2006 Americas Ride

 




 

Preliminary Route Description This is the initial route description as created by Tony Higgins and Dave Nelson. We are currently doing research on each country. Part of the job for those that are assigned to research a particular country is to evaluate this route and make recommendations for approval or change. The trip will begin with staging in Fairbanks, Alaska. Participants will gather there for final preparations and will start (as soon as weather allows) on the run to Prudhoe for the official start. After returning to Fairbanks and making any repairs needed, the run continues through Alaska into the Yukon Territories and northern British Columbia. Proceeding south through Prince George to the Vancouver area, cross into the US. There is a tentative maintenance stop planned for the Vancouver or Seattle area (to be confirmed). Most of the US run south will be on I-5, until cutting east to Phoenix, Tuscon, and Nogales, where we'll cross into Mexico. Following Mexico 15, we'll travel south through Hermosa to Guaymas on the Sea of Cortez. Continuing south on Mexico 15 and 15-D, we'll pass Mazatlan and eventually reach Tepic. At Tepic, we leave 15-D and follow M-200 down the west coast past Puerto Vallarta, Zihuatanejo, and on to Acapulco. We continue on M-200 to the border crossing near Tapachula; a possible alternative is to cross on the Pan-American Highway further inland, but further information about the crossing points is being gathered. Section 1 – Mexico/Guatemala border to Choluteca Honduras We cross at Ciudad Hidalgo to Tecun Uman, Guatemala. Follow Guatemala highway CA-2 (the “Pacific Highway”) to the El Salvador border crossing at Hachadura. Continue on El Salvador CA-2 to its junction with CA-1 (the Pan American Highway) and cross the border into Honduras at El Amatillo. Continue on CA-1 (note this is NOT Honduras highway 1) to Choluteca. Note - this section includes travel in El Salvador, which has ongoing political problems and issues of violence. An alternative route diverges through Guatemala City, northeast on CA-9, and at Rio Hondo turn off CA-9 and head for Honduras. From Rio Hondo, turn on to CA-10 and then CA-11. CA-11 is an improved road (some pavement, some questionable – I’ve been on it in a van) that crosses the Honduras border east of El Florido, Guatemala. Just inside Honduras (abt 5 miles) is Copan Ruinas – the Mayan ruins of Copan. This is in my mind a highlight stop – I visited there about 5 years ago. From Copan, follow the now all paved CA-11 to its junction with CA-4, and then follow CA-4 to San Pedro Sula – this city is Honduras’ main commercial center. From San Pedro Sula turn back into the highlands on CA-5 (which is also Honduras Highway 1) for Tegucigalpa. Continue south on CA-5 to its junction with CA-1 at Jicaro Galan, and then follow CA-1 to Choluteca. Section 2 – Choluteca to the Nicaragua/Costa Rica border Follow Nicaragua Highway 12 (have to check this designation, unclear on all maps) to Chinandega, and then on to Leon. From Leon, continue on to Managua, and then follow Nicaragua Highway 2 to the border crossing at Penas Blanca, Nicaragua – the nearest town in Costa Rica is La Cruz. Section 3 – Costa Rica and Panama Geography and available roads limits us here – Below is describe one route with two optional excursions or extensions. From the border near La Cruz, follow the Pan America Highway (Costa Rica Highway 1) to San Jose, the capital. Continue on the PAH (now Costa Rica 2) to the border with Panama, crossing east of Neilly, Costa Rica. The nearest town in Panama is Concepcion. Continue on the PAH (now Panama Highway 1) to Panama City. Ecuador to Vita, Peru After traveling inland from Guayaquil, travel south on the Pan American Highway (Ecuador Highway 35) past Cuenca to the border with Peru (near La Tina). The AAA map has this marked as paved throughout, but the more detailed map shows unimproved roads near the border area. If so, a diversion along the coast on Ecuador 10 would cross the border near Huaquillas before rejoining the main road near Sullana, Peru. Follow Peru 1 (the PAH) south. Continue to Trujillo, and (if interested) take time to see the ruins at Chan Chan, and the nearby Moche pyramids. These are both close to the road. Continue south on Peru 1 to Lima. From Lima, continue on Peru 1 south, stopping to see the Nazca lines and associated ruins. Continue southwards on Peru 1 to Vitor – a major junction here allows important options for the next section. Optional Excursion 3 – Cuzco, Machu-Picchu, and Lake Titicaca By turning inland from Nazca, you can follow Peru 26 (an improved but apparently unpaved road) to the mountain city of Cuzco and the nearby major ruins at Machu-Picchu. This is non-trivial adventure, folks – you’re going from sea level to 12,000 feet on this run, in relatively short distances. From Cuzco, I would recommend following Peru 3 past Lake Titicaca, to the junction at Puno, and west on Peru 30, then rejoin the coastal route and south along the coast of Peru – more details follow. Section 6 – Southern Peru to Chile From Vitor, Peru follow south to the border of Chile, near the Chilean town of Arica. From the border, follow Chile Highway 5 south (the PAH) or (as an option) the coastal Highway 1. Continue this route all the way south to Santiago. It has been recommended (by Ron Ayres' staff) that we travel south along Chile Route 5 to Puerto Varas. From here, we head east across the Andes on Chile Rt 225, crossing Lake Nahuel by ferry. Argentina 258 takes us to Rt 40, Joining Route 20 and eventually 26 by crossing the southern Pampas. We meet Argentina Route 3 at Commodoro Rivadavia. Optional Andes crossing From Santiago, travel across the spine of the Andes into Argentina through one of the world’s most amazing tunnels at Los Andes. Carry on to the city of Mendoza. Follow 143 south from Mendoza to San Isabel, then take 151 south past Puelen and on to General Roca, then follow 22 and 251 to join Argentina 3 at the town of San Antonio Oueste. From here, all the practical routes are the same. Section 7 – Argentina Highway 3 to the tip From wherever we join 3, we carry on south to the ferries. Two towns have ferries to Tierra del Fuego – San Gregorio and Punta Arenas; we’ll need to find out which are more reliable and bike friendly. Once on the island, we carry on to Ushuaia. This bottom section involves multiple crossings of the border of Chile and Argentina – keep your papers handy! This section describes what we do when we’re done – some ideas for getting back (if we want to!) For those of us not prepared to abandon our bikes, some key thoughts are the availability of a port with container shipping facilities, and a major airport. Suggest following Argentina route 3 back north from the Cape. This leads us to Buenos Aires as a first connecting point. Those in a hurry can easily fly home from here, and shipping is easily arranged (relatively speaking!). Continue on to Montivideo, Uruguay (ferry crossing required), and then north to Porto Alegre Brazil. From there, continue to Sao Paulo, and on to Rio de Janeiro.   Maps The following pages present a series of maps highlighting the plan for the trip. The maps will open in a separate window, leaving this index available. You are encouraged to provide feedback, preferably through the MTF discussion area, as it will make it easier to share with others. North America Route (A Streets and Trips 2003 file is downloadable) Prudhoe Bay to Northern BC Yukon to the US border US border to central California Central California to northern Mexico Northern Mexico to the Mexican Riviera Mexican Riviera to the Guatemala border (Pacific Highway) Central America Route Mexico-Guatemala border to Choluteca, Honduras Choluteca, Honduras to San Isidro, Costa Rica San Isidro, Costa Rica to Panama City South America Route Ecuador arrival to Vitor, Peru Vitor, Peru to Santiago, Chile Santiago, Chile to Ushuaia, Argentina (Tierra del Fuego) NOTE - this map is being updated! The southeast coast from Sao Paulo, Brazil to Bahia Blanca, Argentina