Day 477 – 491: Caraz to Huaraz, Peru

Posted on by Patricia & Dustin

January 11 – 25, 2026

  • Day 477 – Caraz to Humacchuco – 31km/1,045m climbing
  • Day 478 – Humacchuco to Remote camp* – 22km/1,150m
  • Day 479 – Remote camp to Vaqueria – 23km/210m
  • Day 480 – Vaqueria to Yanama – 15km/107m
  • Day 481 – Layover @ Yanama
  • Day 482 – Yanama to Acochaca – 35km/890m
  • Day 483 – Acochaca to Chacas – 11km/550m
  • Day 484 – Chacas to Remote Camp – 28km/1,510m
  • Day 485 – Remote Camp** to Carhauz – 50km/121m
  • Day 486 – Layover @ Carhauz
  • Day 487 – Carhauz to Huaraz – 33km/545m
  • Day 488 – 491 – Layover @ Huaraz

*Parque Nacional Huascaran at 14,700 feet (4,500 meters)
**Parque Nacional Huascaran at 15,100 feet (4,620 meters)

Looking at the calendar and seeing how much time we had to make it to Lima, Peru, where we’d be meeting friends who were on a world cruise & possibly taking in some surfing on the coast, we had a couple extra weeks so we decided to venture into Parque Nacional Huascaran (in the off season). Huascaran is home to the Cordillera Blanca – the world’s largest ice/snow covered mountain range in the tropics. The Cordillera Blanca has around 500 glaciers and many peaks exceeding 20,000 feet in elevation. Riding out of the Canon del Pato we got a few glimpses of these peaks and were intrigued to ride through the park ourselves.

Start of the blog teaser photo – read on to learn where this was 🙂

Leaving Caraz, we decided to do a loop through the park where we would climb to 15,400 feet (4700 meters) and then back over another pass of about the same altitude. This biking would be 3,000 feet higher than our previous high point of the trip at Cotopaxi in Ecuador where we cycled to 12,400 feet.

Our host in Caraz, Carmen, was awesome – she even did our laundry & pointed us to the best local fare.
Riding out of Caraz was good pavement but no shoulder – all the traffic was courteous.
We rode through the town of Yungay which was completely destoryed in 1970 when a 7.9 earthquake initiated an ice slide from the nearby Cordillera Blanca mountains killing nearly 70,000 people.
Riding toward Huascaran National Park – the gap between the mountains in the distance is where we were headed.
Jeremy, from France, we met along with 2 other French cyclists just before we rode the Santa River canyon, about a week ago. Unfortunately, Jeremy took a couple falls and was now headed to the larger town of Huarez to get x-rays (you can see the broken left hood on his handlebar). Even though he was in great pain he still had such a positive attitude!
We met Sam & Eliza in Caraz – they were also doing the same route through the national park albeit slightly less heavily packed 🙂
Dustin and a touristy decorated llama have a staring contest.

Crossing the Cordillera Blanca #1 – We stayed just outside of the park for the first night in a quaint circular structure with heat & hot water. We had a big day of riding planned for the next day so we were pedaling by 6:30am as it was not raining. There were two separate tough climbs planned on challenging gravel roads. We first climbed for almost 10km (6 miles) to a couple of famous high altitude lakes. The views of the lakes and canyon were shrouded in clouds so it kept our attention as glimpses of the mysterious surroundings came and went.

Riding through the canyon shrouded in clouds as we approached the two high altitude lakes in Huascaran National Park.
On our ride up we were stopped by this local mountain guide who had many questions about bicycle touring.
He even wanted to try out Patricia’s bicycle – and then offered to buy her bike! Sorry not for sale but we gave him some ideas of where to get one in Peru.
Dustin has another gummy worm for climbing energy.
We got to the first lake at 12,600 feet altitude.
All over this canyon there were glacier-fed waterfalls, sometimes streaming over the road
Patricia stops to take a look at one of the waterfalls – no filter here (or ever)…that’s actually the color of the lake.

