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Page Shortening Post
Ok, happy new year you guys and thanks for following, much more to come yet.
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Cajamarca To Angasmarca
Ok, South that is the game plan and a nice clean road to Cajabamba, a trouble free and uneventful day saw us get to Cajabamba in plenty of time after a lunchtime getaway.
Seen this crap before Hektoglider :rofl http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rca/file-3.jpg Cajabamba is a nice place with a good vibes and we bagged nice accommodation with wifi, this is a treat in Peru. And it has a cool toy shop http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...mba/file-4.jpg This was to be our final civilized town with good services so we sorted everything before going awol. Civilized ... tying them down is cheating :evil http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rca/file-1.jpg Santiago de chuca was the goal, we hit our turnoff just after lake Saucachoca, it was very loose and deep with sand and lime and hiding those lovely round marble shaped rocks within which made it interesting to say the least. The start of the sandpit http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rca/file-6.jpg We spotted a cool gorge so went for a look, wow it was cool, we carried on our way heading further and further up the valley, it seemed longer than on the map, stopping for lunch asking to confirm directions this did not seem right by our info. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-31.jpg Spot mini me and Maya 3/4 way down :eek1 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-27.jpg Continuing out of the town Maya stopped, assuming we had just run the rear tank dry we switched the taps over but no go, I blew into the tank breather to make sure it wasn't just a vapour lock then she started, went half km then died again, sporadically she would go then stop, repeat :huh. By this time we had gone far enough to be very committed (and yes it was further tan on the map) thinking we were just near the top, the problem got worse to the point I was blowing into the breather every 200 meters to keep fuel in the carbs ... I was not enjoying this. Especially trying to ride this stuff http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-10.jpg Beautiful tho ....and worth every breath http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-11.jpg Then it got worse, turning the corner we thought was the top of the valley it opened up to the next tier and even more difficult, we are now at 3900 meters, don't know where we are and still had to climb, committed we carried on to the summit at 4300 meters, we stopped at a cross track to gather, we established Santiago De Chuca was bloody miles away and we really had taken a short cut.....but to Angasmarca .... our next days ride :eek1 Cool mountain shapes http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-12.jpg Few horses to keep us company http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-15.jpg By this stage we are on a 4x4 style track with water holes 300 - 400 deep and muddy and it was dry (they would be 600 mm plus in the wet), we still had 50 km to get to a town assuming the road even existed, luckily it did and it took us onto a mining road for the last 12 km then down into Angasmarca. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-16.jpg The track sidled around the valley http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-18.jpg Before dropping us onto this very loose and boney section http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-19.jpg I continued blowing into the tank right to the plaza knowing we had to find accom. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-20.jpg Ellen got the hostel and it had a garage space so that was mint, off with the tank and pump, the points clearly weathering from bad power and a wire that was dislodged from its crimped keeper, it had not been crimped properly from new.:baldy:baldy ... now before anyone gets out the KTM gun the petrol pump is Mitsubishi .... so jappa. Some sanding and filing of points and and crimping the wire properly we set her back together with life in our fuel pump, me I could run a marathon now with my lung training. |
Angasmarca To Santa
With Maya back together the following morning we headed for Tauca, we pretty much had the road to ourselves bar a coupla trucks.
This section of the road (yes we are actually on a road this time) we were expecting to be rough but after yesterdays track it was a highway, conditions dry it was boney and again the sand and lime dust was 150 mm deep at times again hiding rocks with wrong intentions ...bastids.:rofl The zig zag was ahead of us and did not disappoint, just incredible where the road went. This is what we were in for... http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-32.jpg This is what it looks like on the BIG screen :D http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-33.jpg The full picture http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-41.jpg Cleaning crud out of the radiator after softening it in a creek crossing http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...nta/file-3.jpg Our reward at the top of the hill for lunch http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...nta/file-2.jpg There are many mines up here in the tops http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-42.jpg Arriving at Tauca there are two hostels, the owner of the good one was away so closed, the other we could not get Maya in and they didn't seem interested to even help solve/sort something... this is a church, slightly different than usual http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...nta/file-6.jpg An executive decision was made to carry on to Chuquicara to get gas and stay the night. The mountains bleeding different colours depending on the minerals providing cool colours http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-44.jpg An entire town of ruins from volcanic destruction http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-10.jpg Down the valley was a totally different stone desert likes we had not seen before http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-13.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-22.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-23.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-20.jpg Then the bridge, being repaired, 20 minutes she said, nearly an hour later we were on our way but their half done repairs nearly sending us overboard with the planks rolling under our wheels...****. :eek1 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-14.jpg After some heart stopping moments we got to the second bridge which was worse, with a strong crosswind Ellen got off to help, again more heart stopping moments we made it across and continued down the valley arriving at the bridge to Chuquicara....oh no the worst one. This had boards missing and broken boards, in places there were holes 1 x 1 meter, we both hoped off and walked Maya across under power, 3/4 the way across a rotten longitudinal board broke under the front wheel dropping Maya into the bridge and onto the front disc, using the engine power we got her out only to have the back wheel drop in too, we made it finally, puffing like hell, sweating profusely and with full nappies. :eek1:eek1 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-27.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-28.jpg 20 meters can cause trouble, most of the boards were ok but some were rotten, not nailed down or anything, was very happy to have both of us and Maya on solid ground, then we found the gas station .....no gas .....nada, shit.... some days things just don't line up totally. :cry We had enough to get to the coast but not enough to go through to Caraz so we had no choice but to go to the coast to Santa, no biggy it was a real moonscape drive and stunning but blowing very hard sending us across the road at times. Next day was NYE so we decided to get a rest day, we also managed to get a new MT21 front tire for Maya so I was happy about that, at least the tire god stars lined up, fitted the new shoe to Maya....sorted. Caraz here we come :clap We don't have a tiled floor in the garage a home :evil http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-45.jpg |
As always….WOW. if you two ever have children, you'll never run out of bed time stories, Cheers beer
Rod |
Happy New Year !!!!!!!!!!!
Love the shots of the twisty roads .wishing you another wonderful year of adventure.P.S I may have a buyer don't mention it to any one i don't want to jinx the sale.Y.D.F Noel
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Yeah unlikely on the kids front so we will just have to bore you guys to tears instead. :rofl: |
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Happy new year indeed. On the quite then coolio on the house maybe sale, best for that mate I hope it pans out :D YDP (your dedicated poster) A bier |
Santa - For New Years Eve
Shoulda been here for Christmas :rofl
Given we were driven to coast for fuel we took advantage of services that come with being in a bigger town, i.e. tire, wifi, toilets with seats etc. Maya’s new years gift was the MT21, mine was being able to drink and hold down wine and food, after the food poisoning in Cajamarca it has left things a little tender, Ellen's gift was putting up with me!! :evil The three of us went out for tea ... it was nice.:rofl http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...0Year/file.jpg The Peruvians put on an epic show of who has the bigger cracker and sky rocket, this was quite the display for a town this size, was only minute at new years and the air was laden with beautiful gun powder smell (I love it), there were burning chairs in the street too, kinda like guy forks. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ear/file-4.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ear/file-5.jpg See the smoke hanging in the air http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ear/file-7.jpg New years eve done and dusted bed jumped under us at about 1.00am. Now, a small back track to the past for when I was very young (just a few weeks ago) When I was about 18 years young I bought a magazine called Australasian Dirt Bike, in the mag there was an article of two DR400T’s 82 - 84 model, dual shock. round mid muffler model, all you old buggas like me will know them, all you young bucks will have to search or suffer. :D The article was headed, “Peruvian Sand” and there were photos of these two hooning up the huge sand dunes and having a time of their life, I loved that article so much, I loved the bikes so much I worked my arse off and saved hard and bought a DR400S which had road kit for New Zealand, I was proud as punch cos I had one, I so much wanted to blast up the monster sand dunes and in my dreams I just wanted to be there. Roll on 29 years ...yes I am 47 now give or take 25 years, well, here we are in Santa, Peru, I am looking out across the roofs at these monster sand dunes and I had a flashback to the “Peruvian Sand” article I loved so dearly ..... with a small tear in my eye I then realized HERE IN AM in my dream of about 1984 now on my newer dream bike that was not even dreamed of or thought about back then. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ear/file-9.jpg Was this my news year gift?, was this meant to be and a small gift of my own history, it was weird, hard to explain and I don’t wonna give it back so I won't but leaving Santa heading back to the mountains it is a cool memory to ride with:clap:clap, maybe in another 29 years I will have another cool flashback with Maya. Where is this going, well nowhere really, but for me it meant that sometimes in an unexpected avenue your day can change in an instant with a dream realized, never EVER let go of dreams as they can eventuate even if by alternate forces and events. I WAS HERE ... I couldn't tag the sand dune so this will have to do :D http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ar/file-11.jpg Happy new all, mine was!!! |
Canyon Del Pato
Sorry to those that have seen this on every ride report from every ADVer that has been through here .... but TOO BAD co we haven’t and it is stunning. :clap
