South America in Versys 650 – Latin America on a motorcycle (09): last bivouac in Bolivia –

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Latin America on a motorcycle (09): last bivouac in Bolivia

South America in Versys 650 - Latin America on a motorcycle (09): last bivouac in Bolivia -

My little walk on the Parinacota (read MNC of February 8, 21, 2013 – episode 8: the quest for DOT4) really killed me and I took 3 or 4 days to recover, but it was worth it ! If I had to do it again I would do it again, but not for one or two months just to forget the difficulty.

My little walk on the Parinacota (read) really killed me and I took 3 or 4 days to recover, but it was worth it! If I had to do it again I would do it again, but not for a month or two just to forget the difficulty.

In any case, I took the road to Potosi, a nice town where I rested for a few days, and I took the opportunity to have new brake pads redone. !

This time, I got it for 2.50 euros: I don’t think I could find cheaper. I also had a small spot weld on the suitcases. And above all, I strolled in the Potosi market, where you can find everything but not what I’m looking for…

€ 2.50 platelets

I’m actually preparing my trip to South Lipez and I’m looking for an alcohol stove. Apparently, however, we can find some with a little luck. Too bad, I still buy a saucepan, a spoon and two or three odds and ends.

On February 21, I finally take off from Potosi: direction Salar de Uyuni, one of the largest salt deserts in the world. Currently flooded, only the 4×4 tour operators dare to venture into this hyper salty water. Me, I care too much for my motorcycle !

But the sunset and the reflections of the lights are incredible, finally I stay there long after the sunset, the spectacle is too beautiful.

700 km of track without petrol station

The next day I prepare my last trip to Bolivia. A loop of a few days in the South Lipez between Uyuni and Tupiza. More than 700 km of track without petrol station. In San Cristobal, I stop to buy additional cans in order to take 30 liters of gasoline in addition to the full.

This time it’s good. But after 50 km of "corrugated iron", I realize that I have lost a 10-liter can … Obviously, with all the 4x4s that pass, it did not last long. It compromises my loop. Too bad, I continue on my way, telling myself that with a little luck, I will find gasoline at someone’s house. Otherwise I will go to Chile to refuel: I am only 400 km from San Pedro.

Experimental stove…

In the evening I bivouacked not far from the track. This is the opportunity to test my super alcohol stove … I took a 200 g tin of tuna that I pierced regularly with the awl of my Swiss army knife, following a horizontal line a little over halfway up.

Then I picked up a cup that was lying in the alleys of Uyuni. All you have to do is put the box on the cup, fill the box with alcohol and put some in the cup, then light it all up. My rice takes a little while to cook, but it works.

However, it does not meet any safety standard, the fire is not adjustable and the microwave option is not available…

Breakfast in (South) America

After a good night’s sleep, I have lunch with my new friends: it’s good, I’m not very talkative in the morning.

Then I take the road to the Sud Lipez National Park. I continue through these highlands and cross the village of Qetana at the end of the afternoon. I pay the entrance fees and pitch my tent a few kilometers away.

The next two days, I set off to storm this desert space. I spend a small salar, then I will take a well-deserved bath in the thermal waters. I am over 4000m above sea level and the water is 40 degrees. Foot ! I’ll go for a walk around the geysers.

You should still not get too close because they reject sulfur and it causes headaches if you persist in staying. It feels like on Mars !

Finally, I went to say hello to the flamingos of the laguna colorada before taking the road to Tupiza. Finally I found gasoline in a Qetena grocery store the day before.

So I continue my journey as planned. I am apparently 250 km from Tupiza, 9 hours of winding track, driving at a good pace. But the landscapes are so beautiful that I will take two days to make the trip! The track winds through the mountains, it’s a treat. You have to be careful because I will only cross 6 or 7 4×4. Same with food: difficult to restock.

The few stalls in the villages mainly sell cookies and sodas. Fortunately, I was able to find eggs and make myself an omelet in the garden of the grocer in question. But what a foothold for the bivouacs! Absolute tranquility…

Hailstorm !

It’s been 5 days now that I left Uyuni, I have already traveled 700 km and Tupiza is still 70 km away, or 2 hours of driving at a good pace. But it’s 6pm, I’m tired and the view is great for one last night out. Except that around 9 p.m., a hailstorm erupted and damaged the waterproofing of my tent, which filled with water … I quickly put all my things in the aluminum boxes and waited in the tent, sitting on one of them.

2 hours later, it finally ends. I then open the tent wide to dry it thanks to the icy wind that is now raging. I limit the damage, but the night has been difficult…

Direction Argentina

The next day, suitcases in front of me, I ride cool on the track that leads me to Tupiza. In nearly 6 days, I will have traveled nearly 800 km in dream landscapes. It’s like the icing on the cake to end my adventures in Bolivia. I really fell in love with this country. I would have stayed longer, but there comes a time when you have to go and check if the grass is greener among Argentines…

Maxime BARAT

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