Distance covered: – since San Francisco 3600 km
– since Mazatlan 950 km
Our journey through mainland Mexico began in Mazatlan. I (Janine) arrived with a much thrown-around and generally abused bike box, but with a safe and sound bike inside – thankfully! The first moments of bike riding were around the city and to a hiking trail leading to the highest light house in Mexico (or so they claim). Mazatlan charmed us with its many Christmas lights, public squares, and its historic centre, which made evening wanders festive and full of life.
After a final swim in the Pacific Ocean on a beautiful, hot and sunny winter day, we set off cycling along the coast past marshlands, coconut trees, and aquaculture farms to a small, windy seaside town. A campsite next to a restaurant and huge white, sandy beach provided the perfect spot for our good-bye to the Pacific Ocean. The next day took us away from the ocean and into a drier, more mountainous landscape. We passed through several towns and climbed steadily up to Las Palmillas where we stayed in our tent next to a restaurant with delicious, affordable food and 8 “guard” puppies and one vocal guard dog.
The following morning we biked out of Sinaloa and into Nayarit – our first “border” crossing. We reached the quaint town of Rosamorada quite early in the day, but decided to stay as they were celebrating their annual posada. We enjoyed some delicious – and free – food, as well as some entertaining music and conversation before spending a rather noisy night in the town’s church yard. Music, singing, dogs, roosters, and church bells had not yet become the expected backdrop for each night’s sleep, as they are now!
Although Raf had warned me that the next day would be a tough one, I was still in for a rude awakening as my legs (and butt!) got their hardest workout yet. This long, hot day tested our fitness – well, mine at least – and determination as we gained 900 metres on a very hilly and busy highway full of trucks and buses to the mountaintop city of Tepic. Here we wandered through the historical centre and soaked in the beautiful colours of the pink sunset with the busy sounds of the city after meeting another bicycle tourer with a pet parrot who travels everywhere with him on his shoulder as he rides. Perhaps PEDAL needs a mascot like that?
The following afternoon’s easy descent was welcome, as was the good night of sleep in our tent behind a trucker’s restaurant at a toll booth stop on the highway. We woke with the rising sun, cooked some oatmeal and hit the road for a pretty long day, as we skirted volcanoes and passed through desert plains. Raf got a flat tire despite having the “best” new back tire, but I was too soon to laugh as my many flat tires were still to come! We enjoyed our typical lunch of tortillas, veggies and beans in Ixtlan del Rio before beginning the steep and fun descent of about 800 metres into a beautiful, lush valley and then the steep and not-so-fun ascent back up again through hill-top patches of agave plants into the land of tequila.
We spent the night in a tiny village just past the border into Jalisco and woke the next morning with extra enthusiasm and motivation to reach the day’s destination: the city of Tequila. We sampled a fair bit of this city’s main industry and namesake, which left us somewhat less energetic the next morning. However, we pressed on to the large city of Guadalajara to reunite with Emilie.
Guadalajara proved to be a city infused with life and culture – including a deeply entrenched and active bike culture. We visited one of the local bike cooperatives where Raf and Emilie conducted an interview, participated in the final touches of the installation of an art project designed to make the public more aware of how many cyclists are injured or killed by cars (an actual car positioned in the centre of the road cut in half with a bike in the middle and covered in statistics about bicycle safety and accidents), and joined a bike party fundraiser to bring toys and blankets to children in several hospitals in Guadalajara. We were invited to spend Christmas with a Mexican family, and so we enjoyed endless sweets, music, and a bonfire. We left the city filled with inspiration and equipped with new bike bells.
After Guadalajara we climbed through some mountains and then sailed down into the valley housing the largest lake in Mexico: Chapala. We were all overjoyed to see water again after many dry, hot days far from the ocean and any lakes. Our ride along the edge of the laguna was like a scene from a painting, with small, lakeside farms, a cobble-stone road, and the big blue lake and big blue sky. Raf impressed the children of the small town we stayed in with his juggling skills and we found ourselves mobbed by every child in the village. We spent the night in the San Pedro de Itzucan police station and began the next morning with a tough, steep, cobble-stone climb from the lakeside back to the top of the surrounding mountains – after fixing my first of two flat tires that day.
It seems that almost every day is a party during the Christmas season in Mexico: the next day brought us to yet another posada. Once again we got to enjoy fireworks and great food and a little more of our new favourite drink – yet more tequila. We passed another night in the police station to the sounds of music and revellers right until the morning. We were not quite well-rested but we awoke bright and early to ascend through yet more mountains to another hilltop town. This day is now known as the “rack” day, as both Emilie and I had the screws on our rack snap (quite possibly from our cobble-stone climb of the day before). With a bit of ingenuity we (meaning Raf) managed to fix the racks quite quickly and we arrived at our destination in plenty of time. We cooked and huddled in our tents, away from the cold, to the now-familiar sound of fireworks and revelry.
The scenery began changing drastically the next day as we rode through forests and a light sprinkling of rain to the 2,000 metre-high lake of Patzcuaro and the city of the same name. This small city could charm even the hardest of hearts and although we had only a short time there, we soaked in the beautiful squares, churches, lanes, library and dock. However, we had to push on the last 50 kilometres to our next destination: the city of Morelia.
Morelia made a huge impression just on our first ride through on our way to our awesome couch-surfing accommodation. The huge and seemingly countless churches, squares, lanes, and entertainment made us happy that we had a rest day here. We celebrated the exit of 2011 and the entrance of 2012 with our couch-surfing host and our trusty Mexican beverage of choice. We found a bike shop and did a few small repairs the following day, and took the afternoon to enjoy the beautiful public spaces that abound in Morelia.
Although it was only two weeks, the journey from the Mazatlan to Morelia felt both much longer and shorter. We passed through a huge variety of landscapes and climates and levels of elevation, and many, many small towns; we enjoyed several posadas and various fiestas, including Christmas and New Year’s; and yet, it now seems like just the blink of an eye and we’re off in search of butterflies and the “monster” city: Mexico City is getting closer and closer!
- Janine (the third member of the cycling team for the Christmas season).
Is P.E.D.A.L. screeching to a halt? We hope not. Unfortunately, P.E.D.A.L.’s funding situation has taken a turn for the worse, and the project’s immediate future is uncertain. Additional funding is required to continue the project into the New Year.
