn the volume down. Finally they went over to owner and he told them what was making the noise–frogs! While I was riding today I heard them in a ditch next to the road so I made a little video to remind Martin of when he yelled at the frogs to shut up.

09/29

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I didn’t beat the rain today even though I was on the road at 7am and only stopped for 20 minutes. The worst part is having the sweat run into my eyes and almost blinding me. It’s still coming down now.

The shoulder on the PanAm is amazing. It’s usually at least 4 feet wide and there are no potholes. There’s a bit of glass to watch out for but nothing too bad. I’m glad it was pretty flat today because my knee is a bit sore from yesterday.

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The climb up into the mountains wasn’t bad but the hills after that were relentless. Fortunately traffic was light and there were a couple places to grab some water. I didn’t even stop for lunch so I’m looking forward to dinner tonight. A sign indicating the continental divide (3,600 feet) was at the top of the first big hill and the views back to the Caribbean Sea were amazing.

At about the halfway mark I arrived at Lake Fortuna. Not sure how much of it was natural since a massive dam held the water back but it was pretty nice looking. There were a few touristy shops selling all kinds of food/drink so I bought some candy. The surprise of the day was at a checkpoint. The guard actually asked to see my passport. It ended up being kind of a pain because my stupid Pacsafe money belt broke (both zippers) so now it’s kind of buried in my front pannier.

The weather cooperated all day except when I started the big descent. Rain came down in buckets right up until I found a cheap, little motel to stay at ($10). My detour into Chiriqui Grande for a hotel could have ben avoided. Not too far after the turn toward the mountains was a little motel. Oh well.

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With an hour to kill you went to a bar and drank. Then you went back. Now they had no room available. The only option was a scary hotel by the docks. You smiled again. On your way there, and again when you went to an internet cafe, drunk guys who always seemed to know a smattering of English, came up to you and wanted to shake your hand. You didn’t like touching sweaty drunk people so you offered a terrorist fist bump.

The hotel back at Old Bank had a boat so they drove you over to the main island where you caught a water taxi back to the mainland. While the small, fast-moving boat jumped over the waves you clutched your GPS in case you quickly had to mark the coordinates for a future dive mission to retrieve your bicycle.

Then you rode all day along virtually undeveloped countryside. Jungle lined the quiet highway on both sides and you thought back to Costa Rica and laughed at how the tourist brochures made the country seem like Panama with friendly people, great food, lots of wildlife and jungle everywhere.

Tomorrow you go over the mountain range that splits Panama down the middle. You should be able to make it in one day. If it takes two days you don’t care.

This post dedicated to the craziest writer on CGOAB.

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