DAY 45 - 46 VALPARAISO, CHILE

GPS showing that we have ridden 9,108 miles at an average moving speed of 42.1 miles per hour.  We are speed demons!

Yesterday I didn't take any pictures however I could have taken one in an area that looked very much like Arizona and I should have taken one of a hot dog.  It was a 10" hot dog smothered with diced tomatos and then packed with probably 1/2 cup of mashed avacado - it was $3 and delicious.  We rode 493 miles yesterday so we could get to Valparaiso and stay at a hostel where Joe stayed 2 years ago - picture below:

The back yard.

New back tires and an oil change - my bike is happy.

Little shops overlooking harbor.

Valparaiso harbor.

The restuarant we ate at overlooking the harbor.

Tomorrow we keep heading South.  Thanks for following.

DAY 44

Today we got hit with 2 hours of time changes, we thought we were leaving at around 8:00 AM and it was 10:00 AM due to location and lack of daylight savings. The first thing we did was seek out the "Hand":


The work of Chilean sculptor Mario Irarrázabal, the massive sculpture rises 36 feet in the air atop a base made of iron and cement. The piece was constructed at an elevation of 3608 feet above sea level on the virtually rainless plateau of the Atacama Desert – the driest in the world. Yet despite its isolated and arid location, vehicles regularly pull up and people pile out to take in the desert artwork – a must stop for those travelling along the Panamerican Highway since its inauguration in 1992.

The rest of the day looked pretty much like this.

Good food buy way too much.

Tomorrow we keep heading South.

DAY 42 - 43 TO IQUIGUE AND ANTAFAGOSTA PERU

Yestetesday we got a great start and we were thru the border into Chile by 10:00 AM - it only took an hour and that included taking our luggage off of the bikes and running it thru X -ray.  We then spent 2 hours in a mid-sized town looking for a bank to convert our money.  We found a bank but could only use the ATM to get cash as the bank wouldn't do a conversion - no idea why.  The good news was as you will see in a picture is the bank was next door to a McDonalds - I never thought I would be excited to see McDonalds. 

We spent the night in Iquigue which is a resort town but we found a little hotel which had great parking for the bikes.

We had about 250 miles of views like this - mile after mile.  It was a great road - one of the best we have had on the entire trip.

This giant can was built right along side of the highway.

 This is where we were going to eat but they didn't open until 8:00 PM - pretty close to our bedtime.

I am going to quit for the night, I can't seem to get more pictures uploaded.  Happy Birthday to me.

Joe honing in on a McDonalds.

A rugby game by the beach.

Site of my birthday dinner.

Me in front of our hotel.

DAY 41 - TO TACNA, PERU

Last night we were right next to Lake Titicaca at 12,500 ft and when we left this morning we kept climbing.  Most of the morning was above 14,000 ft with a few times over 15,000 ft.  I stopped at one of the passes and took the following pictures.  The coldest was 44 degrees and mist.

Looking West from 15,123 feet.  Notice the snow.

Looking East - where we came from.

They have big bottles here.

Tomorrow we enter Chile, we should have 4-5 days of nice warm weather - sounds good to me.  Thanks for following.

DAY 40 - LAKE TITICACA

We are in Puno, Peru on the edge of Lake Titicaca.  Supposedly the highest - biggest lake in the world - very pretty.  We had overcast skies all day and it never got above 60 degrees and it rained a bit.  We have been above 10,000 feet all day.  We rode all over Puno looking for a place to stay and after over 1/2 an hour we stumbled on this place - I guess someone has to stay here.

A little zoom-in to show where the hotel is.

Views from back of hotel.

The bar.

A little snack.

The resturaunt.

We are heading South West toward the ocean, lower altitudes and warmer tempertures tomorrow - can't wait.

DAY 38 - 39 MACHUPICCHU - CUSCO

The day started at 5:00 AM with what was supposed to be a short Taxi ride to a bus station but the communication got a little messed up and so this is what a deserted train station looks like at 5:30 AM.

Fortunately the guards called the train company and told them they had 2 gringos waiting for a train that would never come - the train company rerouted the bus that we were supposed to be on and they picked us up.

We followed this very angry river for 27 miles.

Old lady selling flowers to people on train.

We finally got to the base of Machapicchu and got on the bus that would take us to the top.

This lady wasn't liking the ride up that well.

Or you could walk.

When we got to the top after a 20 - 25 minute ride we found out that we hadn't seen the sign:

So, after a ride back down the mountain to buy the admission ticket plus another round trip bus ticket up the mountain we were finally here!

The stone work is amazing.

You have to share the paths.

This is why the lady wasn't enjoying the ride up the mountain.

The town at the foot of Machupicchu.

Bunches of shops.

The train ride back.

People live right next to the tracks.

The town square as seen from Norton's Rat Pub.

Inside Norton's Rat Pub.  Motorcycle riders from all over the world stop by this place as the owner is a real fan of Norton Motorcycles and they serve good food and have a great beer selection.

Me in front of the U.S.Counsulors office.

Having a great time - thanks for following.