South America in Versys 650 – Latin America by motorcycle (06): on foot on the Altiplano (5000 m)! –

Posted on by admin

Latin America by motorcycle (06): on foot on the Altiplano (5000 m) !

South America in Versys 650 - Latin America on a motorcycle (06): on foot on the Altiplano (5000 m)! -

There you go, Santa Rosa is over. Direction La Paz, this incredible city perched high up on the Altiplano. In the meantime, I have 400 km of track and 90 km of tar left. My crampons bite the ripiot, it vibrates, it shakes, it slips…. This is the track !

There you go, it’s over. Direction La Paz, this incredible city perched high up on the Altiplano. In the meantime, I have 400 km of track and 90 km of tar left. My crampons bite the ripiot, it vibrates, it shakes, it slips …. This is the track !

I know these are the last moments in the forest. There is no way to find a place to sleep here, the road is only taken by carriers of all kinds who do not stop. I have now been told three villages that there is enough accommodation in the next village, but without success.

Around 9 p.m. I’m fed up, driving at night is dangerous and I’m tired. I ask an old lady who serves fruit juices if I can camp next to her house: no worries, I set up the tent under the amused eyes of the children and go back to my cave.

To the left ? To the right ? Between !

The next day, last stage before La Paz. The track climbs gently in the mountains and is sometimes in a bad state … The driving is then often on the left so that the driver can see where he puts his wheels in relation to the nearby ravine. The problem is, there are signs missing and since I don’t know the place, I don’t always know whether to drive on the left or on the right! So I drive in the middle, so I’m not quite wrong…

But I did have some scares anyway! In any case, it’s crazy these tracks carved into the mountain, it gives me a taste of the Ruta de la Muerte. But it will not be for today: the arrival in La Paz was made by the new road. I’m very ill and I’ve been bent in half on the bike for 150 km … In addition, the sun will soon be setting so I prefer to go as soon as possible.

I finally land at Bacoo Hostel where I hibernate for the next two days. Friday, I can finally go for a walk. It’s not that yet, but I can’t stand to stay there anymore even if the hostel is great. On a whim, I buy a map of the surroundings of La Paz, food for three days and I take a bus to Coroico !

After two and a half hours in the bus, the driver drops me off as I asked him at the entrance to the track that goes to Chairo. The idea? Start at 1000 m on foot and climb the Altiplano, at an altitude of almost 5000 m, taking the Choro road (an old route used by the Incas), without a guide and in total autonomy.

In the meantime, I am at the start of this trail, it is 10 p.m. and the next village is more than an hour’s walk away. Fortunately I quickly find a few houses and ask if I can camp. A thunderstorm breaks out: it’s raining outside and inside my tent. Awesome…

I wake up in my wet sleeping bag and off we go for 8 hours of walking between 1000 and 2000 m altitude. It takes me nearly three hours to cover the 12 km that separate me from Chairo, where my trek begins. The nature is lush, the air humid and I am not in the best of my shape, but I am happy to find some wild places !

At noon I leave the track and go deep into the forest following a small path. This path is in fact a real lifeline between the few hamlets maintained by the villagers. Each hamlet is made up of one or two houses. These are in fact families who settled there and never moved.

At night, I sleep in a shelter that I squat in Bella Vista – which is aptly named. I dry everything and sleep dry. In principle this trek is done downhill and over three days. On the way up it’s more physical and I think it will take four days.

On the second day, the path only goes up and down. It’s rather worrying, when I think of all the difference in height that I have to do … In any case the landscape does not change: rivers, suspension bridges and an impenetrable forest while I am between 2000 and 2500 m altitude. We are not very far from the equator.

On the way, I meet two French and a Bolivian. It is 2pm, so I take a little break with them that lasts, and lasts, and lasts … Damn, I’m in a hurry! I walk at a good pace, but I can’t reach Challacapampa … Too bad, I sleep on the path at about 2400 m altitude.

The third day, it climbs hard as soon as you wake up! I left at 7 a.m. and at 9 a.m. I’m already at 2900 m. The vegetation disappears, the air is dry, the view clears: I love it !

Around 11 a.m., the Inca Trail becomes more and more obvious. It’s incredible, the traces left by this civilization! At noon I am in Cuchura (3700 m). I fueled well but I am limited in food, I must refuel before tomorrow.

The ascent becomes difficult, the breathing is heavy, but the scenery is worth it. Here, it is a real village with electricity, school and even a toll for foreigners to help maintain the path! These Bolivians are strong.

Finally I arrive in Samana Pampa, at an altitude of 3900 m, around 3:00 p.m. I am stopping there for today. The area is ideal for camping, the view superb and I found an old man who makes egg sandwiches for breakfast: the best !

In the evening, I camp a bit away from the village to be quiet. I’m right at an altitude of 4000 m.

Tuesday, last day. More than 85 0m before the Col de la Cumbre. After four egg sandwiches, I leave quiet. I spare my efforts and enjoy the view. I drool a little but I savor this last ascent. I’m on a legendary road, going up the Altiplano !

I stop at 4400 m to see the Inca ruins which are nothing more than heaps of pebbles and I resume slowly. I stop regularly to drink and avoid cramps. At 3 p.m., after 5 hours of walking, I am at an altitude of 4850 m. The weather is superb and I see that Cerro Kolini, a nearby summit, seems easy to access…

I then get out of the path, take the ridge, go around the summit, grit my teeth a little because my legs are weakening … and I find myself 50 minutes later at 4990 meters: 360-degree panorama of the Cordillera Real !

At 4:00 p.m. I start the descent to the road and at 5:30 p.m. I am hitchhiked to La Paz. I have a smile on my face: I walked up the Altiplano !

Maxime BARAT

Related articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *