PedalingWalrus

Anyone toured Puerto Rico?

my spouse asked me yesterday if this could be a possibility for our upcoming vacation

thanks

djb

Hi PW, I have not, and only know one person who has been there as a tourist years ago. Have you tried looking on crazy guy on a bike for any trip journals?
I was going to suggest Cuba as a safe cycling place but then I realized that being in the USA , I imagine you are still not allowed to travel there?

I would suspect that biking in Puerto Rico is similar to my experiences riding in Mexico etc, ie that in the countryside in non touristy areas on smaller roads, things are laid back and drivers courteous, but cities are the usual mayhem.
With a side order of everywhere else there always having the possibility of surprise whacky driving/ passing around blind corners etc sort of things.

hope you find some info

PedalingWalrus

Thanks! Vacation is less than 2 months away and we still don’t know where we’re going 😅

jon c. 

US citizens can visit Cuba, but Cuba is effectively closed for the pandemic. Bad roads and no spare parts are the common problems cited with touring there.

ridelikeaturtle

I cannot believe there are people seriously considering traveling for a vacation at the moment. Must be nice for them.

PedalingWalrus

As usual, CGOAB was a great suggestion. It is too bad I reach out to it as last resort. Interestingly enough the true url was not coming up in first 2 pages of my google search (basterds ;-) )


It looks like a tour would work well. In this age of covid for US residents that may be a great option with many cities offering direct flights to P.R.

https://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/...&src=page_next



Rene

PedalingWalrus

I empathize, but we are on our way to be all immunized by the end of April. My wife is already, my friend is too... I am the only one who is lagging behind ... but it is feasible to achieve before the planned departure. Also we are not credit card tourers so we will be on our own 99% of the time.

P.S. if I did not get immunized before the departure we would most likely just drive to DC and do C&O/GAP back to back. That is our fail safe alternative.

djb

Yes, cgoab does not come up anymore on Google searches as the owner of the site has purposely taken the steps to stop this due to his views about Google.
if you put the actual url in a browser, it comes up, crazyguyonabike.com
I do not understand his views on lots of things, but it seems to me that it's not good for the site to make it invisible for the casual person who hears about it and tries to find it.

And yes, last night I saw a few PR journals there, looked at one where a couple went with their two children and from what I read, the experience was similar to my trips.
I just don't know how it would be now, I just haven't read of the reality there with covid.

re Cuba. While I've never had the urge to travel there, I do know that lack of everything has always been the norm there, but that because there is so little car ownership, riding is not dangerous traffic wise.

ridelikeaturtle

Having been to Cuba, I can tell you that riding a bicycle would be about as much excitement as you could handle, traffic-wise, especially in Havana. "Not dangerous" is not a phrase I would use to describe it... "always off-road", even when you're on roads, and "hectic" would be more accurate.

But I'd also jump at the chance. Cuba is possibly the most beautiful place on Earth, with the most beautiful people on Earth.

djb

Havana is a typical big city, but still pretty tame compared to lots of other big cities simply because there are so less cars compared to other countries. But touring in Cuba will mean not riding around in Havana much, just like when visiting other countries, and Cuba has such a low percentage of car owners, that its significant.
When riding in cities you have to put on your "big city riding hat" and really be on the ball, and don't forget, it's all relative "excitement wise" and different people react differently to different riding situations.
I've ridden into and through large cities in Mexico, the capitals of Guatemala and Honduras, and while of course it's clearly not a patently enjoyable experience, it's doable and you get it over with as fast as possible.
Overall, cycling in Latin America comes with "hectic and rough roads" high up on the menu, it's part and parcel of the region, and being prepared for this and using common sense is the name of the game (but let's touch wood anyway ok).
cheers

MarcusT

From a few Puerto Ricans I've talked to, they are still not even close to recovery from hurricane Maria.