Travel

January 30, 2018

Day 106, Mile 9040: I survived Peru, Barely.

26 March 2017
Juli, Peru

So I ended up spending 3 nights in Caraz and looking back, I am glad I did. This gave me time to get some much needed repairs on my motorcycle and it let me recharge for the upcoming difficult drive. Also I was hoping that it would stop raining, but every day there were thunderstorms. I thought that it would get easier from here, but I was wrong.

-I think I went east and west more than I went south.

I really liked Caraz. My hotel was really nice and cheap, the food was delicious and cheap, and the town was great for walking around and exploring. Oh and did I mention they had beer flavored ice cream?? I spent my time sleeping, checking out the center market, eating ice cream, and more sleeping. It was awesome.

-just a nice old lady walking her donkey.

-completely surrounded by thunderstorms.

-can you guess which one was my favorite?

On the fourth day I was up early and ready to go; I had places to be. At first the road was pretty decent with that well known epic Peruvian view to help pass the time. I don’t think they know how to make a straight road here though; it takes 3 times as long to get anywhere here. Something that would like maybe 20 minutes if I drove direct would end up taking easily 2-3 hours.

I ended up stopping in the village of Huanuco exhausted from just all the switchbacks. As I climbed the mountains, the temperature really started to drop as well. I’m thankful for the heated gear that honestly up until right now, I haven’t had any need to use. Let me tell you, my heated vest was worth bringing. Of course at this moment of my trip, my heated grips start acting up, so I need to find some gloves.

-lovely view ruined by those switchbacks in the distance.

The next day it was evident that I wasn’t the only exhausted one. I think my motorcycle has had enough of Peru. The clutch cable that I fixed in Caraz started to be a problem again. Also the front fender broke off and while I was waiting for bridge construction to finish, someone pointed out that my rear rim was cracked. I discovered a motorcycle shop that is ran by an expat on iOverlander in Huancayo. It was a long day’s drive but I figured that I could do it in one go.

The decision ended up in a very long day with a scary ending. It was at night(breaking my golden rule) on my most likely 12000th switchback. A large truck was the opposite traffic on basically a one and a half car width road and we both meet at the center of a switchback. The truck driver stopped, expecting me to pass him, and of course I’m on a cliff. So I walk my bike along the truck on the outside and at about halfway mark, I didn’t feel any ground under my outside foot. I ended up just crawling it along on the last little bit, leaning against the truck with my foot on my peg. I’m not sure how close I was to coming off but I’m kinda glad I don’t know. I was so tired that I didn’t realize I did this until the next morning when I reflected about what happened. I guess I was just on autopilot at that stage.

-this was the parts store, we had to weave around to get my clutch cable. Nuts.

After getting my bike fixed yet again, the next couple days were more of the same; very cold and numerous switchbacks. For the most part I didn’t see any more flood damage which was nice but I sure missed the warmer coastal area. It seems that my repairs were very short lived though. My clutch started acting up on day two, my new fender ended up getting cracked, and the new tires I had put on rub on bumps.

I finally arrived in Cusco yesterday and I have to say I really wasn’t that impressed. Driving in, my first impression was that it was a cold, hard looking city. I ended up staying near the cultural center at a hotel that was well known for bicyclists and had a little patio where I could drive my bike in. Let me tell you, those bicyclists that I met were crazy. Never, ever would I want to ride a bicycle that far. I guess I appreciate my testicles a little more than those guys. I ended up walking to the town center which was nice but really nothing special. It was too cold to stay so I decided to move on.

Today was a better day. The elevation started to go down so it’s warming up which brought a smile to my face. I also saw my first llamas right out of Cusco, so that was cool. I’m spending the night here just short of the border in Juli. I’m so close now to getting to Melissa that it was hard for me to stop. I saw Lake Titicaca which was pretty neat too. Originally I had plans on kiteboarding it, but now with the cold and the pressure to get where I’m going, I guess I’ll do it on the way up.

Peru has been amazing on so many different levels. I’m glad I finally got the difficultly I’ve been seeking on this trip. While everywhere has been great, to be totally blunt, it’s not been very demanding and kinda boring from time to time. The roads have been easy, hotels are everywhere, and there’s really not been much challenge. Peru has changed that and I’m thankful for it. If you are looking for that adventure, Peru will deliver.

January 22, 2018

Day 95, Mile 7800: Historic Flooding, Mob Attacks, and Crashes; Maybe too much Adventure

Jason Logsdon

17 March 2017
Caraz, Peru

This has been by far the hardest driving in my life. I have not felt this out of control, this desperate, this out of options. It has gone beyond merely an “adventure” to more of survival. Looking back at the last couple days is mostly a blur but these are the snapshots that have stuck in my mind.

