Travelling on a bicycle must be the ultimate freedom! You can go wherever you want, whenever you want, in whatever pace you like. You can camp, cook, and live completely independent if you only have the basic necessities: food and water. I have never felt as healthy and “alive” as when cycling day after day. I’ve come to truly appreciate simple living without the many commodities that we are surrounded by in our everyday life. Without things that we should commit to and rules that we should follow etc. Appreciating the small, uncomplicated things in life and living in harmony with nature, to me that’s life quality.

I have come to realize how much I like physical challenges and pushing my body and psyche toward their limits. Not that this trip has been very tough, but at times it’s been pretty hard, and now in hindsight I realize that I really enjoyed those moments and worked up a kind of appetite for it.

Why enjoy something as awful as 100 km/h headwind? Why enjoy gasping for breath while cycling uphill at an altitude of almost 5,000 m? Or being covered in dust and mud and not being able to shower for days while sleeping in a hot tent during the nights? I can’t say I know the answer to this, but I suspect it could have something to do with appreciating what you did after it is done, and appreciating the return to civilization.

Before my “big” trip, I didn’t think much about the consequences concerning work and not obeying to the normal life-style etc. that could impact your career. But the response I got was the opposite. I even got a job offer on my blog ☺ And whether it might scare you to get hooked on the feeling of travelling this way and have difficulties returning to a normal life, then I’d question that big time. I mean, after all, life is all about doing what you like and what makes you happy! And I think that if you can motivate whatever activity by exactly that, then what you have in mind won’t pose a problem for you in future.

I have received plenty of e-mails from people who have been inspired by my blog, asking for tips on equipment and planning their own cycling adventures. Some of them are already on the road, and this is something that makes me very happy to hear!

Even one year after my return, it’s quite amazingly not a single day without me thinking back on the time in South America. I miss waking up in the tent and feel the sun on my face. I miss the feeling of addiction when reading page-turning novels. I miss taking a nap on the ground in a random place. I miss the feeling of freedom and adventure when leaving a big city behind. I miss the simplicity of the nomadic way of living. I miss not having new places to explore. I miss being on the road and on the move.

Here are the cycling statistics for the whole trip:

And some other stuff:

Highlights and special moments:

• See the moon appear above Torres del Paine when lying in the tent at night.
• Sitting on a restaurant next to the sea in northern Peru, eating ceviche, having a cold Brahma beer and listening to salsa music.
• Fishing rainbow trout in Laguna Larga in no-mans-land.
• Recovering from my knee tendon inflammation in Bariloche for a month in the lovely family-run hostel La Bolsa del Deporte while fishing, BBQing, partying and getting a visit by my Dad.
• Playing in the river with dolphins and the kids of the fisherman Benjamin outside of Trinidad, Bolivia.
• The time spent in Rodeo waiting for Janne Corax at the special hotel/hostel Doña Elena and the delicious breakfasts I made, even though this was an incredibly boring town.
• Casa de Ciclistas in Trujillo and its special atmosphere and lovely family.
• The magical feeling on Tierra del Fuego on my second camping night, listening to Eddie Vedder’s Rise.
• The warmth, food and dances during Christmas and New Year in Puerto Natales, Chile.
• To push myself through the Laguna Route on the Bolivian altiplano together with Jenny and return to civilization in Uyuni.
• Sitting naked in the hot springs of Polques with beer, Jalapeño Pringles, temperature far below zero but 38 degrees in the water and starlit sky in the middle of nowhere.
• After a tremendous effort reaching the top of Bolivias highest mountain Sajama at 6,542 m.
• The time at the bohemian finca with Arturo and Liliana in the Colombian mountains.

I can’t say that I have a favorite country, so here are some of the best things with each of them:

Argentina:
There is such a variety in nature. Magical Tierra del Fuego, Patagonia in general, trout fishing, glaciers, crystal clear lakes and rivers, beautiful mountains, wonderful Bariloche, asado, ice cream, wine, mate, women, indigenous people, fossils, wind, drought.

Chile:
I only got to know the Patagonian part and (hitchhiking due to a sore knee), the renown and wild Carretera Austral, which was very beautiful.

Bolivia:
The Bolivian altiplano, and more precisely the nature reserve Eduardo Avaroa, is absolutely stunning. The country is also very rich in indigenous culture.

Peru:
The Peruvian cuisine is really, really good. The mountains in Cordillera Blanca are breathtaking.

Ecuador:
A small but very diverse country that is very rich in nature.

Colombia:
The country has one of the nicest and most welcoming and hospitable people I’ve ever met, and also very beautiful women ☺

With a limited supply of music, combined with solitude and great nature, you tend to develop special relationships to some songs, and associate them to places. I would like to list the music that mean something special to me. Here it goes:

Band Of Horses – The Funeral
- Before the trip as a pep song, and at magical views. The Danish cyclist Nicolai Bangsgaard actually introduced me to this great song in one of his cycling videos from South America.

Eddie Vedder – Rise
- Most memorable camping night, the second night on Tierra del Fuego, Argentina.

Bliss – Quiet Letter
- Trekking in Valle del Francés, Torres del Paine, Chile.

The Tough Alliance – Keep It Pure
- Walking over the flower-covered meadows with wild horses, having Torres del Paine behind me.

jj’s album No° 2
- Patagonia

M83 – Midnight Soul Still Remain
- For loooooong downhills

Caesars – We Got To Leave
- Happily jumping around in the valley below Laguna 69, Huaraz, Peru.

John Me – Skin & Bones
- Camping at a playground together with a homeless dog in Tangua, Colombia.

Artist: Modern Talking
- Cycling up the death road outside La Paz, Bolivia (perfect rhythm that harmonizes with the lowest gear)

Genre: Reggaeton
- When needing an extra push

Another very appreciated subject during days of hard work and after days without proper civilization was food, and the act of truly appreciating food.

