La Ruta Pandora in Puerto Rico
Starting the year off living in Puerto Rico with Emma and my family was an excellent way to forget about 2020. Going home always has a refreshing effect on me, even if it's just for a weekend. This time though, it was extra special. I was home for an extended period, spending quality time with the family and with Emma and our corgi puppy, Potato. Before we left, we went on an amazing ride that I am now calling the Pandora Route (more on that in a bit). I've written before about the magic of riding Puerto Rico's mountains, but this route takes the cake and topped off our stay in PR before coming back to NYC.
Emma is very good at making/stealing routes in new places. She gets total credit for making this route and, as my parents say, for "showing me around my own island." They're not wrong; I didn't discover the uniquely beautiful perspectives one can only see from a bike until much later in life.
That brings me to the name of this ride: La Ruta Pandora. Pandora is the name of the world from the movie Avatar, portrayed as the beautiful epitome of nature in harmony. My opinion is biased here, but there are places in Puerto Rico that look and feel just like it. This route will take you to a few of them.
The route starts in Manatí and quickly heads up to Ciales, a very picturesque municipality in PR. There is a lot of climbing involved in this route, especially as we headed up to the mountains from sea level. Fortunately, the cool features of this ride are many and they don't take long to show up. Starting with the Mata de Plátano bridge in Ciales, a one-lane bridge from 1905 that has been beautifully restored.
Puente Mata de Plátano, Ciales, PR
Crossing Mata de Plátano
It’s hard not to get distracted with the amazing views climbing up to the town of Ciales. Ciales is located within La Cordillera Central, and our route took us up right to the middle of the main town.
Views from the road that climbs up to the town of Ciales
Emma on the PR-149
The higher up you go, the less cars. The deeper into the rainforest you go, too. Many of the roads connecting the mountain municipalities are small, fairly quiet on traffic, and incredibly beautiful. It’s a dream to ride a bike around here; endless winding roads through a million different shades of green. In the distance, more mountains with spots of houses here and there.
It is a road so peaceful that you forget you’re climbing. This road is the PR-149, and it will take you to a lookout point near Cerro Vista Alegre. Down in the valley, you see the Toro Negro river winding around on its way to the ocean.
One of the coolest features of this route is Cascada Las Delicias, in Jayuya. It’s a cascade made from the river Cialitos. You might miss it if you're not careful, because the path is a bit hidden. We hid our bikes in the brush and managed the short trek in our cycling shoes without falling down. The water was too cold (freezing, actually) and we had too long left on the route for a dip, but maybe next time.
From there we kept climbing into Jayuya and eventually descended into Utuado via some long and very long and sometimes twisty descends (with a few dogs) through several coffee farms on the mountainsides. Once in Utuado, the name “Pandora Route” starts making a lot of sense.
The PR-140 cuts through the rocky landscape
Utuado one of the most breathtaking places on earth. It is full of canyons, rock-face cliffs, rivers and dense greenery everywhere. The PR-140 road cuts through the rock formations in the area, making for some unique (and very tight) roads carved into the green mountain. It's hard not to stop and take pictures at what Emma dubbed "the green wall." It seems like every corner reveals another beautiful view, and I eventually had to tell myself to stop taking pictures and just enjoy it.
Utuado, PR
Finally back at sea level through the municipality of Florida, the ride back to Manatí is pretty exposed to the sun. We had to stop a few times to control our temperature, but made it back without any issues. The mountains still looking down on us from the south, I sort of regretted not jumping into Las Delicias. Tired but happy and thoroughly satisfied, we loaded up our bikes headed back home to San Juan.
Getting to Florida
Notes for a future ride on this route:
Don't skip the kit dip at Cascada las Delicias
Watch out for dogs on the descent from Jayuya
Pick up water and/or fuel in Ciales because there are few stops available after that
Stop for cold water and/or ice in Florida before the return to Manatí
Click here for the route on Strava
Born and raised in Puerto Rico, I race road for To Be Determined and work in technology in NYC.