The drizzle that has been following me turned to rain and then turned into something much, much more. In what they are calling historic flooding, over 200 bridges here in Peru have been destroyed and almost all travel has come to a grinding stop. I discovered this myself just outside of Chimbote, where the main coast highway 1N bridge collapsed into the river. At first I thought, no problem, I’ll try to find a way around and proceeded to find a place to rest so I can start early the next morning. Because I wasn’t the only one stuck, the only place I could find was a very bad hotel, but it was a bed so I took it.

Early the next morning, I went back out to the 1N bridge to see if there was any progress on repairs. What I found instead was more stranded vehicles and much more water . I found a gravel road to the south of the highway and thought I might find an alternative route there, and hour and a lot of struggle later I found yet another washed out bridge. At this moment, I started to feel a little nervous.

I then tried to go east to find the next road south. After about 50-60 miles, driving through villages that looked like warzones and seeing a large truck right in front of me fall into a sink hole, I came to the next bridge to see yet another dead end and I started to feel a little more than nervous. On the way back to Chimbote I had an event that really rattled me. There was a village that was completely destroyed and by completely, I mean there wasn’t a building standing. I remember looking in awe as I passed it earlier in the day and this time as I came back to it I could tell there was something going on.

Across the road there was a small tree which was obviously thrown down as a makeshift road block. Along both sides of the roads were what I assumed were the villagers and they were not happy. There was no way that I could run over the log at speed and as I slowed down, I was quickly surrounded. Immediately they started to demand money to repair their destroyed homes. This was a first for me, I’ve heard of these types of roadblocks but have yet to experience anything of this nature myself, so I was not prepared. I had nothing more than a little change in my pockets and there was no way I was going to pull my wallet out in front of this mob. I tried to give them the little change I had on me but that just seemed to anger them further. They started to scream at me and tried to pull things off of my motorcycle and then began to rock me back and forth. Luckily I had everything well strapped onto my bike, so they were unable to pull anything off. Once they started to actually hit me, I decided enough was enough and gunned the engine and barely made it over their roadblock without crashing the bike. Safe to say I was really feeling desperate and was quite shaken up.

Once back in Chimbote I decided to try to backtrack and head back north to see if there was another route to higher ground. The other day, while difficult, it was still cross-able so I figured that was my best bet and really at the time, my only option. Well after another hour of weaving through stuck vehicles, flooded streets, and very slippery mud, I discovered that that route was no longer available. I was trapped it seemed with no way out. Feeling defeated, I retreated back to my shitty hotel where I was told that it may take weeks for a proper repair to any of the bridges and oh, there was more rain on the way.

The next morning I woke up extremely sore. From the multiple drops to my fun little mob adventure, I was worn out, but I had the beginning of a plan. There was one last route that I missed yesterday and it was a do or die plan. If I wasn’t able to get through on this road, I wasn’t going to make it to see my dad in Brazil before he left. That means all this rushing had been for nothing and I wasn’t going to let that happen. So with a quick gas stop, some Inca Cola to recharge my sore and battered body, I headed out.

Road 3N/12 turned out to be the lucky route, but it wasn’t easy. Not only was I exhausted, but my motorcycle was started to show the strain as well. I’ve done almost 8000 miles on my KLR without any real problems, but it was looking like Peru was going to change that. The mud here is extremely slick on pavement which has ended up with some very nasty crashes. In these last couple days I’ve bent my handlebars, taken out a mirror, cracked my windshield, and now my clutch was starting to go. To top it off, I managed to injury my clutch hand which made it worse.

-the mud here is very slippery when wet.

During my drive into the mountains, I experience some of the hardest driving of my life. I crossed countless rivers where my clutch issue was turning into a major problem. On one of these crossings where, of course, I was mere feet from the cliff drop, I ran out of clutch and stalled mid river. That was my scary moment for the day and ended up just riding the starter to get across without being swept over the edge. That cliff side was much closer than I would like to admit.

About midday I came to a gorgeous little mountain village of Huallanca and my next big obstacle. Instead of washed out bridges, it was landslides this time. After maybe an hour of some of the most amazing views yet on this trip and numerous small dark tunnels cut into the mountain, I came to the dead end. It was a huge landslide and there was no way I was getting past it. At least Huallanca was a much more scenic stop than Chimbote.

Once back in the village, the hunt for food and shelter began. After a wet hour walk around town I was successful in finding shelter, but not for food. Luckily I had some tuna in my panniers. To put myself in a better mood, I tried to do a little maintenance on my poor motorcycle and practice my Spanish with the old man that rented me the room. After roughly explaining to him my misfortunes of the last couple days, he pointed up on the mountain side and told me of a “road” that wasn’t much more than a goat path, but this road would take me across to the next village and past the rock slide. I had another plan.

This next morning I started what was another very difficult day. Between the constant switchbacks where I literally traveled 50 miles back and forth just to get 5 miles in distance, and dumping the bike on that fantastic slick mud/clay merely inches from yet another 100 foot drop off, I got myself here in Caraz. I think I’m going to take a couple days here and get myself and my bike repaired and rested.

-I never thought I would get tired of seeing waterfalls.

