North Yungas road, also known as death road, is a 60km (about 37 miles) stretch of rocky trail that was once used as a road for automobiles in Bolivia. However, as its infamous name suggests, it was incredibly unsafe and many people lost their lives. They have since established a bypass for vehicles and death road is open to tourists to cycle. I first heard of this when I was in Peru with other travelers, they told me about their plans for Death Road and I was immediately interested.
Once in Bolivia, I met a french man in my hostel who put me in contact with the tour company he went with, Barracuda Biking. https://www.barracudabiking.com/death-road/
He seemed like a nice guy and he clearly survived his tour from a couple of days before so I booked it for 450 bolivianos, about $65. This included pick-up and drop-off from my hostel, lunch and dinner, the bike as well as safety gear, and of course an experienced guide. I was told to bring good shoes (trek shoes), a change of clothes, sunscreen and bug spray, sunglasses, and then an extra 50 bolivianos to pay the Municipality of Coroico. Basically, every cyclist pays 50 bolivianos, a little over $7, which goes towards the maintenance of the road, which is somewhat reassuring.
When the day came, I was picked up at 7 am and met my tour group. While the french man had a tour group of 10 others, mine just me and another couple. I at first was slightly nervous with such a small group but realized it was more comforting to me. It was nice to actually get to know the couple and the guide and I knew I was not going to be forgotten or left behind like I may have felt in a large group. The couple was quite nice, they were from Peru and we spoke Spanish pretty much the entire time which really helped me practice.
On the bus, we stopped at a place to buy breakfast if we wanted and then moved along to our drop-off point. This place was less than 45 minutes from La Paz making it a very easy day drip. Here there was the option to use the bathroom for 1 boliviano before we suited up in all our protective gear and hopped on our bikes.
Here is where I realized how naive I was. I have never ridden a mountain bike before. I did do biking in Peru however it was all on a paved road. I knew why death road had its name however I didn’t really process the actual danger I could be in. As I mounted the bike I realized there was no going back and I began to get a little nervous, then I got over it! Just like that. I knew this was going to be an amazing experience and I was able to push my fear completely aside. We started with the first 22km on a paved road to get used to being on the bike before we reached a “practice area”. This was actually just a rocky shortcut around a vehicular tunnel. During this shortcut that switched from pavement to dirt and rocks for the first time, and I fell off my bike. It was pretty obvious the guide was worried I would die on death road, but I continued!
We reached a rest stop where we went to the bathroom for 1 Boliviano and then hopped in the van. The van was bringing us the rest of the way to the actual entrance of death road as the paved road was now going uphill, and I did not mind one bit. On the drive the company provided us with snacks, we each got a bottle of water, a banana, and a candy bar. We finally reach the entrance to death road and it looked fake. I felt as if I was Dwayne Johnson in Journey to the Center of the Earth. I have never seen anything like it and it was so desolate. There was early morning fog making it so eery but beautiful.
We put our gear back on and our guide began to tell us the rules. While vehicles are no longer allowed on the road, there actually are a few as people live on death road. He told us if a car was to come, we have to go on the side closest to the cliff. This makes sense as the vehicles have a higher chance of falling off and want to be hugging the mountainside, however, it was frightening. Then right away, we started our 60km journey down the most dangerous road in the world.
The sights were absolutely amazing. There really are no words to describe it. The views coupled with the adrenaline rush of biking down a thin stretch of dirt with a 2,000ft drop is an indescribable feeling.
Toward the beginning of the biking, we took breaks quite often. Our guide wanted to show us the best places to take photos and taught us the history of certain areas. I soon learned why we needed a change of clothes as we biked through waterfalls, absolutely drenching you but it felt great. About halfway into the tour, we took our lunch break. We stopped at a beautiful corner where we explored as we ate the sandwich provided by the company. After about 30 minutes we hopped back on the bike and continued the rest of the way with little to no breaks to truly enjoy the ride.
We rode through villages and more waterfalls and were able to admire the view of Yungas road. We reached a location where you could zipline instead of biking on the flat (slightly inclined) path. The zipline would have been an extra 270 bolivianos, a little under $40. I chose not to do it as I had ziplined in Peru already and was traveling on a budget. Biking instead truly wasn’t too bad, there were a few difficult sections but not anything crazy at all. We finished at the base in a small town and I was speechless. We all cheered and the couple and I bought beers to celebrate.
We then relaxed for about 30 minutes before they brought us to our dinner spot. There was a nice pool and showers which was so necessary after being covered in sweat and dirt. We showered with their provided soaps and towels and changed before dinner. It was buffet style that a family cooked for us and consisted roughly of rice, chicken, vegetables, fried plantain, and eggs. We stayed there for a little under two hours before getting back in the van to start our journey home. The ride was about 2 hours long and I was dropped off at my hostel at around 8 pm.
Now when I was discussing our breaks, it was not painful or tiring at all to cycle death road. It goes completely downhill and you truly do not have to pedal much. The breaks were entirely for us to talk, eat, and take photos. However, do not get me wrong. While it does not hurt during the cycling, you will be sore after. As a completely inexperienced cyclist, my forearms were quite numb- amputation seemed like a fine idea. But it was worth it! So before booking your tour keep in mind you will be sore for a few days after, at least I was. A few of my friends said they were sorer in their legs however my forearms were bothering me the most so it is different for everyone.
Overall, I was really pleased with Barracuda Biking. The price was great for everything included and the guide was amazing. He also took photos on his camera while biking and emailed them to me the day after which was amazing. Biking death road was one of the most amazing and thrilling experiences I have ever done and absolutely recommend doing this if you find yourself in Bolivia one day!
