With only a few hundred miles to go, I couldn't resist getting lost in the mountains one last time. I knew this ride was going to be tough, but it turns out I could do a lot more than I thought.

On my way up, I follow a road that looks more like a river going downstream. I beat the current and keep pedaling. Luckily I have two wheels and can keep driving instead of dismounting and continuing on foot. The reason I travel with a bicycle is therefore not that difficult to think of. I am fast, agile and can fully enjoy the open landscape in which I find myself.

During my ride I drive over one of the most iconic stretches of the Trans Ecuador. It is a 'bridge' that actually serves as a canal. A fantastic part of my journey. But where it was nice and easy to cycle over the bridge, it became a bit more difficult later on. The road surface is by definition not very difficult, but the relatively large loose rocks make it difficult to maintain speed.

Catacachi-caypas ecological reserve

In the Catacachi-caypas ecological reserve – a national park – the terrain is just too difficult for me to drive through. The grass is almost as high as my bike and driving is unfortunately impossible here. If I could do my trip over again, I would definitely skip this northern part. The percentage of this tall grass is way too high and all the work is unfortunately not worth it.

Night falls and I realize I have a problem. First, I'm still walking in a ditch and can't pitch my tent here. Second, I realize that I am out of food. I always have one extra day of food with me, but that extra day… that was yesterday. Third, I have no water and I have not seen a river in the past 4 to 5 hours. While walking further in the dark, it is time to set up camp. Only a flat surface here is not very easy to find. Fortunately, during my search I find a small stream with water! And once I set up my tent and went to see what I had left of food, some sort of meal came out.

El Angel Ecological Reserve

As I expected, the next few days I come across fantastic things. The view continues to amaze me and there is something unique to see everywhere. It seems like a completely new world I find myself in. There are plants that I have never seen before in my life in the world.

Colombia

In the end, my mission was accomplished. I'm in Colombia! The first thing that strikes me is that I get stared at a lot. That could be for a number of reasons. The first is because I'm quite tall by their standards, the second is because I might have some dirt on my face and the third is because they can smell me from a mile away… because I haven't been able to shower in three days. .

I continue my route to Colombia's Death Road. I heard it's a rough road, but also beautiful and worth the drive. I'll have to find out for myself. There are very few places where you can camp in Colombia, so I decided to go on a hiking trail and set up my tent there. No problem I thought… until two men in uniform woke me up at 5:30 am and told me this is the walking path from the military base. oops. So time to go! If you watch the video and see what image I wake up with the next day, you will understand what I mean.

After a while I'll be there anyway. Welcome to Death Road! A mountain road full of loose stones and hairpin bends. According to statistics, it is the most dangerous road in the country. All in all, it is ultimately not too bad with the road surface. It is well broken in and there are guard rails on the side of the road, in case things go wrong.

I'm cycling with Mika from France, he was backpacking in Colombia, but finally decided to travel with the bike he bought for only $50. This is proof that it is not necessary to buy a very luxurious bicycle, such as the one I have. The difference is that he is five weeks on the road and I two years. But it's not about the money. For his (total spent) amount of 75 dollars, Mika has the same travel experience as I have on a bicycle of thousands of dollars. Maybe also something for you to travel by bike?