We have arrived in Quito, Ecuador. Country number 10 of our travels. JJ is currently in Panama working on a kayak trip and Sean is relaxing on the coast of Ecuador with a friend of his. Simon arrived in Quito yesterday and put his Xtracycle together in his hotel room, much to the annoyance of the management.

Goat, Simon and I are leaving  in a few days to climb Cotopaxi and Chimborazo.

Photos and updates are soon to come.

Cool bike statue in Ecuador.

Christmas gathering roasting up Cuyes, tasty roasted guinea pigs.

I’ve had a bit of time to make some updates. Got around to adding some more photos from the Cricamola River Exploratory to the Panama Photo Gallery. Click the photo above to see the updated gallery.

We think it must have been somewhere near the town of Quimbaya where JJ was bit by a mosquito that carried Dengue Fever. Cycles of fevers and chills swept in and out each day and he knew he had more than just an average flu. A clinic diagnosed him with Dengue and recommended a lot of water and rest while his platelets are restored . Here JJ is trying to get some rest (and raise his platelets) in a park while mobbed by the usual crowd of curious locals.

Waiting behind a sheet of rain draining off the roof of a small tienda were a group of stranded travelers.

“It is far too dangerous to cross right now, please wait for the bulldozer.” Somebody offered, even stepped aside to make room under the shelter.

It was true.  Rocks were continuously tumbling down, some encouraging smaller slides to pile up against the mass of earth slowly taking over the final piece of road.  We waited for about five increasingly uncomfortable minutes; our clothes of course dripping wet, our bike shorts like soggy diapers.  Rocks kept scrambling down the sloppy earth.

Against their wishes I decided to go for it.  I backed around to get some momentum, hoping to get through the slide as quickly as possible.  A path large enough for a motorcycle or bike remained, but was filled with boulders, larger than my head.  Smaller stones sunk below the huge flooded puddle that marked the path to follow.

I watched the rocks sliding down from the very top and started pedaling across, trying to time my entrance as cleanly as possible.  Once in the slide, I could no longer watch the falling rocks, as I had to pay attention to the technical riding in front of me.

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We got the Colombian photo gallery updated with photos from our most recent stretch of riding. Click on the photo below to check them out.

We have arrived in Turbo, Colombia.  Somebody offered to buy our kayaks and so we are now busy building our bikes so we can continue our journey. 

I´m working on a video and a few entries to post.  Until then, I got a bunch of new photos posted check them out.

Our excursion has proven quite the adventure.  Starting in the tranquil clear waters of the San Blas Islands we worked our way into the open ocean without the protective islands and have been staying in indigenous communities along the way.

One morning we were ambushed by a Kuna police squad, complete with a guy in a ski mask and a semi-automatic rifle jumping out of the bushes.   Another day, after a long paddle, Goat and Sean somehow got separated from J and I we lost sight of them before reaching Island Mosquito just after it got dark.    We waited most of the next day for them to show, but saw nothing.  Apparently an airplane was even out searching for us.  Eventually we ran into them at a nearby community.ç

Anyways, the paddling has been exceptionally challenging, but the experience traveling through the Kuna Comarca has been unforgettable.

We have been busy rigging up our kayaks to support our bikes. We have permission to enter the Comarca tomorrow and expect to begin our kayak expedition to Colombia. With up to 500 nautical miles to cover, we’re looking at a good month+ of kayaking and are hoping for calm seas and good weather. There more than likely isn’t any internet access along the coast until we reach Cartagena, but you can follow our progress with our

SPOT Messenger Tracking Page.

Yes.  Any donations/support you can offer makes us about as happy as this dancing skeleton.  We do our best with our dirtbag budget, but with drivetrain replacements/tires/etc, food costs for hungry cyclists and extraneous adventures like paddling kayaks (with our bikes strapped on) to Colombia, we come up short. Any help will be appreciated as we continue our journey into South America.

We’ve been hanging around the Canal Zone, marveling at what a tremendous industrial miracle it truly is.   The crazy things humans do: like making water flow uphill (which is what the canal effectively does); creating a river that flows from sea to sea across a mountain range, which would be an impossible feat without the “locks” that are setup throughout the canal.  

