Motoventure Recap

I've now been back in the States for just over a week - still adjusting in some ways, but the motoventure is also rapidly fading from visceral experience into warm memory. With most of the media from the trip and the fallout all sorted, I figured it was a good time to end with a final recap: - [Rob & Will from Valsalva Victory](http://valsalvavictory.wordpress.com/) made it! They were the first team to actually drive a mototaxi all the way from Huancayo to Asuncion. Of everyone on the Junket, I spent by far the most time with them, from carrying their extra weight on mountainous terrain to the hectic side by side drive down towards Abancay in the pitch black because their lights randomly cut out... Definitely stoked that they pulled it off! - [Danny Smith from 633 Squadron](index.php?mode=teamwebsites&name=633-squadron&page=blog) also made it, along with some others. What makes Danny special is that he's the craziest most accident prone loony in the entire Junket (while also being a stand up guy and great to hang out with). His mate had to leave partway through and he decided to go on alone through some of the most insane problems including multiple full crashes, lost paperwork, and almost crossing the border into Bolivia dressed as a giant bunny. All in all very exciting - I'm not sure if I'm glad to know that the trip is absolutely doable in two weeks without paperwork problems, or if it just pisses me off because the paperwork screwed so many people. Maybe a bit of both... I really hope The Adventurists learn from this - they're running a proper business now, they can't leave things like this to chance next time. Multimedia: - I've uploaded a few hundred full resolution original pictures to flickr. Anyone can feel free to use these, just follow the right licensing (nutshell, use it wherever you want but give me credit - and I'd like it if you dropped me a note and let me know!). [Entire collection is available here.](http://www.flickr.com/photos/pete_waterman/collections/72157622517898875/) - These pictures are also available on Facebook for tagging/etc., but you'll have to find me first - when you're logged into Facebook, just hit my URL: [http://facebook.com/petewaterman](http://facebook.com/petewaterman) - I'm working on a recap video which will probably come in around 15min and will hopefully include some cool voiceovers and GPS location animation. Until then, I put together a 2.5 minute teaser trailer with a sequence of clips to highlight some of the amazing stuff we did. [Please watch and share (feel free to link anywhere)!](

Day 23: Random Location to Uyuni

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[](http://lh3.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8M3JKvBBI/AAAAAAAAA2k/QoEddH1dzDk/s1600-h/P10507803.jpg) (written 11/12 @ 7:30pm)  I cried today for the first time in over thirteen years.  Literally wept.  When I arrived at the salt flats and started blasting away towards the horizon on my little jaumoto all the emotions and stresses and joys of the past few months crashed in on me while I was completely overwhelmed at the unreal beauty and intensity of the Salar de Uyuni.  Unhappiness with my job, my friend with cancer, the insanity of the motoventure, the last few days of wondering if I could make it, and so many other things…  there I was driving jaumoto 70kmh at 8000RPM in 5th just bawling my eyes out.

 

It was so intense, but then today was an epic day.  From intense lows to massive highs and back to intense lows, I can't imagine I'll experience anything like this again for quite a long time.

 

[](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8NEnOrwAI/AAAAAAAAA2s/ZwvPQmJoNoY/s1600-h/P10505843.jpg) It started waking up in a quarry for construction, after getting well lost in the dark the night before.  I watched the sunrise, then got my gear packed in the freezing cold, checked my coordinates against the map and set off.  Within 30min I finally seemed to be back on the right road, but the inconsistency of this road continued to burn.  For some stretches it would be flat, compact, and fast (though dirt) – yet it was constantly interrupted by "desvios" (detours) that took me through horrid terrain, and it was nearly impossible to follow at times.  At one point I got stuck in the sand on a farmer's tractor road and had a great time getting out and back to the real road…

 

[](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8NOytiqeI/AAAAAAAAA20/5SYYN9YlQIE/s1600-h/P10506777.jpg) Eventually I got to the town that signaled the turn towards Tahua – and they had a gas station!  This was good because I am constantly low on gas due to my leak (I basically keep it under 1/4 tank and refill from my gas can).  This time I just filled the tank and took off towards Tahua…  augh.  I went down this sandy side road for a bit then finally asked a local – he told me this would get me to Tahua and that it was better than the main road because the main road was bumpy.  I hate bumps, so off I went…

 

Through fields, through mud flats, through all sorts of craziness I wound about this mountain heading south.  A few times I got stuck in sand and had to slowly dig my way out, then suddenly I found myself embedded in a solid patch of six inch sand at least thirty yards long…   I wished I wasn't alone then, heh.  It took me a good hour to get out, slowly digging and pushing the moto about five feet at a time.  Eventually I had the bright idea of taking off all my gear, and with about a hundred pounds less I was able to get it the last third really fast. 

