Days 54-61
Dia 54: Mitla - Rio Quiechapa, 81 kms
Dreamt heavily again last night, which I've done a lot this trip, especially when camped out. My friend Rip was in the dream and I woke up thinking about him..... Fixed my broken spoke in the shade of a huge boulder that I was camped behind. I dropped into town after a leisurely breakfast. The ruins in Mitla are right in the middle of town and as was customary, a colonial church was built on top of what was probably the prize structure of the native tribe. They were descendants of the people of Monte Alban, so the architecture was a little newer. From 600 to 1500. Very likely there were battles here as the site was inhabited up to the time of the conquest. What has survived here in Mitla is a superb example of artistic masonry. What struck me about these ruins are the patterned facades, all different, yet related. All the sites I've visited are unique in some way or other.
Dropped into the farmer's market in the center of town. What a colorful display of people and produce! I have few, if any pix of the native peoples I've encountered as I respect their aversion to getting there picture taken.... Bought some dried fish, fruits and had lunch, all for less than 50 pesos. I finally got out of town and headed back down "Mezcal Valley." Think I'll take a little toke off my flask,,,, AH! So good! Wash it down with a little lime and yeah!!! I feel good! I'm at camp cooking dinner, which is usually my time to write.... Found my first good coffee in ages, I must be approaching the coffee growing region. Tonight, I'm cooking on my campfire, cecina, which is thin sliced beef, seasoned and ready for the grill. Really tasty! Next on the menu, baked potato smothered in butter, garlic and onions. This is living! Already ate my tree-ripened avocado, wow! All the food I'm eating and the Mezcal I'm drinking, is produced locally. I like that! It's a natural rythem with bike travel as it's convenient to buy my food daily, in the last pueblo of the day. So, whatever fruits and foods are available are what's for dinner. It's helping me to feel generally strong and healthy. I've not felt sick at all this whole trip, a little constipated in Tlaxcala, probably because I was "drinking the water." I'm headed toward Tehauntepec, which is close to the coast. I may rest there for a day or 2....
Dia 55: Rio Quiechapa - Tequisistlan, 91 kms
Slept poorly last night as it was too warm for my sleeping bag and too cool for my light bag... Tossed and turned and woke up feeling shitty. Probably because I bragged yesterday about how good I feel. Maybe the mezcal's to blame! Had a dream with the Tomac's. Johnny was gonna enter a big jump contest on some top-secret bike called "the exterminator." Kathy was upset that Johnny would enter such a dangerous event...
Cooked breakfast while heavy clouds built and I thought I'd finally get wet. Hurredly ate and packed and hit the road with zero legs. Struggled all day with big passes and lots of wind. Think I'll quit asking questions of any kind regarding directions or road conditions. Reason? Very few people know the correct answers, but there always willing to guess. Yesterday, I asked a bus driver, figured a bus driver would know the road.... "How far to the next pueblo?" He replied, "It's close, 20kms,,, well maybe 40,,, just this heavy climb, and then it's all down hill." It wound up being close to 40k with 3 heavy climbs. Today, I started downhill and cruised 'til I hit El Camaron, which was followed by a windy , 15k climb into the pines. The wind was so gusty and strong, it would almost push me off the road at times. After cresting, I raced down the other side, hanging on to the noodle for dear life. Had lunch in a small pueblito and while buying supplies, a young man who spoke some English told me "It's all down hill from here." I was cursed and knew what was coming... 3 or 4 "heavy climbs later, I limped into the next pueblo and stopped for liquids. The attractive girl in the tienda looked intelligent, so I made the mistake of asking about the road. All she could tell me was 15 minutes in a car with lots of corners.... Over an hour of "heavy climb" later, I reached the last mountain top of my day and descended into Tequisistlan.... No rooms here, so I rode to the municipal building and met the cops. Guillermo was the captain and spoke a lot of English. He set me up with a shower, a place to sleep and then tried to set me up with Daisy, who has a nice body... I invited her to come by my dorm so I can teach her English. I'm waiting for her now...
