I wrote a blog post a day during my bike tour from Alaska to Argentina. This entry, is from the day's cycling between La Oroya and Huancayo in Peru.
Cycling from La Oroya
Blog post written August 28th 2010
I got a reasonably early start at 07.45, and headed out of La Oroya and towards Huancayo.
The road was sealed, and either flat or downhill, meaning that I could average 25 km per hour, a speed I could only dream of these last two months of cycling dirt roads over the mountains.
A break two hours in for a Caldo, and then on the road again.
Broken Spoke Repair
About 11.00 I heard a horrible noise. I honestly thought at first that the bicycle frame had snapped somewhere, and I spent five minutes looking over the bike, but couldn't find anything.
As I set off, I looked down and noticed the back wheel wobbling crazily. Ah, a broken spoke. Wonderful ! 60 km into a 120 km day, just what I needed.Although it was on the back wheel, it was fortunately on the opposite side to the cassette ( that's the cog looking bits for all you non cyclists out there).
It's always a pain putting in a spoke on the rear wheel, and I had to bend the poke slightly to get it in. Luckily, I am an expert in getting things that look like they won't fit into tight spaces, so I squeezed it in in the end (yeah baby!).
Fitting a spoke isn't the end of the job though, as I then had to try and true the wheel. I did a pretty reasonable job, and within half an hour was back cycling again. Half an hour for a roadside repair wasn't too bad I think!
Made it to Huancayo, Peru
At the town of (????), the road forked, and both options led to Huancayo at 50 kms. I chose the right hand fork, and cycled by agricultural farmland, a far cry from the barren landscape of this last week.
Approaching the city, the traffic built up some, and as I entered the suburbs, it became apparent that this was the biggest city I had been in since perhaps Loja in Ecuador.
I found my way into the centre, and checked out a few places to stay. There were some cheapy options available, but I really needed a good hot water supply and somewhere I could relax.
Hotel Agape fitted the bill, although a little pricier than what I am normally used to paying here in Peru! Free WiFi in the lobby though!
Note to self – It could be time for new socks!
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