Peru
 

Riding north from the border of Chile and Peru. Anyone around?

Northern Chile / Peru
 

Hi dkw1.
I'm in Antofagasta right now. A nice place to kill some time. Have my bike DR650 in Calama (nothing to do there) and waiting for my new clutch to arrive. Should be there next Monday or Tuesday. Hope to back on the road early next week. Then it's probably north towards Iquique, Arica, Arequipa, Puno, maybe La Paz for a bit and back to Puno and on to Cusco. All not cast in stone though. I may still go into Bolivia directly, Uyuni, Sucre, La Paz and then into Peru. I'm flexible on what route to take & wouldn't mind having a riding companion along. Riding alone get's a bit boring after a while and there is safety in numbers :-)
Let me know if you're interested in riding together for a while.
Cheers,
Andy

Arica Chile to Peru border crossing
 

Hey Andy,

I just rode from Calama to Tocopillo up the coast. Construction on the coast road but not bad. Nice coastal ride. Then Iquique to Arica. Hostel Arica Unite was nice. The border crossing was crowded and confusing on the Chilian side. If you are new to this crossing, here's my best explanation.

Pass the cars in line and park in the parking lot as best you can. It's full.

1. Go to the passenger line directly in front of the lot. This is where the car passengers get processed.
2. Around the right side and upstairs 2nd floor in the restaurant. You will pay $1 and fill out 2 forms.
3. Then ride the bike to the car inspection area to the right between the two buildings. Underneath the over pass where the resturant is. A quick look in your panniers.
4. He will tell you to park in the lot on the far side of the building.
5. Walk back to the front of the building where the small booths are processing cars and go to the south side of the most southern booth. This is a pedestrian line with the lane blocked. They will finish the process and you are done. O, with Chile. Then on to Peru. lol

I have crossed in and out of Chile at 5 locations and never saw this much bureaucracy. Anyway, we are going in the same direction but I will be about a week ahead. I'm not going to La Paz due to a rainy forecast and have been there. Stay in touch. Maybe Cusco. Cheers

Andy again.
 

Thanks for all the info David. Any info helping to get though the boarders quicker is appreciated. I took notes and will try to work it that way.
The broken clutch on my bike set me back over a week. Too bad, would have been nice to have some company for a bit. Hope to be done with it and able to move on early next week. I will check weather forecasts too before heading into La Paz. If it's decent I want to go though. Do Yungas road and maybe Chacaltaya, before returning to Peru.
What bike are you riding?
We'll be in touch. Maybe I'll see you down the road.
Cheers,
Andy

Hi Andy.

I also would like to do the Yungas. Was there in 2013 and too wet to ride. I'll be watching the weather again tomorrow if I see a dry spell I'll try and meet you. I'm on a gs1200, so pretty difficult in the mud. Good luck. Stay in touch.

David

Hey David.
Thanks for the advise on the border. I will let you know my progress, when I make it into Peru. Maybe we can still meet up somewhere.
Safe travels,
Andy

southern peru
 

Hi David.
Are you still in southern Peru?
I'll be heading to Arequipa tomorrow, for a few days. Then to Puno, if the weather is half decent there.
If you're in the area, let me know.

Peru
 

Andy, I'm in Cusco and planning on heading toward highway 3 tomorrow. However it's been raining steady in the afternoons. Even rode through snow and 39 degrees over one of the passes. So most likely will ride half days when possible until the weather breaks. It's pretty awsome here so no big hurry. I'm also talking to a shipper about a one day RORO from Catagena to Panama and waiting for scheduling details or other options. Stay in touch your not far behind.

David

Arequipa to Puno tomorrow
 

Hi David.
Thank you very much for the helpful advise re: the border crossing. Saved me at least 1/2 hour on the Chile side.
I'm in Arequipa, riding to Puno tomorrow. Meeting up with a rider from Bogota there. We may be going to Bolivia for a few days, but not sure yet. Afterwards we'll be going north, looking at some sights along the way. How far are you now?
Cheers

peru
 

Hey David.
How far did you get so far. I'm in La Paz. Planning to return to Puno Tuesday and Arequipa Wednesday. Might stay there for 2 nights. From there it's north along the coast, via Nasca towards Lima.
If your still in the neighborhood, let me know.
Cheers,
Andy

Hi Andy, I Decided it was time to move north to Ecuador. Currently in Chiclayo trying to recover from a stomach bug. Hope to cross into Ecuador in a few days. Stay in touch.

David

Hi David.
I fell behind some more.
Went to Puno & La Paz for a bit and came back to Arequipa. I'm chickening out a bit now, on going over the high passes with the weather being quite extreme these days. Been lucky a few times but also been hit with some really nasty weather a few times too. Still I felt I have to see Machu Pichu while I'm here. So I'll go there for a few days now. I'm leaving the bike in Arequipa and taking the bus. Will be back 2nd of March and riding up the coast then. Nazca, Lima and beyond. Expect to cross into Ecuador by mid March. Ecuador is not that big so I think about a week will do there. Then Colombia by end of March.
Still let's keep in touch. Maybe we'll still run into each other. Hope you get well.
Take care,
Andy

Hi David.
I'm in Huanchaco today. Will be heading to Lambayeque (near Chiclayo tomorrow. Mancora the next day. Planning to cross into Ecuador on March 12th. Will probably take about a week there before entering Colombia. How far up are you now. Have you found a way to cross the Darien yet?
Keep in touch.
Cheers,
Andy

Hi Andy,
I got miserably sick in northern Peru. Most towns were extremly dirty. Several days in hotel rooms and two hospital visits. Finally resulted in a hernia so I'm leaving tomorrow back home for surgery. O yea, for those that use MediJet, you have to be in the hospital and unable to walk to get much help from them. Even in a wheel chair to the plane and you're on your own. Anyway, no worries I'm looking forward to getting home and saving CA for another day. Good luck in Colombia. I was talking to Veronica with Lyn Cargo since the only viable option I could find was air freight from Bogota. Email her at veronicam@lyncargo.com

Best of luck.

Hi David.
Sorry to hear about your trouble. Hope you'll get better soon. Yes northern Peru is rather dirty. A shame really.
Thanks for the info about the air freight. I may be looking to fly (with bike) to Miami or Houston, from Bogota. I'm running a bit short on time too. Still want to go to Cartagena though. Heard it's really beautiful. Once there, it depends if I find any transportation to Panama or some company for the trip through CA. Not sure I want to do it by myself.
Where are you from, in the US?