The road went along these two high-altitude lakes for about 4km (2.4 miles) before starting another climb to the pass. This climb was 14 km long and would be the highest we’ve ever been with the bicycles at 4,700 meters (15,400 feet) – after a brief rain we were feeling pretty good and it was only 10:30am so we started the climb. For one hour we had no rain & great views.

After about 1 hour it started to rain, so we put on rain jackets and hats. Since we were climbing and putting out so much heat, if we were to put on full rain gear we’d just sweat to death. We continued to climb in the cooler rain for another three hours gradually losing feeling in our fingers but overall feeling pretty good.

When we reached about 14,600 feet in elevation we checked in with each other and we were starting to get “core cold” and had little dexterity left in our fingers. Then Patricia started getting nauseous – an early indication of altitude sickness. We knew if we continued up to the pass, another 4km, we could be in trouble. So we found the next available camping spot and set up a “warm-up before this turns into an emergency” camp. With great difficulty, because of frozen fingers and feeling sick, we set up the tent, layered up in dry clothes, and made hot water for our emergency rations (instant noodles in a cup) and a thermos of hot water.

Once we got camp set up, had some warm noodles, and started warming up we felt much better. In the end we had a picturesque campsite and enjoyed an unforgettable sunset.

We climbed up from the two lakes at over 12,000 feet for a few hours before we realized we needed to stop and camp for the night (at 14,700 feet).
No pictures of the tough times…too focused on getting safe, dry & warm. Once we had camp set and a hot cup of noodles (with peanut butter for extra energy) we snapped a selfie.
Our camp for the night at 14,700 feet (4,500 meters) looking down into the canyon.

After hot soup, we hopped into the tent and got in our sleeping bags for a proper warm up, napped & read books. Just before sunset we had an amazing dinner of walnuts, Doritos, & chocolate (we could have had other food but this was the least messy). The rain had stopped and we looked outside to see an unbelievable sunset.

In the tent picnic dinner – walnuts, Doritos, gummy bears & chocolate.
We think the peak of the Cordillera Blanca mountains we could see from our campsite was Huandoy 6360 meteres or 20,866 feet elevation.
The sunset was spectacular 🙂
We were amazed at how quickly the sky changed colors – what a treat after such a hard day of climbing.

The next morning we awoke to more views, not quite as fabulous as the previous nights sunset. It wasn’t raining so we packed up and continued up the mountain for the summit. We dressed warmly but lighter as we would warm up quickly climbing to the top. When we left it was 5 C (41 F) and the road was almost constant streams of rain – quickly we decided it was easier and safer to just hike-a-bike to the pass. Eventually we reached the pass and the temperature was now 2 C (35 F) and snowing. Quickly we layered up and prepared for a chilly (and rainy) descent.

All packed up the next morning – one last look at the cloud-shrouded Cordillera Blanca mountains
We camped at the switchback visible in this image. Also note – stream running down the road…as we climbed it worsened. Eventually we decided hike-a-bike to the top was kinder on our lungs, safer & allowed us to take in the views.
This was the road we climbed up in Huascaran National Park to cross the pass at 4,700 meters (15,400 feet)
Rugging up at the pass (15,400 feet or 4,700 meters) for the downhill. The weather was deteriorating so we expected a chilly ride down.
Fully rugged up for the downhill – full fingered gloves & mitts. Oh, did we mention it was snowing? You can see a little snow on Patricia’s braids.
Can you find Patricia in this image? The 19km downhill (almost 12 miles) took us about 2 hours because of the challenging road conditions and rain. In this image you can see many water filled potholes.
Waterfalls galore – also note to self…when you pull over for a vehicle make sure you are nowhere near a puddle or you will get drenched.
Thankful to have reached a hospedaje where we found wonderful company including a dog, Avatar, who quickly latched onto Dustin, even curling up next to him for dinner.
We had “infusions” after our dinner at the hospedaje – this was chamomile mint

We had dinner at the hospedaje and it lingered for 3 hours with insightful conversation so we didn’t get back to our room until after 10pm. The next morning when it was raining it didn’t take much convincing for us to delay our departure – we ended up leaving at 11am and only rode to the small village of Yanama 14km (8.5 miles) away.

