Colombia

5/28-6/7:  John and Matt returned to Panama City to test drive vehicles, complete police inspections and load the rigs onto a boat 6/6.  It creates some down time and Panama City isn’t necessarily the greatest town to hang out in when the temps are always 85 or higher, it rains 50% of the time and the humidity is close to 90%.  Ahhh – but that’s what keeps it interesting.

Camping wasn’t possible, nor did we look real hard for where we could given the weather, so we grabbed a VRBO close to where the rigs are stored.

We have been diving into Panamanian cuisine (code for beef and pork) to make the time pass a little easier.  One potential challenge is getting the 2 rigs AND the trailer into a 40 ft long, 8 ft wide container for shipping.  Practice makes perfect and so working with the team at Overland Embassy we tested out different ways to make everything fit.  Not sure what the detergent is doing, but probably watching and laughing

   

6/2/24:  Panama Canal

You can only have 1/4 of a tank of gas to ship a vehicle in a container, so Matt and John took the Rover for a ride as the gas gauge isn’t accurate, but the tank was pretty full.  Target for the day was the Panama Canal which is actually pretty cool when you see it in operation.

 

So basic, yet so efficient

Next up…inspection time

6/3/24:  Panama Police Inspection

It took us all day to get police inspections and certificates done.  John had small issue with his that required an arduous trip across town to the customs building to have a change made on the trailer form.  As always, long and hot day in not their nicest part of town.  We arrived at 6 am when the office opened at 7 to get in line and get a number.  Lower is better and John got #5!

Food was solid this week – from Brazil’s steakhouses to primo local Panamanian Joints serving delicious seafood.  Yeah – the steakhouse enjoyed us being there….we think!

       

6/6/2024 Loading Vehicles at Port of Colon – Moving Day!

The day is finally here and the fellas get to load their rigs into a container.  Had to leave Panama City at 4Am to get to the port by 6AM to work on the loading.  Casualties of the 1st segment caught in the trash…

     

John and Matt had to be in Colon by 6am and so that meant getting up at 3am, getting trailer attached and heading out to Colon – in the pouring rain unfortunately.

Once in Colon, we met the team from Overland Embassy who had responsibility for loading the vehicles into our container.  Odd, there were 3 of them, plus Matt and John…and yet in Colombia they said only John and Matt are allowed to unload the container.  Hmmm…that is going to be a long day.  But the physical process was pretty smooth – save for Matt having to drive around Colon for another hour burning off enough gas to be allowed to load.  The procedural process was another issue as it turns out the Panama border officer who processed us in from Costa Rica failed to input our info into the system correctly – causing a delay that kept everyone sitting in a van for 3 extra hours after all the loading was done.  I believe this is code for “bribe request coming”.

We were joined by 4 other rigs needing to stuffed into containers.  The video shows the convoy headed off to where we loaded.  Looks like a scene from Narcos as we drive by abandoned truck trailers.

Edel’s was up before Matt and it is all a very efficient process – crazy what you can stuff in a container!  1st You have to drive the rig onto the tow truck platform…

Then you drive it into the container…a very tight fit and the “weather” inside the container is nothing short of miserable.

And then it was the trailer’s turn…

And finally Matt gets to stuff his rig into the container…

And Voila!  All 3 fit in the container and we secure it and head off to Cartagena Friday 6/7.

6/7 – 6/20 – Cartegena

John and Matt landed in Cartegena on June 7 and are going about the task of getting the vehicles out of customs once the rigs arrive on or about June 13.  So the gang is going to make the most of their time in Cartegena when the Roz and Tracy show arrives on June 8th.

1st night in town John and Matt hit the Old Town looking for some food and they got mobbed in a square by a hat vendor and his buddies.  They were entertaining trying to sell Panama hats to us and find 2 that fit our rather large heads.  Well, lo and behold, XXL hats were found, a price was negotiated and then all kinds of singing and dancing broke out….and then they all wanted some cash for the show.  Gotta love local!

We hit a Peruvian restuarant for a few Pisces sours and some delicious seafood.   Also to a laugh when another patron walked by us to his table wearing his Panama hat – looks like the fellas were having a good night. 🙂

Maria is a lovely person who is available to help us at the VRBO we booked in Cartagena – it helps our Espanol as she speaks no Ingles.  She was rockin’ the Panama hat at breakfast – everyone who puts the hat on smiles.  And her homemade Arepas along with fresh tropical fruit salad, chorizo and eggs makes for a mean breakfast.

Killing time in Cartagena means sampling LOTS of local food and checking ou the old town behind the fortress walls and in the barrio of Getsemani with its colorful murals.

We hit Carmens – a Michelin rated spot and had a very good meal

The city is pretty cool, and it is nice because once you tell all the vendors No Gracias – they remember and don’t bug you (as much!) the next time they see you.  Getsemani is know for its colorful streets and it did not disappoint – cool, more tranquil vibe.

     

Panama “TSA” snagged Edel’s mini crescent wrench – he got it form his dad and it was 80-90 years old – cuz ya know they were worried he was going to dismantle the plane in flight.  But lucky us we found a replacement, in size only!

The Old Town in Cartagena has a unique charm to it, but weather and time have taken a toll.  Good news is lots of building undergoing renovation.

Famous Colombian artist Fernando Botero.  Made this sculpture and the theme of more “filled out” people carries through his art. Turns out there are 2 of his works in Denver.  Notice what parts are shiny – the places people rub for a long life??

