Heya Noel, you are never wrong ...just varying degrees of not quite correct , yeah sand on big bike two up etc is a mission, not my gig to be fair ... specially the soft bits where the bottom is a long way from the top.

Nice ladies in Peru, yeah there are one or two I have been told , Colombia still takes the cake thos (S I have been told ...again)

Hmmm, house stuff frustrating eh, been there before watching prices go down and buyer fewer and further between ....not good, fingers crossed mate

Cheers Andi

__________________
Cheers Andi & Ellen .... https://twomotokiwis.blogspot.com/ Two Moto Kiwis Alaska - Argentina - April 2012 -> Somewhere

Sorry for the late report ladies and gents but we have been out and about... we haven't forgotten you tho .... promise :rofl

Great ride .... that is what we were told .....yes you know who you are. :evil

Actually, we had fun, the first part out of town was a typical Peruvian stunt drive avoiding 10 near death experiences ... we then made it to the end of our street. :eek1

Once outa of town the road was very boney and rough and with the unfortunate pasting of rubbish ... not ideal for a national park entry.

Eventually we made it out of first gear and as we left civilization as we know it the road conditions improved that is when we saw the only vehicle for nearly 200km.

The road



Getting high



Mum nature was bein a good girl and provided us a nice clear day but very cold, we did however get to 4802 meters so high enough to be chilly even when sunny.

A cool salt lake appeared (actually I think it is always there) with some groovy colours and our cream on the cake Volcano in the distance having an eruption.



Our vantage point here was cool with a very smooth section of road for about 5 km, see the volcano having a spit





Our mission was to get to the second lake but the road turned very soft and pebbly so we chickened out as it was turning into very hard work.

Spotting a shortcut we did an overland direct to cut the triangle, we knew it would eventually go somewhere and we were right...

After nearly 1 hour of no mans land we came across the road we wanted to take back to Arequipa, this road/track however was very sandy, rocky, rough and required attention on my part.



This took us around to the lake where we only had to cross the damn to freedom however there was a monster sand drift across the road and softer than a tire with a nail in it.

Where Maya is standing was very soft, the grey stuff to the right was very sinky



At this point we had already wrestled several sandpits and were tiring a bit.

With NO way through for us there we turned back and took a side track that had not been used for years by the looks of it, it too was bloody soft and required Ellen pushing and me gunning the throttle and cutting a trench for about 100 meters, sweatin and grunting we finally made it to an almost flat part desperate for a breather (noting we are at 4600 meters, 15100 ft here).

(whose dumb idea was this :rofl)



Gob of water and a toffee cafe lolly and we were back into it, TMK Peruvian Dakar overland non race, getting Maya up on top of the sand was a mission and we were surprised how much a 3/4 spent Heidenau can dig however we get get up and skimming riding directly up and across a plateau in search of a another possible way.

We had spotted a turnoff some km back and were hoping to catch this one as well, persistence pays and soon enough we were united with a sandy track, this wasn’t a total get out of jail free card but it was superior to our other options which was ride back 150km from where we came from or try and cross the super drift.

All tracks here are just sand of varying degrees of hardship :evil



We plucked our way around sandpits and rock gardens and finally got to the dam, crossed the dam to freedom and came up behind a locked gate...no worries, quick ride around the gate through the sand and we were on the home straight, only 68 km of bone jarring, filling dropping track to go.



By this time the cloud had set in with a bitey little smattering of fog and a lacing of chilly rain to cap it off so we were keen to drop some altitude, eventually it started to drop and we could see sun then in the distance Arequipa.

With the last part of the ride under sun it was pleasant but our return time saw us re enter town at rip hour ....hmmm, no prob, no cases, no rules other than to get there.

Happy to park Maya up, sit in the sun for a while and have a bloody good hot shower. :clap

__________________
Cheers Andi & Ellen .... https://twomotokiwis.blogspot.com/ Two Moto Kiwis Alaska - Argentina - April 2012 -> Somewhere

Was very hot leaving Arequipa and it took us nearly 3/4 hour to get to the city edge, the road out was mint winding up to 4889 meters now the highest point on our trip, still can’t crack that 5 tho :huh.



Wasn’t long and the typical afternoon thunderstorms crept in firing hail and rain at us and chilling us down but we had stopped prior to the black bit and geared up so saweetas.

The heat and the cold blended to make a pretty cool airy look or hovering steam.





Dropping off the tops down into Chivay at 3500 metres raised the temps and no more rain, we also saw two dudes on BMWs so we stopped for a quick chat but they didn’t ....we must have needed a shower.

Setting up we decided to stay two nights in Chivay with the view of Colca Canyoning it the next day all day.