Leaving our hospedaje we headed for the small village of Yanama and were surprised by the intense sunshine after several days of clouds – here Dustin has stopped to apply sunscreen…we’re still at about 12,000 feet so a burn can happen quickly.
Along the route we met these two guys from Brazil – they were doing the same loop as us but in the opposite direction. They were super helpful with tips for the road ahead – we spoke no Portuguese and they spoke (almost) no English but we were able to communicate in Spanish 🙂 We were even invited to their homes in Brazil!
Patricia points to the white capped Cordillera Blanca peeking out under the clouds.
The village of Yanama had a unique church built by the Italians.
View from our lodge in Yanama – that super pointy peak in the middle of this image is Chacraraju 6108 meters (20,039 feet).

Yanama – Our lodge in Yanama, Yanamanka Lodge, had the most wonderful hosts we’d experienced to date – Sebastian & his mom, Gloria. So it didn’t take much convincing to stay another night with them. Sebastian studied design at the university in Lima, Peru’s capital, so the lodge had a cool artsy vibe while ensuring we had everything for a comfortable stay. They are working on building their business and are in the process of adding 4 additional rooms to their current lot of three. They spoke to us completely in Spanish but it was slow, enunciated and therefore easy to understand. We’re really proud of the progress we’ve made in Spanish 🙂

On the first night we enjoyed stunning views of the mountains from their “taraza” and then wood-fired pizza from an oven Sebastian had made himself. The next morning during the included breakfast which was in their home they planned a tour of Yanama for us – Sebastian took us on a walking tour while Gloria did our laundry and prepared lunch…we were so well taken care of!

Dustin dried all of our wet gear on the fence of our lodge – this local boy was curious and watched the process.
We enjoyed coffee on the taraza with Sebastian & Gloria on our first afternoon in Yanama. The coffee is served similar to expresso but we learned the next morning you can also have “cafe con aqua” (coffee with hot water)
Sebastian made us wood fired pizza in an oven he had built himself – really good! He had worked at an artisanal pizza place in Lima, Peru’s capital city, for 3 years. We were not expecting such good food in a village of only 800 people!
The lodge had an interesting artsy flair with all the work done by Sebastian – even the sliding barn door to our bathroom with multiple types of wood.
Staying an extra day in Yanama we were able to do a walking tour of the town with our host, Sebastian – this is a mosaic of the stations of the cross done by the Italians.
We were surprised by the amount of strawberries grown in this area – we were at 11,000 feet elevation and the temperatures are cooler.
Sebastian is explaining the town layout to Dustin at the base of the bell tower – we had stopped by the local parish to get the key to the bell tower so we could ring the bell.
Inside the bell tower – this bell was HUGE and HEAVY (see previous picture for context) yet Dustin was able to get it to ring. Sebastian said we must make it ring more than 3 chimes because only 3 rings means someone has died
Two local women joined us at the bell tower to take in the view – after a while one of them called someone on her cell phone and said something about “Gringa” and Patricia pointed to herself and laughed. She was surprised Patricia knew what she was saying and laughed as well 🙂
The community church had sheep mowing down the lawn
We got to see the building they are currently restoring to make more “tourista” rental rooms – here Dustin climbs up to see the new taraza & view of the mountains.
Sebastian took Dustin on his first moto ride to return the key for the bell tower to the local parish. The parish included an orphanage, hospital, & trades training for women.
After our walking tour we came home for the lunch gloria had prepared – we had pork with mushrooms in a cream sauce along with vegetables and sweet potatoes – delicious! Starting on the left is Sebastian, his mom Gloria, and dad had just returned from working in Lima.

Yanama to Acochaca – We ended up in Acochaca the next night at a lovely hotel on the river. When we departed Yanama we didn’t really have a destination but rather a mental list of potential places we could stop depending on our cycling strength and the “clima” (weather). We took a rough secondary route that required us to climb for almost the first 3 hours followed by a difficult rocky descent. We were thrilled when we got to the construction area and the still dirt road was super smooth.