[](http://lh4.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8NXFO4PQI/AAAAAAAAA28/ub9fTkPYPrg/s1600-h/P10507393.jpg)

I immediately turned off onto another more solid looking side path, but this one ended up super bumpy – I actually almost rolled the jaumoto a couple times on this trail, thank goodness it has independent suspension in the rear.  As I continued to bounce down this road, I saw white off ahead and began to get very very excited…  a few minutes later I pulled onto a bumpy one lane gravel road that headed directly towards this white, and the salt plains unfolded before me.

 

[](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8NeL-h_JI/AAAAAAAAA3E/ZkJZtl4-ekM/s1600-h/P10507413.jpg) The road turned right, hugging the mountains, but the salt plains beckoned and I took off towards them, bumping my way offroad for a few meters until suddenly I was on salt!  It was so smooth and beautiful, I could see the crystals shining and watch them kicking up behind me.  I pointed the jaumoto towards this huge gap in the horizon ahead – with mountains to my left, right, and behind I knew I had to break free.  As I ripped along at full speed I became completely overwhelmed.

 

[](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8NmAUy3OI/AAAAAAAAA3M/pyCW9lUCtoo/s1600-h/P10506793.jpg)  I just sped along for at least half an hour towards the center of the plains, then it started to get a little more rough.  The salt was less smooth and noticeable cracks started to mar its surface, then it changed into weird hexagonal shaped plates of interlocking salt.  The jaumoto handled this fine and I continued to just buzz along for what felt like forever.

 

[](http://lh4.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8NtbOjCiI/AAAAAAAAA3U/BlacWD0EZ-M/s1600-h/P10507497.jpg) I stopped for lunch after awhile and pulled my my GPS coordinates – I thought I had been heading generally towards where the fish isle was, but it turned out I was headed more towards Uyuni.  Changed my angle a bit and ran across the most amazing thing…  this huge ten+ lane wide highway through the salt flats.  Not of concrete or anything so complex, just smooth salt smashed flat by thousands of cars and buses.  I followed this to fish isle, then headed back towards Uyuni.

 

[](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8Nxy2639I/AAAAAAAAA3c/r4034YHRxpg/s1600-h/P10507883.jpg) I was so high on emotion at this point that I started to get reckless.  I just drove around at full speed, spurning roads and trails as I had in the morning – but the flats here were rougher.  At about 1PM with a huge CRUUNK my rear chain snapped and went flying off.  I rapidly replaced it with my "heavy duty" spare that was awaiting this occasion, then immediately hared off again.  Around 30min later, my heavy duty chain came off after a huge series of bumps and rammed itself into the bolts on the sprocket – the same problem Rob and Will had.

 

[](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8N8g54f4I/AAAAAAAAA3k/G1jHlELU78I/s1600-h/P10507863.jpg) After a bunch of prying and banging I managed to get the heavy duty chain sorted, but it looked a bit bent.  I figured I'd try it out and carefully headed back towards where I knew there was a mashed-flat trail.  Only a few meters later it popped off again, wedged even worse.  I had to destroy the chain to get it off, though it was already fairly mangled.  Then I discovered that the other two spare chains I had (pillaged from the moto death yard) were too short!  I didn't have enough bits to lengthen them, so I finally took the master link from the heavy duty chain and used it to re-attach my original chain.

 

[](http://lh4.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8OG7ctYKI/AAAAAAAAA3s/E7M1WUeaVG4/s1600-h/P10507903.jpg) I then very very carefully moved off towards Uyuni, finding a trail and sticking to it.  The rebuilt original chain seemed to hold up well (though it desperately needs oil) and I was able to limp into town for the last 15km on this horrible horrible road.  I rolled into Uyuni and bounced around until I found what appeared to be the center and grabbed a hostal and some food.

