Lahuachaca to Oruro

With it having blown a gale and bucketed it down with rain last night, guess who once again woke up to find himself lying on a lilo in the middle of his own indoor swimming pool? 

What's even worse though I was still feeling crap with a stomach churning like nobody's business and so as a result I once again jumped on the truck, for the ride into town, Oruro to be precise and I've got to say it was a blessing in a way, cause whilst it was a flattish road, it had a whole stack of roadworks been done to it, making the ride apparently more than a little unpleasant. 

La Paz to Lahuachaca

Whilst I'd tried to ignore it for most of the day yesterday, the dreaded stomach bug reared it's ugly head several times during the night last night, leaving me somewhat exhausted and with a stomach that was constantly churning and not for want of more food. As a result the decision as to whether to ride or not was made for me.

It was with a slight sigh of relief that I didn't have to tackle the climb the road we'd descended into La Paz a couple of days earlier (it was sheer madness in terms of the conditions and the traffic alone, not to mention the gradient) but also a certain amount of disappointment at not being able to challenge myself in terms of seeing what sort of average speed I might be capable of riding at on the alto plana (flatlands) of Bolivia, whilst at altitude.

Lying in my tent as I am now, with the rain pouring down and the wind galling I've got to say, I'm glad I ended up in the truck (there were a number of people who had opted to do the same, for whatever reasons I'm not sure) cause the scenery was pretty nondescript, there were road works going on for miles (but in a totally disorganized manner, to my eye at least) and finally to top it off the weather had became a bit unpleasant as the afternoon hours ticked by. Heck, I was only able to put my tent up moments before the heavens opened and it started to pour.

No, all in all I'm glad I didn't ride today.

Oh and the stomach bug. I'm hoping like hell it passes during the night without incident, cause the idea of getting out of my tent with a shovel to do the necessaries, whilst it is raining doesn't seem to appealing.

Rest Day - La Paz (Death Road Ride)!

Whilst I've ridden up the Strava section, in Melbourne, Australia that's affectionately known as Deadman's Hill (or Middleborough Rd to most folk) I have to say it has nothing on the legendary status and scenery of today's ride. That's right despite it being a rest day, a number of us choose to get on a bike and ride.... "Death Road"!

Essentially, it is one of the few routes that connects the capital, La Paz to the Yungas region of northern Bolivia. ascending from around 4,650 metres (15,260 ft) at La Cumbre Pass, to 1,200 metres (3,900 ft) at the town of Coroico. It was apparently given it's infamous name by the Inter-American Development Bank when they found that some 200 to 300 people were dying on it every year. Why? Because it's largely a single-lane road without any guard rails and clifftop drops of up to 600 metres (2,000 feet) and during the rainy season, rain and fog can severely hamper visibility, and water runoff can turn the road into a muddy track.

Whilst it's been replaced in the last few years, given the death toll, by a motorway some distance away and it's fine on the back of a bike, it's not somewhere I would want to have traveled back in the day and certainly not in a bus or largish truck.

Huatajata to La Paz

Whilst the day started out fairly benignly, I found myself inadvertently riding with some of the fast boys in peleton formation out the front of the group, well for the first 20 odd kilometres, before my energy levels sapped, or they stepped up a gear and I consequently found myself riding alone to the lunch truck, not that I minded the solitude in any way shape or form.

Once I got to the lunch spot, I decided to wait for Julia and Carmen for what we had been warned was a very treacherous because of the extremely steep / fast descent into La Paz (which had resulted in riders being treated in hospital's in past Andes Trail rides). 

I am so glad I did, for not only was the road (highway) as dangerous as we had been told, but the ride through the outskirts of the town was an absolute nightmare as well because of the manner in which the traffic treats cyclists. A group it would seem is far safer than one cyclist on their own. Either way, though I made it safely into the Bolivian capital, a city I was keen to explore having spent far to long in Peruvian villages and so forth.

A view of La Paz from the outskirts, though admittedly, it really doesn't do the city justice in terms of exactly how steep the surrounding mountains are, the proximity with which neighbours live shoulder to shoulder with one another or what have you...... 

Copacabana to Huatajata

Cycling out of Copacabana today proved to be far more enjoyable and scenic than I could ever have imagined. I mean sure there was a 400 odd metre climb over some 12 or 13 KMs or so to be dealt with right from the outset, but it's hardly a long or steep gradient to deal with in comparison with some of the mountains we've had to climb.

