Day 312 – 336: mostly Panama

Posted on by Patricia & Dustin

March 27 – April 20th, 2025

  • Day 312 – Dominical to Palmar Norte (Costa Rica) – 63k/576m
  • Day 313 – Palmar Norte to Neily – 77k/480m
  • Day 314 – Neily to David (Panama) – 73k/530m
  • Day 315 – David to Las Lajas – 75k/650m 
  • Day 316 – Las Lajas to Campamento – 92k/1429m
  • Day 317 – Campamento to Aquadulce – 87k/854m
  • Day 318 – Aquadulce to Playa Blanca – 79k/295m 
  • Day 319 – Playa Blanca to El Nazareno – 77k/366m
  • Day 320 – El Nazareno to Panama City – 56k/483m
  • Day 321 to 323 – Layover @ Panama City – 26k Sunday cycle
  • Day 324 – Panama City to Agua Buena – 46k/562m
  • Day 325 – Agua Buena to Portobelo – 70k/729m
  • Day 326 – Portobelo to Puerto Lindo – 24k/255m
  • Day 327 to 331 – Sailboat transport to Colombia via the San Blas Islands
  • Day 332 to 336 – Layover @ Cartagena, Colombia

Total trip distance: 8,988 miles (14,470 km)
Total trip climbing: 404,828 feet 
Countries: USA, Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia
Number of crashes: 3 (2 for Dustin both in Mexico & 1 for Patricia in Canada)

When leaving Dominical, Costa Rica since we had a short(er) day of only 62km (37 miles), we were able to delay our departure a bit. This meant still getting up before sunrise and sitting on the porch of our bungalow listening and watching for birds. Since we were staying near Rio Baru (Baru River) we had the perfect environment to observe birds. This coastal/river area has over 300 bird species and we were able to get 25 of them with our Merlin Bird App by listening for sounds. Unique bird species were nearby – including parakeets and toucans! 

Our Merlin Birding App picked up 25 different species of birds by listening near sunrise – it was exciting to “see” parakeets & toucans being identified!
So much in this picture…one pot meal, eating inside our air-conditioned room, laundry drying in the upper right, Patricia’s biker-short tan line keeps getting better, and gear everywhere!

Once we eventually started the ride we were almost immediately covered in sweat – the humidity was high and we were working hard up and down the rolling hills of the coast. 

Patricia climbs in Costa Rica – it was so humid our shirts were quickly soaked.

We’re think we’re starting to hit the rainy season – almost every afternoon now we have been getting a massive downpour and then it’s done. Good thing we’ve been riding early and stopping early 🙂 

Changing climates of Costa Rica

We started to head inland and away from Costa Rica’s beautiful Pacific Coast toward the tropical wet forest. As we’ve cycled through Costa Rica (on the Pacific side) we transitioned from the tropical dry forest in the north to the tropical moist forest and now were in the tropical wet forest. It was a really interesting transition to see how the flora and fauna changed over the course of our 10 days riding through Costa Rica. 

Patricia poses with one of the interesting signs in Costa Rica, reminding people that animals are prevalant in this area.

Panama, Panama, Panama!

Fast border crossing – Costa Rica “exit tax” $9 each…we gave the equivalent of $10 in CR colones and when Patricia asked for change she was told “no change”. Smile, nod & walk away… 

Panama feels more “American” than the rest of Latin America…more aggressive drivers, “free refills” advertised, and we’re back to using the US dollars for bills but a mixture of US coins and Panamanian Balboa coins – the Balboa tracks with the USD and looks very similar to US coins.

Entering Panama we found that the roads were now four lanes with a decently wide shoulder (mostly).
We entered Panama! Here Dustin Poses in front of the Immigration building. The rest of the day we sang Van Halen’s “Panama”.
Panama uses the US dollar yet has its own coin system that is tied to US currency and looks very similar to US coins. The Panamanian Balboa is on the left where the US coins are on the right. Often when receiving change from a vendor we would get a mixture of the two types of coins. The large Balboa is a “medio” ($0.50) & the two toned coin at the top of the left column is the $1 Balboa.

We stayed the first night in David, Panama and then continued the eastward journey toward Panama City with a stop in Las Lajas. Its still very hot & humid so we try and start early – this was made easier by Panama being 1 hour ahead in the Central Time Zone as compared to Costa Rica – now sunrise is 6:30ish versus 5:30am. 

