To ring in my birthday (exact numerical value seems unimportant!) Sage and I rode out to the town of Mitla and treated ourselves (via the kindness of my parents) to a couple of nights at the exquisite Casa Lyobaa.

It’s a 55km ride to get there, mostly flat, and mostly dirt, though not without its challenges – especially at this time of year when it’s searingly hot and the winds are often unfavourable.

Still, I love the ride. It’s almost completely bereft of traffic (and what there is, is often a pleasing 50/50 ratio of horse and cart/old pickup trucks). It passes by legions of regimented, pointy agave plantations, cheeky clusters of prickly pear, and noble old organ cacti. It traces the Camino Real as well as an old railway line, and there’s a great midway spot for nieves too, ideal for tempering the heat and refuelling the mind, body, and spirit. 

Sage brought his notebook (thank you Mordecai Book Binding!), so he could draw during our breaks from the saddle.

Sage was in his ‘we must feed the street dogs, all the street dogs’ mode for this trip, so we’d made an important adjustment to our packlist… Namely, we packed his front bag with a couple of kilos of kibble (a brand that now-fussy Huesos has spurned), sprinkly handfuls onto the road whenever he saw a dog in need. The main recipients were either those who were especially scrawny, or those who were especially cute (I’m talking about you, Forestera, who we found out isn’t technically homeless, but is available for rehoming to the right family. It’s often the case in Mexico that residents take in street dogs, feeding them and catering to their basic needs, rather than officially ‘owning’ them).  

Forestera is Sage’s 4th Favourite Dog In The World.

John and Mira, heading out on the San José del Pacífico Grand Dirt Tour.

Anyway, we certainly passed a good number of xylophone-like specimens, so the bag was soon running low. Some dogs accepted additional petting, while others – those who had likely been at the receiving end of the wrong kind of attention – were more skeptical of this modern-day-dog-whisperer-saint. Tying in with our dog theme, in Tlacochahuaya we even bumped into John and Mira, who were off on a three-day bikepacking trip in training for their Great Divide race later this year.

Sage couldn’t bear to pass by any skinny dog without stopping to give it a handful of kibble or leftover tortillas. “Next time, we’ll need to carry more” he said. I can picture a situation where he’ll want to dedicate at least a full pannier to dog food…

Despite these many stops and starts, we made it to Casa Lyoba in time for a late afternoon swim, before heading into town for a round of tacos Al Pastor – a Sage favourite – as my intended birthday eats (Origen Maiz) was closed that night. How do you feel about having ridden 55km, I asked? “I’m a proud soul!” said Sage. I was proud of him too, and I basked a little more in the afterglow later, when he was telling his mum all about his day.

As for the ride, Sage said it was ‘pretty tough but nice’, and that the scenery and towns gave it plenty of interest. The fact that it was flat was appreciated, as much of our riding here involves substantial gains in elevation. For my part, it was wonderful having him bouncing along beside me, hopping off topes and skidding around corners.

Sage’s go-to bike pose. Way better than my awkward stance.

We pulled out the Twowhee – aka our Magic Bungee – on a couple of occasions, just to help with the longer, winder drags. It helps keep the fun-o-meter pointing in the direction of “challenging but doable”, rather than “exhausting and demoralising”. I always try and incorporate at least one challenging component into each of our bike trips, as I know how empowering it is to redefine your belief in what you’re capable of. But I also want Sage to look back upon these experiences in a positive light, to be something that made his childhood happy (and not hell!).

Made it! This may well have been Sage’s furthest ride to date.

Tasting chapolines – grasshoppers – an Oaxacan speciality, at Origen Maiz. He preferred the coconut ice cream, to be honest…

Living it up at Casa Lyobaa, with its breakfast spread, record collection, and gorgeous cactus garden. I’ve been here once before, so it was nice to meet a couple of new prickly residents.

We spent two nights there, so we could make the most of the swimming pool, explore town, and eat (more) ice cream.

This beautiful and detailed mural is by Oaxacan artist Oscar Axo.

Originally, we’d intended to clamber into a colectivo pickup truck to Hierve el Agua, a limestone rock formation located on a hillside up a steep dirt climb nearby. But in the end, we were happy to spend much of our time relaxing around the swimming pool at Casa Lyobaa, and seeing how far we could swim underwater.

Casa Lyoba was as down-to-earth-luxurious as I remember it. A beautiful room with comfy beds, a cactus garden that has a few new residents, a great record collection, and a fabulous breakfast with house-roasted coffee.

On the way back, we retraced our steps, this time visiting the Jaguar Sanctuary too, which works to reintroduce rescued jaguars back into the wild. The took is in Spanish and takes a good hour, so we learned a lot.

Then it was back on the bikes again, once more tracing the Camino Real to San Juan for nieves, and Tlacachuyuaya for memelas (humans) and kibble (dogs).

I forgot to jot down the name of the artist who painted this wonderful mural, so will add it in later.

One of the two black jaguars that are currently in El Santuario del Jaguar. It takes a number of years, and a 5 step program, before they are ready to be re-introduced into the wild.

Mango, tuna (prickly pear fruit), and limón. A Classic Combo Oaxaqueño on a hot day.

En route home again, via the Camino Real (and some roofdogs, agaves, memelas and nieves).

My rig: the Jones SWB in ‘Basher Mode’, with 29 x 3.25in tyre up front. My laptop is in the Tailfin Aeropack, water in the Buckhorn framebag, and various snacks (such as a bag of juicy dates) to keep our legs turning.

Outside the grand walls of the Jardín Etnobotánico de Oaxaca. Two proud souls!

The Route

This is a really good ride for those relatively new to bike touring, and/or families. It’s mostly flat and there tends to be a tailwind on the return leg. It uses the Tule bike path and various countryside dirt roads. For the most part, there’s barely any traffic, except for exiting and re-entering the city. It’s about 4 hours riding time each way, which you can break up with nieves, memelas, a trip to Dainsu archaeological site, and the Jaguar Sanctuary.

As we had a place to stay, there was no need to carry too much – except, of course, for the aforementioned Giant Bag of Kibble, and some goggles.

If you want to change things up on the way back, you ride via San Marcos Tlapazola, know fo its traditional barro rojo red pottery – as per the Meandros en Mitla bikepacking route.

And if you want to treat yourself to somewhere truly special, and you arrive by bike and pay in cash, Casa Lyobaa will give you a 10% discount!