Feeling good after having rested yesterday, I found myself riding at a tempo which not only felt good but also had me riding past some of the normally faster riders within the group.

I'm not sure whether they had all chose to take it easy today, spent an inordinate amount of time taking photos (something I regretfully didn't do) or I was just riding well but either way I found myself cresting the summit with the bulk of the group behind me rather than ahead as is usually the case. 

As a result when I got to the lunch truck there, were a few gasps of surprise that I should do so, faster than would normally be expected to be the case.

A quick bite of food was consumed, before I headed down hill and to the ferry port, which was to take Julia and myself across to the other side of Lake Titicaca, where we were to face a rather steep climb out of the town. 

Stupidly we both decided to make a bit of a race of the climb, something which is not so easy to do at altitude and whilst there wasn't much in it on the first and main hill, there remains a bit of conjecture as to who crossed the line first on the second hill (speed bump) and as a result it looks like this is going to be an ongoing competition (on paved road hill climbs at least) for awhile until the issue has been settled for once and for all.

Rest Day - Copacabana

I am sure that when I heard songs about "Copacabana" as a kid, that they weren't written about this place. I mean, sure it's a nice enough small Bolivian town on Lake Titicaca but it's not exactly somewhere to write home about, let alone, writing a song about.

We're spending the day here today, my tent having been erected in an attic space upstairs so as to dry out, rather than as overflow accommodation and as a consequence with that being the only chore that I needed to attend to, I set about exploring the "sights"!

Before the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors, Copacabana was an outpost of Inca occupation, along with many other sites in Bolivia. The Incas acknowledged its importance to the local community as an ancient shrine and a place of worship to the Oracle who ruled over the Islands of Titicaca, an element of which is still acknowledged / retained by the citizens of the town, with the town often being the scene of boisterous indigenous celebrations & dancing which the current day church has been unable to suppress entirely.

That said, a large 16th-century shrine the "Basilica of Our Lady of Copacabana" was built by the Spanish, with Moorish domes and adorned with ornate religious artifacts, in reverence to the Lady of Copacabana, the patron saint of Bolivia. 

Unfortunately whilst the Basilica of Our Lady of Copacabana isn't perhaps as ornate as it was historically, having been allegedly ravished to some extent during the Bolivian War of Independence which began in 1809 but didn't lead to the nation's independence till 1825 it was still well worth the visit nonetheless.

Having only the one day in town, not that I am sure I would have stayed too much longer, it did mean that I was unable to visit Isla del Sol or Isla de la Luna, the islands with sacred Incan archaeological sites in Lake Titicaca. I did nonetheless have an interesting day!

Puno, Peru to Copacabana, Bolivia

Well today didn't quite go as expected.

I'd started the day with the best of intentions of riding the full 140 odd kilometres to the Peru / Bolivia border and then (assuming that I got the all clear) the remaining ten kilometres to our hotel in Copacabana. Unfortunately, however Carmen wasn't feeling well (and probably should have jumped on the express truck right from the start) meaning Team Tourist made a slightly slower exit from Puno than we would liked to achieve. 

Then Jules came off, no major injuries, a sore arm, a few bruises & dented pride more than anything else but it did make it extremely difficult to carry on, so.... we decided being at the back of the pack and with two of the team, sick or injured to call the big red fire truck.

I was disappointed, for them as much as myself, but the idea of trying to catch up on my own was something that I really didn't want to contend with, particularly as we had a border crossing to deal with as well.

As we drove towards Yunguyo, the little village which straddles the Peru / Bolivian Border, we came across a festival in Chacachaca which had obviously been going for awhile given the copious quantities of beer that everyone had seemingly consumed. 

Note the number of beer crates in the background?!

Everyone seemed to be having (or had) a good time, though I was wondering whether or not, there'd be a big fry up in the morning....

In all seriousness though, It's amazing how much joy, music and laughter that emanates from the people of Peru. So many of the villages, particularly the smaller ones, through which we have cycled, have been celebrating festivals of one form or another and it amazes me just how many of the young kids play flutes, trumpets, drums or the like. 

At any rate, leaving the locals to their own devices, we then headed on to Yunguyo, we had a border to cross. Formalities completed, we then crossed into Bolivia (I was a bit disappointed to be walking rather than cycling the 100 or so metres) where we then filled in some more paperwork, bought ourselves a soft drink and waited for our colleagues who'd ridden.

