The Second South American Inquisition Part 3
MALARKEY
Jo & Trevor Bush
Sun 20 Nov 2011 17:12
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I think I have 'bigged up' this next dare devil
adventure a bit too much.......but you expect alittle exaggeration from
me...don't you?
Anyway, with a bit of time on our hands, we figured
we would fill our bellies with a bit of excitement instead of the local grog n grub.
I don't know whether you have seen it or not, but
Jeremy Clarkson and his band of merry men on Top Gear, did an episode which
included a trip down 'Death Road'. At the time, while watching this, I thought
maybe the whole thing was a stage managed affair and with a bit of clever
photography, made it look interesting & dangerous. Well, Death Road was
only a short drive out of La Paz and it had to be checked out.
We signed up with a local tour company to do the
'Death Road' by mountain-bike. And when I say signed up, I mean signed our lives
away. There were various legal wavers that had to be signed before we could even
take one step in the direction of the Death Road. Clearly, there was some danger
involved and we were beginning to wonder what we were getting ourselves into.
This bike trek started at La Cumbre, 4700m at the
very top of the local mountain. The valley was shrouded in mist, which was
probably just as well 'cos we couldn't see down.
   Evil
Kenevil
Death
squad
Ninja Jo
There were four of us in our group, us and two
crazy Kiwi's. We were given our bikes and protective cycle gear. It was all
beginning to dawn on us what we were about to do. Now, I am not some
superstitious nut, but at the time, I did not think it a good omen
when I was given bike number 13. If I had any salt I would have thrown it over
my shoulder and if the Blarney Stone was nearby, I would given it a kiss. But
instead I kissed my arse good bye and off we went.
We had a 63K ride in front of us down the most
notoriously dangerous road in the world, dropping over 3500m to Yolosa on a
narrow unmade road with sheer drops to oblivion. We must be
insane.
   Just wide enough...or is
it?
One fatefull
spot
Ooops
I don't do heights. If there is a problem up the
mast on the boat....its Jo that has to go aloft. So why is it, when I
am on a narrow crumbling road with no safety barriers, did I feel the
urge to go to the edge and look down? As if the whole thing wasn't scary
enough......bazaar. However, once we had a few k's under our belt and I resisted
that ridiculous urge to look down, I really started to enjoy the day. Jo on the
other hand, hated every minute of it. Her hands were literally trembling due
to a mixture of fear and the vibrations caused by the rough
road. She couldn't get down quick enough and we even had a few
tears............bless!
   The fearless
four
The knackered
four
The grateful four.........at the end
We passed some interesting land marks along the
way. A narrow tunnel which we couldn't go through cos we had no lights.
We had to go around it instead on an even narrower path,........we walked
that bit. Numerous crosses by the roadside where people had fallen to their
death. A pleasant, well earned coffee break under a pergola type
construction over looking the valley.
We finally made it safely to the end and were glad
to be able to tell the tale. We were treated to a hot shower at the bottom and a
splendid buffet lunch all washed down with copious amounts of much needed
medicinal alcohol. It was a great experience and we have even got the tee-shirt
to prove it.
Continuing with the 'to hell with it' wreckless
theme, we booked ourselves on a white water rafting trip.
The Urubamba river flows from the high Andean
range down through the sacred valley of the Inca's past Machu Picchu and out to
the jungle. We were going to do the 'Class 3' rapids day trip bit. We had some
training both ashore and in the boat and soon we were off down the river at a
rate of knots.
   There was lots of girly screaming going
on, some from me. It wasn't just only the violent action of the boat,
but the water too. The icy water was bloody freezing and it is
particularly alarming when the boat is full of it and your wedding tackle is
taking a 'Russian Sauna'.
We reached the downstream base camp at Cusipata far
too quickly for my liking but it was fair to say that the
make-shift sauna, a warm shower and the hot lunch, was well received
by all.
   Yes thats me on the zip line. Not too high I know
but maybe, just maybe, I am starting to overcome my fear of heights. But
don't tell Jo.......I still prefer her to go up the mast.
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