This wasn't bad. Tilcara to San Pedro De Atacama.

YouTube - Crossing the Andes again.

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www.onepistononeworld.com

Yes, since traveling through there I've had recurring dreams about this road, as weird as it sounds it's true. It continues well into Chile as well.

In Perú. Chachapoyas to Celendin. One lane dirt road, baby's butt smooth, plenty of air over the edge of the road, hardly any vehicle traffic, spectacular scenery.






















I'm pretty happy about it.





Here is a video of the ride. A little pavement first coming into Chachapoyas, then the dirt portion.

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http://www.southontwowheels.com

Crash - the vid was awesome. Brought back some amazing memories!

I think we met on the road once - you were southbound at the Nicaraguan border into Costa Rica, we were northbound. If I'm right, I owe you a nice cigar!

Cheers!

Yup, I sure miss those Nica cigars! It seems so long ago. I am currently in Argentina. You responded to my Peru route question in another thread and I read you blog and put two and two together.

Cheers! Vince

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Hi, I'm a bit late on this thread and don't know all that much, but I'd vote for:

. Paso de San Francisco, from Copiapo, Chile, to Tinogasta, Argentina, just awesome, dirt all the way but very doable, but very remote (no supplies).

. Paso de Jama, from San Pedro de Atacama, Chile, to Tilcara, Argentina, tarmac, but out of this world.

. Villazon, Bolivia, to Uyuni, Bolivia, with the gift of reaching the salar at the end of the push.

. Uyuni, Bolivia, to Ollague, Chile and then Calama, Chile, dirt, but out of this world.

. Uyuni, Bolivia, to San Pedro de Atacama via laguna Colorada and Laguna Verde (haven't done this) but everyone tells me it's outstanding though a bit demanding.

. in Brazil, I agree with the other post, Serra do Rio do Rastro, preceeded by the canyons of Itaimezinho and Fortaleza, and Serra do Corvo Branco are unique.

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Fernando Costa
Ilhabela, SP BRAZIL

I have to chime in here to recommend the Uyuni - Salar - Laguna Colorado - Laguna Verde - San Pedro de Atacama route.

Its 400 miles of epic altiplano riding. Best segment of my trip for sure.

Write up: Into Bolivia, the Salar de Uyuni and the Lagunas | South on Two Wheels

Video: Helmet Cam Video: Bolivian Altiplano | South on Two Wheels

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http://www.southontwowheels.com

My 5 pennorth worth,
Not necessarily the best we have ridden but just the ones that pop into my head right now.
The tarmac at Los Antiguos after a hard couple of days on the R40 in the wind between El Calafate and Los Antiguos - that part of the 40, all ripio was brilliant tho when we look back at it, and we survived it mostly!

Los Antiguos over the border into Chile at Chile Chico and onto the Carraterra Austral and up to Coyhaique - even in the rain. Mostly ripio/dirt

Siete Lago's route after Bariloche - amazing scenery. Ripio.

Valle Grande near San Rafael. Ripio.

Uspallata, Argentina into Chile - after the border is 27 (I think) hairpin bends all the way back down. Tarmac.

The road up to Paso Agua Negra out of Chile. We daytripped from Vicuna cos the pass was closed. All ripio, amazing mountain scenery.

Paso San Francisco, Copiapo - Fiambala. Desolate Altiplano. Salt road until the Chilean exit then ripio all the way to the limite. 470KM's of just great scenery. No fuel or coffee stops.

Ruta 33/52 around the Parque Nacional los Cardonnes in Cachi - corrugated ripio but what a ride.

Paso de Jama from Argentina into Chile. Tarmac

Bolivia -The roads from Potosi to Padilla, Pucara, Valle Grande and Cochabamba which includes the Ruta del Che, mostly dirt, some river crossings (with easier detours), up and down so many mountains with loads of corners. A few wet places, we are in the rainy season.

And of course every other road we have ridden!

