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Chasing Summer p.025
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Jan 9th - Leymebamba to Cajamarca
Interactive map: http://www.gpsxchange.com/phpBB2/download2.php?id=1639
The hotel where I stopped is really nice
I go for my usual early morning walk...
I help pushing a car with a dead battery and an old lady to get her chicken back to the house. Everyone salutes and says Buenos dias... I like this small town.
Too bad that several streets and the plaza are in a major rework!
In this area most houses have similar wooden balconies...
Fruits, vegetables and wool are the local productions...
Of course being in nice surroundings help making this town agreeable
Before to leave I check the bike and realize that the rear brakes pads are gone, down to the metal!
I just can’t believe it since I changed them in San Augustin (south of Colombia). I don’t know how many kms ago exactly but normally, since I don’t use much the rear brake, they should have lasted for the rest of the trip. I suppose that the pads got stuck with the sticky mud but it wouldn't be the first time that bike is dirty! Damn, just before spending the whole day on a dirt road… the rear brake could have been handy!
Soon after my departure a miracle happens: the potholes disappear! That road is very seldom used and I guess there is not enough traffic to create them. That’s not to say that the road is easier but the difficulties are the ones we are used too: ruts, rocks and a bit of mud. At least you can do something about it, pick your line etc. instead of enduring those omnipresent potholes. It’s fun, it’s not raining and this is my favorite riding in Peru so far. The scenery is easy on the eyes too...
The road climbs to 3,700 m. It’s amazing to see how ‘normal’ the life seems to be for people and cows at that elevation. There are several farms scattered in the landscape and they seem to be doing pretty good.
What's there?
A road block?
They seem pretty dangerous too
To thank me for my patience they bring be a cup of warm milk. I'm not found of milk and so I decline under the eyes of those curious cows
It looks like that the road will soon enter the clouds...
Can't see much on those. But then the elevation lowers and it's always awesome to get out of the clouds ans suddenly see a new scenery.
What a life it must be to leave there, so remote from everything... but with the best view possible!
Sorry for the large number of pictures but I was indeed thrilled by this ride
Then the road goes down and down...
... towards Balsas and the bridge over the Rio Maranon at only 900 m of elevation. In just one hour the scenery has completely changed and it’s like I’m back to Mexico: it’s hot, dry and with cactus.
Normally there are gas stations everywhere here but I haven’t seen one since Chachapoyas but I have enough to reach Celendin where there is gas. Except that... the reserve light comes earlier than usual. I suppose that riding off-road + the high elevation reduces the mileage
. It should still be fine: I can see on the GPS that Celendin is really close now. That was counting without a small detail: Celedin is on the other side of a steep mountain and the road follows some incredible switchbacks.
Kind of longer than ‘as the crows fly’ hey?
So of course it happens. Right in the middle of the ascent the bike stops with the tanks empty
. I’ve passed a bus not long ago and since there is so little traffic I better get ready for when it comes!
I secure the bike on the side of the road, lock everything and take my tank bag (where is the most important stuff) with me. I finally join the ranks of all the people doing SA by bus!
It’s always scary though to leave your bike unattended in a middle of nowhere. Nothing I can do... just one of the issues of traveling solo. The bus takes 45 mn to do the 20 km or so to reach Celedin. There I secure a taxi. We go to his house to grab 2 big (3 liters) empty bottles of coke and fill them at the gas station.
On the way back to the bike, while riding fast on the narrow dirt road, the guy has plenty of questions on the trip and the life in other countries.
I’m really relieved when from the top of the mountain I see a minuscule black dot: that’s my bike expecting me! Closer I can see that my bags are still there too. Yeah!
Going up the road, this time with the bike...
You can see, way down there the Rio Maranon where I crossed it...
And going down towards Celedin
I’ve lost time with that little mishap but I should be able to reach Cajamarco tonight, just 110 kms further (no, not as the crows fly
). The road goes back up again, even higher than this morning and the potholes are back in force. In fact, contrary to what the LP says this section is worst than before Celedin. It's rainy too. I find it ironic that the fields have stone walls while the houses are in adobe.
At some point I see some white in the scenery...
I'm at very high elevation and it's cold but still, is that really snow?
It turns out that it's a good layer of hail
. I'm glad that I wasn't there when that came down!
