From Rancho la Maravilla to Felipe Carrillo Puerto

After 25 miles (40 kilometres) of only bush/jungle we reach the next destination.
This is a quirky town and not least because its time is an hour different from the surrounding area; being served coffee in this mug in this town of all places was amusing to us.
I’m not sure how he thinks this is going to attract customers for his taco business; the restaurant opposite where we were was full.
For those who have fond memories of the ‘ghetto blaster’.
Remote control anyone?

From Tulum to Rancho la Maravilla

More like Randolph Scott than John Wayne although Olivia now prefers to be known as Joanna Wayne having passed the advanced course on how to scare away wild dogs?
These bus shelters are a blessing when its scorching hot providing both shade and a seat for our water stops – not that we need to sit down when we do that for most of the day on the bikes.
We had read about the Green Angels during our research for the trip although in 13 weeks this was the first time we had seen one. They are essentially volunteers who patrol the main roads (toll roads we think, not the ones we use) and are available to help stranded motorists. We weren’t stranded and we weren’t motorists, however, he was happy to pose for the picture.
Yes, this is the road through the jungle. There is hardly anything to break the monotony.
The new bikes with some of their attachments and adjustments and our bodies having to realign themselves with a slightly different riding position.
A restaurant at Muyil, only 12 miles (20km) from Tulum where we thought we could stay nearby because we were told there was nowhere for the next 50 miles (80 km) and to do 60+ miles in this heat with no shade was pushing both ourselves and the new bikes about which we were still unsure. But wait. Here we met a taxi driver who said there was a park with a shop and fresh running water where we could camp about 18 miles away (25 km). We decided to give it a go because it would make it two even distance riding days instead of one very short day and a much longer day.
Exactly 25 km later we saw the ‘park’ at the side of the road. We were led to believe it was in the middle of the jungle because there was not any running water, a small generator for the fridge and electricity, no internet and no shower.
This is the shop where they sell packets of biscuits and snacks, soft drinks and/or cigarettes (one man bought 2 single cigarettes only) mainly to the lorry drivers from what we saw.
You will see this is mainly a garden centre business and the park in the middle is a patch of grass large enough for our tent and the two bikes to be chained to a tree and to each other although we are screened from the passing traffic on the road some 50 metres away.
The owner Juan was enthusiastic to show us his plans to build a temple here and they are on display for all to see.
This is the taxi driver we randomly met in the aforementioned restaurant 25 km back the road who had driven all this way to tell his father (we only discovered their relationship at the garden centre) we were on the way because the father didn’t have a ‘phone. As with our previous encounter with a good Samaritan in Cuidad del Carmen when the rear wheel split on David’s old bike this man is also called Jesus.
We are happy to have somewhere to camp for the night that is in the middle of this stretch of the jungle which is not actually in the jungle – we’re only 50 metres from the road.
This is our kind and generous host for the night, Juan, who refused a single peso for letting us use his grounds for a campsite.
We cannot have clean linen and showers every night it would seem. At least we do not have to be concerned for noisy neighbours – there are none for 20 miles in either direction.
Our screen from the road so we cannot be seen. The night was memorable for two reasons; the melodic birdsong for the hour before sunset, and again at sunrise, and the outstanding starlit sky – there is not any light pollution here.
Juan and his wife Dona Maria Lena have a traditional Mayan house and outbuildings where they have lived for 30 years.
The kitchen and dining area whilst under cover is all out in the open – pleased we are not here in the wet season.
The bedroom area – you are probably wondering why the sheets are tied above the bed and hammock area as if to catch something? The snakes sometimes wriggle themselves into the thatched roof and fall down and this is to prevent the occupants of the bed and hammock from waking up to uninvited guests.
The blanket is a makeshift toilet door because it opens onto the road – the bucket is to flush the toilet bowl because it doesn’t have a flush. The shower will be next door at some stage.
It would be fascinating to see professional chefs cook in this environment.
These were popular in the 1960’s in the UK because David’s Dad had one and this is still working well.
This oven is fired by wood and has 3 different burners with 3 different temperature settings.
It doesn’t matter how limited the surroundings are it is essential for some of us to have a hot drink to start the day.
It would be hard to find a more happy and contented couple than Juan and Dona Maria Lena.
This is Juan singing a song asking for us to be protected for the remainder of our journey. Bless him.

From Akumal to Tulum

We thought this mural was worth a shot before their extension is built and the view is blocked.
We are embarrassed to admit that we stopped at what we thought was a shaded outdoor cafe area which was actually a night club with private security and scantily clad hostess to receive our order. Unsurprisingly it was the most expensive coffee we had – at midday.
We are staying on the outskirts of Tulum where the locals go for their takeaway or home delivery pizza. Its a bit different from the ruins and the tourist hotel zone we had visited the previous week when on a day trip from Playa Del Carmen.
Both the takeaway and drinks shop next door are behind bars which we hope to demonstrate with this picture. The staff did not appear to be concerned for their safety and work in fear of being held up and robbed; our guess is that these measures are a hangover from the covid restrictions.
This was an interesting overnight stop.
We arrived before the cabana was ready and waited patiently.
There is a combination of cabanas with en suite bathroom and glamping tents with communal shower/toilet blocks. We wanted the bikes with us inside after our recent experience so we passed on the tents.
This first time tea/coffee facilities were provided free of charge.

