Ride and River Expedition – 6 days 5 nights

After an early morning meet up, we have a scenic drive out to Sorata, located at the base of the mountains Illampu, 6,368m and Janq’u Uma, 6,427m. Once we break over the ridge the valley disappears into the vast abyss, stretching way beyond where the eye can see. Depending on the experience of the group we may try a slightly challenging ride or ride the sealed road, both of which are lots fun.
On arrival in Sorata we will make our way to our hotel (Altai Oasis or Las Piedras). A relaxed and comfortable place to enjoy this beautiful area. This night we will all meet in the restaurant at 7.30pm on the dot for dinner and our informal debrief, share some time together and get to know each other.

We meet in the café at 6 am for a fresh, healthy, and hearty breakfast. Our driver will meet us at 6:30 am ready to go for a 2 hour drive to our starting point in the high Andes. Today’s ride we will drop over 4,000m over 65km on a 4×4 “two-track” road. It is a huge downhill, one of the biggest in the world. There are some climbs and flat sections. Much of the road is pretty smooth, but there are some rough rocky sections. The jeep follows behind the group for support; if anything is too tough you can take a ride in our 4×4. We will stop at a petite picturesque village for lunch.

Your guides will make amazing avocado salad sandwiches for us to share, accompanied by a spread fit for any mountain biker. On our way again the road condition is better and is far quicker to ride. Lower altitude, more oxygen making it far easier to breath, plus it is getting much warmer the closer we draw to the basin.

This night we will stay in humble accommodation in Consata (a good cold shower, for a hot region). Your guides will prepare dinner, fettuccini pasta with a delicious vegetarian pasta sauce. It certainly hits the spot, a splash of red wine or two to quench the thirst, which also brings on a good sleep.

7:30- Your spirited guides prepare a delicious breakfast. We board the 4x4s for a short hour’s drive along the river’s edge as we climb slightly above the river. The surrounding vegetation is thicker; vines begin to hang lower as we head into regions with thick over-hanging canopies.

Today’s ride is somewhat different to the last, from this point on we are in the belly of the jungle, no impressive majestic views but long stretches of green broken by the occasional impressive waterfalls and glimpses of the river we are following. We ride the undulating road deeper into the jungle. Not far down the road we will stop alongside a clear jungle river; it is a great place for a swim. We will also wash the bikes. Here we can have a few more snacks of chocolate, fruit and beverages.

From here we take the vehicles for another climb before riding to our accommodation in Mapiri, a gold mining center and trading hub for the region. After a shower (cold), we head into town for dinner. All local ingredients, the food is unexpectedly, extraordinarily good!

Tonight we will have a few beers and spend time together. How’s that for fun? This is our time to rest, reflect, and prepare for the river portion of our trip.

After breakfast, we make a short walk down to the Rio Mapiri to find our longboat waiting, packed with all our gear, we board and head off down the river.

We have 3 days of boating, about 4 hours per day on the boat. We break up the river ride with side hikes, fishing, and getting to know the locals with two nights camping in the jungles.

All camping gear, other than flashlights, is supplied. We provide a cook who creates wonderful food. Today is a 2.5 hour boat ride winding down the lush canyons to the gold boom town of Guanay for lunch at a local restaurant overlooking the river. Here we have some time to explore while we load up supplies for the river trip. From here, we continue downriver for 1.5 hours to the first river camp, where a crystal creek meets the main river. We can hike to a lookout that afternoon while the cook is preparing dinner. We return to the camp for food, campfire, and a good night’s rest.

After breakfast (7 am), we pull down our camp and pack our gear into the boat and then hike about 1 hour up the side canyon of the creek to a nice waterfall and pool. After a refreshing swim we return to the camp, board the boat and head downstream. Lunch is prepared and served on the boat. We pass several active gold mines before entering Madidi National Park.

After a delicious dinner, we will decide on our evening activity light the fire, toast marshmallows and tell stories or play cards while taking in the stars.

After an early breakfast (7 am) we hike for about 2 hours through the lush rainforest. Then it’s about 3 hours down the river (we eat lunch in the boat) and head off to Rurrenabaque, where we arrive around 2-3 pm, where the trip ends.
How amazing is that!