Santa Fe, NM - USA

Well, the idea to get aboard a yacht and sail around the Caribbean didn't pan out as it was hurricane season and most of the cruising yachts had either sailed north or were moored up for the rough weather season. So I boarded a flight from Cartagena, Colombia to Santa Fe, USA where my brother and his family live. It was good to see some familiar faces again and hang out in a house but we all got sick the first day I arrived so it made for an interesting few days!! After we got over that it was straight down to immersing myself into the US culture and way of life!! What better place to start than a gun range!! Armed with a 357 Magnum and another hand gun we proceeded to blow away the 'bad guys' with the other freaks at the range which was hilarious but a little scary.
As it is the busy season for my brother's painting business I have ended up working a few days for him as a master painter! The only problem is I can't really paint so have been of limited help but it has been heaps of fun hanging out with the boys and enjoy a beer after a hard days work under the hot Santa Fe sun. In between the work we have managed to get in some great mountain biking and a couple of short road rides as well but despite all of this I have managed to put on weight from all the US food and beer!
Anyways, the plan from here is I fly to Bangkok on Saturday and after about a month of chilling out and doing some small trips plus catching up with a couple of friends I will finally get back on the now newly serviced bike and cycle around South East Asia then, with all things going well into Central Asia. Countries and dates haven't been decided apart of a loose plan of attack but it should work itself out as I go. Hopefully you will follow my new journey with interest and I'm sure this will be just as big an adventure as the South American leg. In the mean time check out the new photos under the Santa Fe file!!

Medellin to Cartagena

Leaving Medellin and heading to my final destination of Cartagena felt good but the road soon turned into hard mountains again and the riding become extremely difficult. After a long day but with only completing about 80km it was getting late so we stopped in another small but cool Colombian town for the night. The next day we were up early and it was to be my last day riding in the Andes mountain range which I had followed on and off for most of my trip before the road went downhill for a good 50km into the Colombian lowlands. The temperatures increased dramatically and so did the scenery from the typical highland landscapes to a steaming hot tropical environment. The riding didn't seem to get any easier on the lowlands though as it was rolling hills and super hot so the intake of water increased to ridiculous levels as it was sweated out so fast. The instant change of scenery was great and you know you were in the tropics when the road kill changed to snakes, frogs and bats!! It was then another three days of hard riding where we clocked up some large kms in the attempt to reach Cartagena before the weekend. Then on Saturday 31st May right in the middle of the day I rolled into town completely exhausted but stoked to have completed my South American cycling journey. 5 months, 5 countries, lots of hard riding, loads of amazing people, heaps of fun and over 8600kms (all on my trusty bike) sure made for one incredible trip.
Well, where to from here?? I'll have a couple of days relaxing in Cartagena while trying to find a yacht I can crew on to sail through the Caribbean and hopefully up into the US. Then all going well I will head over to South East Asia and get back on the bike for more cycling adventures.
Thanks heaps for all the comments and support as they were always appreciated and it made some of the lonelier moments all the easier! I'll definitely keep the blog going for the coming adventures.......Reevesy-Ryder

Riding Stats
> 27th May - 83km
> 28th May - 143km
> 29th May - 147km
> 30th May - 159km
> 31st May - 112km

Total - 8618km