From Playa del Carmen to Akumal

All our luggage lined up waiting for the taxi to transport us 5 miles (8 Kilometres) to the bike shop. Quick story time – the woman taking this picture advised us to be very aware because we were now entering the real and authentic Mexico and to be always on our guard – and this was after we had told her we had been experiencing the real Mexico for 11 weeks before reaching the tourist zone and having our bikes taken in the tourist zone. We couldn’t wait to return to the real Mexico because we considered ourselves safer there.
With the luggage loaded there are still minor adjustments to be made – something we continued to do each of the next 3 days together with ordering parts to be delivered to our hotel in Chetumel by Amazon. Throughout our time along this coastline we had abandoned our ‘random arrival at hotels hoping for a vacancy approach’ and had been booking ahead by 2 or 3 days to ensure we had a room in what is their high season.
Don’t be fooled by the happy faces; we were delighted to be mobile again, however, we were really nervous about how the bikes would perform. It was exactly a week ago today that the bikes had been stolen – ironically from the most expensive and most secure accommodation we had had on the trip so far and fully covered by CCTV .
This is the centre of Akumal. As with so many recently developed tourist areas along this coastline, eg. Cancun, Playa Del Carmen, Tulum they have a traditional town centre where the locals live and a relatively newly built beach front section across the main road where many of the tourists visit/stay. There are murals and monuments almost on every wall; our guess is that they have an artists exhibition annually such is the quantity and quality of the paintings.
They are so creative in this town they also make these collections of bottle tops to hang on the fence of the children’s play area.
The sign at the entrance to this place was Cafe and Bakery; we have never seen an establishment with such a well stocked bar. Come to think of it we’ve been in bars which are nowhere as well laid out as this cafe and bakery. Also, Champions League football was available if you’re interested in Liverpool being beaten 5 – 2 by Real Madrid at 3pm because of the time difference.
The centre of Akumal – not exactly carnival time, is it? Many of the visitors are at the waterfront going on diving and snorkelling trips – not our cup of tea; tourists, that is. We much prefer making our own discoveries as opposed to those a guide is paid to show you. Interestingly this is another town not listed in the LP guide.
Whilst we’ve been impressed with the murals we have discovered in each place we have stayed it is one of the that once we left Tulum the one and only road is down to one lane in each direction and nothing but dense bush either side. The views are not exactly impressive. There is, however, glimpses through the undergrowth where lorries access with gravel and stone for the foundations of a railway line being built to transport tourists only from as far away as Campeche to Cancun. At a cost of 20 billion dollars this has the hallmarks of some politicians vanity project. There are many aspects of the infrastructure that would benefit all tourists on which the money could be spent. For now the existing road is very light on traffic and has a good hard shoulder for us to use.
A more colourful cafe/bakery/bar would be hard to find.

In Playa del Carmen

The seaweed is a real challenge for the beach cleaners this season. They were unable to clear it in the two weeks we were there.
The busier tourist end of Playa Del Carmen; you can see the ferry to Isla Cozumel setting off for one of its many daily return trips.
Whether you are at dinner on Fifth Avenue or on the beach the musicians will eventually serenade you.
Olivia and her sister in the tourist zone of Fifth Avenue.
Tyres being remade into chairs.
One way of promoting Tequila.
Our feeble attempt to be like real tourists.
The family reunion in full swing at dinner.
One way of reducing the number of visits to the bar for this waiter and speeding up the service to his clients.
When you’re sat down for dinner there is no escaping these musicians and dancers – we had three such groups.
Whilst the beaches are long throughout this entire section of Caribbean coast they are quite narrow.
The Marines frequently patrol the beaches and tourist zones during the day.
In addition to this brand the Hilton and Hyatt hotels were also represented in Carmen.
We had our bikes liberated from a securely locked garage with CCTV and were directed to report this to the tourist police. On this particular day the translator was not there so this chap was insistent we complete a form, stand next to the sign as below, to prove we had visited his office whilst he redirected us to the other side of town for them to handle our reported theft – we are not making this up.
If we hadn’t been so disappointed at the loss of our bikes it would have been quite comical – maybe one day we will see the funny side of this episode. The irony was not lost on us when we relocated to the main police headquarters to obtain a crime number for our insurance claim which was heavily monitored with CCTV and the visitors were not allowed to take any photos. The original plan was to spend one week in Carmen, however, we were waiting for our new bikes to be delivered and would be lucky to leave after a further week’s stay.
If we were sailing around this coastline we would describe this period in the trip as one of being becalmed. Walking the beach became a daily ritual whilst we waited for our new bikes to arrive. We could have been stranded temporarily in worse places!
May we introduce you to Denis – the world’s most kind, patient and expert bicycle mechanic.
We spent 4 – 5 hours with him making additions and alterations to these ‘city’ bikes as we understand them to be called because we previously had purpose built touring bicycles made to measure for our specific individual requirements. Although he couldn’t do anymore for us than he did we would be less than truthful if we didn’t say we set off with all fingers and toes crossed that we would be able to complete the remaining six weeks of our trip.
On top of being a really nice chap he did not charge us a single peso for his time, a refreshing change from many other places we encountered in this tourist area where every other person is waiting on your request with their hand out for payment and tips after charging you much higher than is the case for ordinary Mexican areas which we had come to know and appreciate.

