Big city traffic, again.

Jan 14 Cococabana to La Paz

The morning started with a nice breakfast at the hotel followed by a little unexpected tire repair. Somehow the valve stem sheared off the tube completely, and I don’t remember riding on a flat tire, so after about an hour of fiddling around I installed the spare tube and we were on our way. The other thing that needed fixing was the skid plate bolt again, this time the other side sheared off in the frame. It appeared I was in need of a drill one more time, but it would have to wait until La Paz because there was no power in Cocacabana today.

The next thing we added to our “list of firsts” was a ferry ride across a narrow portion of the lake. The word ferry is used as a general term describe  the  process of transporting vehicles across water, what we were actually riding in was a large flat bottomed boat, with a plank deck similar to the bridges in Peru. The ferry could hold two cars and a couple motorbikes and that was about it, some of the ferries were taking one truck or bus at a time, the cost was $20Boliviano (approx $3CDN) for each bike and the ride was about 5 minutes.

 

 

Shortly after the ferry ride the looming clouds opened up and we had to put on the rain gear again, this worked out well as it was a cold day anyway and the rain gear is nice and warm.  The first impression of La Paz was not very good, the highway brings us in through an industrial area and the sides of the road are lined with all kinds of ugly establishments, plus there is a wide mud section between the pavement and the business frontages. The only advantage was that we found a small machine shop where I could get the frame drilled and a new bolt installed. The guys were helpful and laughed at the size of the bike, and my boots. Apparently when I was installing the bolt they were standing behind me comparing foot sizes, then they all laughed when the shortest of the guys stood beside the bike, the seat was up to his chest.

One of the guys comparing foot sizes when I wasn't looking.

The next stop was in the motorcycle sales area to buy a new tube to replace the spare I installed, this was an easy task as there is typically an entire street of bike dealers and bike parts stores. Then it was time to tackle the insanity of La Paz traffic and it did not disappoint us in the slightest.

Our first view of La Paz.

The lack of street signs added with the aggressive drivers and just the shear volume of vehicles on the streets made is a huge parking lot most of the time. The traffic lights that do exist have a stop watch connected to them that shows how long until the light changes color, sometimes one car would get through a 90 sec light change. All this was topped by the fact that we could not find any hotels, anywhere. We went up and down a few streets in the downtown area and nothing could be found. We moved to an area outside of the core and still no luck, we ended up in a north east suburb in a hotel just before dark. It seemed to be the only hotel in a city of a million people. So needless to say that in the morning we packed up and went in search of the infamous “Death Road”.

This was fairly easy to find as there are lots of mountain bike tours that operate on the road so just follow the vans with mountain bikes on the roof and they led us to the starting point. We had been warned to be either in front of or behind the bicycles. We managed to get in front of them and just as expected the road was very narrow, windy, and with steep cliffs off the side. There were spots with waterfalls landing right on the road and a couple of spots with landslides either covering the road or removing part of the road. Fortunately there is a highway route on the other side of the valley so all the trucks and most of the cars use that route instead. We only met one small car on the road so there was plenty of space for us to get by each other. As we got farther along and lower in elevation the weather cleared enough to see the spectacular valley below, way below. Then as quickly as it started it was over and we were stopped by a little lady with a rope across the road, she was in charge of collecting the nominal fee for using the Death Road, about $4Cdn each. It was quiet warm by this point so  we took off our rain gear and rode the last 15km to the town of Coroico.

  

The last 9km of approach road into town was all cobblestone and we revelled at how much work it must have been to make, and wondered how long it had been there. Once in town it was quiet easy to find the central square and take a small break in the now blazing sun. Shortly after sitting down on a park bench a motorcycle with two police officers on it pulled up. The driver and the more senior officer approached us and made a comment about Brenda’s muscular arms. Then he asked if we were part of Dakar, we laughed together then he asked a question about his bike. The 200cc Honda was making a funny noise and I guess the Colonel figured I could fix it. I was shocked when he gave me the key and made a circular motion with his hand, I obliged and took his bike for a lap around the central park.

There were two issues I noticed, the first is that the chain needed lubrication as it was making a terrible rattle and the second was that every time I backed off the throttle the engine would stop. I told the subordinate officer to lube the chain and then adjusted the idle screw a bit to prevent the stalling. The officers were very curious about what I was doing with my leatherman tool, so I explained as best I could using hand signals and basic words. Turn screw this way=rapido, turn screw that way=despachio(slow). They got the message and were thankful for the help. After that we felt safe leaving our bikes as everyone within sight was watching us fix the police Chief’s bike. We really liked the town and decided to stay overnight, at least we could find a hotel , later on that evening finding supper was a bit more of a challenge as the power was out and some restaurants were closed.

