Feb. 16 – Mancora to Pacasmayo
After I took a cold shower, the three of us went to town for a basic breakfast, and we are ready to ride, We gassed up at the only station in town, and have to settle for 84 octane! We rode south on a very good road, with very little traffic, but are almost immediately into the great northwestern Peruvian desert.
I had no idea that Peru had so much barren land. We rode all day through a variety of desert landscapes; beautiful and dramatic in their own way, but incredibly desolate and empty. There were stretches of nothing but rocks and sand, or sand alone, from horizon to horizon. Sometimes with some desert vegetation, and others without a single living thing visible. Dunes and mountains were everywhere; the mountains came in every color imaginable, and were often draped with blown sand. the sand formed hummocks and small dunes that were sometimes anchored with plants, In other areas, the dunes were huge, ‘C’ shaped crescents that appeared to go on for miles. Sand drifted across the road, and blasted our bikes and skin. In some places the desert stretched right to the ocean shore, and became the beach. Mostly it was ungodly hot – 90-100 º, but in some places we rode through cold, chilling fog. The wind blows constantly. Mostly flat, we rode fast and saw little traffic, but at times we climbed in and through the mountains.
The desolation and isolation applied to the human presence in this wasteland, as well. Towns and villages were mostly non-existent. We went huge stretches without seeing a single structure or human presence except the road. There were no services for many miles at a time. When there was a habitation, it was the worst example of poverty and squaller you can imagine. Adobe or mud-and-wattle shacks on barren ground; no shade or vegetation, inconceivable living conditions by our standards. The few towns that exist in this wasteland, are desolate collections of shanties and shacks around dirt streets. Larger villages, like Piura, are surrounded by shanty-towns that look like middle-eastern refugee camps. The obvious poverty is depressing and dismaying.
I am having fuel supply problems now, My bike stops running, even with 2 gallons of gas still in the tank. Adding more gas (from our gas can) fixes the problem, but I still do not understand why the fuel is not getting to the carburetor, We have to make extra stops for gas because of this, and gas stations are very few and very far between!
After hundreds of miles of continuous desert, we enter an area that is green, and are soon surrounded by rice paddies and other farms. Before long we enter our first ‘real’ Peruvian town, Pacasmayo, a cute little beach resort town on the coast. We all three find rooms in a brand new hotel, where we are the first guests to sleep in the rooms! The bed I get collapses when I first lie down on it, and I have to put the mattress on the floor. We have an issue getting hot water, but eventually we get a real hot shower. The town seems friendly, and the many curious people we talk to seem to indicate that not many gringo tourists make it here. We walk around town at dusk, and Levi and Pat have real milkshakes, and then (another) chicken dinner.