Did we mention when it rains here – it really rains??

The older parts of town almost have a New Orleans kind of look and feel but a little more colonial.

         

Sunset on the fortress wall and more awesome food

 

Door knockers on the old doors are kinda cool – the symbol told what the homeowner did.  Lion (strong, successful), lizard (royalty), mermaid/sea lion/sea stuff (sea merchant), etc.  Oh…and size mattered!

        

Here is Edgar, our walking tour guide who was pretty animated and helped to make sure Tracy was paying attention.

6/10/24 – Helping Make Ceviche

The VRBO we stayed at had Maria who was there to help keep things in order and prepare meals if you wanted (and were willing pay a little).  She is the absolute best, speaks no English and has a great sense of humor.  With our broken Spanish we talked to her about making her specialty, which is ceviche, but we wanted her to show us how.  As the video clearly shows, as helpers we came up short and Maria finished off putting it all together.  Man it was the absolute best!!  Empanadas next?

Passing time in Cartagena as we wait for the boat with our rigs to arrive means we get to explore the city, check out museums and see what it has to offer.  We visited the history/inquisition-torture museum as the Spanish are a very large part of Cartagena history and they had a thing for torture to keep folks in line.  Ever see the Monty Python sketch on the Spanish Inquisition?

Lil time lapse sunset Roz played around with – always lots of clouds around at the end of the day

6/12/24- No word on where our rigs are!

The company we are shipping with hasn’t updated us on if the boat with our rigs has left, sunk, arrived…who knows!  So we keep checking out fun stuff in Cartagena.  Today John and Matt took care of some legal paperwork to get rigs out of customs (when they arrive) and hit the museum of modern art

 

Even Mikey’s dog Tyson got some props today with this wall art in Getsemani

And we keep sampling the local eats!

6/13/2024 – More Cartagena Walking – BocaGrande

We took a walk over to BocaGrande today as we continue our wait for the rigs to show.  Good news is the ship arrived in Panama today and needs to be unloaded and then re-loaded with our container (hopefully) – but at least now we know what the boat looks like!

BocaGrande was not very impressive and folks talk about it like Miami – lol – this is no Miami, but we had a good walk and it was fun to see more of the area.

                 

So you don’t get the wrong idea- we do eat at home – at times – and Roz made sure this Alfredo night was one to remember.

6/14/24 – San Felipe Castle

There are worse places to kill time we suppose.  But a little outdoor AC would be welcomed.  We visited the San Felipe Castle across the river from Cartagena’s Old Town.  A fascinating castle/fort built by the Spanish to protect Cartagena.  The engineering design was amazing and the fort was never breached.  Our guide reminded us of Al Pacino in Scarface….but we are not sure he was a fan of the reference  🙂

 

Edels got a new toy – it is a selfie stick on steroids – essentially (2) 360 degree cameras on the end of the stick – it takes very cool videos and you’ll never see the stick due to the design

 

The history of the castle has it led by a man with no leg or arm – sort of half a body – and he managed to defeat a massive British Invasion.  The cocky Brits made a coin before the battle showing the Spaniards surrendering…yeah- that didn’t happen.  The story of the castle is one made for a movie.

   

The Cartagena flag looked great flapping in the wind today

6/15/24 – Shipping Day! (We Hope)

Today we are supposed to get confirmation of the boat carrying our rigs leaving Panama and heading to Cartagena.  We got a little news late yesterday that we owe another $300 to pay for the fine Overland Embassy had to pay to clear up a port customs issue in Panama. Basically Panamanian border control on the Costa Rican border didn’t process our TIP paperwork correctly and failed to stamp our passports with a vehicle stamp – so the port border folks didn’t want to let us out.  So we have to pay $300?  Something’s fishy…

While we continue to wait for any news of our rigs leaving Panama, we hit the Monestario de La Popa – which sits on the highest hill outside the city.  We passed a regular out on the street.  There isn’t much homelessness in the Old Town, but this fella is becoming familiar.

    

After a long day of monastery visiting, Maria delivered us an amazing Colombian dinner.  Fried Rojo Majarra (fish), coco rice, patacones (fried plantain), avocado/onion/tomato salad and red wine.  Her favorite dish.  She had all kinds of things flying and frying in the kitchen preparing the meal.  It was incredible…

5/16/2024 – OUR SHIP THE SHIPLILLY REINVENTO HAS FINALLY LEFT PANAMA!

After a delay from 6/11, our ship has finally left Panama and is headed to Cartagena!  Estimated to arrive 6:00AM on Monday 6/17.  It will be a miracle to get the rigs out of customs and headed south by end of the day Friday – but this is our hope and goal.  Waking up to seeing the boat had departed is a good start to the day

To celebrate Father’s Day we went on the hunt for street Arepas.   Killer little handheld bites that can be stuffed with cheese, or ham/cheese, or eggs/cheese or whatever.  After about 20’ or searching (and passing a wild door) we found our cart.  It did not disappoint.  Edels and Roz (somehow) managed to not eat theirs totally and had enough left to add some eggs to theirs.

 

Katie Rotter told us about several restaurants and places to go in Cartagena.  One, which proved elusive was a street hamburger cart (Calle hamburguesa) that would show up in La Plaza de Trinidad in the Getsemani neighborhood.  After some sleuthing we found out the cart shows up after 7pm.  So we headed down to find it – of course it started pouring rain on us (so we ducked into the Demente Bar until it passed).  Edels showing off some table cocktail making skills while it rained.

