Hey guys..

Just been talking to a few guys who said the RTA40 is a dream compared to all the roads in Bolivia and Peru... They said the roads are just sand, boulders and gravel all the way..

Now my bike is held together with bunjee cords and black tape as it is, and I have no shame that im worried about crashing alone on some miserable dirt road and being stranded with my bike in pieces !

So, what are the roads like and what kind of fuel range do I need ???

Im still going to do it, just after a "heads up"

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Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Ted:
Sitting in Fuetalefue with Sebastian. Caught up on your escapades on Ruta 40. We both had to laugh, after groaning through your tale of woe, knowing you'd persevere after all.

So to answer your question, skip Uyuni. The road there up from the border crossing of Argentina, and the road from the north are dreadful. The best way to get there is from Potosi, but then you'd eventually have to step into shit to get out, unless you really wanted to go back to Uyuni.

For the most part, Bolivia and Peru aren't as difficult as that stretch of Ruta 40 you did. There's some places where it ain't easy, but it ain't Ruta 40.

My advice to you - go into survival mode. Dial it back a knotch.

But remember, have fun. And think of the stories you and Maria have when you're back in England. I have no stories - yet!

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quastdog
Chiang Mai, Thailand

Don´t go jinxing yourself by saying that amigo !!

Cheers for the advice though, ill be sure to take it onboard...

P.S. Im glad my escapades are a source of amusment, id hate to dissapoint

Ride safe dudes !!

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Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Haven't quite gotten to Bolivia yet, but I'm in a 30 year old van and haven't seen any really bad roads in Peru, though I certainly did in Ecuador and Colombia.
Don't listen to them, they're just trying to wind you up!
Loraine

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Rallying for A Wild Life — THE FILM!
http://igg.me/at/AWildLife

www.LorraineChittock.com
www.facebook.com/lorraine.chittock

Chuck! I wish my trip was a bit more boring!!!! Don´t wish for an interesting stuff to happen to you! Few days before that canadian twat on his giant KTM destroyed half my bike I was thinking

"-hmm funny lots of people from Viedma have crashed, So lucky I haven´t" - Then BANG!!!!!

I think Grant should create a price for the unlukiest Overlander of the year. I am still ahead of Ted but only a bit! He´s got potential!

Ted I read your blog. I couldn´t help to laugh! You keep your sense of humour that´s the most important!! Now I´m off to see a lawyer! KTM boy insurance is not worth a penny. Time to get serious!

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Maria

www.franglais-riders.com

Some more advice Ted:

think bicycle!

I'll bet you can get an even up trade for that beat up thing you're riding with some fully-loaded bicycle traveler...you don't see their gear laying all over the roads.

I heard the bookies in the UK have started tracking your travels. Right now, the odds are heavily against you, so you may want to plunk some money down, pay off that Antarctic cruise if you can beat them at their game.

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quastdog
Chiang Mai, Thailand

Don't think so; the pedal bike forum is showing that a good cycle, fully kitted out, costs more than a "beat up" XT.

Ted would have to put cash with the deal to do a swop!

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Dave

Hola folks,

Maria and Ted, I´m really sorry for your accidents!!!!!!

I thought together with Ra I´m the queen of accidents and misery. But there are others wich overtook me.

At the moment my inside-tent doesn`t close, my mattress is flat every morning (I dipped it for hours in a lake, sunburn was the only result), the coating of my visier comes down in stripes and my boots have a hole...

But Ted, I´m a bit afraid of the roads further north as well. I was told the road to Uyuni must be horrible.
This also dependes in the person how to find it. For me up to now a part of the Carreterra was horrible , the 40 anyway. But others had possibly fun there. So we all have to make our own experiences...

Ted don´t swop your bike with a bicycle!! (I had thoughts like this a well)

Everything is going to be allright

Saludos to everyone

Uschi from the Carreterra

hola amigos
just reading about all the accidents with luckliy few bodily damages.
i went down on the ruta 34 in las lomitas.formosa.
the bike looked worse than me i thought after getting up,paniers and tankback all over the road.
luckily mario a local stoped and helped to get the bike stored and drove me to the local hospital.only 4 stiches to the left elbow and that with my protection gear,short trousers and a sleeveless shirt.
after a week the bike was fine again,the stiches didn't help a thing,the cut broke off the same night they removed the stiches,luckily no infection.took a nurse plus a doctor to remove the stiches,bloody nurse was blind and did only find two of them.
hopefully no more of these stories.
all the best geri

Hi Everyone that knows me,
Firstly I would like to ask Maria what she means by ¨The Wrong Crowd¨
Dave & Neil are two of the best guys anybody is likely to meet and both very succesful in their proffessions and personally. Neil(the hairy one) a very qualified phsyciatric nurse who has private residential care homes and fantastic farm/holday homes in Devon, Dave the one with 2 degrees works in Dubai if I remember correctly in employment law for large multinational companies and climbs serious mountains already on this trip has climbed Aconcagua also made the 5 day walk round T D paine look like a sunday stroll, Im pretty sure neither are crooks nor malicous characters. At no point did either of these two have a hand on my throttle and at 45 years of age I think I can make my own mind up about speed, which is the reason I had chosen to travel with these two funny fellas who do not spend their time worrying about how much anything costs or who might do them wrong. Perhaps Maria an apology if that is in you would be nice!.
Second
the correct e-mail address for Jose Meyer in Santiago is
adventure@aat.cl
Do get in touch with him first (as finding him is a bugger) if you need repairs on any BMW he is good and very efficient had me in and out the carage in three hours that included
realigning forks
engine oil change
gearbox oil change
resetting abs
sorting bent engine bars
new indicator
making good loose instument housing
plus couple of other little jobs
some of these I would normally have done myself but with still bad shoulder would have been very awkward and all at a very reasonable cost
Look forward to an apology Maria
Duncan

Hi Duncan,

sorry I did not mean to offend any one! If I did I truely apologise! It was more meant as teasing than anything else! But getting sense of humour in a post is sometimes difficult and I don´t often use icons ... maybe I should have! Your friends were indeed lovely people and good fun, no doubt about that, and if you meet them pass them my apology!

Speed in unpaved roads is dangerous for others though, as I found out myself when someone crashed on me after loosing control of his own bike on a bend! I was lucky he did not kill me. I would have preferred he crashed alone! Obviously he had nothing, same for his bike, while mine....

I spoke with Rafael today, good to know you have recovered and that your bike is ok.
For us we are still waiting for spare parts from Germany. It´s been nearly 3 weeks now. The guy who crashed on me was riding way too fast and wiped me off the road, straight onto my front wheel. Forks, triple clamp, rim... all is bent, bearings damaged etc... Not much to do than wait now and hope the parts will turn up before the winter set in!

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Maria

www.franglais-riders.com