Dia 56: Tequisistlan - Salina Cruz, 91 kms
Guillermo came by to say goodbye when he got off his shift at 6:30AM. Daisy never showed, or maybe I just fell asleep... Took the opportunity to bounce early and I did. Nothing open here, so I'm 15 k into my day writing this over breakfast. Broke another spoke yesterday, all brake side, rear pullers. I should have tightened them up after a few days, but never got around to it as I've been too busy making kms... Ripping wind today out of the north, which slipped in nicely behind me when I made the turn toward the beach. I took the toll road, which while checking my map.I noticed that not a single car passed in either direction. With a monster tailwind, I enjoyed 25kms of the smoothest, widest road, I've yet ridden in Mexico. With almost zero traffic! It's so silly, they put a road like this in a place where it's not needed while the heavily traveled routes are in dire need of fresh pavement and shoulders.....
And so you get a realistic impression of Mexico, allow me to rant on a subject I've not touched on yet. Garbage. I've finally lost my tolerance for the mountains of garbage that line Mexico's roadsides. It's absolutely shocking, the quantity of garbage I've ridden past on this trip. Without intending, I've managed to do a "garbage survey," and even have some ideas about how this mess could be cleaned up. Overwhelming #1 garbage item from north to south is the plastic beverage container, fully 20% of which contain urine. Plastic bags, disposable diapers, usually tossed in mass in a plastic bag which explodes it's stinky contents all over the roadside, to mix with the rest of the list. Plastic oil bottles, which do provide me with a free source of chain lube! Discarded clothing items, which I use to clean my chain. Dead animals with their smell of death. Car parts, rotting fruit, refrigerators, car tires, CD's, and human excrement with the used toilet paper blowing in the wind. Of course, the list is much longer, but I'll spare you... The causes are fairly obvious. Other than some cities and tourist areas, there is no garbage collection. So, for generations, people have learned to toss there garbage wherever it lands. Out of the window of the car as you head down the road.... Lack of education, many people in the small pueblos don't receive much of an education as they must work the fields.. Solutions, you ask? How about fairly electing a government that actually cares about the people and is willing to work for them and kick out the corrupt assholes. Kind of like what needs to happen in our country! Then, pressuring the beverage manufacturers to go back to returnable, glass containers with enough value to prevent them from winding up broken on the roadside. How about a plastic recycling program that would give plastic enough value to entice the locals who need work to go out and collect plastic. Perhaps by focusing on cleaning up the garbage, Mexico could create a new economy and encourage people to stay in Mexico...
OK, got a room here in Salina Cruz, which is kind of a grungy, seaport town. Spent part of the day hanging in my hammock under an old palapa at the beach. Very windy here! Heading south, along the coast road, the wind got even with me and I bonked trying to push through. Had to crawl to the first tienda I encountered, which was run by Carmen, a 26 year old, very overweight woman who looked much older... All she had was lukewarm soda, (which she claimed was cold) and cookies. I was so hungry, I downed 2 of everything on the menu while answering her nonstop questions. She'd never married, and perhaps never will, as she was not very appealing physically. Anyway, she was quite amazed by my adventure and I had to ease my way back into the wind....
Dia 57: Salina Cruz
Wanted to party last night, as the streets were full of people, x-mas shopping I suppose. A pretty girl even winked at me, but I was so blown from the effort to get here, all I could do was return to my room and crash hard... Got up and looked for another hotel, as this one was hurtin' for 177 pesos. Found a much nicer one for 100, so I've moved. Today, I'll rest, do the internet, work on the noodle,etc...