At the top of the almost 3 hour climb Patricia stops for lunch. When we first arrived the view was not stellar but gradually became better was we lunched & rested.
Thankfully most of the clouds lifted for the descent.
This descent was challenging because of the large rocks you can see in front of and behind Patricia. Also in this image you can see the snow-capped Cordillera Blanca just starting to peek out.
We road through a lush green valley on our way to Acochaca – looking at this image you’d never believe snow-capped mountains, ice fields and glaciers were less than 20 miles away.
Two black sheep – just like us!
Once we hit a new construction area the road smoothed out – so nice to enjoy the view and not have to constantly watch the road.
Our hotel in Acochaca was a delight. The proprietor, Miguel, built a lovely building with modern conveniences and tranquil gardens on his family’s historic property along the river. The balcony wrapped around the entire building with great views.

Chacas – The next day we only had 11km to the town of Chacas but it was all uphill. This uphill seemed so easy compared to the challenging washed out, large stoned gravel uphills we’ve been doing. We arrived in Chacas, a touristy town, early enough to take in some of the attractions.

It was only 11km from Acochaca to Chacas but any distance riding in the Andes is sure to provide lovely views.
Building off the main town square in Chacas – famous for these carved wooden balconies influenced by the Italians.
Church off the main square in Chacas.
Dustin often has to watch his head for low hanging signs but this one was low enough to almost get Patricia.
An Italian missionary priest established an artisan skill school which included woodworking. Many products are sold to Europe & the USA.
The door to the archeological museum in Chacas is another example of the local woodworking skill.
The archeological museum in Chacas displayed pieces from several areas of Peru and covered a vast timeframe of about 3,000 years. We adored the “mono” (monkey) covering its eyes.
On the town square this guy and his horse were making the rounds, entertaining people with their dancing to music. He even let others ride his horse around the square.

Crossing the Cordillera Blanca #2 – We were going to stay in Chacas for an extra day but realizing that extra day was a Sunday with many attractions closed (including the bank and we were running out of cash), and looking at the weather prediction, we decided that if it was decent the next morning we would make an attempt for the Punta Olimpica pass at 4740 meters (15,500 feet). When we awoke the skies were looking to be in our favor so we skipped the included breakfast of the hotel and started the 30km (18 mile) climb.

Leaving Chacas the Tunnel is *only* 30km (18 miles) away but it is all uphill and the weather changes rapidly.
Starting off sunny – this is a good sign! You can even see Patricia’s shadow.
Landslide & water over the road but still good weather we’ll take it!
Roads are wet now BUT you can see the mountains – that’s a good sign 🙂
Patricia donned a rain jacket but didn’t fully “rug up”
Dry roads & mountains – yay!
More dry roads and mountains – we can’t believe the weather has been “this good”

It took us almost 6 hours to make it to 4620 meters (15,100 feet) where we knew there was a refugio in which we could set up our tent. We had a few rain showers but generally we were quite lucky for the rainy season. We just got all of our gear into the refugio, no small feat as it was hike/push-a-bike about 400 meters, when the downpour turned hail turned snow started.

Patricia fills an extra bottle of water from the lagoon near the refugio. Better hurry…clouds are coming in quick!
It was about a 400 meter (1/4 mile) hike-a-bike to get to the refugio.
Close up of the hike-a-bike. It was hard to push a very heavily loaded touring bicycle over these rocks.
The refugio was quite small – only room enough for one tent…we were glad it was not already occupied when we arrived. Quickly our gear took over almost the entire shelter.
We were elated to have reached the refugio yet it was a public space – everything we’d researched said the tourists would be gone around 5pm…that was still 3 hours for us. Until the tourists were finished for the day we did not set up our tent. Some of the tourists wanted a picture with “la gringa”.
Clouds rolled in, it was chilly & misty…and we were waiting for all the tourists to leave before setting up our tent.
Finally we set up the tent when it was snowing out…we didn’t think there would be anymore tourists yet the die-hards still wandered around and we said “buenas tardes” from our cozy sleeping bags.
Just before sunset it cleared up again so we had fun taking pictures and trying to warm up
Dustin stands on the wall next to the refugio taking in the road we came up along with the turquoise laguna. Although the roof leaked and the wind came through the paneless windows, we were thankful to have shelter.
Another spectacular sunset from 15,000 feet 🙂

After sunset we snuggled in our sleeping bags, read books, and were asleep by 8pm. The lowest temperature we recorded was 2C (36F) but it was a “wet cold” and therefore felt chillier. The next morning we awoke to clear skies and more great views of the mountains. We had boiled water for a hot water thermos the previous afternoon, so it was hot coffee and oatmeal for breakfast. It was so interesting to boil water at this altitude because the boiling temperature was so much reduced. Normal water boils at 212F/100C and at 15,100 feet where we camped it boiled at 184F/84C!

