Mountain Biking with the I.D.T.

Recently, Bogotá Bike Tours helped the city's Instituto Distrital de Turismo carry out a series of mountain bike rides to promote the sport in the hills and towns surrounding Bogotá. And Bogotá's surroundings hold great rides waiting to be discovered: Big climbs and downhills, high-altitude wetlands, called paramos, and even jungles and coffee farms.

The view from the hills.

A tough road to ride!

A small-town church.

The bikes take a rest.

Hill riding.

Tough riding.

Riding thru lake country.

By Mike Ceaser of Bogota Bike Tours.

Escaping the Smog

Nicolas on top of the Cerro de Guadalupe.

In February, this group of friends rode up to the Virgen de Guadalupe statue 600 meters above Bogotá. (It's a challenging climb, but one which should only be done when police make it safe, as many bicycles have been stolen on the road up.)

I was struck by the way these sportspeople appear unaware of layer of smog blanketing the city, as tho they're so used to it that they don't ask whether it's right that we should be trapped in a layer of cancerous soot.

Nicolas, Cristian and a female friend.

Smog over the city.

Blog by Mike Ceaser, of Bogotá Bike Tours.