I’m thankful that I survived another day. There were way too many right-on-the-edge moments where situations were frantically close to spinning out of control. I’m glad I was able to keep my head and continue on, but I think I got what I was looking for and maybe a little too much beyond that. I think I’ve had my fill for adventure but I’m only a third through this amazing country and I still need to get to Bolivia in time so I can see my dad. While I was walking around this town, trying to catch my breath, I noticed that I was completely surrounded by thunderstorms so it looks like the worst of the weather still isn’t over. I guess all I can do it put my head down and grind on hoping that it gets easier from here.

-amazing views, just don’t look over the edge.

January 15, 2018

Day 92, Mile 7390: The Wrong Road in Ecuador and Epic Peru

Jason Logsdon

14 March 2017
Lambayeque, Peru

I can best describe Peru as epic. Everything you look at is epic. The seacoast is epic with its tiny ships and hard beautiful seashore. The scenery is epic with its vast sky and views that go on just forever. And the potholes are epic. In the two days since I’ve driven across the Peruvian border, I’ve driven through puddles bigger than I ever have seen in my life, I’ve crossed 4 flooded rivers, seen two semis collapse into sink holes, and ridden in mud it seems almost up to my armpits. This is what I’ve been dreaming about when I first decided to do this drive; a real adventure. This is what I’ve been seeking.

In contrast, Ecuador has sadly been a kind of a bore. I think I took the wrong road. My plan to take the coast in hope for some kiteboarding has totally backfired. Not only did I not see the ocean much between the constant brush and trees, I totally missed crossing the equator as well. I didn’t even realize it until I hit the border, there was no sign or anything; I guess I’ll have to hit it on the way back up.

The only time I really did see the Ecuadorian coast was on my second night in country where I stopped in a little B&B just outside of Jama. It really was the only lodging around that was open and I was happy to get out of the constant drizzle I had all day. While quite spendy at about 100 USD, it was very peaceful and relaxing. I spent the remaining daylight walking down to the beach, exploring, and just recharging.

-sad I didn’t get to see more of the coast.

The next day was more of the same; an isolated road and not much else. I was out of Ecuador by the end of the day and was a little disappointed by just the lack of any real experience. My advice if you plan on visiting Ecuador: stick to the east and the mountains. The west coast was very lonesome and honestly unremarkable. It would have helped if I didn’t feel so driven to continue onward to get to Bolivia. Also the weather sure didn’t help since after San Lorenzo it has been a constant drizzle. This combination killed any spirit in me to discover so I just kept my bike pointed south.

The border crossing from Ecuador/Peru was really easy. The migration for both countries was in one building and everything went very quickly for a Monday morning. The online guides are really accurate so there’s not much more I can say. The only money needed was to pay for insurance for Peru which I would watch out for. I’m pretty sure she scammed me, but with her being my only option, I was stuck with paying it. It might be easier to try to get insurance in town if the immigration official will allow it.

-busy border town of Huaquillas, Ecuador.

It seems like everything is a little more expensive here in Peru compared to Ecuador. For the last two nights, the hotels have been some of my most expensive. Also the rain that has been annoying for the last couple days continues to follow me. From the looks of it, Peru has been getting quite a lot of rain lately. That would explain all of my river crossings. Also I must comment on how much litter there is everywhere. It’s sad to see these vast open areas that truly take my breath away being ruined by all the trash. I would say that Peru is up there with India on the litter front, it is just everywhere.

I’m really excited about seeing more of Peru and I’m glad that I’m finally finding the adventure I was seeking. I hope it dries out some and I get to enjoy the country more. My plan is to hit the coast road that takes me through Lima and be out of Peru in the next two days. My dad is leaving Brazil in 3 weeks so there isn’t much time for me to first fly to Uruguay to get my Brazilian visa, then fly there to visit. I hope I have the proper time to slow down and just absorb what looks to be the best country yet.

January 8, 2018

Day 88, Mile 6523: Goodbye Colombia and Hello Ecuador, My Reflections

Jason Logsdon

10 March 2017
San Lorenzo, Ecuador

These last three days have been filled with amazing views, extremely dangerous switchbacks, a disappointing hotspring, and a border crossing. Yes, I am officially in my second South American country and I feel a little sad. It feels like I only scratched the surface of what is Colombia and I could have easily have stayed for another month or two; it was that spectacular.

What I thought would only take a day to cross into Ecuador ended up taking almost three days. If I measured just how much vertical change I have made, I bet I traveled up and down more than I traveled south. I have never been on roads like these, constantly going back and forth through the mountains. It would have been alright if I had the road alone, but I was sharing it with mostly semi-trucks which brings up the danger aspect.

-no where else have I’ve seen so much beauty everywhere.

I started to notice that at major switchbacks, there was usually someone standing in the middle on the outside of each curve. For a little while, I had no idea what they were doing there, but I soon found out. Early in my first day, as I was coming up to yet another sharp switchback, one of these persons started to wave at me. Of course, unsure of what they wanted, I continued on to discover a huge semi-truck coming up in the opposite direction. To make a long story short, the truck literally ran me off the road and if I was on anything other a motorcycle, I wouldn’t be here right now to write this blog.

