Sea Level (Volcan Baru Adventure E1)

Hey guys, welcome to January 20th, 2012. Today is the day that I finally get my act together and do a ride that I've been planning to do for over a year, wanting to do for over a year. I plan to ride from the lowest point in Panama to the highest point in Panama. Today I'm going from sea level to the top of Volcan Baru. And I'm going to take you along for the ride Hopefully everything goes okay. Hopefully I ride straight to the top. And from the top of Volcan Baru, if it's clear, when it's clear, you can see the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean, at the same time. So I am prepared to camp because the clearest is in the early morning. But I'm not crazy about camping. I don't like camping. People invented houses and beds for a reason. They're better than camping. But I am prepared to do that if that's what it takes to get video and pictures of both oceans at the same time. Because I want the bike to be as lightweight as possible, I left the Happy Trails panniers at home. I've got a waterproof roll-top bag in case it rains. And I just strapped it to the Happy Trails top plate. Most of this is sleeping bag. It looks like I'm carrying way too much stuff, but it gets cold up there. So, sleeping bag, a sleeping bag liner, a little camping stove, some tools. And most of what's in here is camera gear. And most of what's in this camel pack is food and water. So, I am meeting a few other people. I'm going to meet someone back in David and I'm going to meet another person in Boquete. And the three of us are going to try and tackle Balcamburu. But if we camp, if I camp, I'll be the only one camping. No one else, these other guys, they're not going to go prepared to camp. So, I can't blame them. Going to the top would be enough for most people. Right now, it is 8.45 in the morning and it's 85 degrees. And I'm interested to see just how crazy of a difference we get in temperature from sea level to the top of Balcamburu. I can't remember exactly how many feet above sea level it is. I'll have to look that up. But I'm going to get going because I really want to make this day happen. I made a huge mistake. Number one, driving out onto this loose sand. It's so hard to drive in this stuff. That really, you have to run alongside the bike and just push because if you sit on it, it's too much weight and the tire just digs in. So, huge mistake number one. Going to try to get the bike off the sand without exhausting myself first thing. Off to a good start. It seems like it's going to be one of those days. That peak in the distance behind me is Balcamburu. And right now, it looks really clear up there. Looks like there's a few clouds maybe off to the back side, but if I were there now, I would probably have a really killer view of both oceans, which is the whole point of this. So, if the weather can stay like this for the rest of the day, then things will go fairly well. Hopefully, we won't get up there and it'll start raining on us and get slippery and all that. Anyways, I can't keep stopping like this and talking. I've got to burn up there because there's some other people waiting for me. Today, I will ride from Las Olas back to David, where I will meet with Jose. Together, we will ride to Boquete and meet Gary, the third member of our group. The adventure will really begin when the three of us hit the dirt road that leads from Boquete to the summit of Balcamburu. If I reach the top, I will have traveled from sea level to 11,398 feet. From there, I will be able to look down on both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. Whatever happens, one thing is clear. This will be a long day. This will be difficult. This will be an adventure. Next time on Half Cops. This is the entrance to the park. This is a national park that we're going into. It costs $5. I've been up here a couple times. This is the first time the ranger's been here. This is the first five bucks I've had to spend to come in here. That's okay because you guys really do a good job taking care of this road.