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Dr. Frazier Rides Colombia Photo Gallery
Dr. Frazier’s globe-trotting motorcycle adventures take him this month to South America and Colombia. Check out the full story in
Dr. Frazier Rides Colombia
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A nice compromise between the urban sprawl of Bogota and small country towns is Cali, a very motorcycle friendly and cosmopolitan city.
BMW motorcycle aficionado Miguel Giesener guided me through some of the Colombian motorcycling community. Both of us had the same Aerostich Darien jackets, a surprise to both of us, the only two such jackets I saw in all of South America.
Food was easy to find and quite reasonable to purchase. Eating at these roadside stalls never produced any sickness. Colombia, compared to neighboring Peru or Ecuador, was overall a very clean country.
This old BMW came into Colombia as parts over a 20 year period, many under the radar screen of customs because they were used parts or smuggled in by checked airline baggage.
The Pan American Highway through Colombia was all paved and in very good condition, but driving at night on it was unsafe, from two legged and four legged animals.
Mountain riding in Colombia sometimes required cold weather riding gear.
Jungle riding and mountain riding in Colombia meant warm and cold rain.
Often I found the roads empty, as was much of the countryside around me.
While I carried camping equipment I usually found inexpensive and safe hotels for sleeping, not wanting to be alone on the side of the road at night.
An afternoon at the beach in Colombia could be the same as anywhere in America. People came for sun and fun.
Gasoline was easy to find, as was oil. Many took credit cards.
Typical was this gas station with restaurant attached. Some even had sleeping rooms, or a small hotel.
I would do my own laundry in hotel rooms at night. Once I turned my clothes over to a laundry service and later saw it being washed in the local river.
If you are in a motorcycle accident in Colombia you will find yourself having to prove your innocence, the legal system being based on Napoleonic Law: guilty until you prove yourself innocent.
Quite common were memorials along the road, most well attended, a reminder that driving is risky, likely more risky than getting robbed or shot.
