Pedro and Maria Motorcycle South America!: Cuenca to Catacocha, Ecuador, 200 miles

We woke up to the alarm as we wanted to hit the road at a decent hour in hopes of getting as close as possible to the Peruvian border. The alarm is the last thing I wanted to hear as the movie the night before kept us up late and the bed couldn’t have been more comfortable.

We packed up and were on the road by 8:30. Surprisingly the town was fairly easy to find your way out of, a first. As soon as we headed out of the city we were back in the gorgeous Ecuadorian countryside. The landscape was full of little farms, Ecuadorian farmers and cattle. It was very peaceful and something you would see in a painting on someone’s living room wall. The houses here are all made of big mud bricks, and it seemed that these farmers were doing quite well for themselves. You can easily spot the woman as they continue to wear their bright (pinkish red) shawls and ‘top hats’ while in the fields with their sheep or cows.

The road started off pretty decent, but as we continued through, up and over the mountains, it began to have many big potholes. The scary thing is the road other than the potholes was in great condition, which allowed us to drive faster, but around each corner there was easily a giant pot hole in our path. It made me a little stressed as I kept envisioning taking a corner and running across something that which kick out tires out and make us crash.

A little after noon we made it to the last big city before Peru, Loja. Our plan was to eat some lunch and make the decision to either stay there for the night or press on. We found a little local restaurant which served a full meal for $1.25 each. The soup was a little scary, so I passed (especially considering they like to eat Guinne Pigs here…therefore I don’t like to trust mystery meat), but the chicken and rice were quite nice. There were plenty of locals in there and we were quite the spectacle with all our gear and giant bikes parked out front.

We decided to press on and get closer to the border, either stopping at Catacocha or at the border town if time permits. The road from there got better, but we hit some drizzle. Nothing bad, in fact it was quite nice as it brought us into some very thick fog at one of the mountain peaks. It was so thick that you could barely see the car in front of you… At a slow speed, it was magical.

Once we hit the road to Catacocha we all made the decision to stay instead of heading into the dark clouds for another couple of hours. The town resides on top of a hill. We had to drive up the side to get into the center of the town. This town definitely doesn’t see many tourists. It looks like something out of an old western. Tons of people walking about, old men lining the porches just sitting, all day, everyday. Plenty of stores, but not a lot of options for the tourist. We didn’t even think there was a motel, but after Mike asked some Senors, they sent their kid to walk Mike around town to the hotels. We discovered what I would call a gem for a town like this. Simple room with that terrifying water heater that plugs in above the shower head, but very clean; $12 bucks. You want food? You don’t have many options. We walked the entire center and only discovered one place we could get food, which was some sort of chicken meat torte pie thing; dry and not very tasty. In a town like this, they don’t see tourists often, so we are quite the spectacle walking around; you get the feeling that everyone is staring.

The road today was very tiring for me, so I’m looking forward to an early night to sleep. Tomorrow we have about a couple of hours until the Peruvian border. Our last night in Ecuador, it’s treated us well.

Adios Cuenca! We will miss you!!!