We started the month of July 2017 in the small town of Huancavelica high (and cold) in the Peruvian Andes. From there our road trip crossed Southern Peru to Lake Titicaca and then traveled into Bolivia where we spent time in La Paz, drove Bolivia’s infamous “Death Road,” then headed down to the Uyuni Salt Flats where we ended the month. In total, our road trip traveled 1,794 miles (2,887 km) in July 2017 and you can see the same spectacular scenery that we saw through the windshield of our truck in the drive-lapse video at the end of this post.
Driving the Death Road in Bolivia.
July 2017 South American road trip driving route in Peru and Bolivia
From damp and cold Huancavelica, one of the highest cities in the world at 12,060 feet (3,676 meters), we continued across the Peruvian Andes to historic Ayacucho (watch our snowy July 4th morning drive leaving Huancavelica at 0:50 in our video at the end of this post).
From Ayacucho we made a beeline to the city of Puno on the Peruvian side of Lake Titicaca near the border with Bolivia. We then crossed into Bolivia, our 59th border crossing of the Journey so far, from Yunguyo, Peru to Copacabana, Bolivia (see this very tranquil border crossing on the shores of Lake Titicaca at 15:06 in our video at the end of this post).
Once in Bolivia, we drove to the world’s highest capital city: La Paz. From there we took a side trip to the Yungas region, a forested area between the high Andes and the lowland, Amazonian forest. In a mere 40 miles (65 km) the highway drops more than 11,000 feet (3,000 meters) from a 15,500 foot (4,724 meter) pass to the lowlands below. Although there is a now modern highway heading down to the Yungas, we couldn’t pass up the chance to drive Bolivia’s infamous Death Road.
Once considered “the world’s most dangerous road,” this dirt “highway” no longer lives up to that moniker. Yes, it’s still a narrow, one-lane road clinging to a sheer cliff that at times drops many thousands of feet into the ravine below. However, since the new highway was opened there is very little traffic along the dirt route save for a daily onslaught of tourist bicyclers making the descent and a few adventurous foreigners who want to drive this famed road. This means there is no longer the need to cling to the cliff’s edge while passing oncoming trucks.
Judge for yourself in the Death Road footage starting at 17:07 in our time-lapse video at the end of this post.
Bolivia’s Death Road.
After conquering Bolivia’s Death Road we headed south across the country’s high Altiplano to the city of Oruro. From there we made a side trip to the village of Orinoca, the hometown of Bolivian President Evo Morales, to visit the newly opened Museo de la Revolución Democrática y Cultura. Sometimes called the Evo Museum, many consider it to be a very expensive ($7.5 million US dollars), very large, and very remote homage to Evo himself.
From there, we drove south to the Salar de Uyuni, the largest salt flat in the world, where we ended the month.
Our complete road trip driving route map for July 2017 in Peru and Bolivia is below.
And don’t miss the chance to see what we saw out there on the road in Peru and Bolivia in July of 2017 via our drive-lapse video, below. It was, as always, shot by our Brinno camera which is attached to our dashboard.
Here’s more about travel in Peru
Here’s more about travel in Bolivia
Looks like traveler’s heaven.
Great video at the end.
Thanks!
Great piece of writing. I love your writing style. I hope I will get to see more valuable pieces of writing from your side. Also the video is awesome.
Fun to read these. You might like my new book THE DRIVE: SEARCHING FOR LOST MEMORIES ON THE PAN-AMERICAN HIGHWAY.
Your book sounds great!