to Puente Gavino: Out of town with the ciclovia

May 1, 2017

We decided to leave a little later than usual so we’d miss the morning rush hour. Our bikes have been stored under the stairs, after we carry our gear down and load up we roll-out of the building. The Black Sheep Hostel is a nice place, it is full of young back-packers but there are also older overland travelers. We met several motorcyclist either headed north or south.

To our surprise there is very little traffic on the roads, turns out today is May first, the International Day of Labor and it is also observed in Colombia. We find a much better route across town than what we followed coming in, we pass through the downtown area. When we decide to move across the river and join the main road headed north we find it is used for a “ciclovia” ride. It is common in Colombia to close-off parts of downtown on Sunday mornings and holidays so people can cycle through town. There are racers, young and older, in lycra on expensive bikes, mountain bikers and families on Walmart bikes. We talk to several cyclists, one guy rode around the Netherlands, another Colombian guy who lives in New York but is home for a vacation.

At the end of the “cicloivia” we are back on the main road headed northeast. There is traffic, but there is a good shoulder. It has been cool most of the morning but as the day progresses the clouds increase and we get doused a couple of times. About ten kilometers before our goal today the new highway and the older route merge. Traffic increases and there are a couple of steep hills to negotiate. All today we followed the Medellin River, but only a couple of times does the road come close enough to smell it. It smells like a laundromat and the surface is covered with large globs of foam.

We arrive at Puente Gavino shortly after noon. On googlemaps we saw there are two roadside restaurants and motels here. The “Rancho Grande” looks nicer, but they are either full, or they don’t have rooms ready yet. Either way, we aren’t going to wait around. Across the road is the friendlier Puente Aparte and for about $7 we get a small roll-in room with an electric warm shower and fan. Not bad at all, just very noisy because we are right next to the road. We got here just in time, in the afternoon big thunderstorms dump lots of rain.

Checking GPS, which way will take us out of the city?

On the "ciclovia". This cyclist has toured before around South America and in the Netherlands.

On the "ciclovia". One side of the highway is closed-off to all traffic except cyclists and pedestrians. A novel idea!

The Rio Medellin. We don't need no stinking EPA!

The river smells like a laundromat. We love fishing and rafting. It is sad to see a river like this.

We bypass Barossa but get some views of the church.

Our $7 room in Puenta Gavino. Just make sure you have it for the night and not for a couple of hours. To our surprise the shower is warm.

Today's ride: 68 km (42 miles)
Total: 31,143 km (19,340 miles)

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