143.1 km, 742m climbing, 5:09
Stage 42 of 109, day 58 of 142

Where	Distance	Dirt	Climb	EFI
South America	3,826	554	48,645
Andes Trail	3,544	545	45,035	X
Ecuador	912	30	16,265	✓
Peru	2,622	515	28,702	X
Bolivia	10	0	68	✓

We had a really enjoyable rest day yesterday in Puno. A bunch of us signed up for a boat tour of the famous floating islands of Uros in Lake Titicaca. They picked us up at 9 and drove us 1 km down to the dock where we boarded a little boat with a few other people. We headed out and soon were in a channel between reeds (the famous ones that the locals use to build boats and their floating islands). After a little while we got to an area of water surrounded by floating islands. We landed on one and our guide introduced us to the locals who live there. It’s about 2,000 Peruvians and over 2,000 Bolivians. Each island supports about four families, so maybe 20 people. They showed us how they make the floats from the reeds and how they have to replace the top layer every 10-15 days. It turns out that ALL these people living out there have only one industry: tourism. They make trinkets and sell stuff to people like us. They sang songs and the President of the four families on our island showed us how they build the houses, the cell towers, etc. A lady showed us the inside of one of their houses: very small, welcome to the 3rd world for sure. They tried hard but barely any of us bought anything I’m sorry to say. I did spring S10 for a ride on their “Mercedes Benz” boat over to another floating island, where Greg, Michael and I had some beers and relaxed for a while. Then it was time to go back. The air is clean, as is the water of the lake. It’s about 20m deep there and the thickness of the floating islands is 4-5m.

Back in Puno I spied Gareth, Martin and Andrew in a nice looking local restaurant waiting for Kirsten and me. We had beers and lunch there – gigantic servings of trucha a la plancha (roasted trout with veggies) for very little money. We walked back to the hotel later, had a look around, and eventually went out for dinner at a nice cafe. More trout, this time fried and coated with quinoa. Super good. Unfortunately many had taken ill again and I didn’t feel that great at dinner. But I just ordered jugo de maracuya instead of beer and didn’t eat the salad. I think it was psychosomatic as I was 100% in the morning.

We had set the alarm for 5:45 for the 6:15 breakfast. It was kind of a crappy hotel breakfast – I even had to eat the eggs (huevos revueltos) and a couple of the crap rolls. It took a while but we started riding at 7:25 and made our way though traffic out of town. Once we got onto the road around the lake, it was smooth sailing. First with about 8 in a paceline, then Wytze and Rob ended up blasting too fast and Chris, Jens and I dropped everyone else.

We cruised to lunch at 68 km non-stop. I noticed that at 2 hours we were at 62 km, not so shabby.

Lunch wasn’t quite ready so we hung out sharing photos and relaxing. Many others came in, we ate a delicious lunch, and I let Chris and Jens head off on their own. For the next 80 km, it was Bastiaan, Andrew, Jan and I, cruising, stopping for photos many times and really enjoying the riding. When the wind was behind us we could cruise at 40-45 and when it was ahead, more like 28. The occasional hills slowed us down more. We took lots of photos and basically just enjoyed our last ride in Peru. For the first 90 or 100, the road was busy and the drivers pretty rude (unusual). Andrew was pushed off the road once and Marc was really pushed off aggressively, so much that he crashed and was so mad about it. He got scraped up too. Now we have to somehow talk him into not bailing from the tour. We had about 35 km on smaller, less crowded roads to the border.

At the border we just walked into the Peru side and one minute later walked away, passports stamped! Then we rode up a hill for 300m, under a cool arch, then took some photos of various Welcome to Bolivia signs.

Then we walked into the Bolivian customs office. Again, I was out in one minute. They didn’t ask a single question – just scanned and stamped the passport and took my photo (which took about 10 seconds). SO different from entering into Peru. The four of us rode away, on a comically crappy Bolivian road. We had about 8 km to the hotel in Copacabana and we took it easy, stopping for photos. The small town looks beautiful and we soon were in the very nice Hotel Mirador, just above the lake shore. We were lucky today with the dogs – no actual attacks while I was riding. Joan told me a funny (scary actually) story about one of the previous stages where she opted for the paved option I didn’t take. She lead the way on that route and counted the number of dog attacks on her: 24.

It’s a climb to our room, but wow is it nice! It’s a giant two person room, with a gorgeous view over the lake, a shower that cranks out hot water, electric plugs that sort of hold our chargers, beds, towels, and delicious soup and snacks after riding – basically perfect.

We had lost an hour due to switching to Bolivian time so 6 pm dinner came soon. Eight of us went out and discovered that Copacabana is a backpacker town, full of great, inexpensive restaurants. We picked one and I had the special for BOB25 ($3.60): Quinoa soup, trout grilled with veggies and fries, and bananas with chocolate sauce for dessert. We also had nice big Bolivian beers for the same price. Delicious and fun! After we went to a little bar run by a Brit and had delicious Bolivian IPA!

Wow, it looks like life is great here! Best part: another rest day tomorrow! Then two days of easier riding to La Paz.

https://www.relive.cc/view/vQvyzz7D94O

Stages 39-41 of 109 Cusco to Puno via bushcamp and hostal, Days 54-56 of 142

• Stage 39: 119.7 km, 1,022m climb, 4:38
• Stage 40: 161.6 km, 1,048m climb, 6:42, craziest weather ever
• Stage 41: 106.3 km, 425m, 4:13

After three full days off the bike, it was nice to get ready, mount up, and cruise out of town. We’re missing the people who left in Cusco, but now have four newbies which is good. The ride out wasn’t as crazy as the ride in, and it was gently downhill so went pretty quickly. Soon we were out of town and blazing along. After 25 km, I let myself fall off the paceline (Chris at the helm with Jens egging him on).

I took it easy, stopped for food at a lake around 40 km, then met everyone at lunch around 60 km. I rode with Andrew and Jan after lunch and although it was about a 60 km climb, the last part was very gentle and we made it to camp no problem. It rained a bit on the way but just for a little while. Camp was by a soccer field, right next to another set of Inca Ruins. The main attraction there for our crowd seemed to be the public toilets – much better than trying to find privacy by the soccer field. Villagers were everywhere too, tending crops and watching.

It was cold at night as we were back up at 3,500m and lots of clothes were on at dinner. After dinner I stayed up a little but then retreated to my nice tent. I woke up at 2:09 am and peed in the field, then at 2:12, the rain started.

https://www.relive.cc/view/vXOd33YPBkv

I don’t know how long it rained but it had stopped by morning, still things were pretty wet. We had an early breakfast at 6:30 due to the long distance to cover in stage 40. The public bathroom was supposed to open at 6 but didn’t. Yvonne and I talked a lady into opening the two bathrooms in her restaurant for us at 1 sol per person. Boy did I need that! It was cold at breakfast, then we packed up wet tents and got ready to ride. I made a rookie mistake: because I was cold while eating, I over-dressed for riding. That meant that after about 25 km of glorious pacelining with Chris at the helm, I had to bow out to reduce clothes. They never stop. So I did the rest of the 60 km climb to lunch by myself, stopping for photos sometimes.

