There continues to be a lot going on around here, much of it bicycle related. We had a great young Polish couple stay with us for a couple nights, and it was so interesting to hear about their experiences and life on the road. They only go back to work to save enough for another trip, and have spent most of their adult lives on the road mainly in Europe, North, Central, South America, and the Caribbean Islands.

The bikes sit in front of their “home” while they are here. They have spent so many nights in their tent that it does indeed feel like home to them, and they said they slept wonderfully.

We cooked one night, and they treated us to this great dinner the other night – home made pizza and salad.

He is packed and ready to go again, except the for guitar which gets strapped behind the seat.

She has covers on her panniers to keep them cleaner, just a personal preference thing.

Packed up and ready to roll!

Our other cyclist friend Jérémy convinced me that I could actually bike from David to Boquete, so that was our objective on Friday. We got off to a great start! I not only made it up the hill to Los Algarrobos, but also the hill coming up to Dolega! That was a first for me. As we continued on up the constant incline, the winds got stronger with each mile. That’s hard work!

We took some rest breaks and I had my first carrot and peanut butter sandwich (which really is quite good). Jérémy kept encouraging me as we biked on, but eventually I was too tired and the winds were so strong it was hard to even walk against them. I was only 3-5 miles from my goal of the tourist center right before you go down into Boquete proper, but it just wasn’t going to happen that day. I was disappointed but also thrilled that I had gone much farther than I ever had before.

The trip down sure was something! When I faced downhill I was afraid to get on my bike with those strong wind pushing me from behind but Jérémy reassured me that it would all work out, and followed well behind just in case. It was a thrilling ride for sure! And, it did all work out. We zoomed down about 40 mph until we reached lower altitudes and the winds calmed, and then we coasted the rest of the way home. We worked for 4 hours to get as far up as we did, and the trip home only took 1 hour.

The scenery along the ride was spectacular!

The clouds looked beautiful and interesting over the distant mountains.

Misty, distant mountains

Jérémy, my always patient and kind biking partner, waits for me to catch up.

Whew! OK, no more. We made it this far.

Selfie at the turn around point.

I really think that if I try it again on a day that isn’t windy I can make it. I know Jérémy is waiting for an email with photo of me and my bike in front of the tourist center, so I will be working on it. He has been here for a more extended stay while waiting to meet his family in Costa Rica and it has been wonderful! He has been so kind and patient – teaching me, working on my bike, riding with me, encouraging me, checking my packing list, and doing anything he can to help me with my travel goals. I never would have made it that far towards Boquete by myself.  He has been equally kind to Cedo (he’s staying at her house) and she is happy as can be to have such a great guy to help her out and keep her company.

I’m happy that after Jérémy’s time in Costa Rica, he and a couple friends will be coming back through here so I’ll see him again before he heads to South America. Check out his blog HERE – http://attrapemaroue.com/  He has news and a lot of great photos, and a really cool map of his route both where he has been and where he plans to go.

This was only the beginning of a very interesting weekend so stay tuned. Other news and photos will be coming soon.