 

[](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8ONpQoYPI/AAAAAAAAA30/K6zZorEarqo/s1600-h/P10507853.jpg) Now I need to figure out what to do next…  Head towards Potosi then back to La Paz?  I'm not sure if I can do that in two days anymore, I've heard horrible things about the road to Potosi…  ugh.   How to get out of here on time?  Losing that flex day really sucks, as I'd like to have someone check my chain and get some spare bits in case it breaks again…

 

Either way, today was awesome and I'm done now!  I'd leave the moto here if I could and just bus back to La Paz, I've had my fun.  Now I just want to go home!

Day 22: Oruro to Random Location

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[](http://lh4.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8LQtzSXTI/AAAAAAAAA14/TaABkXv-Clw/s1600-h/P10505873.jpg) (written 11/2 @ 5:45AM)  I just watched an amazing sunrise over a desert after sleeping under the most beautiful sky of stars I have ever seen.  I'm also typing this with gloves on so apologies for typos.

 

 

[](http://lh4.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8Lj9jNCuI/AAAAAAAAA2A/uSsXLxClXXc/s1600-h/P10505583.jpg) I think my bright idea of heading to Tagua then across the salt flats may have been a bit more ambitious than I thought.  The roads here have been insane – ever since Chalapatla I have been fighting sand, immense rocks, huge potholes, and generally very inhospitable terrain.  On top of that, parts of the road are under construction and are very confusing – especially since I decided to continue on at night.  Apparently my current coordinates are a good 10+km south of the main road right now according to my map, woops – guess it's a good thing I stopped when I did.

 

[](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8LxH8Jp3I/AAAAAAAAA2M/POCQ5ztjzcE/s1600-h/P10505353.jpg) On the other hand, what a day yesterday.  Rob & Will and I left Oruro fairly early, with me deciding I would wait to get my jaumoto fixed until the next smallish town because Oruro was just so huge.  We caravanned a few miles out of town then sadly separated ways – they decided to make a race for Asuncion while I was still destined for the salt flats.  Even though I've been on my own a lot over the last couple weeks, I always knew someone was behind me to catch up to me – no longer, as no one is taking the route I'm taking from here on.

 

[](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8L-1Tv_gI/AAAAAAAAA2U/FH4WLAZcvJM/s1600-h/P10505443.jpg) In Chapatla I found a mechanic who helped me out with my header – couldn't fix it the right way, so we literally wedged the header on with a welded bolt against the frame.  Awesome fix, and it has really held up over some super rough terrain.  We'll see how many days it lasts…

 

 

[](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8MIdepabI/AAAAAAAAA2c/w2UFEqKwrL0/s1600-h/P10505513.jpg) I can't really say a whole lot about last night as it's impossible to explain the experience.  I will say that I felt really good about it and aside from getting lost (woops) I am very happy with what I pulled off, but bummed I didn't get to see the sunrise over the salt flats.  Now I need to get in gear for a very long day of riding…  hope I have enough gas in my gas can to get me out of here!

* edit added 11/12 @ 7PM in Uyuni:  This day was pretty emotional and contained a lot of different experiences, from leaving Oruro, driving on nice roads, and saying goodbye to Rob & Will to getting stuck in sand, getting lost many times, driving on soul destroying roads, and thinking I might not make it after all.  Then I spent the night wrapped in a blanket in a construction quarry at about –10 degrees F, constantly waking up due to the cold and staring at the stars until I fell back asleep (I don't know why I didn't get out my sleeping bag or other gear).  It was very intense and this lackadaisical blog spot reflects that.

Day 21: Desaguardero to Oruro

(written 11/10 @ 10:30PM)  Talk about ups and downs!  Finally made it into Bolivia, but also finally had my first major mechanical issues today!

[](http://lh3.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8JIVc6q2I/AAAAAAAAA1I/oo2hmcw84nM/s1600-h/border5.jpg)

 [](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8JjSOcxeI/AAAAAAAAA1Q/eR-X-DdBVCc/s1600-h/P10504523.jpg)

In brief…  we lined up quite early outside the border, got our paperwork, and left Peru (it was not that quick or easy).  Coming into Bolivia we just waved at some guards after Rob told them we were coming, no drama at all.  We then promptly wailed down some highway towards La Paz for a few hours, simple as pie.