  

The Plaza on a Sunday night was hopping and the food carts were incredible.  We found our burger and it was worth it.

After inhaling dinner we headed to Cafe Havana to listen to Salsa music and maybe see some salsa dancing.  Since we got there at 8:30 and left at 10 PM – we are guessing the “Salsa Regulars” likely don’t even show until after 11 PM – our age was showing but the music was solid.

 

6/17/2024 – Our Ship Has Arrived!

Well the day we have been waiting for is here – at least our ship came in during the night.  Now to see how long Colombian customs will take and see if a known paperwork issue related to the trailer created in Panama by our agent, can be quickly addressed in Colombia.

6/19/2024    Getting Rigs Out of Prison!

We got the call to get our rigs out fo the container.  That is step 1 – followed we hoped by step 2 tomorrow (Th) which is customs inspecting and clearing us out so we can hit the road. If not – it will happen Friday for sure.

We met some of the folks we shipped with out of Panama at the Cartagena Port and went through what was an easier process to get rigs out than we expected  – but is was still 94 degrees w/heat index and 90% humidity – so yeah – a sweatbox.  But we got everything done in ~4 hours and anxiously wait to hear about when we can finish the process.

First up – get safety gear on and get instructions on the process

Next – Crack open the container after verifying container wasn’t tampered with…

And then get to unloading and starting by crawling into the trailer to reconnect our batteries so the rigs can be driven out.  The fellas are packing a little extra from all the great food we have been eating, so a tight squeeze felt a lot tighter.

 

Edels was happy to see his rig in one piece and have it start – a good day…

And then position rigs until we get approval to leave

It feels great to be so close to actually getting back on the road and begin exploring Colombia.  But now we have to eat – again – ‘cuz that is what we do while waiting 🙂

Another solid sampling of local fare with some cool artwork on the walls.  Best we can figure from a chat with the owners is that the women in the paintings are “ancestral” – so related to them.  And based on the smile of our waiter, I would say definitely related.

6/20/24 – Still In A Urey Up And Wait Mode

Any hopes of getting out of customs today has passed – but we are told tomorrow “for sure”.  So, we found an Argentinian restaurant with eclectic decor and pounded some big skirt steaks as a practice run before we get to Argentina and really get to dive into their beef.

6/21/24  We finally get our rigs back!

The saga that started back on 5/29/24 has finally come to a close as we got our rigs back late in the day Friday. Lots of excitement as we can now leave Cartagena and continue the journey south.

Edels is pretty fired up…

Free from customs and now able to continue the journey

6/22/24 – Leaving Cartagena And A Hot Stop Over in Curumani

We took off Saturday morning and headed up the coast towards Cienaga and then south towards Bucarramanga.  We made it only as a far as Curamani, which is a little town along the highway.  It was miserably hot and humid and so we looked for and found a hotel with AC.  During the day Matt’s rig had the check engine light come on and the tool to ID those said it was an oxygen sensor.  There area few of those and it turns out the one that broke is one that you can’t drive on forever before having to replace….and that was not a spare Matt had -but he quickly ordered – man we love the internet.

We grabbed dinner at the hotel and the manager had a mechanic buddy stop by and work on the sensor (verify wiring, etc.) and it seemed to have worked.  But upon leaving in the AM the light came back on it was back to town for the mechanics on Sun AM for a thorough sensor cleaning…but still nothing.  So Roz returns to join us 6/29 and Matt ordered sensors for her to bring down.

The town had a power outage during dinner and lucky for us the hotel had a generator to keep the AC in rooms going otherwise we all would have perished in a pool of sweat!

Driving –

As always the driving part of the trip is never dull and we love the variety of signs and “things” we see along the way.

Here is an overlook on a drive to Barichara…

6/23/24 – The Amazing Finca De La Mario outside Bucaramanga

We arrived in Bucaramanga late int he day and the 2-3 places to cam we had identified were more like community pools near a river and the vibe wasn’t working -so we search iOverlander and took a chance on a place that was at the top of a mountain outside Bucaramanga – and we mean top as the road was a steep climb and narrow.  The place we selected was Finca de La Mario – a farm run by Don Mario and he had created a place for campers with bathroom facilities.  The views were incredible…as was Don Mario.  He had lived there for 35 years and was such a character.  He is 69 years old, is living with his girlfriend Lucy (maybe 30??? – such a dog) and he hosts 3 day parties with DJ’s, light shows and “mushroom therapies” – haha.  But what a great guy.

 

Lucy made us breakfast and we were served the “world famous” Juevos de Mario! And they were awesome

 

6/24/24 – Barichara  and Another Wonderful Finca Camp Experience

We headed out after breakfast to a lil town called Barichara where Mario had a friend, with a farm, who also host campers.  Helmut and Jennifer moved here to get back to nature as they both had remote jobs.  They were wonderful hosts who were to be married 7/28!

The morning of 6/25 we went into town with them as they wanted to give us a tour – but 1st we needed to have breakfast at their favorite place for amazing yellow corn arepas!

The fruit drink had so much fruit in it you needed a spoon to drink/eat it.  But of course we grabbed some Arepa dough to make our own later on the trip.