Dustin saying it is hot and humid with out speaking it. Our shirts were usually soaking wet within ten minutes of setting off each day.
A day into Panama we stopped at a nice little hotel near the beach in Las Lajas. Dustin cools off in their pool.
Bananas are grown everywhere. These plants are just outside of our back porch in Las Lajas.

For the next three days we made our way east toward Panama City with stops in Aquadulce, camping at a church camp, and Playa Blanca. Our naive perception of Panama, because of its selection for the canal, was a flat country – we were proven incorrect with some of the climbing we had to do! 

Western Panama was actually quite mountainous – our legs certainly felt it!
Patricia finds a $20 on the road – good thing we were climbing up a steep hill so she was going slow enough to see it 🙂
We met these curious Panamanian guys at a grocery store and they bought us a coke – they were intrigued by our trip & we learned about their jobs. The guy on the right is a night-time truck loader for Sysco.
There is a large Christian camp that allows travelers to camp or park on their property for the night asking only a donation. They gave us a spot at one of the bathrooms which also had a shower. The roof was a plus because it started to rain in the evening.
This guy stopped us along the highway to give us chocolate, banana chips, and cocolitas (sweetened coconut balls). He encouraged us to keep going!
Riding past wind turbines in Panama – interestingly we read that Panama is one of only three “carbon negative” countries in the world!
After a tough day of riding GrapeNuts ice cream makes everything better – it’s actually really good!

A surprise delightful AirBnB stop

We decided to stop 40k before Panama City so we would be fresh(er) for the ride over the Bridge of the Americas so we booked a simple AirBnB and were overwhelmed by the hospitality of our hosts! Noe & Ama hosted us in a small apartment at the back of their home. We learned that Noe, a former US Marine, married Ama, a Panamanian lawyer, and they were both very passionate about running a Red Footed Tortise Sanctuary. The Red Footed Tortise is an endangered species that is hunted for its shell to make jewelry. Noe taught us about this species & told us the story of some of his rescues – it was so heartwarming to feel their passion for the tortoises.

Patricia holding one of the older Red Footed Tortoises at the sanctuary.
Dustin is holding a couple of the younger residents. At his feet are three of the older ones, the one at the top (left) was run over by a car and its shell was repaired. The one at the bottom was in a fire and is at the sanctuary recuperating.
Patricia holding a couple of the younger residents approximately 4-5 months old. These were eggs laid at the sanctuary and hatched.
This Red Footed Tortoise emerged from its shell during the night we stayed with Noe & Ama – not having a ruler to measure we placed our chapstick next to her for reference.
Four tortoise eggs that were laid at the sanctuary. If you look closely you can see the upper right one is cracking. The chapstick is for scale.
Ama made us a sampling of traditional Panamanian foods – the plate holds empamadas and smoked pork while the clear dish holds a coconut dessert – it was all delicious!

PANAMA CITY!!!

Panama City has long been on our list of desired targets because it represents to us a couple important milestones. First, Panama City is approximately the halfway point of our bicycle journey from Fairbanks, Alaska to Ushuaia, Argentina. Realistically we are probably slightly more than halfway but it depends on the routes we take for the rest of the trip. Second, riding into Panama City, over the Bridge of the Americas, symbolically is moving from North America into South America. Really this division of the two continents is a bit further east in the Darien Province but many people consider the Panama Canal, the iconic waterway under the Bridge of the Americas to separate the continents – so we’ll take it!

Making the turn onto the highway that would take us over the Bridge of the Americas. Riding along on the wide shoulder we received lots of (positive) honks and thumbs up which was encouraging and celebratory as this is a huge milestone in our journey South.
The Bridge of the Americas. Crossing this bridge symbolically marks completing the first half of our journey and riding an entire continent from the North to the South.
Just at about the top of the Bridge of the Americas. Traffic at 10:30 am, after mornign rush hour, was very generous to us the whole way over the bridge giving us lots of space, especially since there was not a proper shoulder.

We stayed in Panama City for 4 nights so we could explore the city and get some chores done. Our first stop was a bicycle shop we’d contacted ahead of time and ordered two new touring tires – these specific German touring tires had to be shipped from Washington, USA so we were sure to contact them ahead of time. After battling the city traffic to find the bike shop, we were disappointed to learn they were only able to get one of the two tires we had ordered. Oh well – one is better than none!