The riding wasn’t hard although lunch was at a pass at nearly 4,350m, higher than all but two mountains in California. For once, at a pass it was nice weather and we enjoyed a relaxing lunch.

Andrew and I took off just after Chris and Jens and somehow managed to catch them on the downhill. It wasn’t steep and only dropped about 400m, but soon we were back in a line of four, cranking along. We were in the Altiplano now, a large, high plateau in southern Peru, Bolivia, northern Argentina and northern Chile. It averages 3,750m and is the biggest high plateau on Earth outside of Tibet. It’s flat, with some hills that the roads mostly avoid. We had 100 km to go from lunch and made quick work of the first 50. Then we stopped for refreshments at a tiny stand where we had a funny encounter with a local who took to Chris (who doesn’t speak any Spanish at all).

Then it was time for the last 50 km. About halfway through this we saw thick black clouds and rain showers ahead.

Suddenly, the wind increased hugely. Our speed dropped to maybe 10 or less. And the side winds kept nearly knocking us over. I was thinking this was Patagonia training. We survived maybe 500m of this, then came to a toll station. The guys offered us their little bedroom to escape the storm. It started hailing and the temperature dropped hugely. So we took them up on their offer. They also liked Chris and asked me why he was over 2m tall, and a bunch of other funny questions. They were amazed that the four of us were from four different countries.

After 45 minutes, Wytze rolled up, wet and cold. He and Bastiaan had stopped at the hotsprings further back, and maybe some Pisco Sours were involved. Chris gave Wytze an extra jacket and the rest of us put on everything we had (very little for Andrew, but the full kit for me). It was now after 3pm and it seemed like the wind had dropped and the rain was less, so we took off. How hard can 22 km be anyway? Answer: super hard. The wind was going I don’t know how many km/h, from about 10:00. The rain was POURING painfully hard and the spray from the tires was blowing everywhere. We had to ride close together but it was dicey and it almost seemed like the traffic was going faster because of the bad weather. Giant trucks giving us very little room. I think my speed would’ve been 10 or 12 but we were going 24 thanks to Wytze. He is an amazing athlete. I was so soaked – I think it may actually have been the worst riding conditions I’ve been in ever. I don’t know how we would’ve dealt with a crash or a flat tire. Chris was so cool – making sure whoever was flagging was protected. I can’t imagine how Andrew felt bare-legged. He later said (imagine excellent Australian accent): “It was a bit cool.” The road surface was also utter crap in this section – continual bumps, terrible. After a while I was just hanging on to Wytze’s wheel and I noticed the rain had reduced and the wind had dropped. Now we were going 34 so I was still working absolutely at 100% effort. I told him we had dropped the rest so he slowed down to 32. Amazingly they caught back up. At this point we only had 5 km to go so it was almost in the bag. The last 2 km was super hard for me, nearly used up. Then, it was 800m, 400m, 200m, and we turned off the road onto the dirt road to the campsite. The turn-off was marked by a large Bike Dreams “Finish” flag. We got to the end of the GPS track, and there we all were, in the middle of a field, nothing around, no people, no campsite and our Garmins were all playing the happy song indicating the end of the track. Wytze started to call Henk then I spied his truck coming down the road toward us. He stopped at the Finish flag and someone waved us over. They told us camp had been upgraded to a hostal due to the weather! We just had to go 4 more km to the town of Pucara. We did that at a sane pace, and there was Tom, telling us where to turn. Ahead we saw one of the trucks, and we high-fived while riding. I finished the ride holding hands with Chris, way up high, what a victory. I wish someone got a photo.

The hostal turned out to be basic but quite a bit nicer than camping. It had a big courtyard where soup was being cooked. It had covered bike parking. The rooms had beds. It was missing a few things like toilet seats and hot showers, but all in all, it was great. We ate, then more riders came in. In the end almost half the people rode the whole way – the others rode one of the trucks or in local transport. For some it was their longest bike ride ever, 100.4 miles. It was a challenge for everyone, for sure. This trip seems to be about personal challenges. They don’t come every stage, but when they do, wow, be ready to dig deep. Andrew and I went to lay down for a minute before dinner – deep sleep instantly. Luckily I set the alarm. We got up for dinner, appetizer of small tomatoes, guacamole and tuna dip with real corn tortilla chips. Pasta in cheese sauce with a lot of garlic and ham for the meat people. Red wine. Yum. Went to bed at 8 and slept hard. I got up at 12 and 4 to pee. Then I was laying there listening to cars drive by the window, splashing through deep rain puddles.

https://www.relive.cc/view/v1vjppZ7DY6

Breakfast was at 8 so we got up at 7:30 and I looked to see how wet it was. It was brilliant sunshine with not a cloud and no water anywhere. I had imagined the whole puddle thing. There was frost all over so it had been cold. Breakfast was in the warm sun in the courtyard, then we packed up and headed out for our last full day of riding in Peru. It was 105 km, mostly flat altiplano, with a 200m hill at the very end to get to the town of Puno, on the shores of famous Lake Titicaca. Andrew, Jan and I took it easy, stopping from time to time for photos or food breaks. We joined up with Greg, a new rider from Poland, and started looking out for the lunch truck at 55 km as it was supposed to be before the town at 60 km. We didn’t see it and rode into the town which turned out to be large, dirty and super chaotic. The amount of trash laying around was staggering. It was another place just absolutely jammed with buses and tuk-tuks, a hell of motor traffic. It’s also #4 of the top 10 list of most dangerous cities in Peru and is tiny compared to the others on the list. Don’t ever go to Juliaca, Peru.

It took some patience and balls but we made it out without accident, and then continued along the road to Puno. Now at 75 km, we still hadn’t seen the lunch truck. We stopped and ate the food we had, then maybe 10 more riders pulled in doing the same. I gave my last bar to Kirsten who had already eaten the six she had and was still having a calorie crisis. We left first and after 4km found the lunch truck with Wijnand, Rob and Guillermo sitting quietly at a decent spot by the side of the road with lunch all set out. So we had lunch, then took off for the last 32 km. It was boring and flat until the hill at the end. Bastiaan had caught us with Lambert and we cruised up to 4,000m again, took some photos at the top, then headed down to the hotel.