 

[](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8JrmbY4fI/AAAAAAAAA1Y/60VHJp74wpw/s1600-h/P10504723.jpg) Around 30km before La Paz, Rob decided to take us on this small back road bypass to "save time" (it may have saved time, to be fair).  I will summarize the following events thusly:  We spent about three hours driving on some of the worst, bumpiest, rockiest roads in the world, randomly asking for directions and eventually finding our way back to the beautiful pavement of Route 1.

 

[](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvqhuNmLLmI/AAAAAAAAA00/CMjb6tYfqHA/s1600-h/P10504892.jpg) [](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8J8UGF7SI/AAAAAAAAA1g/A-ap4HKvmzQ/s1600-h/P10504922.jpg)

[](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8KMsOULYI/AAAAAAAAA1o/fyY1OfKlvPo/s1600-h/P10505158.jpg)  At which point I noticed my gas tank was leaking heavily and that what I thought was a cracked header was a cracked header, head gasket completely gone, and exhaust hanging on my rear brake pedal.  Ugh.  Managed to get this bolted back together, but let's just say I had to crank my mp3 player for the rest of the trip due to the insanely loud open exhaust sound.

 

[](http://lh4.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Sv8KTo1eNxI/AAAAAAAAA1w/msSj955RDhk/s1600-h/P10505253.jpg) Then, hey, we made it to Oruro before it was too dark, drove around until we found a hotel (this town is HUGE!), then crashed!  I grabbed a burger from a street vendor then headed in to use this horrible internet…  I left jaumoto in a garage here with a dismembered water bottle under the gas leak so I will hopefully have gas to get to a mechanic tomorrow.

 

The plan tomorrow:  Wake up early, get breakfast, find a mechanic, get stuff fixed quick, then haul ass to Tehua.  Victory will be mine!

Day 20: Papework Delays are Old Hat

[](http://lh3.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvonQZrzWjI/AAAAAAAAAzk/YRUcDHVIiQg/s1600-h/P10503023.jpg)(written 11/9 @ 9:30PM)  Can't say that I'm shocked or surprised, but I'm definitely annoyed.  We are still stuck in Peru, yet officially all of us (ten teams worth of people here) are here illegally – since we've already left Peru and entered Bolivia as people then "snuck" back into Peru to take our motos across…  yet failed at that bit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvooEWfibhI/AAAAAAAAAzs/_1bMX18YGWI/s1600-h/P10503743.jpg) After paying an export company $100 per team back in Puno, we showed up at their office this morning at 7AM having been told they would have us through and into Bolivia inside of four hours after they opened at 8AM.  We did get everyone over to the weigh station outside the truck/shipping border within a couple hours and this bit went smoothly.  We then rolled back to the office around 10:30AM where they told us they would have the paperwork ready for everyone by 1PM.  Much drinking and mucking about ensued for a bit (responsibly of course).

 

 

 

[](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Svoox2Nj-9I/AAAAAAAAAz0/z9WHzoGETH0/s1600-h/P10503923.jpg) At 1PM the paperwork still wasn't ready, and Rob started asking around and we found out we needed to go to the aduano in Bolivia and fill out some forms there as well.  I'll spare you all the drama, but eventually we got to this guy Luis who had spent two years in DC and understood computers and nailed us all up with the Bolivian paperwork inside of a couple hours and for free.  While the rest of the teams were getting this, I went to get my Bolivian visa…

 

[](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvopZaZiDWI/AAAAAAAAA0A/lZti7nldI6o/s1600-h/P10503873.jpg) What an experience.  I had read about it and knew a bit what to expect, so I came prepared with copies of my vaccinations (especially yellow fever), some passport photos, copy of my credit card, return flight, etc. as well as $140 in USD I pulled out in Puno.  Once I filled out the immigration paperwork (after checking out of Peru), this guy took me around to this little office and LOCKED ME IN with him to finish filling out the paperwork.  I pulled out my $140 USD when he asked for the $100 fee and a border cost of $35 as well, and he immediately started freaking out about a teeny 1/8" tear in one of the notes.

 

Mind you, these were brand new out of the ATM the day before…  so I told him so and basically ignored him while I finished out the forms.  Once they were all complete he told me he couldn't accept that $20 bill and that I needed to give him another.  Having heard this scam could happen I deliberately didn't bring any extra money and I told him this.  We argued for about 5min (at this point with me faking much worse spanish and pretending I didn't understand most of what he was complaining about) and I had to empty all my pockets, my wallet, and my sling to show I had no more cash on me. 