Dia 58: Salina Cruz - Niltepec, 102 kms
Here I am at tonight's camp, cooking dinner, drinking beer, just finished off my flask of Mezcal.... Today was one of the most challenging bike rides of my life!!!! Found out from the locals that the isthmus of Tehuantepec is famous for intense winds. I was getting the beginnings of it on my way into Salina Cruz, and today I really got as face full! I left Salina at dawn cause I thought maybe the wind would die down in the AM. Wrong! My first 20k were dead on into it, then I turned toward the east and it became a 3-4 headwind. I struggled to keep my speedometer above 10k-hour. At least the road had a wide shoulder, and I used all of it. What made this wind unlike any other I've experienced is that it was constantly changing intensity, always ripping, but sometimes sucking,,, yeah, that's it,,, it was sucking for sure!! Swirling, gusting, blasting, changing direction. All this meant that I couldn't hold my line as I was in a constant state of correction due to the ever changing wind load trying to push me south. And it did push me, off the road literally 20 times or more today. The noodle was flipping and flopping so hard, I must have looked like a drunken sailor from Salina Cruz!!! This went on for 60k. Along the way, I stopped for lunch and met Pedro and his family. He told me it's always windy here and I was lucky to be crossing here on a "mild day!" He claims the gusts have been clocked at 300k-hour here on a heavy day! Returned to a continuation of nearly impossible riding conditions. Actually had to stop to drink as the thought of taking a hand off the bars didn't enter my mind. Even standing to drink was a chore and the noodle blew over while I was holding on to it! It's a flat coastal plain here at the narrowest point between the Gulf and the Pacific. Even though flat, I often looked down to see I was going only 5 or 6 k-hr... By 1:00PM, my hands ached from the effort of holding on to the squirming noodle. Complicating the wind itself was the fact that every time a sizable vehicle would pass, it would cut the wind and pull me north, toward traffic, only to be smacked by the next pumping blast as they passed. I made it to a junction at "La Ventosa," which means, the Windy. The attendant at the tiendita was the cutest girl in the world, well, other than my daughter Linda, that is! She confirmed that it's always windy here and that I was crossing on a mild day. Both she, and Pedro told me about how semis are constantly blown off the road in this area. Pedro had also told me to expect another 40k of these conditions and he was right on. Finally, a Mexican who gave me accurate info! Once I cleared the coastal plain, the wind lessened and I decided to stock up early as I was "blown." I stopped at this nice, mellow pueblito and everyone was nice again. Back in Salina Cruz, I'd noted that almost everyone wore a frown and no one was interested enough to ask for the story. I think the wind had "blown" their minds!
Anyway, it took a ton of energy to clear that stretch.. Easily, one of my most difficult days on a bicycle, not just on this trip, but in my entire life!!
Dia 59: Niltepec - Rizo de Oro, 86 kms
Noticed immediately upon departure this AM that my right arm was sore. Guess it was all that effort of countering the strong force coming from my left.... The road went from 2-lane with shoulder to 2-lane without shoulder 3 or 4 times today for no apparent rhyme of reason. Very hot here as I'm inland a bit but still at sea level. Sweating profusely, I made it to the junction at Tapanatepec craving cold drinks. Satisfied and stocked with fruits, I began the inevitable climb into Chiapas. 8 or 9 k into the climb, I crossed a crystal clear brook, so I stopped to freshen up and noticed my front flat. Drug the noodle off the road and made my repair. Stripped and found a deep pool and got in. I could see the pacific, way off in the distance as I chilled. Climbed back on and ascended for almost another 20k! Crossed into Chiapas in cool, lush mountains, hoping for a tienda. 1st pueblito had what I needed and I stocked and sprinted toward camp. Only problem, both sides of the road were fenced and no open gates. Kept going 'til dark and settled for the first restaurant, albergue. Was going to camp and cook, but it was only 120 pesos, so I gave the folks my food and hired them to cook it for me in their restaurant. Another super family! Carlos and his wife Eliu and their 3 kids. We talked into the night about everything, and they cooked me breakfast in the AM. Then, they didn't want to accept payment for their services. I made them take 50 pesos, claiming that the extra weight of this bill would throw me over the limit....So far, Chiapas is really beautiful...
Dia 60: Rizo de Oro - Ocozocoautla, 100kms
Eliu cooked my breakfast while I prepared for yet another day in the saddle. The dogs begged while I selfishly feasted. Finally broke down and gave a couple tortillas to the one who begged the least.. Said our goodbyes, took some pix and I was off. Felt really lousy with a mild headache and no zip. Then I dropped to a hot, flat plain and the road deteriorated into the no shoulder type. Mild traffic at the beginning, but a steady headwind worked my psyche. After the junction to Arriaga, the traffic increased a lot and required me to bail off the roadway repeatedly to make room for the big dogs. Later, the traffic died down and I made it to tonight's cornfield campspot.
