Contact Overland Solutions for all your custom modifications and setup for overland travel.               Discover the extraordinary with Compass Expeditions.

Go Back   The HUBB > Regional Forums > South America

South America Topics specific to South America only.
With more than 58 destinations worldwide, Edelweiss Bike Travel is Number 1 in guided motorcycle tours!
Discover the Extraordinary with Compass Expeditions.

Reply
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old 14 Feb 2008
Registered Users
Veteran HUBBer
 
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Des Moines
Posts: 327
Where is ¨The Worlds Most Dangerous Road¨ in Bolivia?

Hey guys, I am having trouble figuring this road out. My guidebook says that it is the Choro trek from La Cumbre to Choroico but the guy at the Honda store here told me that is a paved road. Can someone clear this up for me? Also can this road be done with not very aggressive tires?

Thanks,
Geoff
__________________
http://www.journeyrider.net Latin America blog (07-8)
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old 14 Feb 2008
Registered Users
Veteran HUBBer
 
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Northumberland
Posts: 173
did you expect "the worlds most dangerous road" in Bolivia? to be anything else but tarmac?
__________________
Home of the UK Coast 2 Coast off-road Challenge
www.C2CChallenge.co.uk www.4X4Safari.co.uk
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 14 Feb 2008
Registered Users
Veteran HUBBer
 
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Houston, USA
Posts: 164
Yungas Road - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Quastdog has a post about it in his blog that I read the other day.
Journal

Looks!
__________________
http://davegtravels.com - RTW on a DRZ
All the way south - Texas to Tierra del Fuego in '08-'09
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 14 Feb 2008
MikeS's Avatar
Registered Users
Veteran HUBBer
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Back in Auld Reekie
Posts: 1,111
If you PM IanC (fellow HUBBer), he might still have the GPS co-ords for the turn off to the old road if that's any use. I met him in La Paz and he'd done it the day before we did. The turn off is really hard to spot if you don't know where it is as it's not sign posted. You could do what Ian did and ride the 'new' road to Corioco (really nice bike road), stay the night there and come back to La Paz on the old road as it's much easier to find from there.

It is just a gravel road so any tire will be fine, just be bloody careful not to get too close to the edge as people still fall off it from time to time. It's only really used by the mountain bike tour companies now (they still get people falling off it too) and when we did it, there was no traffic at all. Corioco was a really nice place to stay and has a totally different feel to it than the rest of Bolivia, I guess that's because of the lower altitude.

Image of The new road from Coroico - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

Image of I just couldn´t see what all the fuss was about - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

Image of Death Road - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

Image of Death road as depicted by the tourist brochures - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting
__________________
Mike


www.singapore-scotland.blogspot.com
www.argentina-alaska.blogspot.com
My little Vid: India/Pakistan

BMW R1150GS
Suzuki DR650 SE: Ride it like ya stole it. Oh, somebody just did...

Last edited by MikeS; 14 Feb 2008 at 22:17.
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 15 Feb 2008
Contributing Member
HUBB regular
 
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: Colorado, USA
Posts: 69
The last I saw on Globetrekers was that the Road Of Death is now one-way part of the day, then one-way back later in the day. Still unpaved from what I saw.
__________________
Done with Prudhoe Bay and Ushuaia.

http://www.errant-ronin.com/PrudhoeBayUshuaia.htm
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 15 Feb 2008
palace15's Avatar
Gold Member
Veteran HUBBer
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: LONDONISTAN, England
Posts: 936
Quote:
Originally Posted by gatogato View Post
Hey guys, I am having trouble figuring this road out. My guidebook says that it is the Choro trek from La Cumbre to Choroico but the guy at the Honda store here told me that is a paved road. Can someone clear this up for me? Also can this road be done with not very aggressive tires?

Thanks,
Geoff

Just take it easy considering your latest exploits, and hope we don't get another panic appeal from your mum.
__________________
'He who laughs last, was too slow to get the joke'

Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 15 Feb 2008
Fritz's Avatar
Contributing Member
Veteran HUBBer
 
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Yorkshire
Posts: 219
Thumbs up

As Mike says it would easier to find from other end, plus you get to drive on the 'safe' side, i.e. left. Finding access from La Cumbre end is not obvious.
If you use your wits it is definately not dangerous for 2 wheeled traffic at all - however with four wheels a different matter.
You can find details on our blog below too, worth the trip http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tst...ies/001720.php
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 15 Feb 2008
Registered Users
Veteran HUBBer
 
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Des Moines
Posts: 327
Hey guys, I just finished and it was a lot of fun. The road is pretty good overall but does have some incredibly dangerous parts. I guess the road was closed yesterday and for the moring today and that is what made finding the entrance so hard (pretty sure it was blocked off) but I got on from a small service road that feeds into the Yungas road.

Here are the directions for getting there. Find the stadium in La Paz and get directions from there about which road to take to La Cumbre (beginning of Yungus). The road from the stadium will lead you to La Cumbre but it has some confusing areas in the city where it comes to a Y and you have to remember to stay to the right. Follow the buses because they are mostly headed there.

You will come to a Drug check point after the last outskirts of La Paz. Keep driving for 10-15 kms until another Drug checkpoint. You will drive thru a tunnel and see a very small town called Udavi (forgot which one comes first). The turnoff is to the right and there is a big sign. The turn off is for both the North and the South Yungus road. You want the North road so make sure and find out how to get on it.

You can also drive 15-20 kms past the turnoff until you pass a gass station on your left. 2 kms after the gas station there is a very small entrance to a service road that will put you on the Yungus. There is a yellow caution sign with some faded text at the turnoff.

BTW: I do not recommend driving to Coroico first and than doing the Yungus because the mud will be much harder to get thru because you will be going uphill through it.
__________________
http://www.journeyrider.net Latin America blog (07-8)
Reply With Quote
Reply


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 Registered Users and/or Members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Roads in Bolivia greynomads South America 26 17 Jul 2007 21:35
When to travel in Bolivia?? zappalives South America 7 11 Feb 2007 21:39


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 03:17.