León [Nicaragua]

After twelve days of non-stop moving, it's wonderful to take a couple much-needed rest days.

I've really tried to avoid hotels during this trip, but it is Christmas and I just don't feel like I can ask anyone to stay with them... I would be too much of an intruder.  So, I find a hotel that was formerly a villa.  This translates to a giant courtyard with garden, a formal dining room, a sitting lounge, three different reading nooks, and a roof-top patio with a view of the distant volcano.  The owner of the hotel is an avid biker and let's me make some much needed bike repairs in the courtyard.  There is a big kitchen for guests to cook in.  I'm the only guest and during the night, I tell the lone receptionist that she can go home to have time with her family.... which means I have the entire place to myself.  Let me repeat... a Spanish villa all to myself, with fast internet, a courtyard for bike repairs, and a wonderfully big kitchen to cook in = AMAZING!!!

For two nights, all night long, there are fireworks and gunshots to celebrate Christmas.  Life is good!

Honduras and Nicaragua

I'm glad to be in Nicaragua.

On a practical level, most of the "dangerous" sections of Latin America are now behind me.  The US/México border area, riddled with narco crimes is past.  I've avoided the drug triangle of the states of Guerrero and Michoacán.  I've been cautioned for several weeks on the poverty areas and the crimes in Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras.

But, I'm most glad to be with the Nicaraguans.  These are kind, hard-working people.  I've been offered help on several occasions.  Most people are just shocked with what I'm doing, but then they get it... much more so than anyone else.  I'm constantly told "how beautiful it must be to travel and speak with people".  They understand that the intriguing part is the "adventure" of the trip instead of looking for other reasons like so many other people do.  Most importantly, I just feel friendly and safe.

Thank you Nicaragua!!!

Guatemala and El Salvador

The heat continues, but I've adjusted.  Now, I start early (between 6:30 to 7:00).  I maximize the pedaling in the cool parts of the day before stopping to eat breakfast.  Then I struggle through a couple more hours as the heat increases.

The best part, is that I now take a mandatory siesta break starting between 12:00 to 12:30.  All through Guatemala and El Salvador, I have found rivers to stop by during this time... I plan my timing to arrive during the heat ;)  I stop, drink lots, and then take a swim before laying down in the shade for a little while.  Then pedal again for a few more hours before night sets in.

The afternoon break has been great and provided me a nice way to break the day into different parts and hang with locals.

Oaxaca and Chiapas [México]

It's hot... freaking hot!  It's bake-your-brains hot!!!  To avoid the heat, I start pedaling around 7.  By 7:30, all of my clothes are soaking wet with sweat.  I sweat so much, that it runs into my eyes and down my arms, making it difficult to see and even more difficult to hold onto the handlbars.

I can only really go for about 45 minutes before I begin to overheat, so I stop, wring my shirt out, wring it out again, drink a liter of water, then wring my shirt out once more before I start pedaling.  This has me drinking 8-10 liters of water each day.
 
From 12:30 to 3:30, I can't pedal... The heat of the day is too strong.  So, I take a nice siesta break... Eat some food, drink lots of liquids, and relax.... I must follow local customs, right??!?

After 4, its starts to cool down.  I pedal until the last minute of light to maximize the day.  It makes the camping difficult, but keeps me at 100 km a day.

Acapulco, Guerrero [México]

It's been a wonderful week of traveling with fellow cyclist, Shane H.  There have been lots of stories to tell and new stories to write.

From Puerto Vallarta, Shane and I parted ways... at least for the moment.  He is headed inland and I'm following the coast.  We are both heading to Patagonia and are positive that our paths will cross again.

From Puerto Vallarta, I took a bus to Acapulco.  This portion of México has had a rash of crime lately and several people, locals and non-locals alike, have recommended that I avoid this area.

Sayulita, Nayarit [México]

Torrential rain... two full days of tropical torrential rain.

After a difficult night on the beach of San Blas, getting absolutely munched by mosquitoes and sand flies, me and my new-found cycling companion woke up to rain.  We quickly packed all of our things, shoving them in the bags, soaking wet and full of sand.

That day continued, incredibly humid.  As the day ended, the rain clouds just opened up soaking us again... we were left with few options for camping.  A quick look at the weather was the deciding factor, we were at the beginning of a tropical storm.  An hour of wandering through town, asking locals about places to stay, found us at an inexpensive hostel, where we were glad to have a couple beds in the dorm room.

Now, the rain has continued all day, soaking all the "drying" clothes multiple times.

No problem, the forced "rest" day has been fully maximized using the hostel's kitchen to cook multiple meals: fried potatoes, greek salad with bacon AND bacon grease, quesadillas, multiple banana and cantaloupe smoothies, tostadas, vegetables.  What can I say!?!?!?  I gotta get those calories!

Escuinapa, Sinaloa [México]

The last two days I've been cycling with two other guys and it's been a lot of fun!  One is an Australian ultra-marathoner who has been biking for the last five months from Whistler, Canada and the other is a Mexican cyclist who is traveling home after being away for three years.  Both are great guys and all of us enjoy the time together.

It's different to have people to talk with while cycling and while camping as opposed the usual quiet of these times.  At night, we share stories and cook meals together.  During the day, we laugh at the difficulties and wave at the cars that pass.  It's always interesting to talk about gear and reasons for doing different things.

Mazatlán, Sinaloa [México]

After a wonderful stay with the Ojeda family in Puerto San Carlos, it was time to move on.  I left well-fed and with plenty of extra calories stored for a long trip to La Paz.  This stretch of highway was a challenging stretch... long, very straight, and very hot.

I was in a hurry to get to La Paz.  I heard that all the ferry tickets from La Paz to Mazatlán were were sold-out for the next several weeks and I didn't want to have a long wait like my last ferry experience (a one week wait).  My concerns proved to be unfounded.  Other than a tiring ride, everything went smoothly and I easily had a ticket and found a great secluded beach to camp for the night.

The ferry ride wasn't smooth, but I managed to escape the 19+ hour ride without a seasickness attack, which is fairly monumental in my book.  In addition, I met several motorcycle riders and a couple of cyclists also heading to Argentina.  We all got of the boat in "bike gang" style and went immediately to the nearest mariscos (seafood) restaurant, less than 1 kilometer away to gorge ourselves on fresh ceviche and coctel de camaron.  I think I like this...