Garmin info and maps
Looking ahead at the map, I noticed there was a lot of climbing. Even more than what I had done so far. I also noticed that the towns were very small with few options. The next 2 towns only offered 1 hotel each, at least on Google maps. My biggest concern for this tour has been the climbing. I'm so slow that I need to be fairly certain that the elevation profile is correct. I've been using Google maps and another app on my phone called Komoot. These 2 programs rarely agree but Komoot appears to be more accurate which is good because Google maps was showing profiles of over 3500 ft of climbing each day for the next 3 days. For me, that is a lot. Almost too much. I think the most climbing I've ever done in a day is just over 4,000 ft and it took over 10 hours - too much!
I left the dusty, loud town of Barbosa and the riding was nice. There were some fantastic views. After about an hour I stopped at a restaurant that had a fabulous view. Mostly I stopped because I needed to use the bathroom. I typically order a coffee as well. The view was so nice I decided to stop, take some pictures and fly the drone for a bit. And then I had a terrific downhill. Unfortunately, I got caught behind a truck that was going slowly. I had to wait a long time before I felt safe passing and could let my speed rip. And then I had a 20 mile uphill. It was gradual but took forever for me to crest. A couple of times during the day I passed groups of mules loaded down with sugar cane from the fields. They were walking to a nearby factory where the sugar cane is turned into panella (a special Colombian brown sugar). The mules were working hard and they didn't look very happy. I loved seeing them all though. There were many men on horse back directing traffic to provide safe passage. The mules didn't have far to walk and I really enjoyed watching the procession.
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| Mule walking to the panela factory |
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| At the factory |
When I got to my destination for the day, Vado Real, I was surprised by how unattractive the town was. The scenery had been outstanding all day and this town seemed only to cater to truck traffic. All the businesses looked oily and poor. There were lots of mechanics and tire repair shops. There were also a couple of really gross looking hotels. I was very relieved to find the hotel I had picked out was normal. It was right on the highway which was very noisy but the room was comfortable. The front desk woman showed me a room and when I asked about hot water she pointed to a hot water on-demand shower head. These usually work great. In fact, they are quite efficient. This one, not so much. I turned on the shower and most of the lights in the bathroom and half the lights in the room went out. I turned the water off and the lights came back on. Clearly this water heater wasn't wired correctly. This as my 1st time having a cold water shower in Colombia. All the journals I had read when researching the trip talked about the lack of hot water showers. I'm probably lucky this didn't happen sooner. It is really hard for me to wash my hair in cold water but I managed. I think this is something I'm just going to have to get used to. Especially as I continue to descent towards the coast where it will be much warmer. |
| View from above |
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| Passing motorist stopped to give me mandarins |
This would also be the 1st hotel I spent only 1 night at. The wifi wasn't very good, the town was unattractive, there wasn't any hot water and the hotel didn't have a restaurant. I couldn't think of a good reason to stay and got backed up. I found a family run restaurant for breakfast within a couple of miles. Some young kids there were really interested in the trike and I had fun practicing Spanish with them. I continued on struggling with a lot of climbing. Google maps and Komoot had calculated 27 miles with almost 3,000 ft of climbing. It turned out to be a 32 mile day. Again, the scenery was outstanding. Towards the end of the day, I pulled into another restaurant and shared a table with a father and his 2 young girls. They loved the trike and my story. I exchanged whatsapp info and the father sent a message later to make sure I made it ok. My destination was Confines. There was a gas station and a hotel and nothing else. The hotel didn't have a phone number listed so I couldn't call to make sure it was open. This was my only hotel option and finding out it was closed would be a real bummer. The people at the restaurant assured me it was open ... and it was. This hotel was owned and run by a group of women. They were all very nice. The 1st room they showed me was closer to the street and didn't have hot water. I asked about hot water and was shown a room upstairs and further back. I was quieter but, unfortunately, just like the last hotel, the on-demand hot water shower head didn't work so it was another cold shower.
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| Motel in Confines behind the gas station. That's all there was for miles around. |
In the morning, again, I couldn't think of a good reason to stay and got packed up. I love it when the morning starts with a good downhill. The mountains of Colombia are gorgeous. I stopped to fly the drone over the switchbacks and continued on to the sweet, sweet town of Socorro. It was only 11 am when I arrived otherwise I probably would have stayed. It was very beautiful, colonial and charming. I flew the drone over the main square and made friends with a young man letting him see the drone view from the ipad mini 4 screen. He loved it.
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| Everyday, the views are outstanding. |
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| Socorro Basilica and Plaza |
From Socorro, I had a good climb and there was also a lot of loud traffic on the way into San Gil. I find the traffic noise to be exhausting. Going in the other direction, a couple of young guys on a motorbike saw me and made a u-turn to find out what I was doing. One guy was local and the other guy was French. The French guy spoke English. They were on their way to a construction job where they are building a house out of local materials, like the old days, with no store bought building materials. We exchanged Whatsapp info.
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| Family with a clothing store in their car |
Coming into San Gil, I was surprised that the town wasn't more touristic. San Gil is considered one of the most touristic cities in Colombia. Usually, tourist towns have a section in the historic area with nicer hotels and restaurants that caters to tourists. San Gil was a bigger version of so many dusty, dirty, loud towns that I have been in. There are a ton of hostels and many hotels. I find that hostels are a great way to meet other travelers but they are often loud and uncomfortable. Especially when you share a room with a lot of strangers. I have enough trouble sleeping without dealing with other people coming and going or snoring all night.
Video of ride from Barbosa to San Gil
I could tell I was very tired from the last 3 days riding, the climbing, the traffic noise and the heat. I was ready for a break. I looked for the nicest hotel and found the Hotel Esmeralda. It is family run and they were very excited for me to stay. This hotel is rated 4.5 out of the 5 stars with over 40 reviews. Everything in my room was new with ok wifi but no hot water. I paid $12 including breakfast which is my cheapest price, so far. Aside from no water the hotel was nice but noisy. I could hear everything that was going on with the family. They laughed a lot and really enjoyed each other. There was also a baby. And the noise from the street, fireworks and even roosters. I was afraid this was not going to be a very restful stay.
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| Myrtle, tucked away safe in the families room at the hotel in San gil |
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