Things learned on a bicycle tour

Brian and I were talking the other day about the things you learn on bicycle tours.  This is a partial list of the things we have learned in the last 10 days:

-Mexican Bakeries are THE best.  Never pass up the opportunity to buy a pastry or some bread.

-Grocery stores are basically non-existent along our route.  We buy most of our supplies at "tiendas" or "mini supers".  The food available always varies, and we are lucky if vegetables and fruits are included in the selection.  This of course leads to creative menu planning.  

-NEVER ever drink coffee from a mexican truck stop.  This will without a doubt end badly.  

-If a hotel does not exist in a town, it does not mean that there are not rooms available...

From Felipe Carrillo Puerto, we were on the road bright and early to get some miles in before the heat.  The day presented some "points of interest" finally and we took a break at the equivalent to a truck stop for some late morning cookies and coffee.  Luck would have it that I realized that drinking instant coffee is the same as drinking the water immediately after I had chugged down two cups...and it got me.  I was thankful for the travel prescriptions that we brought with us later in the day.  We also met Rico the Dejon at the truck stop.  We aren't exactly sure what a dejon is, but it looked like a mix between a raccoon and anteater.  Rico was the pet of the truckstop's owner and climbed all over the place.  it was really weird.

stretching break along the highway

Later in the day, we stopped at a fruit stand for a bag of tangerines and mangos.  Best 20 pesos spent on the trip.  We ended in Limones, which didn't amount to much.  The town was small and saddled the highway.  There were no hotels, and a few people told us we could camp inside the fence of the small pyramid they have.  We were shooed away from the pyramid by the town drunk and eventually found a man who rents rooms thanks to the help of a nurse from the public health building.  

our "cuarto" in Limones

From Limones we headed to Muhahual.  We experienced our first military checkpoint and had all of our bags inspected before we could continue.  We had an extreme headwind the entire ride and the sun strong with little shade along the way.  Definitely the toughest day yet.  Muhahual was a nice town though.  We spent two nights camped along the malecon, a beachfront walkway.  

We departed Muhahual this morning unsure of where we would end.  We were planning on some beach camping along the old coastal road, but reached our destination early enough that we decided to continue.  Tonight and tomorrow we will spend in Xcalak.  It's a tiny town without much tourist development.  The main attraction here is the scuba diving.  We have scored a nice little campsite for 35 pesos a person and we can't complain.  From here, we will head back to Muhahual for a night and inland after that.  

Old Coastal Road to Xcalak

Old Coastal Road

Old Coastal Road

The Beach Life

Hola from Fellipe Carrillo Peurto!

We've been living under the radar for the last couple days and I can't complain one bit.  After Tulum, we spent two days in the Sian Ka'an Biosphere.  It was an absolutely gorgeous ride along the coast with much less traffic than we had seen the days before.  Taking two days to ride the biosphere gave us the opportunity to camp on the beach - our own private beach!! Everything about it was perfect!  We arrived around noon and had plenty of time to relax.  Did I mention Brian proposed when we arrived?!  Like I said, everything was perfect!

 Coconut water

 Sian Ka'an coastal road

 Topes, so many topes

 camping on the beach

 The ring

 Killing time before bed, shadow puppets!

 Camp, Sian Ka'an biosphere

 Beach riding

 Hannah, Sian Ka'an bioshpere

Coastal Road to Punta Allen

Coconut transportation

Ocean on one side, Lagoon on the other

Entering Sian Ka'an biosphere

Caribbean sunrise

Back on the mainland, Into the deep jungle all by ourselves

Jungle, No cars in site for hours

Beach riding

Our second day in the biosphere ended in Punta Allen - a small fishing town of about 400.  We camped on the beach at a guesthouse, ate fajitas and liked it so much that we stayed another night!

This morning, we took a motorboat across the lagoon to continue into the biosphere from Punta Allen complete with dolphin siting and everything!  From there, the first 30 miles were on dirt as we headed away from the coast and farther in the jungle.  Even through the road was rough, it was nice to have the road to ourselves.  When we hit the highway again, it was clear that we left the sea behind.  The last 30 miles were HOT - flat, but hot.  After pounding out the miles, we finally made it to town, found a hotel, had ourselves a taco feast (a spicy taco feast!) and are now happily sitting in the air conditioning and watching TV in spanish.  The man at the taco stand was even surprised at how many tacos Brian could put away!!

Heading to Limones tomorrow - 40 highway miles.  After today, it shouldn't be too difficult.  One week in and we are healthy and happy.

The road was hot. The road was flat. The road was boring.

The end.