These switchback patrols (what I call them in my head), will scout out at the point where they can see both sides of the traffic and notify vehicles when it is unsafe to proceed on the blind turn. These people have saved me at least a dozen times and sadly I still was basically ran off the road at least 3 more times that day. Not so much fun. About half way through the day, I then discovered why these people do this; The semi drivers will throw out change as they pass. I also wondered where these people came from. I mean they basically are standing in the middle of nowhere, so how do they get there? Well the answer to that is that they hang off the back of these large trucks and ride their way up or down. Pretty ballsy.

I ended up calling it a day in La Cruz, a medium sized mountain town about half way from what I thought I was going to accomplish that day. After a very confusing day of breathtaking views and white knuckle driving, I was exhausted. After short walk around the city park, a quick search online for a small stop the next day as a treat to myself, and yet another amazing Colombia dinner, I found myself asleep before my head hit the pillow.

The next morning I started out a little early for my little side stop. I discovered last night a hot spring on the map which wasn’t too far off my route. Stateside when I lived in El Paso, I use to go to the hot springs in Truth or Consequences NM frequently and trust me I could have used some muscle soothing hot water. But after a long difficult drive down a dirt road, a big crash into the ditch, and almost a mile walk down some steps, I discovered my disappointment.

The Termales Tajumbina, while quite pretty with its waterfall and surrounding cliff sides wasn’t worth the entry fee or the difficult drive it requires. The water was gross, facilities old and outdated, and the temperature was way too hot. It did have a cool 60’s vibe, but it also looked like it hadn’t been maintained since then either. No wonder I was the other person there except the very strange whom I assumed was ground keeper. What a bust and I wasted 3 hours!

-trust me it’s better looking from up here.

That night I ended up stopping just short of the Ecuador border in the town of Ipailes. After my disappointing side trip, the day ended up being very long and I didn’t arrive until right before sunset. I had mixed feelings about my next day. I was looking forward to Ecuador and moving on with my journey, but I felt that I really didn’t have enough time in Colombia.

There was so much of the country that I didn’t see, that I didn’t get to experience. I would highly recommend Colombia to anyone, there’s a little bit of everything here and it’s all fairly inexpensive. I found the roads to be decent and everywhere I went, there was evidence of improvements on roads and highways. Even the scary switchback 25 highway will be a thing of the past because it looks like they are building at least a 20 mile tunnel through the mountains. I’m afraid that the scenic views will be forgotten like how the US interstate system killed the county highways. If you are a motorcycle person, Colombia needs to be on top of your must do list.

Today I started with a fairly easy border crossing. For all the trouble it took for us to get our legal papers for our motorcycles back in Cartagena, no one seemed to care when I exited. I basically handed the paper over to an official who didn’t even look at it, received another stamp in my passport, and was finished with Colombia. Ecuador was a fairly easy process as well and it took maybe 90 minutes overall. Again use to guides on iOverlander to prepare yourself, there were no surprises.

-no people around, just me and the road in Ecuador.

I’m now in San Lorenzo and Ecuador has been a little unexpected so far. The roads have been empty and well maintained, but something that’s a little different is that I really haven’t gone through any little towns yet. Everything seems to be off the road so for the most part it’s just you and nature. I kinda like it.

San Lorenzo has a very Caribbean feel which I wasn’t expecting. Obviously an important port city, it really was the first sign of civilization I’ve had since crossing the border. Today I stopped early, but after the last week of mountain driving, I feel like I deserve it and am looking forward to doing a little exploring. I’ve decided to take the coast road through Ecuador, hoping to get some beach and kiteboarding time in. I really don’t know what to expect but I’m sure the next couple days will be amazing.

January 1, 2018

Day 85, Mile 5973: Four days of Kiteboarding Paradise, Calima Colombia

Jason Logsdon

7 March 2017
Calimita, Colombia

For the last four days all I’ve been doing is kiteboarding and camping and life couldn’t be any sweeter. Who would have known that I would find my kite paradise in the middle of Colombia in the mountains? Welcome to Calimita Colombia, where you kite among the clouds.

In very good spirits, I had a sporty drive out of Bogota, racing through the streets and with other motorcycles at the lights. Even with all my gear, my KLR held its own and I had a blast weaving through all the traffic. After going through a tunnel I was back in the backcountry with gorgeous views everywhere. It felt like the entire day I was driving uphill. I have to say that Colombia is one of the prettiest countries I’ve been through so far on this trip.

-enjoying the view in my 5 dollars truck stop hotel.

-beautiful church in one of the many mountain villages on my route today.