Soup was on, with snacks, then we went up and had luxurious hot showers. It was so hot you had to add cold which almost never happens. We hung out afterward, then went out to dinner with at least 15 of our riders to a fancy restaurant called Mojsa. It had great food, many vegetarian and fishetarian options, plus great IPA. For dessert, Mr G. directed us to a gelateria/bakery a couple of blocks away. I had a triple of Pisco Sour (surprisingly tasty), chicha morada and the ever-great maracuya. What a great end to a fun day and a challenging block of three stages. Rest day tomorrow!

https://www.relive.cc/view/vDqgJJ38jV6

At last the triple rest day is here! It’s the only time in 4 1/2 months where we have three full days off the bike. Bike Dreams organized an optional trip to Machu Picchu which most signed up for. So at 9 am on the 18th, we piled into a pair of mini-buses and headed back on the route we had ridden to Cusco the day before. After about 20 km we turned off toward the Sacred Valley. It took almost two hours to get to the little town of Ollantaytambo. There’s a very famous archaeological site and we exited the bus excited to see. But the entrance fee of S130 turned everyone off. We all either walked up the free but not so impressive site across the valley, or spent the couple of hours we had checking out the cafes and restaurants. The town appears to be 100% tourist-oriented. The proportion of gringos here is even more than in Cusco. After milkshakes, we walked around town a little, then shared a pizza for lunch.

In the afternoon we walked about 1 km down to the train station. The Peru Rail Machu Picchu train picked us up, all reserved seating including snacks and drinks. The Vista Cruiser windows were great since the valley we cruised through is steeper and as deep as Yosemite. It has vertical granite walls too. The ride was beautiful, about 90 minutes and then we arrived in Aguas Calientes aka Machu Picchu Village. This town is also purely tourist-oriented but it’s not a bad thing for us. The options you have for eating and drinking are infinitely more than in normal parts of Peru. If you only came to places like Lima, Cusco and here you would have a strange view of Peru I think. Six of us had dinner at an upscale Craft Beer restaurant, then went to the 7 pm Machu Picchu briefing about the next day. Basically we all had 7 am tickets so could enter any time after that. Our guides had two groups planned for 7 am and one for 11 am, so you could sleep in or hike more beforehand if you wanted. We had a round of Pisco Sours courtesy of John, then went to bed kind of early with the alarm set for 4:45 since we had decided to hike rather than take the bus up.

Breakfast was excellent, right at 5 am. We ate fast then started hiking around 5:15 when it was just barely starting to get light. You hike down the river for maybe 2 km, then show passport and ticket at the control office and head up the hiking trail. It climbs steeply, up 400m to the upper entrance into Machu Picchu itself. They say 90-120 minutes but we took 30 minutes for the climb due to bike fitness. It was humid though and my shirt was soaked at the top. Andrew set a perfect pace and we passed a ton of people. We had 45 minutes to wait for our guides and the people who rode the bus, which was nice for shirt drying.

Finally we got to go in – the crowds are daunting but if you expect it like we did, it’s not as disappointing. If you are expecting some kind of magical pristine experience you should not come. Peru has done a great job managing the huge demand but it’s done by having a ton of very restrictive rules so this is not for everyone. The Machu Picchu ruins were about what I expected having seen a million pictures from friends and others. But the setting is amazing and makes the whole experience better. The vertical relief is immense and the area around Machu Picchu is just incredible. The valleys are so deep, the peaks so high and steep and the whole place is just so improbable. As Andrew said, “They could’ve picked an easier building site.” We took a million photos and walked through one of the prescribed one-way only routes. The max group size is 15 so we were split between guides and ours explained lots, but it’s almost better to tune it out and just appreciate being there.

It is possible to (briefly) see things by yourself and take photos without hordes of people in them, but it’s not easy. At the end of the tour, the guide leaves and you can explore a little bit more – the Condor Temple etc, we actually needed a 20 minute rest from walking around so slowly. It’s surprisingly strenuous. Way harder than hiking up the trail at full speed. We strolled down and at the entrance checked to see if it was possible to catch a bus – we had been warned the line can be 30-90 minutes and we knew we could hike down in less than that. But it was still before 11 so the line was small and we headed down the super steep switchbacks on the rough dirt road and were soon back in town. I couldn’t help thinking they should hire the Austrians to build a teleferique.

Our train back didn’t leave until after 4 pm so we had a nice drink of juice, then a look around parts of the town we hadn’t seen the day before and a fancy lunch at a great organic restaurant that happened to have fancy craft beer of course. The number of places advertising Vegetarian food out numbered the total I had seen in over a month in Peru by a factor of a hundred. After more walking around and seeing a weird, large, hairless dog, we ended up at different craft beer restaurant for another round. Then ice cream down by our hotel and then it was time to head for the train. It was a pleasant ride again, with a funny fashion show by the train staff, with Alpaca shawls and scarves etc that they modeled for sale. At 6:30 we were back in Ollantaytambo and were dropped off at our hotel in Cusco around 8:30. Martin, Andrew and I took Wim out for a drink at our favorite bar (Cholo’s) – boy is that Inti Puntu IPA great! Even though we had been up since 4:45, Andrew and I stayed up reading until midnight then settled in for sleep.

In the morning, it was amazing. We hadn’t ridden the previous two days and today was another rest day! We had a lazy breakfast and then Andrew worked on his bike while I joined a few others and went on a two hour walking tour of Cusco. We saw a bunch of Inca stone work, some old Spanish aqueducts etc and even got to see the famous 12-sided stone.

At the end for S5 we could take a mini bus up to the Christ Statue on the hill. It was a nice view from up there, then I came down for lunch.

Tom, Andrew and I ate in a Quinoa restaurant across the street. Then I worked on my bike – replaced the chain and cleaned it all up. It was still shifting great but that chain has over 3,100 km on it and since I brought three spares, it was time to replace. Amazingly the tires are still in top shape.

At 4 pm, we had a “Pisco Sour” party, organized by Wim. We all contributed some money and we had 3 liters of home made Pisco Sour, lots of snacks and other drinks. It was also a birthday party for both John (65 today) and Wijnand so we had a couple of big delicious cakes. It was also a going away party for Niek, Elke, Wim, California Chris and unfortunately for Kees who has to go back to Holland for medical reasons. And it was a welcome party for Greg, Michael, Bianca and Raymon who have joined us for the next couple of sections to Salta. It was a great success, very fun. It went on through dinner when we ordered a few pizzas. It so felt like a Sunday night although it’s Friday – we have to go to work tomorrow.

Stages 37-38 of 109 Abancay to Cusco via bushcamp in Limatambo, Days 49-50 of 142

• Stage 37: 115.6 km, 2,421m climb, 6:46, hot!
• Stage 38: 77.5 km, 1,425m climb, 4:34

Where	Distance	Dirt	Climb	EFI
South America	3,295	554	44,702
Andes Trail	3,013	545	41,092	X
Ecuador	912	30	16,265	✓
Peru	2,101	515	24,827	X

Missed distance 282 km, 3.5 stages (19, 20, 31, 32)

It’s hard to imagine we’re only just over a third of the way done with this crazy trip. But that’s what it is. We’ve just completed the third of the nine sections. From the schedule, it’s 3,356 km of 10,943 km total. And 48 km of climbing out of the 111 km total. Who even measures climbing in kilometers?

