The region we have been travelling through is described in the lonely planet as the least visited area of Peru, and the distances we bicycled were not even mentioned in the book. People have not seen tourists before (except some gringos in a random bus rushing past), and we notice it. The distance from Cusco to Ayacucho is estimated to 22 hours with bus.We did it in 16 days including a couple of days off. We start at around 0900 when our tent is dry, and all is packed and end the day between 1600 and 1800, depending on the weather and our condition. At 1810, someone switches the light off.
Andahuaylas is at 2926m. The first part of our trip was through one of the areas the Austrian government have registered as a no-go area for tourists due to terrorism. It occurred to us 10km before we arrived there, but we have actually not been many places with nicer people. We climbed to 3700m before heading down a valley of 1800m. The great advantage is all the fruit they sell down there, but we could not wait to climb up to an altitude with no mosquitoes again. We wisely lingered outside a house with a mango tree, and were invited by the owners to sit down for a couple of our favourite fruits. They had a kitten, a couple of dogs and a parrot that said "thank you" in Norwegian.
After a steady climb, and a fantastic tent spot on a cliff with good wind we arrived Ocros. Ocros is a small village where all the kids in town gathered around the lovely señorita Anita, while Eirik was perceived as the scary guy checking out the hospices in the meantime. We have given up buying chocolates one by one. We get them in boxes of 30ea instead. It is the only way of keeping the energy high enough.
We left Ocros at 0600, with the plan to skip a ride up to the altiplano. A small truck delivering wood passed us, and took us and our bicycles the 1 hour ride up to 4200 meters, a straight line distance of 3.8km. We like this idea - take the lift up, and enjoy the trip down (it is just like skiing)
The ride on the altiplano was fantastic. We had been warned that we would freeze to death, and that the climate was really dangerous. We tried to tell them that the climate was like a mild Norwegian summer up there, and that we had spent over a month at >4000m in the south of Peru. Like all our good conversations, we had no idea how much they actually understood...
As it got close to 1500 the day before we arrived in Ayacucho, and way past lunch time we stopped to have a long desired meal. Suddenly, out of nowhere two French guys (Francois and Yann) came bicycling towards us (bicycles brought from home). Neither we or them had met anyone else doing the same before, and were excitedly exchanging information until the time was due for camping. We happened to be next to the most perfect tenting spot, and camped the night together. It was great to finally meet someone doing the same, and we wish them all the best for the rest of their journey. The only small disadvantage is our exclusivity: we are not exotic any more as people have seen people like us before.
Francois, Yann, Eirik and Anita
The ride to Ayacucho was 50km downhill, and much appreciated by two very tired bodies. We arrived Ayacucho yesterday, and we are now relaxing and eating as much as possible.
You will of course find more pictures here if you are interested: http://picasaweb.google.com/eirik.sunde/AbancayAyacuchoOctober2008
2 comments:
Dere fortsetter i samme stil: spennende og fasinerende reiseskildring og fantastiske bilder! Vi følger med kontinuerlig og gleder oss til å lese bloggen og se bilder fra stadig nye og spennende steder.
Hilsen fra far og Kjersti
hei gratulerer med dagen på voldsomt etterskudd. ska helsa fra mamma og pappa. fint bart du har fått deg
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