motorcycle ice cream delivery in Guatemala

I'm writing this post from the shores of spectacular Lake Atitlan, at the incredible Casa Del Mundo hotel. The hotel is built into the side of a cliff, with 16 stunning rooms overlooking the lake and its volcanoes. Today we set out after breakfast in kayaks, and paddled our way to the little village of San Marcos, where we had a super refreshing dip in the lake. After a quick drink, we headed out on foot for a fun 2-hour hike along the shores of the lake, back to our hotel.

We've had 4 days of incredible sunny weather here in Guatemala. Our group is 9 strong riders: Mack and Shanti from California, Sean and Adam from Ontario's own Chico Racing, Wilco and Lisa from deep-freeze Alberta (currently -30 C), Kingston from Toronto, myself and local über-guide Luisa.

On Monday we had a great ride from Antigua to the horse farm at Posada de Mi Abuelo. The ride started out with a fairly grueling climb up an old jeep track, through corn fields and avocado plantations, before putting us on top of a plateau, with views of volcanoes in all directions. The descent was fast and furious, and dropped us off at a lunch spot right by an old Spanish ruin. Lunch was a delicious affair, highlighted by the sudden appearance of an ice cream vendor on motorcycle. He was asking 1 Quetzal (about 15 cents) for an ice cream cone, so how could I resist? The ice cream was delicious, especially since it was delivered to me in the middle of nowhere by a man on a motorcycle.

After lunch we had a feast of fast, smooth singletrack through more corn fields, jungle and mountainous terrain before ending up in the Mayan village of San Andres Itzapa, where we met the folks from MayaPedal. MayaPedal is run by a congenial fellow by the name of Carlos. They repair donated bikes, distribute them to local villagers, and take old bike frames and turn them into really cool pedal-powered machines, such as blenders, washing machines, generators, and corn huskers.

Our non-profit organization Bikes Without Borders is going to be doing some work with MayaPedal over the coming months and years. We're going to be donating some bikes and learn a bit more about the bike technology that Maya Pedal is developing, in the hopes of bringing this technology to other parts of the developing world. If you're interested in learning more about Bikes Without Borders, supporting our work with a financial investment, or purchasing some ethically sourced bike-themed clothing, please visit us on the web.

Yesterday, we had what was by the far the best ride of the trip: an incredible 9-km descent from the highway above Lake Atitlan to the village of Santa Catarina Palopo. The descent is technical, with spectacular views of the lake at every turn. The ride ends with a wild descent through the village's narrow streets and alleys, with children poking their heads out of windows to wave and say hello. It's easily one of the best rides I've done in my life, and one that I hope to do many more times in my life.

Tomorrow we leave Casa Del Mundo and take the ferry back to Panajachel to do Guatemala's own version of Moab's famed slickrock trail, before heading back to Antigua and the incredible views at Earth Lodge above Antigua.

We still have a few spots left on our Jan. 10, 2009 trip to Guatemala. Visit our website and sign up today!

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