Thankfully we didn’t have to get an early start today. We only had 140 miles of riding ahead to make it to our beach resort! The weather here was warm & only going to continue to heat up as we headed South down the coast towards Canoa Beach. Because we had gotten in after dark, we decided to head out by about 8:30 instead of the 11 am suggested departure time. It was a great choice! We loved Canoa Beach & we arrived in time for an afternoon swim in the ocean!
But first – the ride summary for day 3! We were prepared to encounter some earthquake damage on the roads, but it was not nearly as bad as we anticipated. We came across a few substantial holes & segments of road missing, but for the most part, the roads have been pretty good. We passed through Pedernales where we had a yummy lunch on the beach, and then Jama. Shawn confirmed that our Spanish is really poor when he had trouble ordering a Corona with his lunch! LOL! COR-o-NA!! Cerveza? He finally got his beer.
In Pedernales there was a young boy at the restaurant that used palm frawns to make birds and flowers at the beach side restaurant that was still decorated for Christmas! They were really good! I was excited to find a sink with soap and water in the dining area. It was much cleaner than our lunch yesterday!
In Jama, we saw local fishermen on the beaches & then slightly inland we drove past the shrimp farmers. The ocean was beautiful & the ride past the shrimp farms was interesting. I didn’t realize that so much of the shrimp was farm raised in small square ponds inland. We took some pics.
It was such a beautiful day to ride! Don’t be concerned by the clouds, it was hot & if the sun had been out, we would have baked for sure! This day was amazing!
The highlight today was the little boy who ran out into the road to give Shawn a HIGH FIVE as we drove past. His smile was amazing! I wish I had a picture of that! Most of the kids today smiled & waved as we went by on our big bikes!
We drove past a young colt that was running free in the road. There were a few young boys trying to catch it, hopefully they were able to get her! In the pics you will see one child on horseback, but there were others on foot that were after her too.
We passed by two different funeral processions. The local people were walking down the road carrying a casket. You will see the group of people in the road in some of the pics below from the funeral procession.
We arrived at Canoa Beach, and our hotel was beautiful! (The pics in this blog of the yellow building with the pool were from our stay in Same.) In Canoa, we had a great view of the ocean & it was early enough to take a swim! This was one of my favorite stops in Ecuador. After dark Shawn & I walked out to the beach, the tide had gone out & we were able to walk out and collect shells & random goodies that were left behind when the water receded. We were able to stay 2 nights here, so on day 4 we didn’t ride. In my next post you will see some great pics of this hotel!
Buell Vicariously 