Dia 61: Ocozocoautla - La Granadilla, 84 kms
Francisco, the caretaker of the cornfield arrived and came over to check me out. He gave me his blessing and added that we're all equal in the eyes of god, Mexicans, Gringos, Negros... We talked for a while and parted as friends. Thought I'd only go as far as Tuxtla today. Got there early and figured I might as well push on to Chiapa de Corzo and look for a room. Once there, I found out that it's all uphill to San Cristobal de las Casas. So, I decided to ride to the first pueblit that had a room and spend the night there. Folks assured me that there were pueblitos all along the way ... NOT!!! Without sufficient food and water on board to camp, I was determined to make it to the 1st pueblo. About 25k into what turned out to be probably the hardest, longest climb yet, I encountered a broke down VW and asked the folks how far to the next pueblo. The man replied assuredly "6k," and the rest shook there heads in agreement. I figured, OK, 6k ain't bad, I can do that in my sleep! So 14, all uphill kms later, after the sun had already set, I get to the 1st tienda, only to discover that it was surrounded by drunk and drinking locals who started heckling me immediately. I tryed to be cordial and offered many "buenas tardes" while I slipped into the poorly stocked tienda. The unhelpful proprietor took my pesos for the limited foodstuffs I bought there. He couldn't tell me where to sleep, nothing, just stonefaced, and the guys outside wanted to talk to the gringo. In super bad english, they were all asking me to buy them beers, "Come on, Gringo, You're loaded with dollars!" They were speaking their dialect and could not understand the words, but I could feel the animosity building so I hurredly packed my supplies and said, "Gotta Go!" I sprinted off as they shouted after me and it was getting dark. I wanted to put some distance between me and this bunch, but just up around the corner, I made it to a convenient looking cornfield and dove in just as the nearly full moon popped over the ridge. The views were outstanding as I'd climbed for something like 40k since crossing the Rio Grijalva.
Dreamt heavily again last night, which I've done a lot this trip, especially when camped out. My friend Rip was in the dream and I woke up thinking about him..... Fixed my broken spoke in the shade of a huge boulder that I was camped behind. I dropped into town after a leisurely breakfast. The ruins in Mitla are right in the middle of town and as was customary, a colonial church was built on top of what was probably the prize structure of the native tribe. They were descendants of the people of Monte Alban, so the architecture was a little newer. From 600 to 1500. Very likely there were battles here as the site was inhabited up to the time of the conquest. What has survived here in Mitla is a superb example of artistic masonry. What struck me about these ruins are the patterned facades, all different, yet related. All the sites I've visited are unique in some way or other.
Dropped into the farmer's market in the center of town. What a colorful display of people and produce! I have few, if any pix of the native peoples I've encountered as I respect their aversion to getting there picture taken.... Bought some dried fish, fruits and had lunch, all for less than 50 pesos. I finally got out of town and headed back down "Mezcal Valley." Think I'll take a little toke off my flask,,,, AH! So good! Wash it down with a little lime and yeah!!! I feel good! I'm at camp cooking dinner, which is usually my time to write.... Found my first good coffee in ages, I must be approaching the coffee growing region. Tonight, I'm cooking on my campfire, cecina, which is thin sliced beef, seasoned and ready for the grill. Really tasty! Next on the menu, baked potato smothered in butter, garlic and onions. This is living! Already ate my tree-ripened avocado, wow! All the food I'm eating and the Mezcal I'm drinking, is produced locally. I like that! It's a natural rythem with bike travel as it's convenient to buy my food daily, in the last pueblo of the day. So, whatever fruits and foods are available are what's for dinner. It's helping me to feel generally strong and healthy. I've not felt sick at all this whole trip, a little constipated in Tlaxcala, probably because I was "drinking the water." I'm headed toward Tehauntepec, which is close to the coast. I may rest there for a day or 2....