[](http://lh3.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Svop3thOTjI/AAAAAAAAA0I/LY-cOpiph24/s1600-h/P10503783.jpg)

Finally he grumpily said that he didn't have any change and couldn't pay me the $5 he owed me, for which I said no problem and told him he could keep it for himself for the headache caused by the tear in the bill.  He then got quite happy, shook my hand and thanked me, then finally unlocked the door and let me out to finish the paperwork.  I then got a nifty little stamp and a piece of paper in my passport and was told they needed a photocopy of this.  I said no problem, go for it… and he explained they don't have photocopiers on the Bolivian side of the border here!  I had to go back to Peru and pay for fotocopias (I had 50 cents left in soles) and bring them back to the Bolivians to get my paperwork…

 

This sorted, we went back to get our motos and drive them over but the paperwork kept getting delayed and delayed on the Peruvian side.  Finally at 7:30PM they show up with them, with the border closing in 30min and drop a great bomb on us…  as a group we needed to pay $230 USD to get out!  A huge ruckus followed where they actually kept us locked into this border compound because we insisted we had already each paid $100 for us and we eventually found out the export company hadn't included the actual export fees in their costs…  we were able to scrape together enough money between the teams to pay but by then the border was closed (8PM).

[](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Svoqh0Q0pSI/AAAAAAAAA0Q/cIpDvupVyOI/s1600-h/P10503883.jpg)

Now we're crashing here in Peru for hopefully one more night, then tomorrow morning we need to try to cross the border even though technically we've all crossed and our paperwork says the motos left Peru at 8:30PM today…  it may be ugly but I'm hoping it will balance out.

 

I need to be able to drive fast and smooth and long and have no problems to finish what I want now – I may need to skip Potosi to pull it off.  Ugh.

Day 19: Puno to Desaguardero

[](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/Svobgv9ddqI/AAAAAAAAAyg/7g4blIXEE_Q/s1600-h/P10501723.jpg) (written 11/9 @ 10AM)  Simple easy day yesterday – loaded up the jaumoto and headed towards Desaguardero, the border town between Peru and Bolivia.  Word was that at 8AM on Monday we could start getting stuff down to cross into Bolivia so we wanted to start early.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[](http://lh3.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvocUa6jX3I/AAAAAAAAAyo/m9XsBYwlRas/s1600-h/P10502023.jpg) The drive was quite uneventful, a simple 150km along a mostly paved road (though it was quite rough for most of it and I had to swerve a lot to avoid potholes).  About two hours out of town I caught up with Rob & Will who were still having problems with their moto and we basically hung out most of the rest of the way – often with me racing ahead to try to get cool photos.

 

 

 

 

 

[](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvokGDgG2uI/AAAAAAAAAzI/V1UmryjHzME/s1600-h/P10502296.jpg) The coolest thing of the day was spending almost all of it with Lake Titicaca next to us on the left – the scenery was amazing.  At one point we also saw lots of flamingos in a little lake, and overall the drive was quite populated with a constant string of affluent (compared to the others we've seen) villages on the side of the road.  Lots of cows, sheeps, and alpacas!

 

 

 

 

 

[](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvolJ-tzYmI/AAAAAAAAAzQ/c1UePS0kEKc/s1600-h/P10502193.jpg) We crashed at a pretty nice hostal in Desaguardero and I spent the afternoon mucking about with my moto to provide better waterproofing for my gear in back (just in case) and reduce some flapping.  I also watched Zombieland and really enjoyed it!

 

 

Today we've been mucking about with the paperwork in Desaguardero – everybody is weighed (the ten teams that are still in it and are here) but we're waiting for one guy to type out everyone's paperwork and he types slow.  So right now we're hoping to get out of Peru around 2PM and have no problems in Bolivia (yeah right) and get to La Paz with ease!

[](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvomLMqb_yI/AAAAAAAAAzY/wBRlwN4zK3o/s1600-h/P10503643.jpg)

One funny(ish) anecdote – I don't have a visa for Bolivia yet, so I asked yesterday if I could go into Bolivia, get the visa, and come back.  The Peruvian border guard said that should be fine, as did the Bolivian border guard.  When I talked to em/immigration at Peru though, the guy said I'd be crazy to try that – the Bolivians would probably hit me with all sorts of stuff to prevent me from leaving.  He recommended I wait, thus I did.

