Lobsters to Llamas, Maritimes to Argentina

[RhodeHazard]

Wow! great ride RR!

Rode NB last fall and was amazed at the amount of undeveloped land up there. Now to point my bike south...

[Kedgi]

Originally Posted by RhodeHazard

Wow! great ride RR!

Rode NB last fall and was amazed at the amount of undeveloped land up there. Now to point my bike south...

New Brunswick is a beautiful place. They used to call us "The Picture Province"

The ride up the old road that follows the St. John River Valley is a great ride. Stop in at all the old government wharves and ride on the little cable ferries for some magnificent scenery.

The Bay of Fundy with the world's highest tides is amazing.

NB's North Shore with miles and miles of sandy beaches and warm salt water is a great place to hang out. They say the north shore of NB has the warmest salt water, north of the Carolinas.

The New Fundy Trail road in St Martin's NB offers spectacular views of the Bay

You're right NB has a lot of undeveloped land. Great parks and camping, wonderful rivers for canoeing.

NB has a lot to offer an ADVrider in miles of back roads and woods roads.

I'm just scratching the surface of what NB has to offer.

The NB Dual Sport Riders can be found online and can tell you a lot more.

Glad you're enjoying the report

Kedgi

[Kedgi]

Well, I woke up early this morning, as always, with plans to head to the coast. I was surprised to find it was raining. It's the first rain I have really encountered since New York. I don't think it will rain all day. Even though it is rainy season here they don't get much rain and what comes, usually comes at night.

I also figured out it's Friday. I think I will stick around one more day in Quito and then find my way out of the city on a Saturday morning when hopefully there isn't as much traffic.

It looks like a two day ride to Montanita. It's just over 700kms.

In the meantime I have some great photos to share that Franki took over the last few days of riding together. I really enjoyed my time with Franki, Tony and Steve.

[Kedgi]

Riding with Franki, Steve and Tony was great. We share a lot of the same interests and every time we stopped we had enjoyable conversations.

Franki is a very interesting guy who has ridden most of the world. He has some excellent pictures posted here on ADVrider of his ride through China. He's a talented photographer.

Franki doesn't waste any time in traffic. It seems he can pass anywhere. He would be ahead of me and then I would come around a corner and he'd be there with his nice Canon camera and a telephoto lens to snap my picture

Franki has sent me these next 6 photos and they are his work. I want to give him full credit for the photos and his talent in taking pictures.








At the top of the pass just north of Pasto Colombia near dusk.





My buddy Iggy who did the TLH with me taught me this pose





This place, in this fading light, felt like the top of the world





Tony and me, after reaching the equator, were tired. Altitude seemed to effect us, both lifetime sea level dwellers, more than the others





Thanks Franki for allowing me to share these great photos with my readers

[LethPhaos]

You seem to have lost a lot of weight, I'll send some burger money your way :)

[Digasi]

Wow, great ride report. I will have to continue to follow along.

[klr_couple]

Originally Posted by Kedgi

New Brunswick is a beautiful place. They used to call us "The Picture Province"

The ride up the old road that follows the St. John River Valley is a great ride. Stop in at all the old government wharves and ride on the little cable ferries for some magnificent scenery.

The Bay of Fundy with the world's highest tides is amazing.

NB's North Shore with miles and miles of sandy beaches and warm salt water is a great place to hang out. They say the north shore of NB has the warmest salt water, north of the Carolinas.

The New Fundy Trail road in St Martin's NB offers spectacular views of the Bay

You're right NB has a lot of undeveloped land. Great parks and camping, wonderful rivers for canoeing.

NB has a lot to offer an ADVrider in miles of back roads and woods roads.

I'm just scratching the surface of what NB has to offer.

The NB Dual Sport Riders can be found online and can tell you a lot more.

Glad you're enjoying the report

Kedgi

We can attest to the river valley and riding along the Saint John river, we live just a few Kms below the Evandale ferry, these are great for getting you hopping from one river area to another makes for nice days of exploring all the back roads and secondary roads we have in this neck of the woods..... AWESOME RR Kedgi, keep up the great work, and travel safe.
Cheers mate

[Kedgi]

Originally Posted by LethPhaos

You seem to have lost a lot of weight, I'll send some burger money your way :)

Got your contribution, thanks so much!

I think I've lost about 15 pounds.

My own fault. I'm just a fussy eater and I don't eat down here unless I see something I really like or I have to. The big cities are great KFC and McDonalds.

I hardly ever go to either at home but at least when i go here I know I won't get fish with eyes

You have reminded me, now that Stephs ride is complete I must post my PayPal link again for those readers that would like to buy me a beer or would like to contribute something for the entertainment they get from reading this report.

Thanks again

Dwight

(Kedgi)........................................... ..


Which makes me think of a funny story.....Steve was somewhere the other day and was indentified on the street as the guy riding with Kedgi....What a laugh. Steve's first response was..."Who the fuck's Kedgi" he didn't know it was my handle on ADVrider!



db

[Kedgi]

Like. I mentioned this morning I got up early and it was raining and cool. I ruled out leaving Quito. I paid the Bambu for another night. Then of course over the next few hours it cleared up, Bryce left and Dylan was getting ready to leave and I said to Dylan I kind of regret deciding to stay. It's a nice day for a ride now. it was 10:30.

Dylan figured I could get a refund if I checked out by 11:00. I tried but got nowhere because of the language barrier. Dylan's Spanish is pretty good and he explained to the girl at the desk I had decided to leave, only because the weather had improved and she reluctantly gave me a refund. I owe Dylan a beer.