The town tour was in a cute little taxi and was mostly about the beautiful views from the town.  Turns out the inspiration of the buildings used in Disney’s Encanto came from the bookstore on the edge of the town square (pic w/red car in it) – Who Knew!

There was an overlook on a cliff where folks sat down on the edge and had their pics taken – lil sketchy but not too bad 🙂

Lots of vendors offered samples of their local drinks and eats – and we all tried a local favorite – “Big Ass Ants” – yes they were big, as were there asses and they were a bit crunchy…

 

Last thing we saw in the town was an artisan paper factory run by women.  They made paper from all kinds of plant fibers used by artists – and they had an exhibit going showing how the artists used the different papers in their art.  Plantain, mango, palm, cactus, hemp and many other plants all grown at the factory.  Random, yet very cool – as were the few tortoises wandering about.

6/25/24 – Wonderful Drive and Camp Spot Near Quebrada Las Gachas

We then took a gorgeous drive through the mountains to see a river with natural “holes” or pools carved into the river bed called Quebrada Las Gachas. The drive was both beautiful and tense as there we partial road sections washed away, very large potholes and sections of the road that looked like it was in the process of slumping away.  We were able to stay with a lovely family who offered camping right near the trailhead to the path to the river.

6/26/24 – Quebrada Las Gachas and On To Villa De Leyva

We headed out in the morning to the river and you crossed 3 diff landowner’s property to get to the river. Each had a small stand selling stuff you would need at the river – too cute – oh and each collected small toll  🙂   Best $.50 toll ever.  Not sure how the holes got there, but we hopped in (very cold water) and did some hole sitting.

6/26-27/24 – Villa De Leyva

Off to what is described as one of the prettier cities in Colombia – Villa De Leyva.  We arrived and found a restuarant/school/bar/small hotel with beautiful grounds right near the old town center.  The grounds were more like a jungle and ducks, peacocks, guinea fowl and other critters had the run of the place.

Secret door when we have to leave and gates are closed…

We were in the empty restaurant one night using their WiFi – and 2 young girls came up and started talking in English – wanting to practice with us – so cute!

Oh yeah – and as were were being walked through the place when we arrived the cook stopped at a jug hidden under a cloth and poured out a yellowish liquid – he called it chi-che which is an ancestral drink made from corn and is slightly fermented – oh yeah – normal glasses not allowed.

We continued to eat well….a constant theme for this group which we all love!

   

We spent the day visiting a cool series of waterfalls.  The location was special for locals and held special meaning for them.  The signs along the way held messages that very much tie into our trip.

    

The town however was very colonial and charming, but it just seemed to be lacking flavor.  For example there is a huge central square that could be used for so many things but sits vacant.  So the town itself came up a little short, but everything else we did and the place we stayed was excellent/

We also visited the small art museum along the main square.  It featured Colombian artist Luis Alberto Acuna who created, let’s say, a broad collection of art.

6/28/24 – Campground San Antonio Outside Bogota

We headed towards Bogota as Roz is due in on Sat, 6/29.  We found another farm (finca) owned by Ana and run by Charlie (Carlos).  It was very charming and they had a great set up to support overlanders.  Charlie lived in the bus on the right with the curved roof and Ana would stay on the weekends in the bus on the left – both remodeled to live in.

Carlos not only  takes care of the farm, he bakes sourdough bread, makes jam and yogurt – all using local and natural ingredients.  He baked us a fresh loaf on Sat morning and made us 4 jars of his jam  – everything is so damn good!

 

And a little Carlos jam making in action…

 

6/29-7/1/24  Bogota

After eating an entire loaf of fresh sourdough bread slathered in butter and jam we headed into Bogota. We grabbed a AirBnB in old town, ate some Peruvian food and watched Argentina vs Peru at an Irish bar before Edels headed off to the airport to pick up Roz who rejoins us after a brief hiatus – Welcome back Roz!

We did a walking tour on Sunday and it coincided with the Bogota Pride Day parade – so a lot going on at the same time…But we got a good feel for the more original area of town.  However, Bogota just feels very big and even the old town area lacked a consistent vibe.  Good restaurants and bars?  For sure, but a solid tie to the history of Bogota it lacked.  Although the wall art, vendors and people watching was pretty cool..

          

On the tour the guide took us to a local mart where they sell Chicha.  Chicha is a local mildly fermented ancestral beverage that is still outlawed on the books, but not enforced.  Just as in Villa De Leyva – of course we had some!

 

   

There was a street vendor selling a hot drink made from fruit and spices that you can have with or without some alcohol in it (Canalazo w/alcohol, Aromatica w/out).  Tasted great and helped warm us up from the cold rain.

   

It started to rain pretty hard and that sent the 4-6k attendees of the Pride Fest scrambling for cover.  The costumes folks came up with were definitely eye catching.

After a long day…time for chow and John’s smoking drink…

 

We also grabbed some bread before heading out of town

7/1/24 – Say goodbye to Bogota and on to Zipaquira

We headed out to Zipaquira to see the Sal Cathedral – a working cathedral ~200meters underground in an actual salt mine.  It was a pretty cool site.  Yes they had commercialized it some, but it was very done and worth the stop.  You start off down a path that covers the stations of the cross and then the trail empties into the cathedral and also the working daily church.

