The Yucatán Sprint

After four days resting up in San Cristobal de las Casas it was great to get back on the bike. Recharged and refreshed I headed north through the mountains towards Palenque. There were some delightful minority villages along the way, portraits  of a rural idyll. 

Though Palenque lies much lower than San Cristobal is was far from freewheeling and I had to work to cross ranges in my  path. However, the nature of the environment gave clear indication of a change in altitude with pine forests giving way to jungle which became denser and lusher as I descended. Starting to get a bit sticky, especially on the climbs!

To make Palenque in two days I knew I'd have to ride on past the towns with hotels and try my luck wild camping, either by stealth or asking permission. It soon became apparent the former would be impossible, the area is too heavily populated to hide away. As the sun was setting I asked in vain for the nearest hotel/campsite. Nothing doing but I was told I might be able to rent a room down the road. Here's what you get for 100 pesos. I was more than happy, a roof over my head and a mosquito-free room.    

 Getting closer to Palenque. By now it was  really hot and humid. Riding a bike is a great strategy to cope with the climate, the moving air helps keep you cool.

Jungle pothole. They'll want to get that fixed before the rainy season...

Cyclists from New Zealand, only my fourth encounter with other cyclists in two and a half Mexican months. They were clearly riding in a different way to me having taken four days to reach Palenque from San Cristobal and four months to get there from Mexico City (the time it's taken me to travel from Canada!). Still, it's important to go at your own rhythm, it's not a race (though if it were a race I would have beaten them hands down, good job I'm not petty like that).

So, on to the Mayan ruins of Palenque. To be honest, initially I wasn't too taken by them. I'd arrived early to try to beat the tour groups but already the grounds were teeming with tourists. To add to this, the heavy morning mist was a little oppressive and I couldn't quite get my bearings for the site. After a little exploration and taking time to just absorb the atmosphere the magic began to work and I was soon captivated by the ruins and the jungle environment.    

 The authorities have done a really good job on sensitively conserving the surrounding jungle to enhance the atmosphere of the buildings they surround. Likewise with the buildings themselves, the sensitive sections are cordoned off but otherwise you have the freedom to climb around more or less at will.

 Hawkers and vendors lined the paths between the buildings. Not being part of a tour group I was not targeted much by their sales pitches.

As the morning wore on the mist began to break into sunshine and the full glory of Palenque became apparent.

Local lizards had been waiting for the sun too...  

Pyramids - the perfect way to represent a hierarchical society.   

The visit to Palenque took all morning and was certainly one of the highlights of my time in Mexico. I went back to my hotel/campground to pick up my bags and decided just to move on. I hadn't really planned the next leg of my journey but knew that if I pushed onnow I had a chance of making Campeche in three days. Riding across the Yucatán, a pretty featureless landscape with all but a few slithers of jungle long since cleared. In one of the slithers  lives the endangered black howler monkey.

With the bit between my teeth I rode on and on and on, by sunset I'd got myself stuck in this kind of no mans land of vast ranches/marshland. Zero chance of finding a hotel so I decided to jump the fence to wild camp. Then jump right back when I heard barking dogs in the middle distance! I had to remind myself of what I'd learned on this trip - if you ask for help, you'll get it. Come on Dan, just bite the bullet and ask one of the farms for some camp space. 

So I stopped at a ranch, made my pitiful plea and, after the guard consulted his boss, they unlocked the gate and invited me in. I thought they were walking me to a camp space, a meagre patch of mosquito-ridden grass would have done me, but they let me stay in a room with air-con! Remarkable!

After showering, writing in my journal and listening to some podcasts it was time to sleep. Yes, the room was pleasantly cool but the insects were beginning to bug me, in particular I don't sleep well with mosquitoes biting so I pitched my tent inside for an unexpectedly comfortable nights sleep.  

The next day I was on the road by 6am, I knew I could cover some serious ground today and wanted to maximise the early morning cool. I'd made 50 miles by 10 am, 70 miles before breaking for lunch ahead of midday, I knew a trip record distance was in the bag. 

Trip record now stands at 105 miles in a day. This could be hard to beat, the road was so flat nearly all day. I checked into a cosy little hotel in Sabancuy pleased as punch, it feels great to cover so many miles especially when you're crossing fairly barren landscapes, not missing anything. I connected to Wifi and thought "Lets have a look at tomorrow's ride to Campeche, can't be any more than 60 miles after today's heroics." 

85 miles! Nooooo! I was a little crestfallen but what can you do? Another early night...  

In the end, the ride to Campeche was fine. Following the coastline brought some variation to the scenery with pelicans and fishing villages to enjoy along the way. My pace always drops after a lunch break so, apart from brief snack stops, I rode  through, into Campeche for 2pm.

What a slog it had been in the five days from San Cristobal though, 390 miles in just five days. Why do I bother? Well, I'm just keeping an eye on the other end of the trip. I know I'm not going to be able to do everything I want to in one year but any time saved now will be richly appreciated next summer  as the clock ticks down to the end of the trip.

Campeche is a pretty little town, a fortified colonial city on the coast. A Mexican Cadiz if you like. It's been an incredible pleasure to rest up today....

...sampling local seafood...

...and, for once, taking the time to properly plan ahead.

The fruit of my labour, a day by day plan, with budget, for what should be my final week in Mexico. Again, keen to spend my time wisely, not leave the country with too many/too few pesos and try to make for a busy but not quite as full on experience as the previous few days. Looks like I could be in Belize a week on Monday, zip through there and Guatemala mid-month. Always remember though, the best laid plans...