After seven months working in Cuenca, Ecuador, it was time to hit the road. I was about to embark on a cycling trip across the Andes – something I had dreamed of for a long time. Anyone who’s ever attempted to cycle in Ecuador would agree that the landscape is comparable to a giant rollercoaster - especially the Sierra, the Andean region.
Until I found my rhythm, the first days of the trip were fairly arduous. Riding uphill for half the day and riding downhill the other half. With the passing of kilometers, beautiful landscapes of páramo – typical Andean ecosystems above 3500m – created an incredible environment. Even though it is May (and so dry season), I am getting soaked every day! However, I rarely had to camp at night. At dusk, I usually asked the locals for shelter and often ended up staying at a firefighter’s place, police station or a local farm. This is one of the aspects that best define Andeans: hospitable. Soon I entered the Amazon region of Southern Ecuador, Vilcabamba, also known as the "Valley of Longevity". From here on the road disappeared and it became a mixture of soil, mud and stones. For 200km I battled the muddy roads and clamber over several landslides to make it to the border with Peru. Bureaucracy is a formality. Passport. Stamp. Change Dollars to Pesos and "Bienvenidos a Peru".
Peru is a poorer and cheaper country compared to Ecuador. San Ignacio is a rural province of northern Peru specialized in coffee production. I stopped at a small store to buy cookies. The owners, three women in their forties, propositioned me: "Young guy, you stay here with us to help with the coffee production, and we give you a good girl". I told them that I still have a long way to go, but promise that I will bear it in mind if I’m ever back in the region. The north of Peru, unknown and untouched by tourism, is a region with hostile landscapes and full of rural, friendly people. This part of the Peruvian Amazon is characterised by numerous rice fields that surround Marañon river.
I continued my ride and eventually reached Jaen. I’d been told about the conflicts in the area, also of several robberies recently. My odometer displays 120 km and my head was boiling after 7 hours travelling in the 40 degree heat. Before entering Jaen I encountered three armed guys fitted with vests emblazoned with "national security". I was stopped and told to stay in a corner, that they had to ask some questions. Immediately I got suspicious, they were not wearing ID badges or police uniforms. In a moment of distraction, I daringly escaped, and frantically raced away from them! Only later did I discover that they were a brigade of volunteers who ensure safety in the area.