Titicaca - sounds like a Carry On film.

To get out of La Paz I used the same trick of following a Taxi driver. The traffic is pretty manic and for the first time I understood the comment that "traffic lights are only  a suggestion".

We had to drive back out through El Alto, not the most attractive urban sprawl and I was glad to be back in open countryside. There are two ways to get to Peru, one by road the other via Copacabana (no not that one) on the ferry. Wilks had suggested this is the way to go.

The initial views you get of the lake are of the southern end which has many islands and from the road in the hills it gives a nice perspective. It is not a long ride to Tiquina and the ferry.

The ferry as you can see is basic plank of wood or two nailed together. They line up at the "jetty" waiting for paying customers. I was behind one car lined up for the next ferry but he indicated he wanted to wait for another car. I wasn't in a hurry so it was a nice spot to spend a while and drink in the view as well as some water. Then for some reason we were off. The planks and ramps were not ideal for a bike and the gaping holes in the floor didn't do much for confidence either.
It is a short trip across (a bit like the Falmouth Ferry) but very pleasant for all that.

As the bike doesn't have a reverse gear I was grateful that the Captain of the vessel gave me a hand to get the bike off! I would still be there otherwise.

Once you leave the ferry you climb up and out of the small town and are greeted with a fast flowing road. It is the best bit of bike riding road yet. The Ducati would have been a better bet for this little bit of South America. No traffic meant you could take the racing line through the bends, it wasn't quite knee down stuff but it was bloody good fun!

All too soon you arrive at the border. This is the quietest crossing I have used. The only delay was that I got there at 1:30 and customs didn't get back from lunch until 2:00. He didn't waste any time in opening the gate for me and i was out of Bolivia.

The Peruvian side wasn't any more difficult. Immigration had three officials but they must have been discussing their night on the town as the stamps went down in in seconds. I then wandered over to customs. because I am on my bike i have to have an entry docket each time you enter a country & then hand it in when you leave. He was very helpful but was not a whizz on the computer. A new bit of fun - in Peru you not only have to sign the vehicle document, they get you to put your finger in the ink and put your paw print on it too. Before I left I changed my Bolivars for Sols at a lady sitting on an Orange box. I believe Wilks had a similar pleasure some weeks earlier.

 This is typical of the villages you see as you ride along the lakeside.Basic adobe housing, some animals and wheat. It is indistinguishable from Bolivia as is the dress of the ladies.

Puno is quite a big town on the coast and not a particularly attractive one which is a shame given its location. However by luck I had booked an hotel slightly out of town, not a bad view.

But even better, slightly to the left is this: "Yavari"

In 1861, the Peruvian Government ordered two "gunboats" for Lake Titicaca from England. Without a rail link to the lake, all cargo had to be carried by mule. So the ships were built in kit form, with no piece weighing more than 3 ½ cwts, the maximum carrying capacity of a mule. Incredibly it was all hauled by mule up and over the Andes to Puno 3,800 meters above sea level, taking 6 years to complete. They then faced the task of putting the 2,766 pieces together again. It was launched on Christmas day 1870 and was originally powered by dried Llama dung (no I am not making this up). It worked the lake for over 100 years (partly due to the fresh water not being as corrosive as salt) before being put out to grass. It was then rescued by an English lady who managed the renovation to its current state. It runs twice a year apparently. Best of all, for a Yeovil lad, whilst looking at the engine room I saw this;

Travel half way round the world and find an "oil engine" made in my home town. There are quite a few things on this trip that Dad would have loved.

Well, I thought it was interesting, having heard the story in my youth (probably from Dad).

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