Peruvian Adventure

Postscript

First… Claudio and I want to thank all of you reading this for your comments and for following along on our journey. We truly appreciated your interest and support.

Second, a few facts/figures from the trip you might find interesting…

Today was the ‘actual’ final day of our journey. We started the day in the non-descript town of Cusipata, which is on the main road 51 miles south of Cusco. Given the distance, and the fact that we would be traveling on a main highway, we expected to arrive in Cusco around noon. Little did we know, we wouldn’t end up arriving until 5:30 due to a general strike that had been called in the Cusco region the evening prior.

Day 25 (4/17)

Today was the effectively the final day or our ride. I say ‘effectively’, as officially, we have one more day of riding tomorrow, but it will simple be a 2.5-3 hour run on the main road north to Cusco. As last days go, this was one to remember. In many ways it was a culmination of our trip. We rode on dirt for the better part of the day, crested two 16,800+ foot passes over the course of the 200 KM (140 miles) and took in more spectacular vista’s in one day than in any 4-5 previous days combined.

Day 24 (4/17)

‘Rolled up Pancakes’… what better way to start the day. When I was growing up one of the featured breakfasts on Saturday mornings that my dad would prepare was ‘Rolled up Pancakes’. A stack of thin pancakes served with strawberry jam and powdered sugar and bacon on the side. At ‘Casa de Felix’ this morning we were served the very same meal absent the bacon and the powdered sugar, but with a delicious batch of fry bread. A great way to start a day that would end on another high note.

Day 23 (4/16)

Today was our day for lakes. Mid-day we took time to detour around a series of small lakes aptly named Laguna Lagunillas (literally, ‘lake little lakes’) and by the end of the day we’d found ourselves at an incredibly beautiful albergue (guest house) on the shore of a very big lake…Lake Titicaca.

Day 22 (4/15)

Not a whole lot to report from today. It was effectively a ‘transit’ day to the city of Arequipa and unfortunately the roads, while not quite as bad as those we ended on yesterday, continued for the better part of the 93 miles we covered. We had a brief 20 mile or so section of pavement, but otherwise were on broad dirt roads resplendent with potholes, washboard and today we added sections of sand, which was actually a relief. At least it is smooth, and for stretches we were actually seeking it out along the edges of the dirt roads to get some relief from the pounding.

Day 21 (4/14)

Today we reached our highest point on the trip at just over 17,000 feet. Unfortunately, I managed to fail to turn on the Relive app as we started this morning and so you’ll have to take my word for it. We reached this milestone at just after noon after yet another epic climb. Our morning started with a search for gas. We thought we ‘might’ have enough to get us to the next known gas stop, but were reluctant to take the risk.

Day 20 (4/13)

After a very relaxing day of rest in Cotahuasi, today marked the beginning of the last week of our journey. We departed Cotahuasi under clear blue skies just after 10:00 and immediately started climbing on a paved road towards the south rim of the canyon. Along the way we were struck with the extent to which every arable foot of ground had been terraced and planted.

Day 19 (4/10)

I don’t know where to start with my entry for yesterday. Perhaps best to start with the facts… 119 miles, 6:47 minutes of riding and a total of 16,503 feet of elevation change. But those numbers don’t really begin to convey the experience. It was a day that demanded our presence and it was a day in which both Claudio and I found ourselves truly humbled by the magnificence of the landscape and the fact that we find ourselves here together.

Day 18 (4/9)

Today was a great day of riding. We were up and out relatively early (around 8:30) under glorious blue skies, which bode well for the day ahead. We spent the first hour ‘lollygagging’, as my father was fond of saying, and only found ourselves 15km’s down the road. Partly we were enjoying the sun and partly the bucolic landscape. After concluding the first hour of the morning with a brief breakfast (hard boiled eggs and bread with cheese and honey), Claudio took the lead and we picked up the pace. Within 40 minutes we’d covered twice the distance of the first hour and at just over an hour, we found ourselves cresting a 13,600 foot pass. By this time the skies were not so clear, but other than a light sprinkle, no rain.