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RTW Jan 2009 - Aug 2012. Currently in Europe waiting for the next ride
www.takingthelongwayhome.co.uk

Tuxtepec to Oaxaca , 200 km of mountainroad , thousands of turns , changing vegetation from tropical to alpine to desertlike and spectacular views and no traffic

Bolivia, Camiri to Sucre, Sucre to Oruro route 6,
Straight through the mountains, riding on top of the world, dirt with stretches of asphalt.
200km max no gasoline, this route is more than wearth while.

On the second part Sucre - Oruro, for safety have a tent with you!

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If people are good only because they fear punishment, and hope for reward, then we are a sorry lot indeed.

Paso de San Fransciso between Chile and Argentina is nice, you will need about 500km fuel range.

From Fiambala (argentina) you can take road 34 north. The road follows the river up for about 25km with hundreds of river crossings and lots of sand. Then at La Pampa Station you will start to climb.

This road take you up to about 4600m and requires a fair bit of offroad skills and preferable good knobbly tires. We did get side tracked till we found the right road. GPS is very usefull here as the road breaches out in the high desert.

I was pushing the bike at 4600m through the sand in the high desert and its hard work. Scenery is spectacular. Fuel at Antofagasta de la Sierre (check out the volcanoes and the spectacular lava flow formations including the "glass rocks") and follow road 17 to San Antonio de Los Cobres. You will be cruising at 3500 to 4500m all day.
The above is all off-road :-)

In Formosa, Argentina, through the "swamp country" we accidentally found an exceptional interesting road. This road is under construction from Los Lomitas to Posta Cambio a Zalazar.

While the road is under construction and is currently mostly dirt, it goes through a swamp/lake and here we saw the most varied birdlife we have experienced in Argentina. It was just amazing.

Also if you have an engineering bend, you will no doubt appreciate the construction scale of this road. In dead flat country, they are raising the existing road about 5m and making it 25m wide and it will be a "motorway" one day. Will take a few years, tho.

Kim

Just rode this road today absolutely awesome

Multiple hairpins on new tarmac with stupendous views of the Bolivian mountains.

Windey ripio tracks through mountain passe with huge drop offs.

David managed this road very well with no oil in his rear shock but does feel a bit seasick...

This is half a suggestion for a good ride in South America, but I don't know where it is exactly.

That's why I'm posting it up, hoping someone might recognise it and can tell me exactly.
About 10 years ago I saw an advert in a small hotel in Quito, for two Swiss ex-pats who gave guided off-road tours up into the mountains above Quito. So I had a go.
Just me and one of the Swiss.

A brilliant day, that I could not have done without his local knowledge.
We followed a disused railway for a while, which went over this bridge.




I took the photo and the Swiss guide is crossing the bridge. I then rode over after him. I'm quite pleased with the photo because it looks (to me) a whole lot more scary than it actually was. It was a good wooden surface between the rails, the whole bridge being quite wide, so you couldn't look down!

The only disappointment was my cheap compact camera wasn't working very well, my guide wasn't sure he'd be successful in taking a photo of me as I went over, so I took the photo of him going over.








The tunnel was shortly after the bridge. The mud is higher up the mountain somewhere.

Parts of the disused railway were well used by pedestrians. In places it had collapsed into mud holes which made it interesting!

I didn't take a detailed map with me, nor kept any notes.
So, does anyone recognise where this is and can pinpoint it? Sufficient for me to find it on a map or on GoogleEarth? From memory I think it's NE of Quito, not very far, maybe about 6 or 8 miles out or so. (Or that might all be completely wrong - memory's not too good these days!)

Thanks. Good riding.

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TTR250 - London to Cape Town

Crossing this bridge seems to be an adventure itself. Hopefully someone can tell sooner or later where this amazing road / bridge is. I like to have a look at it (not crossing it)!

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www.americatwin.blogspot.com

There are several option to cross the boarder from ecuador to Peru...

I tool the Way Vilcabamba (E)-San ignacio (P)... No hassle very scenic nice little dirt road with no traffic... Fast and friendly customs. And then head to Maria (near Kuelap Ruins)... to Cajamarca.

About 800 km Of dirt, even a nice little ferry in Bela Vista...

One of my favorite roads so far (From Alaska to Bolivia...)

see the pics

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