Stage 37, the “very hard day”, started with a steady climb, 35 km long, ascending from Abancay at 2,400m to a pass at 4,000m. While the road was good and the views got better and better, it’s mostly a mental game of getting yourself to just keep spinning up and up and up. We had a nice lunch up top, then a 60 km descent down to 1,800m where it was hot. I don’t know how hot but my Garmin said 43°C (109.4°F). Boiling. From there, it was a 20 km climb, up 900m, to a campsite at an Inca Ruins that was quite nice. Halfway up it was getting later and cooler which was nice. There was a shop across the street that sold ice cream and beer in 1.1 liter bottles. We had a nice dinner, hung out talking for a while, then went to bed around 8:30. I think most people who rode the whole way were tired (except Wytze of course). I slept nine hours, soundly!

https://www.relive.cc/view/veqzDMN2ABO

In the morning, it was breakfast at 7, and there was no dew at all so packing up was a breeze. There were ant problems; they get into anything food-like, especially water bottles that had electrolyte stuff in them. Instead of a 35 km climb straight from camp we had a 25 km one today, only climbing 1,000m, so easy!

Instead of a 2,200m descent it was only a few hundred meters, then a longish section to about 52 km where we had lunch. Soon, powered by burritos, gumdrops and gummy bears, I took off with Andrew and Jan and we cranked out the last 25 km to Cusco. The climb near the end wasn’t that bad really, only 300m and gentle. We came over the hill and had a pretty good view of the big city of Cusco from above. We wound down to town, then wrestled with increasingly bad traffic. Finally it was just a gridlock in both directions.

Eventually we made it onto the sidewalk and proceeded walking at 2 kph with the pedestrians. We could ride the last 850m on bumpy cobblestones and then we were at the hotel. It was nice to see Kees, Marc, Carol, Gareth and healthy Kirsten all looking relaxed. I met a couple of new riders who will be with us until Salta. Soup was excellent, then we had hot showers!

At 5, we had a “briefing” for the trip to the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu. It will be very touristy of course but should be fun. At 6, we went out for beers and found a great bar. We had dinner and a couple of rounds, then went to another place which wasn’t as good, then back to the original (Cholo’s) for a final round. We were with Javier, a cyclist from San Francisco who has been riding from Vancouver for 17 months. We had ridden with him a bit during the day and look forward to meeting him when we get back from Machu Picchu, He plans to get to Ushuaia a couple of months later than us. We had SO much fun it was just great. Inti Puntu IPA FTW!!!!

https://www.relive.cc/view/vxOQA8gL4MO

Stages 35-36 of 109 Andahuayles to Abancay via 3,600m bushcamp, Days 47-48 of 142

• Stage 35: 68.3 km, 1,830m climbing, 5:16, 58 km dirt
• Stage 36: 73.2 km, 1,170m climbing, 3:32, 10 km dirt, very hot!

We had an early breakfast in Andahuayles and it seemed like no one was super motivated about the ride, I know I wasn’t. Quite a few people had medical issues: Kees took a taxi to Cusco to get his heart checked. Kirsten was sick as a dog so she and Gareth also headed for Cusco, skipping the next 4 stages. Marc rode 35 and 36, then headed to Cusco for dental work before our Machu Picchu trip. Yvonne had a great attitude but was doomed to ride in the van to Cusco due to her knee stitches.

After breakfast, it was a familiar feeling, starting out all uphill, all the time. Andrew and I cranked out of town and up and up, to a dirt road turnoff at 9 km around 3,300m. Rob had given us the alternative of taking the paved road but most people had decided on the dirt route – with GPS track but no lunch truck. Many people changed their tune at the intersection and continued on the pavement but we turned off, braved a construction zone and soon were at the first summit. About a dozen ended up on the dirt option. Then down the muddy road to Lake Pacucha which was pretty, but we had to take a diversion due to construction and fooled around a bit along the lake. The lake is such a pretty natural resource you would think the roads would be paved to attract more visitors. Most stuff in Peru is not designed around tourism though. Eventually we were back on track and climb #2 started – back up to 3,400m, with some steep dirt up to 13%. The view from the summit though was worth it – pretty amazing.

After snacks, we headed down a fun descent. The dirt road switched back and forth for a long way, dropping us down over 700m to a little town called Quillabamba where most of us regrouped and ate whatever food we had for lunch. California Chris had a dog-induced crash but sustained just a scratch on her knee. It was fun to catch up with everyone, then we had a short easy descent, and finally a long long climb to camp. Climb #3 was 900m, steep and steady with slowly improving views the whole way. We rode through a village and then finally made it to the paved road, then did the last kilometer to camp, high on a pass, by some Inca ruins, at 3,600m.

It was around 3 pm when we rolled in, a group of four. It was already kind of cold and windy, but on the plus side, no sandflies. I set up my tent then spied some snowy gorgeous high mountains and climbed up to a little point by camp to see better. From there I could see down to the Inca ruins where Henk had wanted to camp so walked down there with several others. It was another amazing place – the Incas certainly had style when it came to picking locations. You could see great mountain views in all directions.

Many photos were taken, then it was time to head back for an early (due to cold) dinner. It was tasty with chocolate mousse for dessert. The wine for once was not tasty, but the beer fairy (Martin) had visited my tent earlier so I was supplied.

After dinner, many people were pretty cold and retreated to tents although the cook crew and others cranked loud music for a couple of hours and had a fun (but cold) time. I was wearing two jackets, thick wool gloves, warm hat etc and was not warm by any stretch. In my tent, I didn’t bother to take off any clothes and got in my sleeping bag, watched a Netflix show, then went out to pee and went to sleep at 8:30. I woke up at 1 am and peed again – it was all mysterious looking with mist and bright moon light.

https://www.relive.cc/view/vXvLYAKr31O

In the morning we had a super-relaxed time due to an 8:30 breakfast. The sun was partially out, sometimes drying the very wet tent flies. The dew was thick for the first time. During breakfast the sun came out harder and my whole tent was soon dry for packing. We took off at 9:30 and immediately were cruising down at 60, down a gorgeous smooth road. But it didn’t last too long – we got down to 3,000m then had to crank back up 450m. On the plus side I got to visit both California and Los Angeles.

Then the real descent Rob had talked up started. This one went from 3,450m to 1,800m with lunch near the bottom at the 45 km mark. It was so different down there, warm (hot almost) and unfortunately with quite a few sandflies. A couple of guys skipped lunch but I stayed and ate when it was ready. Jan, Andrew and I took off and finished the descent, crossing a beautiful river (rare in Peru) at the bottom. Then we had a classic “Rob Climb” (according to Andrew). You sucker everyone in with a killer long descent, then pick a super steep rocky dirt road to climb for at least 10 km. This one had the bonus feature of the air temperature being like a furnace. It was sort of a grind but at least there wasn’t any traffic to speak of. Others who took the paved option complained of lots of traffic. We went up and up, Andrew had two flats, and finally we came to Abancay. The last few km were so ugly it was kind of depressing. Do not move here. If you live here, find a way to move away.

