Discussion in 'Ride Reports - Day Trippin'' started by trespalacios, Jan 30, 2019.
I somehow managed to convince a group of friends to go ride dirt bikes in my native Colombia. My initial contact was with @Chio_Dakar (Chilo_Dakar), who represented Colombia in the ISDE and had 2 finishes in the Dakar Rally. He sent me a written, all-inclusive proposal for a tour of 4 riding days with a rest day in the middle.
Since we Colombians are a bit sensitive about the misspelling of the Motherland's name, I'll get this out of the way: IT'S COLOMBIA, NOT COLUMBIA!!!
Some of us flew out of Charlotte, NC and a few others flew out of Greenville, SC. We met in Miami for a direct flight to Pereira, COL.
The flight was fairly uneventful except for James' gear bag that stayed behind.
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Are we going back up that hill?
After breakfast we packed up and headed to Toro, Valle.
The first trail struck me as very different from what we usually ride. Steep, open, rutted. Livestock trails.
After that, it was time to attack another mountain. One of our companions wisely decided he had already had too much fun and went back to town guided by Kini.
And then to the hotel Chilo had reserved for us. What a day!!!
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Awesome! That looks like an incredible place to ride. I love technical single track, spend a lot of time in the Oregon coastal range on my 2-stroke.
Great pics, though some aren’t showing up.
Thanks. It is indeed a magical place to ride. The terrain, the weather, the people and the culture.
Early in the morning I had the opportunity to appreciate the place where we stayed. I was soo tired the night before that I just went straight to bed.
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Rest day. Trip to the Hot Springs of Santa Rosa de Cabal.
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We peeled off the road and went into this wet, rutted singletrack. After suffering there for a bit we got to town.
At this point I said goodbye to the group. They stayed in Salento a couple nights before traveling back to the States on Sunday. I went back to Chilo's house and next day I did some more traveling in Colombia.
I want to take the opportunity to thank @Chio_Dakar, Kini and Felipe for their expertise and help on the trails. I also want to thank Chilo's wife Maria Claudia and her mother Donia Martha. Their hospitality made me feel like part of the family.
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I'm drinking my coffee out of a bowl this morning.
Great report and great photos. Some really gnarly terrain! Did you guys hike Cocora Valley outside Salento?
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muy bacano!! was it a guided tour? or just moto rentals?
I am planning a trip around Colombia with a friend I am trying to figure out if renting or buying bikes there (soy paisa).
Yo también soy paisa. I think it depends on what you’re looking to do. For street riding I’d rent a bike and go on my own. For enduro there’s a lot of logistics to work out so this was an all inclusive guided tour.