PowerCycle

10/19 Mountains! OK, not quite yet but the Andes are right beside me. Maybe 3 more days until I get out of this valley and start the climb up. Now that I’m going the right way I’m a little more at ease. The run up north wasn’t actually that bad and I suppose I’d ride it again if it meant visiting the areas in and around Mompos.

Had some nice road today. There was a shoulder most of the way and even though traffic was heavier it wasn’t anything like the PanAm. Finding places to get water is a bit harder–not too many villages in these parts and sometimes when I do find a little tienda they don’t have water. Coke works in a pinch though. I was hoping to score some free food by plucking some of these green, round coconut-like things from the trees next to the road but that ended on a sour note. Not sure what they were but when I cut one open and bit in I wasn’t a fan. At least it didn’t kill me. Just kidding. I saw a guy on a bike picking them so I figured they were safe enough. Maybe they have to be fried or boiled or something.

The movie Collateral Damage was on TV last night. I’m sure a lot of what was depicted about Colombia was slightly exaggerated but it was still cool seeing places mentioned where I’d been. Not sure if the Mompos I went to was the same one. I’ll have to wait to check that one on the internet when I get access. (update: apparently Mompos was never a rebel base. Damn it.)

The show on the Travel Channel with that fat guy who travels around the world eating everything was also on. He was down in Argentina eating a cow that the locals cooked using a freaking tonne of wood. I wanted to reach through the TV and choke him for promoting something so horribly wasteful. It just amazes me how stupid people are sometimes (not just the fat guy; the people who think using a tonne of wood to cook a cow in the name of tradition makes sense).

Finally found a reasonably priced hotel room. $5.59 at Hotel las Paisas for TV, private bathroom, clean room and no foot board to constrain my long body. No AC but lot’s of fans.

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10/18 It was bound to happen sooner or later. The road I expected to lead me east and then down south never materialized. That led to a 60 mile jaunt back up north to where I am tonight. Tomorrow morning the road I’m on now should intersect with the main highway heading back south. The sad part is I’m right about where I was supposed to be in the first place had I not decided at the last minute to ride further south down the PanAm. Once again a major routing error with the ITMB map for Colombia. There is no road east out of El Banco and if someone tries to tell you there’s a road east at Chimichagua they are wrong (someone like the kid that works at the motel I stayed in last night).

Other than riding by some huge termite mounds and seeing a bunch of parrots it was an uneventful ride. There was a 5 mile patch of unpaved road that was covered in a thin layer of mud so the bike and I got a bit dirty. Oh, I did run into a military checkpoint and the guys there were pretty cool. Of course they are all like 19 years old which was funny (because they could kill me in 5 seconds). They really dug my GPS which I don’t get because I know how much the US gives Colombia for the retarded drug war so they must have something better than a 4 year old Garmin (that I love–is anything as good as the 60CSX??).

There’s a gas station in El Paso and the motel sits right next to it. While I was washing my bike over by the pumps a guy and his wife drove over. He lived in New York for the longest time and had lots of questions about my trip. We also talked about the flooding and he told me how he and the other farmers were dealing with it. I guess a lot of what was being grown is now is being converted to coconut palm fields since they tolerate the water more. The coconut oil is used in foods and in the manufacture of soaps, cosmetics and candles. He left but within a minute came back and said he was bringing dinner for me. An hour later I was enjoying a delicious home cooked meal of steak, rice and some fried bananas. That was a nice way to end the day.

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Looks like its warning people not to get sleepy.

Some termite mounds.

10/17 Had a not so relaxing day off yesterday in Mompos and a pretty incredible day riding today. The problem with shifting was identified when I was cleaning the chain. One of the links was nearly coming apart and my handy chain stretch tool told me the whole thing was done anyway. Of course I found all this out after I spent a bunch of time cleaning it. The spare went on without a problem.