I guess more has happened than that, but it sure seemed like the road really wasn't going to end yesterday.  We made it to Cancun on Dec. 20th after almost a full 24 hours of traveling - if you are doing the math, that means we spent a cozy night in the Atlanta airport falling asleep to the soothing sounds of TSA announcements and industrial cleaning equipment.  Everything went smoothly at the airport and we were on the road within 2 hours of arriving.

Ready for the airport/Preparing for the -10 degree Wyoming weather with limited clothing

Dec. 20th was also the hottest day of my life (while Dec. 19th was literally the coldest day of my life in Wyoming).  We rode 12 miles to Puerto Morelos and it felt amazing to make it to our hotel, take a quick dip, eat dinner, and SLEEP.

Our mess at the airport

We began riding on Friday unsure of our exact plans. Tentatively set out for Tulum.  We set out early in hopes to beat some of the heat, but quickly realized that may be an unattainable goal.  Luckily there is a breeze which helps while on our bikes.  We have been on the same highway since we left the airport.  There wasn't anything too interesting along the way so we ended up making great time with the tailwind.  At points throughout the day we looked to make things more interesting which resulted in a quick ride through some sprinklers lining the driveway of a resort, rejoicing when it rained just a few drops, and replacing the word rain in as many songs as possible.  I have to say the most entertaining of all, was the view in my rear view mirror as Brian tried to hide from the sun in his safari hat underneath his helmet.  Surprisingly, both of us are riding in more clothing than I thought we would - my long sleeve sun shirt and quick dry pants are the winning  combination thus far as nothing else is quite as breathable.  Temperatures during mid-day have been right around 90 degrees F.

What the road looked like ALL the way from Tulum and of course one of my more attractive moments in the heat.

We arrived in Tulum early yesterday afternoon and quickly learned that finding a room would be more difficult than we intended.  The "end of the world" has drawn a few music festivals(and way too many hippies for our liking), so we ended up camping in the courtyard/backyard of a hostel.  It has worked out quite well really.  We took the day off today and visited the ruins and the beach and then came back for lunch and some grocery shopping before relaxing for the afternoon.  It looks like we will be camping for the next couple days in the Sian Ka'an biosphere.

The physical proof of a tailwind is always beautiful to touring cyclist!

We promise to work on the quality of pictures.  We are definitely still trying to get back into the groove of touring - but it's happening slowly but surely.

Until the next time (for old times sake),
Peace, Love, and Bicycles

Tulum Ruins

Brian educating himself

The beach at the Tulum Ruins

Overlook at Tulum Ruins

I work better under pressure

No seriously.  I must not procrastinate, but it's just the way I do things when it comes to preparing for a big change.  Unfortunately, (maybe more like fortunately) Brian and I do not function the same way. 

Not only is our date of departure two days away, but our plan of action has taken a somewhat dramatic turn within the last week - which has only added to our list of things to do!

Exactly one week ago today, Brian and I received an offer that we couldn't refuse.  It boils down to the fact that we will be returning to Jackson sooner than we originally intended - 4 months early to be precise.  Kind of crazy how things turned out.  I guess you could say we are disappointed that the trip won't take the shape we had originally intended, but more so we are incredibly thankful for the opportunity that has presented itself and excited to start another chapter in our lives.

We have decided to make the most of the time we have (and the plane tickets we bought) and head to the Yucatan Peninsula for a loop full of delicious food, white sandy beaches, and tons of Mayan ruins (with our bikes of course!!)  Take a look at Brian's map in the route section.  Bikes are packed and everything else has taken its place in boxes and bags until we return to Jackson in January.  

This past week has been stressful to say the least and I believe I have felt every single emotion you can imagine while dealing with this change so late in the game.  That being said, I am beyond ready for this vacation.  I am extremely grateful that we are still able to take an extended trip, and ecstatic that we will be spending it in the Yucatan.  

We still have to finish crossing things off our list tomorrow, but at this point my biggest worry revolves around the fact that the high on Wednesday is 16 degrees, and I will be decked out in my chacos on the taxi ride to the airport!

Only one picture this time, but it's a good one!  You have to feel some sympathy for the ginger heading to the beach/jungle! 

November rants and ramblings

First and foremost:  as of last Tuesday, I have a college degree!  In other words, my days are spent like this:

Actually, I am still working part time at the Chamber of Commerce.  I am helping with the Christmas Events which means that I now get a paycheck!  Cheers to the end of unpaid internships!  Brian and I celebrated in true Jackson fashion with some happy hour PBRs at the one and only Cutty's.

Preparations for the tour continue.  Still waiting for the last of our gear to arrive after a little post office and shipping confusion.  PO boxes are so much fun!