Ducks, that is what it means, the only thing we had to duck was falling rocks and mad Peruvian drivers.:rofl Growth, not a common word in these parts unless you are referring to rocks, stunning, a word I am guessing gets thrashed. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ato/file-2.jpg WOW can explain it, many tunnels, corrugated to hell in places, dusty, 41 degrees C and edges of the road that with see you plummet 100 meters to your death right beside you so yeap a perfect adventure riders road.:clap:clap At the start we stopped at the dreaded bridge which saw me fill my nappies, the holes looking just as daunting, the wind had dropped so made it feel easier. See the hole. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...to/file-23.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...to/file-26.jpg Photos, why not, one wished for superior gear here but we still made the most of what mum nature had twisted and shaped for our eyes to consume, again it was unreal to look at, me with my engineering mind trying to even start to comprehend the forces that pushed this into and out of shape. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ato/file-4.jpg For the non engineering people here, picture a huge bulldozer grunting hard pushing earthworks for that new road section, now look up to the twisted and curve rock shelves we drive past everyday when in the mountains and try to understand the immense pressure to do this, mind boggling to say the least.:eek1 Ok, back to human things now, making our way through to Caraz we past the hydroelectric scheme and dozens of tunnels before hitting tarseal (which was welcomed again) http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...to/file-30.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...to/file-39.jpg Did I mention barren http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...to/file-44.jpg Yes that is a road up there http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...to/file-46.jpg A few tunnels http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...to/file-56.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...to/file-58.jpg In some parts you zip out of one and into another http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ato/file-7.jpg Dodgy dark dude http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...to/file-12.jpg Coming into the closet :rofl http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...to/file-14.jpg Stopping to take in the view http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...to/file-16.jpg Heading out of the canon you can see the differing minerals making differing colours http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...to/file-21.jpg Arriving at Caraz we caught up with Tobius again as well as Edwin and his girlfriend who pulled up to the hostel next door and couldn’t get there bikes in so they came into our hostel when they saw the easy alley Maya went down. Yet another harsh day of adventure touring :rofl :clap Finally a clip of the day http://youtu.be/b6suSRZQSeM |
Lake Paron - New Zealand 8-)
Day trip from Caraz, unless you want to be wowed and enjoy breath taking scenery I wouldn’t bother going.:D
Tobius following us up on his 950 Adventure http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-36.jpg Towering glacial cut faces looking down at us http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-37.jpg Neat track leading up to the top http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-41.jpg 30 km from Caraz to roads end we parked the motos and with much enthusiasm from the other locals we had good laughs and photos. Tobius, Ellen and I set too for the 1.5 hour easy hike, we were however at 4200 metres and reached 4400 metres at the head of Lake Paron. Damn, this place is unreal, so for those of you in South America that want to go to New Zealand but can’t afford to go bust out $5 Soles ($1.35) and go here, this is as close to where we live as we have seen yet.:clap A quick chat to discuss the beauty http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ron/file-1.jpg So much orange beauty here :rofl http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ron/file-3.jpg Good times http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ron/file-8.jpg The place as awful :D http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-18.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-20.jpg A close up http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-21.jpg The three of us just just took it in sitting on a shingle fan looking around like three little kids being looked down on by our elders, quite a feeling. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-29.jpg On heading back to the bikes the combo of snow melt, rain and heat bought our small creek into a big creek http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-84.jpg Once we had finished taking in our scenic overload it was time to head back for a late lunch back in town. The zig zag on the way back down http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-88.jpg Tobius left his 950 Adventure in our hostal and we did some adjustments etc, more moto heaven fun. Tobius said his bike was no good on the gravel corrugations and we had established prior that his fork legs were set very differently and too firm so we dealt it with much improved handling and comfort for the big fella. Tea was had with all of us in town http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...Paron/file.jpg |
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Hey you two,
Waht a fantastic Trip/blog you're both having. It seems like a lifetime ago we met in Nakusp, British Columbia! Wishing you a safe but adventurous road ahead....... :) Keep in touch...... Nevil MotoExped - Home Round the World 2013 on motorbikes |
Fantastic shots,I was very impressed with the Machu picchu lookalike,love the lama shot.Bummer about the food poisoning.Any hoo , house has an offer only 100g below list so told them to improve offer or go away.Until next time,Noel:D
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Now there is a pic from a wee way back. Thank you for your props, much appreciated and yeap we are having good fun and loving South America. |
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Easy to take nice photos when you are on a world class stage!!! Food poisoning .... yeah ...Merry Christmas :( ... that's the way it is (was). Damn the miserable buggers on the house, I can sort them out for you if you want :smartass:, good man stand ya ground and don't give it away. YDP A |
Parque Nacional Huascaran (Huascaran National Park)
13 km, that is all the tarseal we got from Caraz then back into it, rough, gravel, mud, deep shingle etc.....perfect :clap
Destination Chacas we proceeded up to the park entry gates, this time $10 Soles each, this time the road up to the lakes was maintained and very nice, this was short lived tho and turned very rough very quickly. Park entry http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...0Park/file.jpg Joining the crew :D http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ark/file-1.jpg New Zealand, here we are again, huge glacial cut valleys with daunting vertical faces steering at us with an unforgiving smile. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ark/file-2.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ark/file-3.jpg The lake at the first crest http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ark/file-7.jpg Cool trees previewing the icy clay laden waters http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ark/file-9.jpg Once past the lake we hit the zig zag .... awesome, the climb in front of us and taking us to the base of a glacier then zig zagging up and up, getting rougher and narrower, at 4000 meters we adjusted the fuel screws in as Maya was losing it, at 4400 meters we took the fuel screws in even further as it was difficult riding the tight switch backs with little power and trying to accelerate, this made a huge difference and she starting running much much better. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rk/file-20.jpg Adjusting the fuel screws at 4400 meters (14500ft) http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rk/file-21.jpg Part of the road http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rk/file-24.jpg Lakes in the distance we had past earlier http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rk/file-25.jpg Sorry for the washed out colours but the poor ol camera was struggling with the glare from the snow etc. Lunch, open air cafe, not much coffee but c h e c k o u t t h e v i e w :clap http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rk/file-37.jpg A reflection of our past :D http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rk/file-46.jpg Topping out at 4710 meters we were pleased to hit the summit and started heading down as oxygen is thinner here so wrestling Maya in and out of big rocks, switchbacks etc with our gear was a mission. The crest and the monster long downhill, just as awful on this side :rofl, this was at 4710 meters (15500 ft) http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rk/file-47.jpg Further down the valley the day got warmer and slightly easier although some of the villages we rode through had had heavy rain causing muddy boggy ‘tracks” in the towns which proved interesting. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rk/file-50.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rk/file-51.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rk/file-27.jpg Between the elevational changes and the amount of gnarly gravel roads we had ridden the last few days it was starting to catch up on me, 3/4 the way down to our finish line I had to stop for a drink, breather, stretch and a few toffees for a sugar boost. Unexpected we were greeted for the last 6 km to Chaca by tarseal sent by god, it was smooth and beautiful and a seriously welcome sight after thumping around in the sticks. Yeah a nothing photo other than the welcoming road :clap http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rk/file-29.jpg Chacas, cool wee town with no wifi ... perfect, we decided to take a much needed rest day, do a small walk and catch up on some writing etc. The timing of the thunder storm coming, we got in with good time, Chacas main square (plaza) donkeys and all. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rk/file-52.jpg A local lady selling baskets, she was very nice, in fact Chacas now holds the title for the most friendly town so far in Peru, the people were smiling and very welcoming which made us feel very homely. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rk/file-53.jpg |
Hi Andi and Ellen,
Fantastic pics and journal. Thanks for taking the time, I know on my recent round Oz trip, it's often easier to keep going than to stop and get those shots, and for each shot taken, there are 100 missed! I'm following in your footsteps soon, just organising flights for me and the bike from OZ to LA before heading into Mexico. I'll scour your earlier posts for route ideas!! Happy Travels :scooter: PN |
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You are welcome and I envy you at the start ..... the excitement and thrill is great and only gets better!! PMed you with info and stuff, just sing out if you want more info or have a question. Then, let us know we you are into it so we can follow you.:thumbup1: |
Chacas To Huaraz - The Long Way
Spending two nights having a break was great, Chacas was a nice place to kick back.
Pretty epic view of hanging glacial basins http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hacas/file.jpg From the town square, beautiful buildings as well http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...cas/file-2.jpg Time to head on we rode up and over the national park on different road seeing us get up into the snow line with ease. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...raz/file-8.jpg Picture of IDNA http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...az/file-16.jpg The tunnel http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...az/file-27.jpg Near the top there was a turnoff which we took only to get a wee ways along and find a showstopper rock fall which we could not fit through and rocks I could not move without dynamite ... which we didn’t have. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...az/file-36.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...az/file-33.jpg Having been stopped at this point the camera came out and the most was made of the top shelf scenery in front of us, behind us the weather was crapping out very quickly with snow laden cloud and rain so it was time to move, a slight backtrack was required. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...az/file-41.jpg Again up at 4780 meters this is the second highest point we have been on our trip so far and only 100 meters below Chimborazo in Ecuador.:clap The valley was long with the usual Peruvian style zig zag and of course right hand drive bus and cars????!!!!! Look closely at the picture you can see there are about 10 - 12 tiers of the zig zag down http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...az/file-45.jpg Ellen and I have decided to start an import business in Peru with right hand drive cars and buses as the Peruvians really don’t like driving on their side of the road, so we should make it easier for them buying the right hand drives!! :rofl The other thing we have found is Peruvians seem to send their dogs to “chase the moto skool” with some of them really going hard, I bought a stainless steel cup which is attached to my tank bag on the left, it is full of rocks and everyday requires a reload....some dogs make rethink their attack mode afterwards.:evil See the zig zag in between the sign posts above Maya http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...az/file-50.jpg Great place to relax and laziboy it to take in the valley http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...az/file-53.jpg Down to humanville we hooked a lefty to Huaraz which was destination for two nights. We had a failed attempt to go to Lake Llaron but with weather and track condition turning us around and we headed back to town, the weather caved in badly which means we would not be able to see a thing anything ... bumma but never mind. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ake/file-6.jpg The hostel was nice run by a friendly girl who was helpful, we provided the entertainment getting Maya in and out of the front door which was narrower than our handle bars. http://youtu.be/XGSJbQdx4z4 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...az/file-10.jpg From here we decided to head to the coast ..... warmer yes .... back to the sandpit. Here is the little summary for our little ride from Chacas to Huaraz http://youtu.be/jeEPtTNDkjc |
Fantastic!love the video .House prices crashing here all bad news may have to cut my own throat to get the house sold.Glad you have been talking with Paul Nomad ,he stayed with me on his OZ trip ,very nice bloke.Those mountains are spectacular.