Panama Canal

We’d read David McCullough’s “The Path Between the Seas” to help us better understand Panama through the lens of building the canal. So it was very exciting to go to the Miraflores Locks visitors center and see the (original) Panama Canal in action. We were able to catch five different vessels transit the Miraflores locks and we were able to see two ships transit the new canal, completed in 2016, from a distance. We sat on the viewing platform mesmerized by the process to lift massive ships 54 feet in two steps at the Miraflores Locks. Covered in sweat we were happy to go and see the (air-conditioned) IMAX that was included in our entrance ticket.

When we arrived at the Miraflores Locks of the Panama Canal this ship was just completing its transit through the locks.
We watched a cruise ship transit the locks from start to finish. This massive ship will be lifted 54 feet in two stages of locks. In the distance a new Panamax ships can be observed transiting the new improved canal which was completed in 2016.
The cruise ship prepares to move into the next lock. When the cruise ship went through it was the only vessel in the lock because it is so large.
Cables connected to trains are used to steer the ships through the canal. In the last transit we observed the cargo ship (black) did not completely fill the lock so two vessels were behind the container ship.

The United States controlled the Panama Canal for 85 years up until 2000 which helped to explain the heavy American influence of Panama.

Domingo Cyclisme

Domingo Cyclisme or “Sunday cycling” is very popular in the larger cities of Latin America. Often some roads are closed off to cars and massive amounts of people gather to leisurely, or speedily, ride bikes. We’ve wanted to participate for quite a while and our chance came in Panama City.

Panama City skyline was visible as we participated in Domingo Cyclisme – here Dustin rides on a road shut off from cars and only open to bicycles and pedestrians.
Patricia gets passed by a speedy group of bicyclists all wearing matching gear.
View of the Bridge of the Americas – we rode over this iconic bridge to enter Panama City. This bridge allows cars to cross over the Panama Canal and is often considered the separation between North & South America.
On Domingo Cyclisme we also rode along a wonderful waterfront path reminding us of Chicago’s lakeshore path.

Darien Gap Challenge

To continue heading south from Panama becomes quite challenging because of the Darien Gap, a non-ridable jungle/swamp that is filled with drug smugglers and nowadays migrants. Most cyclists we’ve met fly over this section but there was an option to take a 5-night sailboat trip and we opted to try that transportation method. The sailboat stopped at three different San Blas Islands of Panama and then made a 45 hour crossing to Cartagena, Colombia. Our boat was a 65 foot steel ketch that was more like a floating hostel than a luxury cruise liner.

It certainly was an interesting way to move from Panama to Colombia with 16 other travelers, most in their early 20s, and 4 crew members. The best part about the sailboat was we didn’t have to figure out where we were sleeping or what we were eating for 5 nights!

We rode from Panama City north to the Caribbean coast and caught our boat out of Puerto Lindo. This allowed us to see more of Panama and we had built in “buffer days” so we had 4 days to stretch over what usually took us 2 days to ride.

We mended our deteriorating clothes while we were in Panama City – here Dustin shows off his new sleeves made from old undies. Many people have asked, “why don’t you just buy new ones?” – it’s just not possible. Most of the gear we use is not sold in Latin America and shipping ourselves items is challenging with our constant movement and customs delays.
Stop along the Caribbean coast of Panama en route to our sailboat to cross from Panama to Colombia. This also tics off another major feat for us, riding a country from coast to coast, from the Pacific side to the Atlantic side–he he.
Our bikes take a rest at the Portobelo, Panama fortification built to protect this valuable deep water port which shipped silver, from Peru, to Spain.
The Portobelo, Panama port was protected from invaders by this fortification.
Our hostel room was right on the water – we enjoyed dinner on the edge of the swimming pool while watching the sunset.

Sailing to Colombia

We met the crew and other travelers at the marina and departed for a 5-night sailboat journey through the San Blas Islands of Panama and then onto Colombia. We spent the first three days in the San Blas Islands and then made a 45 hour passage to Colombia. It sounds idealistic and the photos look quite nice but we’ll say we’re happy to have experienced the “floating hostel” but would not do it again haha. We were the only guests who didn’t have to take dramamine (for sea sickness) and the quarters were quite close – we were in a bunk room with 4 other people. Overall all the other travelers and crew were great, food was delicious, and we had a novel experience 🙂

The Captain/cook hands Patricia’s bicycle over his head to the mate to be stored for passage on top of the pilot house.
Our bicycles were secured to the top of the Sovereign Grace for our 5-night passage.
Dustin’s bandana matched Gracie’s, the boat dog.
Dustin & Gracie became quick friends 🙂
Since we were used to getting up early we enjoyed several sunrises (and patiently waited for coffee!)
“Walk with your hands” as the boat pitched and heeled.
Epically beautiful San Blas Islands of Panama (with really good snorkeling to boot!)
It was so nice not to have to think about where we were staying or what we would eat for 5 days 🙂 In this photo the crew has made a beach BBQ on one of the islands.
Dustin with our 3 bunk mates from the UK – super nice & funny chaps 🙂
Coming into Cartagena – so exciting!

