Peruvian Gifts

The border crossing from Ecuador to Peru on Saturday was a simple and speedy affair. It only took 10 minutes to get stamped out of Ecuador and 45 minutes to complete the formalities to enter Peru.

It is a bit of a backwater crossing as the picture shows. Immigration is in the portakabin. Peru was only marginally more modern.

Peru is know to have some interesting driving habits. My experience of this came quickly in a town called Tambo Grande, a dusty, dirty place. At a stop light the pick-up in front of me decides that he needs to reverse to change lanes, with no where to go I just hollered and hooted to get him to stop, which he did but not before riding up on the front wheel and wrecking the fender. The mounts were twisted like fusilli pasta, the fender busted. Fortunately, that was the limit of the damage, the bike handles as it should.

Once at the hostel for the night I concocted a web of zip ties to hold the rear part in place to avoid getting coated in road muck and to protect the radiator.

  

The day did not get better, shortly after leaving town I was confronted with a 40ft wide water crossing, the concrete crossing bed was coated with slimy algae, the water flowing briskly. Though approached gingerly the front wheel lost traction and that is never a positive, I inspected the slime more closely than I desired. A slow speed spill in water that did no damage to me and only a few (more) scrapes on El Burro.

I rode for another 100 miles and called it a day at Olmos; the hotel had a small pool, my second but more pleasant dunk of the day. Sunday could only get better. It did.

The ride to Chachapoyas up in the Andean hills was a delight. The sun shone, the road twisted up and down, a good surface and the views reminded me of why I decided to come. The frustrations of Saturday washed away. These are the Peruvian gifts I came for.

Though one must never get lost in the moment.

Onward.

T2

Nariz del Diablo

Two nights were spent in Alausi, the first day gave time to chill out, get the bike cleaned up and thoroughly check it over. However, the real purpose of going to Alausi was to take the Tren Ecuador ride on the Nariz del Diablo line; the Devil's Nose excursion. Scottish engineers planned and built the line that established a rail link across the Andes. Such is the topography that two switchbacks were needed to cope. Over 2,500 men died in the construction of the line and while it makes for a spectacular tourist attraction one has to doubt it was worth the human price. There was no information on whether the line was ever commercially successful; I have my doubts.

The turnaround point featured a museum depicting the way of life of the local peoples, some of whom put on traditional dancing; not my usual gig but quite well done.

The 8.00am excursion returned to Alausi at 10.30am, at which point I hopped on the bike and headed the 100 miles south to Cuenca. Cuenca proved to be an interesting and spotlessly clean town, or at least the old center was. The town hosts the usual collection of Spanish colonial buildings but is also modernizing with a new tram system planned to open next month. One of the trams moved through the center on a test run while I sat people watching.

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Today, Friday 15th, was a long day in the saddle with a 240 mile, 6+ hour ride through a partially sunny (and importantly for a change, dry) mountain-scape. The destination being Macara, a border town and the tee-up to cross into Peru tomorrow.

Passed a couple of milestones today; the wheels have rolled for over 3,000 miles since leaving home on Jan 5th and I was required to stop for the first time and show documentation at an Ecuadorian Army checkpoint about 25 miles north of the Peru border. Peru is a big producer of coca paste and it travels north to Colombia. Ecuador is not so keen on that. The stop was brief and very courteous and conducted entirely in Spanish. My linguistic skills must improving or they didn't understand a word I said and couldn't be bothered with a Gringo; I hope it was the former. The commander approved of the picture being taken.

Wifi internet connections from rural Peru can be fickle, so the frequency and content of posts may decline, which for some might be a blessing!

T2

Volcanic Activity

Ecuador is home to a number of volcanos, both active and dormant, along with the geological marks that volcanic activity leaves behind. Travel on Monday and Tuesday was organized to experience this aspect of the country.

Leaving Quito and heading south, Cotopaxi, perhaps the most famous of the active volcanos in Ecuador should appear to the east. It didn't. The morning ride was a mess of rain, fog and low cloud. Cotopaxi kept her secrets from me, even the base was obscured. Not the start I had hoped for.