My first night I spent at an unusual truck stop on top of the surroundings hills looking down at the Calima reservoir. I was a little skeptical of the upcoming kiteboarding. First of all it was damn cold, and without a wetsuit that was going to be no bueno. Second, looking down at the reservoir, while it was very pretty, I didn’t see how there could be very good wind for kiteboarding. The water is way down in a valley so there just doesn’t seem to any way I was going to have decent wind. So I spent the rest of the night sad and disappointed. I even tried to lift my spirits by changing the oil in my bike but it really didn’t help. By nightfall I was already planning my next stop south in anticipation, but boy was I wrong.

As I wove down to Calimita Resesvior, I noticed two things. One, the temperature significantly increased, and two, it actually was very windy. I found out later that this lake has the most consistent wind in the country. After checking out a couple places to make my stay for the next couple days, I decided on a place called Velas Y Vientos. I picked this spot because it was one of the few places that actually looked open and allowed camping. I haven’t gotten to use my hammock tent nearly as much as I wanted to so I wanted the opportunity to change that. Also this place looked like the best position to kite and turned out to have a really nice launch area as well.

For the last three days I’ve endured very cold mornings, rain pours, broken gear, and expensive prices but it’s been all worth it. I discovered that I really did enjoy my Hennessy camping hammock. When it rain, it absolutely poured, and I was nice and dry inside. Also with the combination of my ThermaRest sleeping mat and sleeping bag, I was nice and warm while I slept.

Kiting here in Calimia has been like the rest of the trip, just gorgeous and amazing. The wind funnels through the steep valleys which produce nice, clean, dependable wind almost every day. To top this off, in the afternoon during the winter, fog usually starts to roll in which ends up feeling that you are kiteboarding through clouds. Pretty. Damn. Awesome.

I would have stayed longer but again with my time crunch of getting to Brazil while my dad was still there and the fact that my stay here in Velas Y Vientos was actually quite expensive, I decided to move on. On top of the camping fees, I was also charged a daily launch fee which included someone who helps launch and land your kite and put your gear away. I really didn’t need this service but it was required to use their area so I had to pay up. Also since there really weren’t many places to eat in the area, I ended up eating there as well which wasn’t the cheapest. Overall, I thought the price was worth it. Everyone I met was friendly and it really was the best spot on the lake.

Tomorrow I’m leaving nice are early and hoping to get to the border in one go. There are a couple mountain ranges between here and there though so we will have to see. It feels like I’ve been in Colombia forever but don’t get me wrong, that’s not a bad thing. I have absolutely fallen in love with this country and could spend another couple months just exploring and taking it in.

December 24, 2017

Day 81, Mile 5700: Bogota – the wildest police-state city I’ve ever experienced

Jason Logsdon

3 March 2017
Bogota, Colombia

I woke up this morning to a clear sky and plenty of sunshine. I didn’t have much to travel today, only to Colombia’s capital, Bogota, which is about 150 miles away. I’m planning on finding a good hostel through the iOverlander app and do a little exploring. I kind of regret leaving Cartegena so quickly before and this is the first big city I’ve come to since then, so I plan on making up for it.

I started out back on Route 62 and with the nicer weather, it was even better than yesterday. The first couple hours of my day were filled with waterfalls, beautify landscape, and scenic valleys. I even stopped to say hi to some of the local wildlife.

On my way to Bogota, I made a slight detour to check out one of the two large lakes in central Colombia. I haven’t been able to kiteboard in quite a while now, all the way since Costa Rica, so I was really itching to get back on the board. Once I reached the Tomine reservoir, I was disappointed to find that it wasn’t going to be an option. The weather was starting to turn pretty cold and there weren’t any spots for me to launch from and to top it off, there was no wind. While I was sitting there in my disappointment, I did a little google searching which ended up brightening my day up some. Apparently the next reservoir I was planning on checking out was known for kiteboarding, so I made a mental note to put that on my next stop and hit the road again.

-no kiteboarding here, good thing cause it’s cold!

The closer I got to Bogota, the busier the roads got. It’s been quite awhile since I’ve had to deal with any traffic and it quickly got annoyed. The view greatly helped though. The road starts from above and works its way down to the city. With Bogota’s red bricked buildings it was a really pretty site so I used the excuse to get out of the traffic to stop for pictures.

I wove my way through the city to the center to find my home for the night. Earlier, I decided on The Cranky Croc Hostel and was anxious to get off the bike and start looking around. Checking in was no problem but finding parking was another story. I was amazed by how difficult it was for me to find a parking garage that had room for my motorcycle. I ended up driving around for almost an hour but I finally found a lot that would take me. After a couple quick pics on my phone to ensure I didn’t forget where I parked, I was done with all my duties and could get to the fun; discovering Bogota.

Bogota, Colombia’s capital city, is surrounded by mountains on all sides and is Colombia’s largest city. You can also tell it’s Colombia’s main tourist spot because there were people everywhere. On my way here, I couldn’t help myself from looking down but now that I’m in the city, I can’t help myself from looking up at the gorgeous mountain views. It seems on every cliff side there is some statue or something to state at.