Y.D.F Noel :D:D |
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Well shit that is bad about the house prices mate, is it worth renting to ride out the monsoon? .... just a thought rather than taking a bath on the price :( Yeah been in contact with Paul and hopefully helping him with things we can anyway, up to date info is always great :thumbup1: |
Huaraz To Barranca
Back to the lowlands
South, well, south west up an over 4200 meters, freezing cold and drizzly, to top it off I was slightly off shade. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...nca/file-3.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...nca/file-7.jpg The food poisoning in Cajamarca has left my stomach tender and easily upset and today I was suffering I suspect from less than ideal water, not sure. Easy trip down seeing us drop from 4200 meters to sea level in less than an hour ...wee change. We arrived at Ceasers shop way ahead of time as the road was totally sealed and great condition ...unlike my bum!!!! :rofl I chose to die for the afternoon and rest under the sheets while Ellen entertained our hosts. The following day Ceaser and family took the day of work and took us to the playa (beach) then on to a swimming pool which we all made the most off being a hot day. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-11.jpg We played silly games that the lifeguards at any western pool would throw you out for.:rofl http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...nca/file-5.jpg Some other travellers who were there, our small waterproof camera is playing up too :evil http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-36.jpg Again really cool being on the ground with locals. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-43.jpg The ride home in a mototaxi http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-57.jpg Taking in Barranca it was a bustling town with moto taxi overload, these things were thicker than blow flies in Australia .... we even watched one get shortened by a truck when the trucks brakes failed at the intersection.:eek1 The last night we had Cuy (Guinea Pig) ... take like chicken but ya haf ta fight to get much meat http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-65.jpg We were then ordered to sit down and have a few drinks with a birthday party ... awesome!! :clap http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-68.jpg Plans to head back to the highlands saw us go back up the road we came down on as we left later than usual with a few photos with some local lads. The sand dunes I dearly wanted to play on I did and Maya took us to the Elephant cliffs. That next......:evil |
Barranca To Chavin
A step up in time
Before leaving Barranca we headed down and out to the Elephants head sand dunes .....excorted by our host Ceaser, it was stinkin hot. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...in/file-35.jpg Sand...hot http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...vin/file-1.jpg This shows where we were parked on top of the elephants head http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...in/file-17.jpg So photo shoot over we headed back to where our hearts were calling, not having finished with Huascaran we headed to Cataz, this time 3/4 up the mount the weather dealt to us with heavy rain and thick fog. Towering above was massive vertical cliffs http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...in/file-45.jpg Yes that is a bus that when off the road and remains a solemn reminder http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...in/file-47.jpg The fog saw us down to first gear in places due to not being able to see more than a few meters in front of us, we nearly hit a cow and a (white) bus parked parked in the middle of the road....damn....kept on my toes. No pics of the thick fog and rain, if you want the real deal jump in the shower and turn the cold water on, place a tuperware container over your face but allow cold water to hit and trickle down your face, add appropriate engine noise ... done!! Ominous cloud met us at the top http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...in/file-49.jpg Cresting the top of the valley the fog cleared as we “out elevated” it leaving us with just heavy rain so things were on the improve, getting to Cataz we had made good time despite the pea soup slowing us down, with Chavin in our sights we decided to get there as it was only 2.30 pm and an hour and a half to get there. Yeah .... http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...in/file-53.jpg So ......the weather, getting a good way up the valley the rain stopped which was great .... but it started snowing and the temperature dropped quicker than a led ballon. Snow ...cold http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...in/file-21.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...in/file-22.jpg The last 5km to the tunnel saw snow settling on Maya and us, heated grips on full felt useless!!! Luckily we had prepped earlier with our full wet gear on which was a great move but the chill still let us know with authority .... bearing in mind an hour and a half prior we were at 35 degrees and wet from the inside out. The tunnel was a short reprieve as we dived off down the valley with freezing winds tossing snow in all directions which made for hard riding, my visor was fogging on the inside and the snow packing on the outside. As we descended down it slowly turned to rain again .... cool ..... at least warmer. The road at this point is a combo of potholes, dirt and destroyed tar and the mix of lime and clay making a concrete like mix that is very abrasive ... as we found out getting only 1600 km our of the rear disc pads. Something was going wrong with our rear brake and on exiting the tunnel we had nothing with the pedal going straight to the bottom with no effect ..... think we need to bleed it, again this just added to the riding level of attention using engine braking and front brake only on the greasy surface ... interesting. Arriving in Chavin in one piece we had intentions of staying two nights but only two of the 10 - 12 hostels/hotels were open and were blindly ripping it. We ended up paying 50% more for pretty scrubby accom THEN no toilet paper, no soap and one towel between two people saying because of the rain there were no more towels. At that point we were in and only discovered this miserable anomaly when we went to have a shower, be fair to say I lost my cool, it was the one towel between two people which was an insult and I let them know, they then offered a tea towel .... NUP, full size or a fight. , they opened the door to a room which had towels on the shelves and lots of them .... wankers. My hard line came about when more people turned up and they gave them towels(s) so they lied through their teeth to us So with her miserable stupidity we decided to leave the next morning instead of staying the next night with food etc, great business tactics guys, the place is called Hostel Las Casana, DON’T bother going there as she will stick it to you after you get in the door, not impressed with them at all, this would have to be the worst that someone has stuck it too us in a “professional way‘ and is nothing short of an insult. On a better note the ruins provided some entertainment as did the tea boxes or at least some photos. Read the labels with your twisted mind http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...in/file-25.jpg We also discovered the perfect RTW cookset for travellers, eco sized http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...in/file-26.jpg The ruins http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...in/file-29.jpg The ruins at dusk http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...in/file-31.jpg Lastly, our video of the day Snow In Huascaran National Park, Peru - YouTube |
G'day Andi and Ellen ,renting is not an option as i have an Acre and a management nightmare,and there are now about 300 houses for rent in town.no i will have to find a buyer.great lot of photo's ,i appreciate the effort you guy's go to as i can see it's miserable in places still you take the time to capture the shots.I had a similar problem with my rear brake ,think the fluid was too old and it ate the bucketts in the slave cylinder ,as its a combined brake system so gave it to the local honda dealer ,flushed the system new kits in the front and rear slave cylinders $975 latter ,they will NEVER get business from me EVER again.Done nearly 600 km the last two weekends ,trying to scratch the itch.Until next time take care,Noel:D:D
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Is OZ going through harder times now after reasonably well weathering the main storm? Good shit getting out on the bike, always clears the head and allows for some thinking time, your stealership needs their nuts kicked for $975 that is robbery!! |
Chavin To La Union
This was an easy day, only 70 km to do however mum nature had been crying all night and rivers were swollen and muddy, given our trip was mostly gravel roads we decided to hit the main drag being an easier option as there were a number of slips down.
We ended up heading to San Marcos up and over, turns out mum natures tears had just as much input this way and we had just doubled our mileage to “make it easier” whose dumb idea was that. Regretting my decision to take this way we were committed so we slowly climbed up the greasy mucky hills laded with ruts and rocks. This soon cleared out after about 25 km to a better gravel road, the clouds started dispersing and the temperature climbing despite us climbing in elevation. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-25.jpg For a few brief moments the sun even made an appearance before hiding back behind the fluffy sheets but this was enough to liven our inspiration and dry the road out to no mud ...and no dust .... WOH HOH. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-26.jpg More cool glacial cuts http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-27.jpg With the tables turning in our favour thing were looks up, and up .... and up which took us to the beginning of the mining scheme 4000 meters above normality, I will add at this point all regrets were long gone and safely thrown out as we would not need them again. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-28.jpg Taking a few wrong turns through the myriad of roading a mining grader driver flags us down and says.....no pase (no way through) and kindly directed us to a road on the opposite side of the valley ...... oooops, but the road in the distance was way better than the one we were on so that was cool. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-30.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-32.jpg Getting to the summit at 4600 meters the whole place opened up and there is a monster mine sitting there at 4500 meters, there were massive trucks, D9 hitrack bulldozers and massive excavators shifting Peru from side of the valley to the other. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-31.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ion/file-6.jpg Look in the picture you will see the small trucks http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-33.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ion/file-1.jpg These are the beasties http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ion/file-3.jpg Each load from the dump trucks would be a house lot by volume sending rocks 1 meter in diameter racing down the slops ... just incredible to watch. Our road continued right through the mining area, we had to stop twice at the cross roads which were wide enough to land a 747 on, given the size of the vehicle here we gave them right of way. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-37.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-38.jpg Finishing our impromptu and unexpected mine tour we finally hit the super highway, a well maintained tarseal road leading to the mine wide enough for the big machinery to pass no problem .... what a treat. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-40.jpg The rain had set in again big time so was a timely wash for Maya who was doing her dirty girl appearance ... well sortof. Just a little further down the road the rain momentarily stopped so we stopped beside a lake which took away and gave back in the one place. Breath taking scenery and a snack stop .... what a location, we were joined by some mining guys in a 4x4 water tanker, their interest in Maya and our travels sparking a great conversation. New Zealand ..... no one would know the difference in this pic. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ion/file-9.jpg How cool is this!!! http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-11.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-10.jpg See the cool wave effect on the rock http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-14.jpg After filling our minds with scenic overload and our faces with food we hit the road again as the rain crept back in, intermission was over ... back to the movie at hand ... riding to La Union. Reaching nearer the base of the valley we spotted a small waterfall so we detoured and had a nosy. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-18.jpg Beautiful wee valley http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-20.jpg Finally making it into La Union almost dry we settled in for the day. |
Amazing
Andi, Ellen great story , fantastic pix thx for sharing. all the best to you both
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La Union To Huanuco - Toby And Sara Here We Come ...
This morning we hit the hot pools for a soak before hitting the road, this was a very local place and cost $1 sole ..... about $.35 cents.
