People Are Still Great

After eating another delicious breakfast in Mazatlan, it was time to say the sad goodbyes.  Dan drove us out of the city so we could avoid confusing streets and crazy traffic, and after assembling our things, we hit the road.  Though it was tough to leave behind Dan and Caroline and their wonderful hospitality, it was good to be back on the bike.  The road was surrounded by dense bushes and vines, a big change from the barren desert of the Baja.  This was the toll road, or cuota, and it had a fantastic shoulder the whole way.  When I envision a toll road in the States, I see an eight lane freeway with hundreds of cars whizzing by, but this one was different.  It had only two lanes and much less traffic than the free road because it's so expensive.

Giant shoulder, yaaaay

Around 3 pm we reached the town of Escuinapa.  We had contacted a warmshowers host here but, once we were actually there, could not get in touch with him, so we hung out at a bike shop for a bit watching soccer.  The guys there knew the host and also tried to find him, but to no avail.  No worries; there was plenty to see!  The central square had a beautiful church overlooking a wide, social plaza with a large gazebo, small shops, benches under pruned trees, and free Wi-Fi.  It had a very European feel.  

A monument to bikes in the plaza

After a bit we returned to the bike shop and met a friend of the warmshowers host, Pedro.  He seemed like a nice guy and took us to the fire station where he said we could camp.  Or... he paused and thought for a minute... we could go to his house and stay in a bed? Yes? Sure!

Pedro genuinely was a nice guy.  He's about to graduate from a university in Guadalajara, and he's spending his winter break here in Escuinapa with his family, whom we loved meeting as well.  His dad, also Pedro, also loves to mountain bike, and the two Pedros train together.  When I asked Pedro Jr if he is on a biking team, he pointed at his dad and said, "He's my team."  

Pedro Jr's mom, Josefina, doesn't bike anymore, but she sure can cook!  We enjoyed our dinner, chatting with the folks, and will enjoy as well, in just a few minutes, falling asleep in this comfy bed.