The big hills await

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It was mid morning by the time we had finished our tour of the finca and packed away or camping gear. It felt good to have had a couple of relaxed starts over the past days. It can be hard to bring ourselves to stop early in the day so setting off late is a good way to ensure a short day with an end time we are content with. 

On the track back to the road there was a small school with some great art on the walls made from coloured bottle tops. We particularly liked this one of the Colombian flag.

The track was too steep to ride down and as we walked down it we couldn't quite believe that we had managed to push the bike up it the day before. 

Down onto the highway for the rest of the day. As we are so far south in Colombia the roads are very quiet and we delighted in soaking in the views. The sky was bright blue, the clouds on the distant (but getting ever nearer) hills and the lush green vegetation was stunning.

Our destination was a meagre 35km away which was perfect for us given the rides we had done over the previous few days. We were heading towards a host in El Bordo. The town had a great ice cream stall where we cooled off before arriving. Chocolate brownie and passion fruit scoops. Mmmm.

This was our room for the night. The sofa in the corner folded out into a bed. It was cozy but a nice place to stay. 

The highlight of the stay was meeting our hosts. Boris, Inez, one of their twin sons, Sebastiano, and their friend Otto. They were incredibly warm and welcoming. They were keen to learn about England from our limited Spanish. Boris was full of enthusiasm and a real delight to be around. We really appreciated being immersed in Spanish speakers as it helped to sharpen our listening skills. 

Otto is a public accountant and has a son who is a professional footballer in Marbella.

Sebastiano is at university training to be a lawyer. 

Inez is a nurse so Rachel got her to examine her thumb. She reassured her that it is fine and healing well. 

Boris runs a printing business and the moto our bedroom is his works vehicle.

We had such fun chatting to them that it was mid morning once again before we got going. 

Our ride for the day was up Patía river. Actually, we were riding the same direction as it was flowing so technically it was down the Patía river but because of the lay of the land and the route of the road we were going uphill. 

The roads were even quieter than the day before. We had the roads to ourselves for ages at a time and so had time to take selfies as we rode along. The route went through many cuttings and the combination of heavy rains and hot sun clearly causes many mud and rock falls. We wove in and out of debris all day long and kept alert for the sounds of falling even if we didn't have the first clue about what we should do if we did hear a fall. Stop or speed up? Steer away from it or towards it (hoping it falls over the top of us)?

The views were amazing. We keep pinching each other to check we are really here and not imagining it as it is so beautiful. 

Just a few KM from our destination of El Remolino we stopped for a drink as it had been a hot afternoon. We met three displaced Venezuelans who were making their way to Ecuador. They had two bikes between them that was their form of transport. It was an incredibly sobering encounter. They had a small rucksack each with all their possessions in and ramshackle bikes. They were travelling because then needed to we were travelling because we wanted to. Despite having a mode of transport and a destination in common our lives could not have been more different. 

We shared some of our snacks with them and marveled at this model of a bike from a beer can they had made. The skill and attention to detail is astounding: the ring pull saddle, the rear derailleur, the logo lined up on the frame. 

We are taking two nights here as we need fresh legs for the next bit up to Pasto and on to the border.

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