I then reach a section where they are doing road work: the road is now larger but is extremely slippery and even with the TKC80 the bike is hard to control. Towards the end of the section I realize that I have yet another puncture, this time on the rear tire. When I think that in the US I have about a couple of punctures a year! Granted I ride 10 times less there but still. It must have something to do with their habit of throwing anything and everything by the window of their car. This time it’s a screw…
While I’m repairing a car passes by and asks if everything is all right. I answer that all is fine but they stop anyway. They must be 8 people in the pick-up so it takes some time to have them all out. But they are a very nice and educated family from Cajamarca. We discuss a but and before leaving they offer me a mango and an apple and their kindness moves me.
It’s dark when I arrive in Cajamarca and I choose (badly) a cheap hotel on the main plaza. It’s been a long day and I’m happy to have a beer and treat myself with a delicious ‘cuy’ roasted.
Jan 10th - Cajamarca to Huanchaco (close to Trujillo)
Interactive Map: http://www.gpsxchange.com/phpBB2/download2.php?id=1640
The pace and intensity of the last days is starting to take a toll on me and I want to relax a bit this morning… after updating the RR, of course! I call the KTM dealer in Lima: yep, they have the brake pads in stock. I wander around the city which is quite agreeable with its colonial architecture and mild temperature.
I like the contrast of the suit and the traditional Indian costume. Did you notice that in the whole area the very tall 'straw hats' are quite different from the other Indians' ones?
There are also many things to visit around the city but I give up: Peru is too rich on sites to visit to see them all in a short time.
I finally pack up my bike, answering dozen of questions from people in the street. I’m almost done when a young nice guy comes by and also ask question about the bike and if I had problems with it. I answer that nope, it’s been perfect so far but that I’m worry about those rear brake pads. It turns out that Yoel is the local KTM repair man and he has just received brake pads for the only 950 in town and he’s OK to sell them to me. Cool! I was not crazy about going to Lima so this works perfectly. The only bad surprise is that the Brembo pads cost $94! You have to be rich to own a KTM in those countries. Which explains why most of the +20 KTM Yoel maintains are owned by foreigners. He’s a real nice guy and his friends too. We stop first to clean the bike that is really filthy. Yoel’s friend doesn’t even want me to pay! Then we go to his shop to change the pads. This time they are the stock ones and the brake caliper and pin is clean so hopefully I will not have the same issue again. Even if it’s a dirt floor the place is really cleaned and organized.
Yoel and his brand new bike - he's racing in cross competitions.
It’s now more than time to head towards the coast: I'm sure that by now you must all be tired of the 'great nuances of green'
. The road is paved but with enough potholes to keep me on my toes.
Poor photo but I meant to show you that I saw many Indians women weaving the wool on the side of the road.
I stop for one of those great fresh fruit juices in small village. The trees on the plaza are splendid!
With the elevation going down it gets warmer. But there are still mountains which keeps the scenery interesting.
There are many rice plantations right by the river.
Some minimalist habitat
The colors are changing for sure
I see the first 'dunes' or rather rock mountains partially covered with sand
I love deserts but this one is not very nice although some sections remind me of Death Valley. (photo taken while riding)
Rick had warned me about the cops at each entrance/exit of the city: They got stopped a couple of time for supposedly speeding and had to pay the usual bribe. Knowing that, I look for them and slow down early enough when I see them. But at one point I’m stopped anyway and the cop asks for my papers. He barely looks at them and go for the ‘weak point’, the stuff that no one has: the insurance for Peru. I tell him that I don’t need one because I have international coverage but he doesn’t buy it. He shows be ‘the book’ where it’s already highlighted that I need one
. After much discussion I give up and give them the equivalent of $15.
I finally arrive close to Trujillo but I don’t feel like being in a big city and would like to see the ocean again. I opt for Huanchaco a beach place close to Trujillo. I arrive early enough to enjoy the sunset on the ocean.
While I start leaving after shooting this pic I see a tall guy running and making big signs at me: it’s Dave from Vancouver who is of course another rider. Borderline insane, but in a good way
. He wants to do the trip Santiago-Ushuaia-Vancouver on his KTM 990. He’s really fun to hang out with and we have a great time at dinner. Can you tell that he's missing his bike?
Jan 11th - Huanchaco - Huallanca
Interactive Map: http://www.gpsxchange.com/phpBB2/download2.php?id=1641
Today alternated the worst and the best.
