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The Pampa in Argentina Two weeks of straight, flat roads from Buenos Aires until the Sierras of Cordoba was excellent training for us. We quickly formed our own routine, and the empty but charming municipal campsites and petrol stations became our second homes. After 2 days on the main road, we decided to continue on smaller secondary roads to escape the traffic. Along these roads, we found tranquil little towns where very little out-of-the-ordinary ever happened that we became local celebrities: with TV, radio, and newspaper interviews most days! |
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The Sierras of Cordoba At last some hills! In one day, we find ourselves in the middle of pre-Andes practice mountains at 1000 metres. With beautiful lakes and a pleasant road winding between peaks at upto 2000 metres. This region is especially popular with Argentinian tourists and holidaymakers but the school holidays are December/January. We were a little early in the year and found the campsites and resorts to be just as quiet as on the Pampa, but still just as well-equipped. We tried to imagine 30 or so families, each with their own bar-be-que on their own camping spot. Maybe we were lucky to be getting nice early nights. Knowing the Argentinians, the BBQs would go on until the early hours. |
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Arriving in the Andes After conquering the Sierras and dropping back down out of the hills, a 130km long salar was our next challenge. It tested our endurance to cycle it in one day, with the heat, the wind and of course, the desert. Next we took the road to Cafayate with a mountain pass "infiernillo" (little hell) at 3000 metres. After climbing for two days through semi-tropical forests and past refreshing waterfalls, we then found ourselves in the parched desert of the Valley of Calachaquies, where the best wine in Argentina is produced in the dry conditions. With wine, there are tourists and we meet our first cyclo-tourists: a German couple and Virginie and Seb from France. In Cafayate we also share the campsite with other travellers, including a German couple on motorbikes. The downhill to Salta is quite famous and definitely recommended on bicycle. The road takes you past stunning rock formations, quite a surreal landscape, including the "garganta del Diablo" (Devil's throat). On this road we meet Olivier, a cyclist who left from Ecuador five months ago and who gives us some great advice on the Paso Sico, our route for Chile. |
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Crossing Paso Sico 8th December, the festival of the Virgin in Salta: we are ready to face our trans-Andean adventure to Chile. We pull together all the research we have done, compiling information from cyclists, the internet, maps and guides and draw what we know of the route (see sketch). We change our road tyres for semi-slicks which are wider and better adapted to dirt track cycling. After 3 days of refuelling, next to the massive campsite swimming pool, we set off. Our crossing was epic but without problems. The altitude makes us euphoric, instead of sick even though we do feel the lack of oxygen in the steep hills of the mountain passes we cross at over 4500m. The Argentinians forecasted rain and snow affecting our journey (it was the raining season after all) but apart from an impressive 30 minute lightning and hail storm, our trip and the road we travel on are both pretty dry, the main obstacles being the sand and the corrugations caused by the wind. On the Chilean side, they congratulate us on chosing this season to cross, as the pass is under thick snow formuch of the rest of the year. Neighbours don't always know the other's business! |
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Christmas in Calama, Chile and New Year in Uyuni, Bolivia We arrive in Chile, more than happy with our trip across the border. Unfortunately, we are quickly disappointed by our destination, San Pedro de Atacama. It is a backpackers haven but we arrive dusty and dirty, feeling out of place amongst the Gringos that have just stepped off the plane. There are touts constantly trying to hassle you into one of the trendy bars and the place is extortionately expensive. To make matters even more tricky, we cannot get money out of the ATM machine with any of our selection of bank cards; so we couldn't spend money there even if we wanted to. We decide not to spend the festive season there after all and head for Calama, in the middle of the Atacama desert, just in time for Christmas and a relaxing few days. After thinking long and hard, we decide to take the train to Uyuni, in Bolivia. The reasons (or rather excuses) being: the 300km of desert roads don't look too inviting; the train on the other hand is unique; its our Christmas present and finally, Chile is not as charming as we hoped and so we're keen to get to Bolivia! We buy half the tickets sold and share the double wagon with a Brazilian guy and an American girl. The train takes 24 hours to get to its destination (we spend 8 hours at the border, waiting for the Bolivian