Bike tour in Uruguay: quiet Carmelo to historical Colonia de Sacramento

Colonia

Destination

Intermediate

Difficulty level

Our trip in Uruguay has that air of old days. We propose you to make ballast roads without much difficulty through soft hills and flat rural areas. Cycling without hurry through green fields with remnants of the history of the “Río de la Plata”. Knowing the wineries and vineyards, visiting Colonia de Sacramento, visiting this part of Uruguay by bike and walking, even photographing it is a worthwhile experience.

DEPART/ARRIVAL

Carmelo/ Colonia de Sacramento

SCHEDULE

7.30a.m. Tigre Port. There’s a chance to travel to Carmelo on
friday afternoon, please let us know if interested in.

SERVICES INCLUDED

Ferry boat to Carmelo and Ferry Boat back from Colonia to Buenos Aires (Three hours sail there and one hour on the way back)

transportation of your mountain bike

Snacks in a vineyard on saturday. Breakfast and lunch on sunday at another vineyard. Granola bars and fruits during the rides

One hotel night (double ir triple base) at Conchillas

Mechanical assistance

Bilingual guide with two way radios

Accidents insurance

Support vehicle along the ride

NOT INCLUDED

Transfers to Tigre port and from Buenos Aires port, meals and snacks not detailed in the program, drinks, transfers not detailed in the program, bike parts, laundry or personal expenses

MTB rental

Additional information

Location	Carmelo, Colonia
Duration	2 days
Dates	April, May, September, October, November

Beautiful weekend ride in Carmelo, Conchillas and Colonia in Uruguay

Day 1: Carmelo to Conchillas

We arrive at Carmelo on Saturday at 11am in the morning. We find the support vehicle that will accompany us on the journey and we start pedaling through the city. In minutes we will be riding in a rural area, practically without traffic, which allows us to ride more relaxed. We will pass through the Calera de las Huérfanas, originally the main house of the “Estancia del Río de las Vacas” from 1741, administered by the Jesuits, dedicated to the production of lime. Then his administration was entrusted to Juan de San Martin, father of the Latin american hero Jose de San Martin. A little further on we will pass through the vineyards and winery Zubizarreta, which together with Irurtia is one of the oldest wineries in Uruguay. After 19km we will arrive at the Bodega Zubizarreta, visit the vineyards and get to know the winery, as well as enjoying a very good “picada”! In the afternoon we continue the trip to Conchillas through rural roads surrounded by planted fields. In Conchillas we will see the English constructions that were established in the late nineteenth century, when the company CH Walker & Co Ltd won the tender for the construction of the new port of Buenos Aires. We stay in Conchillas, where we can enjoy the rest of the afternoon.
Distance: 54km.

Day 2: Conchillas to Colonia de Sacramento

After a fabulous breakfast we set off by bike to Colonia. Initially by internal roads, then in a short stretch on route 21, until kilometer seventeen, time to enter again to the roads of conchilla to reach the “Estancia Cerros de San Juan” at kilometer twenty-three where we will be greeted with a nice lunch. After a well-deserved rest we continue towards Colonia by a ballast road (conchilla), between hills, fields, having the Río de la Plata always on our right hand. We crown the afternoon when at Real de San Carlos, the old bullring of colonial times and the hippodrome that had their splendor at the beginning of the 20th century. Few kilometers remain to reach Colonia where we will have some time to walk around the old town and city of Colonia. In the afternoon, we go to the port of Colonia to embark towards Buenos Aires. Distance: 56km