July 13, 2022
July 13: El Trebol to Villavieja
The sky was just beginning to turn from black to blue when our alarms went off at 5:30. We intended on getting our earliest start yet since we would be biking to Villa Vieja, located on the western edge of the Tatacoa Desert. After packing up our things, having a quick snack, and walking down the stairs with our bikes we were on the road by 6:27.
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The first 45km of riding consisted of rolling hills on the highway. But even though the road was straight and quiet, that does not mean there wasn't a lot to take in. We smiled and waved at passing vendors and farmers, and always shared a "buenos días" with the kids riding their own bikes to school early in the morning. The trees hummed with the sounds of insects, and motos continued to give little toots of their horn as they passed us. Every moment in the saddle is a chance to be more mindful of your surroundings and all to be grateful for.
After about two and a half hours of riding along the carretera we came upon the dirt turnoff to Tatacoa. The road was immediately beautiful and savannah-like, and only became more so the further we traveled on it. We passed through a number of tiny settlements under thick groves of trees before coming upon two long, dark tunnels. We biked through them accompanied by the chirps of bats flying overhead, before exiting the last one and riding over a metal bridge.
The terrain became drier as we meandered alongside the Río Magdalena, with large cacti beginning to line the roadside and horizon. We were lucky that we had decent cloud coverage, but it was still quite hot. Guess that's what you get for biking through an arid spot in July in the northern hemisphere.
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The route slowly took us up onto a bit of a plateau, where we could see the tower of Villavieja's cathedral off in the distance. We spent the next while pedaling in that direction before diving into one last canyon and up into the outskirts of town. We found ourselves a hostel and settled down for the afternoon. I had an important phone call to take at 3:30, as I recently applied for a facility dog for my school and had an interview with the non-profit group.
Today's ride: 85 km (53 miles)
Total: 1,472 km (914 miles)
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