How low can we go.
- Thread starter gspod
- Start date
That all looks brilliant Dermot 
Thanks for taking the time & making the the effort to put it into words & pictures for us
Thanks for taking the time & making the the effort to put it into words & pictures for us
could you run through the pics and tell us what the dishes are ?
It was a tasting menu based on local trout and all the salad and vegetables were from the garden at the back of the restaurant, which we got a tour of.
The chef came out and talked through each coarse which was translated by Emi - but I can’t remember the details, sorry.
Next stop was Pasto and we e had a great few days.
Walking round the market made us want to ship a crate load of stuff back to the UK.
There is a big food culture here with different influences that have been adopted by the locals. We ate in a fabulous restaurant, the chef/owner trained in Paris and worked in Washington DC - it was lovely to have some French cooking for a change.
The big carnival was on but
we gave it a miss (it’s a very messy affair and we don’t have many clothes) but went to the festival museum.
The origins of the festival started in the north and stem from Spanish occupancy: The black slaves were given one day a year to celebrate their culture. When slavery ended the Colombians picked up the day to celebrate the integration of the Black and indigenous population and Spanish descendants. It is celebrated all over Colombia but its epicentre is now the south and Pasto, where it has world recognition as ‘The Black and White Festival’ https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blacks_and_Whites'_Carnival
We rode a short distance to Las Lajas, close to the Ecuador border, to see the church there.
It is very beautiful and, because it is a major holiday for The Epiphany, there was an evening service and many people which gave a great atmosphere.
And so to the border with Ecuador. We thought we’d seen the back of long border crossings but no, 4 1/2 hours!
Still it was cool and we chatted to a few Columbians who helped us with the process. There were loads of Columbians going on holiday to Ecuador in their cars and on motorcycles and it seams so sad that they have to go through this process to visit their neighbours - the same goes for Central America.
Columbia has been our favourite country so far. For me it’s the people that make a place and the Columbians are brilliant. They are friendly, enthusiastic for life (without being over the top) and most of all happy - apparently the happiest in the world according to a recent report and I can agree with that 100%. They have a long, hard and complex history but things are good now and for the first time travel within their own country is possible for the many.
It is the first country that we seriously think we’d come back to for a holiday and I would urge anyone to do the same.
Walking round the market made us want to ship a crate load of stuff back to the UK.
There is a big food culture here with different influences that have been adopted by the locals. We ate in a fabulous restaurant, the chef/owner trained in Paris and worked in Washington DC - it was lovely to have some French cooking for a change.
The big carnival was on but
we gave it a miss (it’s a very messy affair and we don’t have many clothes) but went to the festival museum.
The origins of the festival started in the north and stem from Spanish occupancy: The black slaves were given one day a year to celebrate their culture. When slavery ended the Colombians picked up the day to celebrate the integration of the Black and indigenous population and Spanish descendants. It is celebrated all over Colombia but its epicentre is now the south and Pasto, where it has world recognition as ‘The Black and White Festival’ https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blacks_and_Whites'_Carnival
We rode a short distance to Las Lajas, close to the Ecuador border, to see the church there.
It is very beautiful and, because it is a major holiday for The Epiphany, there was an evening service and many people which gave a great atmosphere.
And so to the border with Ecuador. We thought we’d seen the back of long border crossings but no, 4 1/2 hours!
Still it was cool and we chatted to a few Columbians who helped us with the process. There were loads of Columbians going on holiday to Ecuador in their cars and on motorcycles and it seams so sad that they have to go through this process to visit their neighbours - the same goes for Central America.
Columbia has been our favourite country so far. For me it’s the people that make a place and the Columbians are brilliant. They are friendly, enthusiastic for life (without being over the top) and most of all happy - apparently the happiest in the world according to a recent report and I can agree with that 100%. They have a long, hard and complex history but things are good now and for the first time travel within their own country is possible for the many.
It is the first country that we seriously think we’d come back to for a holiday and I would urge anyone to do the same.
Hi all.
After the border, we stopped in the lovely, small, city of Ibarra and found a gorgeous, little hotel by the square. There was an English chap staying there (David) who lived in France and was multilingual. We went to the nearby indigenous market (biggest in South America), with him, on the bus, which was great. Luckily we’re on the bikes otherwise we could have bought a box load of stuff - the Alpaca textiles are lovely.
