Travel Trip Journey : Bolivia

Showing posts with label Bolivia. Show all posts

Tuesday 2 February 2016

Yungas Road, the Road of Death in Bolivia

The North Yungas Road also known as Grove's Road, Death Road or Road of fate is a road leading from La Paz to Coroico, 56 KM northeast of La Paz in the Yungas region of Bolivia. In 1995 this is most dangerous road in the world as per American Development Bank Christened, about 200 to 300 travelers killed yearly along the road. The road was built in the 1930s during the Chaco War by Paraguayan prisoners.

The risky road mention the cross markings on several points where vehicles have fallen. This dangerous route connects the Yungas region of northern Bolivia to the Captial City. This is one of the few routes that connect the Yungas region of northern Bolivia to the capital city. The road has no guard rails; width of single vehicle only 10 feet makes it most scary road in the world. The alongside cliffs up to 2,000 feet, make the horrible condition during rainy season from Nov to Mar. Driver visitiability is hamper during fog and rain and water runoff can turn the road into horrifying muddy track affecting traction. However, in the summer season, rockfalls are common scenario and vehicle dust limits the driver visibility.

Moreover, the local road rule specifies that the downhill driver never has the right of way and must move to the outer edge of the road. This rule forces the downhill vehicle to stop and give the way to other vehicle. So, in that way passing can be negotiated safely. Therefore, the rest of Bolivia, vehicles are essential to drive on the left side of the road, to give the driver a better view of the vehicle's outside wheel and making passing safer.

The scary road made it more popular destination, enticing more than 25000 thrill seekers every year. However, motor biking enthusiasts made it exclusively favorite road for downhill biking, as 64 KM stretch of continuous downhill riding with only one short uphill section. Therefore, tour operators taking the benefit of it, and catering this activity, providing guide lines, information, transport and equipment. Nevertheless, the “Yungas Road” remains dangerous; about 18 motor cyclists have died on the road since 1998. The Yungas Road has been featured in BBC show “TOP GEAR” & many other TV programs. However, a Mitsubishi Outlander TV commercial was the first ever filmed on the road.

Therefore, a new alternative route of Yungas Road was updated during the last 20 years or so, included enlarging carriageway from one to two lanes, constructing asphalt pavement, and building a new section between Chusquipata and Yolosa, bypassing to the north one of the most dangerous sections of the old “Death Road”. This new route features modern construction consists of bridges, drainage, multiple lanes, pavement, guardrails and many other elements that make it significantly safer than the original route. The original “North Yungas Road” is presently much less used by traffic, even though an increasing number of adventure travelers bike it. A fatal accident happens there every couple of weeks, 100-200 people perish there every year. Source: Charismatic Planet

Thursday 24 December 2015

Licancabur, A Highly Symmetrical Stratovolcano Between Chile and Bolivia

Well, Licancabur is a highly symmetrical stratovolcano on the southernmost part of the border between Chile and Bolivia. But actually it is situated just southwest of Laguna Verde in Bolivia. The volcano takes over the landscape of the Salar de Atacama area. The lower 2/3 of the northeastern slope of the volcano belong to Bolivia, 5,400 meters from the foot at 4,360 meters, though the rest and biggest part, including the higher third of the northeastern slope, the crater and summit, belong to Chile.

The summit and the crater are located completely in Chile, slightly over one kilometer to the southwest of the international borders. It is about 400 meters wide and covers Licancabur Lake, which is 70 meters by 90 meters Crater Lake almost ice-covered round the year. This is one of the highest lakes in the world, and despite air temperatures which can drop to -30 °C, it harbors planktonic fauna. The Lake provides an extremely harsh environment, but still there is life (extremophiles, planktonic fauna).

Moreover, Licancabur's most recent volcanic activity formed extensive lava flows which spread six kilometer down the northwest and southwest flanks, with older lava flows reaching 15 kilometers and pyroclastic flow deposits as far as 12 kilometers from the peak. Moreover, archaeological evidence at the summit offers evidence of pre-Columbian ascents and proposes the importance of crater lakes in Inca culture. This also supports the absence of major eruptions over the past 500 to 1,000 years.

It is believed that Incas may have used the mountain to preform sacrifices and ruins can still be found on the top. Though not the most technically challenging climb in the Andes, the sheer altitude and magnificence of this volcano make it a very advisable climb, particularly if you’re trying to acclimate to high altitudes. Make sure, when climbing Licancabur, you’ll be sleeping at approx. 14,500' and climbing more than 19,000'. The best season to climb is Dec till March, which is lit bit more wet season. The high antiplano is "high and dry" and the sun is intense and the nights can be cold. Hece, it is advice to put on lots of sunscreen every day and get ready for temps to cross 20's F for January, colder in their winter.