     

There was really a lotto see in there.  It got late in the day and we needed a place to stay and it turns out the facility lets you camp in the parking lot (with access to the all important bathrooms) for $5.  It turned out to be a fun  experience – we had the entire lot to ourselves, cooked dinner and had a very quite night’s sleep.

7/2/2024 – Trekking to Guatepe – but 1st a Toyota Repair

Matt spoke to a guy (Joel) who was on a bike ride with his daughter early in the morning on if he knew of a good mechanic who could put in Matt’s new O2 sensors.  He called a guy…who knew a guy and so Joel called him for Matt and teed up the service.  Matt headed over to Raf-Auto and Rafael dove in and replaced sensors in under 45’.  His daughter and wife were also there – super great folks and now no more check engine light!

We started the trek to Guatepe knowing it was too far to make in a day.  Up and down gorgeous mountain ranges on 2 lane roads with 80% of the traffic trucks and buses. We average about 20-30 mph and so 100 in a day is some work.  We found a place who hosts overlanders in a small town (Guaduas) –  Yenny and Frank hosted us and they were great.  There was a small hotel on the property with a restaurant and we were the only ones there.  Frank cooked us up a great meal and breakfast.  What we didn’t know was Yenny was taking her own photos and made a very cute memory video she sent us after we left.  Colombians continue  to impress with their hospitality.

   

Yenny’s video

John and Matt showing off determination and skill with the trailer – actually they move that thing around pretty well – the slope made this one a lil bit challenging.

7/3/2024 – Trying To Get To Guatepe

We started toward Guatepe in the morning hoping to reach Guatepe or get very close by the end of the day.  About 2 hours in, John’s turbo on his rig died and went to turbo heaven.  So belching black smoke and with no power we headed into the town of Honda-Tolima. John spoke to a mechanic who knew a guy…and we went to that guy and he knew a guy and lead us over to the other mechanic – who also knew a woman who ran a shop.  We drove there and they were able to help verify the turbo as the source – but no where to find a turbo for a 1984 Land Rover diesel where we are.

So Edels called to the US and had one shipped that day (delivery in maybe 10 days or less).  BUT! Frank at the place we had just camped mentioned he previously had an old Rover once – and we reached out to Frank and he reached out to an old friend in Bogota in the parts business who started searching for a turbo in Colombia.  Meanwhile Edels also hit up the Rover community (very strong globally) in a few different forums and guess what?? – Folks found the turbo inner parts and a full new turbo in Bogota.

   

So while we wait to see where the actual turbo that goes in the rig comes from – we found some very comfortable digs to hang out as the 90+ degree daily temps and high humidity makes us want some AC for sleeping.  We found a restaurant called Puente 40 – and went back another time to eat there as the food was amazing – as was the staff and vibe.

 

And the food at the hotel didn’t disappoint either

7/4/24 4th of July

We spent the day seeing how the 3-5 different options John had in play to secure the necessary parts were coming together.  A guy in Bogota had everything he needs and a guy to drive them out to us – however, he is trying make John pay through a savings account vs into the business…hmmm – yeah well banks in Colombia are about as customer oriented as in the states so John spent a good chunk of the day working that solution.  But the turbo in Bogota was to be delivered sometime the night of 4th of July or on the morning of the 5th.

Another hot day so Tracy and Roz took advantage of the pool to cool off and had fun – from every angle…

 

7/5/2024 Repair Day

After breakfast a knock on the door of the hotel was what we have been waiting for – the new turbo had arrived.  The driver left Bogota at 3AM and had a wreck on the way in the rain on his moto.  Poor dude badly damaged bike but was able to grab a ride and finish the journey – luckily he wasn’t banged up to badly – he said a sore shoulder – but what a baller!

Kinda like XMAS morning..

So Matt and John headed off to the mechanic who was waiting and willing tackle the job.  It is amazing how kind folks are when in need all across Latin and South America.  When you break down lots of folks chip in to help and you are back on the road in a very short time.  Very special.

I think we have all learned this lesson in our lifetime…always make sure the drainplug is in the oil pan before adding the new oil.

And the final product is ready!

Lots of happy people at the end of the day.  Colombia continues to deliver!

Now back on the road to Guatepe tomorrow 7/6!  Vamos!!

7/6/2024 – Let’s get Out of Here!  Off to Guatepe – Almost

While we had Guatepe in our sights for the day, Edels had more turbo issues and so we headed back to Honda to let mechanic take another look.  Turns out the snorkel Edels added in Panama City was constricting the airflow to the turbo.  After about an hour the mechanic had things ready and we were off!  It is nice to see our stickers get put to good use on the mechanic’s moto.

The delay prevented us from reaching Guatepe, but we found a lovely finca (farm) run by a very nice family in a small town called Sonson.  We were met at the gate by a new foal and the very warm night was accented with all the farm animal sounds you would expect and that of about 20+ different local birds.  We also listened to Colombia beat Panama in the COPA Cup quarterfinals 4-0 – with loud cheering coming from inside the house on each goal.

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7/7/2024 – Now Off To Guatepe

We headed out to Guatepe on Sunday – the worst day to visit due to the crowds from Medellin – and all the reports were spot on.  But the main attraction for the area is La Pierda- the massive rock with steps built up the sides.  A pure entrepreneurial effort, the originator;s vision is paying off in spades given the crowds the day we visited! The area reminded us of the Ozaraks or southern Missouri with their big lakes.  Some 675’ up, the climb worked us out a bit but the views were worth it.

