Distance: 71.8 km
Ride time: 5:30:47
Average: 13.0 km/h
Max speed: 50.0 km/h
Total: 36694 km
Being in the mountains of Guatemala very much feels like being back in South America. The concept of a flat road doesn’t really exist here. It is either up or down, and today mostly up.
A big climb from 300 to 1500 m of altitude was on the program today. My legs have still not recovered 100% from the climb of the Acetenango volcano. Luckily the climb was not the steepest – instead it was long.
I had wanted to escape the busy Panamerican highway for a while, and now I had finally succeeded. Not much traffic out here in the mountains which was a fact I appreciated a lot! It was hard going climbing towards the pass at 1500 m, but the nice views over the surrounding valleys made up for it.
Another good thing was that the temperature kept coming down. From the uncomfortable 35 degrees in the morning to much more fresh temperatures in the afternoon. In fact, as I reached the top of the pass I had to put on my jacket. My bicycle computer showed 20 degrees – I guess I’m used to warm weather by now…
When I was in the States in May I had bought a new tent. I hadn’t got a chance to try it out yet, but today would be the day. My new tent is a REI Quater Dome 1 which weights only just over 1 kg. First hand impression – I like it.
We even got a bit of rain in the night which the new tent handled perfectly. I’m looking forward to many more nights in my new home – especially in the States where hotels will be too expensive.
I’ve heard of REI’s Quarter Domes. They look quite good. Unfortunately, I’ve never seen one on person.