In 2019 we decided we wanted a long-ish self-supported bicycle tour. The criteria—it must be warm and must be off the beaten track. Cuba fit the bill. We had visited Cuba s all-inclusive tourists, but never felt we had seen the real Cuba, far away from the beach resorts. We wanted to see it our way—by bicycle. Randy had a route planned, but nothing more. Each night we would source out our accommodations as we rolled into town. We knew there would be challenges in this unique country so we anticipated the possible challenges—bike repairs, spare parts, and even food availability. We also knew we would be among local Cubans and in order to put a few smiles on faces we loaded up our panniers with little gifts and treasurers that we thought might be appreciated.
Day 16: La Mula to Pilon
A most excellent day! Worth every bump, pothole, hill (mountain), and buckets of sweat. Thankfully the Campismo experience is over! Honestly the campismo itself was quite all right. It was the very loud partying people next door to us who let us sleep for a few hours then whammo! On goes the music, full blast... Continue reading→
Day 17: Pilon to Manzanillo
Dear Cuba: We need to talk. We have travelled here from very far away and it’s 33C today. We’d really like to hydrate with something other than beer or rum, but every single establishment in the 94km between Pilon and Manzanillo has only beer and rum available. There must be some misunderstanding. Cuba, can you... Continue reading→
Day 18: Manzanillo to Bayamo
Chicken lineups, the old dancing Cuban, the crazy roads between cities, Randy eats beef, and prosperity in Bayamo. Today it was not about the scenery. In fact, it was rather unremarkable but the road from Manzanillo to Bayamo is a means to an end. We’ve been trying to fast-track it back to Holguin to buy... Continue reading→
Day 19: Bayamo to Holguin
Our final cycling day! We’ve returned to where we started in Holguin after a long day of heat, a headwind, and trucks on the road. About 70km (Strava and Ride with GPS both failed to add the distance correctly). The road was lined with sugar cane fields much of the way. The road surface was... Continue reading→
Day 20: Floating in the Ocean Day!
Floating in the ocean, shopping for groceries, and we found water! The cycling is all done, boxes are packed and ready to ship home on Monday. We took a 1959 Chevy station wagon taxi to Guardalavaca to spend two nights. We plan to do not much more than float in the ocean and show off... Continue reading→
Cuba 2019: Final Days, final thoughts
When the cycling portion of our trip ended on Thursday we packed a few items and headed to the white sandy beaches of Guardalavaca and loafed on the beach, floated in the water, and got our fill of pizza and ice cream. A perfect way to finish our Cuban Adventure. We lingered with local people... Continue reading→