| Distance | 88.27 kms | 54.68 miles |
|---|---|---|
| Climbed | 1,641 meters | 5,384 feet |
| Ride time (hours) | 7.12 | - |
| Avg speed | 12.4 kph | - |
| Avg climb | 4% | - |
| Max grade | 15% | - |
| Distance | 14,199.56 kms | 8,823.47 miles |
|---|---|---|
| Climbed | 171,772 meters | 563,556 feet |
| Ride time (hours) | 1,121.17 | - |
Monday, September 16th, 2013
At 5:30am someone let the dogs out and they came and found me, I woke up to three of them jumping on top of me and licking my face. I rather would have slept in a bit longer but it was a funny way to be woken up. My arms were sore this morning after all that bike dragging yesterday... Gabriel's wife made a breakfast of arepa with sausage and chocolate in milk fresh out of the cow an hour before.
Gabriel, his daughter, and I headed over to the boat to cross the river at 7:30. There are no roads, schools, or towns on the side of the river they live on so Gabriel takes her across every morning to go to school. I said my goodbyes on the other side then hit the road heading south. It got quite hot in short order, it was 35 degrees by 9am. The road rolls alongside the river for about 50 kilometers before heading up into the mountains. I started the day at 500 meters and ended it at 1,700. A series of pueblos and small cities came and went; as I went over 1,000 meters coffee plantations began springing up everywhere. Impressive how they grow it on hillsides that are just a few degrees away from being cliffs.
Outside of Hispania a guy sitting in a café flagged me down and bought me a cold drink that was greatly appreciated. I don't know what kind of accent he had but he spoke for 5 minutes and I didn't understand much.
There is a tough 500 meter climb leaving Andes on the road to Jardín that felt a lot tougher than it should have, I just chalked it up to being tired at the end of the day until I reached the summit and looked down at the gear shifter - I had done the whole climb on the middle chain ring. Oops... Lot's of spandexistas on this climb training with racing bikes. They passed me by with depressing ease. The last climb into Jardín had a long 8% stretch that stuck a fork in me so I grabbed a hotel near the plaza instead of continuing on to look for a spot to camp. The center of Jardín has nice, well maintained colonial buildings with brightly-colored facades. I went for a big dinner then headed back to the hotel for an early evening.