Pucara to Puno

Guess who's expensive (and specifically purchased for this trip) tent, appears not to have a waterproof floor liner?

That's right, your's truly woke up this morning, at 5:30AM, to discover that he was floating on his sleep mat in a swimming pool. Well not quite, but essentially water had seeped through the floor wherever anything had been sitting on it. IE: My sleep mat, my day bag, my helmet, my handlebar bag and so on.

I mean sure it had bucketed down during the night, but I'd put a ground sheet down, made sure I was on flat ground and not in a hollow where water might collect and so on. I'm not sure where or why the water got in. All I know is that I've had to pack my wet tent away with the aim of hopefully drying it off in the next day or so, given that we've got a hotel tonight and tomorrow night whilst my sleeping bag is hopefully drying in my wardrobe as we speak!

If you've got any thoughts or suggestions on what may have caused it or on how I can avoid a repeat event please post a comment.

At any rate, once I'd dealt with all of my wet camping gear and so on this morning, I donned another layer or two of clothing given it was so dammed cold. and then got my bike ready for the 115KM that was to come. 

Whilst a number of us rode together for awhile this morning things did get broken up a bit when we came across the above site, with some people stopping others and others riding on...... Team Tourist of course stopped! Whether we should have or not, is debatable because whilst I'm going to assume it was built by the Incas, there wasn't any signage to indicate it's history, purpose or significance. 

So who knows..... 

At any rate, once I remounted the Troll, I decided to "put the foot down a little" thinking / hoping, that I'd become inoculated or at least somewhat immune to the affects of the altitude by now. Whilst I didn't set any land speed records, I did make up time on some of those who didn't stop at the "historical" site. Of course, I should also remind you, that being that we are currently sitting at around 3800 metres, which is some 1600 metres higher than the peak of Australia's tallest mountain, Mount Kosciuszko (2228 metres), that one's pace can drop quite suddenly for no known reason then magically reappear 10 to 15 minutes later....

Ultimately of course, I wasn't the first into town, but by the time that Carmen & Julia arrived at the hotel, I'd managed to grab a shower (cold) get changed and find out about doing a trip on Lake Titicaca to the floating reed islands.

No, this is not the boat that we took out to the islands, that was done on a rather more "commercially" orientated boat but rather it's an example of how some of the island folk, and there is seemingly a number who still live on the islands get about..... 

 I suspect someone, and I saw several cats, doesn't need tinned food.... 😊 😊

Raqchi Ruins to Pucara

With today's ride scheduled to be 160KM including a 40KM climb with a 5% gradient before lunch time at the 50 - 60KM mark, I decided along with several others, to join the lunch truck and climb to the peak of the mountain, at around 4388 metres, the easy way! 😊 😊 

I mean, sure rolling for the first 20KM without particularly having to touch the pedals is cheating in many books, but I'm a member of Team Tourist. Besides, I am the first to acknowledge, I'm no climber and I do want to make it all the way to the end after all, rather than ending up as a roadside memento. Some 29.5 KM into the ride, we decided to head into Santa Rosa for a coffee. 

I mean, it's hard work, sitting back and virtually rolling at 40 KM/H down a hill. 

All the locals, bar one really nice chap spoke a local dialect, rather than Spanish, of which I have picked up a little. Fortunately this chap spoke both the local language being that he was originally from the area and Spanish (fluently) given that he'd been studying and working in Lima for a few years.

Whilst Carmen, Julia and I enjoyed a wonderful coffee, we'd also made sure as to shout one for this chap along with buying a drink for his very inquisitive daughter we learnt that part of her "interest" is that she'd never seen anybody as pale / white as ourselves.... 

Here I was thinking that I'd been gradually improving my complexion, fitness levels and tan! 

It was too early to grab a bite so we headed on a further 35KM or so till we got to a little village called Ayaviri., with somebody (me) begining to feel a bit peckish. We found a cafe that was open, where the staff spoke sufficient Spanish for us to order Lomo Saltado which we have come to understand is a popular, traditional Peruvian meat dish. Essentially, a stir fry, with marinated strips of sirloin (or other beef steak) along with onions & tomatoes. It's frequently served with rice and / or french fries, so can be very filling and in this case was also very delicious! 

Rested, feed and with our water bidons refilled, we were then ready to tackle the remaining 30KM before we'd arrive in Pucara.