We moved on to the capital Quito which is the second highest capital city at over 2800m - although we’re pretty climatised to altitude now.
It has a well preserved colonial centre and was the first UNESCO world heritage city. Surrounding that is a very modern city and we are staying in a contemporary apartment with pool/sauna etc which is cheaper than a hotel. Walking around, it felt very much like being in a modern, European city - we even went for a curry
We visited a motorcycle tour company and spoke to the American owner who was very generous with his knowledge of Ecuador and we have planned out a riding itinerary for the next 2/3 weeks.
Due to it’s altitude, Quito is a bit chilly so our first port of call is the coast. We headed north first of all and stopped at a monument, in a small village, marking the equator. From there we went due west and the scenery through the Andes was as spectacular as ever.
The days ride dropped us over 2800 metres and as we came down everything changed. The landscape became undulating, almost Tolkien-esk and the vegetation, very tropical. And of course the temperature went up to 30 degrees
. The term epic is a bit Top Gear for me but…………. it was 🏍.
We found an amazing beach side room and, due to the fact we are virtually on the equator, watched the perfect sun set -
After the border, we stopped in the lovely, small, city of Ibarra and found a gorgeous, little hotel by the square. There was an English chap staying there (David) who lived in France and was multilingual. We went to the nearby indigenous market (biggest in South America), with him, on the bus, which was great. Luckily we’re on the bikes otherwise we could have bought a box load of stuff - the Alpaca textiles are lovely.
We moved on to the capital Quito which is the second highest capital city at over 2800m - although we’re pretty climatised to altitude now.
It has a well preserved colonial centre and was the first UNESCO world heritage city. Surrounding that is a very modern city and we are staying in a contemporary apartment with pool/sauna etc which is cheaper than a hotel. Walking around, it felt very much like being in a modern, European city - we even went for a curry
We visited a motorcycle tour company and spoke to the American owner who was very generous with his knowledge of Ecuador and we have planned out a riding itinerary for the next 2/3 weeks.
Due to it’s altitude, Quito is a bit chilly so our first port of call is the coast. We headed north first of all and stopped at a monument, in a small village, marking the equator. From there we went due west and the scenery through the Andes was as spectacular as ever.
The days ride dropped us over 2800 metres and as we came down everything changed. The landscape became undulating, almost Tolkien-esk and the vegetation, very tropical. And of course the temperature went up to 30 degrees
. The term epic is a bit Top Gear for me but…………. it was 🏍.We found an amazing beach side room and, due to the fact we are virtually on the equator, watched the perfect sun set -
We stayed on the beach for 6 nights - when we were talking about this trip we always said we’d haul up at a deserted beach somewhere and just chill for a while. We’re not beach people and this is the longest we’ve ever done this but we loved it.
You may remember our Colombian friend whose great uncle was the president of Ecuador, well he contacted his aunt and she said we could stay in her house, she wasn’t there but her staff would look after us - it sounded like an offer too good to refuse
It took 2 days of great riding to get there and just when we thought the views, surely, couldn’t get any better…… they did
First night we stopped at a hotel and in the morning (Sunday) we popped across the road for breakfast - potato and onion soup with lamb, prawns and octopus, best breakfast ever
En-route we rode through some amazing, Andean, scenery and the roads were a mixture of twisty tarmac and about 20% dirt - perfect for us. We stopped off at Quilota glacial lake which reminded us of Crater lake in the US.
Our destination was a beautiful, colonial hacienda set in immaculate grounds, there was a roaring fire waiting for us and our own suite.
We tried to visit, the famous, Cotopaxi volcano nearby but the visibility was too poor.
After 2 nights we rode the short distance to Banos which is a touristy spa town. It has 5 spas with the water heated using volcanic thermal gases. They are rich in minerals and supposedly very good for your joints. We spent a pleasant afternoon in one of them for the princely sum of $2 each - the OAP price
We wondered into the town and there were plenty of party hostels and bars but it’s out of season and it was a very nice place.
