Ica to Nazca was a challenging ride because there was so much truck traffic, the shoulder was very rough, and the constant pounding made my wrist extremely sore. The landscape returned to that of the flat desert with nothing much of interest. After 85k, I faced a...

Just a short ride to Ica, only 73k, so we were there by lunch. It made the day feel like a rest day, which is okay as 144k tomorrow. Today, we rode past vineyards as far as the eyes could see—also orange groves and plenty of vegetables. I wanted to visit some...

The southern desert is very different than the north. There are no more mountains, and the Pan Am follows the ocean. The four-lane divided highway is new with broad shoulders. Yesterday, 107k with views of the ocean and long stretches of farmland, which are growing...

Yesterday's ride was 97k in another dull, overcast day with very little wind. The southern desert is different than the north as far as development. We passed hundreds of fancy condo developments as we rode beside many beaches. Lots were selling from $300 to USD...

Back on the bike, we rode out of the beautiful neighborhood of Miraflores in Lima. It was to be a short ride of only 63k. It was a perfect ride for over 1/2 the distance we were on a bike path. It was easy leaving Lima. The rest of the way was on a wide shoulder on...

Where one chooses to stay in a large city will undoubtedly affect how you enjoy your stay. We are staying in the district of Miraflores in Lima. It is undoubtedly one of the high-end districts that borders the beautiful Malecon that runs along the cliff top high above...

I got my X-rays done this morning and received excellent lab service. He took three photos and found a tiny crack on the arm bone. So I will rest it till we leave Lima on sept 3/23.

I got my X-rays done this morning and received excellent lab service. He took three photos and found a tiny crack on the arm bone. So I will rest it till we leave Lima on sept 3/23.

I have not been giving enough credit or praise to the landscape of the northern desert. It is spectacular. The sand, the dunes, the mountains, and the wind-swept beaches invite exploration. Along with the desert, there are many many archeology sites of the ancient...

Yesterday was a long ride of 142k and 958m and a scary crash. The day we started by riding through a desert once again. Then, we reached a predominantly agricultural area with elderberries, avocados, sugar cane, and vegetables growing for kilometers. At that point, we...

We are now in a lovely city called Trujillo, Peru. The central square is beautiful, with lots of colorful buildings and shops. Yesterday's ride was flat and 130k in length. The route included dessert, giant dunes, kilometers of deserted beach, beach towns, and...

Yesterday, we left Chiclayo and headed to our first look at the Pacific Ocean in Pacasmayo—a flat 105k ride with a headwind over the last half. Once again, we passed through towns of red brick buildings with the top floors not completed and dusty side roads. The area...

Yesterday was a long, flat ride through scrub brush country, where most of the brush was covered in thick vines. Not much other than goats, donkeys, and a few people. Towards the end of the day, we saw some large banana plantations. Peru so far has different church...

Yesterday, we checked out of Ecuador and into Peru. The border crossing was the easiest so far, only a half hour as both countries share the same building, and the fellow that checked the car checked it in. There was no one there crossing either way. No money...

My birthday day ride took me out of the jungle and up through pine forests and then through semi-arid country as we headed west. Yesterday’s ride was a 3.5 holly crap day. A holly crap day is when you look up and see the highway way above you, and you say holly...

Once again, our route took us through spectacular country, more mountains, waterfalls, rivers, and kilometers of climbing. Another thing that is different in Ecuador is the churches. Other than in Quito, the churches are smaller and shaped differently than the bigger...

It was a beautiful ride through the mountains in the rain: no wind and many landslides, rough roads, and climbing. We did 76k and 2265 m. Rachel said the jungle was slowly covering the road. We had very little traffic, saw very few people, and hardly any towns. The...

We continued traveling through the mountains of the region known as El Amazonia. Large green mountains shrouded in grayish clouds. Today's ride avoided the ever-threatening rain, and we had a short 74k ride with 900m of climbing. We ended the ride in Mendoza, a small,...

The ride down the mountain was the opposite of the cold, wet, windy, hyperthermia ride up the mountain. The downhill was long, and sunny and took us through one one the world's most amazing valleys. There were waterfalls, rivers running high and swift beautiful...

Today we went in the van to clear Quito, because we had a dangerous tunnel and did not want to do that. We went to a place for breakfast and to start a short uphill ride. We rode about 30k to the summit. It was the highest point for the Octoodyssey at 4040 m (13250ft)...