sv evi

Walk, bike, bus, run, taxi…ok, maybe not run. One constant is that there is no driving, parking, insurance, maintenance nor fueling of a vehicle on our part and it is refreshing.

Our first 3 weeks here were at a temporary AirBnB on the west end of town and we mostly took the bus and some taxis which is so easy here.

The city bus system has about 20 or so routes and they come very frequently from dawn to 8PM when some routes stop. It’s 30 cents for adults and the kids ride free. They are clean, safe, no vendors as found in many other Latin American countries, rarely any music blasting from the driver and if so it’s not obnoxious. No cash and all riders use electronic cards. If someones card had run out of credit the next person in line pays for them almost automatically. The recipient will then reimburse the payer. Sweet system…it happened to us.

The yellow taxis are everywhere and you never need to wait more than a couple of minutes, if that. All are metered starting at 60 cents but the unwritten rule is $1.50 is the minimum fare. All 5 of us pile in and we rarely pay over $3.00 to go anywhere in town. I managed to move most of our luggage, Tomu, Jade and I in a small Hyundai sedan, piling it to the roof in the back seat. One time I put a twin mattress in the back seat, folding in the corners, squishing the door closed and sending our friend on her way with the borrowed bed.

When we moved to our current, more permanent home on the other side of town I was happy to find an old single speed Schwinn cruiser that had been neglected and gave her some much needed TLC. Now I was ready to get my ride on and started with the river trail. Cuenca has 4 main rivers that flow from the upper Andes to the west and all eventually converge heading east out of town. The ones I have explored all are surrounded by green spaces and parks and include well maintained biking/walking paths running nearly the entire length on both sides. We live a few blocks from Rio Tomebamba which leads us to a favorite Parque Paraiso, Parque de Madre and near the town center.

Having a bike changed my life. The first few days were so fun on the river path and the more challenging urban riding. I often have this sense that a big reason for moving here is the existence of this river path though in reality we didn’t really know about it before our arrival. It took about a week or so to get everyone a bike and the entire tribe is pretty happy about our rides.

We are just a few blocks from Tomu and Jade’s school so we ride almost daily. Tomu is quite the accomplished rider and is willing to follow me anywhere…a park, soccer practice, swim lessons. Jade is still working on the pedal bike. She had mastered the scoot bikes back in Tacoma and we thought we would start working on her pedal skills. For now she mostly rides on the seat I mounted on the top tube which is complete with stirrups.

I have been fortunate to mountain-bike on some epic trails all over the western US, Canada and a few in Central America all of which are very challenging. While the urban riding is very difficult as well, it is a different animal. First we are in the Andes at 8500 ft and while the steep streets are not as bad as the 6 big hills Seattle is built on, we live on the east side of town which is downriver so almost any ride is a gradual climb out and the return home is a screaming downhill ride. Second the traffic here is very constant and there is no rule such as “pedestrians have the right of way”. So mostly I ride right in the middle of traffic and get honked at a lot. Third, though there is the river trail and some nice official bike trails in newer areas of town, Centro is narrow, cobblestone streets hundreds of years old and full of cars, narrow or no sidewalk and people everywhere (usually staring down at their phone). Very exciting and I am finding my preferred routes, sometimes easy, sometimes hilly and often weaving through oncoming traffic on a one way street.. A favorite being one particular avenue where they have been building the light rail system for years. It has a dedicated lane and no train yet so I usually take that route when possible.

Cobblestone Street

Personal Bike Lane

Typical Centro Corner

Seek Shade When Possible

Last week we were fortunate to meet some hiker looking type ex-pats standing on the street. After a little chat Adam and I traded info and he called to ride that Sunday. I met him in centro and followed him for awhile through town a gradual climb to the foothills and kept on climbing in the drizzle until the road got steep. We waited for a mixto (pick-up truck taxi) and got a ride to edge of the forrest just below 12,000ft. A quick chat with the curious locals in the town of El Verde and off we went. Unfortunately with the hard recent rain and evening approaching, Adam suggested we stick to the roads and save the single track loop for another day. Regardless it was a scream down on my cheap grocery store bike ( I was happy it didn’t come apart at top speed on the descent) and incredible views of Cuenca and the surrounding Andes.

Top View of Cuenca

Our Typical Commute Along the Rio Tomebamba in Cuenca, Ecuador