 

Hopefully things come together after this and I get to see the stuff I want and we don't have any more paperwork drama!

Day 18: Stranded and Moving On!

Last night I was all set to bail and take a bus to La Paz then fly to Asuncion to catch my original flight home this coming Monday.  I just really wasn't (and still am not) confident we'd even be able to make it into Bolivia or past checkpoints with the new "export" paperwork.  So I pulled up some flights and figured I would pull the trigger in the morning after finding out when some of the other people I know were leaving.

 

In the morning I'm sitting at my computer staring at a flight from La Paz to Asuncion on Monday morning to get me there just in time for my flight out for $150.  I pulled out my credit card and was about to buy it on-line when Mark asked if I wanted to grab some breakfast – so I went off for an empanada (okay, two).  When I returned, I went to finish my purchase and the flight was all sold out!  After hours of researching I realized there was just no way to get to Asuncion and catch my original flights reliably. 

 

So it looks like I'm stuck here.  I've changed my flights (hopefully, won't be able to confirm until Monday) to return on next Monday, the 16th.  Got my paperwork for the border sorted out and the plan is to head out tomorrow from Puno and spend the night in Desaguarderos, then get up first thing in the morning to cross into Bolivia.  If all goes well the rest of the trip should look like this:

 

Monday – To somewhere just past La Paz

Tuesday – To Tehua north of the Salar de Uyuni

Wednesday – Cross the Salar de Uyuni to Fish Isle then to Uyuni (many people think I'm insane for expecting to do this but it's going to ROCK!)

Thursday – Uyuni to Potosi

Friday – Potosi to La Paz

Saturday – Buffer for breakdowns/etc.

Sunday – Flight from La Paz to Asuncion to Sao Paulo to Houston to DC!

 

Here we go again…

Day 13: Chincheros to Abancay

(written 11/2 @ 11PM) I woke up last night to a knock on my door at the hotel in Chincheros in the wee hours – it was Lloyd from Peruvian Marching Pair asking if he could crash in my room.  Apparently they spotted Will in the window of the hostal but the hostal was closed up – Will let Lloyd and Mark in and they crashed with us.

 [](http://lh3.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvDgxJKGAxI/AAAAAAAAAuo/AtOMEhOulOM/s1600-h/P10407913.jpg)

We took off in the morning in a pack of three, though we spread out very rapidly.  We pushed hard from around 7AM in order to get to Andahuaylas as quickly as possible so that we could make for Abancay.  Along the way we stopped in a small town for some snacks and were amused by some very drunk townspeople trying to get us to drink with them since it was a major holiday (Day of the Dead). 

 [](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvDhgfPIhFI/AAAAAAAAAu0/dLHlCgmHud8/s1600-h/P10408213.jpg)

Just outside of Andahuaylas, Rob & Will again had some mechanical problems, with their chain popping off.  After conferring I went ahead into town to grab some lunch and chill out, expecting them to catch up 20-30min later.  Instead I met up with Lloyd and Mark in town and we had a nice lunch at a bread store.  The Brits ordered "pan con jamon" while I ordered "pan con carne."  The store keeper actually went next door to buy some ham to put on the bread, heh.  We diddled around for over an hour but Rob & Will were nowhere to be seen…

 

Knowing they'd eventually catch up in Abancay, we decided to push on.  While rolling through Andahuaylas we encountered a few motos from some other teams that were apparently checking into a hotel at 1PM and going to spend the day there because they were exhausted from the mountain roads…  two days in?  Weak sauce.

 [](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvDiNMl1x6I/AAAAAAAAAu8/uShLArtmCyM/s1600-h/P10408713.jpg)

Two hours out of Andahuaylas we reached the construction that we knew was taking place – but we had been told in town they wouldn't be working on a holiday!  Wrong.  Lloyd and Mark were a bit ahead of me and I pulled up to the police checkpoint around 3PM and wondered where they were.  After talking with the officer there I found out they had waved at him and blown right through the checkpoint in spite of him trying to flag them down!  I eventually spotted them across a canyon maybe 300 meters away, and after a yelled conversation they came back.