There was genuine lime scale over everything which was perfect for graffiti which everyone had been doing so not to be outdone .... http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...anuco/file.jpg The hot pool was so hot it involved gently lowering in the boys so as not to create a public disturbance, there was another smaller cooler pool to chill off in when the going got too hot in the main pool. We had the place to ourselves for a while then a crowd of deaf people joined us, there were three teenage girls, all very self conscious with long shirts and shorts etc on in the pool, one girl had omitted her togs or bikini top and only had a white T shirt on ..... there was not much left to the imagination here and we found this unusual given their level of self consciousness ..... I didn’t mind tho. We took a mototaxi out there as the people in town said 5 km, it would be no more than 1.5 km so we just walked back enjoying the setting of the river and hills. Heading towards town and turn around this is the thermals, hard to see and not sign posted http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uco/file-2.jpg Nice walking back into town http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uco/file-1.jpg Getting back into town we packed up knowing we had plenty of time for the near lunchtime getaway being all paved and 124 km however mum nature had set too and virtually ever creek had blown our across the road creating greasy mudbaths everywhere which really slowed things down. The road out from La Union is famously narrow and requires attention and a good horn http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uco/file-3.jpg This was very typical, although the rain had almost stopped the creeks were all still high http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uco/file-9.jpg Stopping for lunch we ordered almuerzo (lunch .. funny enough) which was the usual drink, soup and chicken with rice, we ordered one between us per usual as this is plenty for the two of us. She mucked up our order a little providing two soups rather than the full almeurzo however we didn’t really mind ....until we came to pay, although she had shortcut us on our serving she then wanted to charge us twice as much???? because we shared or something???? This created a bad atmosphere, she did give us a coffee each so we paid extra for this but for only one lunch, another classic of the Peruvians trying to stick it to us, they try it everywhere and to be fair it wears you down and takes the shine off the place . A small town ... with a tarseal road and a rock hat looking down over the town http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...co/file-15.jpg Arriving in Huanuco we went to the wrong place so Toby came a picked us up, he was on one of his hire bikes a XR650L ... very cool machine. We followed him back to their B&B headquarters and got setup, the next day a jungle ride to Pucallpa in the Amazonas was on the cards. Just a short vid today of the narrow road and mud slicks La Union To Huanuco - YouTube |
Huanuco To Pucallpa
Midnight Moto Mayhem ... read on
Heading to Pucallpa.... well, that was the plan. An early start was in order as we had been invited to a barb que ... we set off with gusto, Ellen in the truck with Toby, Sara and Heidi. The original plan was Toby and Sara were riding two up on the KLR650 and Heidi on a 250, us on Maya however Sara had a foot injury and Heidi had just had dental work done so the truck was a better option, I still rode Maya, we put Ellen and the cases in the back of the truck so I was solo. About 70 km out of Huanuco we were stopped by an epic landslide that came down at 5.00am, traffic backed up 3 km plus on either side. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...allpa/file.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...lpa/file-3.jpg One rock, check out the impact mark ... a hard hat won't help here http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...lpa/file-5.jpg With one digger in action it was slowly clearing a way through, there were rocks the size of footballs rolling down the slope and an ominously perched boulder the size of a car just waiting to take out anything in front of it. An executive decision was made to abandon the day and head back to home base, such is life ... but the bar b que The following day was plan B, we heard the road had been reopened but to one lane only so game on, quick pack down, fuel up and off we went, again stopping at the slip but this time some three km back in the traffic. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-10.jpg Me being on Maya I rode to the the queue to suss things out, it was mayhem to say to the least, I managed to spot a break for Toby and told him of the secret passage through which saw us through the slip in just on two hours. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...lpa/file-8.jpg It was slow with the Peruvians all two and three abreast impatiently trying to push everyone else out of the way causing blockages on the corners for the big trucks again slowing things down to a snail pace, they are their own worst enemy on the road. Finally getting moving further down the valley the ferocity and anger from mum nature was realized with a demolition zone to drive through including rocks the size of house to go around and river crossings nearly axle deep ... on the road. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-11.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-12.jpg One house had the entire ground floor full of debris including a car size rock that wanted to come in and sit on the couch. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-14.jpg .... come on in ... everything else has , note the holes in the roof too from flying debris ....woulda been scary times http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-15.jpg Through this section we thought easy as from here, through Tingo Maria and out the other side all paved and nice road, a bridge had been blown out day prior and had been reopened. On approaching this area we came upon a line of traffic with no end ... two km away from the bridge. Toby and I jumped on Maya to suss it out again, mayhem x 10 this time, it was 6.30 pm at this stage and getting dark, huge front end loader trying to do its thing and people blocking it every which way ... just stupid. Typical Peruvian patience blocking everyone else, they were four wide at one point on a two lane gravel road so blocked any chance of flow for the opposite direction total sensible. .... even I created a shadow which there wasn't room for http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-21.jpg After 4 hours of trickling along and having people push in etc we finally made it across the bog, many cars and trucks had been through slowly taking mud out with them, some cars donating bumpers and indicators to the earth too. Many cars got towed through crunching and banging their undersides lots of it loud enough to know damage was being done but they don’t care. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-26.jpg The rest of the trip was easy, all tar seal from there and at that hour most sensible people had gone to bed. We finally arrived in Pucallpa at 1.30 am in the morning ... long and exciting day out, spent and ready for bed. A short vid, not entirely clear due to being filmed from 9.30 pm to 10.30 pm. Huanuco To Pucallpa .... Stuck - YouTube |
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Pucallpa To Huanuco
The day after yesterday ... tired. :huh
Welcomed in by Tobys amigos and friends (at 1.30 am) we enjoyed Pucallpa very much which is seated on the Amazon and this my friends is one massive mofo of a river, bearing in mind we are ONLY at the headwaters or beginning....its gota go right across the island before hitting the sea, the Amazon is 200 km at the mouth!!!. Our awesome hosts Hugo and Meche http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...lpa/file-3.jpg The river ... or at least a very small part of it http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-21.jpg We were taken out for lunch to a very nice local place, as they had us as guests at their beautiful home we covered for lunch, we were then taken to the lake house for a relaxing afternoon overlooking the water which was just spiffing after our previous big day out.:clap http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...lpa/file-6.jpg The lake http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-16.jpg Toby and I relaxing on the swing chairs http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-13.jpg Maya also got a new belly full of Belray full syn oil, I did this with the help of my assistant who was a 13 year old boy eager to help. :clap Two drain bungs, 2 magnets, three filters later his eyes were bulging at the seemingly endless pile of “stuff‘ compared to the simple motos he was used to, all the same he was into it. ... (like this fella -> :eek1) We developed a crowd of about 15 onlookers which was cool, one fello even talked partly english, very nice guy. With my KTM apprentice at hand it wasn’t too long and we had Maya back together and filled her with fresh Belray Blood, my apprentice had the honours of starting Maya ... the shock horror look on his face with the initial cam tensioner rattle while filling was funny. :eek1 :eek1 With her going quiet in about 1.5 seconds his face lit up with a grin of accomplishment (like this fella -> :D) , then his reward, with Maya up on 4 bars I said to him twist the throttle, this was met with HUGE enthusiasm, a coupla small flicks his hand was shaking. With approval to give her a big flick the gathered crowd got bigger, a quick bounce from the top end of revs saw a large blue flame shoot out about 300 mm, this set the new level of excitement and laughter, by this time cellphones were out and vids were being made. :D Who would think an oil change could generate such a crowd and create so much laughter and fun.... but there you have it.:clap Want a moto taxi, there is one or two around so they can be found :rofl http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-23.jpg We also visited the KTM dealership to get some rear disc pads, again Maya bought the people out of the shop to take photos, even the security guard was in on it :lol3, I was lucky enough to get my photo taken with the hot chicas while Toby talked business, I felt guilty tho cos my T shirt stunk however this almost added to the foreigner adventure biker with a dirty 950 moto grande, so kinda cool in a weird sense. :rofl World records, this man is into them and has set them, Richard is his name, really neat guy and inspirational with him accomplishments and upcoming attempts http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-24.jpg Time to head back to Huanuco we hit the road with ominous clouds watching us from a distance. We fueled up on the cheap petrol, Maya full with 38 liters on board and cruising one up and no house and contents she did 5.3 liters / 100 km which gives us a theoretical range of 695 km ... not to bad.:clap Given Maya was seriously dirty from the previous days shenanigans of bog holes etc the rain was welcome .... then in true Amazon style it just caved in seeing us drop to first gear in places from serious lack of visibility.... talk about a water blasting!!! Stopping in the gorge on the way back we saw what we had missed at midnight on the way through, it was raining lightly when we arrived then really set in while we were there so the weather was chasing us. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uco/file-1.jpg See the truck at the bottom, see the size of the waterfall!! http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uco/file-2.jpg Sorry for the outa focus but rain on the lens ... excuse for a bad photo :D http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uco/file-7.jpg The rest of the ride was pretty uneventful, even when we came back upon the washed out bridge the digger was there cleaning up and it bared no resemblance of the mayhem we encountered that night. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...co/file-12.jpg Two young fellas were there “helping” so Toby gave them some bread each which lit up their faces. The last POI you won't find on Garmin :D http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...co/file-18.jpg Home James ... from there easy as apart from seemingly every truck in Peru on the road that night. |
Huanuco - Toby And Saras
The Central "Zona Do It"
Back safely at Toby and Saras Ellen had to get some dental work done and I had been putting off some work on Maya until we had the right place and services, Huanuco is it.:clap The town square http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uco/file-4.jpg The view from opposite their home, see the hill picture on their B&B site http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...anuco/file.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uco/file-1.jpg I wanted to get the Dr Bean board into our fuel pump, redo the mudflap which had been attacked and torn, clean out indicators from mud (the insides), clean air filters etc so just a big tidy up round. The board was easy done however the guy did a less than ideal job on one soldered joint so we got that sorted the following morning, all good. For a while I have been wanting to fit a bigger foot plate on the side stand and this was also accomplished $6 Soles (about $2 dollars), my exhaust baffle I had extended too $5 Soles (about $1.70 dollars), all in all my entire list of goodies to sort was sorted with a little local help from Toby. Ellen and Sara did the icecream thing ... dunno how I missed this out :huh http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uco/file-2.jpg A free Plug Here, Now Toby and Sara are volunteer workers and spend much of their time helping the community for no gain for themselves other than satisfaction so our hat is off to them big time.:clap Toby runs Around The Block moto tours and has a selection of machines from 250 to 650, both touring capable with KLR650s and offroad capable with the XR250s and XR650L . We stayed at their B&B for a week and enjoyed ourselves although I was completely set up on a board game coming last .... hmmmm :lol3 Tobys site is Moto Tours - adventure motorcycle tours in Peru and all South America ...and their B&B is https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1835398?s=9669 Wonna find em on your GPS, this will take you to the front door http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...lpa/file-6.jpg We had hearty breakfasts, comfy bed, REAL hot water, wifi that is probably the fastest we have had in Peru, that was the paid part. The non paid part is local knowledge from Toby and Sara, stuff you don’t get on GPS and maps. With Tobys local knowledge we got Maya sorted (as noted above) and Ellen got her dental work done, done well and very economical. Now Huanuco itself it not a total tourist town but has great shops and services, it is also close to Lima if you are flying in to start a trip or if you are lucky enough to be RTWing their place is a great stop over to get parts ordered etc, Toby can source stuff as he spent most of his childhood growing up in Peru and knows the locale, also speaking fluently in the local tongue cannot be matched for getting stuff sorted and the "not what ya know but who ya know" plays a huge part. Huanuco is also a great gateway to the Amazonas to the east, the Huascaran National Park just north and of course south to Cusco and Machu Picchu so pretty well placed centrally, all in all for RTW travellers they have a great place stop, sort out and breath, sort our any moto stuff with a lock up garage and undercover place to work...ouwh and they are just good honest people helping ADVers and Hubbers alike. I have just realized that all "us" photos are on their camera, so will have to get these .. that is an epic fail on our part!! :evil Leaving Huanuco we headed off again with good advice from Toby (well sorta ... it snowed:rofl), onto harass some other unsuspecting people :D |
Saying goodbye we hit the road south, the day was stunning and warm, total tar so a relaxing ride apart from dodging the usual Peruvians who like our lane better than theirs.
For the most of it getting up onto the plato the twisting tar gave us a nice rhythmic ride winding our way up the valley. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...Tarma/file.jpg Stopping at a waterfall we layered up a bit as we were at 4000 meters and just cool enough, across the road was a another cool waterfall .. well at least half a waterfall anyway with the water pouring out half way down the cliff, something we had not seen before. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...rma/file-3.jpg Cresting the plato there were very ominous looking clouds, being right on lunchtime we fooded up on hot tucker preparing for some rain, wet gear on too in advance. A small mining town http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ma/file-10.jpg As we approached the bank of angry clouds there was a huge flash and the big fella took our photo followed by a large bang/crack ... we knew then it was gonna get ugly. See to the left pf the picture Ellen just caught the lightening :clap http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ma/file-17.jpg Up ahead it appeared white but through my now wet visor I thought it was sandstone .... that would have been easier. Hail, yeah, bouncing off everything every which way in all directions .... classic, at least it is dryer than rain. The hail got heavier and heavier, the road was white with some wheel tracks creating a narrow safe-haven at least for a while. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ma/file-19.jpg A car was off the road and being pulled back on by a truck under the guidance of the police, one policeman looked at us like we were crazy .... I think he was right. Our spot would not send any messages to the orange dot gods as the air was electric stifling any signals from spot, (we now have a straight line on our map) lightening was striking to our left and ahead of us giving us booms in stereo, this also meant that we would be riding into the stuff ahead. Forced to first gear at one stage with about 50mm deep of hail on the road and no wheel tracks it was a game of lets try and stay upright, I won this game. The storm veered right and our road veered left which was a welcome reprieve, however the hail then turned back to very heavy rain again, bike got another good wash. We had visions of stopping in Junin but Junin sits at 4200 meters and it was bitterly cold, given it was only 1.30 we continued on with the last section to Tarma easy as just with lots of roadworks. Small vid for fun :clap Ice Ice Baby - YouTube |
G'day Andi and ellen, great photo's always .i think you were more charitable about the peruvian Drivers than i would have been.Glad you got through the ice /hail ok looks treacherous.YDF Noel:D:D
P.s some more lookers this week so here's hoping |
Never seens trees so red before. Grt pics. Really enjoying you travel like this.