Cusco to Raqchi Ruins

Whilst I would have liked to have stayed another day or so in Cusco, I was also looking forward to getting back on the bike and today's route profile seemed to suggest that it would be an enjoyable day's ride.

As a result, when the starter's flag dropped, I headed down the road with a grin from ear to ear, which of course had made the task of buckling my helmet chin strap a little difficult but hey, what the heck! Navigating our way of town was a tad difficult because of the nature and behaviour of the traffic, but we all managed to escape unscathed.

Finding a little cafe (which is probably exaggerating the term "cafe" in many respects) some 50KM into the ride, we decided to stop for a bite to eat and to grab a coffee, being that all four of us (Carmen, Dave, Julia and myself) were all feeling somewhat peckish and close to hitting the wall from a performance perspective.

It was a very enjoyable affair I've got to say, despite the fact the menu, and I use that term lightly, was written in a local dialect and the owner/waitress didn't speak any Spanish. As a result we ordered to an extent on the basis of taking a bit of pot luck and by pointing to the food being served up to another table.

It ended up being a meat dish served up with potatoes, rice and a few other assorted vegetables. We were then given a drink of Chicha Morada and a small bowl of jelly made from the same corn based vegetable. All of that, plus the bottle of Fanta I'd ordered costing in the vicinity of $AUD 2.OO and I've got to to you, it pretty much filled me up!

Following our sumptuous lunch we rode on to the lunch truck, some further 15-20KM away, topped up our water bottles, let the crew know we were safe and well and then continued on our way, finally pulling into our campsite some 2-3 hours later.

Once tents were erected, we then sauntered into the village nearby to take a look at some Inca ruins. It was an interesting site and I suspect rarely visited by any one other than local Peruvian tourists, which is a bit disappointing in a way given its relatively close proximity to Cusco. I mean sure, it doesn't come close to making the same sort of impression as Machu Picchu, but it is well worth a visit nonetheless.

Rest Day - Cusco

Whilst I'd like to say I'd spent today enjoying the sights of Cusco, in reality once I'd had enjoyed a rather sumptuous breakfast at a hotel (not the one in which I was staying, but rather something a little bit more upmarket) I devoted today to finalizing my purchase of Peruvian souvenirs and then sending them home to Australia having located the Post Office on Wednesday.

It's the first time I've come across a post office here in Peru and as a result I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to lighten my bags (as well as create a bit of space) for any souvenirs I might end up buying in Bolivia in the next couple of weeks or so.

Once that had been achieved (and it took an over or so in the Post Office, filling out various bits of paperwork and so on) the rest of the day was spent collecting my laundry, repacking my bags and otherwise attending to some of the more menial tasks one must do, in order to keep things ticking along!

Being such a touristy town, as Cusco is, the opportunity to enjoy a meal at an Irish pub, couldn't be overlooked, nor could the chance of knocking back a few ales. It was a lovely Sheperd's Pie which I have to say makes a big change from the pizzas, hamburgers and portions of chicken that we typically come across in the smaller less "Gringo" orientated towns and villages we normally frequent!

Rest Day - Machu Picchu

Well today was one I'd been looking forward to since the beginning of my journey from Quito, Ecuador and in fact truth be known it was probably one of the driving forces behind the whole idea of my taking on this crazy adventure. A visit to Machu Picchu.

As one of the few tourist sights that I knew of in South America, admittedly one of the reason I was so keen to take advantage of the opportunity to visit, hence signing on to Bike Dream's little trek through Latin America was that I'd seen a documentary which had mentioned that Machu Picchu was located on or close to two fault lines, and hence could be subject to destruction, should an earthquake occur in the wrong location, etc.

Situated on a mountain ridge 2,430 metres (7,970 ft) above sea level, I was concerned that something could potentially destroy something that had recently been voted one of the "New Seven Wonders of the World". 

It would seem, I needn't have been so concerned..... 

Having been built around 1450AD, before apparently been abandoned a mere 100 years later and without the Spanish conquistadors every seemingly discovering the site, it would seem that the Inca were fairly cluey people. Mining stones from a quarry on site, then lining them up and shaping them to fit together perfectly. I doubt a credit card can be inserted between them. At any rate, the consequence of the Inca fitting the stones together so closely it transpires is that when an earthquake occurs, as it has done in Cusco only some 80KM away, the stones in the buildings at Machu Pichu are said to “dance”. That is, they bounce through the tremors and then fall back into place. In other words, the place should be around for another six hundred years or so....

