Author Archives: Daisy

Rest days in Merida and introducing… The Philtrons Pedal North!

We spent 8 wonderful days in Merida with Daisy’s parents, and had the full Mexican experience with them. Highlights include Mayan ruins, a horse-drawn tour of underground swimming holes, a broken down rental car, potential tourist scams, and a diagnosis of intestinal parasites. It is hard to believe we fit so much into such a short time!

The whole crew in Izamal: the yellow city.

Our first day here we went to pick up the rental car that we had reserved online months ago. However, we learned that reservations of cars are ‘subject to availability at time of pick-up’. Um… what?! This means that your reservation is more or less a joke, and in our case it was really a joke. There was no car for us! We had to come back the next day, wait for over an hour, and finally got a teeny -tiny car for a much higher rate than we expected. Oh well, we were so happy just to have a car. Booking tours for four people is pricey, and having the car meant freedom to plan our own itinerary for tourist sites.

The ruins near Merida were small but fun.

The ruins even had a cenote that we could swim in! The heads in the foreground are ours…

The first order of business was Mayan ruins. We visited two sites in the vicinity of Merida. The first was smaller, but really fun because it included a dip in a cenote. These are very deep freshwater pools that provided water for the Mayans and often ended up preserving many artifacts that helped archaeologists learn about their culture.

The second ruin we visited was Uxmal, a once-great city that is still beautiful. The carvings were exquisite on all the buildings, and there weren’t too many tourists to clutter up our photos (hee hee). We saw lots of iguanas lazing about in the sun, and even found some bats that had set up shop in the ruins.

Selfie at Uxmal

The carvings at Uxmal were exquisite

Our favorite tourist activity was a visit to three famous cenotes. The locals have set up a unique way to access them: horse-drawn rail car. We had to visit twice, since the first time we arrived in the afternoon and they had run out of horses to tow the rail cars about. The next day we arrived early and were among the first to set out. It was quite an adventure! The rail car seemed to be held together with a combination of metal wire and grease, and the horse bounced us up and down and all around. We even had to walk a section of the route since someone had inexplicably stolen some of the railroad.

Our horse and driver.

Pushing the cart where there were no rails.

Access to the first cenote. There is a tiny hole at the base of the tree.

The cenotes themselves were incredible. The first one was accessed through a tiny hole in the ground and a ladder made of re-purposed railroad ties. Once down the hole we found ourselves in a cave packed with stalactites and stalagmites. We descended to the water using a single rope to keep from falling, and the way was illuminated by our guide’s single flashlight. We lowered ourselves into the water and swam through the cave. It became pitch black when our guide moved his light elsewhere, and we had to find our way around by touch. It was incredible!

In the cave cenote.

A more typical cenote: streaming sunlight, clear water, reaching tree roots.

The other cenotes we visited were a little more stereotypical: crystal clear water in underground caves with rays of light streaming in from above. Tree roots descended from the ceiling in search of water, and we loved swimming in the cool depths. This is absolutely a tour we would reccommend, but not for the faint of heart! It was kind of scary getting into and out of the cenotes, but well worth it.

Panic time: rental car breakdown.

On the way back from the cenote tour we had another experience: rental car break down. We were driving on the highway when the engine just stopped working. I was incredulous, but luckily managed to coast to the shoulder and put on the blinkers. We were able to call the rental car company and they sent out a tow truck and a replacement vehicle within two hours, which was actually very nice. The whole family just relaxed and read our books, so it was really pretty similar to a siesta!

This was where we spent the afternoon.

Child seat Mexican style.

A few of the eight days were spent lounging and doing chores. While in Merida we took care of a lot of chores that we’ve been putting off for a long time. This means that we changed our bicycle chains, sterilized our water bottles (they all had some green growth at the bottom), and rotated our tires. We also managed to re-pack and get some new gear for cold weather (more on that below!)

We all went out to lunch a few times, with variable results. See photo below!

Jason and I ordered this: Relleno Negro. It is burned chile soup with turkey and really not that delicious.

Also in the good news department – I think we’ve finally got my ongoing stomach problems figured out. I got myself to a doctor, and got prescribed a round of antibiotics and anti-parasitics. Apparently folks in Mexico just de-parasite themselves every 6 months because they are so common here. I really hope the medicine works, since I am super sick of having stomach problems on bike tour!