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Wonderful pic in the warm waterfalls
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Yeah Peruvians are a different breed of people when they get a steering wheel in front of them. Good news on the punters mate, fingers crossed. YDP A bier |
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Yes there are some amazing colours and creature in this part of the world. Many thanks for your props. Andi |
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... they were NOT that warm :eek3: :rofl: |
Tarma - The Cave, Gruta Huagapo
A relaxing start as sleeping beauty stayed under covers till 9.00am :evil.
No rush, today was a local day to the caves and surrounding area. Flinging the cases off Maya we set too only to find a massive market outside our front door, so people, please make way, there were stalls and stands everywhere, the only free bit of concrete was the footpath ... foothpath it is. :rofl The caves are only 26 km from town and the dirt road takes you through small villages and up a valley, the caves sit at 3600 meters and the 5 minute walk to the caves seemed like a 5 hour trek. A torch or headlight is essential, if not you can hire a guide who had a 1 candle power LED torch. A guide and customer came in just as we got in too, so we all went in together, I had my LED lenser (made in USA and BLOODY awesome). So here is a few photos to enjoy, not much to write about. This waterfall greets you on arrival :clap http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ve/file-28.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ave/file-5.jpg Caver extraordinaire http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ave/file-7.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ave/file-9.jpg Ellen got a dirty bum sliding down one of the slopes http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ve/file-14.jpg It is like the temple of doom with little bridges :rofl http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ve/file-19.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ve/file-20.jpg The entrance from the inside out http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ve/file-22.jpg Couple of llamas on the way back, you can sit on this fellas and get your photos taken, I still prefer KTM.:evil http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ve/file-54.jpg |
Tarma - Camino Inca (Inca Walking Trail)
Not as famous as Machu Picchu but a nice walk, to be honest you can ride probably 90% of it ... just a problem getting down the last 10% intact.
Just to give it some authenticity ....the old guy on the right gave us directions and we gave him two toffee lollies ....he liked them http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...nca/file-1.jpg In true form from the Peruvians who didn’t have a clue they guided us completely astray, Peruvians will never say they don’t know and they will always give you directions to somewhere. The soil at this point was very red and very orange ....mineral rich of something. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...nca/file-6.jpg There are a couple of crazy trees with S bends http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...nca/file-8.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...nca/file-9.jpg There was few ruins along the way but to be honest without sounding like a bastid sometimes it is hard to tell the difference between ruins and someone house. These are inhabited residence, no power, no running water, they are as genuinely old school as you can get. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-17.jpg The crest of the valley f i n a l l y ...with ominous clouds to go http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-21.jpg Highlight of the day, an old man took a shine to Ellen and picked her some flowers which was duly thanked with a kiss ... he was not expecting that http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-38.jpg Total surprise from him with Ellens reaction and thanking him, he was delighted despite the look on his face (which changed after this photo) and I know she made his day http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-39.jpg This was our collectivo taxi that picked us up, there were 8 adults and 3 children in the car , just a small Toyota station wagon .. could easy squeeze another dozen in http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-42.jpg |
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Tarma To Concepcion
After a few days at Tarma checking out caves, ruins and Inca trails we set off south.
We were handed nothing short of a glorious day allowing us pretty good views all round, plan was Las Bolsas to stay however they wanted more than 2 x our nightly average, also it was early in the day so we decided to carry on. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ion/file-1.jpg Given the clear skies I had spotted an intriguing snow capped mountain poking up on the middle of nowhere, we thought we would head for this and check it out. Our maps showed a road to the top ... perfect, Mrs.Garmin agreed so that was that we were off. Cresting the top I missed our turnoff because we were attacked by four dogs, one managing to temporarily latch onto my pants until I thumped it with a stone from our cup, we also cracked Maya open and they couldn’t keep up, this is what we saw ... slightly cool!!. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ion/file-3.jpg We decided to carry on over and down the other side, the road was in excellent condition and we had it to ourselves other than one stinky truck doings its two stroke impression. Part of the road http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-12.jpg The road seem to go on and on, I was starting to wonder if we had done the right move, late in the afternoon we came across Lampa .... yeah. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-21.jpg There was one hostel being build, one that was really shite and the one we ended up at which was a complete rook for the money but she had us cornered, next accom was around 4 hours away. This was our room, note the window is a picture frame with the glass. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-23.jpg This was our toilet http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-22.jpg There was no hot water .. definitely no Wifi. They do have a cool tow square tho with a big hat http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-29.jpg We have mentioned the barking dogs thing prior, it is worse here in Peru than anywhere else and this night was no exception keeping both of us awake for hours (normally Ellen sleeps through a bomb blast). I went to find the source, knocking on the door with no answer the dog was going ape, so I knocked louder and heard someone but they would not come to the door so I thumped it harder and they yelled out something which I could not understand and the dog stopped....finally.:clap In the morning they were not happy with me knocking on their door, the hostel owners were complaining about the dog too but didn’t want to say anything so they left it too me :huh. The people then said it was not their dog (trying to get out of it) and they wanted and apology, both of us with our eyeballs around our knees they got quite the opposite.:evil They then conceded acknowledging the dog barking and still wanted an apology ...WTF.... they got even more than they bargained for at that point. Then leaving town four other dogs again racing out chasing us down the street with the owners just standing their looking ... no comprehension of civil minds there. :eek1 Talking with a local the previous night he said the road to Comas was no problem so we carried on and ha a great ride, getting narrow and boggy in places no vehicles had been through for quite some time so it was interesting, coupled with an assortment yet again of dogs wanting a piece of us....something in the water of this valley me thinks.:rofl http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-44.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-39.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-63.jpg More awful views http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-42.jpg And some fun bridges http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-61.jpg Starting the decent http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-51.jpg Comas appeared at around lunchtime, it was a welcome sight of seemingly normal people, lunch for the day was Coy (Guinea Pig) and it was very nicely cooked. Maya again bought the place to a standstill with a crowd of about 15 or so very interested in the bike and us, many questions and big smiles .... almost back to Colombia. The start of the gathering http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-54.jpg Waving goodbye to our new found friends in Comas we hit the tar (what a treat) back to civilization and ended up in Concepcion so canned the day there getting a hostel with hot water, wifi and nice parking for Maya. The main road back http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-56.jpg |
Kiwi's on the loose ....
Hi Andy & Ellen. Was looking for info on the suzuki DR :oops2: got high jacked, abducted, linked etc etc onto you ride blog :ninja: Fantastic, thanks for sharing. Have to compliment Ellen though, that was no mean feat, riding a DR & getting as far as Mexico well done or Gud an ya gal :thumbup1:... yep even started to speak the lingo. You paint a super positive picture of south America. Pan Am highway is on my list but pushed way back, am now thinking of doing it earlier though. Was planning an overland trip to Ozz but am now half thinking of making a circle out of it Pan Am & back via Ozz Asia stans etc etc. Gotta have a look at the budget :unsure: Glad the KTM, (started out as Kiwi Trauma Machine) is working out oke & has turned into Kiwi Tour Machine :mchappy: They are nice bikes. Go for it, keep the rubber side down ... Vince
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Sorry abut the abduction :clap: ... and any info we can help on the DR sing out, I still have one in NZ Yes Ellen rode 32000 km before the big unexplained off, now life is on one moto so we still continue. South America for us so far has been outstanding and we love it (except Peruvian drivers), as far as budget goes let us know what level of accom etc you like and we can give you up to minute info on what to budget, we have info for all the countries we have been. And yes Maya, a few trials at first with a dishonest seller but we have her ironed out now and she is treating us well. :scooter: Cheers Andi |
Concepcion To Cerro Azul
Sky to sand ... top of the world to sea level, a 4740 meter drop in a couple of hours.... so feeling the cold, been hailed and snowed on it was “half time change sides” and coastal we go.:clap
I just felt like getting some sunburn and seeing if our camera was still playing up ... luckily it was. :evil ... but then the focus played up :cry Heading through National Park Paisa Jistica we expected gravel of varying conditions ..... however no, totally tar and great condition, this was actually a bonus for us after bashing around on lumpy gravel so I took the advantage to have a restful ride and a wee snooze on the way... don’t tell Ellen. :wink: http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...zul/file-6.jpg Monster rock gardens http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...zul/file-7.jpg Awful valleys to look at :lol3 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ul/file-11.jpg More pressure induced rock formations http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ul/file-35.jpg Tomas, if we had known about it we would have left Concepcion later and stayed in Tomas, what a stunning wee town and very un-Peruvian being very clean. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ul/file-18.jpg As it was only mid morning we carried on with a healthy serving of canyons and rock gullies much to our surprise, we also thought we were on the wrong road as google maps show it as road 22 and Mrs.Garmin shows it as road 24 ... not sure who is wrong but we made it anyway. Just after Tomas the wow was given to us again with a stunning lime rock canyon http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ul/file-24.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ul/file-30.jpg As you can see it is skinny http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ul/file-32.jpg Further down the valley the rock changes colour in the canyons http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ul/file-38.jpg Our day was uneventful and pleasant until on a right hand blind corner we hit a moto head on, now we were hard to the right hand side like we always are on blind corner, the other moto was totally in our lane and totally on our side as well. Not sure what he was thinking, if we were a typical Peruvian bus or truck that flies around corners without care they would have been dead. No real damage to speak of other than the new gouges cover the old scratches, see were we are positioned, I had actually swung LEFT to avoid him but this was not entirely successful other than avoiding a harder impact. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ul/file-41.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ul/file-42.jpg He was very keen to pick up and get away, I think he thought he was in a pile of shit so wanted to get outa there asap.:rofl Picking up Maya then his bike it was clear damage was minimal and no-one was hurt so all in all a successful crash if there is such an animal :clap Getting down in elevation the whole moonscape changes from lush mountain to arid desert http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ul/file-46.jpg Making it out to the coast almost intact we headed north to Cerro Azul to the beach, nice place but spendie compared to the rest of Peru. Sunsets are something we have had a shortfall of and we have been missing, with our timing right mum nature chucked us a beauty to watch for the evening, total change from the alps and a great contrast for us. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ul/file-52.jpg Rock bluffs with surfers http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ul/file-53.jpg The sea about to put the sun out http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ul/file-54.jpg The End |
Glad you came out unharmed! very nice canyon!