It was quite a climb even in the town but finally we got to the “Saywa Hotel”, which is surprisingly nice. We got a nice double room, pounded my remaining beer which had stayed cold in my bag, then had hot showers. Cold would’ve been ok here but hot is a bonus. We had a couple of rounds of delicious soup, then I pounded a couple of ice creams from across the street and relaxed until dinner. The stats don’t really tell it all for today – 1,170m climbing – sounds easy, right? Then we noticed the message in the dining room. Rob pretty much never says anything is “Very hard”.

It was Sunday again, the worst night for going out to dinner. The first dozen restaurants I looked at on Google were closed but Antony’s Pizzeria was open and served up some yummy pizzas and beers. Andrew, Wim and I had a nice dinner, topped off by ice cream bars in the square, watching the kids drive around in battery powered cars. By 7:30, we were back in the room ready for sleep. The last thing I did is have a video chat with the riders who had just finished the famous San Francisco Unicycle tour (70 km, 1,000m climb, an all-day fun fest of unicycling or biking to all the famous spots in SF). I got to see and talk to Gary who is now the only person to have done it every year since 2003, plus many others. You really have to love the technology that allows connecting like this! Congratulations to everyone who did the SF Uni Tour this year!

https://www.relive.cc/view/vdvmB858GNO

Stage 34 of 109 Chincheros to Andahuayles, Day 45 of 142

73.3 km, 1,640m, 5:12, 49 km dirt

Four of us woke up in our hostal room around 6:15 and got ready for breakfast. Martin was finally feeling better and able to ride which was great. I ate a good breakfast and we started riding just after 8 am. The ride was funny – not a single bit of level or downhill for the first 19 km. We climbed from 2,800m to 3,750m smoothly and steadily, with no break at all. The temp was pretty cold – I could just barely stand shorts and short sleeves. The last couple of km were a pain – the same body position for 1:45 makes for a sore butt. On top, lunch was set up inside some kind of customs hut. It was a normal lunch but it was not even 10 am. I only could eat one small burrito and a couple of pieces of pineapple. It was pretty cold and everyone was adding lots of clothes.

We had two choices here: the vans were going on the paved road to Andahuayles which started out with a climb to 4,200m. That didn’t sound too appetizing to me and only two people I think ended up riding that way. The rest of us headed down a rough dirt/rock road. I waited for Tom and we rode the whole thing together which was great. It was drizzling a little on top but very soon, that stopped and it got warmer and nicer and nicer. The road was pretty damn rough but these bikes of ours are so damn amazing that it seemed to not matter. Pretty soon we found ourselves stopping time and time again to take photos. The DEEP canyons and giant mountains everywhere, with cultivation on impossible slopes, roads in impossible places – were just great. We kept going down, through some tiny and seemingly super-remote villages, and all the people we passed seemed friendly. Tom had brought some candies and gave some to a few kids as we passed.

After many km of this I was starting to think this was the best stage so far of the whole tour. And it kept getting better! The views were always changing and the scale so immense it was like riding in the Himalayas. We caught up to a few other riders who were likewise entranced and stopping often. We rode in a larger group for a while, down some amazing steep switchbacks.

We had some food, reduced clothes, then we hit our low point, around 2,700m, and started climbing again. Tom and I just blasted up and it felt easy. We did have a few bad dog encounters – one time I was leading and three came at me, fast and mean. I just blazed ahead, really fast down the rocky rough road but the dogs kept pace barking like maniacs. Tom and Wim stopped to see how I would fare and then I had to slow for a turn and feared the worst. But it was so bumpy it seemed like they couldn’t get close enough to bite and soon they stopped chasing. Heart rate was high.

We had to climb back up to 3,200m, then some more descending, still very bumpy. We just went at a safe and sane speed and after starting another climb, had less than 10 km to go. The last 5 km or so was paved which was nice. We got to the town of Talavera, 5 km from the end, and Tom was bonking. We stopped at the square and he bought a pretty amazing amount of pastries and coke for the equivalent of 3€. He was so happy! We sat at the town square eating and just loving the moment. Some other riders came by and Wim decided to finish with us. We had to navigate a construction zone then had a few more dog attacks (scary ones), then finally made it to Andahuayles. Andrew showed me later where one bit his shoe leaving a hole all the way through. I kicked at one, full extension of the leg, just missing its nose and for once, it worked. The hotel was just off the main road and in a minute we were reliving the ride with the others, eating delicious hot soup. What a day! I shook Rob’s hand and told him it was the best. How he ever found these routes and then had the balls to take a large tour group like this over them is beyond me but I am so grateful.

Better still, we have a rest day tomorrow! Although our shower is not even close to warm. Minor downer on a majorly fun day. Quote from Andrew: “A hot shower is a core deliverable for a hotel.” Also there was at least one injury I heard about – requiring stitches but presumably nowhere near as bad as the epic Huanuco descent (stage 24). Speaking of that, we heard from Holland that Karin won’t be able to rejoin us after her shoulder surgery. Her recovery period will be too long. But her 23 year old son may take her place. Marc recovered from stage 24 and has been riding with us for the last few stages although the inside of his mouth still is not all happy. He sure has a great attitude. My scabs from stage 24 are busy falling off these days.

Around 6:30 ten of us went out for dinner and ended up splitting into two groups of five. Our group ended up in a nice, warm, good-smelling local restaurant. I was hoping for tallarin con langostino but it turned out not today. So a veggie pizza. Not eating beef and chicken makes Peru difficult. It was a nice relaxed dinner but we did’t get back until the late hour of 9. Time for sleep!

[Update in the morning: Yvonne’s knee required ten stitches, inside and out. She was very happy with the medical care at the hospital here in Andahuayles – the bill was only 70 soles ($21). She’ll be off the bike to Cusco but should be ok to go to Machu Picchu. And our shower now emits steaming hot water, so all is good.]

https://www.relive.cc/view/vPv4JBd2YR6

Stages 29-31 of 109 Huancayo to Ayacucho via two bushcamps, Days 39-41 of 142

• Stage 29 Huancayo to bushcamp, 97.2 km, 1,075m climb, 4:28, 2 km dirt
• Stage 30 Bushcamp to Sandfly Bushcamp, 84.6 km, 960m climb, 3:47, 10 km dirt
• Stage 31 Sandflies to Ayacucho, sick, rode in the van

Where	Distance	Dirt	Climb	EFI
South America	2,835	437	36,216
Andes Trail	2,553	428	32,606	X
Ecuador	912	30	16,265	✓
Peru	1,641	398	16,341	X

Missed distance: 178 km, 2.5 stages.

We had a great rest day in Huancayo September 5. Staying in the luxury hotel was so nice; it’s the best accommodation on the whole tour supposedly. After the giant awesome breakfast, we did our normal rest day “bike love” session, washing, cleaning, lubing, checking etc. Amazingly my bike has needed nothing but chain lube, one cable adjustment early on, and love. I’ve only pumped up the tires a couple of times. Then we explored the town a bit. There was a great market district right behind the hotel where you could buy anything. For example, if you take a left at the Sex Shop pretty soon you’re in the shoelace district. Many nice shops with thousands of shoelaces all displayed. I guess a town of nearly 500,000 people need a lot. Keep going and you get to the rat poison district, then the pet/pet food district etc. Lunch was at a kind of health food place, delicious Trucha a la Plancha plus an immense jugo de lúcuma. Dinner was at a nice restaurant that had real IPA from Huaraz. All in all, a great day.