Cool, busy little town before Guatepe- El Penol

And finally La Pierda…

Halfway up!

And from the top!

After all the steps – John and Roz needed a little stretch.  Also, a group from Missouri down for a wedding in Medellin enjoyed some shade by Matt’s car.

After such a workout, we found a roadside restaurant and then located a campsite by the lake for the evening.  Gotta love this roadside BBQ set up – want more fire?  Just push the wood in farther!

7/8-9/2024 – Jardin

The lovely little town of Jardin is the stop for today.  Rumor has it that not only is it a quintessential colonial Colombian town, but the surrounding mountain view’s and the coffee are awesome – so we had to check it out.  As always, road conditions remained challenging – in fact the last 3-5 days of travel in Colombia were along roads with LOTS of landslides and massive potholes.

And always good scenery…and food!

While looking for a place to camp in Jardin, we met Marta on the street.  Matt was waiting for the owner of the campground behind a house to show- the campground was called Mara.  Matt thought that was the owner’s name and when he met Marta – he felt the difference was a language thing.  Turns out Marta and her husband Gustavo are 4th generation coffee growers that live in a beautiful house high on the hills outside Jardin…with…wait for it…2 AirBnB rooms for rent.

The group waited for the the real campground owner to show and after seeing the facility decided to track down Marta on the street as the sun was setting.  Matt and Tracy had her hop in and the crew headed to Finca Margus.  What a stroke of luck…the experience for the next 2 dats was incredible and Marta and her family quickly became close friends.

 

Marta and Gustavo have a 12 year old daughter at home (Maria) and they were the absolute best.  Unfortunately, on the way up to Marta’s, the spare tire hitch on the trailer snapped off and now the team has a challenge to get it welded back on before leaving.  Luckily, Marta’s son has a buddy who is an excellent welder and he tackled the job the next day.  But he also found the underneath of the trailer is terribly rusted and now we need more trailer work when we get back to Medellin.  We have benefited so much from the kindness of strangers and also that it seems people we meet always seem to have the right contacts to assist us when we get in a jam or need something – really very special.

 

Marta spent the day giving us a tour of Jardin while the trailer was getting worked on – and it is a wonderful town with a very tranquil vibe – really very special.

She took us to her favorite place for some coffee and they also do roasting for many of the small and medium coffee farmers in the area.  According to Marta, there are 1600 family coffee farms in the area.  Yeah – and the coffee is very good.

Oh and did we mention the cable car ride?

At dinner and then again in the morning Marta gave us a full lesson on how to make patacones (fried plantain – our favorite!) and empanadas.  A few videos may be a little long (3-5’) but it is everything you need to know to Wow friends at your next get together.  The key apparently for patacones is put them in room temp oil and then turn up the heat until they all turn a deeper shade of yellow.

 

And now for empanadas!  1st – have to start with the good stuff..

And you can fill the empanadas with literally anything..we did the chicken and rice, pineapple and cheese, just cheese…combos are endless.  To cook you do it the same as for patacones – put in the oil, let cook for a minute, turn, repeat – to get the level of crispiness you want.

 

We were treated to a coffee tour before heading out to Medellin the morning of the 10th –  and Marta made sure we had the right hats and baskets for doing some bean picking.  We picked at the red beans that were also next to the green beans that were not ripe and it made us marvel at how Marta, back in the day, could pick 90 goff beans in one very long day.

 

After picking some beans Marta showed us how they prepare and dry their beans on the property.

We wrapped up the coffee tour with a stroll around Marta’s property.  She grows almost everything their family eats (tomatoes, onion, potatoes, various spices, carrots, bananas, plantain, yucca, avocado, papaya, mango, pineapple…you name it) and has lots of pretty flowers all throughout the property.

We also headed up the property to a special cabana Marta and Gustavo built to rent out.  Jacuzzi on the deck, large bedroom and incredible views of the valley.  The vibe of Finca Margus was one we won’t soon forget.

7/10/2024 – Medellin

We pointed ourselves towards Medellin as we needed to get there by sundown, drop the trailer off at a repair shop, find a place to stay, eat and of course be ready to watch Colombia take on Uruguay in the COPA semifinals.  With a recommendation on a trailer repair shop to guide us, we dropped off the trailer for more repair work.

And then off to dinner at an Argentinian steakhouse and the game…Tracy and Matt split this beast of a suckling pig cut of meat and it was still too much to finish properly.  Gotta love those Argentinians!  We were met at the restaurant by Johan – the amigo in Bogota who found John the turbo and had a buddy run it up to Honda on a motorcycle.  Johan was also having turbo-hose issues and was in Medellin to meet the crew and find a new intercooler hose….and maybe join us for a few days on the road???  Super nice guy…

7/11/2024  Exploring Medellin

We have 2 days to explore Medellin before Tracy and Roz have to leave us.  So we explored the Provenza neighborhood around our AirBnB looking for a breakfast place and laundromat in the morning.  It’s a nice neighborhood with great restaurants and very chill vibe.

