What a pleasure it was to hire a bike for the weekend and finally get out on two wheels. I do admit to a having a little trepidation negotiating the crazy Medellin traffic on a Friday afternoon. And for once it’s not the cars or dogs I’m most wary of. There are more bikes than cars in Medellin. I guess it’s an economic thing, most people can’t afford to run a car but bikes are pretty affordable. This is a good thing.. and bad. It means that the streets are heaving with small bikes trying to squeeze into every spare inch of road. Lurching between the smallest of gaps between cars.

I’ve seen it looking really bad on the roads, but thankfully for me I quickly climbed up and up and out of the deep valley in which Medelin sits, bursting into the lush, green countryside of Antioquia. And boy is it hilly. Well, I guess the clue is on the tin, the Andes do have a reputation for being, well… high. I did wonder if my trusty little bike (more than half the engine size of what I’m used to) would be up for the job, but it never missed a beat, hauling my corpulent frame up and down inconceivably steep little roads, some with tarmac, others with “interesting” dirt or treacherous tennis ball sized rocks. My ears popping as I climbed higher and higher gave some indication of the 3000m+ altitudes, as did the blossoming twat tan on my arms when I briefly removed the protection of an armoured jacket. The UV levels at this altitude are pretty fierce.

Of course it’s worth every moment.. peaks and valleys stretch as far as the eye can see. The landscape offers up all kinds of vegetation, some native others not. Banana plantations seem to pop up from time to time but not massive agri-businesses but smaller plots clinging to the 1000 foot drop slopes. As I passed through little villages, the houses were well looked after often with colourful flowers at the front… did you know that Colombia is the world’s second biggest exporter of cut flowers? From time to time vast, gated upmarket compounds show how the other half live and there was a surprising number of horses inside pristine fields.. are horses adapted for mountain slopes?

I made my accommodation by the expected time, just before sunset, and was rewarded by a stunning view across the valley opening out in front of me and a lovely pool for a quick dip the next day.

The next day was a full day of exploring and seeing what the bike and I are capable of. The day started with a breathtaking dirt-road along the river valley and as the day progressed I just seemed to get higher and higher. I dropped into 2 little Spanish colonial style towns and was surprised to see everyone in their Sunday best. Farmers popping in to make some deals, youngsters checking out their favourite crush, old men talking about the good old days. The towns spotlessly clean, vibrant and stylish. It all seemed a million miles away from the gringo bubble of Poblado in Medellin. Thankfully.

I had a couple of interesting encounters with loose horses roaming the roads.. which could have been more alarming if I was flying down the hill instead of crawling up it. The off-road sections pushed me to the limit of my skills, particularly the steep loose single lane tracks, but then again it’s a pretty low bar. I lost count of the number of times I’d be stood up on the pegs, a picture of cautious effort, terrified of every bump and slip of the wheels, on my brand new bike, specifically designed for this job…  while a local, on a scooter, would zoom past me with one hand on the handlebars, phone texting in the other, with his Mrs on the back.

It was a lovely taste of what’s to come when I’ve got the bike booked for 10 days and I’m going to ride it from Medellin to Cali, with lots of possible stop offs on the way including the worlds highest palm trees, hot springs, a live volcano and a small desert. I cannot wait!