Those guys headed for the mountains and i headed to the beach. the ride out of Quito was exciting. Lots of construction and detours but I blasted around tons of trucks and smelly buses and made it through.

When I rode over the mountains it was cold and very foggy and that slowed me down. I had to change into cold weather rain gear at a gas station on the way up the pass

I made it as far as Pedro Carbo tonight. I rode a bit in the dark, a no no, but the roads were very good and the traffic light.

Then it started to pour tropical rain. Buckets! I asked in a small town, just down he road for a hotel. None to be had in that town but a guy on the street,or actually watching the rain from under his awning said there was a hotel 14 kms down the road.

I found it. The Hotel Orlando. the owner, Orlando is a great guy with very good English, a real surprise for where I am. In the middle of nowhere tropical jungle. Orlando and I had a great chat and I took a room for $16 complete with private bath, fan, TV and a/c. Orlando let me park the bike in his TV room. It's about 30C here tonight and very humid! Love it!

Not many ADVriders come this way. the first question I got asked by Orlando and his buddies was "Are you on TV?" Cute!

I sat on the Hotel's front porch and i had three local beers, "Club" They are light beers like a Miller. I watched the traffic roll through town. Then I went to my room and wrote this update. So you are truly up to date. I never ate here but the food looked really good. Somewhere in the jungle today in a non descript town I saw a KFC. Mega Burger it was for me! It was good!

I am about 100 to 120 k from Montanita where I think I will hang out and study Spanish for a while. I am tired of not being able to ask simple questions like "Is there a Hotel in town?" Or how many kilometers to Montanita? Got to fix that!

Kedgi

[Smithee]

Originally Posted by Kedgi

I am about 100 to 120 k from Montanita where I think I will hang out and study Spanish for a while. I am tired of not being able to ask simple questions like "Is there a Hotel in town?" Or how many kilos to Montanita? Got to fix that!

Kedgi

Dwight, can't tell you how much I miss the Centro American weather, and now here you are in Ecuador. I'm caught up on your RR and am reading Paul's as well (he's in Colombia at the moment). Makes me really, really want to be there, on the road.

Having just been in Costa Rica and occasionally feeling like a dunce (I wished a clerk in the Auto Mercado "good afternoon" in the morning, and really struck out when I hadn't gotten a price tag at the bakery section before going to the checkout with my pastries) I realized I need to get going with the Spanish and get beyond "donde esta el banoI and "muchas gracias." I picked up Rosetta Stone Latin America Spanish a while ago, and need to spend time with that, after that, I'm thinking lessons where you actually speak, and after that, another trip south, where I will resolve not to speak English.

Great following you on this journey. If you get the PayPal link up again I'll toss you a few bux for beer or gasolina.

[Kedgi]

Originally Posted by klr_couple

We can attest to the river valley and riding along the Saint John river, we live just a few Kms below the Evandale ferry, these are great for getting you hopping from one river area to another makes for nice days of exploring all the back roads and secondary roads we have in this neck of the woods..... AWESOME RR Kedgi, keep up the great work, and travel safe.
Cheers mate

You live in God's Country, Evandale, NB is a favorite of mine

Kedgi

[Kedgi]

Originally Posted by Digasi

Wow, great ride report. I will have to continue to follow along.

Please do, glad to have you along for the ride!

[alcanrider]

Seems like yesterday you were in Panama City, Florida. Unfortunately, I missed you though by a couple hours, you had already headed West. Well, so did I and have since moved back to Colorado. Glad you are having a wonderful time and meeting lots of nice people along the way, Dwight, I wish you safe travels and a grand adventure.

Doug

[Kedgi]

Originally Posted by alcanrider

Seems like yesterday you were in Panama City, Florida. Unfortunately, I missed you though by a couple hours, you had already headed West. Well, so did I and have since moved back to Colorado. Glad you are having a wonderful time and meeting lots of nice people along the way, Dwight, I wish you safe travels and a grand adventure.

Doug

Thanks Doug

Too bad I missed you in PCB.

I have had great luck in meeting wonderful people on this adventure. Meeting people is for me, one of the best things about travel. I was reminded almost immediately yesterday, why it can be nice to travel alone. People approach you, everywhere you stop.

I stopped in a gas station once I cleared the sprawl of Quito and a man at the station had a million questions for me. Where I came from, how long it took, where I was going, why I was going there. Should I not go to Cuenca before going to Montanita. I told him I wanted to study Spanish in Montanita. I am amazed at how I am able to communicate now. This was all done in Spanish. The lady that owned the store watched in amazement as this man questioned me. He shook my hand when he left and then when i left, the store owner gave me a big smile and wished me safe travels. Really nice encounter!


I stopped in some tiny town last night just before the sun went down and was immediately met by a young boy about 6 who ran to see my bike. You should have seen his face when I took off my helmet. He laughed and laughed. I don't know what he was expecting but I'll guarantee you it wasn't an old Gringo with a blond moustache. He cracked right up! I got my camera out and took his picture. (I'll post it later) and when I did that all the kids and adults at the gas station figured I was approachable. We had a lot of laughs trying to communicate. They were amazed that I had come from Canada. I go through the list of countries I have ridden through for people that ask and as I go on their faces fill with amazement. It is really something to see. In the end I had a big group of about 15 to 20 people all around me and all around the bike. Adventure!


It's still pouring rain here this morning. I'm so glad I stopped for the night rather than try to push on to Montanita. It will be there when I get there. I hope the rain stops when the sun comes up.

Dwight

[Kedgi]

Kawasaki Canada

Still no reply!

Amazing!

maybe they are all away at a bike show?