ARGENTINA/CHILE : MENDOZA — TUNUYÁN — PAREDITAS — EL SOSNEADA — MALARGÜE — BARDAS BLANCAS — LAS LOICAS — TERMAS DE AZUFRE — EL PLANCHON In Mendoza, as the year turns, I imbibe a certain dissatisfaction that I’m not sure I really feel. Mendoza, in the grip of a savage heat wave, is full of […]
Also tagged argentina, border crossings, chile, desert, horsesCHILE: SAN PEDRO DE ATACAMA — VOLCAN SAIRECUBAR — SAN PEDRO DE ATACAMA Harriet and Neil Pike are fast becoming legendary among touring cyclists for their incredible high altitude routes in the Andes. I have had the good fortune to encounter these guys, and spend time with them, in Huaraz and then catch up again […]
Also tagged chile, friends, volcanoPERÚ: CUSCO– SAN TOMAS — QUIÑOTA — CULIPAMPA — ARCATA — CAYLLOMA* Mountains. Sunlight, sunrise, sunset. Rain, wind, snow. Lakes and streams. Rain. Clouds. *The interesting part of this route was blazed by the inimitable Harriet and Neil Pike – masters of the remote uncharted high altitude mining road route. Visit their excellent websites Andes […]
Also tagged perúPERÚ: HUARAZ — LA MERCED — RECAUY — HATUN MACHAY — PASTORURI — CHIQUIAN HIGHWAYS AND BYWAYS Straight lines and direct routes simply don’t suit me – I am not that pragmatic. HATUN MACHAY On reaching the highway I overshoot the turn off to my chosen route south towards Cusco over the Pastoruri pass, by […]
Also tagged perú, snow and icePERÚ: IN AN OUT OF HUARAZ Huaraz is not a pretty town – most of it was destroyed in the 70s by a massive earthquake and the city which rose phoenix-like from the ruins is a rude mass of raw concrete block and cheap brick constructions, a forest of exposed steel reinforcing sprouting from flat […]
Also tagged food, friends, perú, walkingPERÚ: CEDROS DE ALPAMAYO My circuit by bicycle of the Olimpia and Llunganuco passes with their spectacular mountain backdrops left me wanting more. I long to get closer still to those peaks and investigate their icy mysteries in greater detail. Emboldened by my six day trek in the El Cocuy National Park in the north […]
Also tagged off cycle, perú, walking, wild placesPERÚ: HUARAZ — CARHUAZ — SHILLA — PUNTA OLIMPICA — CHACAS — ACOCHACA — YANAMA — VAQUERIA — LLANGANUCO — YUNGAY — HAURAZ
Also tagged perúPERÚ: CARAZ — LAGUNA PARÓN — CARAZ Caraz, after a week in the mountains, feels a bit like a teeming metropolis but it is, actually, just a small, friendly laid-back town where you can, if you choose, eat a lot of ice cream and cakes. I spend up big and opt for a private room […]
Also tagged perúPERŨ: HUAMACHUCO — PAMPAS — CONCHUCOS — SIHUAS I’ve been studying Tom and Sarah’s excellent blog for route ideas in this part of Perú and shamelessly stealing them. Thanks for blazing the way, guys!
Also tagged dirt roads, people, perú, wild places