The Grand Tour - Part 5 - Chachapoyas to Moyobamba

Refreshed after my stay in Chachapoyas I set off on the next leg of my journey - I would be joining the main road into the Amazon basin at some stage so I was expecting much heavier traffic than I had come across so far, but the first stage from Chachapoyas was going to be straightforward - good sweeping roads through the Utcubamba River valley.

Panoramic view on the exit from Chachapoyas

The roads were dry when I set out and I made good progress, but before I had gone far I noticed a noise from Oli and realised my chain was slipping! I pulled over and was shocked to see how slack the chain was, but fortunately was carrying basic tools so was able to easily make the adjustment at the side of the road.

Looking back the way I had come while fixing my chain

... and looking forwards

One of my concerns while planning my trip had been mechanical problems, or even punctures, as I was travelling through very remote areas, no roadside rescue companies around, and, as it turned out, very little traffic. I am no mechanic, either, but can effect basic repairs like the loose chain at the side of the road, so always carry some basic tools - though at the end of 2014 (after this trip!) I did buy some better ones while visiting the USA.
Not daunted by this minor set-back I pressed on. The Utcubamba valley is spectacular, and the road pretty good so I was making good time and enjoying the ride ...

Small rockfalls are common along the route - and sometimes they need help to keep the road clear.

... despite occasional hazards! The heavy rainfall in the Andes does cause a lot of landslips and rockfalls, and the road often has minor obstructions like this one.
In 2013, when I last visited Chachapoyas by bus, I went to see the Gocta waterfalls - one of the tallest waterfalls in the world - and I stopped close to the entrance road.

Near the turning to Gocta Waterfall

Small, but very tall, waterfall opposite the turning

Shortly after this I turned onto the Highway 5N at Pedro Ruiz Gallo, and headed further into the Andes. Leaving Pedro Ruiz Gallo there was a sign saying "Police stop ahead!", followed by a "Stop" sign in front of a police post - so I duly stopped my bike at the line. There was an officer lounging in a chair in front of the building and he just looked at me. I waited a few moments and then asked him what he needed from me - and he simply shrugged and waved me on my way!

Up into the clouds - my route was taking me through this over the Andes

Traffic was surprisingly light, even on this main route deep into the Amazon province, and as I climbed I continued to make good progress, though it did get colder and heavy rain fell in places! Since I was riding on dirt, knobbly, tyres I was very cautious round all the twists and turns as the road made it way upwards. At one point I caught up to a large truck carrying logs, and it took me about 15 minutes following him slowly to find a suitable place to overtake due to the narrowness of the road, and the many bends. Five minutes past him there was a ford, where a mountain stream crossed the road, and beside this a man in military uniform carrying an AK47 assault rifle, who waved me down!!
He had "Guarda" emblazoned across his chest and shoulders, and with the rifle in his hands I didn't hesitate to stop! He came over and explained that he, and many others like him, were semi-official guardians of the road - they didn't get paid, but patrolled places like this ford and road works, where traffic is forced to slow down and so had, in the past, become a popular place for "bandidos" to hang out and rob motorists. They relied on donations from motorists - the truck I had been following had overtaken me while I was stopped, and the driver had simply tossed a few coins out of the window - but there was no obligation to give anything. It is much harder on a motorbike since you have to stop to get money put of your pockets, while a motorist can simply lean out of the window, but I asked him how much he expected, and we settled on S/.2 (less than £0.50) and I was on my way again.
I soon caught up with the timber truck again, but by now It was raining quite heavily, so the spray kicked up by the truck tyres made visibility for overtaking poor, so I was relieved to see a Mirador (viewpoint) appear so I could pull over and let him get away. The viewpoint was for the Alto Mayo Forest Reserve, an area of some 1820 sq kms (700 sq miles) of protected forest.

Alto Mayo Mirador - my route was taking me through this and into the far horizon!

Panoramic shot from the Mirador

It was still drizzling, but I stayed there for around 15 minutes, munching on some fruit, to let the truck get far enough ahead of me, and admiring the spectacular view and tranquility, then proceeded down the road.I did catch up with the truck again fairly quickly, but along a straight stretch of road so got past with ease and soon left him far behind.
Soon I was descending the other side of the Andes, and rounding one curve noticed a large lake ahead,

Laguna Pomacochas at Florida

which I had been hoping to come across. While in Chachapoyas it was listed as one of the places to visit, but as I was going past it I had decided to check it out on the way to Moyobamba. Florida is a small town, and I turned off towards the lake, where there was a tourist centre.

At the lakeside

and a boardwalk down to the lake where you could go for boat rides. I was the only visitor there at the time, but the place was really tranquil. I had lunch at the restaurant there, and decided that on my way back I would like to stop off and explore the area some more, so after lunch headed back into the town to see if I could find a hostal. There were two or three, but one caught my eye, so I went in and booked 2 nights for my return from Tarapoto, and set off again for Moyobamba.
Soon I was down in the Amazon basin, out of the Andes, and thought the countryside was no longer as spectacular I was making good time, and I arrived in Moyobamba around 16.00. When booking accommodation I always used to print off a map to the hostal from the booking website, and study the arrival directions before setting out each day, so followed these to where it said the hostal was. It led me to a promenade overlooking the Mayo river where there were several restaurants, and a couple of small hostal, but no sign of mine! After checking out all the side streets I finally went into a shop and asked them, and they directed me to a place a few blocks away, but again - no hostal! I had the contact number but though I called several times there was no response, so I asked someone else, and they thought it was down by the river, not up here on the higher level near the promenade and viewpoint, and directed me to the road down - which was quite a long way from where I was.
Eventually I found the unmarked route down to the river, but was suddenly met by roadworks closing the road completely. They were laying new sewage pipes and had dug the whole area up. I parked the bike and walked to the corner

This is what greeted me, and where I had to park my bike

The road down to the river - the entrance to my hostal was just above the dark green building

to be greeted by deep excavations and no way of getting the bike across! I still wasn't sure I was in the right place, as to my right were concrete steps back up to the higher part of town, and the promenade where I had started, but then I noticed the small hostal sign "La casa de mi sueno" ("The house of my dream") opposite, so gingerly made my way across the roadworks and up to the gate.

Standing by the sign with the gate ahead

By now I was having serious doubts about my choice of lodging - it had taken me almost 90 minutes to find it since arriving in Moyobamba, was difficult to find, there was no way I could get my bike here for secure parking, and it didn't look that impressive from the outside - but once through the gates I stepped into a little piece of heaven.

La casa de mi sueno - Moyobamba

I wasn't too happy about not having access to secure parking, and having to leave my bike around 200 metres away in a poorly lit area, but was assured it was safe, so threw on the cover, and headed back into the hostal grounds - I was the only person staying, they had a wonderful restaurant, and the room was lovely (which I will cover in the next post), so well worth the anxiety about getting there.
Another 260 kms covered, and now 2 days to rest and enjoy Moyabamba.