Whilst we spent many hours wandering around the site, with a local guide at one point who explained a lot about it's layout, construction and it's significance to the Inca when they built it, all of which I am sure can be read in the book I subsequently purchased in Cusco OR on the web, I have to mention that the "highlight" of today's visit to Machu Picchu was....

Climbing the mountain, Huayna Picchu, which is the tall peak on the right hand side of the picture above. Why, because it's something that only 400 people per day are allowed to do and more importantly because I did it successfully, cause those of you who know me, may also be aware of the fact that I have a tendency to suffer from Acrophobia. IE: A Fear of heights.

Now at this point I should mention, that the Bike Dream's crew had secured tickets to Huayna Picchu, in each of our names, for all of us, when they'd organised for us to visit Machu Picchu. As a result when we filed through the separate ticket booth entrance area, tickets & passports in hand, I assumed it was to ensure that only "authorised" people were climbing on the date allocated on their tickets.... How wrong I was! It transpired that they also require your passport when returning back into the main Machu Picchu site. Why? Well from what I can only guess is because of the number of people who don't return....

Rest Day - Aguas Calientes & The Sacred Valley

Bike Dreams had been good enough as to organise a trip to Machu Picchu and with it there was to be a tour the town of Pisaq which researchers suggest was established by the Incas, to defend the entrance to the Sacred Valley through which one much travel...

Whilst the the local market at Pisaq, may be somewhat of a "tourist trap", it was very fascinating and did have a few pictures / trinkets that caught my eye. After our visit to the markets we drove on through the Sacred Valley, which has some marvelous scenery, with a fast flowing river running right through it. We are reliably informed that the river was important to the Inca's as they viewed it as a Holy river! Now a days however it's important because of it's contribution to the agricultural growth in the area.

Our bus ultimately arrived in Ollantaytambo, with sufficient time as to enable us to explore the agricultural terraces & township that had been built by the Inca. From what I have been led to believe, the terracing permitted farming on otherwise unusable terrain whilst also enabling the Incas to take advantage of the different ecological zones created by the variations in altitude. 

We then all subsequently headed down to train station for the two hour journey to Aguas Calientes, which is the town from which one departs for Machu Picchu itself.... The trip was rather enjoyable, with the train forging through winding cliffs and over several bridges as it crossed the river on from time to time. It's just a pity that it's been raining so much today, because I would love to have had the opportunity to take more photos than I did.

I can only hope that it's better weather tomorrow. I mean, having to be up at 4:45 AM, so as to be ready for a 5:30 AM bus trip up the mountain, is one thing, but I'd hate to think that it'd be raining on what may be my one & only chance to see Machu Picchu. I have been looking forward to this day for so long....

Andahuaylas to Huanacarma

I think the pizza I ate last night was a bit dodgy cause I needed to make a couple of quick dashes to the loo this morning, the consequence of which being hat I briefly contemplated the idea of jumping on the express truck, through to tonight’s campsite, on the basis that it would minimise my travel time, in the event I needed to make an emergency pit stop, but also because it would give me an opportunity to get my tent up early, in the hope that it might hopefully dry out in the sun and before I had to unfurl my sleeping bag.

  

Looking at the route directions and profile over breakfast however I decided that I’d jump on the  lunch truck, see how I felt when we got to the midway point or what have you and if I was feeling OK, attempting the second half. It would half the climbing (and descending) on unpaved roads, which I’m not particularly keen on. Fortunately this also fell into line with the thinking of both Carmen & Julia, both of whom were also not keen on the distance and the amount of climbing to be done!

The climb out of Andahuaylas was extremely scenic, and every time I opened the window to snap a picture I couldn’t help but get a waft of eucalyptus which so reminded me of home! Up and up we went, till at one point the mist or the clouds started to envelope the truck, making the road (it was not a great deal more than a highly utilised goat track) all that much more precarious to negotiate.  Reaching the summit, we then briefly got a glimpse of the road, which took us to the bottom of the valley before climbing again. It was an awe inspiring sight I have to say. What of course makes navigating these roads, particularly difficult other than the necessarily just the lack of visibility which comes with the weather conditions and so forth, is the fact that they’re normally just a single car’s width, with hundred metre drop offs and yet you can get all manner of traffic (Semi-trailers, trucks, small buses, cars and the occasional herd of cattle / sheep) coming in the opposite direction. It can take a bit of very careful manoeuvring and Walter the truck driver is to be commended for his tenacity in getting such a large vehicle around and over some pretty tough terrain.