Now, finally, the big news…

The Philtrons Pedal South is becoming The Philtrons Pedal North. Once we reach Cancun on January 11 we will fly (in an airplane) to the southern tip of Chile, and then we will ride north again all the way back to Cancun. We agonized over this decision, but in the end I think we will be very happy with it. Yes, it will break up the continuity of the trip and probably throw you readers for a loop, but we have good reasons!

There are roads in southern Chile that pass through incredible mountain scenery, complete with ferry rides, gravel, glaciers, and more. We have dreaming about these roads for years. The problem is that they are only accessible in the Chilean summer: January through March. If we rode our entire route North to South we would arrive far too early in the season to ride them… The solution? Ride the second half backwards! This also helps with other timing (like getting back to work, someday), and lets us avoid the problem areas of Central America until the end of the trip. In this way, we can get rid of everything valuable before entering areas where we are more likely to be robbed.

So, we hope you’ll keep following our adventures despite the sudden discontinuity! We’ll re-visit this decision in a couple more posts, for those folks that miss this one. We are super excited for this next leg to begin.

The rush (north) to Merida.

9000 miles! We reached this latest milestone near Merida, Yucatan.

You may have noticed that we aren’t pedaling exactly South these days, since we turned the corner in Chiapas and headed almost due north into the Yucatan Peninsula. The Yucatan is a big chunk of land in the Southeast corner of Mexico that is geographically and culturally distinct from the rest of Mexico, so of course we had to ride it.

Even better, my (Daisy) parents came down from Bellingham, WA to meet us for a week of rest in the capital city of Merida. The logistics of meeting someone on bike tour can be daunting, but somehow we managed to arrive in Merida on exactly the same day. In order to pull this off we had to put in some really big days on the Yucatan. Luckily, this place is flat as a pancake.

Rainy day on flat roads made it easy to ride many many miles.

We left Palenque early on Christmas morning. This meant that the traffic was light, as most Mexicans are Catholic and stay home to celebrate with their families. It was also dumping rain for most of the day, so we had little option but to ride ride ride all day. The roads were flat, and would have been uninteresting if it hadn’t been for the incredible birdlife. We saw many types of large birds from herons and egrets to hawks. For lunch we stopped in a giant roadside palapa (palm-roof building) and had Mexican-style eggs with tortillas while the rain poured down outside.

A great place to get Christmas breakfast. The Gator Boys (Discovery Channel show about Crocodiles) was playing in Spanish!

So many birds here!

Lower left corner: super cool pink water bird.

It cleared by evening, but we were in a pretty isolated area and there were no settlements or hotels to be found. We kept riding and riding, hoping to find something, but nothing appeared. Finally, after a whopping 97 miles we found a gas station. They informed us that the next town / hotel was another 10 miles up the road, but they also gave us permission to camp at the gas station. So we spent the night camped at the gas station: another first for the trip.

Yes, that really is our tent at the gas station.

We hoped to have the next day be a little more relaxed, but again we rode over 90 miles. This time there were small towns to stay in, but I insisted on a hotel. My stomach is still nowhere near 100% and the idea of camping in some town square without a bathroom was just too much. Unfortunately there were no hotels for the last 50 miles of road! We ended up in the super-budget rooms in a busy Mexican town on the Gulf of Mexico. Can you believe that, we made it to the Gulf of Mexico!

That’s the gulf of Mexico behind me! WOW!

These discarded cement circles were havens for the pelicans.

Lots of sugar cane production in the area. Kudos to Jason for getting his camera out fast enough to get this shot!

Jason found some street art.

We slept very well and even allowed ourselves to sleep in, since the next day was only about 50 miles to the capital city of Campeche. The road wove along the coast through tiny towns and along water that was lovely and calm. The city of Campeche was also lovely: the historical center had been completely restored in pastel shades and pretty buildings. We spent a long afternoon wandering the streets and climbing around the old walls that used to protect the colonial city. That night Jason ventured out into the square around 10pm to find the whole place hopping with Christmas cheer and enough flashing lights to make just about anyone sick.

Campeche wanderings.

The painstakingly restored pastel streets of Campeche.

From Campeche it was just two more reasonable (50-55 mile) days into Merida. We rode through the flat and seemingly endless roads of the Yucatan, mainly listening to books on tape and dreaming about cooking in a kitchen. There was more rain, too.