Chivay is a very nice town with a lot of street art showing there history with hats and costumes

Ellen sitting on a hat



I liked this costume :rofl



Colca Canyon day, spirits high as was the sun, perfect.

Well, almost ... we took the road in through the archeological sites which was great, then out into the main canyon, so we rode in and were waiting for the big hit.

Now they want $70 Soles ($25 US) to go there, hmmm.:eek1

So Condors?? none, good views of the canyon, ...not bad but Peru has far better and far more spectacular to offer and for free or very little .... $70 Soles hmmm.

There were three check points trying to get money from us and the entry is nearly double what Peruvians pay and they say it is steep too.

While the Canyon was big, we really felt that for the money it was disappointing, we felt we had made a mistake and not gone to the correct place but we did have it right.

So, this is our take only here and at the risk of sounding like whiners will keep it down but unless you actually get to see the Condors or are hell bent on seeing them Peru offers much much more than this (Note Huascaran National Park, $10 Soles or Kuelap for $15 Soles, Canyon De Pato, gratis) for a lot less or free and you don’t have to get off the beaten track too far to find them.

While we enjoyed our day we felt the canyon was over rated.

On that note no pics of Condors sorry guys.

Heading through to Espinar was a neat ride through the back blocks



Again there is plenty to look at with wild rock formations keeping us amused and interested



Staying on the dryer stuff was also important cos the darker stuff was like ice



In Espinar we spotted this, quite cool with portal axles and all including a big gun mount on the top.



And the spooky shot for the day, aliens .. well baby Alpacas anywya ... but they still looked spooky :evil



Capping off our ride is the entry to the hostel down a bendy plank.

__________________
Cheers Andi & Ellen .... https://twomotokiwis.blogspot.com/ Two Moto Kiwis Alaska - Argentina - April 2012 -> Somewhere

Ummming and arrrring about whether to go to MP we ended up deciding to go as we thought down the line we would regret not going and being so close it was one of those things that had to be done. :huh

Just another pile of rocks crossed our minds and the expense of getting there and the admission fees all adds up to a spendie episode.

First stop was Ollantaytambo, now the ruins there were outstanding, also our good man at our hostel told us the secret entrance ... gratis so value for money it was perfect.



Ellen on the bigs rocks one second before having the whistle blown and told off :rofl



Check out the intricately cut rock :clap



Exiting the ruins we visited the choco factory and promptly blew our admission fee there ..but we came away with beautiful white chocolate laced with coffee beans .... good .... nah ... great!!! :clap

Chocolate torso ... think I mighta got the wrong one :evil



A cruise around town netted a coffee shop that was worthy, nice to be a gringo on holiday with treats sometimes.

Now the back streets are narrow in Ollantaytambo so when extra space is needed for parking .... easy as :wink:



Ollantaytambo done it was on to MP, up and over the pass it pissed down heavily and was very foggy, a quick lunch stop at Santa Maria then tackle the road to Hidroelectrica.

The main pass up from Ollantaytambo keeps going and going



Maya turned 40000



This section was very muddy, wet and the creeks up and flowing, passing through Santa Teresa we got to almost to Hidroelectrica only to find Mum nature tortured the bridge and sent it in to the river for a swim with no way through on the moto, walking only allowed on the makeshift planks.



A quick turn around and back to Santa Teresa we left Maya in the hands of the good Policia who let us park her up in their yard and store our gear in a dry room.

<iframe src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ic755nRJ1EQ" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="560"></iframe>

As you can see the river was little angry



Packed our day packs and took a collectivo taxi to the dead bridge and walked the 2.5 hour stretch to Aquascaliente.



The welcome sight of Aguascaliente over the deafening raw of the river

__________________
Cheers Andi & Ellen .... https://twomotokiwis.blogspot.com/ Two Moto Kiwis Alaska - Argentina - April 2012 -> Somewhere

MP, time to get stoned.

MP, we were lucky with the weather having a combo of fine/cloudy/misty which made for differing photos, in a funny sorta way MP would be almost boring had it been cloudless.

The start of the climb which is about an hour or so, the sign on the left showing the road and our walking track



Rather than rush we decided to stay the second night at Aguascaliente so we could take in MP.







Had time to think about life for a while, no Horizons except my thinking Tee Shirt



We made mention earlier of the chocolate, no prisoners here it was demolished in seconds being eaten in anger ... awesome :clap

Ellen, Devin and I, Devin is a cyclist from Canada who we have been grossing paths with.



This allowed us time to walk right around it and check out the Inca bridge etc, these guys were mad!!.





