10 Hours, 200 Miles, 156 Speed Bumps

The Wild Adventures of Roaming Hamsters...

We started off with a plan--we ride from 6AM to noon, we take a break every 2 hours, we start looking for gas at 150 miles, we eat sugar snacks and drink plenty of fluids.  That was the plan  It was a good plan.  After this much time in Mexico, we'd finally honed our technique to accommodate riding in Mexico.  But, nothing prepared us for yesterday!

We started at 6AM.  Check.  The temperature was perfect, in fact, the temperature even dropped to 68-degrees, at one point.  It got to about 75 by 10AM.  We were doing great.  We were riding well, taking breaks, and staying cool.  At our 10AM break we pulled over and realized that we were still another 70+ km away from Puerto Angel...our final destination of the day.

Puerto Angel--a recommended destination that is situated on the coast, and only about 7 miles from the main highway.  A number of tiny towns dot the area with trailer parks for camping.  Puerto Angel, a good place to stop.

We decided that, with 70+ km to go, we would stop for lunch early, and rest for an hour or two, then continue on to Puerto Angel.  So, we looked for places to eat.  But, at 11AM, there isn't a lot open for lunch.  (Mexico tends to take its lunch at around 1PM, 2PM is seems to be preferred.)  So, we picked the first open taco stand we could find and sat down.  But, by noon, it was warm.  Very warm.

The temperature had surged to about 92-degrees with an average humidity of 60%.  By noon, we had traveled about 150 miles, over 120 speed bumps, averaging a speed of 28 miles per hour.  We had about 40 miles remaining, and we were beat.  By the time we filled up for gas and got underway, we were exhausted, but relieved to know that we were at the turn-off to Puerto Angel.  Just 7+ miles of coastal road should take us easily to Fernando's RV Park.

But, Puerto Angel and the surrounding towns are NOT what you think they are.  Apparently, the travel brochure failed to mention that this is basically a hippie commune.  In fact, it reminds me much of Bolinas (in Northern California).  And, Fernando's?  Hippie Central, complete with converted school buses parked in the sandy, dusty wastelands just off the road.  Oh, and did we mention that this is also purportedly the home to some nudist colony?  Shocking.

Needless to say, neither one of us felt comfortable at Fernando's, or even Puerto Angel, for that matter.  But what could we do.  We were both beginning to show signs of heat exhaustion.  The long day's ride had taken a toll on us, and walking, sitting, standing, breathing all seemed to be too much.  It took all the energy we had to decide to leave.  (Yes, just the decision, alone, was difficult.  Think of the old adage:  Bird in hand...)

We headed back to the main highway (7 miles away) where the gas station was.  The plan was to ask for directions to the nearest hotel.  But, on the way, LaNova's bike stalled on a steep hill.  She had gotten stuck behind a water truck that couldn't pull the grade.  When I found her sitting on the side of the road, she had just gotten the bike started up.  She was exhausted.  I was exhausted.  We were on a steep grade, in the beating sun.

***You know, looking back on yesterday, and recalling the day's experiences...it's hard to even believe how we made it.***

We got out of the sun for a few minutes, and after a shotty pep-talk by me, we got back on our bikes and kept going.  Our Scala's had run out of batteries, and so the instruction was, if you need to communicate, honk and use hand signals.  (My idea.)  Right.  Hand signals on slow, windy, hilly coastal roads.  Genius.  So, when LaNova honked to signal that I was going too slow, I thought she wanted me to pull over.  But the side of the road had soft ground, and LaNova lost her footing.  The bike tipped over and landed on her leg.

We were now 4 miles from the main highway, 4 miles from the gas station, 4 miles from even a hope of a hotel, with heat exhaustion, and now...an injured ankle.  This day couldn't get any worse.  Or...could it???

By the time we got to the gas station, LaNova's ankle had begun to swell.  The problem is, the gas station attendant said there were no hotels in the little, microscopic town of "San Antonio".  She suggested Potchutlo.  Perhaps there would be hotels there.  15 minutes away.

Somehow, LaNova managed to ride to Potchutlo.  With a right ankle that hurt so bad she couldn't put any pressure on, she rode to Potchutlo for what seemed like an eternity.  But, Potchutlo doesn't have any hotels.  In fact, it has one stoplight, and no signs indicating hope of any kind.  Riding through the stoplight, we hoped we would find something...but the town immediately disappeared and turned into windy, curvy, mountainous road, with NO pullouts, no turnarounds, no signs, no nothing.

On we rode, and on, and on, and on.  43km (26mi) at 15 miles/hour.

Finally, we came to a Pemex (the National gas station of Mexico), where I signaled we would stop.  I hurried ahead so that I could help LaNova.  You see, by this point, she could no longer raise her foot up to engage the footbrake.  She could not put any pressure on her right leg, whatsoever.  So, I had to help her as she would stop, to hold the bike, put the kickstand down, and turn it off, then lift her out of her saddle and onto the ground.  Did I mention it was hot?

At the gas station, a taxi driver informed us that we were just outside the tourist town of Bahia de Huatulco.  He also informed us that, the average price for a room with air conditioning was $150.  Fine.  I didn't care.  All I wanted was to find someplace where we could stop and I could get LaNova's leg looked at.  Concerned about how LaNova would be able to ride, I inquired as to the road conditions.  "Oh, fine.  Just like a regular highway.  Wide and smooth."  Twenty-three kilometers of dirt construction road!!!

We got into the main town, and I was looking for ANYWHERE that might have air-conditioning.  When I saw NOVAHotel, I thought...this is going to be pricey.  But, there are some points in life when price doesn't matter.  After a day like today, with an injured wife, you don't argue...you pay!

$35 per night for air conditioning, TV, internet, matrimonial bed (double), covered, locked parking!  This place was an answer to our prayers.

We survived.

****STATS****

308 kilometers / 191 miles
10 hours
Low 68F / High 92F
Humidity Avg. 60%
Speedbumps (topes) 156
Avg. Speed 28 mph

****STATS****

PS~  LaNova's injury report:  Slight bruising on upper right calf.  Strained ligaments on lateral shin.  Localized discomfort anterior right ankle.  Swelling has subsided with only remaining tenderness in point-specific regions.  (Dr. Christian René Loraine, PhD in BS)