This is the kind of road we’ve been on lately. For real.

A highlight was meeting two more touring cyclists in a turn lane on the highway. We stopped for a nice chat and learned they were two Australians on their very first bicycle tour. It was great to chat with them, and we invited them to come visit with us in Merida.

Laura and Damon, our new friends from Australia. It was great to meet you two!

When we finally reached Merida we found a big spread-out city quite unlike the other Mexican cities we’ve visited. It seemed to sprawl on forever, and there were opulent mansions with security guards neighboring abandoned mansions whose glory was clearly lost decades ago. With very little trouble we located the house my parents had rented and happily settled in. My parents didn’t arrive until very late that night, but arrive they did. It was so great to see their faces again! We’ll post parental photos in the next update, for now, a few pics of Merida mansions!

Impeccable mansion complete with security guards.

Right next door: abandoned mansion with jungle slowly taking over.

Next up: highlights from our time in Merida, and the ‘unveiling’ of a big development in our journey. Spoiler alert: no one’s pregnant.

Oaxaca to San Cristobal Part 2: The mountains of Chiapas

Our route from Oaxaca to San Cristobal – over 400 miles!

View during the climb into Chiapas

Our introduction to Chiapas included another raging headwind combined with an unexpectedly steep 3,000′ climb. At times it was literally impossible to ride and we had to resort to walking up the hill. During the wind gusts it was too difficult to even walk, and we had to use our bicycle’s brakes just to keep from getting blown back down the hill. Yikes!! Needless to say, it was another day where we didn’t make our intended destination.

The winds were fierce – and so was Jason’s face

We turned off the main road an hour before sunset to seek out a small town to pass the night. Yet again, we found a tiny town where perhaps no gringo has ever gone. As we approached the main square we heard fresh bread being announced on the loudspeaker. We followed this sound to its source: the beer dispensary. Apparently, a local family uses it as a base to sell all sorts of homemade foods. The bread was delicious! We asked everyone we met about who to ask to get permission for camping. The town’s main official was out of town for another few hours, so we set up on a basketball court to make dinner. As we did so wave after wave of interested young men (and a lone woman) came by to gawk at us and ask us questions about our trip. Luckily, the official eventually returned and let us camp in his mother’s patio. She was kind to us and showed us her pet squirrel that she had rescued after it was hit by a car. It was a restful night, but we were ready to be back on the road in the morning.

Countryside during our dirt-road tour towards the Sima

Our next day in Chiapas was supposed to be easy… but of course it wasn’t. We had a nice morning of riding up and down rolling hills, and we planned to stay at an ecotourism center situated next to a giant abyss in the ground over 400′ deep. Unfortunately, we missed the shortcut turnoff and as a result we almost didn’t make it by dark. The last 8 miles of riding were on a narrow dirt road that led us to the middle of nowhere. We saw goats, horses, and cows all relaxing on the road. What we didn’t see were cars or any other tourists, but we bravely rode on. We emerged into a surprisingly well-kept and lovely area on the edge of an impressive abyss.

Jason is happy to have made it to the top of the 500′ dirt climb

Cattle (almost) blocking the road

The hole in the ground was a real thing! It was a circular area about 400′ wide that had simply sunk into the ground. The walls were sheer cliffs 400′ deep. We camped for free that night in a flat area off to the side and comfortingly nearby were fully functioning restrooms. The downside was the crazy British man also camping there who proceeded to have loud arguments with himself in the middle of the night. Luckily, he left us alone and was gone early the next morning.

The Sima de los Cottoras (Sinkhole of the Parrots). Unfortunately for us, the birds migrated north in November so we didn't get to see the dramatic circular exit at sunrise. (On the other hand, we got to sleep in!)

The Sima de los Cottoras (Sinkhole of the Parrots). Unfortunately for us, the birds migrated north in November so we didn’t get to see their dramatic circular exit at sunrise. (On the other hand, we got to sleep in!)

