WMDR

Do the Dew!

No, the WMDR is not Bush's new excuse for invading Iran (wacka wacka, sorry) it's the World's Most Dangerous Road. I actually didn't take any pictures of the trip because the tour agency, Gravity Assisted Mountain Biking, recommended not to carry our cameras. Besides they took photos for us and put them up on a website (password: photos). I was quite upset that I could not find a Mountain Dew bottle for photos.


Drinking what I assume is rubbing alcohol

So the road from La Cumbre (4,700m) to Coroico (1,100m) is used to access the Bolivian amazon basin. It gets its name from the number of accidents per year on it. Dirt road + one lane + two way traffic + shear cliffs = WMDR. The ride itself was quite excillerating. At the start the road is paved so you get to enjoy the beautiful scenery, however, once you get to the dirt section you are more concerned with dodging the big rocks and staying in control.


Watch that first step. It's a doosey

Besides being a great ride, the WMDR also has many interesting attractions. First there are two check-points constructed with American funding in an attempt to control the transport of cocaine into the amazon basin and into neighboring countries. Second, is the Martyrs of Democracy. It is the location where 5 members of a government party were thrown to their deaths because the ruling government believed thy might lose the election to these people.

Finally, there are the human traffic lights. Volunteers who speend the entire day standing on the roadside near blind corners. They hold giant red and green flags to signal the down traffic whether there is upcoming traffic (vehicles going up have the right of way). It was started by a man who lost both his wife and children when two busses collided around one of these corners. These people live of donations from truck drivers as well as tour agencies. I hope the donation by our agency was large.

And to top it off I did the WMDR with Murray Langdon. That's right folks, the same Murray Langdon that you fills your lunch hour with hard-hitting CH Vancouver Island news. Honestly, I have no idea who he was either but I think it's kinda neat... that's right I said neat.

So stealing pictures of that website is actually quite an effort. So if you want to see more go to the source. Next stop, Potosi and the mines...