You tend to fantasize a lot about food when sitting in the saddle, and here’s the wish-list list that I’ve kept on adding to throughout the trip. Some bullets make sense while others don’t. Unfortunately it would be hard to translate most of it, so I’ll just write this in Swedish instead:

• Brogyllens saffransbulle
• Grillad korv med bröd, ketchup, grovkorning senap och rostad lök. Korven ska vara den 90%-iga som jag och Jens föråt oss på våren 2009
• Semla med ett glas kall, svensk mjölk
• Mossens kebabpizza Lasa (ananas & curry) med extra mycket stark sås
• Frasiga våfflor med hjortronsylt och vispad gräddde
• Korv stroganoff med dijonsenap
• Nyponsoppa med mandelbiskvier och vaniljglass
• Färsk frukt i bitar med naturell yoghurt och müsli (till frukost)
• Min svamp- och baconpasta
• Ingen mat, men ack så gott: Mias musk-parfym och Jonnas kola/kokos-lotion
• Julbordet i Chalmerska huset
• Princesstårta (kan man få med dubbla lager marsipan?)
• Chicken Cheese Murtabak med Ice Lemon/Calamansi Tea på Rivervalley Road i Singapore
• Mammas färsbiffar med klyftpotatis och morotstzatziki
• Mockabakelsen i Stora Höga som jag alltid ville ha receptet på men aldrig fick
• Mazariner
• Stekt falukorv med Kungsörnens Idealmakaroner och knäckebröd med lagrad ost på
• Min limecheesecake
• Svensk pizza i allmänhet
• Blodpudding med rårakor och rårörda lingon
• Svenskt lösgodis
• Judiths äppelpaj med vaniljsås
• Kanel- och pärlsockerkringlan från Ytterby bageri
• Kebabtallrik med pommes frites
• Leverpastej och saltgurka
• Räkfrossa
• Mariekex med smör och hushållsost på
• Rulltårta
• Pappas ris & curry med mangochutney
• Kanelbullar
• Rabarberdryck, svartvinbärssaft, Festis Peach Passion, svensk mjölk
• Pepparkakor & clementiner
• Glass: 88:an, Piggelin, Calippo, Twister, Mjukglass med karamellströssel
• Fish N’ Chips från Arvidssons på Marstrand
• Kickans bröd, nybakt med kaviar på
• Pappas panerade plattfisksfiléer
• Marsipan/mandelmassa
• Mjuk pepparkaka
• Svenskt kranvatten
• Grekisk sallad
• Pappas dill- och vitlöksgratinerade havskräftor
• En tjock grillad med bostongurka

And then of course I had favorite local food!

• Ceviche (rå fisk med citronsaft, koriander, lök och chilli).
• Argentinsk asado (grillat kött)
• Argentinsk glass.
• Pebre (Chilensk salsa: tomat, lök, koriander, citronsaft, lite olivolja, lite chili)
• Empanadas
• PIZZA
• Salteñas (Bolivianska empanadas, såsigare, ibland lite söta)
• Juans chorizo-, spansk pimenton- och vitlökspasta
• Pollo a la brasa (grillad kyckling)
• Pique Macho (Boliviansk tallrik med massa gott)
• Chifa (kinesmat I Peru och Ecuador)
• Encebollado (Ecuadoriansk fisksoppa)
• Lasses kyckling- och grönsakswok

…and what did I get tired of eating?

• Havregrynsgröt
• Tonfiskspasta
• Kex
• Boliviansk standardtallrik (ris med lamakött/kyckling, ibland yucca eller majs, i bästa fall lite tomater till)

Cycling through South America was the best thing I’ve ever done (so far). I felt so alive, so healthy, (mostly) happy, and it gave me such a feeling of fulfillment to appreciate the simple things in life like food, leaving civilization, returning to civilization and beautiful nature. I am truly grateful for all the wonderful and memorable meetings with friendly locals and fellow cyclists along the road. It has mostly been my curiosity for the unknown and what was coming next that was my driving force. It was amazing to see climate, seasons, topography, flora and fauna change along the way, with your own legs being the only engine to transport you.

Many people ask me if I would like to do a new cycling tour and what my next destination would be. My answer to this is definitely, and currently I’m feeling very intrigued by the thought of crossing Africa, or cycling through the Himalayas and Tibetan Plateau.

I want to end this blog entry by showing you one of my favorite photos (that eventually got published in National Geographic, in October 2011). It was taken by my friend Brian Sing on the Bolivian altiplano and shows a crossroads where we had to make a choice, either left or right. I did another, much bigger decision, when I decided to make this journey.

Freedom of choice is a great thing. The future is in your hands.

“The best journeys answer questions, that in the beginning, you didn’t even think to ask”
– From the movie 180° South

An hour before I was about to call it a day after continuing, a man reminding me of Super Mario with a blue overall, red cap and big mustache, waved at me from beside the road. He presented himself as Arturo, invited me for a soft drink and asked if I was in a hurry. I said no, and he told me that he was on his way to his finca (like a farmhouse with plantations but no animals). He invited me to stay there and I happily said yes. I cycled on 15 km’s and then stored my bike at one of the worker families. Then we rode on his motorbike, bought some traditional liquor and headed into the mountains. It was a long, bumpy ride on narrow mud roads. We stopped at a clear little stream and took a sip of the aquardiente while watching the sunset over the green hills that continued as far as the eye could see. Beautiful scenery!

When we arrived to the house, a woman named Liliana came out and greeted me. She was an artist and had been living there in harmony with nature for about ten years. The house had been built by a group of bohemians of mostly recycled, second-hand materials and reminded me of the primary Waldorf-school that I attended. It was located on the top of a big hill with a 360˚-view of the landscape.

They cultivated everything here and were almost completely self-sufficient! Pumpkins, blueberries, physalis, strawberries, passion fruit, papaya, aloe vera, marijuana, beans, quinoa, eucalyptus, herbs, orchids, potatoes and other vegetables could be found just around the house, plus ~10 plants that I had never seen before. All seeds were carefully selected so they had their own little plant breeding going on.

In a small stream down in the valley, 100 vertical meters below the house, they had installed a ram pump that pumps water using its own pressure as the only force. This is a genius solution for water supply, dating back to the 17th century and no electricity is needed! I closely inspected the whole arrangement and wished that I one day would make use of one myself.

During the days, we harvested vegetables, cooked tons of great food, listened to old LP-record jazz and read books. With the addition of Swedish cinnamon rolls that I baked, I almost felt like being home. I was completely blown away by Arturos and Lilianas hospitality and their place in the mountains so I stayed for several days. I hope that I will return one day.

Nothing lasts forever; I had to go on and returned to my own world of cycling. I came to a big climb called Mata Sanos (killing healthy) were I held on to a truck with my left hand and then got dragged up half the hill. Quite stupid and dangerous, but the local kids do this all the time so I had to give it a try once.