Dia 55: Rio Quiechapa - Tequisistlan, 91 kms
Slept poorly last night as it was too warm for my sleeping bag and too cool for my light bag... Tossed and turned and woke up feeling shitty. Probably because I bragged yesterday about how good I feel. Maybe the mezcal's to blame! Had a dream with the Tomac's. Johnny was gonna enter a big jump contest on some top-secret bike called "the exterminator." Kathy was upset that Johnny would enter such a dangerous event...
Cooked breakfast while heavy clouds built and I thought I'd finally get wet. Hurredly ate and packed and hit the road with zero legs. Struggled all day with big passes and lots of wind. Think I'll quit asking questions of any kind regarding directions or road conditions. Reason? Very few people know the correct answers, but there always willing to guess. Yesterday, I asked a bus driver, figured a bus driver would know the road.... "How far to the next pueblo?" He replied, "It's close, 20kms,,, well maybe 40,,, just this heavy climb, and then it's all down hill." It wound up being close to 40k with 3 heavy climbs. Today, I started downhill and cruised 'til I hit El Camaron, which was followed by a windy , 15k climb into the pines. The wind was so gusty and strong, it would almost push me off the road at times. After cresting, I raced down the other side, hanging on to the noodle for dear life. Had lunch in a small pueblito and while buying supplies, a young man who spoke some English told me "It's all down hill from here." I was cursed and knew what was coming... 3 or 4 "heavy climbs later, I limped into the next pueblo and stopped for liquids. The attractive girl in the tienda looked intelligent, so I made the mistake of asking about the road. All she could tell me was 15 minutes in a car with lots of corners.... Over an hour of "heavy climb" later, I reached the last mountain top of my day and descended into Tequisistlan.... No rooms here, so I rode to the municipal building and met the cops. Guillermo was the captain and spoke a lot of English. He set me up with a shower, a place to sleep and then tried to set me up with Daisy, who has a nice body... I invited her to come by my dorm so I can teach her English. I'm waiting for her now...
Dia 56: Tequisistlan - Salina Cruz, 91 kms
Guillermo came by to say goodbye when he got off his shift at 6:30AM. Daisy never showed, or maybe I just fell asleep... Took the opportunity to bounce early and I did. Nothing open here, so I'm 15 k into my day writing this over breakfast. Broke another spoke yesterday, all brake side, rear pullers. I should have tightened them up after a few days, but never got around to it as I've been too busy making kms... Ripping wind today out of the north, which slipped in nicely behind me when I made the turn toward the beach. I took the toll road, which while checking my map.I noticed that not a single car passed in either direction. With a monster tailwind, I enjoyed 25kms of the smoothest, widest road, I've yet ridden in Mexico. With almost zero traffic! It's so silly, they put a road like this in a place where it's not needed while the heavily traveled routes are in dire need of fresh pavement and shoulders.....
And so you get a realistic impression of Mexico, allow me to rant on a subject I've not touched on yet. Garbage. I've finally lost my tolerance for the mountains of garbage that line Mexico's roadsides. It's absolutely shocking, the quantity of garbage I've ridden past on this trip. Without intending, I've managed to do a "garbage survey," and even have some ideas about how this mess could be cleaned up. Overwhelming #1 garbage item from north to south is the plastic beverage container, fully 20% of which contain urine. Plastic bags, disposable diapers, usually tossed in mass in a plastic bag which explodes it's stinky contents all over the roadside, to mix with the rest of the list. Plastic oil bottles, which do provide me with a free source of chain lube! Discarded clothing items, which I use to clean my chain. Dead animals with their smell of death. Car parts, rotting fruit, refrigerators, car tires, CD's, and human excrement with the used toilet paper blowing in the wind. Of course, the list is much longer, but I'll spare you... The causes are fairly obvious. Other than some cities and tourist areas, there is no garbage collection. So, for generations, people have learned to toss there garbage wherever it lands. Out of the window of the car as you head down the road.... Lack of education, many people in the small pueblos don't receive much of an education as they must work the fields.. Solutions, you ask? How about fairly electing a government that actually cares about the people and is willing to work for them and kick out the corrupt assholes. Kind of like what needs to happen in our country! Then, pressuring the beverage manufacturers to go back to returnable, glass containers with enough value to prevent them from winding up broken on the roadside. How about a plastic recycling program that would give plastic enough value to entice the locals who need work to go out and collect plastic. Perhaps by focusing on cleaning up the garbage, Mexico could create a new economy and encourage people to stay in Mexico...
