Day 148
I set of from Chiclayo at about seven o’clock in the morning and I headed South on the main road out of the city. After a couple of hours on the road I stopped in the city of Trujillo to have some breakfast and to put on an extra layer as once again there was a strong cool wind but this time the wind was also blowing some mist in from the sea.
On my way out of the city after breakfast I stopped to photograph another example of the appalling litter problem. It was so bad that even as I was riding I could smell the stench of decaying something or other every time I passed something like this.
The very arid deset like terrain continued and once the sun burned through the mist coming off of the sea I was able to stop and photograph the stunning but very barren landscapes.
I reached the city of Chimbote at around lunchtime. This city sits on the coast so I again stopped for a break and although the city itself was pretty unremarkable I nevertheless took a couple of photographs of the sea front.
I set off again and rode South on the main road for another three hours through more spectacular desert type landscapes where the road rose and fell through the mountainous terrain. On occasions from the higher parts of the road the sea could be seen so once again I felt the need to stop and photograph what I thought were the best views that I saw.
As I passed the town of Huarmey and I entered the small hamlet of 9 de Octubre I spotted a hotel at the side of the road next to a restaurant so I pulled in and enquired about getting a room for the night. I was able to bet booked in for the sum of 50 Soles for one night which was about just over 13 USD. The hotel was fantastic as can be seen in the following pictures.
Day 148
As the city of Lima, which was to be my destination for that day, was only about 170 miles away from my hotel I decided to have a later start to my day. I set off around ten o’clock in the morning but before I did so I asked at the hotel about the availability of petrol on the road to Lima. The guy told me that there was no petrol available on the road South for the next two hours.
This was the second time that when I had asked about the distance to the next petrol station the person replied with a duration of time rather than with a distance and on both occasions when I asked specifically about distance they could not tell me the actual distance. Very weird.
Another weird thing that I have noticed whilst riding in Peru is the lack of distance marker boards on the roads telling drivers the distance to places. I have seen the occasional one but none with any regularity and probably only about 4 or 5 in total since entering the country.
Anyway I rode the 3 miles North back to Huarmey where I managed to refuel. As I was heading out of the town I spotted a car wash and having plenty of time to spare I decided to get the bike washed.
Once on the road South I rode for through more dessert like terrain and again in strong side winds. It was only about 60 miles after leaving Huarmey when I came to the first petrol station, so much for being two hours away! As the road ran along the coast it rose and fell, warming up as it fell and cooling down as it rose.
At one point during the journey I was very high up on the coastal road when I stopped to take another photograph of the scenery and again the amount litter dumped at the side of the road was astonishing.
By mid day I had to stop to refuel and I took the opportunity to look on-line for somewhere to stay in Lima. I found a place on the way in to the city which had a parking garage and which was only about 60 Soles for the night. About an hour or so later I entered the madness that is riding in Lima.
The roads were choked and most of the time the traffic was at a complete standstill. It took me ages to eventually get to my hotel but once there I found the place to be very good vale for money and very clean. Again the parking garage was welcomed as was the hot water shower in my room.
As I will be staying in Lima for a few days I shall write a separate post about my impressions of the city.