Mr. Photogenic in route planning action

Admiring the new "clickstands" in all their glory

We were able to get a weekend of November mountain bike riding in despite a bit of mud, but by the next weekend, the temperature had quickly changed and some snow had arrived. The cold scared me away, but Brian managed to get in a couple late season rides.  I enjoyed from afar:

November 2012:  Hagen Trail

November 2012:  Hagen Trail

Jackson is a quiet place in November, but the Holiday season has arrived!  Brian and I made a full on Thanksgiving feast on Thursday.  I was apparently too busy stuffing myself like Honey Boo Boo child to actually document the action and I think Brian's Scrooge switch had already been flicked.  Therefore we leave you with new depictions of our true selves.  Brian returning as the grumpy cat, and me as a 7 year old redneck beauty queen?  I don't know, but it made me laugh.  Honey Boo Boo you are my hero.

Honey Boo Boo Child

51 days till sunshine!

WARNING:  approach with caution!!  The following post contains rants and ramblings from Brian the "gearhead"!! --signed, the anti-gearhead of this relationship(maybe Brian will think before he lets me edit agan!)

So today we are 51 days from the warm sunshine of Mexico!  It can't come soon enough since the last week here in Jackson has been nothing but cold, rain, and snow.  I don't really mind this weather but Hannah is struggling with the idea of winter arriving this early.  She walks around with a hoodie and coat on almost all day long...even in our apartment!  My only concern is the fact that the bikes may have to be put away already besides short errands and any time spent on the stationary trainer.

Throughout the last few weeks we have continued our preparations for the trip which means spending more money, ugh.  We decided to get a new computer - another small asus netbook, and we finally got our Schwalbe Marathon Mondials tires.  I can't imagine riding without them, they last forever and never flat.  We also ordered Ortlieb mirrors and a folding Ortlieb bowl to do laundry in and maybe even use for impromptu showers on those long stretches without comforts. I'm sure we will find plenty of uses for it.  Our bikes will also appreciate the Clickstands on the way, basically a tent pole that is used for a kickstand.  I haven't used them but haven't heard anything bad about them and I'm pretty excited for these to arrive.  They are actually custom made to your bike, but still reasonably priced:  http://www.click-stand.com/.

After the shopping spree, I think we are ready to go besides a few odds and ends such as spare spokes and brake pads.  Other prep work has included piecing together a route on our Garmin edge 800 to follow for the first week or so so we can get in the routine of riding again without worrying about finding our way around.

Here are some pictures to get us through the week, and the next 51 days!!  This weekend's muddy ride was up Curtis Canyon.  It was a perfect ride to get prepared for some of the rough roads we may encounter on our trip, but Hannah didn't come because it was too cold for her(shocker)!! Luckily we won't have to hear her complain about being too cold all the time in Mexico.

I am still trying to figure out our GPS, so I am going to put the route up and make sure everything works how I want it to.  Hopefully while we are on our trip we will post our route regularly.

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Curtis Canyon overlook

Elk Refuge Road

A bit muddy

Thinking of far away tours to survive the next 51 days

Oregon Coast Sept. 2008

Because I can...

You know, this has become a very common feeling recently.  Oh the joys of being a grown up...or at least trying to become one. 

The funny thing is, that when you are planning a bicycle tour it's as if every single bone in your body and thought in your head is fighting this idea of becoming a "grown up".  I mean, Brian and I "moved" for the second time in three weeks on Monday.  Mind you, it was just to an upstairs apartment, but most people would say that grown ups don't do that!  Guess what - we just did!

Sometimes I have a short lapse in memory and forget that I'm so lucky to be going on an awesome tour so soon.  Sometimes(especially today), I live up to the name, Debbie Downer, that my sisters bestowed upon me quite some time ago.  And sometimes I have to pull myself together and remember that my grown up life is going to be what I make it!  Between jobs, and bills, and weird living situations I guess it's pretty easy to get hung up on what a "grown up" life is supposed to be, but I'm 54 days out from the biggest adventure of my life and I have to ask - what could be better than that?  Enjoy the pictures that made us laugh this week!

Moving...again!  Last time until we leave!

Two very expensive drying racks!  Adjusting to less space is fun!!

Brian finishing up the season on a snowy golf course

4 More Days till the Weekend

Unfortunately we weren't able to get out for a ride this weekend due to lots of work and school work but we did find time for a short hike up snow king and our usual weekend errands.

The big boys at work

Bright yellow Aspens from Snow King

 evening errand running on one of the many pathways in Jackson

And one to get us thinking about touring in far away places

Cerro De Pasco, Peru Nov. 2010