Next day was another shortish ride to the mountain village of Salinas which is famous for chocolate and cheese
and of course the scenery.
On the way we passed by the inactive volcano of Chimborazo. Due to the bulge of the equator this mountain is the furthest land from the centre of the earth and the closest to the sun so technically the highest mountain on earth……..well sort of
. It also means that A has ridden a motorcycle to the base of both the highest mountains in the world 
.
We rode up through the clouds to over 4200 metres and Chimborazo was above the cloud line and in the sunshine. The surrounding land was reminiscent of Scottish moorland but as we came back down through the clouds towards Salinas we rode into, what I can only describe as, a fairytale land - I hope the photos capture it.
You may remember our Colombian friend whose great uncle was the president of Ecuador, well he contacted his aunt and she said we could stay in her house, she wasn’t there but her staff would look after us - it sounded like an offer too good to refuse
It took 2 days of great riding to get there and just when we thought the views, surely, couldn’t get any better…… they did
First night we stopped at a hotel and in the morning (Sunday) we popped across the road for breakfast - potato and onion soup with lamb, prawns and octopus, best breakfast ever
En-route we rode through some amazing, Andean, scenery and the roads were a mixture of twisty tarmac and about 20% dirt - perfect for us. We stopped off at Quilota glacial lake which reminded us of Crater lake in the US.
Our destination was a beautiful, colonial hacienda set in immaculate grounds, there was a roaring fire waiting for us and our own suite.
We tried to visit, the famous, Cotopaxi volcano nearby but the visibility was too poor.
After 2 nights we rode the short distance to Banos which is a touristy spa town. It has 5 spas with the water heated using volcanic thermal gases. They are rich in minerals and supposedly very good for your joints. We spent a pleasant afternoon in one of them for the princely sum of $2 each - the OAP price
We wondered into the town and there were plenty of party hostels and bars but it’s out of season and it was a very nice place.
Next day was another shortish ride to the mountain village of Salinas which is famous for chocolate and cheese
and of course the scenery.On the way we passed by the inactive volcano of Chimborazo. Due to the bulge of the equator this mountain is the furthest land from the centre of the earth and the closest to the sun so technically the highest mountain on earth……..well sort of
. It also means that A has ridden a motorcycle to the base of both the highest mountains in the world .We rode up through the clouds to over 4200 metres and Chimborazo was above the cloud line and in the sunshine
. The surrounding land was reminiscent of Scottish moorland but as we came back down through the clouds towards Salinas we rode into, what I can only describe as, a fairytale land - I hope the photos capture it.
What an amazing ride report. Thank you.
Amazing, such an incredible thing ng to do and thank you so much for taking the time and trouble to post it all on here.
We awoke early in Salinas to beautiful blue skies and walked up to the gorge and view point before breakfast.
Before leaving we went to the cheese shop and bought a truckle of delicious local hard cheese and then to the chocolate factory for chocolate and nougat
Then 4 days of the best riding of the trip.
We had 2 nights in Cuenca which is a really nice city in the south of the country. Then to the border and Peru.
Then 1 more days ride to the border town and across into Peru.
Before leaving we went to the cheese shop and bought a truckle of delicious local hard cheese and then to the chocolate factory for chocolate and nougat
Then 4 days of the best riding of the trip.
We had 2 nights in Cuenca which is a really nice city in the south of the country. Then to the border and Peru.
Then 1 more days ride to the border town and across into Peru.
Thoroughly enjoying this thank you.
The best thing about the mountain roads is that there’s hardly any traffic - heaven.
We rode a beautiful off road trail (around 30 km) across Paramo grass lands (https://www.natureandculture.org/ecosystems/paramo-grasslands/) and a few more dirt road short cuts, curtesy of the sat nav
We rode a beautiful off road trail (around 30 km) across Paramo grass lands (https://www.natureandculture.org/ecosystems/paramo-grasslands/) and a few more dirt road short cuts, curtesy of the sat nav
Saw a couple of these signs as we we rode dirt tracks over a mountain connecting isolated farmsteads.
Translation:
‘Gentleman thieves
If we find them stealing
They will not come out alive
From this community’
Translation:
‘Gentleman thieves
If we find them stealing
They will not come out alive
From this community’
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