Valle de los Cirios
Cirios y cardones
November 2nd is el Dia de los Muertos, All Saints' Day. There is not a lot of celebrations in this part of Mexico, but flowers were everywhere in the village and on the tombs along the road — there are many of them. I went for a coffee along the road and talked a bit with a couple from Tijuana. They were in their 40s, and wondered what I was doing here with my bicycle. After I explained them that it was my house, they invited me for coffee, and as they were walking off, I heard them talking: "Imagine we buy two bicycles ..."
As I was entering the Valle de los Cirios, the weather was getting hotter and the air drier. At one point I got afraid of running low on water and stopped near a group of trucks to ask for a water refill and have a chat. We laughed when we realised that when each of their truck needs about one liter of gasoline to do 4 kilometers, I use a bit less than half a liter to cook for a week.
One trucker told me: "Your friend is not far ahead". My friend?! A few kilometers later I spotted a touring bike outside a small restaurant and met Dominic, a cyclist from UK, inside. Dominic had been touring in the States for several months already, and he was making his way to Mexico City.
Cafe Heliken, next to Guayaquil
The wind was strong that day, and blowing from the front. Even going down felt like climbing. But the landscape was gorgeous, a desert full of massive cardon cacti and strange cirios trees, which can only be found in this valley.
After about 70 kilometers, we stopped for shelter in the lovely Cafe Heliken where we met Moises, Abraham, and their mum who runs the café and takes care of the truckers who often stop by for a coffee and a nap. I had a great time chatting with Moises and Abraham, and we exchanged our contacts.
Éric, Gaélle, Tiago, and Lilou
The next morning, I celebrated my first 1000 km on my bicycle, crossed an impressive field of boulders before Cataviña, which looked like a paradise for climbing, cycled on gravels for several kilometers encouraged by the road workers, and slept with fishermen in Villa Jesus Maria, who invited me for some delicious squid ceviche at breakfast.
I had gone a bit faster than Dominic, but soon I heard of more "friends" ahead of me, and this time, a whole family! Just after entering the State of Baja California Sur and adding one hour to my clock, I met Gaélle, Éric, Tiago and Lilou. Cycling alone in the desert is one thing, but cycling around the globe for 14 months with two young kid is another one!
We had a chat for a few minutes before I decided to keep going. I told the family I would see them later in La Paz. It was a windy day, and this time the wind was helping a lot. That evening I reached the village of San Ignacio at dusk, after 180 km, my longest day so far.