The last email we sent was from Lima, Peru. While Lima has a bad reputation, what large city does not? We had a good time in Lima, in part because we ran into a friend we had met in Northern Peru and also because there we met the famous moto traveler Punky. But we had been in Lima three times before, so off we went after three days.
After leaving Lima we headed south. We did not want to retrace our previous route on the Pan American highway, but having left a tire in Arequipa and hoping to met Ralph Green in Pisco, we did. But, we missed the Greens as they had turned inland.
Just before we entered Nasca, we stopped at the tower to view what we could. Years before we had taken an airplane flight over the area, perhaps the best way to see the lines. Then, 10k or so from town we had a flat with the new tire we had purchased in Trujillo. It was not a puncture, but some leak with the value stem. Harder to fix but we were able to keep enough air in it to make it to Nasca.
In Nasca we were able to get the tire repaired and in front of the hotel, met Vincent Perceval from France. He had purchased a BMW 650 in California and had ridden it down to Peru heading further south. By now he had almost no tread on the tires. He left that day after seeing the lines by airplane and drove east to Ayacucho. We were told that this road was now completely paved. But it is hard to depend on the locals. (Later another rider said it is as he had ridden it)
This time when we reached Arequipa it was in the day time. We could actually see where we where going unlike the last time when a fire with our moto had kept us from reaching the city until well after dark and everything was closed and no people on the street. We stayed at the same hotel as before. After two days they found the tire that had been stored for two years.
We then left Arequipa for Puno (actually Juliaca) We had traveled on this road before up to the Condor Canyon, but not all the way. Yes, it was paved but about 10 k or so of the road was so torn up that buses and trucks went on the side of the road in the dirt. It was very dusty if one went this way. We simply took our time and weaved between potholes not being fond of riding in soft dirt or sand. At the intersection the road was fairly new, but no gas. There is gas about 20 k from Arequipa and again about 20 k from Juliaca.
When we reached Juliaca it was thru the back door entrance but we finally found the main street. We had actually gone from sea level to more that 10,000 feet. We stopped in front of a hotel only then to find that we had no power. The clerk came out to inquire if we needed a room. Answer was yes and a moto mechanic. They thought for a minute then said that they would ask the mechanic to come to the hotel. Great, within thirty minutes the mechanic arrived. He and I thought the same thing. The moto was not getting enough air since we were so high. But, after some time he could not fix it and said we should ride it to the shop. This we did but there was so little power that he had to disconnect the air filter tubes. We finally made it.
It took two hours at the shop to determine that there was no way to increase air flow. I was stumped, but not the mechanic. He took out the jets, examined them, then took some thin wires and inserted them into the jets. What this did was decease the flow of gas. (some motorcyclists with foresight take two jets). After a few more tests we had a running moto. We were able to continue the next day and found it ran fine, we just could not go more than 80mph. But, we didn't want to anyway.
We were now heading towards Cuzco. The road is fine, all paved, and somewhat all down hill. On the way we saw a 650 BMW but the rider did not stop. Shortly after we saw two riders on the side of the road having a picnic. We stopped and joined them.
This is how we met Torsen and Ricarda from Germany. We rode on with them and stayed at the same hotel in Cuzco. They are very nice couple with their own web site. (http://www.lebenlifelavida-suedamerika.de/). It is always fun meeting other riders and sharing stories. In Cuzco we met Jeff, owner of the famous Norton Rats Tavern, upstairs right on the main square and a place to relax. He gave us several good travel tips for the area.
About 3 days later we left for Ollantaytambo. A good road on the way, some nice ruins and a nice way back some what differently. We had already been to Machu Picchu so this was a diversion. In Ollantay-tambo there are ruins to visit plus 2 or three nice restaurants. We returned to Cuzco from there.
Waiting was an email from Warren Storey saying he was now in Cuzco (we had met this Canadian rider in northern Peru). Warren, Ricarda, and Torsen joined us for dinner that night along with a bicyclists who had taken an interesting non-Pan American route to get this far south.
The following morning we left for Puno. A friend had recommended a hotel just south of Puno. Our choice was to stay there rather than downtown Puno. On the way, the locals had put up a road block. We've experiences with road blocks in Bolivia and further north of Quito in Ecuador. The locals attempt to keep you from passing by grabbing at you and things on your moto. They can be quite nasty. Once we were stranded in La Paz when there was a strike and road blocks outside of town. But here there were at least two policeman on motos. They helped up through the main line and we were even directed by the people to pass. For the next half mile or so there were rocks and logs all over the road through which we had to weave. We made it with no real problems, even exchanged waves with the strikers and smiles. They seemed to be making a statement rather than seriously trying to stop us but traffic was backed up.