 [](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvDi2Qaza8I/AAAAAAAAAvI/FrWFVuVjusQ/s1600-h/P10408753.jpg)

So we sat there waiting in the rain until 5PM for the road to open.  One of the funny things here is that I tried to talk the officer into letting us sneak past, telling him we'd be careful/etc., but he just kept telling me to chill ("tranquilo") and enjoy the quiet.  So we chilled.  Around 4:30PM, low and behold Rob & Will showed up!  We pushed our motos together and hung out until the road opened.  The officer assured us we could make it to Abancay in 1.5-2 hours, which was a lot faster than I expected from my notes.

 

[](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvDi_Pdw0vI/AAAAAAAAAvQ/IITiPoGjkSs/s1600-h/P10408804.jpg) So we pushed on into the night on the crazy muddy dirt roads.  In some places here the road had been flattened so we could go quite smoothly, though it was still mud.  As we wandered around the mountain it got dark and still we were nowhere near Abancay.  Suddenly we crested a ridge and saw this beautiful city of lights laid out before us – it looked quite close, though a bit below us.  We were positive we would make it there before 8PM.

 

Little did we know…  Once again Rob & Will started having problems with their chain.  In the pitch black (it was a full moon but incredibly cloudy so little light got through) we sat on the ride of the road putting the chain on, driving a few hundred meters, having it pop off, and repeating.   Eventually Will tweaked the wheel a bit and straightened it out more and we started to roll carefully down the mountain. 

 

Okay.  This road descended about 2000 meters, looping back on itself again and again and AGAIN.  We must've looped back at least 100 times.  The entire time we're watching the city of lights and it's not getting closer at all.  We drove for ages and slowly we could tell we were going down towards it, but it was crazy.  After an hour or more of this, the chain on Rob & Will's moto finally snapped going down a bend.  Upon investigation we found out the master link had snapped (I didn't know what that was a week ago), and used one from their previously broken chain to repair it.  We then continued the ride and thankfully this completed without problem.

 [](http://lh3.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvDjgcF9ApI/AAAAAAAAAvY/pi7QdxB33DI/s1600-h/P10408223.jpg)

After what felt like ages, we finally descended into this canyon and found…  PAVEMENT!  Paved roads!  Amazing.  It felt completely different and a little surreal after three days of fighting the motos on rocky dirt roads…  and thus we hauled ass towards town, pegging our little motos into 8000+RPM of insane fury.  When we got into town it was quite busy and we were quite tired, so we basically drove straight into town, asked for directions to some hotels, then picked the first hostal that had a garage and parked our motos in there.  Rob was quite convinced this was a flop house for teenagers but it was clean and had luke warm water so we were happy!

 

Popped out for some dinner then crashed early.  Hoping to find the Lifan dealer today and get our stuff checked out then smash on over to Cusco!  It will be really nice to have paved roads, but we'll miss some of the challenge I think.

 

Knock on wood, so far I've not had any major problems.  Joking with Will & Rob I said this was because I kept helping them fix their stuff instead of leaving them on the side of the road, good karma.  If I took off on my own for long I'd probably start breaking things left and right…  we'll see!

Day 11: Huancayo to Ayacucho

(written 10/31 @ 11:20PM) 250km in 15+ hours on insane dirt roads through the Andes?  Yes, this is what I signed up for.

 [](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvDbcqfGxrI/AAAAAAAAAtE/MWga5qH1zZc/s1600-h/P10403433.jpg)

I woke up at 3:30AM in order to be packed and in the lobby at 4:30AM to get my paperwork then head immediately to the field.  Very long story short – I got my mototaxi loaded and in a train with Rob & Will from Valsalva Victory took off for the wilds.  The plan was to hit Ayacucho in a single day, which was ambitious but doable.

 [](http://lh4.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvDbiXN-gQI/AAAAAAAAAtM/DZGgGnc0_D4/s1600-h/P10404003.jpg)

The road out of Huancayo started out very nice and paved for an hour or two, and was a great opportunity to learn the mototaxi at speed on the road as well as during traffic.  We made it and did great.  Eventually, however, we hit the good stuff – the crazy dirt road to Huanta.