I wake up early and wow, it's cool to see that from your room's window.
I go check the bike in the garage. Oh no, my front wheel is flat!
I don’t know when it happened but it doesn’t matter: I need to repair it. I take off the tube and the guy from the hotel tells me about a place close by that repairs tubes. Since I’m short on patches and that I have now 3 tubes to repair that seems like a great idea.
I wait for the place to open and bring the guy the tubes, asking him if the repair will hold well: ‘sure, it’s vulcanization!’ OK then. While he works on it I visit the town that doesn’t have much charm but has still an awesome beach and fishermen using the traditional narrow reed boats that were used 2000 years ago. They use it like it was a horse with a leg on each side. Besides lasting only a few months they’re pretty cool and even used for ‘surfing’. Too bad that it was too hazy for pictures.
I get back the 3 tubes for which I pay less than $ 3. The repairs seems a bit rough but if they hold…
It’s a pretty late departure today again but I still have a look at Trujillo historic center which is very nice.
I love those Arabic/Spanish balconies
Suddenly … I just can’t believe it!!! My front tire is flat again
. Someone is playing with my nerves here!!! I stop at a gas station close by and take off the tube: it’s that stupid repair that didn’t last more than 20 kms! If that guy was in front of me...
Granted it was a big hole but still.
I don’t want to use the other front one that the guy repaired fearing that it would be the same issue. I ask an attendant to watch the bike and take a cab to a motorcycle shop where I buy 2 fronts and 2 rears. They’re a Chinese brand, very thin but they cost less than $5 and there is no other alternative.
I can finally go ahead, down the coast towards Chimbote. It’s the ‘coastal road’ but in fact it’s too far from the ocean to ever see it. It’s hazy but the scenery is interesting with this sand everywhere...
... wrapping the mountains...
... invading the road.
What's surprise me is that there are patches of green cultures (sugar canes and others) right in the middle of the sand.
There were only a few beautiful spots
At Santa, just before Chimbote I take a left towards the inland. Yes, I have seen the coast now and just want to head towards the mountains again
. The nicely paved road follows the Rio Santa.
The weather is nice, the road beautiful and I really enjoy myself.
In the same time the surroundings so rocky, so ‘mineral’ are almost eerie especially since there is almost nobody else on the road.
The only town on the way is Chucicara. Charming.
Right after the road becomes dirt and continues along the Rio Santa. Pretty rough and rocky which is not a surprise considering the environment. I ride VERY carefully, obsessed by not having a puncture.
The scenery gets better and better! It’s a sort of large canyon and the colors and rock formations are splendid. Maybe because I was not expecting it (I had not read anything about it) but this road strikes me by its beauty and I’m disappointed that the pics don’t show the warmth of the colors.
There is a dozen of tunnels along the way
The resemblance with some parts of Death Valley is striking. And it lasts for miles and miles...
I also see some mines. The only one I see active is for charcoal. I'm not sure what that was...
Suddenly a (too) familiar sensation: a puncture! On the rear tire. This time I'm calm: I must be cursed, I just have to deal with it. I put a new tube in, for the 3rd time today
thanking mentally again KTM for making the removal/install of the wheels so easy
.
It's darker now but the scenery remains amazing, 10 times better that what's shown by the pictures...
Long dark tunnels...
... and threatening 'gates'
Half an hour before Yuramarca, in a very small settlement...
... I meet 2 guys on a small bike who need a gallon of gas to go North at Sihuas. I don't have much myself but they assure me that there is gas at Yuramarca so I sell them a gallon.
Then there is another guy who needs a ride towards where I go. I agree to take him on the bike. Loaded, 2 up + his backpack, the rough road ahead is going to be fun, especially when the night will come
. But the bike handles perfectly and the guy being a rider too is doing great. It’s night when arriving at Yuramarca and it seems that there is not much there! Following my passenger’s advice I go further towards Huallanca.
Now my reserve light is on
. But we make it and I secure an hostal that definitely fits in the ‘worst’ category. BTW, I discovered the secret of the super hard mattress: it’s just filled with some sort of hay and if at some point it was comfy that’s definitely not the case anymore. It smells good though.
I have dinner with my new friend who rode quite a lot around here with his Yamaha 175 enduro and he gives me good tips about the road conditions.
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