My first impression of the city is mixed. I have never seen so many police officers. I mean they are everywhere, on every corner, in every alley, and in cars and on motorcycles on every street. The funny thing is though, that it doesn’t seem to help at all. Everywhere there were peddlers and vendors selling stuff which you knew just wasn’t legal.

There is quite the hippy vibe here with little shops everywhere and most likely over a 100 different places where you could eat just in the central district. It really was an experience walking through these small alleys checking out all the little shops. Ironically, I chose a Mexican restaurant to eat at for the night, I just really like tacos.

A problem with driving all day and usually only spending the night to continue on the next day, is that it just tires you out. So I’m sad to admit it, but I ended up turning in pretty early. I really did enjoy checking out the old section of the city, and am overall very surprised by how beautify Bogota is. It is on the must-do list for when I head back north with Melissa.

It looks like I’ve decided to move on tomorrow yet again. For some reason I have this drive to keep going and really not stay anywhere for very long. My next stop at Calima, I am planning on staying a couple days. It has been too long since I’ve kiteboarded and I plan on fixing that next. I am on a timeline to get to Brazil while my dad is still there visiting my sister, but it’s time to take a couple days of break and get off the bike and under a kite.

=Jason-

December 18, 2017

Day 80, Mile 5560: Colombia’s Route 62, The Road to Heaven

Jason Logsdon

2 March 2017
Barbosa, Colombia

I started today hoping I would get another 300 miles accomplished like yesterday but I ended up about 100 miles short. I also got drenched which may be hard to believe, but was my first time in these 4 months to hit rain. The road today was slippery, bumpy, cold, and wet but I couldn’t be happier. I have found my most favorite road yet of the trip; Route 62.

My day started out on a typical Colombian highway; decent pavement with good speed. After a couple hours, I turned off to go more south and that’s when I found it. Route 62 starts out by winding gorgeously through beautiful hill country and ranches. Dragging pegs is no easy feat on a KLR, especially with my load, but I was having a fantastic time doing so today.

-food so fresh, it walks itself to the table.

Around noon I drove by a ranch that appeared to have a restaurant with some amazing smells wafting out so I had to turn around and check it out. I am so glad I did. For less than 5 bucks I had a delicious soup, the best steak yet on this trip, and a local beer. You can’t beat that! I wanted to take a picture of the food but instead I inhaled it.

After my lunch I continued on and the road started going uphill and didn’t stop for the rest of the day. I finally got some of that sweet mountain driving and let me tell you, I fell in love. The road was probably 30% construction, 50% dirt, and 100% heaven. I had a hard time not stopping every 5 minutes to take a picture of the breathless scenery. By 2pm I was in the clouds and I kept gaining altitude; it was just wow.

After it started raining, I had to slow down due to the slick spots. Every couple miles or so, the road would have a break which became very slippery. Shortly after it started raining I saw a local couple on a motorcycle almost completely dump their bike on one of these sections. Lucky for them they were able to recover and lucky for me to witness it as a warning. Even with this, I was still smiling from ear to ear. Nothing could dampen my mood with this kind of experience. It’s just one of those things you know you’ll keep dreaming about long after the journey is done.

I ended up stopping here in Babosa at Hotel Nogaro for the night. For 20.000 colombian pesos (less than 7 USD), I got a clean room and parking for my bike in a locked garage. I quickly hung up my wet gear and set out to explore the village.

-fancy street food for a small mountain village.

For such a small town, Barbosa has a very busy main road full of coffee bars, modern stores, and awesome street vendor food. I wandered around for an hour just taking in the sights and snacking on some vanilla coated strawberries from one of the vendors. What a way to end a fantastic day. Best of all, I have another 100 miles on this road for tomorrow.

=Jason-

December 9, 2017

8000 Miles on a Motorcycle, My Nobile Zen Foil and NHP Split board review

Jason Logsdon

Two months ago, I finished my USA to Argentina motorcycle trip in which I drove over 8000 miles while visiting 14 different countries, kiteboarding along the way. Part of my gear was Nobile’s Zen Split foil, Carbon NHP splitboard, and 2 of their T5 kites. My background includes about 5 years of kiteboarding(mostly with Flysurfer foilkites) and a season of foiling. My past gear includes the Slingshot Dwarfcraft board/Hoverglide foil and Flysurfer Flysplit M and L which I’ll be mostly comparing to. I was given the travel setup for free from Nobile, but I am keeping my review as honest and unbiased as possible.

Last fall when I made the decision to do this trip, I had just finished my first season foiling and really caught the foiling bug. Since the main goal for my trip was to kiteboard as much as possible, I dreamed of bringing a foilboard along to open up those really light wind days, but I thought there was no way I could bring that much bulk with me. I discovered that Nobile had recently released a split foilboard and since I was already convinced that splitboards are the way to travel (been riding solely split boards about about 3 years now), I was really interested in getting the setup. I decided to contact Nobile about a possible partial sponsorship since most of my funds were being saved for the actual trip.

