Steep and Steeper

We opted for a ride in a camioneta back to Lanquin - no need to suffer through the same stretch of road twice! While only 30 minutes, the ride up and down the steep hills while holding our bikes up in the back of the truck blasting at full speed through the mountainous terrain was still a full body workout. After stocking up on fruit and lunch supplies we headed out of Lanquin to tackle the last 12 km of steep gravel climbing to the main highway to Cobán. Again, the road grade defied gravity, and the heat at 9:30 am was suffocating. We alternated between 1.5 km 'sprints' at snails pace and 15 minute breaks in the shade, getting passed by a steady trickle of buses and trucks. Three hours later we reached the asphalt, exhausted and in serious need of water and carbs. With a smoother road we quickly discovered that the bearings in Holly's back wheel were loose. We finger tightened the wheel, then made tracks to Cobán, hoping to find a bike shop before the end of the day. We had 50 km to go to reach Cobán, and enjoyed even the relaxed uphills along the pavement, but more so the flowy downhill stretches. Once in town we met back up with Francois and Helene at the bomberos, then Holly headed to the Cycling Bike Shop, where Axel repacked the hub and cleaned the entire drive train, on the house (after she insisted on paying something, owner Jose accepted 30 QZ, or ~$5 CAD, for the hour and a half of work!).Read more