          Locks are surprisingly simple, though pretty darn impressive to watch; basically they are 2 sets of giant double doors which separate one section of the canal from from another, each section is higher than the last – until the mountain is crossed and the canal starts descending (section by section). To change levels and pass through the canal, a ship first enters through one set of the double doors into the lock chamber (the section of canal between the doors) where the doors close, sealing the ship off in a little section of the canal.  Water rushes in and the level of the water in the lock rises (the ship with it) until it is even with the next section of canal. At this point the second set of doors open and the ship moves along the canal until it reaches the next lock. Going down simply reverses the process: the ship enters the full lock, the doors close, water is let out until the ship reaches the level of the lower canal, the second set of doors open….

 Here a few facts for the trivia buffs:

The most expensive regular toll for canal passage to date was charged on May 16th, 2008 to the 964-foot (295 m) Disney Magic Cruise Liner, which paid just over US$331,200.

The adventurer Richard Halliburton paid the lowest toll, 36 cents to swim the canal in 1928.  (No one else has ever been allowed to swim the entire canal; it’s apparently too dangerous).

The average transit takes 8 to 10 hours.

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    While entertaining the notion of getting on a bridge over the Panama Canal to take photos, the police drove by eyeing me suspiciously.  Their expressions encouraged me to look elsewhere.  Further down was a gated entrance to an overgrown patch of land with some abandoned houses. 

     I lifted the heavy chain and guided my bike into the old road, covered with jungle vines and grass, put the bike into a lower gear and pedaled up a steep grade.  As I wound around a bend, I began to feel that eerie sensation that I was not alone. 

     I soon came upon one of the abandoned houses and felt dozens of eyes watching me from the bushes.  I could see movement all around me as if the plants were a bit more terrestrial than I would like.  Something was definitely out there, watching me.

     “Hola” I yelled out, cupping my hands over my mouth to carry the message.

“Buenas Tarrrrddddeeess.” I called out.

      Nothing.

   “Buenos Tardes.”  I called out again, looking around for any sign of el dueno de la casa, y nada. I jumped at the sound of two animals crashing  through the foliage just a stone’s throw away.

      Then out of the house and from the bushes, the eyes that had been following me ran out in front.

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I was recently sent an email asking for me to help find some cyclists pedaling across the Americas starting next May.  Anybody heading south next year should look into this:

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Going South 
cycling through the Americas
deepeei film productions is looking for adventure cyclist who will cycle in the North or South America’s

Our climate is changing; these indications are measured in all parts of the world. Inconvenient messages are spread by scientists, common and famous people. The television series Going South is about meeting inspiring people and search for the challenge of our generation; to fight climate change. We cross the continents in search of eye opening idea’s and breathtaking initiatives taken by businesses, Non-governmental organizations and individual people in our society.

The goal of Going South: To create participation of global citizens in the invention and implementation of solutions for a more sustainable life. 

In a 13 episode documentary series for international television we discover the world of innovative and inspiring initiatives for a more sustainable life. 

In the series we travel from Alaska to Chile following the Pan- Americana trail. Two separate cycling expeditions are making an 8th months travel on the continents. These teams are filming their adventures on the road, record the amazing environment/scenery  and interview the locals about their climate expectations. They share their trip of a lifetime, the expedition, camping/sleeping, cooking and lot’s of cycling with the rest of the world.

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While in Costa Rica, Al Jazeerah English filmed us riding in the mountains near the Capitol, San Jose and interviewed us about our journey so far.  They plan to do a program about Riding the Spine.  We will keep you posted.

Had to share this video I saw on the Surly blog today. We’ve always dreamed of getting those Alpacka Rafts, backpacker friendly rafts that are super lightweight and packable. These guys are incredible!

Check out more at EPIC and an account of their trip on a forum post HERE

Untitled from Eric Parsons on Vimeo.

The trip is going to resume September 16th. We have been doing our best to earn money to get back on the trip. Though we are all far from any kind of reasonable sum to embark on an adventure spanning all of South America, it is still time get back on our bikes.

Although it was a difficult decision to take a hiatus from the trip, the empty bank accounts helped convince us. Our vision certainly did not include having to travel through time and space via airplanes during the middle of our journey to find employment. However, without commercial sponsorship or parents with deep pockets, we have had to alter our vision to include reality, which sometimes means working. I taught a summer school class and did freelance work on websites, Sean drove a tour bus in San Francisco and Sonoma, and Goat worked as a handyman of sorts.

Overall, It’s been great reconnecting with all the people I had not seen since I started in Alaska. I got to spend time with family and friends, including my niece Aubrey who I got to see for the first time. And now, with a renewed sense of spirit and adventure, I am looking forward to completing this epic journey with the others.

Rumors have it that there might be a total of five beginning this next stretch, more to come on that later.