Then it was off to Comuna 13 – a notorious collection of 25 barrios on the western side of Medellin infamous for its violent history between the 80’s and 2010.  We joined a walking tour led by Andre and he explained the 3 time periods comprising the Comuna.  Building/cobbling together what was essentially a slum area (1950’s to early 1980’s), Narco Trafficking (1980’s to 2010) and the Transformation (2010 to present).  Today about 250k people leave in the broader Comuna 13 and we toured the now more popular and let’s call it commercialized area (code for very touristy).  It was hard to imagine that only 14 years ago an outsider could not walk the alleys in the  Comuna at all due to the extreme gang violence tied to narco trafficking, robbery, kidnapping…you name it.  Today, the art culture has taken root and the streets are lined with murals and colorful graffiti, street dancers and vendors of all types.

The wall art was a mix of fun graffiti and more purposeful murals.  Murals carry more artistic messages and the local Medellin government sponsors the artists – these  are all murals.

The rest of what we captured was graffiti – done with spray cans and is quite the sight.

The street dancers were impressive and a representation of the art culture that was at the core of the Comuna 13 transformation, along with government investment to make the Comuna more livable for folks.  The time lapse on the 1st video is funny due to its speed – but the dancers are really impressive.

 

Looking out across Comuna 13 now – just hard to imagine how bad it must have been not too long ago.

 

7/12/2024 – Last Day in Medellin

For the last day we hit the Pablo Escobar museum and then split up in the afternoon with John working on getting import taxes paid on his turbo sitting in customs jail and Tracy and Matt doing a walking tour of the El Poblado neighborhood.  The Escobar museum was at one of his former houses, run by someone from his former organization and it tries to show Pablo in a more favorable light.  Cars he was attacked in, lots of pics of his “better” side, etc.  Eh…

The El Poblado neighborhood’s history is tied to similar issues that faced the Comuna 13 in the 80’ and 90’s with narco trafficking and the associated crime impacting daily life.  The only difference is El Poblado was more upscale and narcos were moving into the neighborhood, bringing their dark cloud with them.  Much like Comuna 13, the local government invested in infrastructure in the form of metro rail that allowed citizens to easily  live in one area and work in another – breaking the cycle of only being able to work in your neighborhood – and for poorer neighborhoods – that meant the drug trade.  Now younger workers that the narco industry relied on could seek other opportunities.  As always, cool graffiti and chill vibe in this area.  There is a lot more history to Medellin, but it seems to be dominated by the everything that has happened in the last 50-60 years vs the last 300-500 years like in other areas of Colombia.

 

Sadly time to say good bye to Tracy and Roz as they head out.  We hope to see Tracy back soon and Roz is excited for segment 3 of the trip.

7/13/2024 – Time to Get South

We drove from Medellin to Manizales.  Another pretty drive through canyons with rivers and stunning mountains.  Johan, the guy who sold Edels his turbo and had it delivered to Honda, told us at the dinner we shared about a “Snowy Route” at high altitude when you drive south after Manizales.  Well, how can you say no to that?  Looking for a place to camp on the  Snowy Route side of Manizales we picked a campground high up on the mountain.  Night had just about fallen by the time we reached it and man was it cool.  The camp was at about 12k ft. and was windy and cold.  The owner Alejandro (whose wife is named Alejandra – so cute) met us and helped get settled in.   There were 3 yerts/geodomes for those not wanting to camp.  Temps dropped into the high 30’s, but it felt good.

The view of Manizales was amazing as a storm rolled through it for most of the night.

7/14/2024 – Across the Snowy Route

Ok – there wasn’t any snow but we like the name and let’s face it the road is over 13k ft., so it’s in the art of the possible.

The drive was really cool – alternating between driving below, in and above clouds as the rushed by.  The road traversed a few sides of the still active volcano named Nevada Del Ruiz.  Phones just can’t capture big scenery, but here is our best effort.

The road was brand new and let’s say kinda narrow.  It’s funny, paint a yellow line down a road and you have 2 lanes…right?  🙂  Lots of folks driving the route, mostly on motorcycles which would have been fun.

Once we came off the mountain and through the town of Murillo, we headed to the town of Natagaime so we could catch the COPA final between Colombia and Argentina.  The whole country was going crazy on Sunday in anticipation of the game.  You could feel it.  So we hustled through several small towns and made it to Natagaime which is about as far as we could make it south before the sun set.

 

We found a lil hotel that was having a watch party.  But 1st – food.  Matt and Edels headed to the main plaza for some street food – the pre-game selection:  pizza and hamburgers – classico!

Then it was off to the hotel party – and the Colombia National Anthem

The hombre at the end of the video is Giovanni.  He was there with his wife and son.  He is an english teacher in the town and he was pretty primed from pre-game beers.  He saw us come in and being the only gringos in the town – he came over and of course we became best friends.  His english was so-so and that doesn’t bode well for his students – who he took every opportunity to introduce us to and to anyone else he knew.  Sadly Colombia lost a close game in the 2nd OT period – and with the numerous beers Giovanni consumed during the game he lost the ability to speak any english except for, “You are excellent friends” – and then he would hug us.

7/15/2024

Sleeping wasn’t possible- even though Colombia lost – the hotel cranked up the disco outside our windows til 2:30 AM.  Well – when Matt opened his curtains the next morning – look what he found!  Giovanni’s wife left him there…and then Matt found Giovanni in dog form outside the hotel on the street.

Matt and John started moving their vehicles out of the gated parking lot – and look who John found out on the street, alive and able to walk and talk??  John bought him several bottles of water and gave him some crackers to raise him from the dead.  And then he took us around the town and to his favorite empanada stall in the local market – and they were the bomb with fantastic salsa.

