SubscribeI find it tough to strike the proper balance between riding and sightseeing. In much of Argentina and Brazil you simply point the bike down the finely groomed asphalt and take it in. In Guyana the wildlife, thick jungle, and immense savannah combined with the road conditions are proving to be another story.
Archive for the ‘Venezuela’ Category
Feb
11
Santa Elena de Uairen, VZ (- kms)
Santa Elena seemed to be a bit of a backpackers hub for trips to Roraima and offered little for my interests. There was one attraction, the insurance shop I was interested in but it would not open till Monday. So with an uninsured motorcycle and checkpoints all around the town I laid low and did my best to stay occupied in the small border town getting maintenance done and fuelling up for my exit the next day.
Feb
8
Guasipati, VZ (474 kms)
Cuánto? I said with a disgusted look when the guy in the little highway town told me how much he wanted for a room. Es Carnivale! he said as I reluctantly paid his asking price. Well, it turns out the room was a bargain in the small town of Guasipati on a night when the music and dancing started early in the night and ended early in the morning.
Feb
4
Caicara del Orinoco, VZ (636 kms)
I had great luck picking entertaining routes through the Andes while riding south and have been helped out by other riders with some interesting ideas throughout my journey. The route I picked to cross Venezuela is not what I had hoped as the wildlife and scenic views were replaced by the heavy industry and big smoke billowing factories.
Feb
4
San Fernando de Apure, VZ (430 kms)
When push comes to show I will always go with the map over the GPS. Today was no different and ITMB and Garmin had different ideas about where I was going. Unfortunately the GPS was on the money and ITMB’s big imaginary roads through Venezuela didn’t exist. Bright side was the absence of marked bridges on the map gave me lots to think about on the four hour detour.
Feb
12
Cucuta, CO (658 kms)
I had been riding for several hours and stopped to take a break. I figured a little walk around would wake me up and give me a chance to look over the bike. I hurried down the bank of the shallow ditch to use the bathroom and got the scare of a lifetime. Usain Bolt wouldn’t have made it out of that ditch as quick!