Sunshine, blue skies, and hot coffee in the morning – life is good!
Dustin waves from the refugio in the crisp clear morning
Morning shot of the road we came up – clouds started to appear…better get going soon!
Heading up to the Punta Olimpica Tunel – Between 2013 and 2019 it was the highest tunnel in the world at 15,500 feet (4,740 m).
Entering the Punta Olimpica – it was a gradual uphill ride for 1.4km
In the tunnel water was raining from the ceiling – we need rain jackets! This might be the longest tunnel we’ve done…when we can’t see the light at the other end we know its long. Don’t worry – we run front & rear lights, have reflective bags/jackets, and use our headlamps as extra light for vehicles to see us.
Ahhh…finally light at the end of the tunnel 🙂
Yay – out of the tunnel! Patricia holds her headlamp which we use as extra lights so traffic can see us. We were passed by only 3 vehicles and the bus gave us a honk of thanks for our visibility 🙂
After the tunnel we fully “rugged up” in our rain gear even though it was not raining because we had 40k (24 miles) of chilly downhill to ride.
Just ahead of Patricia was the roadwork crew – they were hand painting the sign posts as well as sweeping the roadway. This had to be one of the best roads we’ve ridden in Peru.
On the bottom of this image is our road – it twisted back and forth until we were at the bottom of the valley.
Sharp peaks poked out everywhere
Epic down hilling with almost no traffic
We even got a peak at Huascaran (lefthand side mixed with clouds) at 22,200 feet it is the tallest mountain in Peru and the third tallest in South America.
When we reached the valley floor it was significantly warmer and we continued the downhill cruise until reaching the town of Carhuaz.

Carhuaz – We spent two nights in Carhuaz drying gear and cleaning up – it was a nice quiet small town. Excitement in Carhauz was we found American Style “Mantequilla de Mani” (Peanut Butter) and we tried Cervesa (Beer) flavored ice cream – meh, wouldn’t do it again haha.

Dustin dries our tent & gear in the parking area of our accommodation – super nice place so we stayed two days 🙂
Church on the main square of Carhuaz
Peanut butter is becoming slightly more difficult, not impossible, to find. We were so excited to find American style “Mantequilla de Mani” for $6.50 per jar.

Huaraz – We rode about 33km (about 18 miles) to the larger town of Huaraz (pop. 130,000) where we planned to stay a few days and ended up staying 5 nights. We found a great hostel, El Tambo, with a wonderful proprietress, Mariella.

Soon after arriving in Huaraz we learned a fellow bicyclist, Florian Berg, had died just a few days previously in the same mountains we had just crossed about 50 miles south of where we were. Florian, a 28 year old from Germany, had stayed at the same hostel we were at and signed into the guest book just three lines above our names. He departed the hostel on Friday, January 17th and when his GPS stopped transmitting at 9:30am on Sunday, January 19th, his family contacted the German Embassy who then called the Peruvian Embassy who then messaged the Huaraz Police to initiate a search for him. His body was located by local shepherds – in a very unfortunate circumstance, he was struck by lightening and died. In all of our years of reading about and following bicyclists this is the first instance of death by lightening we had heard of – so sad 🙁

The wonderful proprietress, Mariella, worked with both embassies, the local morgue, and Florian’s family – she has a heart of gold. For anyone headed to Huaraz, Peru, we HIGHLY recommend El Tambo Hostel – it’s not fancy but you will immediately be treated like family.

