Pushing Pesos: Death Road

Death Road has featured in documentaries such as ´Top Gear´ for its infamous narrow winding roads hanging over Bolivia's treacherous mountain range. It has claimed the lives of around 200 people per year and was used as a main road until it was closed in 2007. For years lorrys, double decker buses, cars etc would use this route and take their chance on these ever eroding roads. The roads themselves are untarmaced leaving a bumpy ride and rain fall which is common in this jungle like region meant the road conditions could become even more dangerous. Accidents would normally happen when two, for example, lorries would meet and the sheer weight of the vehicles would create a landslide that would cause the vehicles to propel of the cliff edge.

Since 1995 the tour agency's around La Paz have sold the Death Road experience package to adrenaline junkies. The tour remains the same now as it was in the past, you are driven to the top of Death Road and you travel 54km downhill on a mountain bike. The only difference now is that the road has now been closed (however you find cars still passing through, although not the same volume as in the past).

Keen to do this experience we booked the tour the day we arrived in La Paz and by 7am the next morning we were picked up and set about our journey. You could choose a range of mountain bikes depending on price, not knowing much about mountain bike we just went for the standard one. We left La Paz and drove for about an hour until we reached the top where we were at around 4700ft. It was very cold and foggy and it had began to rain.The tour is done in 2 parts, the first part you bike ride on tarmac downhill for 40minutes. This is so you get use to the bike etc before a van takes us to do the actual Death Road.

It was so much fun racing down I tell you, I couldn't feel my fingers but it was fun. We stopped at a little shack to have an egg butty for breakfast and then we set of for the top of Death Road which was another 30minutes away. When we got there we got out the van and the whole group ( there was about 13 of us) where all gawping at the sheer drop that laid before us. Suddenly the reality of having to bike ride down this hit us and everyone was a little nervous.The road from a distance seemed so narrow and impossible,however, our guide who was Mexican and fearless had already set off before you could think about it too much. Following his lead we all set off, I took it easy out of fear while Micheal was confidently speeding at the front.

The rain was now pelting it down and the waterfalls that cascade through the mountains where bursting through the road so it meant you had to bike ride through mini waterfalls. After 10 minutes I soon got more confident and started whizzing past not really using the breaks. We were quite a fast group, not many taking it slow.I was biking past and saw one of the Aussies chucking his bike over and and climbing up the mountain side.I was going at such as speed it was difficult to stop, so I just shouted,"ARE YOU OKAY"?and he just gave me a thumbs up. He looked okay so I just carried on but I was still in shock that I just saw someone climb up the cliff, it was nuts!

We all stopped to wait for the others and I told our guide someone went over. Soon enough the Aussie joined us on his bike perfectly fine.When he was asked about it he was just like, oh yeah it was just a little tumble,nothing major! I think I would have had a heart attack personally. So off we went and carried on, at this point I was around 4th or 5th which I was proud about,I thought I would have been the last one but I was doing better than I thought I would,even Michael was proud. The last leg was probably the best, really tight corners and really rocky so it made for a thrilling ride.At one point I jerked and I thought I was coming off but I managed to maintain balance. By the end of it we were soaked through to the bone but we had all made it with little casualty.

The guide had said that since 1995 to present, there had been 28 people die whilst doing this tour. One guy had stopped to take picture and as he stepped back, he fell over the edge. Death Road is as extreme as you want it to be, at the end of the day your in control of the bike.Just don't be an absolute nutter and you will be fine. The views of Corroico are spectacular, rolling green mountains with waterfalls and banana leafs galore. By the time you reach the bottom the climate is tropical and humid. You feel you are in the jungle and in actual fact your not too far from the amazon at that point. Once the tour is finished you go to a hotel with a pool where you can swim and eat a buffet which was lovely. It was a great tour and me and Michael would do it again in a shot.Definitely one to add to the highlights!