May 29, 2016
We wave goodbye to Pastor Ruben and cross over the Continental Divide once again before descending into Quetzaltenango, known as “Xela” (Che-la) to the locals.
Cycling Stats
Start Point: Malacatancito, Huehutenango, Guatemala
Destination: Quetzaltenango, Quetzaltenango, Guatemala
66.12 km trip, 5:19 time, 57.1 km/h maximum speed, 10.2 km/h average speed
Route Description:
This day is on a two lane road, one lane in either direction. For some of the way there is a shoulder which is helpful because there is some semi-truck and bus traffic. The condition of the road deteriorates in some sections and you must be attentive. You travel through small villages that aren’t right on the highway but as you continue through undulating hills and can see down beside the road you can see there are many homes just off the highway. Toward the end of the day you have a nice 300 meter descent into the city of Totonicapán. At this point it becomes like city traffic. We continued on to Quezaltenango and found a hotel near Centro (town centre).
Accommodations:
There are many hotels in the area and the closer you get to the centre of town, the more expensive. Our hotel was 120Q per night and two block from parque central. We looked at hotels for as much as 300Q or as little 12 80Q.
What happened…
Andrew writes: As we continue to climb into the Guatemalan stratosphere, there seems to be more and more villages that we pass through that are made up of these beautiful indigenous peoples with their colourful clothing. It’s pretty amazing. When we finally reached the top of the last hill and we looked down on Quetzaltenango (“Xela”), I couldn’t wait to just rip it downhill and see what the city offered.
On the outskirts of town there were several cheap hotels, but none were really within walking distance of…well…anything. So we kept riding, and the sun kept getting lower in the sky. I spotted a supermarket and went upstairs to do a good shop and buy things like peanut butter, and kraft dinner, and all of those other hard to come by items. While I was inside, I met Andrea Farrier, who is a missionary here in Guatemala. Walking outside, I introduced her to Amanda and we got to talking while Amanda and I hastily made and ate some sandwiches. Andrea gave us some advice about the city and the surrounding area, and what there was to do which was really great.
So we set off once again into the heart of the city, hoping to find accommodations in centro. Being full of narrow, one-way streets the riding became a little hectic, especially as it was rush hour, and growing darker with each passing moment. Trying to give us a breather, I pulled us off the main road we were on, and somehow ended up parking us in front of Hostal Anduino. As luck would have it, it fit our budget, and they had room for us and the bikes, and we made it our home for the next couple of days.
A walk after we got settled took us up the block the the Parque de las Americas, where there were a lot of people milling about. It was a beautiful public square, and as we walked through it, there were fireflies milling about everywhere. It was wonderful!
Amanda writes: Today’s ride was pretty uneventful. I was looking forward to taking a day or two off and possibly hiking a volcano. It often seems like when we have a future planned tourist event or rest day planned we can easily focus on cycling to our destination of the day. With that being said, the miles just slid by.