Leaving the mountains behind, the landscape got perfectly flat and the day temperature peaked at around 34˚C. After a couple of days of riding, the presence of the Caribbean Sea was closing in. When I had around ten km’s left to the coast, I felt a sudden change in the air. It had a different consistency than I was used to, and a different smell. Sea breeze. I suddenly realized that my trip was coming to an end and my whole body got filled with mixed emotions that could best be described as a feeling of euphoria combined with emptiness. My muscles felt feeble, like after an intense exercise, an orgasm or after you’ve had a shock. Weird but fascinating!

The first meeting with the Caribbean Sea was a disappointment though. There had been extreme floods in the area, and the water becomes brownish when it passes through the mangrove swamps that surround the coast. The beaches were dirty as well. But when I continued north, things got better. I stayed in a cozy little town called Tolú for a couple of days and fixed my blog that had been corrupted in some way. It was very hot here, and beer, ice cream and lemonade summarize my days pretty good. I realized that I missed the distinct seasons in Sweden.

When I was about to enter the big tourist town of Cartagena, it was (not surprisingly) carnival. The streets were packed with people from the suburbs that marched into the city center to watch the parade. Equipped with “bombs” of colored powder, flour, mud and water, they saw me as an excellent target as I was zigzagging through the flooded streets to avoid vehicles and obstacles under the water. Eventually I found an expensive “flashpacker“ hostel with swimming pool but felt very relieved.

Cartagena is an old colonial city reminding me of Cuba. The houses are very colorful with balconies, dirty facades and entrances surrounded by plants.

Together with a couple of backpackers from the hostel, we went to a small square to watch a parade and experience the carnival atmosphere. It was a lovely scene! People were dancing, eating, drinking and throwing color bombs at each other. And then there was the foam. Everyone had a can in their hand and sprayed around them. In order to have some fun and have a chance to protect us, we also got some foam cans. But I should have known better… Suddenly someone sprays half a can in my face and I couldn’t see a thing! Amused by the whole situation, I ask a friend to take a photo when I do the thumbs up sign. However, and here’s the irony, I get ROBBED by pick-pocketers just in that same moment (unfortunately you can’t see the person in the photo). What a gringo I am! After a minute or so, I noticed that my wallet was gone and my bag was emptied. They stole my zoom lens, shell jacket, money, credit card and, the worst of all, my beloved well-worn flip-flops.

It felt good to be on the road again after a few days of city life. I visited a famous sight called Totumo – where a “mud volcano” rose up 10 m from the ground. It looked like a big cone, and on the top there was a crater filled with mud where I had a bath. It was quite surreal, the high density of the mud made it impossible to sink. It was kind of like in extremely salty water (think floating tank or the Dead Sea, but softer and thicker). I felt weightless, and if I tried to swim in it I just stayed in the same position.

Further on, I arrived to the city of Barranquilla, famous for the second biggest carnival in the world after the one in Rio de Janeiro. There, I met up with Lorena from CouchSurfing. She took me to a Caribbean museum, an animal park and then we went fishing in Rio Magdalena. I remembered stories told by my dad how they caught big catfish here when he was a seaman, and how the whole crew got sick after the bartender served them ice with the same brown color as the river. I had great fun with Lore so I stayed another night and met up with some other CouchSurfers.

The following day, I set off with a very emotional state of mind, this was going to be my last day of cycling! And finally, after 346 days and 12,436 km’s, I arrived to Santa Marta on the northern tip of Colombia. I couldn’t believe that the trip had come to an end. That I now had reached the final destination of the Caribbean Sea after cycling all the way from Tierra del Fuego. It felt incredible when I thought about it, but not at all a remarkable achievement. I remember that I had a feeling of emptiness when I went to sleep that night. Maybe because there were no new places waiting around the corner to be discovered next. Anyway, I recall that I wrote in my diary before going to bed that life is good.

The tourism council of Colombia had a campaign running on the TV with the slogan ”The only risk is wanting to stay”, which is true in both senses! Colombia is a great country and its people are super friendly. I spent the last two weeks on the beautiful beaches of the national park Tayrona. Not really much to add here actually, but it was a nice end of an amazing journey!

I would like to say thank you to all my sponsors that were involved in this trip. I am truly grateful for your support! Thanks also to all the readers that have been following me through this blog! Stay tuned for a last blog entry where I will try to summarize the trip and publish some statistics.

It’s been a lot of up’s and down’s the whole way but I sent a package with 3 kg’s of cold-weather-equipment, bike tools and souvenirs to my friend Laura in Bogotá and it’s actually quite a difference. It’s been very hot as well when cycling in the lowest valleys. I had my warmest day so far in one of these with 41 degrees, puuhh!

When I came to the city of Popayán there was a beauty contest on the plaza with women from all over the country and even here it confirmed what everyone had told me, Colombian women are very beautiful! I got introduced to Colombian aguardiente, which is an anise-flavored liqueur derived from sugar cane that is drunk from small shot glasses. A tradition that would follow me throughout the country. People were doing spontaneous dancing on the plaza and everyone were super friendly.

My next major stop was the third largest city, Cali, in Valle del Cauca. Here I was lucky to find a Casa de Ciclistas. This house belongs to Miller Hernan and his family and they were super sweet and let me stay for several nights. I showed them some of my cooking skills which was very appreciated and Sixta memorized the whole procedure.

In Cali, I met up with Laura who was working at an event called Cali Exposhow. This is a beauty, health and fashion fair and the biggest of its kind in the country. I also reunited with another friend, Ingela, from Sweden. It’s the third time on three different trips that we meet, and I indeed hope there will even be a fourth one someday. Together with two friends of hers, we went to the fair and also made it into a catwalk show and I have never seen so many beautiful women in my whole life. Then of course, this region is supposed to be famous for plastic surgery so my amusement partially shattered, but it was still awesome and I almost forgot to eat lunch.

This is Taliana Vargas from Santa Marta who came 2nd in Miss Universe 2008:

Cali is also called the capital of salsa, so later that night we went to a famous salsa place called Tin Tin Deo and demonstrated our Swedish hip movements. The next day I continued cycling with another cyclist, Marty, who is from the UK! We met the first time in Ecuador when I recognized him and his dreadlocks in a bar, after having seen him in photos in the guestbook at the Casa de Ciclistas in Trujillo, Peru. Very random!