Not totally discouraged I continued on to Lake Quilitoa, or Crater lake  as it is more commonly known to English speakers. The approach to the lake was not very encouraging, but on arrival the clouds lifted, a few breaks of blue appeared as did the lake in all its splendor.

The lake is about 3km wide and formed in the caldera of a volcano that last erupted in 1280. The water is green in color from the dissolved minerals. Selfies are not my usual gig, but this one was taken about half way down a very steep path to the lake shore and I thought worth posting. At about 12,000 ft the air is pretty thin, the motorcycle clothing heavy and hot and the lungs (or knees for that matter) had limited capacity to make the return; I went no further. Evidently a burro ride back to the top is $10. They could charge more, anyway, one burro on this trip is enough.

After a night in Pujili, a small, pleasant town, I made my way to Alausi with a detour through Chimborazo park to try and spot the highest peak in Ecuador (20,564ft) and the dormant volcano after which the park is named. The peak showed itself briefly from the north, and again looking east as the road curved around.

I topped out at 14,407ft, it is pretty lonely up there and is desert  as the pictures show. A couple of cars and groups of vicunas were the only company. The wind was pretty stiff and chilly.

  

A day off the bike today except to gas up and get it washed. Chain maintenance, electrical system function check,  check bolts are tight and so forth; all seems in order. Boots cleaned, some laundry and a wander around the village filled the day. A ride on el Tren Ecuador, Nariz del Diablo, the Devil's Nose line awaits on Thursday morning. Then onward to Cuenca, a hotbed of American expats stretching their retirement dollars.

It is starting to feel and look like the Andes.

Cheers T2

Ecuador . The Story So Far .

It is fair to say that crossing the border from Colombia into Ecuador created some anxiety. It proved needless, my experience did not replicate reports of hours spent navigating the bureaucracy of changing countries. Passage was complete within an hour, by 7.15am I was rolling towards Tulcan. Arriving at the border at 6am certainly helped, by 7am the refugees from Venezuela had started to appear in increasing numbers.

Tulcan is famous for the topiary in the cemetery, making it something of a tourist destination. As early as I was the place was deathly quiet.

The night was spent at Ibarra, at a hotel located on the volcanic lake, Yahuarcocha. The journey south continued the following day with a stop at Otavalo to witness the indigenous market for which the region is noted. Colorful people with colorful food available.

                           

About twenty miles south of Otavalo is the Equator, marked by a monument and sun dial. The sun dial reflects the importance of the location to the peoples that populated the area 500 years prior to the arrival of the Incas. It was not to be missed.

  

Navigating to the hotel on the outskirts of old town Quito went without a hitch, where I met a couple of Brits from Hereford. Well into their 70’s, they assembled a travel itinerary to spend a month in Ecuador; backpacking, hiking and moving around on public transport. Good for them!

The bike remained parked on Sunday, a 25 cent bus ride and old town Quito provided entertainment. Unlike cities back in the US, which empty out at the weekend, Quito old town was a bustle though not quite on the scale of Bogota.

It was quiet when I arrived at 9.30am and climbed the towers of the Basilica; by 10.30am the locals started to arrive in numbers, though the Presidential Guards were unfazed.

Quito is a city built in the Andes, the topography is on display in the video. The center is well preserved; Spanish colonial and attractive. The first sweep is looking south, the second to the north, where the towers mark the new town and business center of the city.

The Ecuadorians love their chocolate and the quality of cocoa produced is a matter of pride. Yumbos chocolate is a cooperative outlet for fine beans grown on small scale farms often owned by women. The Molinari chocolate shown is produced in limited quantities from beans sourced from a single estate, it is considered the ‘Grand Cru’ in the chocolate world. It was indeed “Chocolate Sabroso” – the title of the track used on the video. 

The journey continues tomorrow, the bike being newly badged.

T2.