Cycling with Kevin

We finally made it to Guatemala!!

After what seemed like years in Mexico, we are finally in Guatemala. Not that I'm happy to leave Mexico. I am going to miss it so much. But I am excited to move on.

In these 10 pictures, about 3 weeks elapses. I haven't posted much lately, and I haven't really been taking a lot of pictures. If I'm being honest, it's been a tough few weeks. The heat is absolutely killer. Any hill is enough to just bake you. We got over to the coast after leaving oaxaca to try to have as flat of a route as possible.

As if battling off heat stroke daily wasn't enough, Tess got Dengue fever on top of that. So what we planned to be 1 night in the border town of Tapachula ended up being a week. While she was in bed dying/recovering, I got out and walked about every block of that town. It got to the point that a few people around town started to recognize me. Not surprising as i was one of the two gringos in that town...and the other was in bed sweating out a fever.

After about a week of resting, and a blood test to make sure she was all good to go, Tess finally felt ready to ride some. Some. Maybe not necessarily how far we went.

We crossed the boarder into Guatemala in Ciudad Hidalgo. At the river there were a bunch of migrants crossing. We walked up to the National Guard and asked where we were supposed to cross and he just kind of motioned over to the sand bar and innertubes saying we should cross where everyone else was. After walking around confused a bit, we went back and asked where immigration was, and he gave directions to the bridge and the official crossing. Aside from that, and not having the receipt for our visa and having to pay again, it was pretty smooth and we were in Guatemala.

We probably pushed it a little too hard the first day, so we are going to be taking it slow the next few days while Tess builds strength back. But that's not really a bad thing. It will give us more time to enjoy Guatemala. What was originally planned for 4 days may turn into a week or so now.

Morelia to CDMX - another catch-up.

This first picture was something I read about and was really excited to go see. It doesn't look like much on first glimpse, but that black circle I the middle is an "obsidian mirror." This cross that the Spanish put up adopted a bunch of indigenous symbols, including the mirror. The mirror was the symbol of the Aztec God of the night. The cross has a few other Aztec symbols around it. It was really interesting to see firsthand how the early church adopted native symbols in trying to make their religion more approachable.

These pyramids were outside of Ziatcuaro. Finally, some we could climb on. Though some people had a little bit easier time than others. The steps were very narrow and quite steep. But the climb up and view from the top was quite nice. These pyramids are way out of the way and not visited much. I assume that is why you can climb these.

At this point in the approach to CDMX, we were well and truly in the thick of it. Our quiet roads (relatively speaking) had turned into bustling highways. We spent our last night in Toluca at warmshowers before making the final climb into Mexico City.

Mexico City is in a valley. But to get there, we had to climb up over 10,000 feet. This was the first time since Tahoe I could really feel the altitude working on me. But much like every hill I've climbed, the downhill was sweet. Then boy, did we get into some traffic. I'd bet we were twice as fast as the cars around. It was our first exposure to the traffic in the city. But after being here for a month, we have become experts.

Mexico Day 31 - Baja Part the Last - what a ride it's been.

I plan on doing a future post to reflect back on some of my favorite parts, so I'll hold off on that for now. Right now, let's talk about the ride to La Paz.

So I suppose I last left you in Santa Rosalia. I can get a little tunnel vision when I get close to a major destination, and this time is no different. I'll try to quickly wrap up the last 550 km quickly.

First, the coast ride from Santa Rosalia was a beautiful blend of cliffs and horseshoe bays. A lot of it is in protected inlets or sheltered by islands, so there isn't much surf, which also leads to quite shallow water. We waded out some 100 feet and were still in knee-deep water. But it's all crystal clear and makes for some beautiful views from the cliffs above.

We ended up in Loreto longer than planned. We intended to overnight there, then take a short day the following day. My bike, however, wanted a day off. On the way into Loreto, I broke a spoke and rather than bodge it together, I brought it to the shop. While it only cost 100 peso, it did take quite some time. We got to the point where we either had to evacuate our campspot or pay another night, so we just bit the bullet. Loreto was a nice place to be though. A very walkable and lively. Chock full of tourists/expats but quite enjoyable place to spend an extra day.

Out of Loreto we but off the last bit of desert riding.for Baja. The ride from Loreto to La Paz is 350 km. We'd originally planned it for 4 days, but after our extra day off, we decided to tackle it in 3. The only cities between were Ciudad Insurgentes and Cuidad Constitución. Both quite close together around the first 3rd of the ride. The ride overall was quite flat and we had a tailwind for the majority. For doing 120+km per day for 3 days in a row, it really was quite easy.

Now we are in La Paz and will be taking some time off here for a bit. A little rest time. A little planning time. A little more rest time. We are thinking of taking the ferry the 15th, but not totally decided on that yet.

So this pup? Or wait....I'm out of space. Pup talk in yhe comment.

Mexico Day 23 - San Ignacio to Santa Rosalia - Flat tires abound

Not for me, but can't seem to keep any air in her back tire. 3 patches yesterday and one today. Dude! What are you doing.

We did about 75km through mostly desert, but as we got closer to Santa Rosalia, it got a little more mountainous. We passed just south of Las Tres Virgenes. Three extremely prominent volcanoes sticking up out of the desert. We could see them coming all day and finally went around the southernmost one and got a view of them from the back side. They were stunning.

After we went over the pass, around the volcanoes, it was generally a descent down to the coast. The landscape changed from scrubby desert plants to more sandy and grassy. The rock formations seem to change the instant we crested the pass. It's always so amazing to me how two sides of a single hill can be so different.

From the pass we cruised another 10k or so down the coast to Santa Rosalia. Santa rosalia was build by the kiting company around the turn of the 19th/20th century. The architecture very much resembles a goal rush town. With the exception of a metal church. We had heard about this church a little ways back. It was designed by Gustave Eiffel (of tower fame). I expected something much more grandiose, but it is rather simple. Moderately decorative fascia and some stained glass windows are all that really sticks out. The steel arches give the inside a very open feels. Maybe the coolest thing about it is that it was built in Paris, moved to Brussels, then bought by the mine and moved to Baja. I don't think I've ever been in such q well traveled church.