Demonstrations

Location:

Otovalo, Ecuador

Today was to be our final day in Colombia. For the first hundred miles or so after Popoyan, the military presence was pretty high. Even at our hotel in Popoyan, we had three soldiers at the entrance. This area is still under heavy surveillance - the archaelogical area of San Augustin, some 50 miles or so into the mountains from here, and where we both spent Xmas five years ago, is still a no-go area.

It was hard not to do the last bit of this Colombian ride with an edge of tension. But as we approached the border, the military seemed to disappear and we sailed through the last few towns easily, with no checks.

As we checked out of Colombia, it was with relief and sadness. Relief that despite FCO advice not to travel overland that we had and we had not had any problems, sadness that such a beautiful country seems to be held to ransom. Also special memories of the Colombian riders who had ridden with us for two days and showing us such great hospitality.

Our elation at getting to Ecuador unscathed was short lived. This has been our third visit to Ecuador and every time now there has been protests and demonstrations. Last time there was even a coup and they ousted the then President. This time at the first town we came to there was a blockade across the road, some seven or eight trucks all staggered across. Luckily the bike could squeeze through. And then at the next town the same again, on entry and exit, trucks blocking the Pan American.

At some places it was taking us twenty minutes or more to find a way through the maze of vehicles. The funny thing was that the drivers who were demonstrating were the ones guiding us through the block! At one point, five of them stood around the bike guiding it through the narrowest of strips of roads and holding it upright so it did not topple sideways into a steep ditch next to the road.

Our arrival at Otovalo was delayed by a couple of hours but other than that, we are through OK. We remain about 100 miles ahead of plan, in excellent spirits, if not quite weary.

The bike running well but feels a little tired. There is no doubt that the demands on the bike for this ride are significantly more than the around the world record. On this ride, the liberty to pick the route is limited and you cannot avoid hundreds of miles of mountain roads, severe bends and poor road conditions. It´s a lot of punishment for a bike that is at maximum load capacity and seems more and more to grind out on the curves.