We met the CouchSurfer Eliza in Tuluá who with open arms invited us to stay at her place. She is a teacher in a school located in the small mountain village Fenicia and wanted us to join her the following day. We visited five different classrooms and told the kids about our travels. They were curious but a bit shy and we happily answered all their questions. Marty is an interesting/crazy guy who has been travelling for 5 years. He has learnt Spanish by watching an insane amount of Simpsons episodes, and the latest crazy thing that happened to him was a bird that dropped a scorpion into his hammock which then stung him three times (but as he said afterwards, “it was worth it”).

On the mountains here in the center of the country is where most of the world-famous Colombian coffee is produced. It’s a pity that I don’t like coffee, but I’m sure that it’s good stuff. Here is a view of the city Pereira with coffe plantations in the foreground:

Cycling is one of the biggest sports in the country so I’ve been meeting many “compadres” on the road. I met a touring cyclist as well, Álvaro, who travels with basically nothing at all but hopes to reach Argentina by relaying on people’s hospitality. I hope his monstrous flag will help him!

Me and Marty spent Halloween in the second largest city Medellín, (in)famous for drug cartels and the drug lord Pablo Escobar. The “Godfather of Cocaine” was the richest and most “successful” criminal in world history that in 1989 got ranked the 7th richest man in the world by Forbes magazine. The rumour says that he once burnt $2 million in cash just to keep warm while on the run.

It didn’t feel like Halloween was about dressing scary here, so instead I thought about what would be very Swedish and came up with Pippi Longstocking. The costume was quite a success and gave many people in the bar district Zona Rosa a good laugh.

I reached Guayaquil, the biggest town in Ecuador, after two days. There I met up with some people from CouchSurfing that gave me a guided tour in the centre. I stayed for a couple of days and enjoyed the city and its atmosphere. It reminded me a bit of Rio de Janeiro, with a malecón (esplanade along the river) and a neighborhood called Las Peñas, which is the oldest part of Guayaquil located on a hill with 456 stairs and lined with small bars and cafés. I randomly bumped into Carlos and Sonia, a Spanish couple cycling the same route as me that I met in Salta in Argentina.

My plan for Ecuador was to go to the famous Galápagos Islands, but I decided to skip it due to lack of time, and it’s also very expensive to go there. Anyway, I now have a good reason to come back someday!

Instead, I continued west towards the coast and visited Montañita, a cozy hippie town popular among backpackers and surfers. Next up was Puerto López, famous for whale watching and Isla de la Plata, a kind of poor man’s version of the Galápagos Islands. Every year, a great amount of humpback whales gather here to breed before starting their return journey to Antarctica. I was here by the end of the season, but was still lucky to see some! The adults measure 12-16 meters and weigh about 36 tons, so it was very impressive to see these giants only 10 meters from the boat!

The tour included a stop at Isla de la Plata. We saw turtles and a lot of colorful fish next to the beach before starting a small hike around the island. There is a big colony of blue-footed boobie birds here. These completely unafraid and funny birds live in pairs, talking to each other and “discussing”/fighting with others about their territories. The neon blue color of their feet is almost surreal!

When we came back from the tour we were told that the president had declared a state of emergency in the country after a coup attempt had taken place! There were no buses, no police working and the borders had closed. People had started to rob banks and empty stores, particularly in Guayaquil, when there was no one there to arrest them. I went back to the hostel to watch a movie with some beer and snacks that night, but watching this whole spectacle LIVE on the news served as entertainment. What actually happened was this:

The president had made a change in the law reducing the bonuses and perks for the police. They responded by striking and in a riot the president was sprayed with some tear gas and fled to the hospital. There, he held a speech from the window and screamed “If you want to kill me, kill me!”, whereby later the police went wild and tried to take him out. The military managed to rescue him (under gunfire) and brought him back to the presidential palace where he held a second speech and thanked the people for their support. Soaked in sweat after a long and eventful day, he rounded off by singing the national anthem.

The situation was still very tense the following day and some people advised me to stay inside, but I continued since the countryside was rather unaffected by the events. I spotted a few whales from the road when I cycled along the coast! Later that day, I crossed the 10,000 km limit, good work!

I was thinking about heading north to Esmeraldas and then take a boat to Colombia, but when I heard that the zone was rather unsafe to travel in I let go the idea and went for the mountains instead. The scenic climb up to the capital Quito took me to 3,200 m, with very lush and green valleys on the way.

In the capital I didn’t do much more than chilling out at the hostel and chatting to backpackers. Two girls that just had arrived to start their trip got robbed on their first day on the street by people throwing poo on them from behind, and then offering a towel to wipe it off with. Disgusting, but probably very effective in their opinion…

After leaving Quito, I eventually approached latitude 0° and crossed the equator! Goodbye southern hemisphere, hello northern hemisphere!

From Cayambe, I took the old road and cycled 25 km downhill on a cobblestoned street. The constant shaking gave me a wryneck and also broke the cone and bearings inside my rear wheel, but I found a bike shop that had the right spare parts and could fix it for me. I found it very interesting to cycle from the cold mountains through indigenous villages where people are a bit timid and careful, and then in the same day dropping down 1,500 m to the warm Valle del Chota with Afro-Ecuadorian villages where people just love to come up and talk to you. Ecuador is a country small to its size, not only diverse in nature, but also culture!

After having cycled on the busy main road since Arequipa, it was nice for a change to turn off and head up towards the mountains. In the valley leading up to the pass at 4,100 m, people were shouting “GRINGO!” and “Hello Mister!” at me all the time and road workers even took the traffic cones and used them as megaphones. This can be very annoying but over time I’ve come to accept it and just ignore it. One night I found a lot of fireflies at my campsite. I collected a handful of them and released them in the abside, turning my tent into a discotheque – brilliant! In the same valley I also encountered a bird chirping very similar to R2D2 in Star Wars. Another funny encounter was when a random guy appears from the side of the road asking if I by any chance might be carrying a metal detector (yeah right). He was convinced that he knew where to search for gold that the Inca’s had hidden from the Spaniards.

The second day of the climb I got chased by a group of extremely angry and persistent dogs, that didn’t stop after I had taken all standard countermeasures. I decided to use the pepper spray for the first time, and teach them the lesson not to attack cyclists. However, I think the altitude (almost 4,000 m) affected the pressure or something, because it didn’t come out in a straight squirt. So what happened? It said “poff” and came out in a cloud, part of which I instantly got in my face. My eyes were quite ok from wearing sunglasses, but I had a stinging and burning feeling in my nose and mouth that lasted for about an hour.