Some of the rocks (and these are not the biggest) are massive and would have taken some work to put into place, Ellen just pushing this one back into line



Two immature boys



The discovery cave, from 1911.



The end, we are off



On completion of being stoned out we headed down and got caught in a heavy downpour...very refreshing. :rofl

Now the honest part, my feeling is that MP is a little overated and just well sold to tourism, generating 10 % of Peru's income we get charged double the amount of Peruvians, if we tried that in New Zealand and said because you are Peruvian you pay twice as much there would be hell to pay. :eek1

MP never having been finished or lived in does not have the soul or feeling of Kuelap thus my own personal opinion is go to Kuelap, this is more the real Peru than Machu Ripyou, for nearly $50 US I expected better from a pile of rocks, the location is cool though.:clap

While we enjoyed it the expense and overstatement put it further down on my list of cool things in Peru....at least for us anyway YMMV.

__________________
Cheers Andi & Ellen .... https://twomotokiwis.blogspot.com/ Two Moto Kiwis Alaska - Argentina - April 2012 -> Somewhere

Waking to a sweet day we set too, the river still playing bass guitar and 100 and something decibels



Walking back down the rail we had the treat of thousands (literally) of butterflies in clusters all over the track etc, these were the stunt butterflies playing chicken with the train, we didn't hear the outcome of who won ... :huh



The rail bridge part way



The walk, slightly downhill took just on two hours, the new bridge abutments being made and a new bailey bridge being built, still no way through though other than foot, see makeshift bridge in the background.



This is kept open being a major tourist inlet for MP



New Bailey bridge sections being put together



Back to the Plod shop Maya had been a good girl and was still there (luckily), such was the security the officer would not let us go through to the bike until he had phoned Cuba (the officer in charge who let Maya stay there) and cleared us with ID.:clap

This was actually impressive as we then knew no one else would have gotten through so yeap, great piece of mind.

With the rains the road out now was even muddier and there were mud slides being cleared which proved interesting to say the least, the creeks even higher and discoloured hiding those nasty Murphy rocks ... one of which saw a foot dabbed into the drink but between my Forma Boots and Klim pants no water got in, stoked for good gear.

A fresh slip we had to wait for, still coming down



Small creek crossing, maybe 300 - 400 mm deep



Another worlds most dangerous road ...especially when greasy like this



Hitting the main road we were prepped for more heavy rain and fog, only a small amount this time but the fords on the road were swollen, ideal opportunity to was all the mud out of the brakes etc, good job done.



Making it as far as Ollantaytambo we stopped there the night, next day taking in a back road back int Cusco.

Devin our resident favourite pushbiker was due to arrive at out hostel and was selling his cooker, while in Cusco we reloaded with camping gear so we are set for camping again, our gear not as good quality but hopefully will see us through.

Having received all our parts I set too and made storage for all the components within our bashplate so keeping the weight low and secure, a few other adjustments and maintenance we are ready to ride.

Destination south .... somewhere. :clap

__________________
Cheers Andi & Ellen .... https://twomotokiwis.blogspot.com/ Two Moto Kiwis Alaska - Argentina - April 2012 -> Somewhere

Inspiring stuff you two ,the volcano shots were particularly nice.Would be a bugger of a place to get stuck.enjoyed seeing a different side to MP ,despite your review i'd still like to take it in.until next time YDF Noel.

Heya Noel

Thanks man, we were inspired by others ... which is why we are here now.

Look forward to your travels so we can follow you with envy from the office.

The volcanos, yeah man what a treat, woulda super cool to see a big eruption but yeah need to get outa there and there are not too many options.

MP, still worth going mate, it is just spendie that is all and value v $$$ it was so so, it is one of those must do's if you are there for sure.

No regrets going to it.

YDP Cheers Andi

__________________
Cheers Andi & Ellen .... https://twomotokiwis.blogspot.com/ Two Moto Kiwis Alaska - Argentina - April 2012 -> Somewhere

Cusco, tourist trap but its ok, look past the people jumping out at you every ten seconds to sell stuff and you will see the nicer side.

Arequipa was huge for us, Cusco definitely smaller and easier but still having the goodies of a big city and particularly camping stuff due to the nature of the area.

Small original skinny streets



Beautiful church in the square



Some wild clouds in the distance teasing us with the look of rain



The famous Norton Rats pub



TMK proudly joining the other RTW tarvellers on the door



We ended up staying longer with one thing and another and to be fair we enjoyed the place, we also had the pleasure of meeting up with Phil (Ulti Ride) who was recovering from a crash, a coupla grogs and an evening chat bodged out in beanbags ... bloody awesome!!!