 

 [](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvDbqDH9vYI/AAAAAAAAAtY/9yCw5JTEOXM/s1600-h/P10405303.jpg)

You have to see the pictures or video to understand this road, and realize that I actually took pictures and video during the *safest* parts of it, since there were many situations I wouldn't even think to hold a camera and drive with one hand.  This road was basically this great big twisty dirt road all through the mountains for hours and hours, broken randomly by giant potholes, huge ditches, minor waterways, etc.  I'm not surprised some of the rookies (with regard to motorcycle control) have had problems – I believe the count is now at two ditched in the river.

 [](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvDbzldvBCI/AAAAAAAAAtg/uV7vYHsHlGs/s1600-h/P10404343.jpg)

We were having an amazing time, well in the lead of our group when the badness hit.  First, I popped a chain spinning my wheel uphill.  Thankfully this is fairly easy to fix and I did it all by myself quite rapidly – tip the mototaxi over, line up the chain, spin the wheel (just like a bike) and you're set.  A little tricky on a hill though…   I had to stand in the middle of the road holding the brake to keep it from rolling, [](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvDb4LkQ2QI/AAAAAAAAAto/wFhUmimzp1A/s1600-h/P10405263.jpg) then let go and run over to the side to grab a rock then run back to stop it before it rolled all the way down the hill – a bit chaotic.

 

A few hours after my chain popped off, Rob & Will's actually BROKE.  We whipped out the spare chain from the factory only to find that it was the wrong size.  We spent around 30min attempting to manufacture a new chain from the broken + "replacement" chain when another team rolled up (Lloyd and Mark) and it turned out they had a spare chain that was closer in size.  They let us have this and we ended up adding a couple links and getting on the road again.

 [](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvDb97P55gI/AAAAAAAAAtw/EGcz-3yztBc/s1600-h/P10406343.jpg)

Not long after, Rob & Will popped their front tire…  so we got to change that.  This was exciting, though very simple.  Luckily they had a spare innertube and decided to change it rather than patch.  While we were changing it a few more teams caught up and passed us and we really started to lose time.  On the plus side, some of the most amazing scenery was right where we stopped.

 

Eventually we got that back on and started heading towards Huanta again, only for darkness to fall (around 6).  We continued to ride this crazy dirt road in the dark with only our lights to keep us company, knowing we were within miles of Huanta…  when Will again popped a tire, this time their right rear.  We fixed that using my tube, a not-very-fun situation in the dark.  We then got back on and found we were right near Huanta!  Rather than crashing there at seven we decided to push on to Ayacucho which was supposedly "an hour" away.

 [](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvDcDLnQyUI/AAAAAAAAAt4/UvcrDlU2JcY/s1600-h/P10406323.jpg)

It was not.  It was well over two hours, but it was awesome riding through Huanta at full speed with Rob leaning out yelling "Ayacucho?!" and passerby pointing at various roads.  We made it through Huanta and onto another crazy dark dirt mountain road, weaving through canyons and slowly arriving in Ayacucho, where we realized we made a slight miscalculation…

 

We were riding into a major city that we didn't know on a Saturday night.  On Halloween.  The streets were absolutely packed and the traffic was insane.  Another hour or so and we finally found the main plaza and a hotel, though the hotel had no parking.  One of the guys assured us he knew a secure parking place, and we proceeded to drive him around while he banged on doors until someone finally let us park overnight in what was basically their driveway.

 [](http://lh4.ggpht.com/_rWRhetumRmg/SvDcRRqeiWI/AAAAAAAAAuA/lveaWPfH0Eg/s1600-h/P10405663.jpg)

We had some intensely good pizza at a restaurant next to the hotel to end the day, then crashed out late expecting to get up early.  What a day.

Bollocks

Due to the INCREDIBLY poor planning and naivety of the Adventurists about South American politics, we´re now being told it´s entirely possible we may not have our mototaxis until Tuesday.  This would be nine days beyond the original start.

 

A few teams took off but apparently two have already returned.  Again due to poor planning, one team had problems with their mototaxi not being built properly and effectively dying an hour outside of town, while another crashed a few blocks away from the launch because the brakes were not properly set up on the recently assembled bike.

 

This has turned into chaos and perhaps quite a bit more personal risk than originally intended as well as a massive inconvenience.  We´re looking at other options but at this point I expect to be out a couple grand more than expected as well as needing to take an additional two weeks off work and risk being asked to leave early...  or I could give up and lose the three to four grand I´ve already invested in this.

 

Quite unimpressed with the Adventurists.