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Saturday, November 18, 2000 - It's certainly been a while since I've written anything here. It's not that I haven't been riding, because I have. Time doesn't always permit me to write about a ride, and sometimes nothing interesting happens anyway.
     We left at 6 AM this morning. It was cool, and as soon as we headed down the big hill at the end of the runway we rode into a misty fog. For a few minutes I wished I had a thicker jersey. Then, at the other end of Puyo I was very warm and wished the zipper on my jersey was longer so I could have better ventilation. I think the humidity must have been about 99 percent, no kidding!
     After riding through Puyo we headed out the road which goes to a town called Macas. It's a dirt road, and in decent shape. Thing were uneventful with the exception of a bridge crossing. As we sped down a hill at about thirty miles an hour we came to a bridge. I didn't realize it until I was on top of it, but there was a crack in the bridge that was in places at least as wide as my two inch wide tires. I hopped a couple of times as I rolled over the bridge, trying to move over without getting my front tire stuck. What a bummer that would have beeen! I would have gone down hard and looked like the two road-kill possums we saw on the ride.
     It was a good thing we got up and went early. It was hard to do, as Wednesday and Thursday nights I was up until 1 AM. A short while after we pulled back into the compound, it began raining. It rained the rest of the day.

Monday, October 9, 2000 - I woke up this morning to pouring rain. I had planned a long bike ride for the morning. Obviously that would have to wait. While Ellyn took the boys over to the dentist, I worked on some school work. The dentist they went to see is a visiting dentist who goes out to the villages to work on teeth. All the teeth in our family are fine.
     After going to the dentist, Taylor came home, and Ellyn took Dustin into Puyo to shop. Ellyn and Dustin brought home a machete for me. I figured it was time I be prepared to ward off any viper which might decide to explore our yard or home. I have heard enough snake stories from gringos by now that I think I'll be prepared. One comforting thing I've heard is that in all the years of missionaries being in Shell, never has an MK been bitten by a snake.
     A little after 1 PM I pulled out of the compound on my bike. The rain had stopped, and although it was cloudy, it didn't look like I'd get rained on. My plan was to ride two hours northwest on the main road before turning around for home.
     After riding fifteen miles of rolling hills I came to the end of the paved road. This is where the climbing began. The grade wasn't steep, but the climb was long. At one point I was climbing slowly enough to talk to a boy about Dustin's age as he walked up the hill. He quickened his pace to keep up with me, and I tried out my broken spanish on him. It was fun to try and communicate with a child--much less intimidating than trying to use my limited spanish with adults. After a quarter mile or so he stopped at a fruit stand, and I rode on. I rode across a stream which covered the road, and then up a long grade on the side of the canyon.
     The Lonely Planet guidebook says this is probably the most beautiful drive in Ecuador. I hadn't thought that much of it when I drove in in a van or bus, but on a bike it was very different. I don't usually stop when I ride, but I found myself stopping a couple times to soak in the incredible vistas. At one of the stops I pulled out a sandwich and ate that as I climbed up the road. There comes a point where the road narrows to one lane, with occasional spots wide enough for two vehicles to pass. I was fortunate enough at this point to be following a medium sized truck. The grade was slight, the road just a little muddy, and I was able to keep up with him. I used the truck as a shield, and didn't have to worry about running head on into a car or truck on the blind corners. What a road! So narrow, and with no guardrails to keep you from sailing off into space.
     After twenty-three miles of riding I came to the little town of Rio Verde. It's not much, but the main attraction is a hike down to a huge water fall and boiling pool of water called the Devil's Punchbowl. The hike is straight down the side of the canyon, and I figured I'd save that for another time. My legs were tired, and I knew it would be a long ride home. As I headed down the hill, I paused for a moment to look down into the Punchbowl and quickly munch an apple.
     I again shielded myself behind a bus as I returned on the narrow section of the road. The dirt portions of the road going back home were predominately downhill, and the riding was a hoot! At one point I passed a bus going down the hill. I'm sure the people in the bus thought I was crazy as I over took them on the right side while flying down the hill at 35 mph! The bus was on the left side of the road. You see, there are no lines on this dirt road, and drivers steer their vehicle to the smoothest part of the road. More than once as I sailed down hills I faced cars on my side of the road. Each time the driver moved over only at the last possible moment! If you think the way I used to drive Highway 41 was crazy, you should see the driving here!
     Once I was back on the pavement I was again riding rolling hills, but none of the climbs were very long or steep. In the town of Rio Negro I thought about stopping for a Coke, but I really didn't want to break into my dollar bill. I wanted to keep it just in case I needed to hop on a bus for whatever reason. Besides that, if I bought a Coke, I might have to spend the whole dollar, even though the price was probably only twenty-five cents. Since the the currency has been switched to the U.S. dollar, there is a shortage of change in the country. More than a few times recently I've had to settle for less than the correct change since there just isn't enough in the cash register. Financially, this country is in a bad way still.
     I chewed a pack of cookies and sipped some water as I neared the final ten miles. My legs ached as I climbed each hill, but I knew I was almost home. I was happy with the day's ride. My plan is to ride all the way to Baños and back in a morning. I hadn't known if that would be possible, but after today's ride I know it can be done. I turned around ten miles from Baños, and was more than halfway there from Shell. The ride ended up taking me 3:45 and was 47 miles long. That's a long ride for a mountain bike, and was the longest ride I've been on in quite a while. All in all, a great ride.

Wednesday, October 4, 2000 - I really didn't want to go for a ride today. Since it had been a week since my last ride, I knew I had to go. The past week had been way too busy, and riding just didn't happen. I wasn't going to ride far or hard today, but before I knew it, I had completed the Dog Loop and was feeling great. There were rain clouds, rainbows, and showers all around, but somehow I stayed out of most of it. I don't know if it was the rain, but the dogs didn't chase much today. I think the rain had dampened their spirits. The ride up from Puyo was awful. I think I breathed pure diesel exhaust the whole four miles I was on the main road. My right ankle was still a little sore and swollen from hitting it during the Mud Football game on Saturday, but it wasn't much of a problem to ride with it like that.