Iquitos, Peru to Medellin, Colombia

After a trip to Colombia to see some dear friends and replace burnt motorcycle documentation, I was headed back to the madness that is Iquitos.

the buses of the Amazon.  ours had a 750 HP Volvo Pentax

then we were headed up to the birthplace of the Amazon with our canoa

screwing around at sundown on the shores of the mighty Amazon

it's handy to take pictures of maps when you don't have any

a motorbike is the only AC around

Vinnie heads for Nauta

Adrian puts the canoa to work hauling timbers

puttering through town with the peke-peke

meet francesca

she loves to ride around on your head

and eat popcorn

after a week of lethargy, i loaded Suzi on the lancha and headed upriver for the highway

setting posts for a new house.  100 bucks for a lot on the river.

jimmy and sandro joking around

the shores of Nauta, at the birthplace of the Amazon

petroleum barge

the lancha stops at communities to load and unload produce, bootleg liquor, passengers, etc

typical jungle town

this is where you sleep on the lancha.  3 square meals a day and the constant hum of the big Volvo

lots of action when the lancha arrives.  it stops just long enough to hop off and buy yourself a 75 cent pint of the hard stuff, flavored with ginger and coca leaf.  or so i've heard...

all the ladies come on board to sell mangoes, popcorn, bananas, pet monkeys, parrots, soda, bread, whatever

Suzi ready for a speedy exit

keep your chickens from escaping by tying them to a motorcycle.

back on the highway and headed back into the andes

utcobamba river

and out into rice growing country

signs you have dengue fever

 Intense and continuous abdominal pain
Bleeding, Vomiting, General crappy feeling
Irritability
Chest Pain
Persistent Fever
Little urine

Leder shows off some massive papaya

The local cows check out the skull on the front of my bike

fresh home from school and ready for a ride

the family of Gilmer Prado Mondragón and Evercilia Aguilar Terrones

Going for an evening ride with good people

waiting for the border to open at Las Balsas, Ecuador

Fried flying ants are a delicacy

Crunchy on the outside, creamy on the inside

at Vilcabamba I met some great bikers who slowed down enough to let me join the fun

Gas stop with the Loja custom club

Headed for Cuenca

Sean has 50,000 miles on his Honda Super Cub 90

here is his blog.

the nice thing about burning all your stuff is there is room for watermelons on the bike

At the Colombian border, I met some Argentines headed for Alaska in their 89 Cadillac Limo

look for these great people here.  They would love to meet you when they roll through your town.

the colorful chiva buses tell you that you are back in Colombia

and the precipitous drops off the highway tell you that you are still in the Andes

and the warm people that invite you in (Gato Collazos) to stay with their family tell you that Colombia is the best.

Isabella the Mujer Maravilla traded in her golden lasso for a scooter

near Ibague, I took some time for a trek with my friend Nilo

Waterfalls near some perfect hotsprings

an inviting path

the palms and fog tell you that you are in colombia

and then the cops hauled Suzi to motorcycle jail for out of date inspection papers.  250 dollars and a day later i was back on my way

land rovers and terra cotta roofs tell you that you are back in san antonio del prado with good friends.