After Nobile learned about my trip, not only did they offer to give me a full foil setup, but they offered to give me their full complete travel setup which included the Zen foil with Infinity splitboard, NHP carbon splitboard, 7.5 and 12m T5 kite, and Splitboard Master travel bag. Initially I planned on only bringing my aging Flyplit M and Sonic2 11m foil to stay light but I graciously accepted their offer. While this was much more gear than I was planning on travelling with, I was amazed by how much I was actually able to fit into their Master bag. I was able to put both boards, both kites, pump, and my Dakine Nitrous harness inside and then strap everything to my top box. Basically felt like I had a passenger on the motorcycle, definitely was doable.

REVIEW

CARBON NHP SPLIT TWINTIP
The Carbon NHP splitboard really reminds me of my old Cabriniha Chopstick. The boards has great pop and a lot of rocker which makes it nice and easy on the knees for landing and fun in the waves. One trade off though is because of the rocker you have to have more power than normal for a board of its size. If you are only bringing one board along with your trip, unless you are going somewhere that you know has constant strong winds, I wouldn’t recommend bringing only the NHP. It has a much smaller range than my Flysplit M but is much more technical and performance orientated. It is perfectly pared with the Zen foil though in my opinion. Light days you use the Zen, and blowing days you use the NHP.

I really liked the complete tool less option because most of my sessions required a full setup and full breakdown and having no tools was fantastic; time taken for setup to water is much quicker compared to the Flysurfer Flysplits. If I was going to be critical my only complaint would be the bindings were over engineered in my opinion with way too many parts which required too much time to assemble. The bindings though are easily adjustable and comfortable.

Compared to the Flysplits, the NHP is heavier but better built. I like the NHP’s connection system since it connects a little easier than the Flysurfer pins and the board just feels more durable. My only problems were a couple breaking thumb screws for cranking them a little too tight.

INFINITY SPLITBOARD WITH ZEN FOIL
The Zen foil packs nice and compact and setups/breaks down quick and easy. The system is well engineered and they even include Tef gel for the bolts. Compared to the Slingshot Hoverglide, I felt the Zen required a little bit more power to get on foil and was a little less stable. Durability wise though, I had no problems with deterioration like I did on the Hoverglide wingtips. Also the entire setup was much lighter than the Hoverglide. I did have a random rear stab failure in the middle of Colombia for no apparent reason but Nobile was quick to rectify the problem. Interestingly I was able to ride the foil back to the beach only on the main wing.

My only complaint is I wish there was more adjustability on the foot straps. The rear strap was basically unless for my stance and I would love to see a front center strap option. I absolutely loved the board’s concave and progressed strapless much easier than on the Dwarfcraft. Another additional plus was the Infinity board without foil was actually quite a lot of fun in itself. The concave deck really lets you carve and again it was amazing how much I progressed strapless on it. The board has a nice wide range as well.

T5 KITES
I’m not going to comment much on the kites since most of my past experience is on Flysurfer foil kites, but I will say that I enjoyed the 7.5m T5 quite a lot surprisingly. It has a larger range than expected and is very lively which was great on and off the foil. The two rear line settings dramatically changed the behavior of the kite, with the fast setting perfect for quick direction changes on the foil and the slower settings for loops and jumps. I had no problems readjusting back to the inflated world with easy relaunches and handling.

OVERALL IMPRESSION
Overall I was very impressed with the durability and versatility of the entire travel setup. I was extremely hard on my gear with frequent motorcycle dumps, constant weather exposure, being strapped down extremely tightly with racket straps, and the occasional 3 foot drops from the bike. My only suggestion to Nobile other than more adjustability on the foot straps for the Infinity board would be to provide extra thumbscrews with the boards. It really is easy to break them when you are learning on how much force is needed and they are a little spendy/difficult to replace and it would really suck if it happened in the middle of your trip especially since these boards are for traveling.

Other than fading, the bag has held up greatly and the zippers had no problem holding up to being overstuffed. I am convinced that if you want to travel easily there is no better setup. If you guys have any specific questions regarding the gear or comparing them to the Flysplits or Slingshot, just let me know.

If you guys are thinking about doing a trip like this my suggestion is do it! I had a blast and overall it really wasn’t difficult. Everyone I met was extremely friendly and helpful and if you are wondering about any of the spots in central/south America, I most likely did hit them up. Off the top of my head, my most favorite spot was Ometepe Nicragua.

December 3, 2017

Day 79, Mile 5327: Deeper into Colombia and I’m loving it!

Jason Logsdon

1 March 2017
Aguachica, Colombia

I enjoyed my ride so much today that I ended up driving over 400 miles which may be a new record. I left Cienaga nice and early and turned back to south. I was disappointed that I didn’t get to kiteboard the coast but I found a couple lakes in more central Colombia so I’ll try there instead.