The mountains in Cordillera Blanca and around Huaraz are stunning! Over twenty 6,000+ m peaks can be found here in a relatively small area. They have a lot more snow than the Bolivian mountains because of greater participation, and many of them are sharply shaped and highly technical. I continued to Caraz, another village further down in the valley. From here, I rented a backpack and left for the Laguna 69 and Santa Cruz-trek.

Following the trail up to the sapphire-blue lagoon Laguna 69 was like walking in a painting. Plenty of tall snow-capped peaks, including great views of Huascarán, Peru’s highest at 6,768 m. The lagoon itself is located below the glacier of Chacraraju (6,112 m). When I reached the lagoon, I found a lonely cow strolling around. I gave it a piece of bread and it felt like we were best friends. But I should have known better… All of a sudden the bastard lunges at me! I barely had time to react but jumped slightly up and to the side like a clumsy matador, but it hit me in the thigh, leaving a sore bruise!

Next up was the Santa Cruz-trek, one of the most commons treks people do here. Normally it’s a four day trek but I did it in two and a half because I felt like a mountain goat jumping around in my sandals. The highest point, and most spectacular scenery, was offered by the pass Punta Unión at 4,750 m. From here, you got a close-up view of Taulliraju (5,840 m) and also a glimpse of Alpamayo (5,947 m), which by some is considered to be the most beautiful mountain in the world. If I would have had more time and the season would be right, I would love to do some climbing in Cordillera Blanca. A good reason to come back!

When I left Caraz after one day’s rest, the road turned into gravel and the valley became more and more narrow. I passed 47 (!) tunnels on the way down through Cañon del Pato, most of them short but some longer, curved and one-way only. Interesting cycling!

I’ve never been afraid of robbery while camping/cycling so far, but northern Peru is definitely an area where you should be more careful. Before I came to Trujillo for example, there were a lot of plantations and no hostels when it was starting to get dark. In the shantytown, I saw an abandoned lot of land with a brick wall around it and went inside to check. People lived illegally there, but I went to one of the huts to ask if it was ok if I camped there. The “leader” of the community came bursting out and asked me what the F*CK I was doing there. I hurried away, desperately looking for somewhere else. When I came to a more normal house and told them what had happened, they said that I had just stepped into the criminal headquarters where even murderers lived. Great. Even the people in this house were suspicious about ME, but luckily they let me camp outside the house.

Just before entering Trujillo, I met the Canadian cyclist Rémi Lafrenière who must be the fastest I’ve met so far. He is cycling the big loop from Alaska to Ushuaia and then back up again along the east coast visiting all countries in the Americas (65,000 km) in ONE year. 200 km daily average with a loaded bike…!

In Trujillo, I headed straight to the most famous Casa de Ciclistas, or “cyclist’s house”, in South America. The place is ran by an absolutely lovely family: Lucho (who I unfortunately did not meet), his wife Araceli, daughter Angela and son Lance “Armstrong” Junior, and they have been welcoming cyclists to stay in their house for over 20 years. The place has got a very special feeling to it. I enjoyed browsing through the guestbooks and read about the other cyclists that had passed by. Among them, I found the “legend” Heinz Stücke himself, a man that has been cycling around the world for almost 50 years. It was only one more cyclist there during my stay, but we had great fun with Araceli & Co. We laughed, drank pisco and danced salsa until the early morning hours.

After Trujillo, I took the bus like almost all other cyclists to avoid Paiján, a place where a group of men have specialized in robbing touring cyclists. From Piura, I continued to the touristic watering hole and surf spot Máncora. There were barely no waves at all and low season so I didn’t stay long. That´s all for Peru folks, I am now in Ecuador but that’s another story!

I lost my appetite the last couple of weeks in Bolivia due to very little variety in the local countryside cuisine. Breakfast, lunch and dinner were very often the same: a soup and then rice with either meat or chicken. Sometimes with yucca (in the lowlands) or corn. And I didn’t have a great number of options from the small stores when I cooked myself either. I started to sleep badly and just didn’t have much energy in general. However, coming to Peru was such a pleasure!

When travelling like this, the big (and sometimes obsessive) focus on food becomes very tangible. The Peruvian food is the best I’ve encountered so far! I’ve been eating smoked salmon salad, Turkish kebab, ceviche (raw fish marinated in lime/lemon juice), Chinese food, olive squid, guinea pig (!), fresh yoghurt, carrot and cardamom cake with cream cheese, mmmm… After talking so much about food, I just realized that I don’t have any photos to share since I’ve been so busy eating it.

I cycled on the altiplano for some days before descending down to Peru’s second largest city Arequipa, where I revisited the spa El Paraiso where we used to hang out in 2006. Then I continued down towards the Pacific Ocean and I can’t tell you how happy I was to see the sea (and eat fish)! I camped on the beaches every night, falling asleep to the repetitive sound of breaking waves.

Cycling on the Pan-American Highway along the coast has been easy. I’ve had a slight tailwind and it’s much more flat than up in the mountains, so I’ve been averaging over 100 km’s per day. The landscape has been arid and desert-like, but the soil in the valleys is very fertile and I’ve seen all kinds of plantations: olive trees, cotton fields, oranges, mandarins, fruit bearing cacti, strawberry fields, carrots, pumpkins, sugarcane, corn, bananas, apples and avocados! It’s winter here at the moment, and the coast is constantly covered in low clouds or fog, so the photo opportunities have unfortunately been few.

One of the biggest tourist attractions in this part of Peru is the UNESCO World Heritage Site called The Nazca Lines. These are ancient geoglyphs believed to be created between 400 and 650 AD. The geoglyphs represent figures like spiders, monkeys, birds etc, or just simple lines. No one knows the purpose behind the figures, and several different theories exist. What mostly confuses the archeologists is how they managed to make the figures so exact (some can span nearly 270 m), when not being able to see them from above. You have to fly over the area to see it properly, but there was a viewpoint tower next to the road where you could see a couple of figures.

After Nazca, I came to Huacachina, which is a small oasis in the desert outside of Ica. This desert is full of huge sand dunes where you can do dune buggy rides and sand boarding. A beautiful place!