Chicas caliente (hot chicks) riding the police bikes, almost worth committing a crime for :rofl



Our BDCW bash plate is now full of disc pads, we tried to get good quality pads here in Peru but no bueno, we can get em but they only lasted 1600 km being churned around in the Peruvian muck.



Thanks to the good hearted TeeVee fello ADVer he sent down the good stuff including an xring chain and an Icebreaker T shirt ... life can resume now.clap:clap

Our hostel man had a drill and kindly lent it to us to do the work, very nice guy indeed, we also mounted the fuel bottle out back on cycle bottle holder so it was a big round to complete and we completed it.





The only downside is some bastid stole our orange rolly waterproof backpack/bag, wankers, not worth much but nearly impossible to replace here.

Our gear that was sent down from the USA by TeeVee was sent to Alex at Peru Moto Peru Moto Tours .:. Motorcycle Rentals & Tours he kindly took delivery of our box of goodies and kept it there till we got back to Cusco. Now there is quite a good moto syndicate here in Peru so you won’t be left alone in the cold wondering, just ask and you will find help no worries. :clap

Us with Alex at his shop



Loaded up and ready to go we waved goodbye to new found friends and set off into the distance, big distance it was too, 330 km, monsta day for us but mostly on tar so easy peasy, as luck would have it we snuck through the cloud banks and had a water free day....noice.:clap

A chance meeting on the road we saw two bike stopped so we stopped to see if they were ok or needed help.

Turns out the Varedaro was playing up a bit but they had it under control so smiles, handshakes, dodgy dealings with sticker swaps and we were on our way again.

Great guys and they own a pub so we hope to catch up with them in Brasil





Arriving in Lampa we did the usual hostel thing, by this time I had developed a pretty chunky head cold and feeling considerably second hand.

With no wifi etc we decided to carry on the next day, if I am gonna be crook in bed may as well do RR’s and pics so the 77 road km was welcome with me being off shade.

While is Lampa we where treated to Peru's hottest boy band doing a Milli Vanilli lip sync .... he he .....you old buggas know who I am talking about ... young punks use goooooogle :rofl so there they were with there 10 inch boom box singing to their studio prerecorded song, was kinda cool really cos it did remind me of Milli Vanilli at the time, another blast from the past ... in Lampa :lol3



We plugged Mrs.Garmin to Puno, hit cruze control and had a sleep to Puno ..... one thing kept me awake .... we were heading home???WTF

We are riding at 3863 meters so 109 meters higher than Mount Cook (the highest point in New Zealand) (Nueva Zelandia in Spanish) and we are only 68 km away, huge saving on shipping!!!



Anyway, just thought I would share this 8th wonder of the world.:rofl

Into Puno, planned on staying one night but my head cold had thickened and gone for the jugular so I am burnt out, the nice people at the hostel turned out to be not nice people at the hostile charging extra for towels, soap and they wanted $10 soles (4 x a professional car park) to park Maya which they had seen us rock up on and showed us where to park and said nothing about more for her, the discussion at entry and the quote to stay with no mention of the “extras” so we did not stay the next night choosing to go around the corner for normal treatment, turns out they lost out on 4 extra nights, again great business tactics to a white face and they lose. :lol3

Next hostel, n o i c e, not much to add to make it sound groovy other than nice people, good wifi proper hot water and parking for Maya included

__________________
Cheers Andi & Ellen .... https://twomotokiwis.blogspot.com/ Two Moto Kiwis Alaska - Argentina - April 2012 -> Somewhere

Exciting times, monsta headcold clung on for way longer than I wanted despite bashing the crap out of with fruit and veges high in Vitamin C.

Having a head cold at 4000 meters is hard work as the air is already thinner let alone having all the passages half blocked as well, the clamp has finally gone from my head with only the aftermath of getting up to speed now. :clap

While out walking there was a few things to take my mind of being off shade,



My favourite movie crew from Ice Age!:clap



Waterfront Lake Titicaca



Now a treat for my fello engineering types, check this out, post has been smashed off its based ... and left



No problem in Peru though they seem to run structural wires ... nothing else is holding the post in place eek1:eek1:eek1:eek1



The bonus is we finally got to meet Paul (El Forko) and his girlfriend Pau, Paul is on an XT 660z and Pau a DR200.

Finally after 4 days of bed time and small walks we bailed and headed to Copacabana in Bolivia for change of scenery, but no change of elevation.