Stage 29 started out with a nicer and shorter ride though town, then easy for a few km to our big climb. It was forecast to rain but didn’t. The climb was ok, climbing 700m in 17 km. Wytze and Rob set an amazingly sane pace and soon we were on top. One bad thing was that in stage 28, Wtyze had been bitten in the calf by a dog so needed a series of rabies shots. He and Chris looped back to Huancayo after the climb. They did a double stage the next day to catch up to us – plus they got to stay at the luxury hotel an extra night. From 3,900m, we had a huge descent, quite fun and scenic, about 1,200m to a bushcamp by the side of the road. It was nice to be lower down and even with donkeys, cows and pigs running through the camp, it was fun. Watching Jens chase a little pig that got his bananas was comical. We had an excellent campfire but a little rain shower drove some to their tents early.

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In the morning, it was a strange situation: 9 km down the road there was a 8 am-11 am road closure for construction. We decided not to try and make it through early (since the next camp was rumored to be infested with sandflies). Instead we had a super relaxed breakfast of pancakes and french toast, packed up, then rode to the closure, waited 30 minutes and were finally let through. There was a giant landslide and the whole thing looked super unsafe. The road guys had a drone to check stuff out which was smart. We had another stop halfway though and finally about 11:30 were on our way. The road was mostly descending but had lots of short climbs. Some parts were maybe half paved and it was super dusty. Giant trucks kick up so much dust even going slow. Finally I pulled in to the camp a little before 4, surprised to be the second one there. Niek had checked out the town 800m away and found hotel rooms for 30 soles that a number of people upgraded to. Andrew and Jens didn’t stop at camp – they went straight to town to fetch beer. The sandflies were out as advertised so instantly leg warmers and gloves went on. We hung out, then I did a beer run with Martin and Tom and bought all the cans from two places. The town was very small but the people super friendly. Chris and Wytze arrived pretty early from Huancayo having done 180 km, maybe a little tired. Dinner was after dark since the sandflies go to sleep then, and it was surprisingly pleasant. There wasn’t much to do after so I went to bed. I didn’t sleep well and around midnight things went bad. I got up just to pee, but about 3 steps from the tent, my stomach suddenly emptied itself. I didn’t really feel bad or anything so it was a surprise. Didn’t sleep well the rest of the night.

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In the morning, diarrhea hit in force, and it was a real pain trying to go to the bathroom with the thick sandflies everywhere. I was planning to try to ride but I couldn’t really eat breakfast and carrying my bags over was hard so I joined David on the sick list in Henk’s van that goes straight to the destination with the bags. It was a record-breaking departure – fastest ever breakfast and loading. Everyone wanted out. I felt worse and worse, very weak, as we drove; there was no way I could’ve done the ride which was 78 km with 1,400m climbing. I mostly slept then we arrived in the city of Ayacucho (pop 180,000). Navigation was tricky with one way streets and we cleared one wire by 1 cm but we got to the hotel around 11 am. A few minutes later Wytze arrived – he is just a super man. After I got a room and a beautiful hot shower, I went straight to sleep, and woke up a couple hours later for soup. Then another two hour nap during which my awesome roommates Andrew and Martin went shopping for food and water and juice and beer of course for them. Later ten of us went out for dinner at a great restaurant on the square. Most of the rest of the crew was there too it seemed – I guess everyone reads Trip Advisor. I had most of a veggie quinoto (risotto made with quinoa) dish and a milkshake. It felt like I was pushing it so I went home early and went straight to bed. The next riding day is a tough one, only 78 km, but almost 1,900m climbing and lots of dirt, so I am going to do everything I can tomorrow on the rest day to recover my strength.

Stages 25-28 of 109 Huanuco to Huancayo via 2 hostals and a camp, Days 34-37 of 142

• Stage 25 Huanuco to Cerro de Pasco, 103.2 km, 2,452m, 7:10, 42 km dirt
• Stage 26 Cerro de Pasco to Junin, 82.6 km, 531m, 4:18, 55 km dirt
• Stage 27 Junin to Trout Farm camp, 90 km, 505m, 3:34, 4 km dirt
• Stage 28 Trout Farm camp to Huancayo, 107.7 km, 1,453m, 6:32, 56 km dirt

Where	Distance	Dirt	Climb	EFI
South America	2,653	425	34,181
Andes Trail	2,371	416	30,571	X
Ecuador	912	30	16,265	✓
Peru	1,459	386	14,306	X

Missed distance: 100 km, 1.5 stages.

After a relaxing rest day in Huanuco where we had to say good-bye to Dutch Karin on her way home for shoulder surgery, we set out on our biggest climbing day of the whole tour. It was over 8,000′ up to a high mining town called Cerro de Pasco. This town is at about 4,300m (over 14,000′), the highest we’ll sleep on the whole tour. The route started out gently climbing to lunch at 60 km going up a river valley. After lunch we turned off on a side dirt road that followed a pretty stream up a nice valley, but it was quite a bit steeper and of course rougher. There were km markers counting down the distance to our goal, starting at 42. The first 10 km were quite hard, then the middle section was easier, but I think just about everyone was reduced to very low speed on the final 10 km. Those last three switchbacks up to the giant smelly garbage dump were particularly steep and tough. When I rolled into the hotel at about 5 pm with Jan and Jens and Chris, I was really used up. It was hard to climb the stairs to get to the soup! Many of us had to stay in a different hostal, which had tricky showers – we gave up on ours after Andrew turned himself blue trying to get something other than ice water out. The restaurant choice was super limited so we went back to the original hostal and ate there. Things started looking up as we got giant beers and then delicious large dinners. I had trucha encebollada (trout with onions) which was great. Back at our place, I scored a hot shower in Martin’s room, then it was 8 pm and time for a long sleep. Outside it was -3°C and inside maybe warmer but the pipes did freeze. We slept under big piles of thick blankets. Some rooms had electric blankets but not ours. Martin said the altitude made him breathless when he turned over in bed because the blankets were so heavy. I slept super well as I seem to be fine with the altitude.

