Paul Bridgeford's Blog

Set off rather tired with very little sleep. Steady uphill. Very dull country sealed road. Roads straight into the distance of a mirage. Ground on by myself to the lunch truck. Getting hot. After lunch is onto dirt and downhill but only slight.
Decide to bail and take the truck. Good decision as dirt very slow and hot. We finish up in a half built hot spring tucked against a rocky outcrop well away from the road and any possibility of a bus of schoolgirls turning up.
Two baths set up with pipe of hot spring water gushing in. Wonderful shower. Good dinner and an early night. There is a small camp shop with the owners all absolutely out of it. Two passed out one on a bed and the other on the ground. No beer to sell as they have drunk it all. Didier had picked up two female hitch hikers who helped out a bit .
Off to bed early as 160k tomorrow.

Gradual climb up. Lunch near some local heritage ruins. Startd off slowly and Anna ahead. Warmed up and picked up a bunch. Shared the lead with wilbert going quite quickly. Second into lunch. Checked out the ruins after lunch with Anna and Fred. Really a series of drystone walls set against a natural curved hill with tree cacti around. Ok but more recent cultural.
Headed out and then into the dirt road. Was rather tougher than anticipated. Lots of corrugations and rather dull country. Through a few small villages very much lining the road and some extending a couple of kilometers. School children getting out of school in their white school dust coats. Very low cost scroll uniform but probably quite effective in the heat.
Into Santa Marie. Quite hot so ice cream in the town square. Very good and off to the camp site next to e council depot. Municipal. Children having a sports day. All ok off to bed in the tent and spy a coach which had just unloaded a party of mainly schoolgirls. They partied through to 6am without a stop. Hand clapping and music and running though e camp site all night. Not good. Swore in the morning.

Again no timing so a slower start. Stayed behind the bunch to enjoy the spectacular canyon we ride through heading up alongside a riverbed.
Lunch is at a spectacular natural rock amphitheater set in the canyon alongside the road. I’m persuaded to play the harmonica and have my first audience. A local is there busking on his guitar and we play together. Great fun. The sound is great with the echo of the canyon.
Off we head to the vineyard country. Canyon widens out to a huge valley and we head upward at a slow climb only about 1% but steady.
Pass well established wineries all shut for siesta. A lot of new planting in the desert. Wine glut!
At last cafayete and a beautiful treed square with restaurants abutting. Very civilized. Stop at the nicest with Fred. Rigo Anna Ghilli and me and the dream of yesterday came true with white torrontes olives and cheese. More join us for the party. 5 bottles later into camp for tent and dinner.

A slow start out of the city. Rolling through farm land she oaks and coral trees in full bloom. Very slow as no timing. Coke stop half way to lunch. Rolled into lunch. As heading into wine country dreamed about white wine olives and cheese at day end. What did I get but a small general store with a beer which I discovered was non alcoholic malt and tasted terrible.
Bush camp amongst cacti and a small farm with gobbling turkeys cocks etc. very noisy both at night and morning.

A beautiful town. Anna crook so e mails and wandered around to the square. Laundry shops lunch 4 empanadas and a beer and back for a nana na. Picked up our Dutch and Belgium friends and after a couple of drinks in the beautiful city square headed for a meal in a traditional restaurent nearby. They forgot my kid stew and we finished dinner at midnight. Anna left early as still feeling crook.
Shopping the next day for remaining presents with Anna. The dog at befriended us in the square found Anna again and followed us into shops and the cathedral.
In afternoon went to the cultural museum and followed the history of salta from the 1800′ when established. Then the inca museum which displayed the 3 mummies found on the top of the nearby lillianacoa volcano ( spelling wrong). Perfectly preserved in their own sealed container at -12 deg and controlled environment. The incas believed in a child sacrifice and anesthetised them with alcohol and buried them alive at the top of the mountain. Would be at almost 7000m.
Finished a great day at a restaurent with Anna on the recommendation of our receptionist. Very hi end, beautiful decorated and great service and wine. I ate lama which was very tasy and tender. Off to bed for a short day tomorrow.

