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Published: February 19th 2007
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Coroico
The World most dangerous road Flew out of Sucre with a far more reliable airline. Thus we only arrived 2 hours late back in La Paz for our final couple of days in Bolivia. We decided on a mountain bike ride down the world's most dangerous road. (the guys who named it as such have never been to a fire call with a couple of the guys on my shift driving). The death toll has been horrendous over the years but ONLY 3 tourists have been killed on bike rides in the last 10 years - I like those odds. The danger is diminished these days because a new 2 lane paved road has been built to handle motorised traffic, leaving only bikes and some foolhardy drivers to use the unpaved road. 65 klms, almost all downhill from 4700 mtrs to 1300mtrs. Don't worry, I hear you. Yeatesy, 65klms down means 65klms back up.
OY'! SUPPORT VEHICLE!
We took the new paved road in said support vehicle back to La Paz. When the Bolivian government finally realised the world's most dangerous road probably wasn't suitable for any form of motorised transport, they built this new road and subsequently created the world's second most dangerous road. The
La Paz
The ride begins retaining walls constructed in an attempt to keep the Andes from falling on to this road aren't doing as much retaining as might have been hoped. We were delayed (how unusual in Bolivia) 2 hours by a landslide. It's only a matter of time before such landslides start racking up its own devilish statistics.
Gary
Yes, we are back in La Paz meaning we are coming to the end of our time in Bolivia. So we have ventured to Lake Titicaca, climbed Isla Del Sol, helped the beggers of Copacabana, navigated the Salt Flats, lagoons, mountains and even snapped off a few flamingos, not to mention dodging carnival water bombs in Potosi and Sucre. So what's left to do in La Paz on a Sunday when carnival is in full swing, of course a bike ride down the most dangerous road in the world. It may sound like an exaggeration but at 6.45am when the travel agent asks you to sign a disclaimer of responsibility for any accident, injury or loss of life and asks you to name the person who should be contacted should the need arise! Yikes( thank you Kim Coulter, you were the only phone number
La Paz
Miners Protest I could remember at the time of morning). Well I agree it is the most dangerous road I have ever travelled, but I agree with our French companions Alex and Rose who felt safer on our bikes than in a bus on the same road. The ride commenced at 4700 metres with snow falling and the fog looming up the valley below. Without any time to get acquainted with our bikes or equipment we were off on the decent. The first part of the ride is on the paved road shared with buses, trucks and cars, a little nerve racking but once I realised my brakes worked I was more confident. Gary said I looked like one of those guys in a sumo wrestling suit as it filled up with air racing down the hill. The scenery on the way down changed rapidly with the drop of altitude, from snowy mountains to thick tropical jungles, rushing streams, waterfalls, cocoa plantations and plenty of overturned trucks and a recent bus on the valley floor some 300 metres below. The crucifixes by the side of the road lay testament to the previous fatalities. (one bus alone took out 92 people as it plummeted off the 3 metre wide track and 400 metres below) hence we don't have too many photos- too hard to stop.
Cycling through the last creek (thanks guys for not warning me and allowing me to ride through the deepest part) and into the final village was a rush.
The support vehicle was behind us all the way, probably closest to me being the slowest, however with Michael Jackson, Boney M and the Village People bursting out of its windows probably didn't add to the ambience.
This ride will go down in my blogs as the most exhilerating ride I will probably ever do and highly recommend it to anyone who can still pedal.
Penny
More images at:
www.colvinyeates.zenfolio.com
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Jeanette
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On Your Bikes
See, now you know how Jay feels, and his frequent return visits to Italy. Bike riding - a great way to take it all in.