Traffic as we entered Tuxtla Gutierrez

Our next stop was the capital of Chiapas: Tuxtla Gutierrez. For the last five or so days we had been seeing caravans of folks running along the road carrying torches. We learned that these were pilgrimages for the Virgen of Guadalupe, who is very important for Mexicans. The runners were always accompanied by festively decorated pick-up trucks, mini-vans, or even tractor trailers. We exchanged waves and honks as we passed and got passed by them on the road. Their pilgrimages finally ended on December 12, and we were lucky to be in a very major city for the final celebration. The main street of this hectic town was shut down entirely to make room for pilgrims, street vendors, food, carnival rides, and thousands of pedestrians. We were delighted by the festivities, if a little overwhelmed. Once again, we were reminded that Mexico really knows how to party.

Main street turned (mostly) pedestrian during the celebration for the Virgen de Guadalupe

We were surprised to see carnival rides on some of the side streets!

Don’t forget the hundreds of motorcycles that were also part of the parade/pilgrimage – and the noise they made…

Many “colectivos” lined up to take folks all over the place. For less than $1 US each, we got a 20 minute ride.

Initially we planned to spend a single night in Tuxtla, but Jason began to feel a bit unwell the next day so we decided to take a rest. In the afternoon he felt good enough to venture out of the hostel. We took a collective bus to a nearby town where we boarded a speed boat to take a sightseeing tour of the Sumidero Canyon. This canyon was impressive for many reasons. The sides of the canyon rise up to 3000 sheer feet above the water in towering walls. In the narrow areas that weren’t cliff faces, rain forest abutted the river’s edge. We even saw a crocodile! It was a wonderful trip.

The canyon walls were tall and sheer

We loved how the hands went up to take photos – and we got to see it all from the back of the boat. The best was the girl with the full-size iPad.

Water dripped from above and created a formation they call the Christmas tree

This tourist attraction wouldn’t be complete without a floating snack store! (Surprisingly, there weren’t any dogs at this stop…)

The next day we set out for our biggest day of climbing yet on this trip. It was 6,300′ of elevation gain over 28 miles as we rode to the city of San Cristobal. It was to be our hardest day yet, and not just for the climbing. In the morning Jason decided he felt good enough to make the climb, so we headed out. Technically, he was right, but in retrospect we probably should have stayed put. About 1/3 of the way into the climb Jason was feeling poorly with an upset stomach and a headache. It was a surprise to both of us when he suddenly vomited in the road during a rest stop. It sounds horrible, and I guess it was, but after it was over Jason felt much better and remarked that it tasted like a strawberry-banana smoothie. Bizarre, but oh well.

Daisy’s super-loaded bike

Daisy enjoys a much-earned “elote” for a snack. She even likes the spicy sauce!

I took as much of the weight as I could off of Jason’s bike and we slowly continued climbing. He didn’t feel like eating but I tricked him into eating a lunch of fruits and veggies with peanut butter. Slowly, slowly, slowly we made it up the mountain. It was quite a moment of relief when we finally crested the last part of the hill and saw the shining city of San Cristobal in the valley below.

For now, we are staying put in the city while Jason recovers for a bit. We hypothesize that he ate something that really really didn’t agree with him, and it is just going to take a bit to work its way out of his system. We plan to stay here for around 5 days to also allow Jason to take some language classes, as long as he feels up to it. We’ll let you know how it goes!

From Oaxaca to San Cristobal Part 1: Mountains, Wind, and more adventures.

Our route from Oaxaca to San Cristobal – over 400 miles!

Many mountain views like this during this stretch.

It has been quite a journey these last few days. We are finally, officially in Southern Mexico if you can believe it! This area is alternately incredibly mountainous and incredibly flat with famously strong winds. We feel proud to have conquered both the climbs and the wind. Our few days crossing the narrowest part of Mexico – the isthmus – included the windiest riding we have ever experienced on a bicycle. Our final climb to San Cristobal (accomplished just two days ago) rates as our hardest climb ever.

We can divide this portion of our trip into three sections: the ‘descent’ from Oaxaca, the crossing of the isthmus, and our entry into the mountains of Chiapas. Each of them could be a post of their own, but I did manage to condense the first two into this update. You’ll have to wait another day to read about our entry into Chiapas though, sorry!

First, the ‘descent’ from Oaxaca City.

Our indoor camping spot in an itsy bitsy town. We slept well here.