OK, got a room here in Salina Cruz, which is kind of a grungy, seaport town. Spent part of the day hanging in my hammock under an old palapa at the beach. Very windy here! Heading south, along the coast road, the wind got even with me and I bonked trying to push through. Had to crawl to the first tienda I encountered, which was run by Carmen, a 26 year old, very overweight woman who looked much older... All she had was lukewarm soda, (which she claimed was cold) and cookies. I was so hungry, I downed 2 of everything on the menu while answering her nonstop questions. She'd never married, and perhaps never will, as she was not very appealing physically. Anyway, she was quite amazed by my adventure and I had to ease my way back into the wind....
Dia 57: Salina Cruz
Wanted to party last night, as the streets were full of people, x-mas shopping I suppose. A pretty girl even winked at me, but I was so blown from the effort to get here, all I could do was return to my room and crash hard... Got up and looked for another hotel, as this one was hurtin' for 177 pesos. Found a much nicer one for 100, so I've moved. Today, I'll rest, do the internet, work on the noodle,etc...
Dia 58: Salina Cruz - Niltepec, 102 kms
Here I am at tonight's camp, cooking dinner, drinking beer, just finished off my flask of Mezcal.... Today was one of the most challenging bike rides of my life!!!! Found out from the locals that the isthmus of Tehuantepec is famous for intense winds. I was getting the beginnings of it on my way into Salina Cruz, and today I really got as face full! I left Salina at dawn cause I thought maybe the wind would die down in the AM. Wrong! My first 20k were dead on into it, then I turned toward the east and it became a 3-4 headwind. I struggled to keep my speedometer above 10k-hour. At least the road had a wide shoulder, and I used all of it. What made this wind unlike any other I've experienced is that it was constantly changing intensity, always ripping, but sometimes sucking,,, yeah, that's it,,, it was sucking for sure!! Swirling, gusting, blasting, changing direction. All this meant that I couldn't hold my line as I was in a constant state of correction due to the ever changing wind load trying to push me south. And it did push me, off the road literally 20 times or more today. The noodle was flipping and flopping so hard, I must have looked like a drunken sailor from Salina Cruz!!! This went on for 60k. Along the way, I stopped for lunch and met Pedro and his family. He told me it's always windy here and I was lucky to be crossing here on a "mild day!" He claims the gusts have been clocked at 300k-hour here on a heavy day! Returned to a continuation of nearly impossible riding conditions. Actually had to stop to drink as the thought of taking a hand off the bars didn't enter my mind. Even standing to drink was a chore and the noodle blew over while I was holding on to it! It's a flat coastal plain here at the narrowest point between the Gulf and the Pacific. Even though flat, I often looked down to see I was going only 5 or 6 k-hr... By 1:00PM, my hands ached from the effort of holding on to the squirming noodle. Complicating the wind itself was the fact that every time a sizable vehicle would pass, it would cut the wind and pull me north, toward traffic, only to be smacked by the next pumping blast as they passed. I made it to a junction at "La Ventosa," which means, the Windy. The attendant at the tiendita was the cutest girl in the world, well, other than my daughter Linda, that is! She confirmed that it's always windy here and that I was crossing on a mild day. Both she, and Pedro told me about how semis are constantly blown off the road in this area. Pedro had also told me to expect another 40k of these conditions and he was right on. Finally, a Mexican who gave me accurate info! Once I cleared the coastal plain, the wind lessened and I decided to stock up early as I was "blown." I stopped at this nice, mellow pueblito and everyone was nice again. Back in Salina Cruz, I'd noted that almost everyone wore a frown and no one was interested enough to ask for the story. I think the wind had "blown" their minds!
Anyway, it took a ton of energy to clear that stretch.. Easily, one of my most difficult days on a bicycle, not just on this trip, but in my entire life!!
