Pasto to Otavalo - Gateway to the Andes

 Another wonderful week of hospitality in Colombia, the country and its people have made a huge impression on me. Though the country may be economically inferior to many Western countries there are great lessons to be learned from their warm and welcoming culture. I sincerely hope I can pay forward to other travellers some of the kindness that has been shown to me. 

And Colombia's cuy - guinea pigs - really are super.  

 Fantastic mountain rides brought me to Pasto, overlooked by Volcán Galeras to the left. Suddenly there was a noticeable change in the culture, the nature of the people and place. Surrounded by high green hills the countryside could pass for the Lake District. Cooler climes mean people wrap up warmly and ponchos and sombreros spoke for the first time of being truly in the Andes.   

 Luisa and Boris, friends of my host Jorge from Bogotá, kindly looked after me in Pasto. Lovely, lovely people! Boris teaches at a university in town and Luis is a lawyer working in advocacy for indigenous groups in the Narino region. She was a fantastic host taking the time to show me around town and the surrounding countryside. It was fascinating to hear of the struggles she faces in her work; Colombian law is apparently very good with regards to the rights of indigenous groups' to land, resources etc. However, the implementation of the law is a massive and ongoing challenge. It sounds like fascinating work and it's been such a privilege in this trip to meet people from a range of professions and hear about their work.    

 Luisa took me to the local market to learn a bit more about the region's myriad varieties of fruit. We came hone with bagfuls of unusual and exotic produce, I'll never remember all the names. When the conversation turned to British fruit I realised what a paucity of varieties we have in comparison. 

Luisa is preparing for an IELTS English exam with a view to studying in the UK for a year so I had a little breather from Spanish and we spoke mostly in English. I soon realised that some ideas come out more naturally in Spanish now so there was quite a bit of English/Spanish/Spanglish - all good fun!

 A must visit place is La Cocha, a lake a few miles from Pasto. 

 Though it was heavily overcast and raining when I arrived at the lake the journey was far from a waste of time. The ride from

Pasto involved a high pass which was great fun to attack in an unladen bike. Furthermore the trout I had for lunch was fresh and delicious.   

 Lakeside village.  

 Moving on from Pasto Luisa arranged with me to stay with her father in Tuquerres. With the promise of lunch I foolishly said I could make it to Tuquerres by 1pm and then failed to get an early start. Though only 45 miles away the ride involved some punishing climbs. Halfway there I stopped for a quick coffee break and was about to call Jesus, Luisa's father, to say I'd be late. But of course this is not the British way of doing things, you make an arrangement then you darn well stick to it right? Fortified by the coffee I decided to take the ride by the scruff of the neck and just hammer it. So, drenched in sweat, I powered up the slopes, pushed through the pain barrier and made it to Tuquerres at 1pm on the dot. How I took it out of my legs though! Intense stretching after that ride...        

 One child's pet is another man's... 

 ...lunch! Luisa's parents Jesus and Ana and some ex-guinea pigs. No cutlery, you tackle the poor mites with your fingers. Pretty tasty though I have to admit I recoiled ever so slightly when a chunk of cuy proved to be a portion of head! I protested that I couldn't pull the meat off, "No, you've got to tear the meat off with your teeth." When in Rome...  

Super couple of days in Tuquerres, I honestly think I ate more here than I have anywhere else in my trip as Jesus and Ana fed me at home and in the town's restaurants. I also enjoyed having my breakfasts made by Jesus' maids So much for slumming it on a tough bike tour, I'm living a charmed life!   

 With my belly (and panniers) full of food I ride on towards the Colombia-Ecuador border just past Ipiales. 

 Mixed feelings about moving on. Colombia would be top of my list of countries to come back if and when I had the chance so I was hesitant to leave. Nevertheless I was excited by he prospect of visiting Ecuador, a country I've been to before, and experiencing it from saddle-eye's view. 

 Obligatory border photo, country #12. The smile was slowly wiped off my face as I stood in line for 2.5 hours to get stamped into Ecuador. Even then it wasn't so bad as the people in the line are so friendly and curious about my trip. Three more months of being the centre of attention...  

Finally stamped in, it was 4pm and I had two hours of daylight left to cycle on to Julio Andrade  where I was to stay the night. I saw a fairly violent thunderstorm and heavy rain ahead but I had no choice but to ride straight into it. I could have wimped out and got a hotel room and dodged the rain but, as I said earlier, that's just not what us Brits do, right? So, soaked to the skin but in fairly good spirits, I made it to Julio Andrade before dark.      

 Richard, on the right, kind of hosted me in my night in Julio Andrade. Now I think I've become pretty good at walking into strangers' homes, ingratiating myself with the folk with meaningful conversation or small talk and settling in comfortably to make myself feel at home. But this must go down as one of my stranger Warm Showers experiences. 