I came to Lima after having covered over 1,000 km’s in 10 days since I left Arequipa. The traffic in Lima (which has about 9 million inhabitants) was absolutely crazy, but I made it alive and found a nice hostel! I stayed 5 nights and was very happy about seeing Jenny and her sister before they returned back home. Next up is the mountains at Huaraz, possibly one of the highlights of Peru!

Exactly one month ago, I left the mine town Potosí and started to descend the Andes together with Brian. It was such a nice feeling to get more oxygen, see a greener landscape and smell flowers etc! Brian wanted to stay in Sucre so I continued on my own towards Santa Cruz. There was a lot of construction going on on the road and not really much to see, but the people outside of the altiplano were more talkative and open minded!

In Samaipata, I met the American cyclist Tim who lives in Colombia. We continued together to Santa Cruz the following day, and this was when Bolivia (and many other countries in South America) experienced a cold that they haven’t had in over 30 years! In Santa Cruz, which is on an elevation of 400 m, it was only 6 degrees and I had to wear my down jacket! Several people had even died from the extreme weather in the region. Despite the weather I was glad to spend a few resting days after having covered 16 bus hours in 6 cycling days. I did a few practical things in Santa Cruz like repairing my shoes (again) and trying to fix my derailleur that keeps on malfunctioning, but the mechanic didn’t have a clue about it. I also bought a pair of Converse shoes, an extra weight that I’ve been missing a lot, haha!

When I continued cycling it was normal temperature again (around 30 degrees) and I was excited about seeing some of the tropics. However, outside Santa Cruz it was just dry land with cattle, strong side winds and trucks that didn’t show any respect. By the time I had my second near-death experience by almost getting run over by a truck, I decided to call it a day. I met a friendly family that lived at a road toll who invited me to eat duck, and they explained that the nature and traffic will be the same for about 200 km’s more. This wasn’t really my intention by doing this detour, so after a few hours of trying I managed to flag down a truck for a hitch. The bumpy ride lasted for about 6 hours but it was actually quite fun to lie and watch the stars in the tropical night, contemplating about life in general from the back of the dirty truck bed.

I continued cycling from Guarayos, where the landscape was much more attractive and the road less busy. The first day, I spotted monkeys, parrots, snakes, a scorpion and a capybara. I also noticed another species (of humans) called Mennonites. This group is similar to Amish and can be found in colonies all over the world. They all wear the same type of clothes and strive to work with agriculture in a very primary way, for example using donkeys to pull and wheels of iron. I also passed by a volunteer refuge for rescued animals where I got a guided tour around the facilities. The same night, I camped at a family’s house and they told me local stories about anacondas and jaguars. In this area, there are also poisonous sting rays and electric eels, but I still swam in the rivers just like the locals. The family’s dog had recently been bitten by a snake and I swear I’ve never seen a dog that skinny. It had lost its appetite completely and was facing a sure death. The following morning, we went with horse and cart to check out their ”chaco” where they grew yucca and rice for consumption but also for sales when the times were good.

After Trinidad, I crossed Río Mamoré with a boat and stayed with another lovely family who were fishermen. I played with the children in the river for over two hours and swam with dolphins! It was very hot that night, 31 degrees in the tent at 8pm..!

The following day I got to experience REAL mud due to a heavy rainfall during the night. The whole situation was actually quite funny. The road workers were laughing at me when I took off the mud guards to prepare for some muddy cycling. I told them that I was a strong Swedish Viking who were gonna make it, despite the fact that a bus was stuck diagonally on the road ahead, and two heavily loaded trucks behind me were spinning. Well, I think I only got about 5 meters until I had a lump as big as a coconut stuck on my front brakes. It was absolutely IMPOSSIBLE to continue since the wheels locked! The only way I could go on was by lifting the front and let the back just slide on the side. Eventually, after laughing my way through the mud for a while, I realized the need for another truck ride.

Fortunately, the road had dried up the next day and I did almost 140 km’s! But when it’s not muddy on these kind of roads, it’s definitely gonna be dusty:

My last destination in the lowlands was Rurrenabaque, Bolivias tourist destination located at Río Beni just below the Andes and at the beginning of the Amazon. I didn’t do much in Rurre except for a disappointing 2-day fishing trip where we spent more time searching for worms than on fishing. And the guide didn’t even bring something to dig with except for the machete! I got bitten by a 100 mosquitoes and on top of that traumatized by seeing a dog being eaten alive by fly larvae in a huge infected wound on its back. Anyway, it was nice with some days off the bike just reading in a hammock and drinking cold beer.

As I often get excited by routes by just looking at the topography and satellite photos, I really wanted to cycle north from Ixiamas to Puerto Heath, and then cross into Peru with a boat on Río Madre de Dios. This road, crossing the biologically diverse national park Madidi, was shown on my map. It also existed on the Bolivian Road Ministry’s map, but not on the Military Institute’s (IGM). Some people from other villages had told me that they were logging trees in the area and that cattle had been taken all the way to Puerto Heath. Other’s said there is no such road. When I reached Rurre I asked around but the only response I got was that a tractor managed to pass there 6 years ago. Bummer! I had to turn back towards the altiplano and La Paz.

It turned out that the road going up the Andes was extremely muddy as well so I had to hitchhike for some parts. One of rides I got was with some happy local artisans that went from festival to festival selling handicraft. They played an old cassette tape with Modern Talking on repeat for 7 hours while a bottle of whisky was passed around. On top of that a semi-drunk driver and muddy, steep roads… Crazy! Luckily, the vehicle was decorated with a “God Save Us”-sticker.

A popular backpacker activity in La Paz is to cycle the World’s Most Dangerous Road, aka The Death Road, almost pure downhill from La Cumbre at 4,650 m down to Yolosa at 1,200 m. I did this when I was here on my last trip and it was great fun! This time I decided to cycle it uphill It is a very scenic road but unfortunately it was all covered in clouds this time with less than 30 m visibility. But that didn’t stop me from covering 2,200 m vertical the first day! I met about 100 cyclists on the way and they all had very funny expressions on their faces when they saw me coming in the opposite direction. I was afraid that the second day would be very hard considering the altitude and one month in the lowlands, but my body had remembered my previous acclimatization surprisingly well and I didn’t have any problems to reach the top. In total, the climb was 3,450 m vertical so the downhill on the other side was a nice reward and I reached a new top speed – 78 km/h!