Sunday 3 May 2015

Reflections from Uyuni

Reflections from Uyuni are a Time-lapse short film that shows the majestic beauty of the sea salt of Uyuni and the province of Potosí in Bolivia. The splendid reflections created by the water flooding in the rainy season, are the main protagonist Enrique Pacheco´s camera, who really invites us to dream with impossible pictures from another world, where the sky meets the earth forming an infinite mirage. Moreover, the sea salt of Uyuni with more than 10,000km2 is the largest in the world. It is located in the province of Potosi, Bolivia, near the Andes, at an altitude of 3.656m. Therefore, the Salar of Uyuni serves as a transport route through the Altiplano of Bolivia, but tourism has a gradually more important role in the area. Moreover, if you really like this short movie, then you have a chance of film and its footage are also available for license in HD and 4K UHD. Therefore, for professional enquiries, you can contact me: media@enriquepacheco.com

Enrique Pacheco: enriquepacheco.com

Music composed by Syd Szydelko: sidszydelko.co.uk

Shot with Sony A7 and A7s cameras + Zeiss FE 16-35 f4 and A 70-200 f2.8

Motorized slider by Kietacam

Reflections from Uyuni from Enrique Pacheco on Vimeo.

Sunday 22 June 2014

The Greatest “Amazon River” is Home to Several Extremes

Amazon River is the greatest river of South America and the largest drainage system in the world in terms of the volume of its flow and the area of its basin. Amazon River is at approximately 4,000 miles (6,400 kilometers) equivalent of the distance from New York City to Rome. Amazon River is the 2^nd longest river in the world, just slightly shorter than the River Nile, but the largest river by volume. The length of the Amazon and the Nile Rivers has been in a tight battle for title of world's longest river. The precise length of the two rivers differs over time and reputable sources disagree as to their actual length.

The Amazon River has more than 3,000 recognized species of fish and more new species are still being discovered. The Amazon Basin is covered by half of the planet’s remaining rainforests. Therefore a tenth of the world’s projected 10 million living species live in the Amazon rainforest, jungle tours are more about the boating upriver into the damp, buzzing, oppressive ambience than actually spotting animals. Amazon River westernmost source is high in the Andes Mountains, within 160 kilometers of the Pacific Ocean, and its mouth is in the Atlantic Ocean, on the northeastern coast of Brazil.

As most of know, that Amazon River is located in South America. And it runs through Guyana, Ecuador, Venezuela, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia and Peru. During the rainy season, the Amazon River can stretch to over 190 kilometers (120 miles) in width. There’re no bridges that cross the Amazon, because there is no need of bridges as the majority of the Amazon River runs through rainforests rather than roads or cities. The largest city along the Amazon River is Manaus. Located in Brazil it is home to over 1.7 million people. The one of world’s largest snake Anacondas lurk in the shallow waters of the Amazon Basin, they’re occasionally attack larger animals such as goats that get to close the water. The Amazon River is also home to the piranha, a meat eating type of fish! Being carnivores, piranhas are famous to attack in groups, preying on livestock that strays into the water and possibly appearing in one or two of your own nightmares!

The Amazon River is not only the greatest in the world but it is also home to several other "Extremes" A captured Arapaima: one of the largest freshwater fish species in the world of the natural world. Rapaima is locally famous as Pirarucu Arapaima gigas are one of largest, fresh water fish in the world. They’ve been found to reach a length of 15 ft/4m and can weigh up to 440lbs/200kg. Catfish normally found in warm & slow moving waters of lakes and streams are pretty creepy looking fish with big flat heads and "whiskers" on either side of their heads. Most catfish are anywhere from 8” in long to about 5 feet and weighing in at up to 60 pounds. But the catfish that lives in this part of world is as big as nature will allow they’ve been captured weighing over 200 pounds! One of the largest freshwater fish in the world is found living in the waters of the Amazon River.

Cool Factoid: Did you know that bull sharks have been found in the Amazon River? Researchers have captured live bull sharks as far as 2,300 miles inland from the sea thriving in freshwater in the foothills of the Peruvian Andes. Amazon River drainage basin is the whole northern half of the continent of South America as a shallow dish or saucer. Whenever rain falls and lands anywhere in the river basin it all runs into the lowest place in the pan, which happens to be the Amazon River. The sheer volume of rain in the Amazon jungle and the slope of the surrounding land, combine to create the enormous river famous as the Amazon.