July 7, 2022
July 7: Riosucio to Pereira
Today was a bit of a grind in comparison to the past few days, but that just goes to show how spoiled we have been. We still had some spectacular scenery as we followed the PanAmerican Highway from Riosucio to Pereira.
We managed to get a much earlier start to the day and were out by 8am. We found a breakfast joint near one of the city parques, and after an enormous bandeja paisa plate we were on our way. The road climbed steadily out of town with minimal traffic and perfect weather.
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We summited at a spot called El Descanso, and enjoyed a late cafe tinto overlooking the valley. We spoke briefly with a local runner who confirmed some very exciting information: approximately the following 40km were steady downhill into the valley that would eventually take us to Cali. We were eager to finally earn some easy miles so we departed after downing our cafe.
Ladies and gentlemen, might I tell you just how lovely this stretch of road was. We followed a downward ridgeline for sometime before steadily coasting downhill. It was easy riding, and we each took it in at our own pace. As the road descended, the tenperature again soared and we were soon sweatinf despite not having exerted much effort.
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Our descent eventuallu tapered off some but still remained, making many of the following miles quite easy. We stopped at a roadside citrus stand for fresh juice and sweets before continuing on. The puffy clouds in the sky dampened the heat as we passed through miles and miles of sugarcane fields.
It was our plan to stop riding around La Virginia, but with such a big descent we chose to press on and find a hotel closer to Pereira. This is when the day became more stressful. The road narrowed quite suddenly and traffic picked up significantly as we neared Pereira. We began to inquire at hotels about available rooms, but everything was booked up. Apparently there was a tennis tournament happening nearby that was being attended by many.
After calling around to several other nearby hotels, we decided to book it into Pereira and find something in the center of the town. It was getting dark as we rode into the city under the shadow of Nevado del Ruiz, the nearby stratovolcano that in 1985 erupted and killed over 25,000 individuals. We were rather stressed, as urban riding is challenging enough without the added worry of finding a place to stay. After riding in the twilight for some time, we finally found a rather pricy hotel with two available rooms. We were lucky in that they also offered dinner, so we filled up on fish soup, pollo asado, arroz, frijoles, and enough aguapanela to quench the thirst of the Colombian army. It felt great to be somewhere safe after an arduous push into the city. Tomorrow will be a much shorter ride to Salento, where we plan on taking a day to recouperate and figure out our next plans. Ecuador is nearing!
Today's ride: 112 km (70 miles)
Total: 1,149 km (714 miles)
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