Turns out Giovanni doesn’t live in town, but just outside- so he hopped in with Edels and his wife and son hopped in with Matt and we gave them a ride home. And then it was a couple hour drive to the Tatacoa Desert and 97 degree heat!

The drive to Tatacoa was slow and go on more of a trail than a road – going through some old railroad tunnels and across a sketchy bridge.

Tatacoa was very different than what we have seen in the rest of the Colombia which is normally lush.

We found a place to camp and got a surprise group who came walking through…

7/16/2024 – From Tatacoa Desert to Popoyan – And a Reminder of Why Southern Colombia Remains “Interesting”

We headed out in the morning and had to choose what Ecuador border crossing to use in the next few days.  Having heard some concerns about guerrillas operating in rural southern Colombia, we opted to head west to Popoyan and then down to the main Ecuador border crossing in a few days.  Well – turns out the guerrillas are alive and well in other rural areas.

We headed through Neive and then west through a mountain range towards Popoyan.  The ride was once again through gorgeous scenery.  As we went through this small town there was a priest out in the road tossing holy water on cars and a lady asking for donations. The “monument” on their car was hard to not stare at.

The road started getting worse and at an intersection in a very small town we were stopped by 10-15 heavily armed guerrillas – most of which looked 20 or younger. Some had to be 15 or 16 with M-16 like weapons.  We were not the only ones stopped – a bus was stopped and everyone was getting off to be searched and questioned.Five to six descended on our vehicles with weapons out.  We answered some questions and stuck to English as it frustrates the police and these guys and the strategy is they tire of trying and figure out we are not a threat or doing anything wrong.  While we were trying to talk to one person, 2-3 others were opening our doors and going through all of our gear.  Chaotic for 10-15’ as our stuff is all over the inside of our vehicles and we are opening the trailer, rooftop carrier, drawers, etc., all to be searched.

Luckily, all we lost was a few headlamps and Matt’s sunglasses.  While stressful, we weren’t really nervous as it seemed they were more interested in seeing if we had guns or cameras.  In the end they liked our green wristbands and we were happy to part with 10+ of them and they took selfies in front of Edel’s Land Rover wearing Matt’s sunglasses.  Even guerrillas like the Rover.  Matt asked if they wanted to take a photo to show their new wristbands – yeah that was a hard no.

When we were allowed to leave we pulled away – relieved we only had to part with such insignificant things.  The rest of the drive that day was equal parts crazy and beautiful.  A view down in the valley where we met the “fellas”.

Possibly coincidence, the owner of the place we camped in Villa de Leyba gave us this token of St. Carmen who is said to look out for travelers on the roads.  It hangs from both of the vehicles interior.  We owe her one. :). !

The road climbed through about 10k ft through a few small towns – but was littered with road construction repairing landslides, large potholes, narrow sections where 2 way traffic needed too somehow work and then….oh yeah – it rained and dirt became slick mud.  The road alternated between dirt and concrete for about an hour before we made it to good road towards the top of the mountain and headed into Popoyan.

We avoid driving at night for obvious reasons and the sun was into the final stages of setting.  Mirador De Popoyan was a campground a few miles outside the main town and was a new listing on iOverlander.  We decided to check it out.

The campground is more of a restaurant where the owner, Jose Luis, and his wife are making preparations to support overlanders.  3 bathrooms and a shower were under construction in the parking lot – which is where you would camp – and there were 3 rooms above the restaurant you could rent.  The restaurant catered to the romantic couple and family celebration crowds with a restaurant that had good food.  Jose Luis is a really good guy.  We met him and a motorcycle riding buddy named Lucas from Argentina.

Turns out Lucas is a singer and likes to support himself singing as he travels around South America.  He hails from Quito, Ecuador, and is staying-singing at the place until sometime in September.  He has a voice that sounds crazily like Louis Armstrong, with a slight Latin accent -really beautiful voice.  And of course he sings Satchmo songs, along with some Tony Bennett and Sinatra.

7/17/2024 – Staying Popoyan

The rigs badly needed a complete car detail and the trailer wiring was failing so we decided to stay in Popoyan for the day to get those things taken care of – and because we would have had a late start heading south to Pasto our next stop.  Folks were telling us camping between Pasto and Popoyan wasn’t a great idea (and after our meeting with guerrillas the day before we heeded their advice), so we hung out in Popoyan after taking care of the vehicles and prepped for an early start on 7/18.  And of course hung out with Lucas who has great experiences and knowledge of South America.

7/18/2024 – The Road To Pasto

We headed out after Edels took some drone footage of the restaurant-campground for Jose-Luis the owner.  The fellas also recorded a video for him talking about the Popoyan culture and what we experienced in the city doing maintenance yesterday.  It was the 2nd video we did for him and we are happy to do what we can to help him move his business forward.  Edels also made a new friend – Michi – who helped with the video editing.

The ride out of Popyan was uneventful -just more vast canyons to mesmerize us while driving and the oddballl item you see.  The sign was in the men’s room above the urinal at a Texaco where all women worked.  Translation: Pee Happy, Pee Glad, but please PEE Inside :0)     Of course I respected the request!

We ended the day in Pasto – about 1.5 hours from the Ecuador border.  We will try and be through customs on both sides by 10-10:30am and then off to the Otavalo Market in Ecuador.

Colombia has been amazing and we loved every second in the country.  Keep following our adventure over in the Ecuador section of the website.

Ciao!