Getting back to today's activities, once a suitable lunch spot had been found, facilities set up and so on, our bikes were removed from the roof of the truck ( there were only the three of us who’d chosen to tackle today’s ride this way) and we were finally able to commence the rest of today's journey by pedal power. 

Now at this point I’ve got to be totally honest with you and confess that after just five kilometres of riding I was wondering what the hell I was doing, here in South America on a mountain bike. I mean seriously, unpaved roads with steep gradients and I, do not go together well at all. Heck, I was nervous about being able to clip back into my pedals again if I stopped, falling off my beloved stead if I chose the wrong line, had the wrong gearing for the conditions or simply didn’t have my body weight in the right position over the bike for the conditions. In saying that, I’m sure part of this is a psychological hang over from my little incident in Italy last year which still haunts me. (If Italian hospitals are a bit so-so, then I suspect that the one’s here in South America being decent / good, is probably non-existent).

At any rate I continued on, till suddenly the climb being more to my liking. Flatter! 

As we continued on the gravel track suddenly it lead us to a newly paved road. Wonderful, freshly laid tarmac which best of all had us descending to the bottom of the valley without any signs of traffic. It was magic, it was so freshly laid and with great sight lines to see what lay ahead that I have to be honest and say I was wishing I was on my road bike…

Of course, all good things must come to an end, and just near the bottom, it came to a thud, when we came across the road crew laying the tarmac…. The result being that the rest of the ride (uphill) though not at too serious a gradient was done, on a road that was undergoing road works and was only partially paved road. Frequent stops were necessary to enable the road work crews to do whatever they needed to do!

Fortunately despite all of this, we rolled into the campsite, before the lunch truck with it’s swags of cyclist’s who’d done the first half of the route but not the later (and possibly easier component, though they both had about the same amount of climbing metres), in time to set up our tents and get a bit of sunlight (drying time), a situation which pleased me no end, till it started raining again an hour ago… 

Ah well, I suppose you can’t win them all. At the end of the day, lying in the comfort of my tent, wrapped in a sleeping bag, as I am right now, it being in the minus figures outside, I’ve got to say whether it was destiny, good luck or otherwise, my decision to only attempt the second half of the day’s ride was probably one of the best decisions I could ever have made, so I’ll cop it sweet in terms of having a wet tent again!!! 

Rest Day - Andahuaylas

Another rest day in another boring, pointless being here town. Whilst from what I can gather there's a couple of Inca sites in the area, but they're some thirty plus kilometres away.

I think I'll give them a miss, for whilst they are probably do able by taxi, the weather is a bit inclement at the moment and it's not like they've been given rave reviews on the Lonely Planet website or what have you. 

No today I'm going to concentrate on trying to get a decent feed cause we're camping tomorrow night which means I need to eat well now in town whilst I can given that tomorrow night's grub probably won't be brilliant.

Ayacucho to Huancarama

Although I enjoyed my time in Ayacucho and could have spent another day or so there, I was also pleased to be able to get back on my bike, even if the first forty kilometres or so was to be uphill. Unfortunately there was to be a delayed start, as once again we were called upon for some media activities, this time with a very distinct political bent and whilst sure the electoral candidate in question gave us each a free beanie and a T-Shirt with his political slogan and so on it, along with somewhat of an expectation that we’d wear it for the publicity photos if nothing else, I couldn't help but to think - No thanks, I don’t know or for that matter care what you stand for! Heck I wouldn’t endorse you at home in Australia even if I knew what your politics were and my desire to do so in a country such as yours with such a recent history of significant turmoil - No Way!

At the end of the day, whilst we rolled out of the hotel at around 8:15, it was another hour or thereabouts before we were able to put the hammer down and actually commence our ride to tonight’s camping site. What a waste of time that was….

At any rate, I commenced the ride out of town riding in a loosely based peleton (it makes the task of navigating your way out so much easier when you all do it in a group) and once on the outskirts, quickly found a comfortable cadence for the climb which was to follow. Essentially and you’ll have to forgive me if I have said it before, but you can only do steep climbs at your own pace and as a result the advantage of sitting on someone else’s wheel on such terrain isn’t typically as great as when you’re riding on the flat or on rolling hills.