 A constant stream of people came into the house, who were they? Was the house a restaurant? A community centre? A homeless shelter (mattresses were stretched out in the floor)? I just couldn't make sense of what was going on. Anyway, I sat by the fire until 10pm drying my shoes by the fire and then was about to ask to go to bed. Richard then announced the start of the 'ceremony'. It transpired that there was to be some kind of religious ceremony that would run through the night. Richard went around the room registering people and collecting their $20 contribution.

 Absolutely exhausted, utterly bemused and running out of good humour by this point, when Richard came to register me I told him it might be better if I go to bed and got some rest. "But there will be activity and music all night, you may not sleep." 

"But Richard, I don't know what's going on!"

"I'd like you to join in, other cycle tourists have taken part in the past." 

 I gently put my foot down and insisted on going to bed. I was exhausted and couldn't see the point in paying $20 for a sleepless night of bafflement and prolonged awkwardness. On the morning I saw this sign advertising the event - no pregnant women or women who on their period. OK. Remedio del Yage? I don't really know what this is but it's said to lead you on an inner journey, some kind of indigenous herbal drug maybe? No one really explained anything to me so I just don't know!   

 Through the night there was loud conversation and music (Richard plays several instruments) but I did snatch a few hours of sleep here and there. Sloping off to bed early was definitely the right thing to do but I half would have liked to know what the ceremony entailed.

Anyway, every cloud has a silver lining and, deciding to cut my losses, I got away early making a 7:30am start. Warm farewells from the family, they had no inkling of the complete confusion I underwent during my stay! 

I should perhaps add that they did look after me well with coffee, agua de panela and soup all served. Memorable first night in Ecuador! 

 Hail the Messiah. 

 Gorge(ous) views. Despite the lack of sleep I got the bit between my teeth today and cycled 78 miles to Otavalo. Exactly seven hours riding, some lovely sweeping downhill curves and some challenging climbs, my fitness levels are sky high st the moment.  

 Otavalo is a major handicrafts centre and, what with my birthday being in just two days, I might treat myself to something during my stay here (if I can bare to trawl around the markets, I don't really enjoy shopping too much). 

 I was glad to make it to Otavalo by 2:30pm to dodge the rains. Sure enough, by 4pm the heavens had opened.

These rains threaten to put a bit of a damper on my time here; Colombia, Ecuador and Peru are all experiencing unusually heavy rains at the moment and everyone I speak to cites climate change as the cause. I do hope the Trump administration wakes up to the reality of and responsibility of fighting this global menace. Northern Peru in particular has suffered horrific flooding events and I fear that if I went there now it would be impassable and outright dangerous. Incentive to slow down and enjoy Ecuador at a leisurely pace (not 78 mile days).

No post would be complete without a reference to OXFAM. If you're reading the blog and want to contribute to its (hopefully) upbeat outlook on the world then please make a donation; it's a wonderful charity and sponsorship keeps a smile on my face and positive words in my vocabulary. 

Colombia - high jinks on the road south

First of all, thank you for the generous donations that have pushed my OXFAM total above the £2000 target. I've thrown in a bit of my travel budget as pledged and set a new target of £3000. An ambitious goal maybe but then some people told me I wouldn't get as far as South America on my bike! My time in Colombia has filled me with positivity and I feel more determined than ever to keep fundraising and complete the ride through The Andes.

 On Sunday I was brimming with pride with this major milestone reached. I don´t normally keep a running tally of miles, I just do an end of month count, but I knew I was nearing the 10,000 mile mark. A quick milegae check told me that 14 miles into my Sunday ride I´d be hitting 10,000 miles. It felt great!

 Picking up from the previous blog things had not gtone well with my stay in Buga. Another debillitating bout of food poisoning left me weak and enfeebled, it was all I could do to post on social media to share my misery and hopr for messages of support. Thanks for delivering on this!

Nevertheless, in a miserable days riding I rode on Cali. Unlike some mininbuses I´ve driven I found I could get quite far running on empty and 45 thoroughly unenjoyable miles later I made it to Cali, Colombia´s third largest city.

 The only bright moment of the day was arriving in the barrio of my host Ernesto and bumping into him by chance in the street. Sometimes that last step in the homestay arrangements, finding the house or host, is the hardest. He was deocrating his flat in Cali ready for rental, I kipped on the floor of one of the empty rooms. I told Ernesto I was tired and needed a little siesta before we went out for dinner. 13 hours later I woke up well on the road to recovery.

 Wow, Ernesto, what an incredible guy. A great host and a wonderful human being. I spent four days in his company and enjoyed every minute. His cheerful disposition and relentlessly positive outlook on life made a real impression on me. For all the goofing about in the photos below the surface lies a very serious and principled person who is passionate about travelling and treating people in the right way.

