USA news on Youtube Nov 24 2017

previously in Ecuador

I started the Trans Ecuador Mountain Bike Route three months ago

having spent almost a year in Colombia, it felt like leaving home

but soon I met the locals

the travelers you forgot the camera

and of course, the dogs

you are a spoiled dog, eat the pizza!

although the cows often tried to make things hard

I made it through the smallest trails and into the volcanic corridor

where the white giants stand tall over the windswept eternal pastures

where the horses run free

and so do the deers and the cows

fight, fight

hey, not me!

September 2017, near Ambato, Ecuador

it took half a day to escape the city and I was back home into the cold highlands

away from it all and waiting to see what comes next

SEE THE WORLD episode 22 Trans Ecuador Mountain Bike Route (Part 2)

so we are off to a good start, I got all my intel for the trail

we´ve got a handmade map on the road and we are good to go

and i cant see anything

protected area, do not throw garbage

the good news, is that I found the road

and the bad news is this is not a road

so right now, really bumpy cow stuff and mud}

but we are going over there and after that its all downhill

there is a cow and a baby over there and they are confused

like what is this thing up there on the trail and they are starting to run

because they dont know

finally a trail of some sorts

look at that beauty of a trail

unbelievable

hey horse friend, how are you?

oh there is another one, hello! ooo he is afraid

as usual, the friendliest natives in Ecuador

now we are passing the chicken farm

there´s three chickens and two piglets and they are little ones

three horses and a cow

and we are continuing on what appears... hold on...

yup, that´s a car track and a road, a real road

big thanks to the Ecuadorian department of transportation for this beautiful experience

and despite the windy days I always wanted to look for the perfect sunset

to see the yellow and red stretch for miles across the clouds

all the way to the Pacific Ocean

the roads were very busy!

look at that dog, he is so quick

hello my friend, where are you going?

you are my sunshine, my only sunshine

you make me happy when skies are gray

tanananana thats why I love you

what do you think?

llamas have no feelings hearts of ice

I´m watching you little mister

dont you dare sniff my camp when i am not around

thats right, run away

tail between your legs

ecuadorian poodles

it´s a great mystery

these wild animals

roam the forests, protect the innocent

...and pee on peoples bikes, right buddy? that was not nice of you

not nice at all and you know it

but he is a friend

we get along now

but we havent gotten to the petting stage come here, come

when the food comes out, then we become real friends

I´m watching you I´m watching you, what are you doing over there?

ah yeah you like it! you like it!

good morning

what is your name?

there are the merciless winds in the summer and the downpours in winter

but somehow, people manage to live and work here

the dogs watch with suspicion

as the road makes the impossible climb into the wind

at the pass, the clouds finally reveal the closest point to the sun, Volcan Chimborazo

funny, very funny looking llamas

i follow the road north to an old schoolhous

which offers just the right views and wind protection for a night at 4200 meters

I think this sign raises more questions than it answers

why did they leave their friend on the other side of the river

who is he, why is he wearing red?

and what are his hopes and dreams

is he also searching for the freedom in the open skies and the wild lands of the Andes

i cant tell if its a dog or a fox or a coyote

could that be another volcano???

hey there spotted dog, come here

this amazing spot, just off the road

it´s flat and it´s gonna be a nice sunset

if the clouds clear we can see chimborazo over there in the distance

and we´ve got medium protection from the wind

why not, i have some time to make hot chocolate and take some photos

and do something i am very good at, and thats nothing

trans ecuador mountain bike route

moving slowly south towards peru

and eventually we get there

and then bolivia and argentina and chile

and there was something about the freedom that you get when traveling by bike and no time limit

you can stop anywhere and make your house, your food and spend the day looking at the clouds

you can watch the last light fade from the sky

and stand outside at night knowing that no photo can capture the billions of stars shining in the sky

you have nice dreads buddy

there you have it, ecuadorian poodle in the wild

baby donkeys have got to be the cutest thing ever!

hello, hello to you too

hey buddy, what are you eating?

more cows, resting in the sun

hey get back to work back to work, start eating gras. Gogogogo

they dont listen

and i´m going over there down in that valley

and up again towards a lake hopefully

there´s a lot of donkeys here... we can maybe

recruit them for my army

hey donkey, would you like to join me and conquer the world?

yeah? lets go! he´s coming

good, we got one coming with me now can we convince the others

so I have a little bit of a problem with the front brake

the pressure is too low

so I stuffed some of my stove windscreen under the brake pads

because i still have brake pads but the problem is that there is no pressure

so fingers crossed, this contraption will work, at least for the inca trail

because there is no way I can do the inca trail without a front brake

like i´ll have to push my bike down the hill

so we are taking a day off a day off to drink 3 in 1 nescafe

which is actually surprisingly good

little bit of sunshine right now

it rained quite a bit in the morning

the town nearby has a store where I can buy potatoes

so I will be good for the next 3 or 4 days

but today is just resting and sunshine

no matter how far I went it was hard to avoid the graze of Chimborazo

standing far and high amongst the clouds

in a last effort to escape, I aimer up across the Ecuadorian Inca Trail

i am supposed to go up this... somewhere... somehow

my friends on the horses so much better way to travel, look at them!

progress was hard and slow but nothing can stop the wheel that keeps the travelers travelling on

not the cliffs, the rain or the cold

a little price to pay for the privilege of following the endless ridges home

so the good news is that I was told that the trail will vastly improve

and the bad news is that the person who told me rode a horse

sadly the only thing Ecuador is not good at is bike parts

the steep roads and trails of the bike route

eat brakepads for breakfast

the cost of which can be 3 to 10 times more than in other places

the best solution was to fabricate a pair from a motorcycle brake pad and hope the glue will hold until Peru

i rode past Cuenca and up into the mountains looking for the best sunsets

the lower altitudes meant warmer weather more people and more dogs

and the typical countryside life I have grown to like

so if you ask me what the weather is like right now...

i think i will just say, a little bit of everything

we´ve got headwind, cold rain,

sunshine and also a very interesting road

we have been upgraded to horizontal rain!

but also, amazingly beautiful

you can clearly see, middle of nowhere

the Japanese are building bridges in Ecuador

and uh, they just like building bridges the Japanese

I´ve seen bridges in Nicaragua by the Japanese, in Panama...

so I can just feel my fingers enough to pull my brake levers

but I´m gonna have to set up camp somewhere

just so you dont get the wrong impression not everybody rides horses and donkeys in Ecuador

they have traffic lights, cities and cars and I think hot water

but I feel like fish on land there and I often zip through them

although they are not bad places I just could never capture their unique atmosphere

but from far away, they seem nicer, quieter and that is where I like to be

the bike is hard to ride!

easier with sombrero

my front brake pad melted off due to overheating

so I went on the truck down the hill ending the Trans Ecuador Mountain Bike Route in Style!!!

I rested for a day in Vilcabamba and did laundry

the remaining brake pad got smoked down one hill

so I rode uphill but tried to take cars going downhill

until I realized I can stop with my feet!!!

thank you for watching! for more visit www.bikewanderer.com/video