Outdoor Central Oregon January/February 2020 | Page 24

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COSTA RICA:
Oh so beautiful, but way outside of our budget of only $30 USD per day. The jungle,
volcanoes, and the beaches were so gorgeous, but trying to stick to budget we raced to
a friend’s mother’s house, thank goodness for connections! This allowed us spend a little
more time surfing, relaxing, and enjoying the country; certainly a wonderful place to spend
your days laughing and smiling.
COLOMBIA:
Finally, off-road here we come, after, of course, my bike gets some shock maintenance,
just my luck. Medellin, the wonderful motorcycle capital of South America (I would have to
say) fixed my bike, well the wonderful people there fixed it! Now the off-road Andean trip
had begun, only coming out of the Andes for food and motorcycle maintenance.
Nearing the end of Colombia my motorcycle blew the stator copper coil, a common prob-
lem, but that was just the beginning. The off-road here was endless, small villages con-
nected to small villages, Andes connected to the jungle, Andes connected to the coast, it
was home to a maze of dual sport heaven.
ECUADOR:
Foundational recreation and one of the most western countries in South America tied with
the majestic coastal, volcanic, and jungle landscapes made Ecuador a country filled with
fun, excitement, and wonder. This place was magical it was small, but filled to the brim
with possibilities; I could have spent more time here climbing endless peaks or exploring
what seemed to be endless jungle. It also had some of the most adventurous off-road rid-
ing, we pushed and pulled our bikes through quite a few mudslides to say the least.
PANAMA:
Another budget buster, but beautiful. We spent the majority of our time in Panama City
getting our paperwork for the motorcycles and ourselves to cross into Colombia by sail-
boat. We met some amazing people from all walks of life here, with many stories to tell.
SAILING THE SAN BLASS ISLANDS:
Motorcycles loaded on the boat and lots of Dramamine at hand we were ready for a few
days off the bike and relaxing in the warm water and on the beautiful islands. An amazing
tour with Wild Card Sailing (tell them Sierra and Cookie sent you and you get a free bottle
of rum if you decide to sail with them), but Cookie and I are not meant for boats, we got
so sick on the final push to Colombia, a total of 30 hours or so of pure water, no island
stops. If you don’t get sick, or even if you do, it’s worth it to jump on and relax.