Mariella created a shrine for the recently deceased cyclist, Florian Berg, who was struck by lightening just south of Huaraz, Peru. Our hearts are broken for his family 🙁

After settling into the hostel we toured around Huaraz for a day and did some chores.

Patricia tries on a traditional skirt at the market – these were very stiff with ribbing and then cinched around the waist.
We went to the department (similar to a state) museum of Ancash which displayed many archeological artifacts from pre-Inca civilations

We really wanted to visit Chavin, a pre-Inca cultural site, but it would require climbing over the mountains we’d already climbed over twice…so we booked onto a local tour in a van and 16 other tourists to get to Chavin. It was a long day from before 9am to after 7pm including six hours of driving but what a fascinating site!

Our tour to Chavin stopped at this lake at 4,000m (13,000 feet) for a wonderful view of the Cordillera Blanca Mountains.
We met Diego, a teacher from Lima, on his summer holiday – great guy to speak with and learn from during our tour.
The water was so clear you could easily see this sunken boat.
Our tour guide did a great job of explaining the Chavin archeological site in Spanish – in this photo Dustin is using google translate on his phone to understand all the details. Eventually we gave up on the google translate and just listened in Spanish 🙂
The Chavin people were one of the more prominent pre-Incan (2,000 years before the Incas!) civilizations primarily inhabiting the coastal area of Peru but this site was their most important ceremonial center in the mountains. All the roofing shown was added by preservationists to protect the temple during the rainy season.
We learned on the tour on the back of the “old 50” was Chavin – compare this to the picture above 🙂
We were allowed to explore inside many different galleries of the temple – absolutely amazing for being built about 3,000 years ago!
The temple was massive with several different galleries – and we only saw a fraction of what was built.
It is estimated originally there were over 100 cabezas clavas (nail heads) sometimes referred to as guardians of the temple.
At the Chavin museum we saw many of the original heads – each uniquely carved.
Many of the original stones from Chavin had been moved to the museum to preserve it from the weather. On this stone in the lower left you can see the Chakana or Andean cross (a cross with a circle in the middle) – this symbol dates back to 4,000 years before the Incas. Also visible is many serpents – representing the underworld, fertility, water & wisdom in many pre-Incan cultures.
The museum also had ceramics from several different cultures – the details were amazing. This one represents self-sacrifice as the hand is holding the knife that just slit the throat. The slit in the throat shows the arteries & veins being severed.
Back in Huaraz we explored the town – here is a church we visited on a Saturday that had just had a wedding complete with rolled out red carpet and rose petals.
Moving chickens in Huaraz, Peru…just like back in Nantahala, North Carolina, USA.

While in Huaraz we were able to get some chores done – bikes overhauled & cleaned, fix our stove and catch up on the blog…it was a nice chillaxing time 🙂

We got the bicycles deep-cleaned, drive-train and all, at a local bike shop, Pushaq Cycles – they did a great job!
We use a “multi-fuel” stove that can run on gasoline, kerosene, diesel, or whitegas so we can source fuel anywhere we travel. The downside of these stoves is they are a little finicky to use and have several gaskets & screws. Apparently we lost one of these important screws (center gold color on right picture)…probably it rattled out while we rode on bumpy gravel roads and then we lost it with numb fingers on the first high pass. This screw regulates the gasoline allowed to burn – while heating water during both of our high passes we essentially cooked on liquid gasoline, instead of aspirated fuel, creating a massive amount of soot. We had a spare parts kit for the stove and Dustin did a complete overhaul on the stove as well as replaced our missing screw.
We had a final fashion shoot & said goodbye to Dustin’s riding shirts…he’s been wearing these two shirts almost daily since we left Alaska. It was time…these shirts are beyond repair! A new shirt is already waiting for him in North Carolina – super thanks to our sister-in-law, Allison, for managing our mail & packages while we are gone 🙂
Mariella, our hostel proprietress, roasts coffee on the stove.

Riding toward the coast – For the first time since Colombia (not counting our side trip to the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador) we are leaving the Andes and headed to the coast. We are planning to catch up with some friends in Lima, Peru, who are on a world cruise stopping in Lima toward the end of February. Looks like there are some interesting cultural sites along the way and we’re excited to see the Peruvian coast and maybe play in the water for a little bit 😉

Thanks for following our journey!

