Jer’s Continuing Adventures…

We got here in good time today!

Leaving Osoyoos at about 0700 this morning, after a hearty (not) breakfast at Timmy’s, we had beautiful clear weather on the road. As  a matter of fact, we haven’t seen any weather the whole trip so far. Knock on wood, the return leg is just as nice. The closest we saw to snow was about 500 feet of compact snow at the top of Bonanza Pass.

Though I really wanted to have some famous Doukhobor borscht in Grand Forks, on Kim’s recommendation, there weren’t any places open that served it at 0900. So we had basic diner breakfast at Yaky Jacquie’s. She lived up to her name…

The rest of the day became a long, windy drive through quaint little mountain towns and high passes. The nicest little town we came through was Greenwood. Beautiful downtwon with historic brick buildings and you can tell the locals take real pride in the place. Definitely worth a stop next time I’m through this area.

This trip has been a bit of a stroll down memory lane for me. A few years ago I sold all my stuff, gave up the yoga studio, packed a trailer and pedaled my bike from Victoria to Nelson over about a month and a half. A lot of that ride I did through this part of BC. I had stopped in Midway, rode over the mountain into Cristina Lake, Castlegar, spun through Greenwood. All places we drove through today. Made me want to do another big ride, only this time with company. Soon…

Reaching Alberta the land became VERY flat! The big surprise was the huge amounts of wind farms we saw on the western side of Alberta. Almost from horizon to horizon, these silent giants stood, waving their arms with a terrible momentum. Kind of eerie in a way, and seeing the first one poke it’s head over the last of the hills really messed with the perceived scale. Neat!

Now for a day of setting up a show for me Da, and getting some computer work done during down time, before we head back on Tuesday.

Yummmmmmm…

I’ve been inspired over the last few days to put some extra effort in to my food, even if I’m cooking for meselfs. Prawns and Scallops sauteed with dried Tomatoes and Chilies over Pesto Pasta one night, Ground Venison cooked with fried egg and Garlic over toast the next. And tonight, Doug and Rachelle brought a fantastic Wild Mushroom Soup to go with the Venison Sausage over Risotto I prepared. So good! And thanks to them, we finished off with fresh grapes and some killer Christmas Fruit Cake. I’m practically in a food coma. It doesn’t hurt having the very tasty cider that Steve & Carrie made. Thanks Steve! It is so much fun and surprisingly easy to make good food with the right ingredients. What’s next?

In other news, my Dad and I have started working on databasing his artwork. It’s my first real experience of studio photography and I think I like it. Unlike shooting nature where the challenge is composition and light, studio shooting is more about getting the technical stuff right. With the right light set up and everything in fixed positions, I can concentrate on learning the subtle differences between f11 and f13 at .5 second. Fascinating stuff! And I get to see many years of my Dad’s work and hear him talk about what they mean to him. I’m looking forward to more tomorrow.

Finally got ‘em done! All the shots of Mexico City are up now.Good times!

Fun Times in Mexico City!

After a slow start (might have had something to do with the moonshine…) we got packed up and said goodbye to the two brothers. Really nice fella’s to host us in their orchard.

After driving up out of the canyon we stopped in a local village at the top to get in one more ride. The day was super hot so we made sure to take lots of water before heading out. Another stunning three hour ride along the canyon rim. Ray stopped part way to get directions from some local kids, and they decided to follow us for a while. They are super agile around the huge cliffs we were riding next to. Ray even climbed out on to a tree to hang his bike for another promo shot. On the way back we basically went bushwhacking, as this was an area Ray wanted to explore for future trips. Found some really interesting lines! Unfortunately Gid found something sharp with his tire too. As we were nearing the end we just pumped it up, rode as far as we could, and pumped it up some more. All the while being paced by little kids on horseback. Cheeky monkeys!

Six hours of amazing single track!

After a day of frustrating and expensive air travel fun (travelling with a heavy bike box isn’t always smooth or cheap) I arrived safely with all my gear in Chihuahua. There was a bit of a snag at the hotel regarding the reservations, but thankfully the concierge got it figured out. Only real hitch was Steve was expected at 1300 and it was 1900 when I got there. No record of Steve checking in or leaving a note. Hmmmm. Anywho, up to my room to put my bike together and grab a shower. Ahhhh. Checking Facebook I saw a post from Steve! Turns out he was in the hotel in another room! Unfortunately his bike didn’t make it with him. We went out to the airport to see if it was there and maybe get Gid. No bike, no Gid. Back to the hotel and Gid was already checked in! Sweet! The bros were all accounted for. A quick burritto from a stand on the street and putting Gid’s ride together and we hit the sack stoked for the next days adventure.

Next morning Ray met us in the hotel restaurant for an early breakfast before loading the van and heading out of Chihuahua for the 3 hour drive to Creel.

Tulum was a very important merchant and religilous port in the Mayan and Aztec system. It also was, and still is, a very beautiful spot. Overlooking a lovely playa and lush with plants I can imagine living very comfortably here in the time of loinclothes and fire. Swimming in the ocean out front was a treat and let me meditate on what it would have been like. I think I like the location at Tulum better, though the buildings and scale at Chichen-itza are greater. Both definitely worth a visit.

Before I forget the details here’s my day at Playa del Carmen.
First impression is of an upscale Isla Mujeres. There are more high-end shops and expensive shite for sale. There is also a beautiful beach where we watched the sunset and had a cerveza while a reggae band played.
The next stop was dinner on a balcony over Fifth Avenue, the main drag. The steak and goat cheese wrapped in bacon was so good. I was planning on having lobster but when the small tail works out to $84 USD I choose prawns instead. Jaz insisted I try a Cucumber Margarita and I’m glad I did.

Isla Mujeres is beautiful, and the nightlife is much more my style. The first thing I got into was a Coco Loco. Take a fresh young coconut, chop the top off with a machete, mix the juice with rum, vodka, gin and tequila, and start the drinking. Yum! And very strong!
After polishing one off Jaz and I rented a waterbike for a half hour. Whee! Surfing in on the waves is fun. We went for a swim in the electric blue sea after and it was very relaxing.
To get to the restuarant up the coast we rented a scooter. That was fun! Just watch out for taxis and other drunk touristas on scooters. The food was underwhelming but watching the drunk American’s antics from under a palm tree on the beach was priceless.
Back on the bike we zipped down to the Punta Sur (South Point) and took a look. On the point is an interesting mix of old Mayan Ruins and a collection of modern sculpture.
We zoomed back to town, but with 45 minutes left on the scooter rental we went for another loop. Wheee!
The sun was setting so we took a couple of cervezas to the beach and waited for Tavo to come over after his work. With three of us reconnected we wandered into the town looking for more drinks and dinner. We found a lovely spot serving two for one drinks and did some people watching for while before heading for the ferry. The mango margaritas are very easy to drink!