charleysblog

So far Zapatoca has been my favorite town, maybe the effort to get here has biased my opinion, but I have been enjoying just exploring all the nooks and crannies as I walk the streets. No trash anywhere, fresh mountain air and coolness. The best restaurants yet of the trip. Coffee shops to while away […]

I woke up nervous and a little anxious to be starting on the uphill portion of my back way out of San Gil. Since I had booked a hotel only about 8 miles away and not wanting to get there before customers from the night before had checked out, I took my time in the

I’m ending my stay of six days in Bucaramanga. I’ve been in recovery mode; eating well, relaxing, stretching and planning. After dealing with the crappy road coming into this city, I was hoping for an alternative. In my second day continuing south from here I would have to ride up about 5000 feet within a

I’m 358 miles (577km) south of the Caribbean Sea.  Not without a tremendous effort, but here I am at 3500 feet in the 1.5 million population city of Bucaramanga. I arose today at my usual time of 0430 from habit, so did some stretching, journaling and reading. Now I’m upstairs on the balcony enjoying the

I’ve been in Colombia now for over a month. My Spanish is adequate to find directions, order meals, secure a room and even tell people where I come from and where I’m going. When I’m around people here I’m really “on” in that I stick out like a sore thumb: white skin, big guy, on

Lots more riding in the heat. As soon as I think I’ve become accustomed to it, I am presented with a big hill and struggle again. I like the little towns along my way. Outside of one, I spotted a “resort hotel”. The sign said so, so who was I to argue. It even included

Ready and packed, at 0545 with four liters of water and electrolytes , I sped (😁) off. Turned out that after a mile of flat, the next almost two miles were an uphill to get over the hump splitting the city in two. So, I was dripping with sweat by the fifteen minute mark.  From

15 miles (25km) to my finca ( farm) above the town of Minca, in the mountains. Ready First five miles were easy, flat roads. The problem was motorcycles everywhere. If right lane is crowded they will go on other side of the road, weaving between opposing traffic. They ride up on sidewalks to get around traffic

Here’s the story of my visit to the KOGI village PART 2 Rukmini, my guide, wore a turban and had a bindi on his forehead. He explained that he studied meditation and yoga in India for ten years and now is a meditation and yoga teacher here in Colombia. He carried a peaceful, calm energy

The  bike ride to the city of Palomino seemed easy compared to the prior ride, with only a few short hills at the end. Coming into town, I looked for Carreterra 6, meaning the boulevard rather than the street. This “boulevard” was a small dirt road off the main highway, complete with potholes you could