Colombia - A long day to Cabo de la Vela

Fabio, Agustina and I arranged to meet in the morning to ride to a popular spot called Cabo de la Vela. 

On the way, Fabio’s bike stopped suddenly. We waited for it to cool and it started, but stopped again not far down the road. 
We decided to go to Meicao to find a mechanic and five long hot hours later they replaced an electrical part and we were on our way.

It was just after 3.30pm and we were told it would be a three hour ride to get to our destination. We were on our way shortly after and stopped in Uribica to get some food and water. 

We spoke to the police and they said it would only be an hour to Cabo de la Vela. It was 4.45 and sunset will be at 6pm so we decided to go for it. 

The road out of Uribica was not really gravel, not really sand, but a solidified white surface that had many ruts indicating it would be horrible in the wet. 

Fortunately it was dry. Ziggy handled this with ease and Fabio kept up at a reasonable pace for a while. 

The sky became a beautiful sunset blend of reds and oranges behind us but ahead of us the road was becoming darker. We were not making very good time and we came across an area of mud that went for about two kilometres. Why this area was so wet when everything else was bone dry is a mystery, but I stood up on the footpegs and guided Ziggy through a few slips and slides, using the techniques I had learnt and keeping the big girl moving forward. The mud stopped as suddenly as it had started and when I sat down I couldn’t see Fabio’s headlight behind me. I waited a few minutes and the light appeared and in a short time they were next to me. They had taken a spill off the little Honda and had damaged one of the panniers, but fortunately they were not injured.

As darkness fell the pace slowed to the distance of Fabio’s headlights. I have the LED driving lights so I was able to light the way for both of us, but they kept falling behind and I was actually finding it hard to go at their slow pace. Ziggy wanted to be zooming along at 70-80km/h but Fabio was more around 20. The road continued for the hour expected and then more. Two hours later we found ourselves at the other side of the peninsula where we took a turnoff to the left. We were now almost at the most northern part of the South American continent, the very northern point does not have a road to reach the actual spot. Twenty kilometres more to go.

It was already 7.30pm and dark with a moonless sky. I tried again to share my brighter lights but I needed more momentum for the now deteriorated road, resembling more of a track. 

I could see nothing either side of the road and it was hard to see what was coming up beyond my headlights. It was against all my rules to ride at night and when I have I always seem to be on some remote dirt road when I do. But it was exciting and it was good to be back on Ziggy doing some off-road again after what seemed like an age off her in Panama. I had to pull ahead because my temperature gauge was rising and I could smell the heat from the motor as it became warmer. Riding in second gear at sometimes less than 20km/h was choking her in the warm humid night air.

I moved on a little faster then decided to ride my natural pace and accelerated along the straights, using the undulations and depressions in the road to launch myself a little and get a bit of air under the tyres. The track was a little sandy with the occasional deeper part that grabbed the front wheel and pushed the bike sideways. I ‘bullied’ my way through with the torquey boxer engine and could feel myself smiling in my helmet as the wind hit my face and the temperature gauge dropped. 

I stopped at a high point before the descent into Cabo de la Vela and switched the motor off to wait for the others. When they arrived we rode the short remaining distance to the small coastal township of thatched huts and found a restaurant/hospidaje combination. My new friends negotiated a camping spot under a hut right on the water’s edge. 

We set up camp and sat to talk about the day we had just finished. Agustina and Fabio were exhausted, a long day for them on the little bike with all their luggage and repairs. Although I had the same day, I was still smiling from the night ride on the dirt, happy with Ziggy, and ready to curl up onto my hammock and sleep solidly.

When I find a nice relaxed spot to just chill out for the day…that is what I do. This was one of those spots. Although the water was a bit cold, the setting was idyllic and apart from a few walks along the beach and through the small sandy town of thatched-roof huts, I really had a do-nothing day. 

Fabio set to work straightening his panniers and giving some attention to other bits and pieces. 
I had dropped my helmet off the bike at one of our stops and the visor and peak came loose because of a piece of broken plastic. Fabio had a small metal strip with two holes that he spent ten minutes modifying and it all fitted perfectly, making the attachment stronger than ever. 

It was great to hang out with other motorcycle travellers, camping in a beautiful spot. The day was over all too quickly but was topped off with a beautiful sunset. 

The 20km track seemed much shorter in the daylight and we had a bit of fun taking photos of each other riding as we went. 

Back to the main dirt track it was still a good hour and a half to Uribica. 

As we approached the town I could see that Fabio had more bike problems, with the damaged pannier flapping like a broken seagull’s wing. 

On inspection he also had a crack right through the main frame. He and Agustina were a bit down about the damage because they seemed to be having endless issues with the bike over the last two months, she explained. 

They were even discussing selling the bike and buying two bicycles because they didn’t have the money to take the bike on the ferry to Panama at this stage. That said, two hours later it was welded up for $7 and ready to go. We parted ways at the next intersection and I was on my own again…just me and Ziggy.