Semana Santa (Holy Week)

We wanted to spend Holy Week in a more “religious” country and we couldn’t have been happier than in Cartagena, Colombia – the city actually promotes itself as a religious tourism destination. There were services, processionals, choirs, and religious art almost everywhere throughout the city. When leaving Panama we had decided to stay through Easter in Cartagena rather than risk arriving at a small town with everything closed down.

Cartagena is a historic city of approximately 1 million inhabitants with an important port on the northern coast of Colombia. As a former Spanish colony Cartagena was critical in exporting South American silver (from present day Bolivia & Peru) to Spain.

While on the Good Friday stations of the cross procession we enjoyed sunset overlooking the Cartagena harbor.
Several of the churches had images of Holy Week projected onto them. In this image Jesus is on the cross. We made it to 6 of the seven churches with lighted projections.
In this Holy Week image projected on the front walls of a church Jesus is being held by Mary.
After the Maundy Thursday stations of the cross procession in the old town we stepped into a bookstore to cool off and have an iced coffee and cake.
Living like the locals. We had a front gate padlock, an iron gate over the front door padlock and finally the regular door lock. Three locks just to get into our AirBnB. The caveat being you couldn’t pull the key out without locking each padlock.
Women preparing to carry the statue of Santa Maria for the Maundy Thursday stations of the cross procession through the old town.
Men (dressed in purple) carried a statue of Jesus carrying the cross (brown statue surrounded by flowers in the middle of this picture) behind Santa Maria. There were no bulletins and everyone knew what to say at the right times. After a couple of these processions Patricia figured out they were reciting the Hail Mary and Lord’s Prayer.
It is Semana Santa (Holy Week) in a religious country which means it is a holiday. Some people observed this time by partaking in religious activity while others celebrated in ways such as hopping on party buses. There were several filled with people blaring loud music. The people outside the bus are selling select beverages from their white foam coolers to those on the bus.

It just so happened our longtime friends were arriving on Easter Sunday to Cartagena via a cruise ship while taking an epic family sabbatical with their kids aboard the Villa Vie Odyssey, a residential ship that travels the world. We joined them aboard for the entire day & delighted in the great conversation & wonderful food. It was so wonderful to catch up after not seeing each other for over 16 years!

We caught up with longtime friends who arrived in Cartagena on Easter Sunday aboard the Villa Vie Odyssey, a residential cruise ship – they are on the boat for 5 months with their children.
The food aboard the Villa Vie Odyssey was fantastic 🙂
At the cruise ship terminal they had a conservation eco park (and a huge gift shop haha). There were many peafowl (male peacocks & female peahens).
Scarlet macaws abounded in the eco park – most birds were habituated to humans and you could put them on an arm or shoulder for pictures (not for us – that beak would be too close to our faces!)
Blue & gold macaw with two green parrots left of the macaw
At first this keel-billed toucan was mistaken as a plastic statue by the photographer haha
It was neat to see a Giant Anteater – we’d only seen the smaller ant eater species “sleeping” on the sides of the road previously 🙁

We’re posting this update one riding day out of Cartagena – we’ve started to make our way toward Medellin (it will take 10 riding days to get there) and are excited to get back into the mountains and hopefully get out of this coastal heat and humidity. We have some tough riding days ahead as we will begin climbing into the Andes Mountain Range in just a few days. We’re excited to see more of Colombia as we continue the journey…

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32 thoughts on “Day 312 – 336: mostly Panama”

  2. Mike and Lori from the beach in Farallon.
    We asked you over for a beer as we felt there was a story to here.
    I didn’t realize Sarah and Lori had subscribed to your blog.
    We are glad they did.
    You’ve been on the road a year.
    An amazing journey you can reflect on for the rest of lives.
    Take care and have fun!