https://www.relive.cc/view/gh39926222453

The truck came before 8 to get our baggage then we walked back to the other hostal for breakfast. The typical. Then time to ride. The sun was out partially but it was cold and the few of us going bare-legged had our sanity questioned. But it wasn’t that bad and after some climbing in town we were blasting down the highway. The trucks were a little scary but it was only 26 km until we turned off on a dirt road that was relatively level, all the way to Junin. Rob was with us but when the pavement ended, I think he accelerated. He was gone in minutes – such an amazing cyclist. Lunch was at halfway, very nice in a little village. We were riding past Lago Chinchaycocha, a large lake at 4,100m with flamingos and other birds. There was little traffic on the road, but everyone I talked to hated it by the end. Somehow the last 10 km was just plain hard even though it was relatively flat. Jan and I finally made it together. Junin is a small town also at 4,100m with a lively square. We found the hostal and again, had to go sleep at another one. A local guy with a funny tricycle carted our luggage over; we followed on bikes. The place was small and cramped but Jan, Andrew and I all scored single rooms. Mine had windows on two sides and a shower that worked! After cleaning up we rode back over for soup, then went out on the town. At a pasteleria we had cake (and brought in beers), then Martin, Andrew and I sat like bums in the central square/park drinking beers and people watching until 5 pm, time for dinner. Since there weren’t restaurants, our Bike Dreams kitchen crew cooked us dinner and it was great. Also it was so nice and easy to just sit down and eat instead of searching for a decent place. After dinner we rode back at dark, and since the internet didn’t work in my room, I watched a couple of downloaded Netflix shows then went to sleep, again under a thick pile of heavy blankets. Like the previous night there was a sort of flannel bottom sheet but no top sheet, just the pile of wool blankets. Sleeping well was no problem.

https://www.relive.cc/view/gh39973615615

September 3: we woke up and rode over to the other hostal, with the tricycle man busy bringing a mountain of luggage over. After breakfast, the weather was looking a little dicey and we each had a choice to make. There are two different routes for stage 27 and we had both gpx files so could ride either. The longer easier one would be supported with lunch so I chose that one – also it was nearly all paved – I was tired of those dirt roads. About ten people including Mr Bike Dreams Rob took the harder route. It featured a 1,500m descent on the crappiest of rocky dirt “roads” you could imagine. And beautiful scenery at up to 4,500m. Our route was down the highway, easy out of town. After 15 km we stopped to put on rain gear but the rain was just stopping and it wasn’t that bad. We had a 7 km climb back up to 4,200m and we removed shoe covers etc on top. Then the fun started. It was a 1,200m perfect descent! You only had to brake on the few hairpins, we passed trucks in the left lane, it was scenic and getting warmer as we dropped. Lunch was halfway down, a perfect spot. Wijnand, our awesome lunch truck driver, was in a super good mood, giving cookies to local kids, cranking great music for us, and lunch was even better than usual. Avocados and yesterday’s quinoa salad added to the normal power burritos! He had picked a spot by a little church and it was perfect. The funniest thing was everyone screaming at Kees as he rocketed by – he loves descending so much he just blew by. I had ridden with a great group led by Wim and after lunch we continued together. The town below called Tarma was kind of a hell hole. Construction, terrible roads, the route impassable in several places – I don’t know why Rob said we would like to visit it. We got out as quick as possible and continued down the valley to a dirt road turnoff. A later group got to watch the sign blow over and nearly smash a car. The last 4 km was up the dirt road to a fantastic Trout Farm Rob had found on the previous trip. Smooth level green grass for our tents, trout pools everywhere, little buildings and a swimming pool, nice shaded tables to sit, and cold beer. I had arrived first for once since all the fast guys were busy with the harder route. We had all afternoon to kill drinking beer and eating snacks and greeting everyone as they arrived. Niek was the first in from the harder route, an hour after us, with tales of the crazy descent. No one else from that route came in for quite a while. After a nap, we had one of the best dinners of any camp: fresh trout cooked by Maria, the local cook. Plus potatoes and beets and then a yummy sweet dessert with whipped cream. I was serving this time which was actually fun, rushing out of the kitchen with three plates of trout, then back, repeat until everyone is served. The rushing water of the trout ponds made me sleep really well.

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Our 4th stage in a row was a big one. It started raining after breakfast so everyone was all rain geared but then it stopped while we were loading the trucks. No one knew what to wear and the temp kept changing so we just headed up the hill and made a few clothing stops. I rode with Tom and we had a great time although sometimes it was hard to keep talking on the steepest parts. The dirt road was mostly fine but the first 10 km was steep.

We stopped for a banana and sunscreen break at 24 km then found the lunch truck was set up just 500m after that. It started raining again during lunch so the same clothing questions started again. We just rode and rode – the whole climb was 39 km long and we climbed 1,300m. After lunch I rode with Miranda and it really helps to have someone to talk to and ride with on climbs like this. At the top Jan joined us for about 20 km of semi-steep dirt road, not too bad but you have to really pay attention on the corners. We stopped multiple times to take photos as the views were just amazing. The lighting was so cool. At the bottom Swiss Karin caught us – her front shock was frozen solid and her back one leaking air but she just doesn’t care and rides fast anyway. We had still a long way on dirt, with my chain making “I want lube now” noises but still shifting perfectly. Finally we hit pavement and it was great for a second until we turned into the wind. We had 45 km of this left and it was after 3 pm. We had also picked up Lambert and he took the lead into the wind, but then sometimes it was a side or tail wind so it really wasn’t so bad. Plus it was gently downhill. We took a food/Inca Kola break. Jan bought us everything and a big beer for himself. Then back at it. Around 90 km we entered Huancayo, a big city of 450,000 people at 3,250m. Traffic got crazier and crazier until around 100 km it was almost silly. Taxis and cars going every way, with the five of us trying to stay together weaving in and out. At one point there was a big downhill with total gridlock so we rode the wrong side of the road – scary but fun. Our hotel was just off this main road, right in the center of town. It was SO nice to arrive, and before 5 pm. No soup but we had cakes and other treats, then, the best shower in two months of travel in South America! The Hotel Turismo Huancayo is THE place to stay when you come here. Trust me. We’ve now completed the second of the nine Andes Trail sections, so we can lose and gain riders here. It turns out we don’t lose anyone but gain an Australian couple, Pip and John, who know some of our riders from previous Bike Dreams trips. Seven of us went out to a nice dinner at a regular Peruvian restaurant, telling all the fun stories of tour life to Pip and John. After dinner I had a great time in the hotel bar until about midnight with Wytze, Bastiaan, Wim, Andrew and Martin. Pisco Sours and Maracuya Sours, really expensive here (20 soles each, the cost of a dinner) but so tasty. Hanging out with these guys is worth so much more. We’ve been though 28 amazing stages together, and we’re like a big family. I never expected it to be so great. We’ve completed 25% of the riding stages now. I can’t believe this goes on and on and on until December!

https://www.relive.cc/view/gh40088820073

Stages 21-24 of 109 Huaraz to Huanuco via 3 bushcamps, Days 29-32 of 142

• Stage 21 Huaraz to 4200m bushcamp: 56 km, 1,207m climb, 3:47, 13 km dirt
• Stage 22 Over 4883m pass: 84.6 km, 1,064m climb, 5:30, 42 km dirt
• Stage 23: 50.61 km, 913m climb, 3:37, 30 km dirt
• Stage 24 with craziest descent: 98.5km 1,224m, 6:04,  88 km dirt