locomotive) .... its just 4 degrees at night in the train and we open our eyes just in time to see the deserted countryside lit up by the moon rolling past: this train ride is really unique and we don't regret our little extravagence and cheating. We see two German cyclists while waiting at the border post, slightly embarrassed that our bike is tucked away in the train. Luckily, we quickly learn they are waiting for a bus to Chile! In Uyuni, our New Year's eve is relaxed with Tony et Linda from Suisse, and on New Year's Day we go on a little bike excursion to the famous salar , just for the photo since it is too water-logged to cycle on or camp. But we take the bike a little way onto the immense puddle of salt, reflecting the sky, the clouds and our shapes like a mirror. |
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The mountains of the Altiplano Still feeling a little naughty about taking the train, we decide to take a detour into the mountains in the direction of Potosi (the highest city in the world?). Very quickly the rocky track through the mountains makes us forget our "holiday on the train", and once again we are amongst the high altitude lagunas, mountain passes and hot springs with wild llamas, high plains and lots of "nothing." But we really love Bolivia, and all our adventures with the Bolivians are lively and full of smiles. We still ask ourselves how people can live in such a harsh environment though. The simplicity and a good sense of humour must be important. In Potosi, we visit the silver mines and humbly discover a labour even more physical than cycling all day in the Bolivian mountains. Then the rocky track becomes road ... but the mountains are still with us until our redescent onto the Altiplano, a vast plain at almost 3700m of altitude (which the salar of Uyuni is part of). The rainy season arrives and we alternate between buning sun and icy storms. In Oruro, we witness the marching bands practicisng in the streets for Carnival and the lively music stays with us right up to Puno in Peru for the big party. |
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La Paz and around La Paz The altiplano falls dramatically into a city. A motorway drops us into La Paz, the highest capital city in the world. While waiting for some bike parts to be sent from the UK, (tyres and chain rings), and as the famous Most Dangerous Road to Coroico is blocked by coca growers protesting, we decide to climb to Chacaltaya. It is the highest ski slope and resort in the world at 5400m high which we decide to sample on our backsides, sliding down on our camping sheet! The next day, we travel back down the mountain in an hour, a journey that took a whole day to climb, pushing the bike through a snow storm. Then we continue our mini tour to the ruins of Tiwanaku and a visit to the southern banks of Lake Titicaca. Back in La Paz, we meet John and Caroline, cyclists from New Zealand who help us out with some quality spare tyres. Our spare parts arrive the same day ... and whilst getting the tandem repaired, BB notices 3 cracks on the rear hub ... Panic! BB reassures Karen with a temporary solution and we soon learn that a new replacement gear hub is on the way to Cusco. |
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Lake Titicaca and the Carnival The wonderful view of the lake from the hills deserves a night wild camping, with "sea" view, before getting to Copacabana. In the small town we enjoy the Festival of the Virgin of the Candelaria and have a break from cycling whilstthe Bolivians drink and dance all night (that way they don't need a hotel room!). We visit the Island of the Sun, where the Incan beliefs were born, along with the sun, then we continue to Puno in Peru. We are a little apprehensive the first few days in Peru, as all the gringos we have met have had something stolen during their time here (rucksacks, passports, wallets, cameras etc...). But in Puno, we find ourselves amongst the marching bands once more for the biggest carnival in Peru. We visit the floating islands, a few hours of peace ... before leaving Puno and finding ourselves in the middle of the carnival procession on the way out! Lake Titicaca really touched us, between the tranquility and zen of the lake to the crazy festivities of the carnival. |
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Cusco and the Sacred Valley A pass at 4338m (could be our highest paved road?) and then we travel down, away from the Altiplano, and we swoop down into a green and fresh valley. Our lungs fill with oxygen and we love the richness of the countryside and the abundance of villages. Plus its downhill! We continue until Cusco, the Incan capital, where our new gear box is waiting for us at the pub "Norton Rat's Tavern," a biker's bar that we called for help in Copacabana. Whilst waiting for spokes, we decided to visit the Sacred Valley by bike since BB's DIY wheel seems to be holding well. We spend five days visiting the different ruins, the highlight a train ride to Aguas Calientes, and a visit to the infamous Machu Pichu. There is no road sowe leave the tandem in Ollantaytambo for two nights and join a group of friendly French travellers. We spend an entire day (from 6am to 8pm) wandering round the famous and very impressive ruins. Despite being cycnical at first, BB is fascinated by the tailored stones and Karen sheds a tear on the first view of the picture postcard ruins, after a tricky hike up on foot. |