Playa Punta Esmeralda

A delightful little lagoon at Playa Esmeralda towards the far end of Playa Del Carmen where the local residents go and there are fewer tourists.
They appear to be fighting a losing battle with the seaweed. Notice the next wave of seaweed waiting to make the shore as soon as this is cleared. One of the workers said the seaweed is usually not an issue for the 4 months from November to February. Clearly the recent easterly winds has brought things forward by a month or two.
Every evening these birds give a beautiful concert.

In Cancun

It was raining quite hard today – not our favourite time on the bikes – so we wore our reflective waistcoats to help the traffic be aware of us in the darker conditions.
The day after we arrived in Cancun the roads dried and we took a self guided cycle tour along the coast away from the hotel zone.
This swimming pool at the accommodation we stayed in the centre of Cancun amused us – it was about the size of one of the rooms which were very pleasant and comfortable although much more expensive than we had been used to.
Random sites of ruins are not uncommon although, in this case, it was not open to the public.
Another shop where you are served by the assistant through a hatch and not allowed into the premises – all this for 5 litres of water.
A shop at the local market where you can arrange funerals.

Day in Puerto Morelos

This was the only crocodile we saw during the day trip.
We were not sure if this was a jaguar, or not. Hopefully they only venture out at night when visitors are asleep?
This town is slightly smaller than Tulum, however, it has a more open and easier access to the beach.
A welcome refreshment stop.
This bike has an abundance of spokes.

Day in Tulum

Although we stayed in Playa Del Carmen we shared both accommodation and a hire car with Olivia’s sister and Brother-in-Law and visited Tulum for the day.
First stop were the ruins which were being well preserved although on a much smaller site than Chitzen Itza.
Access to the adjacent beach was limited to taking one of their approved boat tours.
Thankfully the Iguanas we meet are friendly, small and more concerned about us than we are of them.
Attractions like these always indicate their location is a focus for tourists so we played along with trying to be normal visitors.
This caught our eye as an unusual ceiling decoration.
A basic attempt by this restaurant’s approach to provide hand washing facilities.
This hotel had a feature of hanging ropes if you look closely.
The beaches are quite narrow all along this coast and after the storm we experienced when staying in Cancun they have yet to clear the seaweed.
Olivia with her sister.
This hotel backing onto the beach attracted our interest because of its size and wonderful treehouse style design. We talked our way into a self guided tour and discovered the rooms start at $600+ per night.
Navigating the floors and corridors was quite challenging – fortunately all our party were sober.
Each one of these crow’s nest designs were to accommodate dinner tables for two people. We chose not to ask to see the menu.

From Chemax to Leona Vicario

We were not too disappointed to leave Chemax – they only allow you access to your own money at the local bank if you have an account there and the hotel staff were quite unpleasant towards Olivia – always a red flag for David. This place was entirely different……….
The cover for the hammock hook in place……
The cover raised to enable use of the hook if you use a hammock.
This was a pleasant surprise; the local plaza was being used for outdoor Salsa classes.
We see this everywhere although the Vietnamese could them how to carry more family members.
Another excellent fuel stop for breakfast which we randomly discovered.
No formalities here – a scrap piece of paper with a number on it to let us know the cost.
When we asked the Housekeeper where we could buy a pillow case for our own inflatable pillow that we carry she asked her boss, the man raking the leaves, and he said to let us have one of there’s for free. This is his reward by being included in our eternal Hall of Fame.
Every town and village has a least one of these mini factories for making Tortillas……and they supply all the cafe and restaurant outlets nearby.
If we thought it was hot outside, inside was like a sauna when this was in full flow.
This is a three person operation although we usually see only two managing the same process.
The morning break at this school provides the option of ball games at the rear of the playground and teacher led salsa classes on the main play area. Viewing access for us was hampered by a high wall and we only realised it was taking place by tracking the sound of the music.
If only all the towns and villages we visited had this type of collection service – there are many that do not. Our choice for breakfast was validated when the three men working on this rubbish lorry parked it along the road from us and returned to occupy the table next to us at the cafe.
We have commented before on how well kept the cemeteries are in Mexico, however, we discovered something with this one we had not noticed before………
The above ground coffins are first encased in concrete and finally they are tiled over with bathroom or floor tiles. There were two men working on this process whilst we filmed although we chose not to interrupt them because there is an unwritten rule that you maintain silence whilst in the cemetery – often we see written signs posted to this effect.
The murals along the outside walls to cemeteries are always impressive and, thankfully, never covered with grafitti.