We arrived in La Paz after enduring a 10-hour overnight bus ride from Uyuni. The city of La Paz is mainly known for its extremes: it is located at 3,650m above sea-level, and it is home to the “World’s Most Dangerous Road.” It was exactly that road we would conquer on a bicycle.
The History
The road is more commonly known as the North Yungas Road, or simply Death Road. It is called Death Road not because of the many cars that fell of into 600m deep ravines, but because of the people who built it. In 1930, Bolivia and Paraguay were at war, and Bolivia forced thousands of Paraguayan prisoners to build a road connecting La Paz with the Amazon (or Yungas) region. Many prisoners died while constructing this road, hence the name Death Road.
It was not until cars and trucks started to use the road, that it earned the reputation of being the World’s Most Dangerous Road. At one point, an estimated 200-300 people died each year, many from cars falling into the ravines. This is not surprising, since the road only has one lane, is unpaved, and weather conditions are often bad due to rain or mist.
In 2006, a new highway was opened, making the North Yungas Road obsolete. The road became an attraction for mountainbikers, as the road consists of mainly downhill sections. The road is still dangerous, as some irresponsible bikers have died, yet there are reputable companies offering bike tours which are completely safe.
The Ride
We decided to go with Gravity Assisted, the most expensive, but also best company. They use new bikes, and check their bikes after each usage. While trying out our bikes, we found they had great suspension, and the breaks were very powerful. That is all we needed to start our descent towards Coroico, a town in the Yungas region.
Most of the time, the road was at least three meters wide, yet the sheer drop-offs on the side are a little bit nerve wrecking. Nevertheless, the bikes did what they had to do, and after half an hour or so, we felt comfortable on our bikes and enjoyed the ride. We found that as long as you went within your limits, it did not require any technical skills and could be easily completed by beginners.
It took about four hours to complete the 64km long Death Road, in which we descended over 3,000 meter. All our tour companions made it safely too, and at no point did we feel frightened by the road. However, the abundance of crosses and vehicles down in the ravine made us realize that once this indeed was the World’s Most Dangerous Road.