Through SummitPost, I got in touch with the renowned mountain guide Eduardo Mamani Quispe from Bolivian Mountain Guides in La Paz, (+59171957404, eduardo@bolivianmountainguides.com). He is a certified IFMGA guide, and after getting an introduction of what he could offer us, we didn’t hesitate for a second, but agreed upon leaving two days later! Their office in La Paz provided us with all the necessary equipment like plastic boots, crampons, ice axe and gaiters.

It takes 4 hours by car to reach the village of Sajama from La Paz. The radiator broke on the way but was fixed by a local welder in Patacamaya, so we got there a bit late. After a quick lunch we then started hiking up towards the base camp at 4,800 m. Two mules helped us with the food, fuel and common equipment. This first day’s 1.5 hour trek went through a small valley and we had the mountain’s vertical west face in front of us all the time. On the way, we saw the famous polylepis trees that on this particular place constitute the highest forest in the world. The base camp is situated just in front of the base of the mountain, and we had natural springs that provided us with water. I didn’t sleep very well this night because of the sudden altitude gain, but also because I was so excited about the whole thing I went out for a pee at night and suddenly an avalanche roared down from the mountain. At the same time, I saw a falling star, and deeply wished that we would be able to summit this beast!

The second day took us along the west slopes up to the northwest ridge, which is the normal route nowadays. This steep ridge is filled with loose volcanic rocks, making it quite hard to walk considering the altitude and heavy backpack. Finally, we arrived to the high camp at 5,700 m and felt very exhausted, wondering how we should be able to climb another 850 m the following day! We put up the tent and enjoyed the breathtaking views while Eduardo started the time-consuming task to melt snow for dinner, breakfast and our water bottles.

Day three – summit day (July 2nd)! We woke up at 2 am, had breakfast and got dressed as warm as we could. However, it was not very cold outside, only around -8 degrees! We set off in the dark at 3.30 am and continued on the rocky ridge up to where the ice/snow started. Here, we put on the crampons, connected each other with a rope and then started climbing up a steep ice wall. When we got to a rather horizontal ridge at 6,000 m, we were suddenly doing rock climbing with our hands. After that, a huge field of penitentes appeared, continuing as far as we could see! Fortunately, these were low (20-60 cm), but Eduardo who walked first still had to break many off with the ice axe to make them passable.

While struggling with the altitude and the tedious walking on the penitentes, the 7 am sunrise created a pyramid like shadow of Sajama in the other horizon – absolutely amazing! This gave me more energy at the same time as making me feel very emotional, and I continued to push with a smile on my face. Jenny got very tired and cold on this part, so we had something to eat and warmed up each other and then kept on going, however very slowly. When we reached a “fake” top, we could finally see the real one but we still had about 150-200 m of steep glacier to ascend. We zigzagged to make it less tiring for the legs, but it felt like it would take us ages to get there.

9.30 am, six hours after the start at high camp, we found ourselves standing at 6,542 m above sea level and on the top of Sajama! WE DID IT, WE REACHED THE SUMMIT! It’s hard to describe all the feelings that ran through your head at that moment. We hugged each other, lied down on the glacier and just laughed and the same time as gasping for breath! We both sensed a slight headache and were already late on the top, so we started to descend after having taken photos and realizing (or not?) that we were standing on the top of Bolivias highest mountain! A funny side note is that a football match has been played up here in 2001 (!)

I am so glad that we made it! To summit a 6,000 m+ peak was one of my many goals with this trip, and it’s very interesting to see how your body and mind react on this altitude and after such a big effort. This is without a doubt the most physically challenging thing I’ve ever done – but I’m so glad that I did it!

“Es la vida de la montaña, una vida dura!”
- Eduardo

PS. Eduardo might publish a video from our climb on YouTube. In that case, I will update this entry and embed the video here!

UPDATE: Here is the video!

…and here is a map of Sajama and the route we took:

The second day after crossing into Chile, we got a very strong and cold headwind. With the 10 days of food and 13 l’s of water each that we carried, we simply couldn’t cycle anymore but had to push the bikes into the wind. After a few kilometers, a car with road workers stopped and asked if they could give us a ride. We were so happy about this offer, considering that this weather could ruin our plans to head straight into Bolivia due to the food supply, so we gladly jumped in! We hitchhiked the last 100 km’s to the Bolivian border, 40 km’s before San Pedro de Atacama, and found ourselves very relieved of not having to push for perhaps five days! We quickly continued to the border post and then to the camp at Laguna Blanca where we got served soup and a plate of llama meat with rice. I fell asleep that night excited about being in a new country with a different culture, and also at a place that I visited in 2006.

The landscape on the altiplano is stunning! The colors are amazing, and even though the landscape is very harsh, the long distances make everything look soft and harmless. Especially this part of Bolivia, the Eduardo Avaroa Reserve, looks very surrealistic. It looks like you are on another planet! On our first day, we cycled from the turquoise/emerald green lagoon Laguna Verde with the cone-shaped volcano Licancabur in the background. After a 4,650 m pass and cycling through Valle Salvador Dalí, we made it to the natural hot springs of Polques, where we had beer and Pringles in the 38° water, watching a clear starry sky appear. A relaxing and rewarding end of our first day on the laguna route.

The second day took us up to Sol de Mañana, a volcanic site with bubbling, sulfur-stinking mudpots and steaming fumaroles. The steam sets such a magical touch to this place. Fascinating! The following day, we cycled over the highest pass so far on almost 5,000 meters above sea level. Up here, the density of oxygen molecules is only about 50% of that of sea level, which means struggling to breathe properly. We made Indian face paintings with the mud from the mudpots and pepped each other by ululating, and made it all the way to the flamingo lagoon Laguna Colorada. Here, we met up with Brian, an Australian cyclist that we both had met a couple of times before. We had obviously been lucky with the weather so far. A guide from one of the many jeep tours that pass here every day told us that it was snowing and -25° the previous week!

After Laguna Colorada, we chose to head for the east route instead of the west, due to better road conditions and more villages. The hot springs that we used on our way always left you with a slight smell of sulfur and we never used soap here. But, when we got to the village Villamar, I had the first shower in 12 days and it felt really good even though it was lukewarm!