Dia 59: Niltepec - Rizo de Oro, 86 kms
Noticed immediately upon departure this AM that my right arm was sore. Guess it was all that effort of countering the strong force coming from my left.... The road went from 2-lane with shoulder to 2-lane without shoulder 3 or 4 times today for no apparent rhyme of reason. Very hot here as I'm inland a bit but still at sea level. Sweating profusely, I made it to the junction at Tapanatepec craving cold drinks. Satisfied and stocked with fruits, I began the inevitable climb into Chiapas. 8 or 9 k into the climb, I crossed a crystal clear brook, so I stopped to freshen up and noticed my front flat. Drug the noodle off the road and made my repair. Stripped and found a deep pool and got in. I could see the pacific, way off in the distance as I chilled. Climbed back on and ascended for almost another 20k! Crossed into Chiapas in cool, lush mountains, hoping for a tienda. 1st pueblito had what I needed and I stocked and sprinted toward camp. Only problem, both sides of the road were fenced and no open gates. Kept going 'til dark and settled for the first restaurant, albergue. Was going to camp and cook, but it was only 120 pesos, so I gave the folks my food and hired them to cook it for me in their restaurant. Another super family! Carlos and his wife Eliu and their 3 kids. We talked into the night about everything, and they cooked me breakfast in the AM. Then, they didn't want to accept payment for their services. I made them take 50 pesos, claiming that the extra weight of this bill would throw me over the limit....So far, Chiapas is really beautiful...
Dia 60: Rizo de Oro - Ocozocoautla, 100kms
Eliu cooked my breakfast while I prepared for yet another day in the saddle. The dogs begged while I selfishly feasted. Finally broke down and gave a couple tortillas to the one who begged the least.. Said our goodbyes, took some pix and I was off. Felt really lousy with a mild headache and no zip. Then I dropped to a hot, flat plain and the road deteriorated into the no shoulder type. Mild traffic at the beginning, but a steady headwind worked my psyche. After the junction to Arriaga, the traffic increased a lot and required me to bail off the roadway repeatedly to make room for the big dogs. Later, the traffic died down and I made it to tonight's cornfield campspot.
Dia 61: Ocozocoautla - La Granadilla, 84 kms
Francisco, the caretaker of the cornfield arrived and came over to check me out. He gave me his blessing and added that we're all equal in the eyes of god, Mexicans, Gringos, Negros... We talked for a while and parted as friends. Thought I'd only go as far as Tuxtla today. Got there early and figured I might as well push on to Chiapa de Corzo and look for a room. Once there, I found out that it's all uphill to San Cristobal de las Casas. So, I decided to ride to the first pueblit that had a room and spend the night there. Folks assured me that there were pueblitos all along the way ... NOT!!! Without sufficient food and water on board to camp, I was determined to make it to the 1st pueblo. About 25k into what turned out to be probably the hardest, longest climb yet, I encountered a broke down VW and asked the folks how far to the next pueblo. The man replied assuredly "6k," and the rest shook there heads in agreement. I figured, OK, 6k ain't bad, I can do that in my sleep! So 14, all uphill kms later, after the sun had already set, I get to the 1st tienda, only to discover that it was surrounded by drunk and drinking locals who started heckling me immediately. I tryed to be cordial and offered many "buenas tardes" while I slipped into the poorly stocked tienda. The unhelpful proprietor took my pesos for the limited foodstuffs I bought there. He couldn't tell me where to sleep, nothing, just stonefaced, and the guys outside wanted to talk to the gringo. In super bad english, they were all asking me to buy them beers, "Come on, Gringo, You're loaded with dollars!" They were speaking their dialect and could not understand the words, but I could feel the animosity building so I hurredly packed my supplies and said, "Gotta Go!" I sprinted off as they shouted after me and it was getting dark. I wanted to put some distance between me and this bunch, but just up around the corner, I made it to a convenient looking cornfield and dove in just as the nearly full moon popped over the ridge. The views were outstanding as I'd climbed for something like 40k since crossing the Rio Grijalva.
posted by Bicycle Bob at
7:30 PM
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