30 thoughts on “Day 477 – 491: Caraz to Huaraz, Peru”

  1. Oh my goodness! Breathtaking photos, and your experiences are beyond amazing. Thank you so much for sharing.

  2. What an adventure in Peru. We will be sorry to see Dustin’s shirts go, but it is probably time. We will look forward to seeing the new ones in a future post! Stay safe and enjoy!

  3. Such an interesting blog. Sorry to hear about the bicyclist that was hit by lightning. 🙁
    Prayers for his family. Keeping you both in my prayers for a safe journey. Hope you can meet up with your friends on the coast.

  4. Incredible adventure and experience on so many levels!!! The shirt needs to go but that is the least of the issues!!
    Stay safe and warm!!!

  5. I’m glad you described your travel stove because I was going to ask about it. But how did you know the temperature of the boiling water?

    Fantastic views of the Andes! I figuratively held my breath when I saw you hiking your bike on those rocks by the refugio.

    Love that you eat with the families. May God keep you safe.

  7. Spectacular shots and thank you for all the information- I give you two cudos for this trip – nothing easy in your day! What an amazing experience- be safe and keep up the incredible journey!

  8. I am loving your blog. It’s not only a healthy alternative to the news, I actually feel good reading it. My friend Art and I met you over a year ago on the Highway somewhere in Baja. Us on motorcycles, you two on bikes. I had no idea at the time what you were heading for. Absolutely amazing. So glad we had that chance meeting. I look forward to each installment.

  9. Patricia & Dustin
    We only spent an afternoon with you two on the beach in Farallon Panama.
    Your trip has been amazing to follow & we have so much admiration for you two and this incredible journey.
    The posts & photos are wonderful.
    Mike & Lori
    Sarnia, Ontario, Canada

  10. So wonderful to be able to follow you on your trip. The photos are wonderful. The food looks good also.
    We know that you are being blessed

  11. I can’t imagine pushing your bikes on the rocky road that you pictured. It also looked like it was extremely narrow. The water of the lake you showed was such a beautiful blue! You continue to meet such interesting people, and so many of them seem very helpful. It’s so interesting reading your blog!

  12. Simply breathtaking! Love the deep blue early morning high altitude sky in a few of your pictures. So happy you’ve been able to do this and that you get to share your pictures with us! Thank you, its a blessing!

  13. I love reading about your journey. You two have such a great attitude and adjust to circumstances so easily. Peru is such a beautiful country. I am amazed at the beauty sunsets, lakes , & mountains. The crossroads biking up and down the mountains is so challenging. Prayers for you both to stay strong and healthy.
    Hugs – Floyette

  14. I love reading about your journey. You two have such a great attitude and adjust to circumstances so easily. Peru is such a beautiful country. I am amazed at the beauty sunsets, lakes , & mountains. The crossroads biking up and down the mountains is so challenging. Prayers for you both to stay strong and healthy.
    Hugs – Floyette

  15. I met Florian in the Yukon on my northbound ride from Seattle to Fairbanks last May, 2025. I have a funny story about the circumstance when we met, but there’s not enough space here for it. Suffice to say he was an around-the-world adventurer (one of many I met) and was one of the gentlest people I’ve ever met. I too am heart broken.

    By the way, I followed your stops on my journey. Thanks for sharing! Your blog is nothing less than remarkable.

    1. Thanks for the message!
      Wow – what a small (bicycle touring) world. So nice to hear you had met Florian & have such wonderful memories of him. If our paths ever cross let’s get together – we’d love to hear the circumstances of how you met him.
      Thanks for following along – see you down the road 🙂

  16. Patricia and Dustin,
    I am awe struck by your journey.
    In Ecuador at 8500 feet, Miriam suffers some bouts of altitude sickness. And you’re cycling at 14000 feet.
    You two are my superheroes!

    1. We’re shocked we handled the altitude so well – we think it’s the slow travel by bicycles and then sleeping at these elevations that helps!
      Thanks for your comment 🙂

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