When we cycled on the abandoned road between Alota and San Agustín, we passed through a fertile valley with a “Jurassic Park”-feeling to it. We saw some men working in a cave next to the road. At first, I thought it was some sort of mine, but suddenly an American PhD student appears and invites us to have a look. It turned out that they recently had discovered the oldest archeological site in the Andes – 13,000 years old! This cave had wall paintings, and in another cave nearby they had just found the remains of a shaman. Their excavation is funded by National Geographic, and the head archaeologist is Bolivian and a copy of Indiana Jones himself.

When we arrived to San Agustín, there was an annual party going on. Everyone were drinking and dancing on the plaza and we were not late to join them! The orchestra got more and more drunk and the music slower and slower. People poured half their drinks on the ground as a toast to Pachamama, “Mother Earth”. What a scene! I even made a deal with a local farmer to investigate the possibilities for Swedish companies to import his quinoa, haha! At 9 o’clock the following morning, the most persistent guys were still sitting on the street drinking (two hours before driving back home).

The road conditions have been really bad with lots of washboard and sand, but I haven’t had any problems with the bike even when it’s been fully loaded, except for breaking the mudguard. Jenny sheared a bolt on her rack as well as snapping the wire of the handlebar bag. Brian’s rear tire blew in the middle of a sand storm, but he fixed it surprisingly quick using duct tape and the old inner tube.

Leaving these bumpy roads behind, we entered the world’s biggest salt flat Salar de Uyuni. Bolivia has built a pilot plant for extracting lithium from the huge lake that is underneath the crust of salt. Several countries with car and battery industry have shown interest in this, but Bolivias president Evo Morales has been very clear that this should be for export only and benefit their country. We camped at one of the pools that they have made for taking samples for this plant. Cycling on the salt flat is a unique experience! We crossed it from Rio Grande to Colchani, and by cycling on the car tracks it feels smoother than fresh pavement. This white and perfectly flat surface makes it hard for the eye to get a perspective. That’s why you are able to take pictures like this one:

It was such a relief to finally get to Uyuni and back to civilization. The ability to eat any kind of food, surf the Internet, buy things etc. made us very, very happy! You appreciate these things that you otherwise take for granted so much when you have been away for this long. It’s an amazing feeling that I wish everyone could experience once in a while! Being able to leave your clothes to a laundry after three weeks was also a treat

My plan for Bolivia is now to make a circle via Santa Cruz and Cochabamba. One reason for this “detour” is to get a bit of warmth for a change, and to see parts of Bolivia other than the altiplano. By descending to the lowlands on this latitude (17°) means tropical climate and jungle, ahhh!

Talking about tropics, I have now finally decided whether to continue along the Andes or across the Amazon. I love mountains and the views that you get by standing on the edge of them. I also like the feeling of getting exhausted by climbing and then rewarded with a downhill, plus that curvy roads are more entertaining than straight ones. By choosing this route, I will also get to Colombia which I’ve heard so many good things about. Not to mention the famous Galápagos Islands in Ecuador that helped Charles Darwin to develop his evolution theory!

It would undoubtedly be a great challenge to cross the Amazon by bicycle, especially the part Humaitá to Manaus in Brazil, but I’m afraid that I would get bored of only tropics and straight, “flat” roads. I also have experience of cycling on muddy roads now, and that’s simply impossible with my bike. Constantly damp clothes and hungry mosquitoes would probably drive me insane as well, so it feels better to stick to the mountains/coast!

Since I don’t write new blog posts very frequently, I thought it might be more convenient for you to get notified instead of having to check the blog (i.e. if you don’t use RSS feeds). Therefore, I have added a new widget called “Mailing List” in the sidebar, where you can easily subscribe/unsubscribe to updates and then just follow the link in the e-mail. Cheers!

When I came to Cafayate, Argentinas second largest wine region, I met up with Jenny & Jason from the UK again! They were travelling with Michele & Dominique from South Africa but we had different routes planned before Salta. I continued through Quebrada de las Conchas on road 68 and saw beautiful stone formations in all colors of red. One night, I camped inside a natural amphitheatre which was a cool experience! The sound of my harmonica echoed through the night…

The next day, it rained for the first time in over 3 months! It was a weird feeling and I thought I was going to appreciate it for a change but I didn’t. Later the same day, I went to an Internet café in a small village to check some stuff, but only the local network was working. Instead, I ended up playing Counter Strike with a bunch of local guys – what a nostalgia! It must have been 10 years ago or something, haha! Quite surprisingly, I actually won. Sueco Loco – Argentinos, 1-0, YES!

When I got to Salta, I found the same hostel which I stayed at 4 years ago, but I couldn’t recall that there were so many hippies! The other guys arrived some days after me since they went via Cachi. As I mentioned in the last post, I was thinking about doing the “laguna route” into Bolivia. Jason had a contract starting in June so he went back to London, while the others, just like me, were very eager to do this route! I ended up staying 10 nights in Salta because we had to prepare and buy a lot of things and many shops were closed due to 25 de Mayo, a kind of indepence day here in Argentina.

I sent back a package with 2 kg of things that I did not use or found unnecessary. I probably threw away 1 kg as well, and the boots that I used for trekking at Cerro Olivares got a new and happy owner. I bought a great down jacket and down gloves (with Windstopper) from the local brand Ansilta to prepare for the cold altiplano, so it feels good to know that I will be able to sleep even if it gets down to -20 C at night.

We have been counting calories and trying to find the most energy-vs-weight-efficient food. I made a 4-kg mix of walnuts, almonds, cashewnuts, peanuts and raisins (around 20,000 calories!) just for snack. I’ll also bring quinoa, pasta, oats and tuna/sausages. We will carry a maximum of 9 days of food supply, and around 13 l of water on the longest parts.

Michele & Dominique are close to the end of their trip and decided in the last minute not to join, so now it’s me and Jenny that will continue together. This will definitely be the toughest part of my trip but I’m looking forward to it a lot! We are now in Purmamarca at 2,194 m, and will climb to 4,100 and then probably have a day off in Susques to rest and acclimatize. Then it’s 3 more days to the border at Paso de Jama (4,400 m) where we will enter Chile and have a 2-3 day ride until we reach the Bolivian border crossing at Laguna Verde. That’s the start of the laguna route, and further on we will then cross the world’s biggest salt flat Salar de Uyuni. I won’t have access to Internet for about 3 weeks from now, but if the connection is good I will make another post when I reach Uyuni.

Adiós, Argentina!