Colombia Motorcycle Adventure Log: Day 6

It was dark when we woke, stumbling out of bed before 6am. I nudged Hailey, who stirred and grumbled about not wanting to go to school before returning to her dream. "Pre-teens," I thought aloud. Micho Laughed. "Is she always this hard to wake up?" At 34, Micho is a businessman constantly on the move. Upon arrival in Bogota we had met his live-in girlfriend of 4 years; but I would bet the thought of marriage and kids has rarely entered his mind. His motorcycle tour company would be filling that role, at least for now. Still, I was impressed at how well he got along with Hailey, going out of his way to make her feel welcome in his country. Surely no one as young as she had ever been on one of his tours.

I collected gear and walked toward the door to pack it on the bike. When the door opened I was shocked to find the sun high in the sky, long since cresting the mountains. I blinked against the contrast, still accustomed to the darkened room I had left. I returned to find my sleepy-eyed daughter, rubbing an open palm against her forehead and hair. "Up-Up-Up," I said. "We leave in 20 minutes." We had 40 minutes, but she didn't need to know that.

Clothed and fed, we climbed on our bikes and aligned for departure. It was cold, just above freezing. "It will get colder," Micho said. "We will climb another 2,000 feet before we crest the mountain, and it looks like there will be cloud cover. Maybe rain." We moved East, chasing the sun as it ducked behind the clouds. The dirt roads were rocky, the terrain drifting against our tires as we followed the switchbacks upward. Ahead, a cloud of strange color and shape appeared on the horizon. Micho pointed at the cloud. "That's Nevado del Ruiz, its an active volcano. It's what heats the spring fed water at the Lodge."

We stopped for photos, trekking through a small basin while Micho repaired a puncture in my rear tire. "Dad! Check it out!" I looked to see Hailey holding up a sheet of ice. "All the water is frozen!" I lifted my camera, taking photos before reaching out and flicking the fragile sculpture. It shattered, Hailey offering an indignant glare before tossing a chunk at me and finding another. Soon I was hopping and running as sheets of ice shattered at my feet.

We mounted the bike again, winded from exertion in the low oxygen, 15,000-foot environment. We began our decent, stopping to marvel at the incredible mountains and valley views. "We will be off the mountain soon," Micho said over the Comm. "It will get hot very soon." He was right. In minutes the air changed from frigid 30's to humid 90's. We stopped, hastily removing cold weather gear as Micho picked fresh berries from a coffee tree. We nibbled the sweet fruit, exposing the coffee seeds wreathed in a slick white cocoon. "When the berries are dried, the soft shell will come off," Micho explained. "Then another shell will come off when they are roasted, and you have a coffee bean!"

By lunchtime we were in the Magdalena Valley, but decided it was too hot to eat. Instead we hastily traversed the valley floor, crossing the Magdalena river and climbing the Eastern Mountain Range toward Bogota. The roads were a fantastic combination of remote twisties and views, too far removed from civilization to be of interest to more than a handful of vehicles. But as we neared Bogota, the traffic increased.

Our comms perpetually open, Micho called out obstacle after obstacle. "Car... speed bump... stray dog... horse... truck... another car..." This was one area where having a guide was so important. The Locals did not follow the same driving rules I was accustomed to in the States, choosing their path from left, right or center road as they pleased. It was somehow safe, so long as one remained alert. Having Micho in the lead, on comm and pointing out obstacles, meant the difference between an exciting experience and something far more dangerous. His diligence had inspired me to nickname him "Canary," referring to those once used to warn miners of toxic gas buildup.

We crested the mountains and descended, Bogotá a growing presence in the valley below. As if to offer a final challenge, rain began to fall as we entered the city streets. The next hour was a blur of intense lane splitting and downpour, as I struggled to keep Micho in sight through a visor blurred by rain. When we reached Elephant Motorcycle Tour Headquarters, I was exhausted.

We changed and packed our gear, hastening our efforts so that we could get to our hotel and sleep. tomorrow would be an early day; we needed to be at the airport by 2am, which left only a few hours to rest. Once in the hotel lobby, we said our goodbyes to Micho. It was hard to do, especially for Hailey. She had warmed to Micho in rare form over the past few days, and knew she would not seem him soon, if ever. "I'll be back," I assured him. "And maybe bring some American and European friends with me."

"More of you??" He joked. "Perish the thought!"

Hailey and I celebrated the trip with our favorite cuisine, of Miso Soup and Sushi, topping it off with too many selections from the dessert menu. "That was soooo cool," Hailey said between mouthfuls of chocolate mousse. "I am so glad we did this. Can we come back again??"

"Maybe. Or maybe you'll bring your kids here someday."

Colombia is unlike any place I have ever visited. Like a storybook, the lushness and untouched beauty are stunning beyond equal. The people of Colombia are very kind, if not a little shy and perhaps weary of visitors. Indeed there are many scars the country bears from years of conflict. But they are recovering, and their infrastructure and attitudes are improving with the change. As a father, I see this as the grandest adventure my daughter and I have ever embarked upon. The connection we had going in to this trip was strong, but grew in these short days to a level beyond measure. I feel like I know Hailey in a way foreign to me only weeks ago. In this way the value to the trip is incalculable.

I intend to return someday, teaming with Micho and leading a group of Adventure riders to explore the region. And someday I hope to sit and read of Hailey, and the adventure she will lead with her children to Colombia and beyond.