Unfortunately I rode away from Carmen & Julia in the process, both of whom are still trying to get over the dreaded lurgy, which I must admit was a bit naughty of me and certainly not within the team spirit of things and left me with a bit of a quandary as to whether to sit up and wait for them somewhere, or to continue on till the lunch truck.

I ended up opting for the later, purely because I was on a roll as it were and I wanted to give myself every opportunity of doing the whole day’s ride something I felt may not necessarily occurred if I waited too long, then ended up getting to the lunch truck too late as to give myself time to do the remaining fifty odd kilometres before dark.

At end rate, I ended up rolling in to the lunch truck, at the top of the climb, a little the worse for wear but eager to go on. Fortunately, both Carmen & Jules rolled in 10-15 minutes later. 

As they both indicated a desire to continue onwards, I donned some additional layers to wear (it being somewhat cold, once you stopped working) and waited till they’d finished their lunches. We then headed on to the campsite, the hard part of the day having been finalised. Unfortunately and I didn’t twig it early enough, both the girls were having a bit of strife sitting on my wheel and as a result I unknowingly cycled off, leaving them to their own devices. 

Getting to the top of a smallish hill, I realised what had occurred and stopped for a photo opportunity, took a swig of water, donned yet another jacket (over the top of what I already had on) and yet still they didn’t come into view. Starting to get worried I contemplated riding back the way I had just come, when the lunch truck came into view at which point I noticed that both their bikes on top….

Feeling disappointed for them, but still eager to ride on, I made the snap decision to continue on even though I was now going to be alone and very much last. I’ve got to say, as I rode on, I did wonder as to whether I'd made the right decision, despite it only being thirty odd kilometres into camp. Partially because I didn’t know whether the camp site was going to be at the 78 or 92 kilometre mark. 

Fortunately though, I plugged my phone into my boom box and played the 2013 Triple J Top 100 Hits and used that and the wonderful scenery (not that I stopped and took any photos) to keep me going till finally the “Andes Trail” banner appeared on the horizon, wherein rolling into the campsite, I was pleasantly surprised to find, that despite feeling a less worse for wear, that the girls had erected my tent. What a truly magic discovery! 

All in all, I must say I am feeling pretty pleased with myself given today’s activites.

Rest Day - Ayacucho

I found out last night, that our little group has been given the nickname "Team Tourist". Not too sure who came up with it and I am not sure whether it was intended to be a derogatory title or not but either way it's a name we've accepted with a typical Aussie Larrikin attitude of indifference..... No actually I take that back, we're actually reveling in it!

As a consequence, Carmen, Julia and myself took to the streets of Ayacucho this morning to see what baggage friendly trinkets we could acquire, as well as to see all the sights that the town had to offer... Whilst I was busy locating some wonderful fabric, which I'll use on the back of my couch or potentially have made into a doona cover, Carmen was busy....

Finding out about a women's collective, who spun Alpaca wool and then knitted it up in all manner of designs, for sale to a large organisation for distribution / resale overseas. Now whilst I'm not too sure how, she managed to obtain the collective's address and then to subsequently talk management into allowing us to visit. Definitely not something they did frequently or otherwise.

Now whilst both my mother and grandmother were very capable & prodigious with a pair of knitting needles, they had nothing on the speed of these ladies! Then again when you are paid by the garment and you are knitting for a living then I suppose that does influence the pace at which you work.... These wonderful women were very friendly & happy to show these gringos what they could do, and I can think of worse places to work. 

Leaving them, we then stumbled across a memorial / museum dedicated to the people of the area who had lost their lives at the hands of the military or The Shining Light, a Communist orientated political party that turned to guerrilla army like behaviour. 

It would seem that throughout the 1980s, as The Shining Light grew in influence, particularly in many of the impoverished and neglected Andean regions near Ayacucho, the government responded by granting the military the power to arbitrarily detain any suspicious person, something which they subsequently abused, arresting scores of innocent people, at times subjecting them to torture during interrogation & rape. 

It was a very sobering experience and left the three of us feeling very grateful for our upbringings!

Needing to see / enjoy something a bit uplifting we all decided to headed back to the hotel, wherein I offloaded my purchase, as did Julia who'd found a couple of ornamental clay statues... and then headed out to Plaza de Armas (Main City Square) figuring that we'd probably find some restaurants nearby where we could grab a bite to eat and decide, where to from there....

Sure enough we came across a wonderful, but somewhat tourist oriented restaurant which dished up some wonderful meals, provided Jules & I an opportunity to imbibe in a Scottish Coffee (IE: a coffee with a shot of Baileys) whilst watching the hustle and bustle occuring all around the main square.... 