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And yeap beautiful Canyon. :thumbup1: |
Peruvian bikers are around the bend ....
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Lago Lazo Huntay
....per Pitbull :rofl
Let's excuse me baby Go, yeah you baby Back, ooh you groovy baby In, let's make a movie baby Time, excuse me baby Let's, yeah you baby Go, ooh you groovy baby Back in, let's make a movie baby Time Ok, this is a bit outa sequence cos someone who looks like me forgot to post it....how buggered if know .. .senior moment .... again :D Sooooo nestled deep in the Area de Conservacion Regional Huaytapallana there is a lake called Lazo Huntay, to say it was beautiful is an understatement. As we got closer the weather caved in soaking us on the way up the valley, luckily it stopped raining ...then it started hailing ... good thing we are used to that, it is rainy season here afterall :evil. Just out of the storm behind http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...untay/file.jpg After some 12 km of gravel road turning more off-road we made it to the lake, mum nature cut us a break in the weather allowing us time to take some pics and take in the full glory or the glaciers looking down on us. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...tay/file-2.jpg Looking from the underworld of the mighty Mayan http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...tay/file-8.jpg Unfortunately the pics don’t do this place justice, coupled with the awkward light being produced by the snowing and hailing against the mountain our poor old camera struggled. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...tay/file-9.jpg The lake is a beautiful light milky blue similar to that of Lake Pukaki and Tekapo in New Zealand, it was cold enough too to mimic New Zealand. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ay/file-11.jpg We had a window of 20 minutes to half an hour then that was it the weather really settled in dropping the temperature very fast and turning the place progressively white. My peak got icicles and grew some stalactites with the cold so we were getting keener to drop our elevation which was 4780 meters. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ay/file-15.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ay/file-19.jpg All in all a fun morning out, arriving back in Concepcion it was sunny and warm, all the snow settling on us and Maya a distance memory already, what a difference 1580 vertical meters makes. Concepcions main stay http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-65.jpg The town from the top http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...on/file-67.jpg |
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Yeah got away with the bendy bit for sure, too close for comfort and my undies too :nono: :clap: Yes we sound our horn too but I don't think it makes much difference at all for the speed these guys go blindingly around the corners. DR is a good horse, we just got two baddies, my one at home is solid after much torture but there are still plenty or other options too. Me on mine in NZ on a track, motard setup http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...TM/file-94.jpg All bikes mentions above are great bikes, your 800XC or F800 were our choices behind the SE, I love the F800 but for that money I would want adjustable suspenders etc, F800 very fuel efficient. Guzzi Norge is a nice machine, too pretty for clobbering around back roads tho, great touring bike. Will try and keep the rubber side down, too late to say shiny side up :rofl: Cheers Andi |
Great posts as usual guys. Glad all was ok with the 'off'.
I just crated my bike for LA flight tomorrow and me on Thursday. The adventure begins!! Heading into Mexico from Texas and visiting Copper Canyon. Do you have a list of must-sees in Mexico? Cheers PN |
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It died after Oaxaca, from there we went out to Palenque, and around the peninsula etc and into Belize. https://spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php...151ccbf3ef07fb Will have a flash back through our pics but the mountains were great, Mexico in general is very cool and very enjoyable and still remains some of the best food we have had too. Copper Canyon etc is great, there really is so much to do there. Don't listen to anyone about danger, the place is safe as (being your own careful self with your stuff like usual) and the people are very friendly |
Racing dr kiwi ......
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Regarding the norge, she is pretty but will lift her skirts & get her little booties muddy if pushed & that does happen :rofl: She has been to the north kap the long way :freezing: & also down to m'hamid :arabia: (Morocco) by the sahara :palm: via the riff :gun_bandana: & Atlas mountains. Oke I will admit I had to stay off the back roads but it was fun :mchappy: I agree bout the f800, a lot of money & I think a lot of it is just for the badge. Anyways am scouring the hubb, reading reports so will make a choice. The DR I liked cos it was simple, no electronics & a good old work horse. You sometimes use two walking sticks, are they the foldy or telescopic type, if so do they support you on downhill climbs oke. I use a walking stick sometimes in certain conditions :blush: Andy Ellen thanks for the reports & wiliness to share info, stay safe have fun & keep the rubber side down ...... mmmnnnn keeping the shiny side up could of course refer to ones haircut ....... :rofl: Thanks Vince |
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So you have pretty well been around the block too and no doubt see amazing stuff, stick with the idea of simplicity as it is better long run in my opinion. My sticks are telescoping type chinese shitters but they are ok, downhill is it for me with one badly damaged knee and one partly damaged knee, had surgery on the bad one but it is still second-hand at best and downhill walking just kills it so yeap they are a must for me. Wonna get some much longer ones that can double as Tarp poles ... gotta figure that one out :thumbup1: Definitely shiny side up and getting shinier here after the Peruvian Drivers :clap: Cheers Andi |
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Cerro Azul To Paracas And The National Park
Sand ... but friendly ...well mostly:clap
Down the Pan Am .... not a lot of fun and certainly nothing worth writing home about ... until Paracas Paracas is a cool settlement on the beach ....lotsa white faces there.. gringos !!, the place was spendie for what it was nonetheless it was nice. It’s gem the Reserva National De Paracas which is only 5 minutes from town, this opens up into an unusual place laden with sand dunes and cliffs and colours beyond belief. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...cas/file-7.jpg So we have seen some pretty cool stuff thus far in Peru and for me this was chart topping stuff, although we have stunning scenery like in Huascaran National Park we do not have stuff like this in New Zealand ... or at least not where we live. The atmosphere is very lite here too :rofl http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...as/file-10.jpg While in Cerro Azul we met some french overlanders in a cool truck and we met them again in Paracas after chatting with them about the park. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...racas/file.jpg In the park there are several main drags to go down then you can branch off from there to the various coves, hills, cliffs, sea, sand and spectacular vistas http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...as/file-12.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...as/file-45.jpg Now we struck it right with the weather knowing that others had hit fog taking away the breathtaking views, we can now show what is there. We also spent the evening out and caught the sunset :clap http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...as/file-27.jpg This stuff was soft tho :eek1 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...as/file-32.jpg A few pics and not much more writing on this report but you can see why. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...as/file-47.jpg |
Paracas - The Town
Not all cool things were in the desert, while in Paracas having lunch a 1200 GS rumbled into town, being nosy I had to have a look and duly met Nick and Kanchan an Indian born couple who live in Texas been travelling the world for three years.
http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...cas/file-5.jpg Needless to say we had lots to chat about, very cool couple indeed. The beach was also a lure water the water fairly cool even by Ellens standards, there was some nice boats parked in the bay. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...cas/file-7.jpg There was a cool Russian truck too with Argentinian plates, we didn't get to find the owners tho, would have interesting talking with them. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...cas/file-9.jpg Surprisingly there was a bit of pussy at our hostel ..... :lol3 and some kitten that provided a lt of entertainment hooning around in reception. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...as/file-10.jpg Nice place to hang out for a few days, pretty laid back and friendly.:clap |
G'day Andi and Ellen ,love the shot of the lamas,such wonderful country you are currently riding through.Photography up to your usual standard.So pleased the off was not a bad one.Did you give some thought to giving old mate a think lip ?
So glad you are helping Paul ,very nice bloke,i wish him well on his travels.Any hoo until next time YDF Noel.:D |
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Sold that bloody house yet bro? Yeap the off was lucky with no real damage to people or bikes, to be honest I wasn't really angry at him and even more so when we all picked up, dusted off, no real damage and everyone able to ride away there was an airy calm. Yes few chats with Paul, help others any way we can ...all good, knowin he is a very nice bloke that is three of us I know of now :smartass:. YDP Andi |
Paracas To Areaquipa ... Going Coastal
Muchas arenas (lots of sand)
Sand ....hmmmm The coast, main drag, Pan Am ... sand ... wind .....wind .... wind.... at least it was sunny. We struck some horrific head/side winds which saw us riding 45 degrees on the straight, to say it was hard work was an understatement, good training for Patagonia I guess. :lol3 See the horizontal branches :huh http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ipa/file-1.jpg Parts of the coastline were fantastic and other parts were Peru's dumping ground laden with rubbish, at one point we were hit by flying plastic bags and stuff :eek1 Nazca lines, we had good hopes with this and arrived at the viewing stand, they were ok but to be fair I thought it was a lot more than what it was, we believe google images will give you a far better impression of what is there, you can take a plane ride too but google images are cheaper, it was still good to see. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ipa/file-3.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ipa/file-6.jpg Arriving in Nazca the township we were not really taken by it and decided to carry on to the coast in search of another Paracas, San Juan De Marcona on the map looked ok so off we set. The wind got stronger and the sand storm got worse, so heavy was the cross wind we were down to third gear and battling to stay on the road, adding to that the windswept marbles blasting us and flying around inside our helmets .... whose dumb idea was it to come here!! http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-12.jpg Finally getting to San Juan De Marcona there was a Miss beach contest on the next day so EVERYTHING was booked out completely, also the place didn’t give us “the feeling” onwards we go. This was part of a subdivision, not sure if been used or ready to be used? http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-15.jpg We took a shortcut rather than going all the way back, this proved a little interesting, wind swept sand covered the road in places and was up to 300 mm deep and softer than a rotten mango. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-17.jpg At one point we tried to avoid the rotten mango and dropped halfway to China, this required removal of the water bottles and top case to lighten the stranded whale, with me operating the throttle and pushing the bars and Ellen pushing the back we finally got Maya back on solid ground. Yeah.. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-20.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-23.jpg This time I was not waiting to see how soft it was so I feed it the message clearing the sandpit from under the tires ... gotta love 100 hp!!:clap http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-28.jpg The evening closing in saw us stop at a little place that was not a tourist trap. Heading away to Arequipa the next morning was a long haul by our standards, tanking up at the local gas station a treat because we got a free cup of coca cola. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-33.jpg The winds soon picked up tossing us around a lot and being constantly sandblasted including sand right up inside our helmets ... noice. This was pretty much the ride for the coastal section with only a few minor reprieves http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-41.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-42.jpg Then there are these small oasis's carefully tucked amidst towering sand dunes http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-40.jpg Turning inland was a gift and the wind started dropping quickly but the traffic started increasing quickly and with one bus coming up behind us then beside us trying to push us off the road ....nice guy. Arriving in Arequipa Ellen starting looking for a hostal, Maya and I waiting on the street side minding our own business when a local lady stopped and asked, Australia? .. there was nearly a fight. :D :evil I replied neighbours but no we are from New Zealand, discussion was had about the differing flags, next thing another lady rocks up and we are talking about hostals so they want to help us, Ellen turns up to find me talking to these two ladies and soon I was left on the street alone again while they went off and sorted it all out. After getting sorted we were invited for tea (dinner for you imperialists) and an awesome welcome evening was had in Arequipa .... we like this place even tho it is Perus second biggest city. There are some truly beautiful people in this world and Anna Maria is right up there with the best of them, very warm and welcoming :clap:clap:clap:clap http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...quipa/file.jpg |
Great Pics!
