In 2011 I hopped a flight from San Diego to Quito, Ecuador and set
off for my first solo international adventure. I met awesome people,
saw some awesome sites, and found that I could travel South America
for less than rent costs in the States.
One of the people I met while backpacking was Gringo Mike – an
ambitious expat from Washington attempting to start a mountain bike
tour company with limited knowledge of mountain bikes. I gotta give
it to him though, two years down the road and he has a flourishing
bike tour company, an encyclopedic knowledge of trails within a
5-hour radius, and rave reviews from backpackers the world over.
Sitting in Boulder this summer I found I could accomplish nearly
everything I needed to do over the internet, and decided I should go
explore. I emailed Gringo Mike and we decided I'd head to Colombia in
early September and help guide tours.
I left Colorado just before a 100-year flood hit Boulder. I always
thought the flood warning siren and “In case of flash flood climb
to higher ground” signs were weird – we live in a semi-arid
desert with more days of sunshine than Southern California. But when
I logged on to Facebook after arriving in San Gil, Colombia I saw
photos of Boulder I couldn't have imagined. My friends' houses were
flooded and streets were destroyed as the amazing power of nature
ripped through downtown.
My time in Colombia has been more relaxed than I anticipated,
though still full of excitement. I've guided a few tours, learned to
drive a natural gas powered car, went swimming in a cascade of
natural pools, and built trails. I live in a house with the other
guides – John from New Zealand and his English girlfriend, Jamie
from England, and Miguel, the mechanic, from Colombia. I've taken
some time to get used to “living” in a foreign country, but aside
from the construction that was going on outside our house, it's
great. We even have two adopted pets – Shakes the trail dog, and L.C.
the kitten with a broken hip and ravenous appetite.
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