Death Road with Barracuda Biking

Getting up at 6am after the long day and night yesterday was not fun. None of us wanted to get up and it was especially difficult trying to creep around and not wake anyone else in our room.

We left to head to the meeting point, a restaurant that did breakfast, and were very much looking forward to food. We ended up ordering a great breakfast of eggs and bacon with tomatoes and bread and the bacon and eggs were delicious. So tasty! Perfect start for a day of biking.

The guides eventually arrived and we were ushered onto a small bus with a ton of bikes on the roof. They looked really good so we figured the review reading we had done had paid off. Except for one white bike which didn't look great, we hoped none of us would draw the short straw with that one.

The journey took us through La Paz and then up into the mountains. We met our guides, Jubert (or Jubee for short - and weirdly for Spanish he pronounced it with an actual J, not an H).

Jubee did most of the talking and was a really good laugh, made us all feel at ease and reminded us it was not a competition and to just take our time.
We put on some tunes and listened to music the rest of the way to the top, looking out the windows at the volcanic sandy mountains and the clouds that crept around them. We got higher and higher and thankfully anxiety did not rear it's ugly head. I knew we were going the highest yet but for some reason felt OK this time. Eventually we reached a point where we stopped. It was 4700m and from here we would begin our descent to 1200m, a journey from cold, rocky mountains to lush and warm jungle.

We had been given our kit on the bus and now had to get off and step into the cold to put it all on. I was so glad to have brought many layers and my thin gloves, as I felt quite toasty once I had this on with their overalls and helmet. The buff scarf came in very useful indeed and my eyes were the only thing visible once we set off.

We were soon given our bikes, each set up to our height and with the brakes matched to our country. We had a ride around on the gravel getting used to them. We were all given some advice and instructions and told what to expect and then we were told we had to do a blessing. It is a tradition that has apparently gone on for years and drivers and bikers alike will usually participate to keep safe. Basically, we were given a bottle of 97% alcohol and told to pour some on the right of our bike on the ground, onto the tyre of the bike and then take a small sip. It tasted gross, and I barely had it touch my tongue. So, so bad. They took photos of our faces after trying it (some definitely gulped more than others, they were the ones with twisted faces) for us to laugh at afterwards. After making our journey a little more dangerous with alcohol (maybe that is why people die!?) we headed off down the tarmac section of road, where we could get used to the bikes and how to lean and turn correctly.

We were riding above and through the grey and damp clouds which was stunning, they just clung to the edges of the mountains and made you want to spend more time looking at views than at the road.

Every now and then you found yourself crouching down and speeding past a slow moving truck using the road, which was quite fun if not a little scary. I saw an eagle or condor, absolutely huge, take off from the side and into the clouds which was incredible. It just disappeared into the silvery fog. The feeling when speeding past the trucks was awesome, but the cold...wow. It was freezing, and after stopping half way down this section we were all huffing and puffing on our hands to get some feeling back in them.

We soon carried on down and then came to another stop by a tunnel. We went around the tunnel on some rocky terrain, which was a bit of a mini test to see if would be OK on Death Road. Me and Rob took a bit of a stupid route and ended up going over the bumpiest parts and through all the puddles. We finished up covered in quite a bit more mud than anyone else but I was glad to have felt quite secure. Having never mountain biked before it was still going to take more convincing that the bike could make it over the bumps OK, but so far so good.

We got back on the bus and continued along up a hill before finally reaching the beginning of Death Road.

There was a sign to warn you and the ground was definitely not smooth. Green forest clung all around to the walls of the mountains, which dropped off the edge of the road, in some places completely vertically. We set off after some more instructions about which side of the road to ride on (the left...the side closest to the sheer drop!! whaaaat!?) and just hoped we wouldn't come across any cars, especially on the corners.

I soon got used to the bike and the terrain, but still wasn't so keen on picking up crazy amounts of speed and so Rob and Richard gradually disappeared into the distance. We all met up at the next stop, where an old town existed. It used to be a stop for cars on the road but since the new highway has opened it is a bit of a ghost town. We took some photos of the stunning backdrop, the clouds still lingering through the trees and I was lucky enough to see some giant bird of prey swoop over our heads and glide into the distance, which was awesome. You really get the feeling up here of it being quite desolate and wild, despite all the people around you on bikes.

We set off down the next track and were told there were more corners here and to be careful. One of the worst corners was here in terms of car accidents and there was a large cross that marked the spot of one of the worst disasters, where over 300 people died. We took it slow (or at least I did) and wound our way down the next few thousand km. By this point, I was getting pretty bad pains in my hands and arms from all the vibrations of the road. Looking back, it was probably because I was basically always holding the brakes and so my hands were quite tense, but it was becoming very uncomfortable. Rob came and chilled near the back with me for a bit, I almost fell into the wall trying to stop at one point (I don't think mountain biking is for me) and I also rode under a waterfall which apparently we had been told not to as it can put people off and they skid (fortunately I didn't, I was probably going too slow lol - got a good photo of it though!).

Along this first stint, we also came across the sheer overhanging drop that is famous for photos and we all gatherered to sit along the edge. The drop below was just straight down and so we didn't lean too far forward to take a look. Really awesome picture opportunity and great to be able to stop and take in the breath taking views.

The next leg would be the last of the first section. This was when I started to get frustrated by one of the Italians riding with us. He kept on darting past to my left, where there was barely a gap, and making me jump out of my skin. Over and over he did this, no shouting to let me know he was "passing left" like we were supposed to, and each time he got past me he would stop and wait for his girlfriend at the back and then do it all over again. Not fun when someone does this to you and you are already terrified, stupid man. Even Rob noticed it and was getting annoyed.

At the next stop, we were aware that rain was coming, you could see it and hear the rumbling in the distance. We were told we could have the planned snacks and brave the rain sat still, or we could carry on and try to outrun it. The vote was to outrun. I, however, chose to spend the second leg on the bus, my hands hurt so much that I couldn't safely rely on being able to press the brakes and so I figured that wasn't very safe. Very annoying as it looked like an awesome bit of road and half way down it seemed a lot less bumpy. Also, on a bike you can avoid being right by the edge, you can't on a bus. I think it was scarier on the bus than off it! I did get to appreciate the view more though as my eyes weren't permanently fixed to the road ahead. I took the opportunity to capture some photos on the good camera.

Eventually, I caught up with the rest of the gang who had come to a stop under a shelter for some lunch. We were greeted by chickens and a young girl who liked to climb trees and asked if we wanted some home made honey. We were told they sell juice in the right season which might have gone down better. We had some nice sandwiches and a drink and enjoyed the break and chance to take more photos. We were two thirds of the way down now and the view had opened up a lot more, so that you could see the river and jungle at the bottom, making its way through the valley.
Rob and Rich were caked in mud, as the rain had outrun them despite their efforts. Rob had also managed to get grit in his eye half way down and Rich had had chain problems, although Jubee fixed it on the promise of free beer if it broke again (it didn't).

For the last leg, the road was a little easier and again Rob came and rode with me for a bit. The rest had given time for everyone's hands and forearms to start to ache, so it was a bit of a painful ride for everyone. We got to ride through another stream, but unfortunately, we all had to stop alongside another group of cyclists whilst we waited for some cars to get through, which meant we were all going a lot slower than we wanted to through the water. Bit of a shame as at speed the photos would have been awesome.

It was a fun ride to the bottom though and with a more open road and less of a drop I gathered a bit more speed, I actually thought I was going quite fast, but Rob informed me it was still slow.Read more