Trip Update

Saturday morning - up at 3:20am.  Taxi at 4am.  At airport at 4:30am.  At gate at 5:30am for 6:20am flight.  Flight from La Paz to Santa Cruz to Miami cancelled at 8:15am (mechanical issues).  9:35am - still standing in line to American Airlines counter that seems not to move, hoping for some route home.  Stay tuned...

Update:  Now flying out of La Paz Sunday morning.  La Paz to Lima to Miami.  Can't get to Minneapolis from Miami Sunday evening, so overnight in Miami.  Monday morning - Miami to Chicago to Minneapolis arriving home at 1pm.

This wooden ferry with 50hp outboard motor, took our bus to the other side of the lake.  We had to get off the bus and take a different passenger boat across.  BTW - there were seven of us on that coach bus back to La Paz and the four of us sat in the front upper deck above the driver.  Great views of the countryside.

One of the stands at a market in Copacabana on Thursday of Holy week.  Copacabana is a major destination for pilgrims during Holy week.

At the foot of the Incan Staircase on Isla del Sol.  (elev. approx. 12,500ft)

We climbed to a high point on the island (13,400ft) and took more pictures of the lake and island.  (see next blog entries)

Someone has to do it!

After making it down the WMDR on mountain bikes, we stayed 2.5 days at La Senda Verde animal refuge in the Yungas.  The refuge houses parrots, macaws, three kinds of monkeys, two bears and other miscellaneous critters.  From La Senda we took a short taxi ride to Coroico and short bus up the "new" road back to La Paz.

This is a view of Lake Titicaca with Isla del Sol (Island of the Sun) in the background.  Picture taken from Mt Calvary in Copacabana.

Copacabana

Tuesday morning we left La Paz for Copacabana on the shore of Lake Titicaca.  Nice town, lots of hippies, fish for most meals, no WiFi at hotel.

Back in La Paz

This picture shows us at La Cumbre Pass, 15400ft, getting ready to bike 64km down WMDR.

It was a fantastic ride! The most beautiful landscape I have ever seen. The bike ride will be one of the jewels of this trip for me.  See more biking pics in next entries.