Truly great pics and tales Andi and Ellen!!
The Peruvian coastal desert is an amazing place Keep them coming and keep an eye out for the nutter Peruvian drivers !! Have great time Cheers Dom |
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Simplicity rules the roads ....
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DR 650 doesn't seem to be imported to Holland, Belgium or Germany. I want to buy locally, take my time set her up nicely etc etc & ship to anchorage. Reading reports of people & looking at what they say about their bikes, helps with the choice :thumbup1: KTM get good reviews though. How is the seat, comfortable on long stints, also what does Ellen say about the buddy??? I will be riding mostly solo but will be taking a passenger on certain stints bier Mmmmnnnnn so the Peruvian drivers are keeping your barber costs down ... jeeeeezzzz :rofl: Andy Ellen have fun stay safe & keep the rubber side down :D |
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Yeah it is pretty cool ... apart from their stunt drivers :rofl: |
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Sorry to here of yours too, never fun when trying to climb down a hill, looking at some longer sticks here in Cusco cos mine are a little short to use as tarp poles. All bikes have shortfalls and good bits, all are a compromise, to be fair our KTM has out-reliabled our DRs but we got two bad DRs, all new DRs come out with a countershaft retainer clip. Our seat is good, I have chopped and shaped it to my bum, comfy seat is more about shape than thickness, we also modded her back part of the seat which help too. Don't be afraid to cut open a seat and shape it to your bum cos it will make a huge difference. |
Arequipa .. Peru’s Second Largest City
And a nice city it was, we ended up staying 5 days, relaxing and taking the place in.
We are not normally city dwellers but Arequipa had a very welcoming feel including having some nice things like a propa coffee shop, it also has starbucks. :rofl An alleyway in town http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ipa/file-6.jpg Anna Maria invited us for a Sunday breakfast setting us up for a city tour walking and looking around, very nice indeed. While in town we were lucky enough to watch a festival parade http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ipa/file-9.jpg This girl was very into it, nice to see the youngs ones involved http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ipa/file-8.jpg While in Arequipa we had the pleasure of meeting Ben (Breechi) who rocked into town for a day while we were there, coffees all round, awesome. The plaza at night http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-13.jpg Some industrious thinking here http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pa/file-16.jpg Road 34 C was in the middle, see next report so the next day was a relaxing one again. Time to leave, Colca Canyon calling with Condors to see. |
Great report. Thanks for the great read. I know riding 2 up in off road conditions is a challenge but I was concerned that Ellen was going to get seriously injured. How has she adapted to riding double? I have a klr and after reading your report I have been looking at ktm's. If you get back to LA and need a place to stay pm me.
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Re your earlier comments
feeling confronted ,since i'm half Aussie and Half Kiwi ,should i be happy to know i'm wrong ?haha nice shots looks like the sand was a real challenge .Seams to be no shortage of nice looking ladies in peru.No bloody house not sold yet two more lookers today.see what the week brings.happy travels until next time,regards YDF Noel.
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Yeah a little more challenging two up for sure, we are pretty much sticky with gravel roads and back road with small amount of off road as two up with house and contents is more of a mission. Ellen has adapted easily, she has been a loyal passenger for years at home so no worries there, good to have someone to push to when the going get tough :thumbup1: Yeah Maya has outreliabled our DR 650s x 2 by mileage now, we are very very happy with the bike and very happy to just be wearing stuff out from mileage :thumbup1: Anything mechanical will take some effort when you torture it most days but the SE has been everything and more for us. Thanks for the offer for accom, as goes for New Zealand, you are welcome at our place. Cheers Andi |
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Nice ladies in Peru, yeah there are one or two I have been told :innocent:, 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 |
Arequipa Road 34 C
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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...4C/file-14.jpg Getting high http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...34C/file-2.jpg 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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...34C/file-6.jpg Our vantage point here was cool with a very smooth section of road for about 5 km, see the volcano having a spit http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...34C/file-7.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...4C/file-11.jpg 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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...4C/file-16.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...4C/file-19.jpg 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) http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...4C/file-20.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...4C/file-22.jpg 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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...4C/file-21.jpg 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 |
Arequipa To Chivay And Colca Canyon To Cusco
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.
http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...sco/file-1.jpg 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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...sco/file-3.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...Cusco/file.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hivay/file.jpg I liked this costume :rofl http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...vay/file-4.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...pinar/file.jpg Again there is plenty to look at with wild rock formations keeping us amused and interested http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ar/file-19.jpg Staying on the dryer stuff was also important cos the darker stuff was like ice http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ar/file-23.jpg In Espinar we spotted this, quite cool with portal axles and all including a big gun mount on the top. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ar/file-15.jpg And the spooky shot for the day, aliens .. well baby Alpacas anywya ... but they still looked spooky :evil http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ar/file-17.jpg Capping off our ride is the entry to the hostel down a bendy plank. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...sco/file-6.jpg |
Cusco - Machu Picchu
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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...bo/file-12.jpg Ellen on the bigs rocks one second before having the whistle blown and told off :rofl http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...bo/file-17.jpg Check out the intricately cut rock :clap http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...bo/file-21.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...bo/file-39.jpg 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: http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...bo/file-40.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...chu/file-4.jpg Maya turned 40000 :D http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...chu/file-3.jpg 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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-10.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...chu/file-7.jpg Packed our day packs and took a collectivo taxi to the dead bridge and walked the 2.5 hour stretch to Aquascaliente. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-14.jpg The welcome sight of Aguascaliente over the deafening raw of the river http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-19.jpg |
Machu Picchu - (Matethey Ripyou)
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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-20.jpg Rather than rush we decided to stay the second night at Aguascaliente so we could take in MP. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-26.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-27.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-28.jpg Had time to think about life for a while, no Horizons except my thinking Tee Shirt http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-31.jpg 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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-39.jpg This allowed us time to walk right around it and check out the Inca bridge etc, these guys were mad!!. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-43.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-44.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-54.jpg Two immature boys http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-62.jpg The discovery cave, from 1911. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-67.jpg The end, we are off http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-73.jpg 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. |
Aguascaliente To Cusco
Waking to a sweet day we set too, the river still playing bass guitar and 100 and something decibels
http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-78.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-80.jpg The rail bridge part way http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-81.jpg 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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-83.jpg This is kept open being a major tourist inlet for MP http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-84.jpg New Bailey bridge sections being put together http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-86.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-87.jpg Small creek crossing, maybe 300 - 400 mm deep http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-88.jpg Another worlds most dangerous road ...especially when greasy like this http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-89.jpg 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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...hu/file-94.jpg 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 |
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.:D
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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 |
Cusco To Lampa To Puno
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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...Cusco/file.jpg Beautiful church in the square http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...sco/file-2.jpg Some wild clouds in the distance teasing us with the look of rain http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...sco/file-4.jpg The famous Norton Rats pub http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...sco/file-6.jpg TMK proudly joining the other RTW tarvellers on the door http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...sco/file-8.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...co/file-17.jpg 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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...co/file-29.jpg 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.:rofl: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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...co/file-28.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...co/file-27.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...0Puno/file.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uno/file-1.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uno/file-2.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uno/file-7.jpg 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!!! http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...no/file-10.jpg 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 |
Puno
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, http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/.../Puno/file.jpg My favourite movie crew from Ice Age!:clap http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uno/file-1.jpg Waterfront Lake Titicaca http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uno/file-2.jpg Now a treat for my fello engineering types, check this out, post has been smashed off its based ... and left http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uno/file-5.jpg No problem in Peru though they seem to run structural wires ... nothing else is holding the post in place :huh:eek1:eek1:eek1:eek1 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...uno/file-3.jpg 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 |
Puno To Copacabana ... Tarseal Blast
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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...abana/file.jpg Paul on his XT660z Tenere http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ana/file-1.jpg 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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ana/file-5.jpg Cruising past probably a km of traffic we came across a barrier made from grass, stones and ....coke bottles, they let us through. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ana/file-6.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ana/file-7.jpg 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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ana/file-8.jpg 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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ana/file-9.jpg 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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...na/file-10.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...na/file-11.jpg Another blockade and us listening on, discussion amongst our crew was to approach it quietly and earn our way through nicely. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...na/file-12.jpg 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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...na/file-14.jpg 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 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...na/file-16.jpg 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. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...na/file-17.jpg 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 |
Great ride ,, great photos.
Stuff of dreams. RIP Jeff Powers,, |
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Thank you so much for your comments :thumbup1: Jeff Powers, a good man gone in our circles, long may the Norton Rats live :clap: |
G'day Andi and Ellen
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.:D:D |
:scooter: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. |
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I am a firm believer in eye for an eye, I must be getting soft in my old age :rolleyes2: Will make sure Ellen gets her say .... she normal write for the Chinese mags and I on this one but we can balance it more :clap: Sign David Tua :innocent: |
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Yeah still going, aiming to head home this time next yearish give or take ... unless we win lotto. Mr.whippie, should blended him to icecream, I was more annoyed that he went for Pau on her bike so he showed no respect for a chickie on a bike. Didn't wonna cause trouble, just wanted to get through which we did with a little self defense where no one died :thumbup1: Cheers Andi |
Copacabana
The fun begins...