Our intent was to take the dirt route east of Lago Titicaca. To do that, one has to clear customs out of Peru in Puno. In the morning we were further south of Puno than we had planned, so, in part due to illness, decided to take the easier route on the west side down to Copacabana. The normal exit is Desaguadero. At customs we tried to get a year to travel in Bolivia for our moto, but we could only get six months. I think the customs have one form and they fill in the amount of time they want. Often, it is just 90 days but we got six months and others taking this route got the same. Since we had a few extra days and did not want to go to La Paz, as we had been there twice and spent some time in that city, we decided to go to Sorata.
There was some difficulty in finding the turn to Sorata.
It is just north of Achacachi at the "Y" in the road, across the bridge, next to the military base. Later we learned that people in Achacachi and this part of Bolivia were very anti-foreignors and it was dangerous place to go. Dont go on Sunday when they have the big market and it is hard to pass though town. We had no problems however.
We got to the top of the mountain and headed down. Somewhere down we encountered fog and could see nothing. Also, we misjudged the distance. We could not see five feet in front of us and had to travel very slowly as big trucks coming our way did not. No one was traveling the same direction we were. When we finally reached Sorata late in the afternoon we found it to be a real tourist town, like a miniature Cuzco.
It was very foggy and we could see nothing even the next morning. A report from a later traveler suggests this is a beautiful place when the weather is clear. This city is mostly used as a jumping off place for mountain climbing and hiking. The hotel manager said there would be a break in the weather late in the morning. By 10:00 we were ready to leave and when the break came, we were off. Just before we reached the top of the mountain the fog came up from the valley very fast but we kept ahead of it. One could look down at the fog and see it moving swiftly. If this had happened on our way down we would not have gone to Sorata. But if the weather is nice, it is worth it, say others.
We arrived in La Paz and found the hotel recommended by our friend Werner (Hotel Oberland). One advantage of staying there is that it is close to Walter's Honda where we were to store the moto. We also met a person recommended by Werner. Frank and his wife Ann are motorcycle riders working in Bolivia. In just a few days they were leaving to ride their motos to Brazil, taking the train after reaching Santa Cruz by paved road. They also agreed to ride our moto back to Peru and get us another 6 months if we did not return by February.
The time finally came to fly home. But, at the airport they would not let us board the Varig flight to San Paulo as we had a 23 hour layover. We were told that without a visa we could only stay at the airport 8 hours. We had to rebook a new flight route meaning that I had a credit card dispute to deal with when I returned. Trying to get a refund, since the travel agent had not told us a visa was necessary, (normally this is only for US citizens and other third world non trust worthy people) for the layover time has taken a great deal of time. Customs can sometimes be a problem in these third world countries. We knew that being from the USA we needed a visa to enter Brazil, but we thought the airport would be neutral space. When we arrived in San Paulo, one of the airline persons told us of an individual from India, who was deported from the USA, forced to stay in the San Paulo airport for 40 days before getting immigration paperwork approval for Brazil.
Do you remember that we mentioned Warren Storey from Canada? He had to try three times to enter the US from Canada. And our German friend, Olaf, had troubles with US customs when he flew from Madrid to Coasta Rico. I guess the theory in the USA now is to keep out those Anglo Saxons so we can bring in more Arabs with bombs.
Anyway, in a few hours we were in Los Angeles and decided to take a few days to visit our daughter in San Diego. Our other daughter from Hawaii also arrived for a marine biology conference so we were able to surprise her. Surprised them altogether as they thought we were at home in Oregon
We were home a few days and surprised ourselves by discovering that there was a window of opportunity to take another motorcycle trip. This time we would be able to visit Yosemite National Park. We had tried to visit the park twice before but it was closed in January due to snow. This time we were smart enough to try to visit in September. So Gail flew to Utah to visit her mother and I rode the moto there. In Idaho, the starter broke and it took two days to get it fixed. In Wyoming a seal broke causing a serious oil leak. A tow to Salt Lake City BMW and another day to repair. So I was a day late in picking up Gail but then we were off to Yosemite and then home. Only about two weeks and 3000 miles this time.
Just after we arrived home we learned that Lufthansa was starting new flights out of Oregon at one third the normal rates. We therefore booked two flights to Europa. In May and again in June we will be flying there, first taking our moto to Greece and then to Finland. But first, our winter moto trip to Thailand did not work out. We must now go back to Bolivia to ride to BA. Argentina in December and January 2003.
See you on the road, some time, some place. Look for a red BMW with two up. Don't be surprised if you find us broken down along the side of the road. After all we only broke down four times (we are only counting those that required towing) in 2002 and now there is 2003 coming up. We have a lot of space in our country home of 15 acres east of Eugene, Or., and welcome foreign travelers.
Eric and Gail Haws via Tynda@aol.com
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