Day 108 - Km572 to Km620: Only 52km in 6 hours
We were feeling drained from the nightmare cycle into the wind so we planned any easy day of 50 odd kilometres to Chala. However, as we came out of the valley of the Lost City the wind smacked us in the face and to add to the mix the there were little to no down hills so we only got to our destination after a gruelling 6 hours of cycling!
Day 109 - Km620 to 704Km: Things start to improve
The cycle that day wasn't too bad but the skies were still grey arriving in Atico with enough time to catch up on some emails and make dinner. Atico isn't really much more than a stop off point for passing trucks and cars so it only added to the greyness of it all.
Day 110 - Km704 to 784: Breathtaking views
We left early that morning because we figured the earlier we get going hopefully the better the weather and the sooner we got the hell out of the horrid section of highway. That day turned out to be one of the toughest yet from a terrain perspective rising to over 400m and back to sea level more than 5 times that day but we had good weather and amazing views over the coastline which made it all worth it.
We eventually got to the top of the last hill and came round the corner where we were presented with a beautiful view down over the town of Ocoña and the valley that it was is in. A tour bus full of German tourists had stopped to take pictures and boy did they get a treat when we came flying around the corner.
We stayed at a nice little hostel that night. It had no name but all the locals knew to direct people the the house with the flowers. As nice as the place was though in these towns the water generally gets turned off sometime in the evening so by the morning the toilets reek!
Day 111 - Km784 to Km840: To stay on the coast or go inland
Our map did not show a road continuing along the coast which meant we would have to follow the highway inland towards Arequipa ascending to over 1400m more than once before reaching the border with Chile. The last town before heading inland was Camana which was only 60km away so we decided to cycle there then give ourselves the rest of the day off to determine if we could continue along the coast to the next town called Mollendo.
Our map definitely did not show a road and no matter how hard I looked on google maps I could out find a road, other than a sketchy dirt one up through a valley, but Mark's guide book showed a road so we got our hopes up that we could avoid the premature Andean climb. We asked around town and everybody said we had to head inland and then back to the coast to get to Mollendo so we decided to just prepare ourselves for a climb and head off first thing in the morning.
Day 112 - Km840 to Km924: Friendliest village around
We climbed for 2 hours in the morning with quite a steep gradient but as we went up the weather just kept getting better. Eventually we hit the plateaux and we could see El Misti volcano and the the other mountains we had seen from Arequipa on our bus trip inland - man that was quite a sight and I just couldn't belive we had cycled all the way back there. Soon got to the top of our first inland valley descending rapidly in to Tambillo before nightfall. Tambillo is a small but beautiful little town so green and everyone in the village was unbelievably friendly. We camped on the lovely green soft school fields that night under an amazingly clear and star filled sky.
They next morning as we started to pack up a man was rather furiously waving us over. It turns out that he was the town mayor I had seen the night before and he had heard we had been looking to use the internet so was just coming over to ask if we wanted to use the PC at his home!
Day 113 - Km924 to Km1044: Death road
Given that that the weather is so much better inland we decide to stick to the inland highway to the border.
We had a good day finding a great lunch shelter out of the desert heat just at the right time. We didn't think we'd make the valley by nightfall but just as it started getting dark we saw the earth drop off before our eyes. We were still dressed for the desert heat as we started to descend into what would be practically a 20km free fall down to Fica, a little town in the valley. It started to get really dark and really cold about 10km in so we stopped put our jackets on and put a few flashy lights on the back of my bike and off we went.
When we were in Bolivia everyone asked us if we had or were going to do the infamous 'death road' downhill cycle and we said no as we were not going to pay $80 cycle down a dangerous road. Well if that road was anything like this one then we would definitely have got our moneys worth.
The road just got steeper and steeper, corners tighter, it got darker and darker to the point where were just following the white line hoping we didn't hit a stone. Then there were the buses coming in both directions and not to mention our freezing arms that were trying to control a speeding bike fully laden with off balanced goods! Needless to say we were relieved when the road finally flattened out on the valley floor.
Day 114 - Km1044 to Km1145: Death road take 2
Moquegua was the town in the next valley along but we would have to ascend to over 1400m again before getting to the valley over a 100kms away so we never thought we would get there in a day. However, again this time just before nightfall we began to descend into the valley. This time with a couple of tunnels and a vicious dog thrown into the mix but thankfully no mishaps.
Moquegua was actually a couple of kilometres off the main highway up the valley so we asked a restaurant owner if he could help us with a place to stay. Just behind his place he had a few rooms with some mattress on the floor where the police sometimes rested so he offered it to us for the night. Needless to say he is now the proud owner of a new World Cup 2010 cap.
Day 115 - Km1145 to Km1258: Sleeping at a toll gate
Today we had a great morning and easy post breakfast session ending in a valley just as the wind was begging to pick-up. We found an unused kiosk to take shelter from the wind and make our potato and tomato stew.
Later the lady opened up the kiosk and what we've found with all there places is that they'll never chase you off. They are all too happy for you to finish making use of their table and bench. We usually try buy something so as to support them but either way I don't think they mind. We have found that in some sit down restaurants you can order a cup of coffee then whip out your own food and even make an avo sarmie - one lady even brought us some sauces to go with it!
Lunch was great but soon we had gathered a crowd of people all waiting for buses taking shelter from the wind as were we. We met some lovely ladies who were just amazed by our journey and loved hearing about all the places we'd been to in Peru.
Over lunch we also met a chap from the town, Tacna, that we plan to arrive in the next day. He has given us his details and asked us to contact him when we arrive so he can take us for some ceviche. This would be great as this is the last town we will be staying in in Peru before heading for the border the following morning.
We arrived in the valley just 38km out of Tacna by nightfall but no town here just a toll gate. The manager at the toll gate has taken us in and after enjoying dinner and a great cup of hot chocolate we are just about ready to setup camp for the night on the coffee room floor.
Tomorrow we plan to be in Tacna by lunch so that we can restock our supplies before heading for Chile the next day. Rumour has it that its going to be pricey so best we enjoy our last Peruvian ceviche and shop here while we can!
See all the pics here.
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