Lucky Old Sun

Peru 2013

Nauta to Iquitos 64 miles 2,300 feet of climbing

We arrived in Nauta around 11:15 pm and took a bit of time to dock. We grabbed out gear bags and off-loaded them, then the bikes. We walked with two bikes each to our hotel a mile or so from the port, leaving Nayda with our gear bags, extra gear, and chairs we had purchased for use on the boat. Once we found the hotel, we were glad to leave our sea legs and sleep in real beds. The next morning we breakfasted at 7:00, loaded Nayda up with all the gear, the extra bikes and the chairs and sent her off in a taxi to Iquitos. We were to enjoy one more day of riding in Northern Peru.

The road between Nauta and Iquitos was a dirt road ten years ago that has been paved. It is the only road of any length out of either Nauta or Iquitos. The trip by bike is an easy five or six hours, by boat the trip is a hundred miles or so and takes about eight hours. Had we taken the boat we would have arrived in Iquitos at 8:00 am tired and weary with less than full enthusiasm for the day ahead.

The ride into Iquitos is surprisingly hilly, a stream of pleasant rollers traveling through the countryside away from the river. We know we are in the jungle because of the heat and humidity. We also know it could be a lot worse. The weather god has been kind to us gringos. We see Fundos (farms), resorts, and thatched huts all along the way to Iquitos. The closer we get to Iquitos the more resort type properties we see. Most are pretty rustic and some are actually quite attractive. Somehow the farms, homesteads and dwellings along the way just seem more purposeful than what we saw earlier in the ride. See if you agree that the pictures tell that story.