 We spent a couple of days at his flat in Cali, taking it easy so I could recuperate from the food poisoning and visiting various restuarnants and street stalls in the barrio.

 I also ventured into the city centre, about 5 miles from Ernesto´s flat.

  Street stall selling sugar cane juice. The fruit juices in Colombia are even tastier and the range of climates found across the country supports a wide variety of fruits, some you´ll never see in a UK supermarket.

  Downtown Cali.

  To be honest, in recent weeks my appetitie for sightseeing has diminshed slightly. The beauty of this trip for me is firstly the ride. To be out on the bike riding through villages, passing through the countryside, enjoying the downhills, attacking the climbs, that is when I find myself ín the moment´ appreciating the trip the most. The second most important element is the contact with people, very easy in Colombia. And then sometimes, as in this picture, it´s just nice to find a quiet moment in a cafe and catch up on some reading. Sightseeing gets pushed down in the list of priorities.

 With the flat spruced up Ernesto freed up some time to visit his hometown of Jamundi. So, in the evening rush hour, I biked the 12 miles south following Ernesto on his motorbike. Don´t try this at home kids, but once we´d left the city limits and the horrendous traffic, I got a turbo boost by hanging onto the back of his motorbike. We were in Jamundi in no time at all!    

 The evening rush hour. Time for some assertive cycling.

 Ernesto´s home in Jamundi adorned with stickers and flags of all the places he´s visited. On his motorbike and as a backpacker he´s travlled across most of South America and Mexico. Lots of sharing of travel stories during my stay. 

 The central plaza in Jamundi.

 Ernesto´s partner, Beatrice. Another wonderful person! She works in the nursery I´m visiting in the picture. We talked late into the night about the challenges of education in our respective countries.

 The entrance to the nursery.

 Moving on from Jamundi I decided to take the minor roads towards Popayan, avoiding the heavier traffic of the Panamerican Highway. Fantastic scenery along the way and I had the pleasure of Ernesto´s company for the day. Emboldened by the success of the previous days assisted journey, I spent much of this day desperately handging onto the back of Ernesto´s motorbike! It was surprisingly tiring, like being tortured on a rack. My arm was to ache for days afterwards.

 River Cauca

 Views of the reservoir from high up the valley side. Although the dragging from the motorbike was agony at times, Ernesto helped me cover 60 miles and 3000ft of climbing.

 Lunch stop - soup and main course for $1.50.

 And the farewell moment as I rode on to Popayan, pictured below, and Ernesto returned to Cali to meet prospective clients for his flat. An incredibly rich four days of sharing stories, sharing food and simply sharing each others´company. Ernesto´s next adventure is a trip to Europe, I hope to see him in Oxford. 

I stayed in Popayan for one night with Sergio, a friend of Ernesto´s. I arrived in the pouring rain but was immediately warmed up with a tasty dinner. The next day I embarked on a three day journey to the next major town, Pasto.

More help from Ernesto, he reommended a restaurant with wonderful views and free camping. Below was my home for the night, a roof over my head, water source, electricity, I was as happy as a pig in a pigsty.

 Again branching off from the Panamerican Highway I took the longer, tougher route to Pasto through the mountains. Not many cyclists make it this way so every time I stopped inquisitive people would approach me asking about my journey. To be honest, sometimes you just want to sit down and take a breather and have some time to yourself. Fat chance! But, be a good ambassador and give people the time of the day an you´re treated handsomely. This day riding through villages I was given free bread, a free lunch, free coffee, a free beer. Some guys even tried to drag me to a bar to watch the football in the evening but I was exhausted and had to take a breather, Shockingly I actually had to pay for a hotel on Sunday night, all of $4. However, coming up to three weeks in Colombia and I´ve only paid for accommodation three times, $16 in total. This is why I can afford to sponsor myself!

 Mountain views over La Union, a major coffee producing region.

 Friendly folk who invited me in for lunch and a chat.

 Early morning vista, riding above San Pedro de Cartago. The picture below shows a frequent problem on the roads in these parts, a landslip. Somehow I´ve managed to dodge the rain in recent days.

 Can you make out the road cut into the hillside above? That´s where I was headed. In theory this could have been a tough ride, I don´t know how many thousand feet of climbing but plenty. However, the scenery, the people, the hospitality have imbued my trip with such positivity that the journey flew by.

Month #8 is up, a measly 810 miles covered (I had a week off the bike while in Panama and Bogota), the grand total is 10,081 miles. I´m now in Pasto, in theory just one days ride from Ecuador. However, I´m looking to stay on a few days extra here in Colombia, mostly because I´m enjoying my time here so much but also to give more time for a pair of tyres I´ve ordered to turn up in Quito, Ecuador. 

All in all, I am living the dream!