PowerCycle

06/29 Damn it! I found out that “cholo” might be slang for “girl” in Peru. So much for being a Mexican gangster. At least I know better if some guy yells it out to me.

Another stupid dog bit my rear pannier this morning. I checked and there is definitely not a picture of a juicy steak on it. I think I’m going to try to find some kind of puncture resistant material that I can tape/sew onto the parts that get bitten the most.

Hard ride today. 4776 feet of climbing over 50 miles. The hard part was dealing with my sore rear. The fancy new bike seat I bought a couple weeks ago just doesn’t cut it after about 30 miles. The scenery along the way was amazing. Had 2 big climbs, the second being the monster one that I didn’t think would ever end. Lot’s of cool rock formations to check out. People are a lot more reserved in this area. Only about half the people I waved at or said hi to responded.

Lonely Planet says Huancavelica is a “safe, serene spot to take a break from the Gringo Trail and soak up life as the locals live it.” It does seem safe in the town but it was kind of funny because riding in from the north the road was partially covered in a lot of rocks. There’d obviously been some protests going on recently (hence the road blocks). There are also a couple dozen military and police officers walking around. I know there is some activity around Ayacucho but that’s still a few days ride from here.