Kicking around for a few days we had a brief taste of Bolivia, probably not the best start in a touristy town as the locals don't seem to like white faces. None the less we found a hostal with good parking and a nice coffee place to play gringo in. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...aca/file-6.jpg Ellen and (Pauls girlfriend) Pau at a cafe http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-20.jpg Paul and I chewing the fat http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-27.jpg Taking the boat ride we were supposed to have been taken to the northern tip of Isla De Sol so we could walk back the length of the island but halfway there the boat operators so no they were not going ???? WTF we paid for that, no was answer even though it was ticked on our ticket. The times they stated on the schedule for the day resembled nothing like what actually happens, the boat has two motors and they only ran one so they didn’t us too much fuel but then we took twice as long ???? WTF Also the engine was on about 1/4 throttle at most and people on the boat were saying WTF is it with these guys. Titicaca Tours, NOT recommended by any stretch. Also we were told our ticket was all inclusive ... until we landed on the island and they wanted $5 Bolivianos each to land, then on Isla De La Luna where they want $10 Bolivianos. While the day was not a write-off our intended hike and so on was completely changed by them for no apparent reason, the others on the boat full spanish speaking (Argies and Chileans) were also wondering why but no explanation was offered.....welcome to Bolivia!! Some touristy boats in the water http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-11.jpg Ellen taking a swim at 4000 meters http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-10.jpg While in Copacabana we meet some other overlanders with a weapon of a kickarse truck http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-40.jpg I hope Bolivia internal gets better, for me Bolivia has been the country of most interest however at this point .... well the people are certainly not making it with enthusiasm. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-16.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-17.jpg So far the Bolivian people don’t want to deal with you (us), can’t be bothered and will lie to your face but they want our money, they are all carrying long faces and always when you look at them they look back like you owe them something. Their first attempt at anything is to fleece you of money and they have no issue doing it, when questioning their price they get anti ... even when they know it is way over the top. Hmmm, this is gonna be fun. Now for the good bit, there is a cafe called km zero, now the guys who own it are moto heads and were very helpful, funny thing is he said Bolivians will only be friendly to you are carnival.....rest of the time nup .... interesting. Their family owned cafe http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-42.jpg Brothers GS which was the initial drawcard for us going in to check it out, same cafe above with good coffee http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-41.jpg This was bizarre too, blessing their vehicles at the church with beer, drinking the beer then driving off drunk ... not sure that is my gig :huh http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ca/file-45.jpg |
Copacabana To Tacna
After our few day taste of Bolivia we headed back into Peru with Tacna in sights in the hope of finding a new battery for Maya, while our battery is not dead yet we have had warnings with little cranking time meaning its reserve capacity is dying. :eek1
To avoid more road blocks and punch ups we took a shortcut across the desert which led us to and unexpected tarseal race track before turning into a real proper shingle back road, no sleep along the way for me today.:D The road was interesting, mum nature threw in a couple of twisters dancing on the desert and having a race which was kinda cool. Part way along there are some stunning coloured mountains with orange that looked straight out of the KTM factory, not sure what minerals the base is but the colours were very cool. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ile/file-7.jpg The elevation changes saw us up and down like a yoyo and we crested out at 4800 meters (15750 ft) in a very sandy part which required throttle and caution ..... it was as soft as an undercooked cake and some having a crust on it masking the soggy bit underneath. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ile/file-1.jpg The sandpit finally finished only to turn into a rock garden, nice change just lumpy but soon enough we were back onto a rutted sandpit ..... can’t win today... what happened to a good old fashioned shingle road!!:rofl http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ile/file-3.jpg The occasional clump of greenery .... looked out of place http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ile/file-6.jpg Back to a soggy sandpit bulldust style track http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...le/file-11.jpg Nearing the end of the sandpit/offroad section I was getting tired, Maya was obviously getting tired too and decided to lay down for a rest, she is a heavy tart with house and contents on board and a handful on this stuff. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...le/file-12.jpg A local taking a shine to us with a true blue Peruvian moto wave. :wave:wave http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...le/file-15.jpg Righting the stricken ship we made it to tarseal and headed for Tacna with the final part of the ride quite relaxing. Now to get our mission on track we checked out the autoparts and moto area of Tacna, every supplier, tienda and workshop said no go for Yuasa, only Koyo or Toyo which I have not had good luck with so we passed, the rest of the avo spent enjoying Tacna central which might have included ice-creams and coffees ... as ya do when in a big town. Ellen spotted this thinking it was funny ... in engrish it is anyway :evil http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...le/file-17.jpg Next stop, Chile, looking forward to that hearing the drivers are totally different and even respectful!!!:clap. |
Tacna To Arica To Putre
Two countries, one border ... WOH HOH new territory :clap
35 km to the border, easy run down, arriving at the border was very hot burning sun with the line up way outside the covered area, hats on no worries, locals shading themselves with their immigration paperwork. Wasn’t long and we were on our way through the process, border inspection this time including baggage scan and visual check of panniers, we had half a block of cheese with us, either throw it or eat it was the instruction, eat it won. :D We parked Maya further in the depths of the Chilean side and carried on with our TVIP, the border guards not saying anything more about our cheese so we took what was left, not sure why the drama cos it is the same clump of land.:huh We met some nice guys starting a tour that day, all of F800’s and GS1200LC, one guy said to his mates wow the real deal pointing at us and our bike (all covered in shit, dust, oil and mud) and on exiting the aduana/customs they saluted as we rode past, that was humbling for us but the reality is they were at the same border on bikes doing it, respect to them too.:clap:clap .... we too started clean and green nearly two years ago. Finally through with all paperwork in order and waves and salutes Wallace and Grommit ride off into the Chilean afternoon complete with cheese. :wink: :rofl Arica, need money, fuel and lunch, supermarket, perfect place to suss out new pricing for food etc. With getting lunch sorted we sat outside the supermarket in the shadows, we must have looked poor as a girl with Gatorade drink kindly gave us a bottle, welcome to Chile and a warm welcome it was too.:clap Putre, 3800 meters high, and in the middle of nowhere ...well somewhere. Our first taste of welcome to Chile accommodation prices .... bit of a shock:eek1:eek1, luckily we had rekitted with camping gear in Peru so our renewed approach to saving our budget and enjoying our outdoor experience starts right here and now, the local football field providing home for the night, epic sky TV and a frost to match with white fluff on Maya in the morning. Our site came complete with log for sitting on :clap ... don't need no poofy chairs :rofl, now we are distanctly colour coordinated with Maya and teh tent, blame Doite it is there colour :evil http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...dro/file-1.jpg |
Putre To Iquique
This was our treat to lure us in....huge volcanic pots laced in snow :clap
http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...dro/file-3.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...dro/file-7.jpg National parks creating interest we headed towards the Bolivian border turning off right at the lineup out into no mans land and it did not let us down, a huge expanse of nothing and no one. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...dro/file-4.jpg With our volcano luck continuing one was turning it on for us having a small spit http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...dro/file-9.jpg Even with tanking up with 5 liters for a buffer Maya uses more fuel at 4500 meters so I was being quiet on the throttle cruising along the gravel road and negotiating sandpits which had fall off written all over them. This was the norm for 100s km :eek1 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ro/file-10.jpg The Salar which turned into our turning point http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ro/file-11.jpg Getting past the Salar we decided to hook out and head coastal as it was looking like our gas would not see us through to the far end and out, being stuck at 4500 meters in no mans land with no petrol didn’t seem an attractive option. Mrs.Garmin came in handy at this point with indicative mileage until we start pushing and our road taking us through a monster rock garden about 40 km long including the Murphy sandpits hiding the Murphy rocks of which a few tried to steal our front wheel ... entertaining. :rofl http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ro/file-12.jpg The track started resembling a road again rather than a rocky sandpit :clap http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ro/file-13.jpg Soon enough we hit tarseal again which was nice and unexpected, all roads lead to the 5 which is the main drag, seeing the mileage we had already done we cruised down the main drag only to find the was no gas stations for about 250 km ... oh no. :eek1:eek1:eek1 As darkness decided to turn up we decided to pull off the main drag and went desert a few hundred meters to wild camp again. Our camp site (in the morning sun) http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ro/file-20.jpg Now sometimes you find we bonuses unexpectedly, this morning was one,we had talked about a small vestibule footprint using polythene ..... c h e c k i t out b r o :lol3 we cut a nice wee triangle out ... fits perfectly :evil http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ro/file-14.jpg Iquique, fuel, mission for the day .... not push Maya :D, nearest gas station going to be a squeeze to get there, fast (slow) forward to gas station with 460 km on the tank the orange light just on we had 70 km to go, filling up the rear tank and still running on the main we decide to see just how far we could go if needed, this netted a total of 560 km with a sniff to spare meaning Maya was running at 5.3 liters per 100 km including 250 km on gravel etc. Mission accomplished by the skin of our teeth, even the 950 can come through by buttoning off if needed ... thankfully. |
Iquique To San Pedro De Atacama
Coastal, looked interesting, road 1 ... not much down there other than dozens of beaches full of small settlements.
We managed to find a cool little place and had the cove to ourselves, again sky TV this time no frost ... things were looking up. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ro/file-18.jpg Sky TV closing in providing a cool backdrop for the thousands of birds and the dodgy Mayan hiding in the shadows :D http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ro/file-21.jpg Heading down to San Pedro was a long hot and not very inspiring straight tar ride but the rewards were nice arriving in San Pedro, we managed to bag a room for reasonable cost so after 3 nights bush camping it was nice to have a sit on toilet, hot shower and a pillow. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ro/file-22.jpg The last leg into San Pedro with cool formations http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ro/file-24.jpg |
San Pedro De Atacama To Salta
Between San Pedro and the border we found ourselves in some OMG moments being out in the middle of stunning starkness, one just has to stop and take it in.
http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...Salta/file.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...lta/file-1.jpg A jump for joy at the stunning setting we had be handed to enjoy.... just bloody awesome :clap:clap http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...lta/file-5.jpg Live action show of or surroundings <iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/gnB35ZjpjpQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> In Sana Pedro there was a number of adventure motorcycle travellers mainly on BMW F800s some we did not catch up with until the following day. Stopping at the famous Chilean sign TMK sticker proudly joined the many others who had passed this point, at this time we were inundated with Brazilian riders on KTMs and BMWs, the single biggest gathering of other adventure riders on our trip so far in 23 months. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-10.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-11.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-12.jpg Hitting the border with the boys we were behind two bus loads of gringos so it was like a cattleyard in the customs. Wasn’t long and we were formally in Argentina heading down toward greenery, destination Purmamarca. This greeted us along the way, a new car delivery truck that had gone AWOL :eek1 http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-13.jpg Not sure if the driver lived or died, check out the cab :huh http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-16.jpg Brazilian boyz passing us, we are going to catch up with them in Brazil, great guys!!!:clap http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-20.jpg Salar Grande, no Bolivian in size but spectacularly bright white http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-22.jpg Not even half an hour down the road from the previous truck crash .... this :huh http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-23.jpg Camping in a camping ground turned out to be a mistake with Argentinians cranking up the sounds from about midnight, they don’t consider anyone else at all on and the neighbouring dogs chiming in pretty much all night so sleep was sparse. :cry The saving grace, colours around this town here are nothing short of amazing and the name is 7 colours which is easy to see why. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-28.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-30.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-31.jpg http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-32.jpg Now in stark contrast within less than a day we rode down RN9 which is 4 meters wide and narrower at points, more like golf cart race track nestled in rain forest. http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ta/file-35.jpg With Salta in our sights we headed down to get some paperwork sorted by way of insurance etc, we checked out prices for front tire .... fark .... $250 USD for the same thing that is $50 USD in Peru.... I think ours will last a little longer. :clap |
Your photographs are stunning !!!
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We have two photos that have made the final 25 so if you think they are worthy please swing us a vote, our are numbers 11 & 12 http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...-winners-75142 The $100 cheque is in the mail :eek3: |
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