The parking at the hotel also provided a great spot to perform a little maintenance. Brenda’s chain has been getting sloppy and the tensioner was almost at its’ limits. I had a spare chain in the luggage as well as a front sprocket so the replacement was done in about an hour. A nice enough way to spend the evening as there was no internet and nothing on TV.  I donated the old parts to the travel Gods and knew that they would end up on a local bike someday, somehow.

Another day another country.

Jan 13 Puno to Cococabana Bolivia

We were not totally sure how long it would take to get across the border so we got an early start so we could take our time along the way and enjoy the many views of the lake.

The crossing was fairly easy, we pulled  up to the chain barricade that crosses the road between the Immigration and Aduana offices on the Peru side. The exiting country is usually fairly quick, our timing was pretty good as we managed to get there just ahead of two tour busses. Once our paperwork was complete for Peru we returned to the bikes and waited for the guard to come out an lower the chain, we waited a few minutes and when it seemed obvious that the guard was not coming I lowered the chain myself, drove the bike across into no man’s land, then raised the chain behind us. The other tourists were shocked at this, it must have looked like we were jumping the border illegally or something.

The Bolivia side was also straight forward, first to Immigration to get our passport stamps, then to the copy place for a photocopy, then to the Aduana to get  the bikes in, then back to the Police office so he could stamp our Aduana paper. This is when the Police officer asked us to give this other officer some money for the stamp. I was a bit confused as this other officer had nothing to do with the stamping or approval of our documents, he was just hanging around the office. I knew that there was no cost for the stamp so I just said “no legal” and walked out, I guess he needs to learn that if he is going to extort money he should do it before he gives back the stamped documents. Welcome to Bolivia!!

 

The first stop in Bolivia would be Cococabana, a beach town on Lake Titicaca, this side of the lake is much different than what we seen in Puno. There is actually a beach, and little beachside restaurants selling the catch of the day. It is also sunny and warm so we enjoy some fresh fish in the sun then enjoy a walk around the town. It is very much an expat influenced town with all the trendy restaurants and hippie hangouts.

Air-a-keepa to Puno

Jan 11-12 Arequipa to Puno

There are a couple of different routes available from Arequipa to Puno and after yesterday's boondoggle it only made sense to try again on the cross country route as opposed to the pavement. This turned out better than expected as we made our way up to the high mountain plain across the Andes. The terrain is barren pastureland with very few inhabitants, human inhabitants anyway, there are lots of llamas, goats and sheep.  


They roam freely without fences and on numerous occasions they find their way to the road and we pass slowly so as not to spook them into a panicked run. We also passed by the Salinas y Aquada Blanca which if it were dry would have made for a miniature Uyuni Salt flat, but of course it was wet so it hard to judge how deep the water is and of course how soft the lake bed.

We were happy to take in the image of local farm ladies walking Llamas along the shore with the snow capped volcanoes in the background. There are a couple of them to look at; Volcan Pichu Pichu, Volcan El Misti, Volcan Ubinas, and in the far distance to the South East Volcan Omate.

Then it was time to make a rookie riding error by forgetting what gear I was in as I tried to go off the road and onto the sandy high plain. I almost made it across the small ditch when the bike slowed considerably then because I was in the wrong gear when I hit the throttle nothing happened, well almost nothing, the weight did shift considerably and over I went. Nothing hurt by my ego.

 

The sand was a bit wet and combined with the 4500m altitude the bike was working very hard and because gas was a concern I did not want to play around to much before getting back on the hard-packed dirt road. The first two or three villages we passed were nothing more than a bunch of abandoned adobe brick houses and a couple of occupied ones. I guess this is where some of the ranchers live. We were surprised when we came upon a village that looked well developed compared to the others. This village had two storey brick houses with tin roofs and the classic stone fences around each property. There was also a small store and a repair shop which also sold gas. We stopped on the outskirts of the village and took in the tranquillity of the place, no noise other than the stream and a couple of dogs barking. We went back to the “gas vendor” and he was very excited to see the bikes. He was working on the shift lever of a little 125cc Honda and when we pulled up he started asking questions immediately after the customary handshake and greetings. We bought some gas out of the barrels he had at a fair price considering the location. All was good and we once again exchanged farewells with a handshake and smiles.

 

The road opened up nicely and we made good time to the next village which seemed to be the market center of the area. There were people weighing hides on mainstreet as well as trucks with produce. There must have been something special happening as all the men were dressed in suits and the ladies seemed to have even more brightly colored clothing than usual. We bought a couple of muffins and bananas at the store and had a little snack while watching all the commotion.