The other thing that happened was at a church/graveyard in town. I think it was Santa Domingo. Anyway, there were a line of benches right before you enter the graveyard area and of course there were a bunch of old men sitting there staring at me as I walked past them. One of them gets up and says hi, wants a handshake (which I hate because people get me sick more than anything) and goes into the where are you from, blah, blah. I could tell he was wasted so I kind of brushed him off, went in and took some pictures, told another guy no I wasn’t giving him money and then went to leave. The drunk guy didn’t like that I wasn’t handing over cash to his buddy so he says in English, “I feel sorry for you.” I just left but it annoyed me more than it should have. I tried to remember this was coming from guy who has nothing better to do than get wasted next to a graveyard on a Saturday morning (it wasn’t even noon yet) and harass tourists.

Today was just crazy. The flooding continued but for the most part the road was above water. That changed quickly in one area. Water was rushing over the road waist deep and the only dry way to cross was using some raised planks that the locals had fashioned. Trucks sat there unable to get through. Even motorcycles had to be walked across the planks while the driver waded through the water holding on to the bike. 2 guys took my bike and walked it fully loaded across. I walked behind them hoping my bike wouldn’t fall in. They were very sure footed and made it across. Of course I fell and soaked my shorts and shirt. That’s twice in as many days I’ve fallen in rivers.

At the next section of flooded road there were no planks so I had to unpack everything and carry my bike across. The whole time I’m thinking there are caimans, huge boa constrictors and anacondas living in the area. At some point I met a more agreeable resident of Colombia: a senorita. Alexandria is a chemistry teacher who rode like hell to catch up to me because I was moving so fast and didn’t see her. We rode for a few miles chatting away. She knew about as much English as I do Spanish which worked out surprisingly well.

This area of Colombia is very isolated even without the roads being impassible. This has actually been one of the most memorable parts of my entire trip. There was a section today where it was incredibly thick jungle/swamp on both sides of the road for a couple miles. Colorful birds and huge lizards were all over the place. The people living in the area were forced to build shacks next to the road since their homes were flooded. They were so friendly even though I probably gave some of them heart attacks when they saw me trucking down the road. You also really feel like you are in a not-so-traveled area when all day you see little bare brown butts running around outside playing.

At a certain point I realized that the road was leading me way further south than I expected so I asked a guy on a motorcycle and he said keep going. This ITMB map is way off or they changed the road big time. I finally came to a T crossing at San Martin de Loba and asked someone else how to get to El Banco. A guy pointed me to a dock and said take a boat– no roads. $5 later I was in the city. Taking the small river boats is about the scariest thing I’ve had to do. Everytime I get out I expect my bike or a bag to be missing. Dozens of Colombian Army guys in full gear were at the dock. Their stuff was laying all over the place and I had to ask one guy to move his backpack. He said go ahead so I went to slide it over with one hand. It wouldn’t freaking budge. It must have weighed at least 80/90 lbs. He moved it (two hands) but I don’t know how those guys lug those packs around.

El Banco is flooded pretty bad along the waterfront but the land rises once you go in a block and there are some decent hotels. Not sure how I’m leaving tomorrow. I think I might be on another boat.

My necklace is in my pocket now. It wasn’t the threat of theft. I put it away because it’s just too much for the area.

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Next to the docks in El Banco.

Most low-lying streets are flooded.

Walking across this to the boat to El Banco was not fun.

Pefect road.

This one was easy.

This is the one where I fell.

The only dry spot was on the road so that’s where people built houses.

My new friend.

Poor animals.

Mooove!

10/14 Took a left off the PanAm and finally had a little relief from the traffic. Pretty quiet after that. Rolled past some small villages and got lot’s of raised eyebrows. At first people seem a bit tense but once I say hi to get them to stop staring they come out of their shell and are very friendly.

For the first time, possibly in my life, I rode on the back of a motorcycle. The motel is outside town and the sun is blazing so when a motor-taxi guy pulled up and offered a lift I hopped on. My destination was a bank back in the center but they only have services for Bank of Colombia customers. Hopefully I find an ATM soon because my peso supply is getting low.

Looking forward to getting to the town of Mompos tomorrow. It sits on the banks of the Río Magdalena and is supposed to have a unique “Mississippi” vibe to it.

Didn’t ride too far today. I kind of feel like I’m dragging a bit but I think I just need a few days to get used to the heat and hills. The gears on my bike need a serious adjustment and something keeps rattling and it’s driving me nuts because I can’t figure out what it is.

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Not sure why they left the old one up.