Having spied an interesting facade from our vantage spot, once finished we decided to wander over to Catedral Basílica Santa María, something the Spanish Catholic Church had purportedly constructed between 1632 and 1672.

It is seemingly considered to be one of the most beautiful cathedrals in Peru, with it's interior decorated in a fashion called "Churrigueresque". It was apparently declared a Peruvian Historic Cultural Heritage in 1972 and is definitely different, and worthy of a visit if you are in the area.

Resting up in Huancayo - Sth American holidays

Whilst some may laugh and others will stand back and applaud our decision, either way, I've got to say that spending the last few days in the one city / hotel was probably one of the best things I could have done. I mean it's allowed me to throw off, hopefully now for the duration of my trip, the shackles of my cold (though I'm still coughing) and to also recharge my batteries.

One of the problems that I think we have all encountered, not that some people will necessarily admit it, is waning energy levels as time has gone on. Life on the road can be draining.... Making sure your bags are packed the night before, that you've organised the appropriate clothing for the day ahead, that you hit the floor running in the morning, pack your sleeping bag, sleep mat, tent (if we've been camping) and so on, scoff your breakfast down, get your bike ready for the activities that are to follow and that's all before you've even mounted your bike or ridden a single kilometre. 

Me. I just don't have the desire to push things to the limit in the same way. I am after all on a holiday and to do all of the above day after day can get to be a tad like hard work at times, particularly when it can involve cold weather, dodgy stomachs and so on.... 

As a consequence, whilst the majority of the group rode from Huancayo here to Ayacucho and had to bush camp both nights, myself and my three colleagues (Carmen, Julia & Dave) remained in the luxurious hotel ironically called Hotel Turismo and recuperated from our travels so far. Well the crew from Bike Dreams did say it was likely to be the best hotel we'd stay in during our journey and as a result we all just decided to make the most of it.

Only time will tell if there is somewhere more lavish or enticing to remain for a couple of days, as time goes on! 

Whilst Julia and myself in particular ventured out from time to time, to undertake our obligatory "city / village tour" and visited the Basilica Catedral de Huancayo, which is hardly the most beautiful, charming or exotic of cathedrals. Then again the town only has a population of some 500,000 people or thereabouts. 

The local market however was exciting, huge and selling all manner of stuff, from clothes, basic electrical goods, food to gardening tools and the like. That said, we did also come across a modern shopping center which ended up being not all that dissimilar to a Westfield Mall. It was interesting because of the range / nature of the shops, but comparison it was just so BLAH such that neither of us could cope with it for long.... 

What was enjoyable / impressive though was the number of great and cheap restaurants. One could dine like a king here, quite easily and whilst I suspect my waistline can cope with what I managed to devour at the moment, it's only because of the number of kilometres, we'll be riding over the course of the next three months..... 

So how did we catch up with our colleagues I hear you ask.... 

Well, Carmen negotiated with the hotel concierge to see if they could find a driver who'd take us to Ayacucho and they put us in touch with a young chap with a four wheel drive who was prepared to drive us......

He was very interesting, friendly and entrepreneurial young chap. During the several hour long journey, on some very treacherous roads, with blind corners, with steep mountainous embankments on one side and sheer vertical cliff drops on the other, which prompted him to toot the horn (as is apparently custom in the area, given the nature of the roads / traffic) when approaching blind corners, we learnt that he'd borrowed (with his family's assistance) as much money as he could, so as to buy the car. His aim / business goal was to ferry equipment, workers & management to some of the remote mining sites in the area. 

As I say, very entrepreneurial / brave young lad! 

Given the time on the road, we were pleased to discover that he had a rather extensive collection of 70s & 80s hits burnt onto a hard drive, enabling him to play some fantastic music which we all knew and capable of singing along too!

As a result, after several hours on the road, we all had sore throats & grumbling stomachs which prompted us to ask for a pit stop for a drink and a bite to eat. We ensured that he joined us and made sure as to cover the cost of his lunch, I mean he'd been such a great companion / driver and it's not like it was going to cost us a fortune.... 

Of course when we got to Ayacucho, only to discover that he was going to return home that night, we offered to pay for a night's accommodation for him, I mean none of us liked the idea of him driving home tired... When we refused we relented by giving him a tip and telling him to be safe and to pull over to rest if necessary.....