Beautiful country green trees and grass around. Felt so much better at the lower altitude and was able to ride with Anna and a couple of others all day. Interesting that at altitude my heart rate didn’t get above 125 but now on the hills up to 145 150 again. Most interesting. Can only assume that my lungs couldn’t get enough oxygen into the system to allow the heart rate to get up.
Was a timing day so was pleased to be able to keep up. Farm land looks very prosperous in comparison to the high plains of Bolivia. Up through a long climb over the pass to salta. Canopy overhead. Stunning not too unlike up over twonga gap.
Our bunch found a coke stop on the way down. Very friendly locals, brought out chairs and tables. very hospitable.
Then through a deserted Salta on a Sunday afternoon. Very clean and Anna navigates us to the municipal camp site. Pretty basic with a massive empty pool! Dusty etc so Anna and I head to town for a hotel bed for three nights. Like a real weekend. The mid way party that night at the camp site. Lots of food music wine and dancing. Helped set up and recovered my la Paz bowler from the truck.
Back at the hotel at midnight.

This what I have been waiting for down off the Altiplano. Wake up and it’s freezing. Wind off the high plane. Can’t get the hands warm. Cup of hot tea and Ricardo lends me the gloves off his hands. Breakfast and the sun starts to break over the surrounding hills. Slight warmth. Pack up tent and get organized. No washing facilities of course.
Trucks packed up and we are off. 2000m downhill over 150k – fantastic. The first 75k to lunch a few small uphills but always down down passing bare multicolored rock faces. Hit 65k max. The old cannondale steady as a rock around some steep and some sweeping corners. Crouched down on the forward bars. Overtake other riders exhilarating.
Great lunch spot. Warm and hungry. Down again but then the wind starts to build up rising up from the valley. Stronger head wind having to work hard. No benefit from the downhill. Finally up a rise and another big downhill through coral trees in full red bloom. Wonderful to see green trees again. Finally into a green grass camp site with trees. Find a bunk room. Can’t be bothered with the tent. Very pleasant after a hard day. A couple of beers dinner and an old smuggler and bed. A good day

What a dull ride across the plain on sealed road. In many instances endlessly straight and slight head wind. A bunch of us sit behind Babbette and Paul for some k’s and then share the drafting. After lunch a small bunch of us set off with Colin from gippsland at the front same dull country. Sore tendons across my sit bone. Uncomfortable. Still can’t breath properly, have to pant hard at any slight rise. We climb another 200m over 20k. Grind on and a beautiful change to the scene. Wonderful folded rocks each side, multicolored in great rolling swathes with pink rocks like some prehistoric teeth picking through at the top. Greens, pinks, browns.
The road heads down disappearing around a bend in the distance. There is the flag and the camp on a cliff next to the dry river bed apart from a trickle of water. Sparse hills and rock surround. A family with 5 young girls live here. We are visited by their goat kids, lambs and dogs.
Stoney ground, up with the tent and ready for a cold night as the wind starting to pick up. Scramble down to the river for some photos and see the goats coming in for the mountain opposite. Dinner and straight to bed as it chills fast.

Feeling much better as we set off together from Tupiza at 8.30. Good job it was a rest day yesterday as could not have been able to ride. Must have been a 24hr stomach bug going through the riders as Fred had the same yesterday and Rigo today as he can’t ride.
Havent been out in Tupiza at all. We cycle out down through a canyon towering above us following the line of the river bed. Spectacular rock formations. Sealed road and rolling mountain scenery.
Reach a bridge across the almost dry river bed after some 30 k. The whole valley looks very productively agriculturally. The most to date.
The climb starts from 2800 m back up to 3500 over 15 k. Grind up to lunch but at least I made it. Would have been difficult a week ago.
After lunch rolling flat country as I head for the border with Argentina.
Enter Villazon the border town, a jumble of people, trucks, produce. Take a wrong turn and end up in a wholesale market, sacks being uploaded. Carry bike over railway line and there is the border. Chaos, queues, find the bike queue as Jo one of our group points me in the right direction at the head of the queue. Make sure exit stamp from Bolivia and entry to Argentina.
5 minute ride to the hotel. Pretty much our last one. Soup, hot shower dinner at the hotel and bed.

Crashed. Managed a small breakfast cleaned the bike and back to bed. Up and finished the blog. Starting to feel a bit hungry so could be getting a bit better.
The rest have just returned from horse riding. A few falls and a lot of fun.