This article marks the beginning of my 2nd road trip. After Lima – La Paz, 10 days and 2,500km, that one should be longer and harder. In La Paz, mechanical maintenance was done on the bike. I also bought a new tent, a sleeping mat, water bottle carriers, etc. All the Western part of Bolivia is at high altitude (between 3,500m and 4,000m), but there is a deep valley in which Coroico is (1500m). My first stop.
New stickers of Peru and Bolivia, to complete the collection:
To go from La Paz to Coroico, there is a pass at 4,700m. The highest I have been with the bike. The road is just beautiful.
And from there, it goes down, down and down into the Yungas Valley.
On of the attractions of this region is ‘la Ruta de la Muerte’, the ‘Death Road’. Famous because known as the ‘most dangerous’ road in the World. It was actually very dangerous because it was the only road to access the valley, and between 200 and 300 people were dying every year on this 60km section, due to traffic and narrowness. Up until 2006, when a new road opened. It is now mainly a tourist attraction (descent bike). It is beautiful, amazing to see the change of vegetation from 4,500m to 1,500m. At the end, it is a jungle.
Coroico is the village on the hill:
In Coroico, I was staying at La Celestina, a superb house for 5 dollars a night:
I did not know about it, but there was a massive party in Coroico when I got there. The anniversary of the 1,000 years of La Viergen de la Candelaria:
Street food, eaten using fingers:
I had never seen this. Hundreds, thousands of dancers and musicians. Playing, dancing and drinking. At 1am, I went to bed, too tired from the ride, and I wanted to do some hiking the day after…
… when I got up and walked back to the village, at 9am, there were still here! Playing the same music, dancing at the same place. And drinking. I could not find breakfast, I was forced to play trumpet and drink beers with them! Amazing…
I still managed to go hiking: Ichumachi mountain and waterfalls, on my own:
Very different vegetation from the mountaineering hike I did the week before!
Views are splendid, as always, but clouds would not let us see the high summits of the Andes.
At La Celestina, I met Tom, from Holland, who also ride on a bike. He came all the way from Alaska! His son was with him for a couple of weeks. The party in Coroico lasts for 4 days, so we just had to join in:
The day after, because of heavy rains, Tom and I decided to ride together back to La Paz. We had a few issues climbing up the wet ramp out of La Celestina.
This ride was not enjoyable. We were soaked in the valley and we had temperatures close to 0degree at the 4700m pass. My hands were frozen and it took me nearly 10 hours to recover feelings in my fingers.
This is the end of La Paz! I spent more than 3 weeks there, more than any other traveller I met. But I had time to visit, keep learning Spanish, get sick, go back to Peru for 3 days and climb a 6000m mountain. On the Road Again!
Here are a few random pictures to conclude this article:
takemethere 