Given Paul has spent a lot of time in Bolivia Argentina and Chile we spent time cruising the maps for good info, likewise they are heading north so the information highway is working both ways. :clap

__________________
Cheers Andi & Ellen .... https://twomotokiwis.blogspot.com/ Two Moto Kiwis Alaska - Argentina - April 2012 -> Somewhere

Leisurely start and the ride planned with Paul and Pau after they got their insurance sorted.:clap

1.00 pm rolled around and game on, we set off at a leisurely pace enjoying the nice serving of sun.

Riding around Lake Titicaca we took in views of Bolivia and some high snowed capped mountains gracing the skyline in the distance.

Pau on her Suzuki Dr200



Paul on his XT660z Tenere



All was well until we approached Ilave, there where some scattered rocks on the road, then some more scattered rocks and some construction type debris then the line of traffic.

At this stage we were unaware of what was ahead of us, my first thoughts was some well maintained Peruvian dump truck had lost it.

There were people walking up the road towards us with bags etc s it was not a good sign.



Cruising past probably a km of traffic we came across a barrier made from grass, stones and ....coke bottles, they let us through.



Further up the road things got a little more serious, some smiles and some what the **** are doing here looks too.

The ladies were smiling as they threw rocks under our wheels, some said come through others wanted to stop us



As we tried to cross one barrier with approval from some but not others .. the others through rock under Paul’s and Pua’s wheels, we went through and kicked them out of the way with the rear tire.



Next thing an old lady was batting Pau then turned her attention to us, Ellen snapping her photo just as she took a strike at us.



Now the protests have nothing to do with us because it was all about bus fare increases but they saw it fit to blame and take it out on us.

Thinking we had past the worst of it at the next barricade there was an older fellow there with a whip, yes a whip, he stuck out at Paul, Paul thought he was playing but when Pau when through the old bugga took an aggressive swing at her, I was starting to not see their side of the shit now.



When we approached he lifted his whip so I turned into his swing path, grabbed his collar, wrenched him towards us then threw him backwards (all while riding forward) and the look on his face was one of astonishment as he was not expecting that, I don’t mind their protest but when it starts coming at our expense by way of possible injury they cross that line of limits.

All his mates thought is was hell funny that the whitey defended himself, 1/4 of a second after this shot I had his collar



Another blockade and us listening on, discussion amongst our crew was to approach it quietly and earn our way through nicely.



The road was a minefield of broken glass, tiles, bottles, bricks, stones and any other shit they could lay their hands on, risk of tire slashing / punctures higher than anywhere else on our trip.



At the start we listened to their plight with sympathetic ears, nearing the end of some 25 - 30 blockades I was ready to punch the crap out of any of them who tried to stop us after we had been hit, slapped and whipped and running over potential punctures.

See the broken glass on the right



Finally passing the war zone we got out onto open road still having to dodge rock and even a lamp post laid across the road.



Turning off toward Bolivia only part way down the road we ran the rear tank dry, at 4000 meters, nearly 5.00 pm, quite cold we had the heated grips on etc, I flicked the off on switch a couple of times to cycle the fuel pump then proceeded to crank the bike over to have the battery give in pretty quickly.:huh :eek1

After a few minutes we decided to push start it so push push push by Ellen and I, a quick flick of the starter to turn the engine, dump the clutch and she started ... that was lucky!!

Doing the border crossing into Bolivia on the edge of darkness we made it into Copacabana easy enough, the border crossing being simple and laid back was a nice reprieve after the elongated day due to the blockades. :clap

__________________
Cheers Andi & Ellen .... https://twomotokiwis.blogspot.com/ Two Moto Kiwis Alaska - Argentina - April 2012 -> Somewhere

Great ride ,, great photos.
Stuff of dreams.
RIP Jeff Powers,,

Heya Seouljoe

Thank you so much for your comments

Jeff Powers, a good man gone in our circles, long may the Norton Rats live

__________________
Cheers Andi & Ellen .... https://twomotokiwis.blogspot.com/ Two Moto Kiwis Alaska - Argentina - April 2012 -> Somewhere

Mate your patience is greater than mine ,with the blockades ,i once had an Aboriginal pelt a rock at me at hit me in the chest ,i was on my xt250tn and i chased the bugger across the field until i caught him ,out of breath and grabbed him by the shirt ,and made my views very clear ,told him if i ever sew him throwing rocks at bikers or vehicles i'd give him a good smacking .i traveled that way every day and never saw him again ,so i must have made my point.

Great photos as always ,glad you are on the mend.just thinking have not heard Ellen's views for sometime.
until next time YDF Noel.

G,day Andy and Ellen,
Great to see you guys still on the move, surprised you didn,t clip Mr whipit
around the ear, Then again you may been in trouble, keep safe you guys,
keep them photo,s coming thanks, Roger.