The ride this morning started with mountains on my left and banana plantations everywhere. I’ve never seen so many in one spot, it was really beautiful. Every so often I would pass a small airstrip with crop dusters; I would love to see the view from the air.

As I wove more south, the tropical vibe started to fade and dry grassland took over. I was missing the mountain views but I’m sure to hit them again soon. I stopped in Morpoz for what turned out to be a fantastic lunch. Apparently Morpoz was shut off from the rest of the country for a period of time due to the seasonal flooding of the surrounding rivers so driving through felt like stepping back in time. My lunch was excellent with a steak, beer, and fresh squeezed juice, all for about 9 bucks, can’t beat that.

-such amazing camera skills, there’s a “X” missing.

Initially I planned on staying in Morpoz for the night, but while the town was pretty, it really didn’t feel as special as I thought it was going to be. Anyhow it was still before 1pm, so I decided to continue on. I’m sure I’ll btravelling through many colonial villages so I wasn’t worried.

A little after Morpoz I actually hit dirt. Finally I’m getting to the areas where I don’t have to take the big highways and get to see the real countryside. I was so surprised through Mexico and Central American by how few dirt roads there were left. I have only hit dirt once in Mexico and that’s it! Well I got my fill today, about 100 miles of fill to be exact.

Driving on the dirt road meant I had to slow way down but I didn’t mind because there were some fantastic views. The road followed the Magdalena river so everything was lush and green. I was able just to relax, listen to some of my favorite music, and cruise. I even saw my first monkey for the journey!

I stopped for the night here in Aguachica. It really is an ugly town which mostly feels like a truck stop but for only 30.000 COP ($10 USD), I got a nice hotel that is clean and has AC but not much else. Once again I enjoyed an amazing cheap dinner, I could totally get use to eating here. I’m itching to get into the mountains where it’s a little cooler and quieter so I can start camping. I’m hoping I might be able to tomorrow, we shall see.

November 28, 2017

Day 78, Mile 4921: On the road at last, Insane wind, and a Familiar face(beer)

Jason Logsdon

28 February 2017 Cienaga, Colombia After a long and drama filled couple days in Cartagena, we finally got our clearance which allows us to drive our motorcycles here in Colombia. After all the problems and drama, I just wanted to get moving and quickly decided that north is the direction that I wanted to head to. Getting out of the city wasn’t too bad but just the quick drive through old town and the fort reinforcement made me kinda regret my hasty decision to leave so quickly. Oh well we will check it out on the way back north.

-first time traveling north in a long time.

Part of the reason I wanted to head north was that according to the map, I would cross a small land bridge and it looked like there would be good kiteboarding in the area. Well it turned out that yes there was fantastic wind (more on that later) but the water was lacking since it was mostly swamps and these interesting house boat raft thingys. Sadly after all the problems we had for the last couple days, my mind was set for travelling so I didn’t take many pictures.

-I guess that’s one way not to have to cut grass.

Talking about the wind, I ended up having one of the scariest moments on the bike so far. The wind was so strong that I literally was blown within inches of running off the road. I’ve never experienced anything like this before and I did not like it. After the first 20 minutes I was regretting my choice of route and was even thinking of turning back. Instead I slowed way down to walking speed and just tried to stay right side up. I even stopped for a moment to gain my bearings and had trouble just keeping the bike from tipping over. Not fun.

-pretty little town that I drove around in circles looking for my AirBnb.

Tonight I had a strange problem finding a place to stay for the night here in Cienaga. Earlier I booked an Airbnb that looked promising but so far I’ve been having a lot problems finding my Airbnbs on this trip. Usually Google Maps is way off and I have to get directions from the owners which can be difficult when you speak very poor Spanish. So after circling the town over and over, I decided to stop and really figure out what was going on. Well it ended up that the Airbnb I booked was actually in Cuba, not Colombia. I’m not sure how that happened but we shall see how my refund works. Apparently it’s Carnival because it seems every little town I went through was having some kind of festival. Again I regret my go go go attitude today and wish I would have stopped and taken in the chaos around me. But after sitting for so long I just wanted to move. I guess it’s common for men to dress as women during this Carnival or everyone here likes to dress in drag. Again, interesting. I ended up at the Hotel Occasionel tonight which I’m pretty happy with. It cost 30.000 Colombian pesos (about 10 bucks) and they let me park in their lobby and best of all there was AC and the rooms were clean, can’t beat that. I ended the night with a very strange “hamburger” with something that I guess was beef, a thin slice of chicken, ham, and who knows what else was on it. Also they only had Coors Light for beer. How the hell does that happen? I end up driving over 5000 miles to have only cheap American beer on menu. Either way I ended my night satisfied that I made some progress and that I was finally travelling in South America.

-ah Coors Light, my old friend. Funny running into you here.

Tomorrow I turn south and move more inland. Apparently there is this little village which is like stepping back in time. I guess they were cut off by a river somehow and still operate like they did hundreds of years ago. I’m looking forward to what tomorrow brings.

Travel

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: