Imagine yourself driving down the road and you see a driving school student out learning to handle the roads. However you are in central Colombia winding through 7,000 foot high mountains clutching the wheel, paying attention and holding your own against holes, bumps, and general strip mining all along the highway. The driver of the car labeled “Enseñanza” (driving school) is doing the same poor thing. And then she met a couple of horses and an aggressive oncoming car. It scared me but I don’t know what it did for her, the student.
We saw a fair bit of merciless driving on the way to our next stop where we plan to play tourists. It was an all day drive through some mountainous country with lots to see.
I woke up in our overnight spot at 8:35 am and I thought to myself how luxurious it is to be retired. Then Rusty wanted a walk so there is that, you’re a slave to your dog no matter how snug the blankets.
It was a free night at the overlook, shared with some trucks and they were all gone, hard workers all. They eat soup for breakfast. Weird? You bet, but we chose pork rib soup over egg drop soup and here it is:
It was surprisingly filling and now I know I can eat anything for breakfast and enjoy it. To me that’s part of the pleasure of travel, history interests me but today’s culture is offered on a plate. And then when you dive into the local way of doing things the locals come knocking.
Meet Linda with two decades in Louisiana and Arkansas where her adult children live. After her husband died she felt obliged to come home to Bucaramanga to look after her nonagenarian parents. She and Layne exchanged WhatsApp numbers and next time we come by…there we will be. It was late enough in the morning we could contact the insurance agent and there we were: legally insured for 90 days right after our current policy expires on Thursday.
“Stop!” Layne said firmly so I did. A giant fruit stand caught her attention and while she shopped we had fruit drinks to help us in our selection.
The due with the glasses was making one of his regular trips by motorcycle to Bucaramanga and he said he always stops here for a pick-me-up. We got to chatting about travel and the pleasures of motorcycles and so forth. It was a nice interlude.
And do the day went, coping with traffic in towns and avoiding motorcycles everywhere.
In the countryside you drive open roads for a while and then around a corner you see a line of cars, pickups, buses and trucks grinding along just a few minutes after they passed you. A slow moving truck is at the head of the line and you get to admire the scenery at 15 or 20 mph.
Passing is a precarious business on these winding mountain roads and sometimes big trucks need room to get around corners! Check it out below as the car carrier simply couldn’t fit on the curve…our side of the highway kept pushing of course!
I prefer to follow than be tail gated so I frequently slow down or use my left turn signal to indicate when it’s safe to pass. But I do my share of passing when the crawling speed is intolerable.
The thing is you never quite know what’s about to happen so staying alert is critical.
Oh and potholes. Check these out on a major highway. The photos don’t really explain the horror of road slides poorly paved leaving an eight inch step or the sudden minefield of holes that require slaloming and heavy applications of brakes.
The paved over landslides look like giant frost heaves and they can be difficult to spot.
Shadows or pot holes?
If you do cross the center line to avoid a hole understand these trucks won’t slow down one bit to help you out…
And then you let your guard down:
And then lunch. We ordered a mixed grill to share for twelve bucks. I walked Rusty while Layne ordered.
I came across these plants whose name I forget but they fold up when you touch them:
Not overpopulated I would say:
Our lunch started with a little appetizer of corn tortilla strips and a fiery salsa, hotter than anything I’ve tasted since Mexico.
Rusty laid down at our feet, not the only dog in the place but certainly the quietest. Colombians are so dog friendly it is quite surprising.
This vast mound of food arrived. Layne got a container from the van parked nearby and she started menu planning for the next three days.
Once again a lovely Colombian, Norma, came by out of nowhere and practiced her English and got a nickel tour of GANNET2 and exchanged WhatsApp numbers with Layne who is also the communications officer for the expedition.
Layne had organized a campground in the heritage city of Villa de Leyva and we hoped to be there between four and five yesterday afternoon.
In the event we arrived around 5:15 after a long day of avoiding potholes etc…it was 75 degrees at 7100 feet and we enjoyed the refreshing coolness at altitude.
iOverlander said we would be met by the family matriarch, the grandmother and sure enough…
Margarita showed us the ropes and we were left to our own devices.
We buttoned up GANNET2 with window covers against a cold night, expected to be as low as 53 degrees which we haven’t seen for a while. The rumor is there may be hot water in the showers which will be welcome at these temperatures.
I don’t know how long we will be here, one day or five but it promises well.
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sensitive plant
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