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The "descente" to the Pacific coast Returning to Cusco, we find the spokes and BB builds the wheel with the new hub with a 3-cross pattern, against the advice of Rohloff and our bike shop in the Uk. BB finds an opportunity for R&D, what he does best, and proves eventually that it is a better solution: we don't want to change the hub every 3000km ... Back on the road with the new wheel, we descend ... 1900m ... then go back up ... 3950m ... then drop down ... 2200m ... then climb again ... 4200m ... It doesn't seem like we will ever arrive at the top of these hills. In a steep climb, having camped half way up, we get overtaken by a strange little moped: Rodrigo! He is as impressed that we remember his name as we are by his journey. In one month, he has caught us up from Buenos Aires, on his tiny yellow 50cc with just two small bags on the back! We meet up the evening to eat together before he continues at 300km each day in the same direction as us. Finally, after a last camping up at 4200m, amongst the llamas, we give our host family at the farm our warm clothes and our extra sleeping bag, ready for the hotter coastal climate. We start our descent to Nazca, dropping 3400m in just 80km, without pedalling for 2 heures! In Nazca, 600m above sea level, we find a hotel with a swimming pool as a refreshing treat ... And two days later, after a short detour to a desert oasis, again for a refreshing swim, we arrive at the Pacific Ocean! With no time to rest, we continue along the coast, although its not as captivating as the mountains ... Its another Peru, this one is sophisticated, expensive, business-like and doesn't impress us too much. Arriving in Lima, we decide to take a bus to Trujillo, to skip over some of this new scenery and to have more time in Ecuador. The north coast of Peru is more relaxed than the south where the rich Limenos go to chill out. In the north, we rediscover the simple life, fishing villages (Santa Rosa) and tranquil beaches (Punta Sal). |
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Ecuador We cross the border with a bad feeling after running into a group of tricksters, trying to con us that, among other things, the border is dangerous! But we do a gear check: waterbottles, camera, paniers, pump ... Everything is still there, and its a victory for K n B, the first travellers we know not to have anything pinched in Peru! After just a few miles, the dry, parched desert turns into equatorial forest and we find ourselves amongst plantations of bananas, waterfalls and beautiful butterflies. In Ecuador, people have no idea about distances ... on the first day, the last 5 kilometers become 25 and the second day its a police post of six officers who give us just as bad an estimation of the distance left to Santa Isabel. On this second day though, we have a steep climb as well as the extra miles and we arrive after dark at our destination. The climb continues, as does our sweating, until we get to a huge waterfall and spend the night in a stone cottage. In Cuenca, its Semana Santa, or holy week at Easter, the town is partying and we stop for two days to join in. Our last stage is Alausi. Since Karen read about riding on the roof of a train, it has been a kind of pilgrimage for us ... We don't plan for a pass at 3500m on the way there though and there are a few complaints about the icy rain. Still, we arrive on time in Alausi and the weather is fine and inspite of more rain during the night, drenching the track, the train arives through the little town. Karen has tears in her eyes! These days the train only runs for tourists and goes down into the valley via a series of devil's nose switchbacks, giving it its name. The speed of the train doesn't exactly take your breath away; we go far faster on the bike. But we feel the closing of another chapter in our journey ... However, the last two days on the tandem to reach Guayaquil and our flight to Panama are not just downhill either. We decide to take a quiet, secondary road, instead ofgoing back the way we came. Part road, part mud bath, we find ourselves in wet equatorial forest ... Our visibility is reduced, especially BB with his misty glasses and we are quickly drenched by the mist. Our slick tyres are not too well-adapted to this terrain and we have a couple of near misses in thick mud. We meet our best tarantula spider and luckily we don't have to camp with him as we reach the top of the mountain and drop down in one long day ... Infact we have a king's welcome at a luxury hacienda at the bottom of the misty hills On our last day, we cycle 100km of flat to Guayaquil ... Flat but very hot.But we are in high spirits and make the most of April Fool's Day to trick each other and enjoy our last cycling day. |
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