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We tried to visit the Amazon Jungle while we were in La Paz but the flights we had booked could not not land in the town we were supposed to start our tour from because of to much rain. Apparently the runway was some sort of gravel, and turned to mud in the wet weather.
I thought maybe stupidly, that because the airstrip was in the Amazon rain forest they would have forseen this problem, but hey who am I to judge.
So next activity was a little bike ride.They have a gravel road in Bolivia that goes down into a valley, the start of the road is at over 4000m and it descends over 3000m into the valley.
There are no barriers to protect you going over the cliff sides that are sometimes only cm from the roads surface. The road is not wide enough for two cars to pass each other, they have to wait until they reach special widened parts of the road.
Over 300 people each year are killed by plummeting over the edge of this road. It is know as the deadliest road in the world, or Death Road
So what do
A quick Cuppa
What else would you drink before cycling down the deadliest road in the world?they do?
They give tourists mountain bikes and charge them to ride down it, and we all do it in our hundreds.
Mel and I signed up the night before and were picked up a 7am.
The drive to 4000m was just over a hour, we reached the top and unfortunately there was no snow around, like in the brochures but it was still freezing cold.
They gave as a small breakfast of rolls and Cocoa tea, before our briefing.We had quite a small group of just 6 in total.
The first bit of the ride was just over a hour along the tarred road, it was all down hill except for 15 min of uphill which proved to be a pain in the butt and thighs. This part was amazing, we flew as fast as the bike would go on a beautifully flat tarred road, and we were so high that we were actually riding in the clouds. At one point an eagle was gliding along the road just above our heads for a few hundred meters, cool.
Part of the package included a CD of digital photos and video clips that was made along the
way when the driver of our van would speed past and set up along the way, ready to capture us in the action shots.
I am sure we will bore most of you all with the footage when we get back.
The tar came to an end and we were officially on The Death Road. The bumps were a little less hectic due to the mountain bikes shock absorbers but still pretty bad, this was definitely not a Sunday cycle in Hyde park.
We were given these overall type things that at the start seemed rather a pain but were great because the amount of dust was unbelievable.
We stopped along the way for a snack and to take photos but it pretty much was cycling all the way.
Once we reached the bottom is was a mixture of relief and satisfaction, but mostly relief our bodies were already sore and the thought of what we were going to feel like the next day made me glad we had nothing planned.
The ride finished at the river so they loaded you all into the van to take you up to the town which is a few Km´s away, thank
goodness for that, I was already looking for the closest donkey.
We had lunch in at nice hotel and were back in the van for La Paz.
I don´t know if our driver had a hot date or he just wanted to get home to his wife's Llama stew, but he drove like a madman.
We tried to think that this is what he does for a living and not about the cars that go over the edge every month.
We got back safe and sound, another great adventure.
Now we can say we cycled the ¨Most Dangerest Road in the World¨, we´ve even got the T-shirt to prove it.
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jax b
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fit as fiddles
You two seem to be doing everything available to do over there..cycling,walking,getting robbed and becoming illegal immigrants. Iif you think you are having fun you should know that you are providing me with endless entertainment just reading about your adventures. I keep laughing hysterically and interrupting the football much to Ian's irritation. Enjoy the remaining bit and looking forward to seeing you both Oh yes! Try not to get arrested!!!!