Spokes and Shoes

Intro I’m sitting in my room in Huaraz, my quads humming with a different kind of fatigue than the usual chain-grease grind. Today was supposed to be a rest day, but for a cyclist, ‘rest’ usually just means using a different set of muscles to reach a higher altitude. The Read more

Intro The ride from Carhuaz to Huaraz was never meant to be a marathon, but rather a slow drift south through the heart of the valley. Under a sky that had finally committed to a solid, dominant blue, the 34-kilometer stretch of Route 3N offered a rare moment of ease Read more

Intro The morning in Carhuaz felt different the moment I stepped out without my bike, my legs light but my mind set on a different kind of vertical gain. The sky was a wide, dominant blue, promising a rare day of clarity in the Cordillera Blanca, though the gravel and Read more

Intro It is late in Carhuaz, and my legs are twitching with that specific post-climb restlessness that only the Cordillera Blanca can provide. The day began with a slow start in Chacas under a deceptive blue sky, the paved road ahead promising a 1,500-meter vertical tax before I’d be allowed Read more

Intro The usual morning ritual of checking tire pressure and scrubbing grit from my chain was replaced by the low hum of a village waking up for a holiday. Chacas sat under a sky of non-committal grey-blue, its paved streets still holding the chill of the Cordillera Blanca. Today was Read more

Intro I pulled out of Yanama at 08:15 this morning, my legs still heavy from the previous days in the Cordillera Blanca. The sun was engaged in a cold war with the clouds, casting a flickering light over the loose gravel road that pointed straight up into the mountains. Today Read more

Intro The plan was to roll out by 07:00, but the mountains have a way of slowing down even the simplest morning chores. I finally pushed off from Laguna Llanganuco at 08:00, the gravel beneath my tires already transmitting that familiar gritty vibration through the handlebars as I faced a Read more

Intro The morning began at 05:45 inside the ranger’s tool house, the air still holding the deep chill of the Cordillera Blanca. After days of heavy clouds and wet wool feelings in my lungs, the sky finally cleared into a sharp, promising blue, though the 1,000-meter vertical gain ahead meant Read more

Intro The morning started with a quick fruit breakfast and a stop at the ATM in Caraz before the real work of the day began. The sun was out, but the 1,682-meter climb to the lagoon felt like a wall standing between me and the high peaks of the Cordillera Read more

Intro I woke up in Caraz without the usual morning ritual of checking tire pressure or scrubbing grit from my chain. After the steady sun of yesterday’s ride from Huallanca, the sky today was a mix of promising blue and a few heavy, lingering clouds. It was Day 261, and Read more