Day 12 - Nov 26

Today...  Well what can I say about today?!  Have you ever had one of those days where you just struggled?  That was today.  It made for a tough one.

It was a 112 kilometer (70 miles) day with what was supposed to be 1,600 meters of climbing.  But it turned out to be 2,238 meters of climbing.  That is 7,342 feet of climbing or 1.4 miles of elevation churning, which is a bunch.  We traveled mostly on the Pan American highway for today.  Which is an extremely busy main thoroughfare thru Nicaragua.  The traffic was intense with buses and trucks buzzing by at very close proximity.  One truck I swore was going to leave tire marks on my jersey.  There was little ability to stop and take photos or even look around at times.  You didn't want to take your eyes off the road for fear of being taken out by a wayward bus.  I think that added to the non enjoyment of the day.  Additionally, my odometer stopped working so I did not know how far I had gone nor how far to go.  That was a mental challenge in that there was no feeling of accomplishment or gauge as to how much effort was left.  The lady I was riding with today had another two flats at the beginning of the day.  We changed one and then after 5k changed another.  We were so far behind that the sweep rider had to wait for us.  He called ahead and told the tour people that we were last, which no one could believe.  But I guess I wasn't really going that bad today as by lunch we were the first to come in.    I just put my head down and started cranking.  One of those days were the mantra was...  Shut up and keep pedaling.  I had to keep saying that many times...  

Today we also did a border crossing from Nicaragua into Honduras.  What a cluster there was at the border.  Go here and get this stamp, go there and pay money, oh we do not take dollars only Nicaragua currency to leave.  No, wait a minute, yes we do take dollars.  Now we cross into Honduras but wait you are bringing a bike in.  You need a stamp and pay at that window.  Wait in line and that person never heard of it and won't give a stamp. Go back and tell the border guard who says fine, proceed.  It was a total, as the Canadians say, gong show!

I was so glad to book this day as done when we pulled in.  

Tomorrow is supposed to be the toughest day of the entire tour with 113 kilometers and 2,550 meters of climbing with a good portion of it on dirt and loose gravel.  I will be so ready for a rest day!

Here are a couple of photos of the day:

We traveled part of the day in a river valley surrounded by mountains.

The road cut through the jungle.

The jungle is thick and lush.