  3. Of course your entire trip is amazing, but you set the bar high with meeting up with friends in Panama who are cruising the world!!
    We enjoyed seeing the birds and anteaters – thank you for the photos.

    I feel like I’m starting to sweat reading about all the H and H!!

    Take care.

    1. Haha at your sweat – I think my body knows I’m going biking and just starts sweating in the morning now! Just a few more days and we’ll start to climb the Andes – hopefully its cooler 🙂

  4. It is so fascinating to see your pictures and read about all you are experiencing. Continue to stay safe and well.

  5. Love following along your journey. You are having such a once in a lifetime experience.
    Stay safe and keep posting. I’m living vicariously through you two:)

  6. Happy Easter! I love the different cultural celebrations around this holiday – it must
    be amazing to experience it firsthand!! I have all sorts of questions about coffee varieties and clothing upkeep and language skills and favorite foods and drinking water acquisition and sore muscles. But mostly I’m grateful you keep sharing the journey with us!!! Congratulations on cycling through North America!

    1. Lots of good questions you ask – language skills might be the easiest one to tackle so here goes:
      We both acquired Spanish language skills by using Duolingo and then once we were in Spanish speaking countries we’ve picked up more bits and pieces. I call our skill level “survival Spanish” – we can get food, accommodation, water, and tell people about our trip easily these days. Having a conversation with someone is an entirely different story, but we continue to try. Another interesting challenge is how the words change from country to country – for example on the roads the word for “passing” has changed 3 times already! In critical situations (i.e. the pharmacist) I use “mi amigo” Google Translate 🙂

  7. Sarah and Erik also from Farallón beach. We were with mike and Lori. What and exciting adventure. So glad we met you two and am enjoying to experience this trip with all the pictures and your writings of your adventure. Safe travels

  8. It has been a blessing traveling with you on your journey. The Easter celebration was amazing!
    Stay safe and healthy.

  9. I continue to enjoy your posts, admire your adventuresome & persevering spirits & pray for your continued health & safety on your journey. It is a bummer you didn’t get that extra tire, though. I hope it doesn’t slow you down too much. I hope you are planning a book & a speaking tour when you get home! 🙂
    Be well. And happy Easter. Christ is risen!

  10. Ok, is it “Half way, yay!!!” or “Gloryosky,, only half way…”??
    We continue to love your stories and encounters. What a marvelous Easter weekend experience. Another chance for a new tire upcoming, I hope. Sending warm (cooling?) thoughts. Fondly, Lisa

    1. Hmmmmm….good question – in some ways we’re “halfway yay!” like I can’t believe we’ve actually made it this far and in other ways its still a long way to go. I (Patricia) get tired of the constant planning – it was so nice just to hop on the sailboat and have someone else tell me what to do/eat for 5 nights!
      Not sure we’ll get the exact tire we *want* but we’ll certainly be able to get the tire we *need* 🙂

  11. Hi both – Can’t tell you how much I have enjoyed your blog with all the great pics. Thank you so much for sharing the ride.

  12. What an amazing journey you’re having! Thank you for sharing the stories and photos — I love your experience at the turtle sanctuary! Travel on! Susan

  13. So much fun — I’ve been to some of the places you visited along with my husband Lee. (He sadly passed away on Jan. 31, 2025). We did have the greatest and fun life anyone can only wish for — we traveled a bit more traditional — but we traveled and saw much of the world.
    Enjoy your trip — I’m following you wherever you go. So great for me, especially now being alone, to kinda share your trip.
    Thanks for allowing me to be part of this. Also thanks to Karen Johnson for sharing. <3

  14. Every time you post to your blog I take time out from whatever I’m doing to read and enjoy photos from beginning to end. What an amazing adventure with so many wonderful stories about your experiences! I look forward to more as you make your way through South America. Thanks for sharing the journey virtually. May God bless you and watch over you everyday.

  15. He is Risen! What an incredible adventure you’re having! It’s also inspiring! We are going to adventure on a much smaller scale in France with Swensons and Bartlings . 15 day bike/barge trip. We’ll ride 15-25 a day, exploring as we go and then sleep on the barge. Stay safe and know our prayers go with you!

  16. Hello again Patricia and Dustin.
    So happy to hear you’ve made it halfway.
    We feel blessed to have had the opportunity to visit with you in Delta Junction at the beginning of your trip.
    It has added a personal touch to your journey for us
    Stay safe any enjoy what God has blessed us with.
    Sam Cathleen Mia and Gracelynn

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