I use the word ‘descent’ cautiously to describe our three day journey from Oaxaca, at 5,000′, to sea level. I do this because we had to climb over 6,000′ in the process! While in Oaxaca we spent far more money than usual, so we jokingly decided to try and spend as little as possible for the next week. We later abandoned this idea when faced with a rainstorm and tired legs, but by sheer lack of services we ended up spending next to nothing anyway! We stopped early on our first night out of the city in a tiny town after getting rained on during a sinuous descent. Of course, the town had no hotel but in the process of asking for one we found a simple room attached to a restaurant. For $7 we had an indoor camping spot, a shower, and a bathroom.

The very best part of the room was the company. Three little kids aged 2, 4, and 6 were

Jason drinking a traditional corn beverage in the restaurant next to our room.

fascinated with our stuff and kept us company as we made and ate dinner. After dinner we were surprised by yet another festival! This time it was a street parade / fundraiser for some purpose. We are not sure at all, we just know that a live band and about half the town was wandering the streets asking for donations and dancing. We were immediately spotted as possibly the only gringos to ever stay in town, and forced to dance along with them. What a riot!

A glimpse of the town party. They took over the one road through town and were escorted by the village ambulance.

We met our first cyclsts since Tyler! Denny and Dennis were heading north.

Our next day riding was utterly exhausting, but also lovely. We climbed 5,000′ total as we rose out of one river valley and descended into another repeatedly. It was threatening dark when we reached a teeny town called ‘La Reforma’ where we got permission to camp at the town basketball court. Miraculously, they opened up a bathroom for us and there was free satellite Wifi! Of course, there were also fireworks at 5:30 am. The morning was salvaged by a man selling sweet bread from his truck. Yum!

So many hills all day long.

‘To educate a child costs a lot, but not educating him costs more’. We really liked this.

Our opportunistic camping spot.

On our way down the mountain finally approaching the coast.

The last part of our descent was finally pure downhill! It was a joy to blast out of the mountains with a tailwind. We ate too much fruit at a fruteria, and drank too much horchata and coconut water in a market town. It was beautiful.

The bag of fruit after.

The bag of fruit before.

The overdose of fresh drinks marked the end of the ‘escape from Oaxaca’ and the beginning of our crossing of the Isthmus. We had a mere 26 flat km (about 15 miles) to cross before reaching our intended destination… but it took us nearly 2.5 hours and had us wondering if we should get a ride.

Jason with the mountains of Oaxaca behind him. Note: He didn’t notice that I had stopped to take this photo and almost ran me over!

Flat land ahead of us!!

What? The Philtrons thinking about a ride?! Don’t worry, we didn’t get one, but we did think about it! You see, the wind was immensely powerful, and directly from the side. This means that we had to lean far to the side just to stay straight, and every time a large vehicle passed we would be suddenly sucked toward it by the difference in wind. We quickly decided to simply stop riding every time a truck or bus neared. In this way we crept slowly but safely towards our destination.

Evidence of crazy wind.

Many wind turbines.

The Isthmus is the narrowest portion of Mexico, and also the only portion where the mountains cease for a brief space. The winds from the Gulf of Mexico rush through this gap and rage through the flat lands on the Pacific Coast. We rode through this area on flat, straight roads while being gusted by the wind in all directions. It was neat to be surrounded by towering wind turbines, and frustrating too to be practically blown backward at times. We had the good fortune to stay with a host at the end of our windy day. Rodrigo, Lupita, and their three sons gave us a warm welcome. We spent the evening chatting and watching YouTube videos with the kids. It is amazing how much 4 and 6 year-olds know about technology!

More windmills on the flat road. Did I mention it was threatening rain too?

Jason watching Youtube videos with Lupita and the kids. It was hilarious.

After our overnight at Rodrigo’s home we once more headed into the mountains, but this time in a new state: Chiapas. This is Mexico’s southernmost state, and is known for more mountains, jungles, rainforest, Mayan ruins, and its vibrant indigenous inhabitants. So far, we have mostly experienced the mountains. Unfortunately for you, you will have to wait for tomorrow to hear about this next part of our trip!

Here are a few more photos that give more of a snapshot into our experience here:

These motorcycle-taxis are everywhere here with many modifications.

Two different kinds of moto-taxis. One driver was helping to guide us to a cheap hotel in the city.

Aw… horchata. The heavenly drink made from almonds, rice, vanilla, and cinnamon. So cheap and so refreshing!