After another nice breakfast, we left Aquismon in the rain determined to make it to our next destination. We plotted a route that took us closer to the coast and away from the mountains on a quest to get out of the rain. After 4 hours we managed to see the sun for the first time in days!
The ride today was like a video game ... terrible roads with water, mud, big potholes, hills, donkeys, dogs, buses, cars, people ... all coming at you from everywhere. Also, a very interesting series of towns ... with lots of "topes" ... some visible, some not so much
We stopped for lunch in Tantoyuca ... got our first flat (Charles' KTM) of the trip and we tested our collective patching skills there. After a quick fix and a nice lunch, we then got a bent rim after all of us went through some big potholes hidden in the shade under some trees (Mike's R1200S).
Luckily we found a tire repair place ("vulcanizadora" or "vulka") and we watched how Mexican ingenuity gets things done ... got a welding torch out, heated the aluminum wheel carefully, banged it into submission, put air in the tire ... and it worked! .... wait, there was still a leak ... no problem, some magical goop on the rim and, presto, all fixed.
The last segment of the trip, as we made our way inland from the coast, felt like Switzerland for a while ... tall, steep mountains with a 4 lane highway that connected long tunnels to impossibly tall and long bridges, to more tunnels, and more bridges. No more following the contour of mountains ... just beat nature into submission with high engineering.
Huauchinango is another of Mexico's "Pueblos Magicos" ... a beautiful colonial town at about 4,500ft elevation in between tall mountains. Great central plaza, lots of people and vendors out as usual.
Had dinner, a nice cappuccino, walked around, and went to bed after a long day ... we also got Andy some pedialite and some medicine ... looks like Moctezuma has claimed its first victim.
Tomorrow we ride to Xico ... another "Pueblo Magico" in the mountains.
The ride today was like a video game ... terrible roads with water, mud, big potholes, hills, donkeys, dogs, buses, cars, people ... all coming at you from everywhere. Also, a very interesting series of towns ... with lots of "topes" ... some visible, some not so much
We stopped for lunch in Tantoyuca ... got our first flat (Charles' KTM) of the trip and we tested our collective patching skills there. After a quick fix and a nice lunch, we then got a bent rim after all of us went through some big potholes hidden in the shade under some trees (Mike's R1200S).
Luckily we found a tire repair place ("vulcanizadora" or "vulka") and we watched how Mexican ingenuity gets things done ... got a welding torch out, heated the aluminum wheel carefully, banged it into submission, put air in the tire ... and it worked! .... wait, there was still a leak ... no problem, some magical goop on the rim and, presto, all fixed.
The last segment of the trip, as we made our way inland from the coast, felt like Switzerland for a while ... tall, steep mountains with a 4 lane highway that connected long tunnels to impossibly tall and long bridges, to more tunnels, and more bridges. No more following the contour of mountains ... just beat nature into submission with high engineering.
Huauchinango is another of Mexico's "Pueblos Magicos" ... a beautiful colonial town at about 4,500ft elevation in between tall mountains. Great central plaza, lots of people and vendors out as usual.
Had dinner, a nice cappuccino, walked around, and went to bed after a long day ... we also got Andy some pedialite and some medicine ... looks like Moctezuma has claimed its first victim.
Tomorrow we ride to Xico ... another "Pueblo Magico" in the mountains.
Getting ready to depart into the mountains ... in the rain!
Welcoming committee at our stop for lunch ... after 4 hours in the rain ...
... we also fixed Charles flat here
Ooops!
How many engineers and mechanics does it take to fix a bent wheel? ...
... just one Mexican with a torch and a hammer!
We made it! ... the entrance to town
"Esquites" at the plaza in Huauchinango ... Yum!
After a long ride ... dirt and mud everywhere on everything
Our hotel in Huauchinango
The main plaza at night
A stroll through town
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