Whew, what an intense few days of cycling and living! I was really happy to wake up on August 27 in Huaraz feeling pretty much full strength. After missing a day and a half of riding, it was SO good to get back on the bike. The route was pretty easy on paper, a quick 40 km up the valley on a nicely paved road, then lunch and 13 km of dirt climbing to camp. It turned out it was easy to lunch, but the rough, steep road and headwind made riding to our camp at 4,200m (13,780′) tough. We did make it though and camp was nice: flush toilets in the bathroom, a nice meadow for our tents, friendly alpacas and a 10+ view. Dinner was at 4:30 due to cold and I was in bed before dark, soon after 6 pm. This is the highest camp of the whole Andes Trail Tour.

https://www.relive.cc/view/gh39707958379

I slept long and hard and felt a little stronger and better in the morning. Breakfast was at 8 am and we didn’t start riding until 9:30. All night and all through breakfast the wind did not let up. It even snowed (frozen rain actually) for a while around 6 am. The sun was out when we headed up the rough dirt road, straight into the wind, steep for a long time. The first pass was 4,820m about 18 km in, and now there was frozen rain coming down instead of sunshine and it was very cold. I had on all four layers on top plus thick wool gloves. Didn’t stop for much there. Andrew and Jens get the iron man award for doing it bare-legged. Then down a ways and back up. Lunch was on the second climb, at one point we had ten of us in the truck cab with a giant blanket over all of us. There was an accident with our large sunshades blowing over the top of the truck, then we ate very fast, then the next 10 km or so of climbing to the high point of the whole Andes Trail Tour – 4,883m, a bit over 16,000′. It wasn’t as cold here so we regrouped and took photos – the view in all directions was stunning. Peaks everywhere. We were IN the Andes for sure now. Although this is not a high altitude compared to those peaks. After a few rough km of descent, we hit the paved road and cruised 40 km to camp. It was so nice to be back in the warm thick air at 3,300m (just under 11,000′). We camped by a loud river and had a great dinner. A sheep herder herded right through our camp and there were a few spectators but all in all a good place. Bed right after dinner, maybe 7 pm.

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On the 29th, we had another 8 am breakfast/9 am start which was nice. Still to this point we hadn’t had to pack up the tents wet. The sun turns on like a light around 7 am. We had a short ride down the same dirt road to a village, then turned up on a … paved road! It had been paved since the previous Andes Tour in 2016. It was a nice 350m climb up to a plateau. We had some flat cruising (first in a long time), passed the truck set up for lunch at 13 km, then rode to some Inca ruins. It didn’t look very great but we paid and walked in anyway and it turned out to be quite good. The old no-mortar style of building with quite large stones, all cut at non-square angles. Then back for lunch and the fun started. We headed up a dirt road, climbing climbing climbing back up to 4,000m, then down and down and down, the last part very rough – Simon was loving the full suspension bike he’s been dragging around. We ended at a gorgeous camp on the river. It was private and comfortable and after setting up tents, many of us went in for a swim – a wash really since we had just done three full dirty days with no washing to speak of. It was super cold of course and I couldn’t get deeper than about waist deep. My hands would freeze when I tried to put them in. Wytze solved it for me by starting a massive splash war against me. So I dove in and got clean. I didn’t shampoo like everyone else, but getting all the dust out was great. Dinner was at 6:30 and then I watched Netflix until 9 something and went to sleep listening to the river.

https://www.relive.cc/view/gh39815917425

The 24th stage didn’t look too bad on paper: bit of an 800m climb, but spread out over 40 km. Then a 60 km descent which was paved in 2012 or 2014. Rob said it might be a little not so good though. The king of understatement. Breakfast at 7, wet tents, depart at 8:15. The climb back to 4,000m again was beautiful with steep parts but generally ok since we are acclimated well now, and some of it was paved. I saw the cutest piglets ever and rode once with sheep touching both legs at the same time. But the whole 60 km long 2,100m (almost 7,000′) descent was a non-stop construction zone, crazy rough dirt, sometimes that deep powder stuff that is really crappy to ride. I didn’t find out until later but they closed the road soon after Andrew and I started down so others had to take an even worse route with 200m of extra bonus climbing. Our route was pretty horrendous but Andrew kept the pace perfect and we had done close to 1/3 of it when Miranda/Martin/Karin came cruising by, going faster on their wider tires. I made the mistake of following them and crashed a few km later – slippery, tricky, deep powder over rocks. Karin helped me and I was super happy it was just some scratches and no bike damage at all. I love my bike now so much. I rode down with Andrew and we caught them later having drinks at a little shop. I sat down and soon a gorgeous young woman noticed my knee. She brought water, cotton swabs, alcohol and hydrogen peroxide and started doctoring me. Her mother (I think) was watching closely. She was so competent and perfect – it was really amazing. Miranda donated a bandage and soon I was fixed up. They wouldn’t take any money and when I asked for a photo, it took several minutes for her to fix her already absolutely perfect hair. It’s just amazing where they live, basically halfway up a truly hellish road, very far from town. I can’t imagine it. And they are SUCH friendly, helpful and wonderful people. Andrew said it was going to extremes but it was almost worth crashing.

From there we still had over 30 km to go and it was a ride from hell. First we came upon Karin, down. She had fallen and broken or dislocated her shoulder. She was in massive pain. We worked with a highway guy and got a taxi to take her with Miranda to the hospital. She will have to return to Holland for surgery – I am so so sorry for her – she’s been a fantastic part of our tour family. Wim and Martin did the hero’s job of waiting for the van – very long time – to get their bikes loaded. We continued down and soon were in long lines of trucks and cars trying to get by landslides and construction areas. It was a total zoo. We even found and passed our first van and told them about the accident. Then we met Big Chris fixing a flat with Jens. And David caught us so we all continued together to Huanuco. After forever, we finally hit pavement and that was a fantastic moment. Then Chris pumped up to I don’t know how fast but he held it even on the short uphills. The last part was a blur, and we got through town and finally spotted the Hotel Real, right on a big square. It was just past 4 pm. But how does Wytze do it? He was sitting on a chaise lounge by the pool, sipping a beer, seemingly not dirty or anything. There were no bags or rooms yet so he couldn’t’ve showered. He and Niek had taken the longer way and they took 5:35 elapsed (5:05 riding) arriving before 2pm. We took 7:50 and others finished hours after us, in the dark. Anyway, we had our beers, got rooms and luggage, barely lukewarm showers, then bought beers for more riders arriving. We heard more sad news: Marc had crashed hard on his face and was also at the hospital. Three or four others besides me had non-serious crashes – best one was Joan who fell over at 0 kph and skinned her knee. Later, we took Martin out for a pizza dinner with a bottle of Peruvian wine, then Pisco Sours (Maracuya for me) at a bar. What an epic day! We thought the big day riding to 4,883m was epic, but the scale got reset today. I hope it doesn’t reset again although I think it might…Stage 25 on paper looks harder than anything we’ve done yet…

https://www.relive.cc/view/r10007946339