 

The road was paved from here to Puno so the riding was easy, the city of Juliaca was a nut-house with numerous marching bands playing at the same time in the same area. We later figured out that the province of Puno is celebrating their foundation. Once in Puno which is only about half an hour South of Juliaca we were once again shocked at how big the city was, we were expecting something a little smaller. We found a nice hotel a few blocks from the main plaza and the manager lady was kind enough to let us park our bikes in the lobby.

One of the touristy things we wanted to do while here was take the boat ride out to the reed islands that are on lake Titicaca. These islands are actually manmade by tying blocks of a sod-like substance together. Then they cross stack 2 or 3 meters of reeds on the top to form the surface of the island. More reeds need to be added periodically and the islands are claimed to last about 100yrs. We also learned that the lake is 168km long and 66km wide with its deepest point at 285 meters. The tour lasted about 3hrs total and the short rain cleared up and it turned into another sunny afternoon. This is obviously a very popular destination as there are tons of backpackers and even motorcyclist, we met a group from Brasil, a group on rented bikes that were from Germany and Sweden, then that evening in our hotel there was a guy from New Zealand and two guys from Buenas Aires. We all shared stories and travel plans.

Inside the president of the Island house.

Arequipa - Air-a-keep-a



Chivay to Arequipa

The view down the street from our hotel.

Another view from our hotel.

There is a nice feeling waking up to cool mountain air carried in to town on a light breeze off the snow capped mountains, especially when you don’t have to shovel snow to start your day. Instead we roll the bikes out of the hotel lobby and start the day’s adventure with a twisty road along a valley towards the Colca Canyon. The Colca canyon is said to be deeper than the Grand Canyon, this is accomplished by the extreme height of the mountains surrounding it.In any event the canyon is spectacular and we enjoy the views and talking with some other travellers along the way. While at the Mirador Condor we met some people from Toronto, Germany, and Siberia. We did not however see any condors, we could barely see the road due to the clouds at that elevation. The best part of the tourist stop was a lady selling spaghetti w/chicken out of a large pot on the side of the road. The first bowl was so good we had to share a second one, we caught a few stares from some other tourists as they would most likely not eat this stuff for fear of getting sick, but I think we have developed the guts for it.

Once moving again we are surprised to find that we are only about 500 meters from a clear view of the valley, we drop in elevation for a little while down to the small town of Cabanaconde. We just wanted to see this town and as the canyon appeared to be directly behind the town it only made sense to see if there was a good view somewhere. The little town was very old and the streets were build for horse and carriage not gravel trucks and busses, so there were times when it was a bit crowded. Well ok, there was one bus and one gravel truck, the town is only a few square blocks in total but they did have a nice little central park. We stopped to get a picture or two and a young couple almost immediately starting talking with us. They were from Germany and had bought  a little 150cc bike to tour on instead of taking busses all the time. Anyway, we talked for about 30minutes before we finally had to say good-bye and get moving. We monkey around town a little bit to find the lookout point, snap a picture and then hit the road. We take the alternate route which is gravel, and deserted.

At times it felt like we were the only people on the planet, then before we know it we are back into civilization, sort of. What we came out of the picturesque mountains to was a sandy desert landscape with little houses made with woven grass panel walls.

These were similar to the one we seen along the coast with only slight differences in the rock walls around the property. The rest of the way into Arequipa would be on the Panamerica Highway, long straight boring and windy. Due to the crosswind and the sand at times the highway was covered with what we would call ground drift, only this was sand instead of snow.

Arequipa is a large city with large city traffic, we slug away between taxis and busses and trucks until we find our way close to the central square. After looking at a paper map it was apparent that the old city of Arequipa is only a small portion of the overall new metropolis of Arequipa. The old town is the gem, the rest is pretty much just a big city.

 

 

Awesome antique store.

Arequipa to Arequipa

We put a little more pavement on that road of intentions today. As we tried to make our way to Montgengua in the South of Peru we encountered a serious detour. There was road construction on the already long route and the detour added another 70km, and with the likelyhood of no gas along the way combined with it being 2:30 the possibility of us completing the desired route before dark was not going to happen. So in light of all this, we decide it best to return to Arequipa and start in the morning on a different route that would take us to Puno on the shores of Lake Titicaca. Once back in Arequipa the decision was made to stay in an area of town closer to our morning start point rather than in the downtown core. The hotel was clean and they had secure parking for the bikes, usually this was used for the “utmost discretion” of the guests, and not so much for the security of their vehicles. In any event it was a quiet night and we got an early start the next morning.